Luke 9:28b-36 (Sermon for the week of March 5th)

Gospel
Lk 9:28b-36

Jesus took Peter, John, and James
and went up the mountain to pray.
While he was praying his face changed in appearance
and his clothing became dazzling white.
And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah,
who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus
that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem.
Peter and his companions had been overcome by sleep,
but becoming fully awake,
they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.
As they were about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus,
“Master, it is good that we are here;
let us make three tents,
one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
But he did not know what he was saying.
While he was still speaking,
a cloud came and cast a shadow over them,
and they became frightened when they entered the cloud.
Then from the cloud came a voice that said,
“This is my chosen Son; listen to him.”
After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.
They fell silent and did not at that time
tell anyone what they had seen.

SERMON:
This week we read about the Transfiguration of Jesus. It is an event that mankind has not seen since Moses. We will talk about that in a bit. One must come to answer the question if this event happened or not. If it didn't happen then the Gospels and/or Jesus is a fraud. If it did happen, then indeed Jesus is the Son of God just as the "Voice" said. This event was supernatural. Notice that there are two other people present. Moses and Elijah. Why are these two individuals present? Moses was told that he would enter the Promised Land. However, he never did enter the Promised Land...he was allowed only to see it.
Let's read
Deuteronomy 34:4-5:
4 Then the LORD said to him, "This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, 'I will give it to your descendants.' I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it." 5 And Moses the servant of the LORD died there in Moab, as the LORD had said.

But earlier God PROMISES Moses:
Exodus 6:7-8
7 I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. 8 And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD.' "

So, what's the deal here? God promises something and then doesn't follow through. Well, the answer is no. God is not a liar and He does what He says! His ways are not always clear to us, but God still does what He promises. Where is the Mt. of Transfiguration? IT IS in the Promised Land! God has indeed led Moses into the Promised Land to stand besides the One who talked to Moses. Jesus is the One who promised Moses, and Jesus follows through!

Now why is Elijah present here? Remember the prophecy:
Malachi 4:4-5
4 "Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel.5 "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes.

The dreadful day of the Lord is Jesus' crucifixion. (In the future Elijah will also reappear again at the Second Coming.) And the Transfiguration is BEFORE the crucifixion. Indeed the prophecy comes true...Elijah has reappeared! Prophecy has several layers of truth. Elijah has reappeared here, Elijah has not died here, so that means Elijah will appear again. This prophecy has two meanings...

One more statement about Moses and Elijah...Israel are the people of the Law and of the Prophets, and Moses was the great law giver and Elijah was the great prophet.

Why the Transfiguration? The Jews have their own personal and very human expectations of what the Messiah will do. They interpret prophecy in order to justify what they think the Messiah will do FOR THEM. Jesus did not come to save the Jews...they had their chance...many times. Jesus came to be the Messiah for the whole world and not a small population of Jews who frankly have trampled on the Laws of God. The Law did not work for them and it does not work for us. Jesus, the Creator, came here as a once and for all solution for the ongoing dilemma of mankind. This solution was the result of His sacrifice. The Universe cannot give the Creator His life back, and this world owes Jesus His life back. The Apostles realized that they were standing before the Creator and could not understand why Jesus had to die. The Transfiguration gave the "inner circle"; Peter, James, and John a very small glimpse of the glory of God. There were no doubts after this events as to the awesome power of God. Moses received a similar glimpse of God. Let's look at the parallel between The Creator speaking to Moses and Moses with Jesus on the Mt. of Transfiguration:
In verse 29 of this weeks reading it says: "And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white".
Moses encountered God on Mt. Sinai as a "devouring fire on the top of a mountain" (Exodus 24:17) and Moses' face shone brightly "because he had been talking with God". Moses' face shone so brightly that he had to wear a veil to shield people from the glare his face emitted (Exodus 34:25-29). Exodus 24 and Jesus at the Transfiguration have a few parallels: they both occur on a mountain, involve Moses, have God speaking from a cloud, speak of the glory of the Lord, and inspire fear. Also in Exodus 24:13 Joshua is singled out and taken up the mountain with Moses. The name Joshua in Greek is "Jesus"... and we see Jesus and Moses again together at the Transfiguration. Notice that the "glory of God" seen by Moses is different. Moses looked at the backside of God's face and glowed. Moses' face mirrored the glory and the Transfiguration has this glory coming from Jesus Himself. The word "glory" is used in the Bible to speak of various supernatural events--but it is used especially to speak of God's glory--an aura associated with God's appearance that reveals God's majesty to humans. When Moses asked to see God's glory, God replied, "You cannot see my face; for no one can see me and live" (Exodus 33:20). God continued and said "See there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock; and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft in the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by, then I will take away my hand and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen" (Exodus 33:21-23). The point is that God's glory is so overwhelming that we cannot deal with it. It would be like touching a high voltage power line...we die. Peter, James, and John were privileged to see Christ's glory on the Mount of Transfiguration...there will be hard events to watch the Lord go through shortly.

