We Have A New Pope

        We now have a new Pope even along side Benedict XVI. It will be hard for him, no doubt, to reign just across the courtyard, more or less, from a living Pope. Normally the last Pope dies and has to be replaced.

         This time one has resigned and lingers. A new Pope is set up.
        Just who is this person? A biography has been written. More like a press release, but you have to start someplace.
       It is not like he is not known by the inner circle. He worked fairly close with John XXIII and with Benedict XVI. He just does not put himself forward to be notriced. He seems to have been working behind the field in the background.
     A book has been written ,as I have noted. Francis, a man of prayer by Mario Escobar. I will place a link to Amazon so you can get this book..
     You should get to know this person. He may do great things.

Francis: Man of Prayer
 

2013 is a New Slate

       Soon it will be 2013. A new year. A clean slate. 2012 will disappear and soon be only a remembrance.
        In 2012 we saw the re-election of an American President. The choice this time was between more of the same liberal agenda and policies of hands out to the people who feel entitled to be taken care of just because they occupy land on the earth-- programs they didn't earn (The Bible says that if a person will not work, neither let him eat.-- in other words, earn what you get through activity.)  and a man who felt you need to earn what you get.    
    After all, Romney had a job and knew how to earn what he got. Obama hasn't had to sweat for anything. He even had the entitlement feature of being black. And Americans seem to be afraid of blacks and tend to bend over backwards to give unearned favor to a person of color.
      But 2013 is before us. We can decide how we are going to leave our imprint on the year.
      Christianity Today has a report that we are becoming as a nation less centered on the teachings of the Bible and more humanistic. True, we are not a theocracy and never have been.
      You will hear someone say we were not founded as a Christian nation. If they mean we were not founded as a theocracy, a nation that was set up to have God as the ruler , in that I will have to agree. But George Washington did believe in God. Sure, he was a deist. He still had a sense of a supreme being ruling over the nation. A high percentage of our founders did believe in a supreme being and based their writings on that. And this was passed down to us in our Constitution which in the twentieth and twenty first century is being torn down and made to say something it was never set up to say.
      Let me step off my soap box. I just feel deeply about this.

      So in 2013 we can make new resolutions that we can strive to keep. Hopeful one will be to keep America  free. Also to be strong as a nation. We must also resolve to do to others what we would have them do to us. But at the same time we shouldn't allow them to take advantage of our stance that all people are worthy because all have been created in the womb by God. They are somebody. Even those who don't see things the way we do.  

Wrong Ideas About Discipleship

More about discipleship. Maybe it would be better to say what discipleship is not.
   I know a church that has a pastor who thinks that discipleship just happens . He is telling his people that they are all to be making disciples and he feels the whole things is taken care of by small groups and Bible Study Fellowships, and witnessing.
   That may be part of it but it is not discipleship.
   First off a disciple is a follower of Jesus Christ. A person can not follow someone they have not studied and know. Discipleship is a process, not a moment in time.
    Discipleship is two people sharing life together, the good times along with the bad times. Two sharing failures as well as successes. It is putting life in boot leather.
      It is being free to cry and cheer in each others presence.
      It is not leading a person to the Lord and then leaving him to figure out the rest. To find out how the Bible relates to life.
       I believe that when you set up a disciple there should be at least eight years between the two of you and no more than eleven. Too close and it is too soon for the discipler to have enough to share. Too long and there is the problem of relating to the needs expressed.

    Discpleship is sharing life and wisdom with another person. You can't do that if you make a convert and run. You must stay and work with the person until they can turn and duplicate.
    Complete the process.

