This morning Pastor Joe preached from 1John 5:1-15. He said that your belief is not seen if you do nothjing but sit around and act as if what you believe is a privayte affair between you and God. Your actions are. And John points out that your behavior towards others and toward Jesus, who did come in the flesh, shows your salvation.
But basicly, Jesus did come in a body. The body is the package that carries the real man. Jesus had a real body. Only a real body can be hungry. Only a real body can bleed. Only a real body can eat food. Only a real body can ascend into heaven. And only a real body can come back again.
If Jesus were not in a body He wouldn't be anyone to follow. We must be Christ like, John calls us sons of God, if we are Christians. As sons we represent all others are going to see of God. All we do we should do knowing that fact.
Not too many of us are called to stand on street corners and preach. No, But we all are called to act daily in the awareness that we may be the only link between God and man when it comes to the decision he will have to make.
When we get to heaven God is going to ask, "What did you do with my Son, Jesus?" "Why should I let you into my heaven?"
Showing posts with label Orthodoxy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Orthodoxy. Show all posts
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Monday, October 17, 2011
Man, God's Creation
Let us move from the Bible, which is the basis for all I am going to post in this series ( as it is for all I post) to the supreme creation of God. I am of course talking about man.
First off, man is not a thing nor is he a product of an evolutionary burp. As recorded for us in the Bible, Man is the pinnacle of God's creative work.
For five days God was setting the earth up for hhabitation. He created the sun and the stars and the moon . He set aside day and night to mark the passage of time. He caused vegetation to grow. He created fish and fowl and four legged beasts. And on the sixth day, according to the report, God created animals and man.
Once again, let me say, man is not a animal. For which animal did God look at and breath into its nostrils the breath of life? That is, to what animal did he give His image to?
And what is this image? This Likeness? It is creativity. It is the ability to think. It is the ability to communicate. And so much more.
Into this garden God had created He placed Adam and Eve. Was that their real names? Maybe not. Adam means man. Eve is mother of all living. The point is, they came fresh from the creative hand of God.
These two enjoyed fellowship with God, spoken of as walking and talking with God in the cool of the evening. During the day they would take care of the garden. Work was a pleasure. God had given to them the deed of co-ownership with Him of the earth.
They had fellowship with Him face to face.
God didn't want them to obey Him just because He had created them. He wanted them to choose to obey Him. So He set up a quiz, sort of. They could eat the fruit of all the trees in the garden. They were not to eat of the fruit of the one tree in the middle of the garden. This was a quiz or test. Will they obey or will they decide not to obey? This was a direct command of God.
One day, I don't know how long after creation, Adam and his wife were out taking care of he garden and they were walking around. They passed by the tree in the middle of the garden.
They run into one of the animals. The Bible calls him a serpent. Maybe not an four footed animal. A reptile. This reptile was being used by a fallen angel, the chief of the fallen angels, named Satan.
This indweltt reptile spoke to Eve. Adam was close by. But Satan spoke to Eve.She must have been an easy touch. Satan had no doubt been observing the couple and knew where the wickest link was. Adam had direct communication with God. Adam would then transmit what God said to the woman. This may have been the first instance of family devotions.
Eve gave in. "Has God said...? And she took and ate. And then must have turned to Adam who by now had turned his attention back to his wife. She gave him the fruit. He ate also fully knowing where it had come from.
So they disobeyed. God had to throw them out of the garden and they lost fellowship with Him. No longer could they walk and talk with Him. They now had to come through a sacrifice God had shown them this when He killed an animal and clothed them. "Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin." They had to transmit this truth to their offspring.
But God also promised them a redeemer who was to come and shed His blood.
God had said that in the day they ate of the fruit of that tree in the middle of the garden they would die. They ate, but physically they didn't die.Not that day. But they were separated from God. This is the first death. The second death comes to those who don't come to Him by the way He provided .. those who live a life separated from Him and who physically die. And that isn't always happening to the very old. A person can die at any time. God holds the years of your life in His hand. My brother was only twenty one when a snippers bullet in Vietnam cut off his life. You never know the time of your death.
