I WILL GIVE YOU THE
PAINTINGS OF- THE ATHEIST?
https://youtu.be/sEsBnAIUxZs I will give you the paintings of the atheist
ON VIDEO-
.Saved $800 a month
.Show- bread?
.Remember him
.Frances Xavier
.unity
.Flying scroll- a UFO?
One memory- only
.God’s box
.God’s mobile community
[past posts- verses- new stuff, below]
Psalm
108:10 Who will bring me into the strong city? who will lead me into Edom? [I
wrote North Bergen/NYC a few years back- for the word Edom. I found it
interesting because this was the first chapter I read when I arrived in New
Jersey].
Psalm
110:7 He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up the
head. [I read this Psalm on the morning I left- I took it as ‘seek me- even
stop [rest stop overnight] and do your normal reading of scripture- and watch a
video from the previous week’. The Psalms always seem to have meaning-
direction- in a different way than when I read the ‘regular’ bible chapters at
night.
I did
teach on Manna [bread/word from God] on this trip- and yes- I felt I ‘heard’
God thru the Psalms on a daily basis.
Psalm
111:6 He hath shewed his people the power of his works, that he may give them
the heritage of the heathen. [Ok- I read this when I got back to Texas.
I
hope to talk about it on the video and show you the paintings Danny gave me.
Danny-
who is an atheist- gives me stuff.
The
verse above can be translated ‘he gives you the property- of the heathen’
[unbeliever].
I
didn’t get a chance to even see what the paintings were.
As I
hung them up- yes- they were significant.
They
were done by an 86 year old man- Danny bought them because he too is an artist-
and has taught artists ‘how to paint’.
He
told me these were from a man who never had training- yet he said this man had
a special gift.
Danny
was going to sell them for a few hundred dollars- but actually wanted me to
have them.
So-
the 2 paintings are-
A man- with a backpack- walking up a mountain.
This is one of the actual ‘images’ I
scribble/write- when I feel like I should take the annual trip to the NYC area.
So- it was a sort of confirmation.
The second painting was a bird- flying by the
coast.
This is the other image I use- when ‘heading
out’- I even spoke about it on some videos before I left [my eagle ring- I
talked about it with Crow and Andy].
So- the significance was these paintings were given
to me by an ‘unbeliever’ and that’s the first Psalm I read when I got back [you
get the property of the heathen].
And both of these paintings came from an 86
year old man- from North Bergen- at the end of his journey in life.
Getting ready to ‘fly away’.
I also found it interesting that right before I
left Texas- I started quoting ‘I will give thee the heathen for your
inheritance- and the ends of the earth for your possession’- but I never
connected it with the Psalm above.
NEW STUFF- On the video I taught some about
Francis Xavier [1506-1552] - one of the founding members of the Jesuit order [Society
of Jesus] along with Ignatius Loyola.
He met Ignatius at the University of Paris-
while pursuing an intellectual career.
Over time Ignatius example [and prodding]
convinced him to abandon his own plans to live a comfortable life and serve as
a scholar- and become a very effective missionary to the Far East.
Much like the story of John Calvin- who too was
persuaded to abandon his own plans to simply be a scholar- and to serve in forming
the community in Geneva.
Xavier arrived in Goa [India] and eventually
went to Japan.
The king of Portugal- John the 3rd-
requested missionaries for the areas Portugal was colonizing in India.
This century [16th] was one of
exploration and colonization.
In Japan Xavier had great success- the city of
Nagasaki was started to simply provide a place for all the Japanese converts!
There were reported miracles of healing under
the ministry of Xavier- and he became one of the most successful missionaries
from the Jesuit order.
Xavier came into some controversy- initially in
his missionary efforts he was ‘more conservative’ in that he tried to get new converts
to abandon all former cultural ties- in order to embrace the faith.
Over time- he sort of ‘mixed’ [called
syncretism] the eastern religious practices with the faith.
When the Dominicans and Franciscans saw what
was happening- they reported it to the church.