Notice that Peter asks if he should build three booths for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. There is a prophetic meaning to this that I think Peter didn't even know. We cover this in another paper we wrote on our website. The booths are connected with Moses. As Moses led the Israelites in the wilderness, God told him to build booths in which people would dwell for seven days (Leviticus 23:33-43). They were to do this "so that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt; I AM the Lord your God" (Leviticus 23:43). This observance is known as the Feast of the Tabernacles and started as a harvest festival but became to be a remembrance of their wanderings in the wilderness and their escape from slavery in Egypt.

In the reading we also read "and they were terrified as they entered the cloud" (verse 34). The disciples are terrified because they understand the cloud as the presence of God. Only the High Priest is allowed to come into God's presence and he does so only on the Day of Atonement (Hebrews 9:7). To look at God is to die. These disciples do not know if they shall die...whatever the outcome they are unprepared to meet their Maker. They are vulnerable and have been suddenly presented without warning with the presence of God. Who wouldn't be terrified?

The last part of the reading is: "This is my Son, my Chosen: listen to Him" (v.35). Indeed! We must study and come to truly understand all of the Words of Jesus! They have been recorded for us through immense effort by God and are the actual lessons taught by the Creator, our Messiah. If there is any reason to read any work...it is the Bible. We need to reinvest our time into intently studying the Gospels and work hard even if it takes a lifetime to fully understand everything Jesus has presented us through the writings of His disciples. Jesus speaks on several levels and we may often not understand what it means. But faith comes by the word of God, and our faith in strengthened through understanding the Word of God. We do not want to "err for you do not know the Scriptures". Jesus came, Jesus said, and Jesus died...we must know why and what it means to us individually.

God bless!

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Middle Eastrern Empires

VIEW THE FLASH PRESENTATION OF THE

EMPIRES OF THE MIDDLE EAST

This is an amazing, constantly changing map of the Middle East region, illustrating how various "empires" have risen and fallen in the past 3000 years--in just 90 seconds. Enjoy and share

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The Way of the Law vs. The Way of Christ

The Pharisees and scribes created additions of the Law based on the 10 Commandments. These MEN added to God's Commandments. These "additions" comprise the Mitzvah. Mitzvah (Hebrew: מצווה, IPA: [ˈmɪtsvə], "commandment"; plural, mitzvot; from צוה, tzavah, "command") is a word used in Judaism to refer to (a) the commandments, of which there are 613, given in the Torah (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible).

THAT'S RIGHT! The "LAW" contains 613 Commandments!

613!

You can read these commandments HERE.

What is the single most important verse in the New Testament?

ANSWER: JOHN 3:16

16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Notice that the way of the Law has 613 commandments and the verse containing the Truth of the Way of Christ is 3:16---a reversal of the numbers!

What does Paul say about the Law?

Galatians 2:11-21

No Return to the Law
11 Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; 12 for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision. 13 And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before them all, “If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews? 15 We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, 16 knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified. 17 “But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Certainly not! 18 For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. 19 For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”

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Christian Persecution in INDONESIA

A church in Indonesia being bulldozed

INDONESIA
Indonesian Christians Attacked; Church Closed - VOM Sources
On February 11, 2007, a Moslem mob stormed Indonesia Bethel Church, in Majalaya, disrupting the service and beating church members. More than 50 Islamic extremists raided the church building and ordered the congregation to leave. Church members were threatened, beaten, and asked to show their identity cards. During the raid, a cell phone belonging to a church member, offerings, an important building permit and pictures of Jesus Christ were stolen. The militants insulted believers and said Indonesia was a Muslim nation. Hours after the attack at Indonesia Bethel Church, the same Islamic extremists marched to Baranangsiang and closed a church there. Pray believers in Indonesia will rest in the knowledge that God walks with them through this difficult time. Ask Him to heal all who were injured.

Psalm 23

A Psalm of David.

1 The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell^[a] in the house of the LORD
Forever.


Every month The Voice of the Martyrs reports on what is really happening around the world where our brothers and sisters are persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ. Now you can receive a free subscription to The Voice of the Martyrs award winning monthly newsletter. You will be inspired, and even discover practical ways to get involved.

Sign up today.