Certification of Victory Christian Fellowship

      He is back here now. He has spent four days up in Sacramento looking for the okay to be a new church plant. Never mind that for a year now he has been holding services under the name of Victory Christian Fellowship. Never mind the fact that he is a church plant sent out from ACTS Church. Without  the group approval of  organization he would be unable to get sponsorship money. Never mind that for the past year he has had to do it without any money coming in.
      If  you were to meet Daryl face to faced he would come across as a humble person who has no needs. I am sure of if wasn't for his wife he would be a mystic who denied his needs.
       Not that I am trying to put him down. I admire him. But if he were to look me in the face and say that he lives on faith, I must say, fine, faith is good but it won't pay for lighting, for hymnn books, for upkeep, for.. you name it.
      I realize this posting is way different from the others.
      I guess what I want to say is it isn't easy being called by God to be a church leader. It is a hard road and few there be who can walk it.

Looking For A Good Church

          So you find yourself looking for a good church to go to and hear about God and Christ. You are looking for a place where perhaps you can experience Christian growth. Or where if you are not a Christian you will have a chance to accept Christ and become a person God will spend time with.

     Reasons

       There are many reasons a person seeks out a church. A list of sorts is given below..

              I had a special need.............2%
              I just walked in.................3%
              I liked the Pastor...............6%
              I visited there..................1%
              I liked the Sunday School........1%
              A friend or relative invited me..79%

         It is important also that the preacher be preaching from the Bible.  And not just any Bible but from a version that is sound. There are mnany sound versions. The New king James Bible is a good one, as is the old King James. The New American Standard and the New International are aslo good. This is only a suggestion.

       Dress

         In some churches t-shirts, jeans, and even shorts, are appropriate. In others a suit and tie or dress would be more appropriate. In some churches anything goes. So, ask yourself, "What is right for me--dressy, casual, or both?"   

     Worship

   As for the worship you should be seeking, consider this: worship is the way we express our love and appreciation to God, as well as our awe of his works, and wonder of his ways. Consider what style of worship will allow you to most freely express adoration to God. Some churches have contemporary music, some have traditional. Some sing hymns, others sing choruses. Some have full bands, others have orchestras and choirs. Some sing gospel, rock, hard rock, etc. Since worship is a key part of our church experience, be sure to give the style of worship serious consideration.

      Doctrinal Belief    

     Also as to doctrine,it’s important to understand the doctrinal beliefs of the church before joining. Many people become disillusioned after investing a great deal of time in a church. You can avoid this disappointment by looking closely at the church's statement of faith. Before joining be sure the church effectively teaches the Bible. If you’re not sure, ask to talk with someone about this. Some churches even offer classes or written material to help you understand the church’s doctrine.

      This also is important to consider. You want your church to be a place where you can connect with other believers. Some churches offer a very simple ministry approach and others extend an elaborate system of classes, programs, productions and more. So, for instance, if you’re single and want a church with a single’s ministry, be sure to check into this before joining.

    Hang on. There is a bit more to consider when looking for a chuch.Make sure you make a checklist of the most important things you hope to see or experience. Then rate the church according to your checklist when you leave. But don't look for that perfect church. As the saying goes, any church that accepts me isn't perfect because I am not perfect. I am still growing in Christ likeness and it is a journey.

        If you still don’t know where to begin your search for a church, ask people you know—friends, co-workers, or people you admire, where they go to church. Satisfied customers, thery say, are the best source.

Warning

        I was just looking at my blog page to see how it looked to the reader. I noticed that google ads has placed an ad for Herbert W. Armstrong' book. I must warn you about him and his organization.
       The book is full of untruth. His group used to be called "The World Wide Church Of God" and it reported to be the one true church. It also reported to have rediscovered the truth hidden for ages until (Gasp) it was revealed to Herbert himself who had made himself a prophet of God.

       He writes very persuasively. In fact, it was his books that drew me into his grasp when I first became a Christian and was searching for a church to join. He draws you in by saying all he teaches is from the Bible alone. That s not true. His doctrine of eternal punishment is wrong. He states there is no punishment but when you die you are no more unless you belong to the one true church, which is his. Only baptism by one of his ministers of his church is the true baptism. He denies the trinity.