This became such a controversy among the
Japanese- eventually the priests were martyred along the road to Nagasaki.
A sad event indeed.
The Protestants neglected the Far East in their
missionary efforts- they were primarily trying to reform the church in Europe.
Yet Ignatius and his society were spreading the
gospel- in areas that never heard either the Catholic or Protestant message.
All in all- Xavier did a very effective job-
and is well respected by both Catholics and Protestants for the work he did.
PAST POSTS-
. ROMANS 8-10
VIDEO- [I cover stuff on the
videos that are not in the post- here are a few]
.Council of Trent- what did the
Church say?
.Do we get the final say- at the
Judgment?
.What are the Catholic virtues-
did Paul teach them?
.Augustine, Calvin, Whitfield and
Wesley.
.Infusion or Imputation? How bout
both!
At the bottom I added some quotes
from the Catechism of the Catholic church- to show that the official teaching
of the church DOES NOT TEACH SALVATION BY THE LAW- BUT BY CHRIST.
. REMINDER- This is a commentary
I wrote years ago- the videos are new.
.CHAPTER 8- FEW POINTS;
1-
Did God choose us to believe- or did we choose
him?
2-
When Paul says ‘he makes our bodies alive’ is he
only speaking about resurrection?
3-
Does God use difficulty- or is it to be rebuked?
4-
Was Paul a ‘hyper- Calvinist’?
(839)ROMAN 8:1-4 ‘There is
therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not
after the flesh [sinful nature] but after the Spirit [new nature]’. Now, having
proved the reality of sin and guilt [chapter 7] Paul teaches that those who
‘are in Christ’ are free from condemnation. Why? Because they ‘walk according
to the Spirit’ the ‘righteousness of the law is being fulfilled in them’.
Having no condemnation isn’t simply a ‘legal function’ of declared
righteousness, and Paul didn’t teach it that way! Paul is saying ‘all those who
have believed in Jesus and have been legally justified [earlier arguments in
chapters 3-4] are now walking [actually acting out] this new nature. Therefore
[because you no longer walk according to the flesh] there is no condemnation’!
This argument helps bridge the gap between Catholic and Protestant theology,
part of the reason for the ongoing schism is over this understanding. After the
Reformation the Catholic Church had a Counter Reformation council, the council
of Trent. They dealt with a lot of the abuses of the Catholic Church, things
that many Catholic leaders were complaining about before the Reformation. They
did deal with some issues and reformed somewhat. To the dismay of the more
‘reform minded’ Catholics [with Protestant leanings] they still came down
strong on most pre reform doctrines. This made it next to impossible for the
schism to be healed. But one area of disagreement was over ‘legal’ versus
‘actual/experiential’ justification. The Catholic position was ‘God can’t
declare/say a person is justified until they actually are’ [experientially].
The Protestant side [Luther] said ‘God does justify [legal declaration] a
person by faith alone’. Like I taught before, both of these are true. The
Catholic view of ‘justification’ is looking ahead towards a future reality [The
same way James speaks of justification in a future sense- He uses the example from
Genesis 22, when Abraham does a righteous act] while the Protestant view is
focusing on the initial legal act of justification [Genesis 15]. Here Paul
agrees with both views, he says ‘those who walk after the Spirit [actually
living the changed life] have no condemnation’.
(840)ROMANS 8:5-13 Paul will teach
the impossibility of the ‘carnal minds’ ability to submit to Gods law. Those
who are ‘in the flesh’ [the unregenerate nature- not simply ‘in the body’. We
will get into these distinctions in a minute] can’t submit to God. Society
spends so much time and effort trying to get the ‘lost man’ to do what's right.