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U.S. History, Christianity, and Politics PART 5

Sir Walter Raleigh

This is a new series that will reflect on the rich history of the United States and the part Christianity, politics, corruption, racism, and persecution has played before and after this great nation began. It is important that we remind ourselves of the factual history of the United States and the important role Christianity has in this country today as well as to remember the hardships endured by the people of the past. Some of the actions of "Christians" have not been Christian like at all, and by reviewing history, we hope that mistakes are not repeated again. We will first cover the history leading up to the founding of the United States of America.

Gilbert, Raleigh, and the Roanoke Settlers

English nobleman Sir Humphrey Gilbert believed England should found colonies and find a Northwest Passage. In 1576 he sent English sea captain Martin Frobisher to look for such a passage. Frobisher scouted along the inhospitable northeastern coast of Canada and brought back large amounts of a yellow metal that turned out to be fool's gold. In 1578 Gilbert obtained a charter allowing him to found a colony with his own funds and guaranteeing the prospective colonists all the rights of those born and residing in England, thus setting an important precedent for future colonial charters. His attempts to found a colony in Newfoundland failed, and while pursuing these endeavors he was lost at sea.

With the queen's permission, Gilbert's work was taken up by his half-brother, Sir Walter Raleigh. Raleigh turned his attention to a more southerly portion of the North American coastline, which he named Virginia, in honor of England's unmarried queen. He selected as a site for the first settlement, Roanoke Island, just off the coast of present-day North Carolina.

After one abortive attempt, a group of 114 settlers-men,women, and children-were landed in July 1587. Shortly thereafter, Virginia Dare became the first English child born in America. Later that year the expedition's leader, John Smith, returned to England to secure additional supplies. Delayed by the war with Spain he did not return until 1590, when he found the colony deserted. It is not known what became of the Roanoke settlers. After this failure, Raleigh was forced by financial constraints to abandon his attempts to colonize Virginia. Hampered by unrealistic expectations, inadequate financial resources, and ongoing war with Spain, English interest in American colonization was submerged for 15 years.


CREDIT: "Our Great Nation" Resources for Teachers, 2002.

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Go and sin no more! PODCAST

Go and sin no more!
PODCAST
48.2 MB
RUN TIME: 1 hour 14 min

(03/20/07)

We discuss sin, confession of sins, repentance, forgiveness, the
Good News of the Gospels, how many sins Jesus died for, and
various questions asked by various religious groups. If you
want to learn the positive message of Christian faith, then you
need to make time to listen to this podcast.


Technorati:christian podcast,podcast,podcast,PODCASTING,BIBLE STUDY PODCAST,FAITH PODCASTING

GodTube

What WOULD Jesus download? It's an interesting thought trying to imagine what things would have been like if Jesus came during more modern times. And it has proven to be quite a challenge to incorporate the lessons Jesus came to teach us into our very modern daily lives. The thing I don't think people can see past is that it isn't our job to live like Jesus, but to live in Jesus. Anyways, here's an article about a website called GodTube, a Christian version of YouTube trying to spread the Word of God in the midst of the chaos. Check it out:

BeliefWatch: GodTube
By Lisa Miller
Newsweek
March 26, 2007 issue - What would Jesus download? One of the hottest sites on the Internet is GodTube.com, the Christian answer to YouTube. It's a goofy, fascinating window into the world of Christian youth. There's a clip of Ray Comfort, the popular evangelical preacher, demonstrating the perfection of God's creation with an actual banana. It's hard—OK, impossible—not to see it as an (unintentional?) dirty joke. Another clip sends up the hip-hop anthem "Baby Got Back": This version is called "Baby Got Bible" and contains hilarious lyrics like "Bless me, bless me and teach me about John Wesley." GodTube is the brainchild of Chris Wyatt, an excitable 38-year-old student at the Dallas Theological Seminary and former television producer and Internet entrepreneur. In 1999, he says, he "hit a bump in the road, and my mother told me I had to get to know the Lord." Within six weeks he had found Jesus, and in the years that followed, he tried his hand at various Christian enterprises, including a Christian version of Netflix. After moving to Dallas last year, he started working with a Christian marketing firm. Hoping to demonstrate to his clients, the mostly technophobic leaders of megachurches and ministries, all the cool stuff the Internet could do, he paid $400 for the GodTube name and built the site as a demo. A test version went up in January. The site gets between 50,000 and 60,000 unique users a day and it hasn't officially launched yet.
GodTube is the best example of a new group of Web sites that aim to do the same things regular Web sites do, but with a Christian (or Christian conservative) point of view. Like the idea of MySpace, but hate the thought of your children as prey? Try Famster, a secure online community for families. Like Wikipedia, but chafe at what you see as its liberal bias? Try Conservapedia. All three sites are brand-new and have some kinks to work out. (There's no Conservapedia entry for Billy Graham, for example.) But no matter what your religion, you'll find that banana clip priceless.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17662283/site/newsweek/

