Page 5 of 5 FirstFirst ... 345
Results 41 to 44 of 44

Thread: Hold These Thoughts

  1. #41
    Banned
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    440
    Thanked: 188
    Blog Entries
    270

    Post How People Stay In Heaven

    -
    Back in 1968, I lived alone for a while in the daylight basement of a family home in Oregon. The solitude afforded me plenty of free time to think about the afterlife; and one of my biggest concerns was of course that of ending up in hell.

    I reasoned that it would be a whole lots easier to stay out of hell if only complying with the Ten Commandments were second nature rather than such an effort of will power and self denial. Well; in time I found out that there really is such a thing as a second nature.

    "Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God." (1John 3:9)

    That is quite remarkable; and one of the supernatural aspects of Christianity that gets very little press these days. That which is born of the Spirit as per John 3:3-8 is not only 110% sinless, but it cannot sin; the reason given is that it takes after its Father, who, according to Jas 1:13, is impervious to temptation; and within whom, according to 1John 1:5, there is no darkness.

    In a nutshell: There is now in my possession a divine nature and a human nature. The divine nature was born of the Spirit as per John 3:3-8 and is suitable for life in the kingdom of God, while the human nature was born of man and is unsuitable for life in the kingdom of God.

    Though I came into existence with human nature; I'm not stuck with it. No according to Col 2:11, it's been somehow miraculously amputated from my existence by the hand of God so that I will go into His kingdom with only divine nature; ergo: I won't have any sins to confess in the kingdom because my divine nature will never, ever, compel me to commit any; which means, of course, that I will never be kicked out.

    Is the divine nature a pipe dream? Well; Peter didn't seem to think so.

    †. 2Pet 1:3-5 . . His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature

    NOTE: If human life produces human nature, then eternal life produces divine nature. So then; wherever we see a promise of eternal life in the New Testament; I think we can safely interpret it in our minds as divine nature. For example:

    †. John 5:24 . . I assure you: those who listen to my message, and believe in God who sent me, have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life.

    The grammatical tense of Christ's statement is present rather than future, indicating that people who listen to his message, and believe in God who sent him, possess the divine nature right now-- no delay and no waiting period.

    Also note the word "never" in his statement; which Webster's defines as not ever, at no time, not in any degree and/or not under any condition.

    =================================

  2. #42
    Banned
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    440
    Thanked: 188
    Blog Entries
    270

    Post Female Pastors, Preachers, and Teachers

    -
    NOTE: The comments below are limited in scope to a Christian church environment.

    Christ's apostles speak for Christ; and obeying them is a walk pleasing to God.

    †. 1Cor 14:37 . . If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of The Lord.

    †. 1Ths 4:1-2 . .We beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more. For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus.

    Seeing as how the apostles' commandments are Christ's commandments, then refusal to obey an apostle is all the same as refusal to obey Christ. It's a domino effect all the way to the top.

    †. Luke 10:16 . .Whoever listens to you; listens to me. Whoever rejects you; rejects me. And whoever rejects me; rejects the one who sent me.

    Therefore, these next commandments are not just one man's opinion; but are Christ's wishes, and being so, are God's too.

    †. 1Cor 11:3 . . But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

    †. 1Cor 14:34-35 . . Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. And if they will learn anything, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.

    †. 1Tim 2:11-12 . . Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.

    People who refuse to obey those commandments are no better than pagans practicing dark arts and/or worshipping Shiva and Vishnu.

    †. 1Sam 15:23 . . Rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry.

    They're Christ's enemies.

    †. John 15:14 . .You are my friends if you do as I wish.

    And they're disloyal too.

    †. John 14:15 . . If you love me, you will comply with what I command.

    †. John 14:21 . .Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me.

    †. John 14:23-24 . . If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching . . He who does not love me will not obey my teaching.

    Their insubordination insinuates that God's wisdom is absurd.

    †.
    2Pet 3:15-16 . . Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him.

    Q: What about Deborah? God appointed her to lead men. (Jdgs 4:4-5:31)

    A: Sophists are fond of pointing to Old Testament female luminaries like Deborah to justify Christian women leading Christian men. But they need to wake up and get their bearings. Deborah wasn't a Christian; and besides: she lived in the Old Testament era.

    That ship has sailed and we today live in the New Testament era-- an era where Christ's wishes reign supreme. Male leadership may not be ideal; but the bottom line is: males are Christ's gender of choice; and it is his Father's wishes that people follow His son's lead.

    †. Matt 17:5 . .Behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and behold, a voice out of the cloud, saying: This is My beloved son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him!

    †. John 3:36 . . He who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.

    You know why the issue of Christian women leading Christian men is so controversial? It's because far more Christians are worldly than heavenly; they're living the Christian life according to the standards of their culture, and according to their feelings, instead of according to Christ's wishes; viz: they're carnal instead of spiritual; and apparently content to be that way.

    †. Rom 8:5-8 . .Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.

    Christianity isn't everyone's cup of tea. If people find Christ's rules too strict, too old fashioned and/or too contrary to their culture, then maybe they ought to take up something else, like maybe Buddhism or Yoga meditation. But one thing no one should do is follow Christ with the thought of setting him straight or bringing him up to date. You see, that would be the sin of heresy, which is a sin that merits ostracizing.