The prohibition movement [outlawing liquor], the increase in the severity of
punishment for crimes dealing with drugs. Making the child kidnappers crime
punishable by death. While all these laws are necessary and good [though some
debate the wisdom of the kidnapper one, they think the kidnapper might just go
ahead and kill the victim if the same punishment applies to both crimes] they
have little effect on getting ‘the carnal man to submit’. Paul also says ‘if
the Spirit of him who raised up Christ from the dead dwells in you, then he
that raised up Christ from the dead shall quicken [make alive] your mortal
bodies by his Spirit that dwells in you’. Let’s do a little teaching here. Most
commentators see this as speaking of the promise of the resurrection ‘your
mortal bodies’. I see this more in line with the context of chapter 7. The
discussion of ‘mortal bodies’ [your actual body, the flesh- which is different
than ‘the fleshly nature’ which refers to the sinful nature] speaks of your
actual life now ‘let not sin therefore reign in your mortal bodies’. Also in
verse 13 of this chapter the same theme is seen ‘if ye thru the Spirit mortify
the deeds of the body ye shall live’. I believe Paul is primarily saying ‘if
you are in the Spirit [born of God] the Spirit of life will make alive your
physical life in such a way that you will glorify God in your body and spirit,
which are Gods’ [Corinthians]. Chapter 12 says your bodies are living
sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God. Now later on in this chapter [8] we do
see the resurrection, which is called ‘the redemption of the body’ [verse 23]
so these two concepts work together. The fact that the believer is ‘training
his mortal body’ for God [thru obedience] is sort of a precursor to the
resurrection! Now, some believers confuse the resurrection of the body and the
work of regeneration in ‘making you alive’ [Ephesians 2]. The work of
regeneration brings your dead spirit back to life [born again] when you believe
[which is a Divine imputation of faith at the moment of conversion, a sovereign
act]. This ‘coming alive’ is purely spiritual. This qualifies you for the
future physical resurrection of the body [Ephesians calls this the ‘down
payment’, the ‘earnest of our inheritance, until the redemption of the
purchased possession’. The word ‘earnest’ here is used in the same way as
‘earnest money’ in a real estate transaction. The fact that we have been ‘sealed’
with the Holy Spirit is our ‘guarantee of future bodily resurrection’]. Bishop
N.T. Wright, the bishop of Durham [the church of England- Durham is the 3rd
most influential post in the Church of England. Canterbury is at the top] has
recently written on the truths of the resurrection of the body. He is an
excellent scholar, way way above my league. He has been instrumental in ‘re
introducing’ the reality of Christ’s resurrection as well as our future
resurrection as a very real Christian belief [and historic truth as well]. I
have read some of Wrights stuff and am a little surprised at some of the ideas
on ‘soul sleep’ and the immortality of the soul. Bishop Wright seems to side
with some of the ideas that certain restorationist groups [7th day
Adventists] espouse, that the Catholic Church kind of corrupted the ideas of
heaven and the soul by being overly influenced by Greek thought. While it is
possible for Bishop Wright to have come to his understanding entirely thru
scripture and history, yet I felt it a little strange to see him make these
arguments. For the most part I like brother Wright and totally agree with his
stance on the future ‘new heavens and new earth’ as the final place of rest [as
opposed to dying and going to heaven now, which is a temporary place] but there
is the biblical reality of a present ‘heaven’ and this doesn’t only come from
Greek thought. I have often used the Christian doctrine of the new heavens and
new earth while speaking with the Jehovah’s witnesses, I always agree on the reality
of a future kingdom on earth. I simply steer the conversation back to ‘who
qualifies for it’ and get straight to the gospel. Well anyway we have a promise
of a future resurrection, and also a ‘quickening of the body now’ [God actually
using our physical life to glorify him]. These are both great truths!