They found the casket of Jesus! 45 pilthy comebacks

They found the casket of Jesus

45 Pithy Comebacks

1. Explain to me why a poor family from Bethlehem would be buried in a middle class grave in Jerusalem.
   
   
2. Mary, Jesus and Joseph were the most popular names in Israel at this time. That is why the Jewish archaeologists who first discovered these caskets in 1980 NEVER claimed these belonged to the family of Jesus. The odds are too preposterous.
   
   
3. Israeli archaeologist Joel Rosenberg believes this new film is nonsense.
   
   
4. So does Jewish archaeologist Amos Kloner.
   
   
5. There is no credible evidence that Jesus was ever married. The only possible reference to Jesus being married is in a 14^th century manuscript (Acts of Phillip) that nobody deems credible.
   
   
6. There is no evidence that Jesus had children.
   
   
7. They claim they have proof that Jesus had a baby. We can’t even determine the father of Anna Nicole Smith’s baby. (Jay Leno)
   
   
8. As there is no credible evidence that Jesus was married with children, this discovery does not prove that Jesus was married; it proves that these caskets don’t belong to Jesus. If Jesus was not married to Mary, this whole theory collapses.
   
   
9. If Jesus had a wife and children, wouldn’t Jesus have told John to only take care of His mother when He was on the cross?
   
   
10. Jesus son of Joseph is hardly legible.
    
    
11. Professor Stephen Pfann in Jerusalem believes the name “Jesus” should actually be interpreted “Hanun.”
    
    
12. For such an esteemed Rabbi, the family sure did a sloppy job of inscribing His name on the casket.
    
    
13. Jesus is never referred to as “The son of Joseph” in early Christian witness. That is the inscription on the casket.
    
    
14. If you were going to hide a casket, would you put it in Jerusalem and label it “Jesus”?
    
    
15. Why did they only test the DNA of the Jesus and Miriamne casket and not the caskets of the others? Because if they discovered that the DNA didn’t match, their story would crumble.
    
    
16. The scientist who did the limited DNA testing said, “Don’t be deceived by the media. This type of DNA testing cannot test every relationship.”
    
    
17. There is no DNA baseline available to prove this was the burial box of Jesus.
    
    
18. Miriamne e Mara is not legible, they are speculating.
    
    
19. Miriamne e Mara is almost certainly interpreted wrong. “Mara” is probably a contraction of Martha and is probably a second name.
    
    
20. Miriamne is NOT Mary Magdalene. Mary Magdalene is not written on the casket.
    
    
21. Is the Yose (Joseph) married to Maria? Who knows?
    
    
22. Is Jesus married to Miriamne? Who knows?
    
    
23. The name Miriamne is not found in any credible text. Not one. The only time that we can find the name Miriamne is in reference to Herod’s wife, Miriamne.
    
    
24. Matya (they claim that is Matthew) is found on one of the caskets. If this is Matthew, why would Jesus’ disciple be buried with him?
    
    
25. There is no evidence that Jesus had a brother named Matthew.
    
    
26. Defenders claim that if Joseph and Mary had more children than what the Bible lists, “The name Matthew is consistent with the type of name that Mary and Joseph might have named one of their children.” That is not a credible argument.
    
    
27. They simply left Matthew out of the picture to make the statistical analysis look better.
    
    
28. They are doing their statistics backwards. They start with the presupposition that this is Jesus tomb and then try to determine the odds. You can’t do that.
    
    
29. If we found a gravesite today with the names John and David, John’s son (the equivalent to Jesus and Joseph) could we conclude which John this was? How many John’s have had a wife named Mary and a child name David in the last two centuries? Then if you knew that David was unmarried and from Los Angeles, but the tomb was found in New York, would you feel confident you had identified the right David?
    
    
30. Joseph’s tomb is missing. Why?
    
    
31. Jesus’ half-brother Jude is missing. Why?
    
    
32. Jesus’ half brother Simon is missing. Why?
    
    
33. Jesus sisters may be missing. Why?
    
    
34. If Jesus was buried and didn’t rise from the dead, why did Jesus’ half brother, James, die preaching that Jesus rose from the dead?
    