     

I could go on. You get the point.
I respect Google's right to make money and its right to acccept ads from advertisers. I just want to warn you what you are getting into. Be careful what you read. Judge all things by what the Bible says.. that is, if you are a Christian.

Bible Reading 2

  I am on a plan at the moment at youversion.com called Deep Dive 14. It runs for a period of 14 days and is on the topic of discipleship. It is laid out a portion of scripture a day with a comment section. The comment section seems to be emphasizing fellowship in the church.
    That is an imporetant elemenet to discipleship. You need other believers to help you in your growth and development process.
    I would highly suggest,if you haven't yet,that you find a good Bible believing, Bible Teaching, Christ honorng church and plug in your gifts.

Bible reading-Installment one

   I want to start posting about an important subject. It is important for the growth of a person who has a saving relationship with God.

   It is important that an instruction book be left for those who procure an item. When we are passed from death to life.. an important concept-- we need instructions. It doesn't come natural, this new life we have now. We need to know just what it is we have and how to get the best out of it.

    As I have stated in an earlier post God is not silent and He has communicated. He wants us to know something about Himself. This pertains to those who have a relationship with Him as well as those who are not at the moment assured of His presense.
   The Bible, which you can see in the picture , is God's communication to mankind. Yes, He used human writers. Yes, it took over fourteen centuries to get to where it is today. Sure , ir has many literary forms contained between its covers. But no one can say God has not communicated. He is not silent.
    On that premise I would like to say that God created all things. And by right of ownership of what He created He has the right to say how it, the creation, should act.
    What we have today is not what He first created. One day He will come back and recreate. The one thing that made it not perfect is man's wilful disobedience to a direct command. "You shall not eat of..."
     You say you think that was unfair, to place all men under condemnation for one person's act. But you also have to acknowledge that because of one man's act, dying on the cross for the sins of the world,- that is all mankind,- God can restore what He had created back to where it once was.
    First He is restoring man to a relationship He had with Adam and Eve in the garden. Some day in the future, spoken of in the book of the Revelation, He is going to give us a new heaven and a new earth.
    He has presently left us His communication-the Bible. We are to study it to show ourselves approved to God as a workman. To study, it would mean we. need methods. In earlier posts I have laid out some methods that can be useful.
    But first, sit down and open the Bible. Have a notebook handy to jot down what is there.. Which would mean you also have a pencil or pen. Read and ask questions as you go along. What does this passsage mean? How does the writer develop the point. What did it mean to those of that day who read it or heard it for the first time? What does it have to say to me today?
   Keep reading the posts to come. I have just begun.
   Follow me and you will get the development of the series. Become a member today.

Hidden Assets

  I was sitting in church today looking out at the congregation. I am the chat room man on the media team. As such I sit in the back of the room next to the IT man and the video man. I glanced out on all these heads in front of me. Now since I was in the back I could view the whole room.. I noticed that they were mostly female heads. There were some male heads out there, but mostly female.

   And I got to wondering why weren't there more men out there? Why weren't men coming to church? Is there some reason that I was not aware of?
    Just having finished a book called "Why Men Hate Going to Church" I have an idea. Most of the service is geared to feminine psyches. Not too much masculine involvement. Illustrations from the pastor that are geared to the lamb rather than the lion aspect of God.
    Please give me some feedback on this. Let's start a discussion.
    Follow me. Become a member. And comment. I want to hear from you out there.

Grab it Back

  I am still talking about the Church of Jesus Christ.

  Recently I have recieved a book to be reviewed called "Why Men Hate Going To Church by David Murrow. It is not ready to be reviewed and when it is I will be posting it on the other blog I have, http://drsbookplace.blogspot.com/.