(841)ROMANS 8: 14-18 ‘For as many
as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the Sons of God’. Many of us are
familiar with this verse [I hope!]. We often see it as saying ‘Gods direction
in our lives is proof that we are Christians’ true enough. But in context
‘being led by Gods Spirit’ means living the new life thru Christ. The putting
to death of the old man and being ‘made alive’ thru Christ is what this is
saying. Paul agrees with John [1st John] ‘those that do what is
right [led by the Spirit] are of God’. Paul says ‘we have received the Spirit
and a natural result of this is crying “Abba, Father”. I don’t want to do too
much here, but Paul sees the ‘confession’ and heart cry of the believer as proof,
a result of being ‘a habitation of the Spirit’. A sign, if you will, of being
born of God is confessing/ praying to the Father. Paul quoted David in chapter
4 ‘for this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou
mayest be found’ [Psalms 32- actually Paul quotes a different section from the
Psalm, but this theme is consistent with Paul’s view]. Paul knew the reality of
‘the godly calling upon God’ they have an inner cry of ‘Abba, father’. ‘We are
heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ’. For many years this has been a
popular verse among many believers, often times it is used to say ‘God owns the
cattle on a thousand hills’ [which he does] therefore if we are heirs ‘give me
some cattle’! [stuff]. Here Paul uses this term in speaking of our
identification with Christ’s sufferings. ‘If we suffer with him, we too shall
share [joint heir!] in his glory’ [future glorification at the resurrection- we
shall see him and be changed in a moment, at the twinkling of an eye. This
mortal shall put on immortality]. It’s a symptom of modern American
Christianity to view all these scriptures thru a materialistic lens, Paul held
to the promise of a future reward [at the resurrection] that enabled him to go
thru great difficulty and suffering in this present life. He counted the
suffering as a privilege that he shared with Christ.
(843)ROMANS 8: 19-25 ‘the
sufferings of this present time [are you ‘presently’ suffering?] are not worthy
to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us’. Paul compares the
difficulty to the reward. The reward here is the future resurrection. Paul did
not see suffering as ‘from the devil’ or the reward as something material
[monetary stuff! The resurrection body will be ‘material’ - real]. Paul teaches
that the whole creation is waiting for this day. Not only will we get a
‘makeover’ but there will be a new heaven and a new earth! The creation itself
longs for this [almost as much as Al Gore!] This resurrection is called ‘the
redemption of our body’. The next verse says ‘we are saved by hope’. John also
says [1st John] that the future reality of the resurrection ‘causes us to be
pure in this life’ [every one that has this hope in him purifies himself, even
as he is pure]. Why? Because we know God has a purpose for our bodies as well
as our spirits! The ‘getting saved by hope’ simply means the future hope of the
resurrection ‘encourages’ us to live clean now. Once again ‘saved’ is a neutral
term. In can apply to all sorts of things. I always found it funny how when you
read certain commentaries, that you see the difficulty Christians have when
coming across these types of verses. There’s a verse that says ‘the woman will
be saved thru childbearing’ geez, you wouldn’t believe the difficulty some
writers have when they come across this stuff. Some teach ‘she will be ‘saved’
thru the birth of a child [Jesus]’ and all sorts of stuff. I think if we simply
changed the word ‘saved’ for ‘delivered’ [which are basically the same thing]
that maybe this would help. But thank God that we have a future resurrection to
look forward to, let this truth ‘deliver’ you from the temptation to think
‘what’s all this suffering worth, why even go thru it?’ Because we have a great
promise at the other end!
(845)ROMANS 8:26-28 ‘Likewise the
Spirit also helpeth our infirmities’ why does Paul say ‘likewise’? He is saying
‘not only does the future hope of the resurrection sustain us, but also Gods
Spirit helps us’! He knows how to make intercession for us in ways that we
cannot. I just finished an hour prayer time, not an ‘official’ intercession
time [which I do a few times a week now]. But an ‘unofficial’ time where I try
and hear what the Spirit is speaking. When you are ‘praying in the Spirit’
[which can include the charismatic expression of tongues] you are depending
upon the Spirit to transcend your limited ability to articulate what needs to
be said. ‘All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who
are ‘the called’ according to his purpose’. A very famous verse indeed. What does
it mean? It means what it says! Over the years I have heard so many excuses for
trying to get around difficult things. Why do the righteous suffer? Some taught
it was because of their ignorance of scripture. Why did the things that
happened to Job happen? Some said it was because he ‘feared’ that the things
would happen [this group seems to miss the whole underlying reason for the
book. Job’s friends are continually looking for a reason thru out the book. The
point is, sometimes there is no reasonable explanation. I realize you can pick
apart certain statements from Job and come up with ‘reasons’, but the meaning
of the book is God is sovereign and we shouldn’t always think we can figure him
out or ‘work the system’]. Here Paul says ‘whatever is happening to you right
now
[parts]
[just as a side note- this order
rose up during the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. A
soldier by the name of Ignatius Loyola was wounded and recovering in the
hospital.