    
35. Ditto for Jude.
    
    
36. How could the family have kept this a secret from the early church?
    
    
37. Wouldn’t the Romans been able to find this casket and end the dispute?
    
    
38. Wouldn’t the Jews happily dug up this casket to put an end to this new Jewish cult named Christianity?
    
    
39. Trying to resolve whose caskets these are is like trying to figure who put the first dagger in Julius Caesar.
    
    
40. While science and CSI techniques can be helpful, we don’t have a time machine to take us back to the first century.
    
    
41. Eisegesis is when you form a conclusion and then go find the evidence for your theory. That is what they have done here.
    
    
42. There are a thousand scenarios to explain this. To assign ownership to Jesus is simply not reasonable.
    
    
43. We have films and eyewitnesses of the JFK assassination and we still can’t figure out who killed him.
    
    
44. If this were a civil case, it would be laughed out of court.
    
    
45. Wow! You trust this film more than the Bible? Now that’s faith. The Bible is a more reliable source of information than this circus of evidence.
    
    
    Technorati: christian humor,wise sayings,christian wisdom
    

Twisting Scipture Part 1

How often have you encountered some bizarre doctrine only to be stunned to hear a Bible verse quoted to support it? With new religious cults springing up almost daily and old ones growing rapidly, this is more and more common. How are they seemingly able to twist Scripture to mean something Christians have never believed it to mean in two thousand years?
James Sire, author of the Universe Next Door and How to Read Slowly, has isolated twenty separate kinds of reading errors which are characteristically made by cultists as they interpret the Bible. He covers the full range form simple misquotation to complex argumentation which links one slightly eccentric interpretation to another, mixes in a few orthodox readings and ends with a conclusion totally foreign to the biblical world view. Sire also handles twisted translation, over specification, virtue by association, ignoring the context and others. Scripture Twisting is a great book to pick up and read. I recommend it!

1. INACCURATE QUOTATION:

A biblical text is referred to but is either not quoted in the way the text appears in any standard translation or is wrongly attributed. Example: the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi says, "Christ said, 'Be still and know that I am God.'" This text is found only in Psalm 46:10.

2. TWISTED TRANSLATION:

The biblical test is re translated, not in accordance with sound Greek scholarship, to fit the preconceived teachings of a cult. Example: the Jehovah's Witnesses translate John 1:1 as "In [the] beginning the Word was. and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god". The correct translation is: " In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

3. THE BIBLICAL HOOK:

A text of Scripture is quoted primarily as a device to grasp the attention of readers or listeners then followed by teaching which is so unbiblical that it would appear far more dubious to most people has it not been preceded by a reference to Scripture. Example: Mormon missionaries quote James 1:5 which promises God's wisdom to those who ask him and follow this by explaining that when Joseph Smith did this he was given a revelation from which he concluded that God the Father has a body.
James 1:5 NKJ-" If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him."

4. IGNORING THE IMMEDIATE CONTEXT:

A text of Scripture is quoted but removed from the surrounding verse which form the immediate framework for its meaning. Example: Alan Watts quotes the first half of John 5:39; "You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life", and Alan claims that Jesus was challenging His listeners' overemphasis of the Old Testament, but the remainder of the immediate context reads, "and it is they that bear witness to me; yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life", which shows that Jesus was upholding the value of the Old Testament as a testimony to Himself.


5. COLLAPSING CONTEXTS:

Two or more verses which have little or nothing to do with each other are put together as if one were a commentary on the other(s). Example: the Mormons associate Jeremiah 1:5 with John 1:2&14 and thus imply that both verses talk about the premortal existence of all human beings; Jeremiah 1:5 however speaks of God's foreknowledge of Jeremiah (not his premortal existence) and John 1:2 refers to the pre-existence of the Son of God and not to human beings in general.

Jeremiah 1:5 NKJ " “ Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”

Note from Bible Truth: The Son of God (Creator/Jesus) knows who you are and your true name...you have predestined Good Works to do...however this belief that Jeremiah or you and me existed before we were physically born on earth is not biblically correct...God's foreknowledge and man's pre-mortal existence are two totally different concepts and this pre-mortal existence idea makes no biblical sense.

John 1:2 NKJ "He was with God in the beginning."

John 1:14 NKJ "14The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

TO BE CONTINUED....


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U.S. History, Christianity, and Politics Part 4

This is a new series that will reflect on the rich history of the United States and the part Christianity, politics, corruption, racism, and persecution has played before and after this great nation began. It is important that we remind ourselves of the factual history of the United States and the important role Christianity has in this country today as well as to remember the hardships endured by the people of the past. Some of the actions of "Christians" have not been Christian like at all, and by reviewing history, we hope that mistakes are not repeated again. We will first cover the history leading up to the founding of the United States of America.