   The thesis is that the church has been losing men because it no longer is masculine or speaks to their needs. Women have stepped in and taken over the outreaches of the church and as such have feminized the way it is run. Pastors have had to tailor their preaching to the feminization. They have re-packaged Jesus as the harmless androgynous male. People see pictures that picture Him not as a muscle bound, man figure (He did take up Josephs' trade of carpenter. He was known by His country men as the carpenters' son) The preachers preached too much on the Lamb of God aspect of Jesus and not enough on the Lion Of God aspect seen in the driving of the sellers from the temple, or the one who controlled nature    .
     Men are the Miracle-Gro for a Church. Get them involved  in the church and there is a possibility of growth.
     The church needs some "footholds" and "handholds" for the men.  Men need to know they are valued.
It has to become once again manly for a man to speak about Chistianity without feeling effeminate or henpecked.
      Follow me. Become a member and follow me as I talk about things that you need to be aware of.

Warning-- error can come in

  For those of you who don't read my book blog I mentioned this there and since mentioning it  I have seen more developments. It is a book by a Todd Burpo, a minister of the charasmatic bent. It is called Heaven Is For Real.  It is a story of his sons' out of body experience. It is dangeous. Fiirst of all because this guy is a minister and people tend to believe ministers as always telling the truth. People tend to trust ministers.

     First off, this is an attempt by satan to plant error.  Even though the message the child brings back is that God loves the children , the idea that God is behind the out of the body experiences seen today is not Biblical.

     All that God wants us to know is in the scriptures we have now. Besides, for anyone who reads the gospel accounts already knows God loves the children.
    Secondly, the push now is to pakage with the book a CD and small group curriculum. This is from the pit of hell. We don't need a book to tell us there is an afterlife Let me repeat, God's Word tells us so.
    I don't understand why Thomas Nelson would publish a book of this type.

Blog Reason

     I got to thinking. I may be going too fast in this series that I am posting at the moment.
     In my philosphy class I took I was told to define teams. I guess it was section on metaphysics-- the philosphy covering things beyond the physical. Christian Doctrines seems to be in that camp.
    So you must be asking-Why do I need to know doctrine? And just what is doctrine?
    Good question. Doctrine is a branch of knowledge or a system of beliefs. As I use the term it means the system based on and drawn from God's special revelation as found in the Bible. As such I mean to be posting on the subjects of God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit. I will cover salvation and the reason for this need for salvation-Sin. In doing so I will also touch on Angels, Elect and Fallen.
     Since there is a need for instruction  I will handle the doctrine of the church, What it is, where it came from, why we need to gather together as a group. That will aslo call for a discussion on the offices and what I call departments of said church.
      I will cover the Chrustian disciplines such as prayer, witnessing, useage of gifts.
     Of course, some of our Christian Doctrines are limited because the Bible is not exhaustive. God has not revealed everything in detail. For example, what we know about creation is such. Because that is true man has tended to lean to the explanation of evolutionary theory. Or that God started the whole thing and then stepped back to watch.
       Well, that is just some explantion. Hold on and keep reading.

The place of rest

  It is a place of instruction. It is not a social organization, although it is a place where fellow seekers come to receive what they seek.
  I am talking about the church. It is a place where people come to worship the Living God. They come to deepen their relationship to God.
  Every believer should belong to a local church. Church membership does not save and is not a means of salvation. But it is a place where each member should have the freedom to discover and develop and use the gift that they have received when they became a Christian. The Word of God, the Scriptures, do say that each one of us is given a gift for the development of the body which is the church. We are, I believe, all needed. We can be seen as a body part  No part is more important than another and each part is needed.
   We go to church to pray, confess, hear the word of God as spoken through the leader or pastor of the congregation. Also to use our gift in the body, as I have said above. And by the way, there is no gift known as pew warmer.
    Tell me your experience in a church group. Is there anyway I can be of help? 

Sad but alas true

  I have just been looking at the Biola website http://www.biola.edu/ and come across this sad, but alas, true statement. "Biblical literacy is plummeting. Churches are exchanging doctrine for slogans."