He read about the life of Christ
and dedicated himself to the Lord.
The Jesuits were the order he
founded.
They evangelized all the way into
Asia- an area that the Protestant missionaries avoided.
The Jesuits played a major role
in the scientific revolution- as a percentage of how few Jesuits there were-
they had a huge impact on the development of modern science.]
So governor Brown said his state
has lived beyond it’s means for too long- they spent money they did not have-
and now the chickens have come home to roost.
Brown is a liberal Democrat.
The governor of N.Y. said the
same thing a few months back.
When he got elected he actually
worked with the unions in the state and worked out a deal where they were going
to cut the huge expenses that the retirees managed to bargain for over the
years.
Cuomo- another Democrat- said it
was impossible for the state to continue to pay out these lavish benefits.
After the union leaders made the
deal- the rank and file rose up [like Greece] and simply elected new leaders
who would fight the changes.
I heard a clip from Cuomo- he was
yelling ‘we can’t keep making the rich/businesses pay- they are all leaving the
state’- just like Cali.
So- with unemployment at historic
highs- with state and local govts having to lay off tons of teachers and cops
and firefighters.
While the cost to the states is
going up- a lot [Obama care].
With all these things in the
hopper- besides the ‘unknowns’ like the banks [Morgan Chase] still making risky
bets.
Yes- in my view I could not see
how some financial guys were talking a huge recovery- some have said they
thought the DOW would be at 17,000 next year- nuts!
As I spoke to my liberal friend-
they said ‘so- do you think Romney would have been able to create more jobs
than Obama’!
They were mad- I said I’m really
not a Romney supporter- but being I live in oil state I know from firsthand
experience that Obama has cost us jobs.
When he got in office the
regulations and the EPA came down hard on the state- they cost lots of jobs.
I saw a clip- video- from Obama
the other day- it was from January of 2008- he said he wanted to see the cost
of opening up coal powered plants go so high that any sane business person
would simply choose not to do it.
Okay- if you have said these
things- and have actually done them- then yes- there have been very real jobs
lost because of these things.
I assume Romney would not have
done this- at least not as much as Obama.
So yes- it’s quite possible that
the president’s agenda has cost jobs.
I also explained to my friend
that many business owners have put off hiring for 3 years now- because if Obama
care passes many of them will be mandated to pay the health care- or a huge
fine- for each worker.
[parts]
Now- I think Francis might become
my favorite in recent history.
Why?
Francis [the name he took- from
Francis of Assisi- also speaks about his character. St. Francis forsook family
wealth to work in Gods field- he believed God called him to help restore the
church to her original design].
So- Pope Francis lived the same
type of calling.
He’s the first Pope from America
[albeit Latin America].
He’s the first from the Jesuit
order to hold the office- the Jesuits are my favorite Catholic order.
If you remember my church history
section- I covered the Jesuits- and complimented them a lot.
The Jesuits are the intellectuals
of the church- now- the Catholic Church as a whole is of course very
intellectual.
But the Jesuits were very
influential in the development of the scientific method.
As a percentage- there were more
Jesuit leaders in science than any other group.
They also were missionary minded.
When I covered them in the past I
showed how after the 16th century Protestant Reformation the Jesuits
did a sort of Counter Reformation and evangelized Asia- an area where the
Protestants fell short.
So- as you can see- I’m a fan of
the Jesuits.
Francis- from Buenos Aires
Argentina- lived among the poor- he cooked his own meals and rejected the perks
that Cardinals/Arch Bishops get.
Yet- he was a ‘conservative’ in
doctrine.