English and French Beginnings

In 1497 the Italian John Cabot (Giovanni Caboto), sailing under the sponsorship of the king of England in search of a Northwest Passage (a water route to the Orient through or around the North American continent), became the first European since the Viking voyages more than four centuries earlier to reach the mainland of North America, which he claimed for England.

In 1524 the king of France authorized another Italian, Giovannia da Verrazzano, to undertake a mission similar to Cabot's. Endeavoring to duplicate the achievement of Portugal's Ferdinand Magellan, who had five years earlier found a way around the southern tip of South America, Verrazzano followed the American coast from present-day North Carolina to Maine.

Beginning in 1534, Jacques Cartier, also authorized by the king of France, mounted three expeditions to the area of the St. Lawrence River, which he believed might be the hoped-for Northwest Passage. He explored up the river as far as the site of Montreal, where rapids prevented him-or so he thought- from continuing to China. He claimed the area for France before abandoning his last expedition and returning to France in 1542. France made no further attempts to explore or colonize in America for 65 years.

England showed little interest in America as well during most of the sixteenth century. But when the English finally did begin colonization, commercial capitalism in England has advanced to the point that the English efforts were supported by private rather than government funds, allowing the English colonists to enjoy a greater degree of freedom from government interference.

Partially as a result of the New World rivalries and partially on account of differences between Protestant and Catholic countries, the sixteenth century was a violent time both in Europe and in America. French Protestants, called Huguenots, who attempted to escape persecution in Catholic France by settling in the New World were massacred by the Spaniards. One such incident led the Spaniards, nervous about any possible encroachment on what they considered to be their exclusive holdings in America, to build a fort that became the beginning of a settlement at St. Augustine, Florida, the oldest European settlement in what is now the United States. Spanish priests ventured north from St. Augustine, but no permanent settlements were built in the interior.

French and especially English sea captains made great sport of and considerable profit from plundering the Spaniards of the wealth they had first plundered from the Indians. One of the most successful English captains, Francis Drake, sailed around South America and raided the Spanish settlements on the Pacific coast of Central America before continuing on to California, which he claimed for England and named Nova Albion. Drake then returned to England by sailing around the world. England's Queen Elizabeth, sister and Protestant successor to Mary, had been quietly investing in Drake's highly profitable voyages. On Drake's return from his round-the-world voyage, Elizabeth openly showed her approval.

Angered by this as well as by Elizabeth's support of the Protestant cause in Europe, Spain's King Phillip II in 1588 dispatched a mighty fleet, the Spanish Armada, to conquer England. Instead, the Armada was defeated by the English navy and largely destroyed by storms in the North Sea. This victory established England as a great power and moved it a step closer to overseas colonization, although the war with Spain continued until 1604.

CREDIT: "Our Great Nation" Resources for Teachers, 2002.

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Are you good enough? PODCAST

Are you good enough?
PODCAST
27.7MB 48:24 Run time
(03/14/07)

In this podcast, we talk about good works, how to get into heaven,
sin, confession, and upholding the 10 Commandments.


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Luke 4:1-13 (Sermon for the week of February 25th)

Gospel
Lk 4:1-13

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, to be tempted by the devil.He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was hungry.

The devil said to him,“If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”Jesus answered him, “It is written, One does not live on bread alone.”Then he took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a single instant.

The devil said to him,“I shall give to you all this power and glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I may give it to whomever I wish.All this will be yours, if you worship me.”

Jesus said to him in reply,“It is written:You shall worship the Lord, your God,and him alone shall you serve.”Then he led him to Jerusalem, made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him,“If you are the Son of God,throw yourself down from here, for it is written:He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,and:With their hands they will support you,lest you dash your foot against a stone.”

Jesus said to him in reply,“It also says,You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time.

SERMON:

I think this week's reading is a great opportunity to talk about a few pieces of knowledge which ties directly into the Bible verses this week. It will not be a sermon that will relate the temptation of Jesus to your life, but it will help us understand what really went on this week. I need to touch base on a few Truth's. What is the "Trinity" that Church Leaders speak of? What is the Holy Spirit? The "Trinity" idea had confused me for a time in my life and I want to talk about it before we delve deeper into the reading.

The "Trinity" is: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The "Father" is called "God". Who is God? I like that the Jews call it YHVH, which means the unknowable and undefinable. Why? Because God the "Father" is everything. God the Father is infinite..."the nothing and the something". Since we are finite, it is impossible to define or name God. So, the Jews leave it UNDEFINED! If God is everything...then what was the first manifestation of the Father?

JOHN 14:7-11
"If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him." 8 Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us." 9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, `Show us the Father'? 10 "Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. 11 "Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves."