"There is a time for everything under the sun. A time to be born and a time to die..."
First off, man is not a thing nor is he a product of an evolutionary burp. As recorded for us in the Bible, Man is the pinnacle of God's creative work.
For five days God was setting the earth up for hhabitation. He created the sun and the stars and the moon . He set aside day and night to mark the passage of time. He caused vegetation to grow. He created fish and fowl and four legged beasts. And on the sixth day, according to the report, God created animals and man.
Once again, let me say, man is not a animal. For which animal did God look at and breath into its nostrils the breath of life? That is, to what animal did he give His image to?
And what is this image? This Likeness? It is creativity. It is the ability to think. It is the ability to communicate. And so much more.
Into this garden God had created He placed Adam and Eve. Was that their real names? Maybe not. Adam means man. Eve is mother of all living. The point is, they came fresh from the creative hand of God.
These two enjoyed fellowship with God, spoken of as walking and talking with God in the cool of the evening. During the day they would take care of the garden. Work was a pleasure. God had given to them the deed of co-ownership with Him of the earth.
They had fellowship with Him face to face.
God didn't want them to obey Him just because He had created them. He wanted them to choose to obey Him. So He set up a quiz, sort of. They could eat the fruit of all the trees in the garden. They were not to eat of the fruit of the one tree in the middle of the garden. This was a quiz or test. Will they obey or will they decide not to obey? This was a direct command of God.
One day, I don't know how long after creation, Adam and his wife were out taking care of he garden and they were walking around. They passed by the tree in the middle of the garden.
They run into one of the animals. The Bible calls him a serpent. Maybe not an four footed animal. A reptile. This reptile was being used by a fallen angel, the chief of the fallen angels, named Satan.
This indweltt reptile spoke to Eve. Adam was close by. But Satan spoke to Eve.She must have been an easy touch. Satan had no doubt been observing the couple and knew where the wickest link was. Adam had direct communication with God. Adam would then transmit what God said to the woman. This may have been the first instance of family devotions.
Eve gave in. "Has God said...? And she took and ate. And then must have turned to Adam who by now had turned his attention back to his wife. She gave him the fruit. He ate also fully knowing where it had come from.
So they disobeyed. God had to throw them out of the garden and they lost fellowship with Him. No longer could they walk and talk with Him. They now had to come through a sacrifice God had shown them this when He killed an animal and clothed them. "Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin." They had to transmit this truth to their offspring.
But God also promised them a redeemer who was to come and shed His blood.
God had said that in the day they ate of the fruit of that tree in the middle of the garden they would die. They ate, but physically they didn't die.Not that day. But they were separated from God. This is the first death. The second death comes to those who don't come to Him by the way He provided .. those who live a life separated from Him and who physically die. And that isn't always happening to the very old. A person can die at any time. God holds the years of your life in His hand. My brother was only twenty one when a snippers bullet in Vietnam cut off his life. You never know the time of your death.
"There is a time for everything under the sun. A time to be born and a time to die..."
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
An Age By Any Other Name
Now we shift from belief systems to what I consider very very dangeous. It is dangeous because we are accepting it and I would bet you that it is not a big deal to you. Your child comes home and says, "I have a new friend. He guides me in all I do."
This is not like that friend your child had that he imagined when a child, his playmate.. Or maybe it is.
What I am going to be looking at has its roots way way back. In fact it goes so far back that it can be found in the Garden Of Eden. "You shall be God." hissed the tempter to our mother, Eve.
It has its roots in the occult. That word occult comes from a Latin word for secret and mysterious things. For all practical purposes, what we know as a New Age Cult movement can be equated with the transplatation of Hindu philosophy.
They have a Christ. "The world has had enough of hunger, injustice, and war. There is an answer to our call for help, a world leader for all humanity."
They will say you are the Christ.
Since God is all and all is God, all things are perfect and you are perfect.