   I find that sad because doctrine is the life blood of the church. That is why I have this blog and do postings on the subjects I do. I find doctrine to be very iimportant. If you have no doctrine to stand upon you are standing on air, or worst, vapor. You have no belief system. Or maybe you do. It just has not stood the test of time.
    The doctrine I write about here is orthodox. It has been here from the start. When there are diviations from orthodoxy I speak out about it. That is why I did a small series on Cults earlier. It may not have been pleasant to read but it is fighting against error. It needed to be done.
    And I may not post as systematically as you would like me to, but that is just the way it is.
    Read on. More doctrine is coming. Follow me and get all the postings. Comment and let's talk.
   

Flat Denial-Nothing New

  King Solomon penned a book in our Bible that is very useful in looking at things from the viewpoint of a Humanist. "There is nothing new under the sun." he wrote in Ecclesiastes. There is no new cult that can be invented, no new heresy.
    Earlier in another post I defined what a cult is and in another I defined the signs that you could be in one. I will not redefine. If you desire to read my earlier posts (Which I hope you do. I hope you are going up and down this blog and rereading portions.)  feel free to do so.
    Some where in the eighteenth century a group got fed up with the radical Calvinism of the New England Congregational Churches. Calvin was a strong influence and  his influence could be found in the Congregational, Presbyterian, and other Protestant groups. But it started in the sixteenth to seventeenth century in Poland and England.
    We know them today as Unitarians. Back then they were known as Monarchians. They held then and still do that there is no such thing as the Trinity. No Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Instead they held and still do that God is one and that He cannot manifest Himself in three persons.
    One group holds that Jesus wasn't exactly God nor mere man. A group that follows Ralph Waldo Emerson  believe that all in nature, evan man, is part of a great overloard.
    Those who hold to these views but are not our unitarians are known as our liberals.
    They hold to a belief system.

1. The Bible is not the word of God. Some parts of it may contain the Word of God but are mixed with superstition.
2. They also deny the Christian doctrines that are derived from the Bible
3. God is seen as a force, an overloard, a prime mover.
4. Jesus was a teacher. Merely an exceptional man like Moses and Budda.
5. They have a changing theology.
6.  Man should be his own savior
7. Man is not a sinner. He is just imperfect and all he needs is a "redemption of character."

   They see the answer to man's problem being that of education.

   As I have said, be careful. This is not Orthodox.

   Comment and keep the conversation going. I will try to help as much as I can. I feel like a watchman on the walls crying out for those to hear. He who has ears to hear, let him hear..

Look at Basics

   As I was thinking about it I came to realize that in my posts I may be confusing most people. Therefore I decided to back up and take another look at the basics before continuing with the deviations and outright false belief systems.
   First let me say that it is not so important that you be educated beyond your intelligence. Anyone of average intelligence and education can understand the basics. But if a person is going to be placed in the Church in a position of authority, it is imperative that he be educated and trained. When a person is called to ministry in a church he is called to train.- to get prepared. And then it is up to each church group to decide where to place the person during preparation.

   I am aware of one church group that was so hungry for a young adult outreach that the vision committee went out and got a high school grad. The high school grad went and got his college degree on-line. I have nothing against Internet education. In fact, for some who need to work  to support themself, the Internet education is a fine way to go.
   This church then took this person, who has great leadership skills, and gave him the young adult group to build up. They gave him a teaching position in the evening service and renamed him the pastor. All this while he was still seeking a college education.
     Presently this person has a position in the church. A large following. He is the main preacher. And he is signed up to attend seminary in 2012.
     So I am not against education. And it doesn't need to be education in the area of ministy. It can be education in any field.
      Now to get back to the basics.
      There are a few areas in which the Bible is foundational. when it comes to our knowledge of God. The Scriptures are to be regarded as the authoritative word of truth on all matters of basic doctrine. These areas are:

1. Who God is. We must believe because the scriptures say so.We should believe there is only one lawgiver and judge. We must believe that there is no other God besides God; a righteous God and savior. "The grass withers, the flower fades, but the Word of our God stands forever" Isaiah 40:8
2. Creation.: "In the beginnng God created the heavens and the earth"-Genesis 1:1
3. Salvation:. "Turn to me, and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other." Isaiah 45:22
4. Morals: "Consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, pasion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry." Colossians 3:5
5. Worship:"God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:23

    Thanks for staying with this series. It is important to have the awareness you are finding, I hope, through these postings. Please comment and let me know what I can do for you.
    