The Son is the first manifestation of the "Father". This first manifestation who is The Son, came before Angels and came before mankind. This first manifestation is the "Creator"of all other things. The Creator created the angels, Adam and Eve, and this physical Universe. The person talking to Moses IS the Creator. The Creator called Himself
" I AM " I AM is not defined...it just is! Now, the Creator was aware that mankind was in a horrible condition because of sin. This Creator, the Son of "God" or the Son of YHVH, came down here to live in a tent of flesh and allowed Himself to be crucified in order to conquer the catch 22 mankind found itself in due to sin. Jesus is the name of the Son of YHVH, the Son of God, who came here 2,000 some years ago in order to conquer sin for us. This was an act of Love...by the Creator. Jesus called Himself the I AM and the Jews didn't believe it. Thus, the Son of God is the first manifestation or first appearance of the "Father" and the Son is the Creator of ALL. The Son of God was Jesus!

JOHN 1:10
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.

JOHN 8:58
Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was,
I AM."

JOHN 18:5-6
Jesus said to them, "I am He." And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them. 6 Then -- when He said to them, "I am He," -- they drew back and fell to the ground.

MATTHEW 28:18
Then Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth."

The Holy Spirit is the medium that the Creator "creates" through. If you want to experience the Holy Spirit...hold your finger out in front of you and blow on it. The air that you feel on your finger IS THE HOLY SPIRIT. The Father and the Son work through the medium of the Holy Spirit!

There is an order of priority, if you will, to all of this. The Son does NOT come before the Father. The order is: the FATHER, then SON, then Holy Spirit. The Will of the Father and the Son are in perfect harmony with each other. The Son IS the first form of the Father and the Father IS EVERYTHING.

Hey, I told you this would be a sermon on another level...

So here are two questions.
1)Did Satan ever know who The Creator was?
2)Does Satan know who Jesus is?
Answer: NO to both questions.

So who is Satan? Satan was the name given to an angel named Lucifer. Lucifer was a Cherub. Cherubs are those cute baby angels you reckon to Cupid. They look LIKE BABIES, who are a group of angels that also have the power to carry out whatever command is given. These Cherubs are extremely fierce if they have to be. Lucifer was one of the most adored Cherubs.
The Hierarchy of "Heaven" works like this:
First is the Creator...who is called the I AM...who is the Son of God.

Second are the Angels of the Four Directions, Michael, Gabriel, Ariel, and Raphael.These Four are under the "Throne" of the Creator and carry out the Will of the Son.

Next come the groups of angels called the Seraphim's and the Cherubim.

Next comes mankind.

So, Lucifer was a Cherubim and never met Jesus/the Creator. The "Highest" he ever met were the Angels of the Four Directions, namely Michael! Lucifer fell to this Earth before Adam and Eve and was called "SATAN" by the other angels. Satan/Lucifer was here FIRST. This is HIS WORLD...HIS CURSE. He is a Liar and a deceiver and will prove that mankind is NOT WORTHY for forgiveness! That is his mission...if Satan can't be forgiven then why are these men and women who were created after Satan forgiven??

Now with this info, we can look at the reading. Does Jesus know who Satan is? YES! Jesus is the One who cast Satan down here! Does Satan know who Jesus is? NO! But this "Son of God" and Messiah talk has Satan nervous enough to materialize and meet Jesus for a "talk of temptation". Jesus knows why He is here. He is here to conquer Satan and SIN for those who believe and love the Creator. Jesus answers Satan with Scripture PERFECTLY to throw Satan off. After all, JESUS is the "I AM" that has revealed ALL OF THE SCRIPTURES to mankind.
Jesus knows Scripture better than any manifested being. Why didn't Jesus just throw Satan off the cliff or destroy Satan? Satan fulfills a purpose. It might seem cruel to us...but our will and the Creators will are two different things. If we follow Temptation, we are NOT following the Creator,and thus DO NOT love God. Satan, separates the believers from the non-believers. To those who are on the path of faith, Satan comes to tempt you and allows your own decisions to throw you off the path of faith. He is there to prove that you ARE NOT worthy of Salvation!
Satan can't figure out who this "Jesus" is.

In the reading we read that first, Jesus fasts. Fasting is one way to rely on the Father/Son in faith. Imagine fasting for 40 days. (40 days of fasting has been accomplished many times by people even recently). But, imagine how "tempting" food may be after a 40 day fast. As the scripture says...for 40 days Satan tempted Jesus.

Satan asks Jesus that if He really is the Son of God, the Creator, surely Jesus can turn a stone into bread. Jesus answers Satan with Scripture which could mean to Satan that Jesus could still be the Son of God, or just a human.