Huh?
How could he be a sort of
Liberation theologian- and yet hold to conservative views?
Here’s where our modern news
shows mess stuff up.
As an avid news watcher- the last
few years one of the critiques I gave was the mistake of men like Glenn beck
and others- who associated Liberation Theology with heresy.
Now- Beck and others meant well-
they just made the mistake of demonizing people they don’t understand [remember
the rampage against Van Jones?]
But that’s why we need to get our
info from better informed folk.
Anyway- Liberation Theology is a
form of Christian teaching that associates the ministry of Jesus to the poor-
and seeks to impellent that- sometimes too far- with government programs.
So- in Latin America- you have
had Catholic champions of the poor and down trodden- who advocated for the
poor- and at the same time believed in the historic positions of the doctrines
of the church.
For instance- some ‘liberal’
scholars reject the resurrection of Jesus- and other key teachings of the
church.
These men [both Catholic and
Protestant] are referred to as Liberal scholars.
[parts]
Let’s cover some of the history of the U.S.
There have been times in our nation where we- as a nation-
embraced wicked There have been times in our nation where we- as a nation-
embraced wicked things- and called them just.
In 1857 the Supreme Court deemed a Black man to ‘be less’ than a
White man.
This is the infamous Dred Scott decision.
A Black slave was moved to a northern state where slavery was not
accepted- he sued for his freedom- the case went to the supreme court- and they
ruled unjustly- yet- this ruling was considered the law of the land.
In 1896 the court justified racial segregation in the Plessy
versus Ferguson case- the court ruled that racial segregation in the schools
was just.
This was overturned in the Brown versus Board of Education ruling
of 1954.
Now- in 1973 the court decided that the murder of children in the
womb was an inherent right.
This was the infamous Roe v Wade case.
The court found that under the Due Process clause of the 14th
amendment- there was a woman’s right to privacy- which extended to the aborting
of babies in the womb.
Many legal scholars- even pro-abortion ones- consider this ruling
to be flawed.
The initial ruling was abortion is now a constitutional RIGHT- but
it can only be done in the 1st- 2nd trimester.
Later this was dropped- and it was considered legal to abort a
baby until the point of viability outside the mother’s womb.
Now- why bring up these things?
When we engage in other countries- when we go to war.
The primary thing that that our troops swear allegiance to is to
protect the constitution.
Which includes ‘our values’.
We often say that radical Islam is a threat to our way of life-
our freedoms- our values.
These Muslim countries have values- one being they do not believe/practice
abortion- which indeed is a hideous crime that the U.S. engages in- some 1.2
million unborn babies every year.
We are outraged that radical militants target civilians for a
‘political/military end’.
One of the definitions of terrorism is this- the targeting of
civilians for some type of goal.
Which I agree- is wrong.
When we bombed the Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki- we did
indeed purposefully target women and children- for a political/military
outcome- the ending of WW2.
At the time of the dropping of the bombs- Germany already
surrendered- the war was winding down.
There is a debate on whether or not we needed to do it.
But our country just obtained the bomb- thanks to the genius of
Albert Einstein- and we decided to use it.
My purpose in bringing these things up is not to justify the
beheading of civilians- which is wrong.
Nor is it to say that our ending of the war was an act of
terrorism.
But it to show that we- as a nation- have gone down paths that do
indeed bring the judgment of God upon a people.
The reason I pasted some of the pictures below was for us to see
the things that we allow as a nation.
Many of the values that we fight for are wrong- when the Supreme
Court makes decisions- which I have showed you have been wrong- then these
decisions do indeed become the law of the land [this is a legal debate that has
gone on for years- between conservative/liberal scholars].
But the fact is when we allow things that are atrocious- like the
aborting of full term babies- then in a sense when we war- we war to protect
all of the rights that we as a society deem just.
Yet- we have a history as a nation that shows us we have made very
unjust decisions in the past.
And it’s difficult to say to the Islamic world that we are fighting
for what’s right- that we are defending just values- when some of these values
are not just.