Knocking on Doors- JW

   You have decided to sleep in. You had a long night last night.
   There is a knock at your door. You shout out, "Wait a minute."
    You open your door. Two people stand there. They have a magazine grasped for lfe in their hand.
     "Yes?"
     "Would you like the message of truth?", one says.
     "Do you know Jehovah?" asks the other.
      They look harmless. Strange, yes. They are doing door to door evangelism.
      Nothing wrong with that. Evanglism. Door to door.
      Except they don't know God and they are not in any way, shape, or form sharing truth.
      They are Jehovah Witnesses and they are working for their salvation.
      The Bible says, "Not by works of righteousness, but according to His mercy He saved us."
      They neither know Him nor mercy.
       They are there becaue they have to be. Their parent organization located in Brooklyn, New York has trained them. They believe that they owe allegence only to Jehovah and not any government. They won't take part in elections or politics, They frown on blood transfussions as being the blood of an animal and forbidden by the Old Testamnt law. They don't observe holidays such as Christmas and Easter. Even birthdays are forbidden.
       But worst of all, they deny the Trinity. Jesus, to them, is a created being. His resurrection was only in the spirit, not a physical one. The Holy Spirit is not God.  Man at death ceases to be. They have no  eternal punishemnt for the unsaved. And as I mentioned, salvation is by good works and not by grace.
    They have a New World Translation of the Bible that they follow. It is bits and pieces with JW doctrine running through it. It is not a reliable translation, if such it can be called. (I wouldn't)
     That is enough to chew on at the moment. I will be returning to this subject later.

Reasons for Activity

    It did not just happen over night. The deviations from orthodoxy came slowly. Well, not too slowly. The early church had to handle deviations and misapplications early.
     Solomon, the wisest man in the world, had this to say, "There is nothing new under the sun"
     The counterfeit truths are like water. They satisfy. But they don't hold solid when seen under the microscope of the Bible.The fake truths masked themself as orthodox but were not. When they start to say that Jesus was a creation of God, the first born of creation ,to them it meant He was created, not always existent. Or the false teaching that God is a force.
       At the start the church was strong and held a common faith and a common hope. They were close knit together in all aspects of their lives.
    The church of today has become a social club. Not all, but enough to allow error to creep in and even be accepted at truth. Today's church in America has turned into a security and entertainment center. In fact, look closely and you can see the  five major faults within the church.

1. A rise of liberalism
2. An isolation from contemporary world issues
3. A lack of sound Bible teaching
4. A failure to promote a solidly Biblical world view
5. A fundamental failure to meet people's spiritual, psychological, and social needs

   
   Humanism. That is what has crept into the church. Hinduism and the Eastern Belief system has rushed in to fill the void.
    We need to, as Christians, get our World View from the Bible, God's Word. His only Word. He has communicated and put down in the Bible all He wants us to know. There will be no more communication. It is finished when the book of Revelation closed.
     We need to protect ourselves against the attacks of the cults. That is one reason I am doing this series in this blog.
       As we look at these cults we can see self-centered leaders. They do not submit to God's will. They tend to have big egos. The followers are insecure and need the ego driven leaders in order to make themselves feel worthwhile.
       Their leaders give them their interpretation of what the Bible says. In reality they teach what their books say. Yes, they tend to have a book other than the Bible. Maybe in addition to but mostly in place of.
         More. Much more in the future.
       Am I helping you? Let me know how you are. Especially those oif you who are outside the United States.