Satan then tells Jesus a Truth which we must acknowledge. Satan tells Jesus that HE, SATAN, RULES ALL THE KINGDOMS ON EARTH! And Satan can give these kingdoms to Jesus if he wishes. Remember, this Earth...this piece of rock floating in the Galaxy... happens to be ruled by SATAN and we are temporary"uninvited guests" here. We are the nuisance of Satan who he focuses on in order to prove to the Son of God that Satan is more worthy as a fallen Cherub than these constantly sinning humans. If you want paradise on Earth, riches beyond belief, to become famous...then Satan must grant you this. If you follow the Creator, then the Creator will make sure you have EVERYTHING you need...not more and not less!

Now think about the verse Jesus says: "You are not of this world...""
John 15:19
If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

Now how does Jesus reply to this second temptation of Satan?
With Scripture.
This means that Jesus still could be the Son of God or just a human.

Now the third temptation is to tempt The Creator's Power. If He really is the Creator....Satan said "If you are the Son of God throw yourself off the cliff!" Surely, the Son of God, the Creator, can do this!
How does Jesus answer?
With Scripture.
Which still means that Jesus could be the Son of God or just a human.

How does Satan leave Jesus? CONFUSED! Surely Satan will come again and figure this "Jesus" out. Satan will watch for a while and then make his move (through the temptation of Judas).

I leave you with this thought. If Satan would have ever figured out that he was standing before the Son of God for sure...would he have influence the crucifixion? Satan still wins over man...but did Satan really expect this possible Messiah called "Jesus" to walk through the GATES OF HELL when He was crucified? Did Satan ever realize that through the death of Jesus the following verse would become true and for those who believe...Satan's game would be over?
The verse is:
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life"?

My answer is that Satan had no idea that this was the plan of the Creator, the Son, to save mankind. Satan had no idea what Jesus was doing...but Satan was worried and confused about it!

One warning: For those who try to go up against Satan head to head...you are defeated! Only the Son of God and His angels can defend you against Satan. Don't fall for this "Be like Christ" nonsense! YOU are NOT the Son of God! But as a believer, He shall help you if you ask Him. You are dealing with Lucifer, a fallen angel, but an angel, and through Scripture we can know how to act when faced with temptation but when it comes to power, you have none against Satan.
Only the Lord can protect you...call upon Him immediately.

May the Lord be with us all!

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Why do Australians have more Americanism than Americans?

I found this archived in my emails, another one of those from my Grampa. And strangely, it is written by an Australian Dentist. HMMMMM....


To Kill an American

You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any American.

So an Australian dentist wrote an editorial the following day to let everyone know what an American is ...... so they would know when they found one. (Good one, mate!!!!)

"An American is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian or Greek. An American may also be Canadian, Mexican,African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani or Afghan.

An American may also be a Comanche, Cherokee, Osage, Blackfoot, Navaho, Apache, Seminole or one of the many other tribes known as native Americans.

An American is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim. In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only difference is that in America they are free to worship as each of them chooses.

An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.

An American lives in the most prosperous land in the history of the world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God given right of each person to the pursuit of happiness.

An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need, never asking a thing in return. When Afghanistan was over-run by the Soviet army 20 years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country!

As of the morning of September 11, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan. Americans welcome the best of everything...the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best services. But they also welcome the least.

The national symbol of America, The Statue of Liberty, welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed. These in fact are the people who built America.

Some of them were working in the Twin Towers the morning of September 11, 2001 earning a better life for their families. It's been told that the World Trade Center victims were from at least 30 different countries, cultures, and first languages, including those that aided and abetted the terrorists.

So you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao Tse-Tung, and other blood-thirsty tyrants in the world. But, in doing so you would just be killing yourself. Because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of
freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.

Exposing Blasphemers- JOSE MIRANDA PART 2

We posted a month or so ago about this outrageous blasphemer and liar JOSE MIRANDA who claims to be Jesus Christ. This weirdo has now done a 360 degree turn around and has started to speak some truth--after being exposed as a liar...Miranda had one other choice: expose yourself as a follower of the Devil. Now this blasphemer claims that he is not Jesus Christ but the ANTI CHRIST! This guy has a following of Laodicean's who surely fulfill the following Bible verses:

Acts 20:29
"For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock."

John 8:44
" You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it."


And in case you forgot where this "MARK" comes from which Miranda's cult uses as some sort of sick control tactic:

Revelation 13:11-18

11Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon. 12He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men. 14Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. 16He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, 17so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.

18This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666.

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