The beheading of journalists on TV is wrong- but because we all
saw it- that’s what enraged us.
[parts]
Now- we will read how John gets himself into some hot water.
Not only is he preaching about The Lamb of God- he starts saying ‘Herod [the
Roman ‘king’ figure that was over the Jewish people] you have take your brother
Phillips wife- you can’t have her!’
Herod was the son of Herod the great- we read about ‘the
great’ as being the king at the time of Jesus birth- he was the one who had all
the babies killed because he heard that Christ was born and he wanted to wipe
out the competition- this Messiah who would be ‘The King of the Jews’.
The funny thing was- Herod wasn’t a Jew. Yet he saw himself
as the actual Messiah to the Jews- Rome gave Herod [the great] this figure head
authority- and it literally went to his head. Now- Herod died soon after the
slaughter of the kids- and his son would ‘reign in his place’.
This Herod would be the king at the time of Jesus earthly
ministry. This is the king who John the Baptist was preaching against.
One time they came to Jesus- to kind of intimidate him- they
said ‘you know- Herod knows about you- he will get you’. Jesus- you know- we are supposed to respect
authority- right? He says ‘go tell that fox- that today and tomorrow I do
healings and great works- and on the 3rd day I will be perfected’.
Perfected means ‘come to maturity’. This was a reference to
his death and resurrection on the ‘3rd day’.
So Johns out there preaching against what he sees as
corruption in govt. and one day they finally had enough- Herod puts John in
prison.
Now John’s sitting there in prison- right at the time of
this great ministry of Jesus. I mean Jesus is healing people left and right-
raising the dead. I mean John must have felt vindicated- right?
John’s sitting in jail- and day after day- in this prison-
he starts to think ‘geez- I have been stuck here for a while now- I mean I was
the forerunner- Jesus said that about me- I’m the voice of one- the guy who
proclaimed the truth when no one else was willing to take the risk- what the
hell am I doing here- sitting in prison!’
John must have thought he was getting a bad deal. He sends 2
of his disciples to ask Jesus ‘are you the one- or should we look for another?’
Was he having doubts? Come on- Jesus is raising the dead for
heaven’s sake- John was basically saying to Jesus ‘are you the one? If so- why
am I still in the damn jail!’
John was being sifted. Peter will be- Job was too. For some
strange reason- this is how things work. The bread has to be broken before it
can feed people.
Of course we know the rest of the story- Herod's daughter in
law will do a dance for the king- and the wife will get the head of John the
Baptist on a platter- she got tired of hearing him.
Soren Kierkegaard- the 19th century
Christian/Philosopher is considered to be the Father of Existentialism.
Existentialism is the philosophy that says you start with ‘existence’ that is
you begin the journey with real life passion- real interaction in life. Your
failures and your high points- all these real things we experience in life-
these are the things that shape us- that make us real.
Soren lived in a day where the Danish state church was dead
and formal- and he spoke out against the dead lukewarm orthodoxy of his day.
One time he would say when he got tired of all the religious
formalism- the fake plastic face we all put on so other people can’t really see
our struggles- he said he would go read the Old Testament- the stories of
murder and adultery and covering up crimes- he said these were real stories- of
failure and success- of sitting in jail and thinking you might get out- but
instead you get your head taken off.
These are the real stories of some of the most hallowed
saints of history- yes- human frailty runs right through it all- like some
scarlet thread.
One time Jesus said to Peter ‘I have prayed for you’ that
sounds great when it stands alone- but when you see it in the context of the
whole verse- then you realize that you just might be in for something that you
never expected would happen- you might be getting ready to go through a real
existential moment- face to face with your own failures and humanity.
Peter will later write ‘beloved- when you go thru trials-
don’t think it strange. Realize your brothers are also going through them’ and
‘it is not only our privilege to believe on the name of Jesus- but it is also
our privilege to suffer with him’.
Yes Peter went on to get past the sifting- the memory of
being the disciple who denied Jesus. I mean Peter was the only one who walked
on water [ besides Jesus]- he raised the dead in the book of Acts- how we
remember him?