Effort Makes One Enlightened

    So now we look at another Eastern system.Since we in the United States are slowly forgetting our Christian  roots  we are allowing strange systems to creep in to fill the void.
   Man is a religious creature. He is made up of three parts. He is a body. He is a Spirit. He is a soul. The body eats and is satisfied. The Spirit comunicates with the unknown. The soul is what gives him the urge to seek something out there.
   Not all adherents to the Eastern mind set are Hindu. More to the mindset is the teaching of  the Buddha. Unlike the Hindu the followers of the enlightened one or Buddha hold to the theory of a 'middle way'. that is a path between the complicated religion of the Hindu and the world of sensuality. They have a clear firm rule for the followers.
   There are the Noble Truths:

• Suffering is universal. The very act of living is suffering But in each reincarnation (there it is again.) there is suffering. You will be looking for the Nirvana or release from the endless cycle of suffering.
• The cause of suffering is craving. The endless cycle occurs because we are attached to the world.
• The cure for suffering is to eliminate craving. Simple. No craving. No suffering
• Eliminate craving by following the Middle Way--the Noble Eightfold Path.By isolating the cause of the inability to escape the cage of birth, suffering, rebirth-- something called tanha --you can work out the solution.

        The system they came up with has a eightfold path.

1. Right viewpoint
2. Right aspiration
3. Right speech
4. Right behavior
5. Right occupation
6. Right effort
7. Right mindfulness
8. Right meditation

     In the twentieth century and now into the twenty first we can see Buddhism in a variety of forms.
     In Tibet it appears as Demon Worship. In Japan it shows up as the new militant, nationalist  cult of Soka Gokkai.
     But the two main forms we should be aware of are Hinayana that holds that only a fortunate few make it to Nirvana, and Mayanana which is that all will make it, salvation is for all. There is a savior god. Hinayana  said that man must save himself. But Mayanana sees Buddha as the savior
       The problem is that its gods are beyond man's ability to reach.
        On the other hand, Christianity gives us Jesus who will give us the strengh to live a righteous life. God can be reached because God first reached down to us.  

Foundation

    Before I go on in this study on Cults I feel I should let you in on a secret. Get close now. Christianity didn't spring up without a foundation.
    Christianity never could have come if it wasn't for a man called Abraham. He was called out of his Ancestral home in Basra  ( southern Iraq). He heard God's voice telling him to go to a land that He would show him. He went and lived the life of a nomad. He was quite old. He and his wife, Sarah had a child named Isaac. Abraham was a hundred at the time and Sarah was ninty.
     As the story goes Isaac and Rebecca had two sons, Jacob and Esau. It was through Jacob that God worked. He had twelve sons. Through the line of Judah God worked and brought about a King named David. From David's line came Jesus. The Jew  is also called a Hebrew.  The name comes from "Eber",  their traditional ancestor
    Jewishness is not a religion. It is a nationality.They are looking for a Messiah. What they won't admit is that the Messiah has already come. According to the scriptures which thay had guarded and preserved , Jesus of Nazareth was the messiah they were looking for.
    Let me place here a look at what  Christian say and what the Orthodox Jew says.
    When  it comes to God- the Christian  says our God is revealed as  a trinity; Father, Son, And Holy Spirit., Not three Gods but one God - One essence.
    The orthodox Jew would say "Hear O Israel, the Lord our God,The Lord is one." That comes from the Shema.
    As for Sin the Christian says that in Adam man fall and is now born in sin.
    The Jew would say, no. Man is born neither good nor bad. Man is born free with the capacity to choose between good and evil. Therefore each man is accountable for himself
    As for Jesus, most Jews see Him as a good teacher of ethics. Since Jesus did not bring lasting peace nor did He deliver Israel from the oppression of Rome, He was not and could not be the Messiah.
..   But did you know the first people called Christian were a small group of Jews? Yes. Jews. We can call them completed Jews. The term "Christians" was a term used by people to try to mock the followers of The Way.."They were first called Christians at Antioch " That is recorded in the Book of Acts. Look it up
    Until next time.
    Please feel free to comment. I will read and respond.