They leave no room for sin. There is no room for a saviour from sin since you have none.
Astrology is accepted as a way to get correct information.
It is in our state houses. In our White House.In our schools.
It is a threat to Judaism. It is a threat to Christianity. It is monistic pantheism. All is one and all is God. Man is divine .
We have all said it.."If it works, use it--if it feels good, do it."
Stay tuned and keep commenting. You will want to follow this blog. So click in and become a follower.
This is not like that friend your child had that he imagined when a child, his playmate.. Or maybe it is.
What I am going to be looking at has its roots way way back. In fact it goes so far back that it can be found in the Garden Of Eden. "You shall be God." hissed the tempter to our mother, Eve.
It has its roots in the occult. That word occult comes from a Latin word for secret and mysterious things. For all practical purposes, what we know as a New Age Cult movement can be equated with the transplatation of Hindu philosophy.
They have a Christ. "The world has had enough of hunger, injustice, and war. There is an answer to our call for help, a world leader for all humanity."
They will say you are the Christ.
Since God is all and all is God, all things are perfect and you are perfect.
They leave no room for sin. There is no room for a saviour from sin since you have none.
Astrology is accepted as a way to get correct information.
It is in our state houses. In our White House.In our schools.
It is a threat to Judaism. It is a threat to Christianity. It is monistic pantheism. All is one and all is God. Man is divine .
We have all said it.."If it works, use it--if it feels good, do it."
Stay tuned and keep commenting. You will want to follow this blog. So click in and become a follower.
Golden Plates- Golden Error
All it took was one lad in 1823 who had a vision of an angel called Moroni as the lad prayed beside his bed. The story goes that the angel told this lad where to find something called golden plates which, according to the story, contained the 'fulness of the everlasting gospel.'
God had waited all these years to reveal His message to mankind and He needed a lad to show up and discover it.
It was the Book Of Mormon. Okay. But is it the word of God?
"Thou fool, that still say: a Bible, we have got a Bible, and we need no more Bible.. and because I have spoken one word ye need not suppose I cannot speak another...Wherefore, because that ye have a Bible ye need not suppose that it contains all my words, neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written." II Nephi 29:6,9,10
Not only the Book of Mormon but .The Pearl Of Great Price. were added along with Doctrine and Covenants. added to their sacred books.
Orthodoxy has only one book of God- The Bible.
As for the teachings:
Hang on. We are on a ride.
God had waited all these years to reveal His message to mankind and He needed a lad to show up and discover it.
It was the Book Of Mormon. Okay. But is it the word of God?
"Thou fool, that still say: a Bible, we have got a Bible, and we need no more Bible.. and because I have spoken one word ye need not suppose I cannot speak another...Wherefore, because that ye have a Bible ye need not suppose that it contains all my words, neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written." II Nephi 29:6,9,10
Not only the Book of Mormon but .The Pearl Of Great Price. were added along with Doctrine and Covenants. added to their sacred books.
Orthodoxy has only one book of God- The Bible.
As for the teachings:
- Polytheism
- God was once a man
- Adam was the angel Michael come to earth.
- Polygamy is right
- Jesus had three wives
- Jesus was produced by actual sexual relations between a resurrected Adam-god and Mary.
- Man works his way to heaven
- Heaven is on three levels.
- Only Mormons get to the third heaven (Celestrial) where God is.
- Second heaven (Terrestrial) is for Christians who did not accept the Mormon message
- First level, which is called telestial, is for the heathen people who reject the Gospel (Mormon Gospel)
- Salvation is by faith plus works
- The dead can be baptized in proxy
- The family unit will endue unto the eternal ages, and that those in heaven will produce spiritual children. ( who will be born to Mormons who will be asked to produce many children thus freeing them to live on earth.)
- Celestrial marriage is a ritual that takes place in a Mormon temple and seals the person for eternity.
- Adams sin was necessary in order to provide parentage for the spirit children
- Man can achieve godhood.
Hang on. We are on a ride.
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