We remember the day he got sifted like wheat. It’s not easy
to forget those days- and even harder to live through them.
VERSES-
. Romans 7:1 Know ye not, brethren,
(for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a
man as long as he liveth?
Romans
7:2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so
long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of
her husband.Romans 7:3 So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.
Romans 7:4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
Romans 7:5 For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
Romans 7:6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.
Revelation 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem,
coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her
husband.
Revelation 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying,
Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and
they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
Revelation 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes;
and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall
there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee,
Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented
long ago in sackcloth and ashes. Matt. 11:21
For the time is come that judgment must begin
at thehouse of God: and if
it first begin at us, what shall theend
be of them that obey not the gospel of God? 1st Peter 4:17
2Samuel 7:1 And it came to pass, when the king sat in his house,
and the LORD had given him rest round about from all his enemies;
2Samuel 7:2 That the king said unto Nathan the prophet, See now, I
dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.
2Samuel 7:3 And Nathan said to the king, Go, do all that is in
thine heart; for the LORD is with thee.
2Samuel 7:4 And it came to pass that night, that the word of the
LORD came unto Nathan, saying,
2Samuel 7:5 Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith the LORD,
Shalt thou build me an house for me to dwell in?
2Samuel 7:6 Whereas I have not dwelt in any house since the time
that I brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt, even to this day, but
have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle.
2Samuel 7:7 In all the places wherein I have walked with all the
children of Israel spake I a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I
commanded to feed my people Israel, saying, Why build ye not me an house of
cedar?
2Samuel 7:8 Now therefore so shalt thou say unto my servant David,
Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, from following
the sheep, to be ruler over my people, over Israel:
2Samuel 7:9 And I was with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and
have cut off all thine enemies out of thy sight, and have made thee a great
name, like unto the name of the great men that are in the earth.
2Samuel 7:10 Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel,
and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no
more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as
beforetime,
2Samuel 7:11 And as since the time that I commanded judges to be
over my people Israel, and have caused thee to rest from all thine enemies.
Also the LORD telleth thee that he will make thee an house.
2Samuel 7:12 And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep
with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of
thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
2Samuel 7:13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will
stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
2Samuel 7:14 I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he
commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes
of the children of men:
2Samuel 7:15 But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I
took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee.
2Samuel 7:16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established
for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.
2Samuel 7:17 According to all these words, and according to all
this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
9 Then
verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly
sanctuary.
2 For there
was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table,
and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary.
3 And after
the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;
4 Which had
the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold,
wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the
tables of the covenant;
5 And over
it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak
particularly.
Hebrews
.
Ezekiel 28:1 The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying,
Ezekiel 28:2 Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith
the Lord GOD; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God,
I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not
God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God:
Ezekiel 28:3 Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no
secret that they can hide from thee:
Ezekiel 28:13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every
precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the
beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle,
and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee
in the day that thou wast created.
Ezekiel 28:14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I
have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up
and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
Ezekiel 28:15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou
wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.
Ezekiel 28:25 Thus saith the Lord GOD; When I shall have gathered
the house of Israel from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be
sanctified in them in the sight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their
land that I have given to my servant Jacob.
Ezekiel 28:26 And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build
houses, and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have
executed judgments upon all those that despise them round about them; and they
shall know that I am the LORD their God.
Mark 8:1 In those days the multitude being very
great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and
saith unto them,
Mark
8:2 I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me
three days, and have nothing to eat:Mark 8:3 And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far.
Mark 8:4 And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?
Mark 8:5 And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven.
Mark 8:6 And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people.
Mark 8:7 And they had a few small fishes: and he blessed, and commanded to set them also before them.
Mark 8:8 So they did eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets.
Deuteronomy
10:8 At that time the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the
covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister unto him, and to
bless in his name, unto this day.
23 For I
have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord
Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
24 And when
he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which
is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
1 Cor. 11
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