    †. Rom 16:17 . .Watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them.

    Stubborn cases of heresy require excommunication.

    †. Titus 3:10-11 . . Reject a divisive person after the first and second admonition, knowing that such a person is warped and sinning, being self condemned.

    Some Christian churches are so insubordinate that they mirror the church of Laodicea where Christ is depicted outside the building at Rev 3:14-22 banging on the door trying to get someone's attention to let him in. A Christian church without Christ at the helm is really an odd duck. For all intents and purposes, it's little more than a religious social club.

    †. 1John 5:3-4 . . For this is the love of God: that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.

    =================================

  3. #43
    Banned
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    440
    Thanked: 188
    Blog Entries
    270

    Post Christ And The Priesthood Order Of Melchizedek

    -
    Melchizedek was the high priest of the Most High God in the days of Abraham. (Gen 14;18-20)

    Mel, along with Abraham, existed before the law was enacted as per Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. This is very important seeing as how according to Deut 5:2-3 and Gal 3:17, the law isn't retroactive.

    †. Rom 4:15 . . Law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.

    †. Rom 5:13 . . Sin is not imputed when there is no law.

    Christ's priesthood is patterned after Melchizedek's (Ps 110:4, Heb 5:5-10, Heb 6:20). So then, seeing as how Melchizedek and his constituents-- which included Abraham --were immune to the curses stipulated for breaking the law, then Christ and his constituents are immune to the curses too. In a nutshell: neither Christ nor his followers can be sent to hell for breaking the Ten Commandments.

    Another advantage of Christ's priesthood is its continuity.

    Take for example Judaism's priesthood. No one has benefited from its services since Titus destroyed Jerusalem in 70ad. Which means of course that 1,945 years worth of Yom Kippurs have been merely for show because the Day Of Atonement cannot be observed properly and effectively without a fully functioning priesthood.

    In contrast: Christ's priesthood isn't effected by wars, and/or geopolitics. He officiates in heaven where nothing happening on earth can reach to either interfere with, or interrupt, his services (Heb 8:1-4). And seeing as how Christ rose from the dead immortal (Rom 6:9, Heb 7:3) then old age and death will never be a factor in either the length or the effectiveness of his priesthood tenure.

    †. Heb 7:24-25 . . He, on the other hand, because he abides forever, holds his priesthood permanently. Hence, also, he is able to save forever those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

    NOTE: The order of Melchizedek is a "high priest" order (Heb 5:10, Heb 6:20). Well; the Bible limits the number of high priests in office at a time to just one; and the man stays in office till he's dead before being replaced-- which of course means that Mormonism's over-crowded order of Melchizedek is off-reservation: and so, for that matter, is Mormonism's order of Aaron seeing as how his was the office of a high priest too.

    =================================

  4. #44
    Banned
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    440
    Thanked: 188
    Blog Entries
    270

    Post Hope For Natural-Born LGBT

    -
    Everybody has problems with proclivities; which Webster's defines as inclinations or predispositions toward something: especially strong inherent inclinations toward something objectionable. Everybody also has problems with predilections; which Webster's defines as a natural liking for something: a tendency to do or to be attracted to something.

    †. Eph 2:2-4 . .We too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

    With a pronoun like "we" Paul included himself as someone with natural-born longings and desires for bad things. And the pronoun "all" precludes the possibility of any one Christian claiming to be born free of a strong inherent inclination toward something objectionable and/or a tendency to do, or to be attracted to, something bad.

    The point is: unless something were done to remedy LGBT predilections and proclivities none of them would qualify for citizenship in either the new cosmos or the holy city depicted in the 21st chapter of Revelation. All would be barred entry even though Christ gave his life to atone for LGBT conduct.

    The problem is: LGBT would go right on as LGBT just like always because their predilections and proclivities would drive them to it; and were they to suppress their LGBT predilections and proclivities for very long; I think they would eventually go mad with a nervous break down because they would be fighting against nature; which everybody instinctively knows is a fight that can't be won without suffering serious psychological consequences.

    So then, it's futile to tell LGBT to stop acting that way when the problem is not their conduct; no, their conduct is merely a symptom; and as every informed person knows: you don't treat an illness by treating its symptoms-- that method has been proven ineffective.

    God's remedy for LGBT is pretty extreme. He doesn't remove the LGBT's longings and desires; instead He regards the natural born LGBT's condition as so far gone that it can't be treated. In other words: He throws the baby out with the bath water, so to speak, and starts from scratch with a new baby.

    †. John 3:3 . . I tell you the truth: no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.

    The birth about which Christ spoke isn't an option; no, it's a must.

    †. John 3:7 . .You must be born again.

    That goes for everybody, not just LGBT, because Christ said "no one" can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again; which of course has to include all the holy people in the Old Testament too or otherwise "no one" has no useful meaning.

    =============================

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Has your Kia Optima warranty expired? Get a fast online quote from CarWarrantyUS today. Enjoy the open road and leave the repairs to us.