Christ Teachings

In addition to Christian books printed the traditional way on paper, Christian audio books can now be easily obtained from the internet. If you are not aware of what an audiobook is, it is simply a spoken word recording of someone reading a book.
Audio books with Christian content are available in CDs, cassette tapes and by digital mp3 or wma download. They can be played back in your car, on your home sound system, or through your computer. You can easily obtain them by going online and choosing which audio books you want to buy or download.
Just like regular print books, audio books usually have lessons or teachings relevant to Christianity. There are many audiobooks available, for both young and old alike. Children love listening to stories, so an audio recording of a book is an ideal way to teach them about their faith. Teens love listening to Christian teen novels. Adults can listen to their favorite bible teacher expounding spiritual truths from the Bible, or get lost in the latest bestselling Christian novel.
Professional narrators or actors read most audio books, although the authors themselves read some. Some books even have background music, which provides for captivating listening. For elderly folks, or people who have vision problems, audiobooks provide a way to enrich their lives with good Christian literature.
For many of us, there is not enough time in the day to sit down, relax and read a book. But with an audiobook, you can listen while you are doing chores, driving your car, or doing other daily tasks.
With iPods all the rage with teenagers these days, you can encourage your son or daughter to stop listening to hip-hop for a couple of hours and listen to a Christian book recorded in audio format instead. They will be far more receptive to this suggestion than if you ask them to read a printed book.
Online book stores not only offer downloads, but you can also join a community forum of Christians who are interested in similar books as you. In an online forum of like-minded Christians, you can share your ideas and make suggestions on which audiobooks you recommend. Likewise, other people can give you their opinions on what books they can or cannot recommend as well. You will find that listening to Christian audio books is definitely a convenient way to deepen your spirituality and grow in your walk with God.

By: Jesse Whitehead

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

For more information about Christian Audio Books, pay a visit to Audio Books Download website at audiobookfair.com/christian-audio-books.html

Celibacy is the state of being unmarried or the voluntary abstention from sex. It has been practiced since ancient times for a variety of reasons.

St. Augustine, the first archbishop of Canterbury, abstained from sex simply because he didn

There are many people who send their sons and daughters to private school and there are many more who send their children to public schools. The important thing to note is that a lot of people in the US don’t know about the advantages of top private schools over public schools. If you have been thinking of enrolling your child in one of the top private schools in the US then it is a great decision but how do you find out if the school really offers what your child needs.

You need to consider several aspects of a school before reaching a decision. Let us look at some of the important aspects that will help in decision making.

Your needs: First and foremost is identifying your needs or your child’s requirements. It is extremely important that you start to look within your family and start working out the various needs of your child before thinking about applying to one of the top schools. If you are wondering why then the answer is that most top schools look the same from the outside. Each school has their own strength but it is not necessary that the private school you choose will be able to satisfy the need of your child. Every child has varied requirements and hence you need to focus on finding a school depending on your child’s need. While identifying your child’s requirements, you need to segregate them on the basis of their desire, extra curricular activities they prefer, and their practical ability. The following pointers will help you to segregate your requirements:

Practical requirements: These requirements have to be met so that your child can have a better future. When you are looking through top private schools, you will come across some great schools that offer just about everything but they might not be able to meet your practical requirements. At that point you will have to rule out that particular school as a possibility. When we say practical requirements, then it suggests the following:

- How far is the school from your home?

- Will your child require transportation or will the school provide the same?

- Does your child require a before-school or after-school care?

- Does your child have any kind of linguistic, emotional, physical, or any other learning need that would demand special attention?

- How much is the education and enrollment fee in top private schools? What is your budget?

- Are you looking for a private boarding school or a day school?

Desired requirements: This includes the various options and criteria’s that you will most likely focus on while looking at top private schools. Some of the questions that you need to ask here are:

- What type of curriculum are you looking at? Some parents opt for science while others opt for art or commerce.

- Are you looking for modern facilities at the private school?

- What type of school environment will you prefer for your child – small or large?

- Are you looking for top private schools with multiple grade levels like K-12?

- Are you looking for a private school where parent teacher involvement is stressed upon?

- How is a particular school communicating with parents?

These questions will help you in filtering out schools and help you in choosing the top private schools for your child.

Kelly Hunter owns and operates Top Nursing Schools and writes about Nursing Pins.

Most people, even if they’re not Christians, acknowledge that an exceptional spiritual master named Jesus lived and died 2,000 years ago. The story of his life and teachings are chronicled in the four gospels of the New Testament and they have captivated and inspired the Western world ever since. But how do we know what Jesus actually said? There was no stenographer or tape recorder present and the first gospel to be recorded, Mark, wasn’t written until 30 years after Jesus’ death. How much do you remember of any conversation you witnessed 30 years ago?

From the time Jesus spoke until the time his words and actions were eventually recorded on paper there were many opportunities for mistakes, misinterpretations and mistranslations. Jesus was a mystic and often spoke in parables and metaphors. Those who were present interpreted his teachings and their meanings through the filters of their own limited spiritual understanding. These impressions and memories were substantially diluted and distorted with the passing of over 30 years’ time between their occurrence and their recording.

The gospels we have today were based on documents copied and recopied by scribes for 400 years after Jesus died (the original writings were lost to history). Scribes, being human, sometimes made mistakes and sometimes changed things to fit their preconceived notions or agendas. Each new generation of copied gospels compounded the errors of all previous scribes.

Additionally, Jesus spoke in Aramaic. The first gospels were written in Greek, which was eventually translated into Old English and then to modern English. Each of these translations provides opportunity for lost meaning. Finally, the Council of Nicea, convened by the Emperor Constantine in 325 AD after declaring Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire, discarded parts of the gospels which were inconsistent or contradictory in an attempt to make them more cohesive and consistent. For example, all references to reincarnation were stricken. Sadly, many of Jesus’ teachings were lost forever because they did not square with the spiritual views of the Council.

What exactly did Jesus say? No one really knows. Those who interpret the Bible literally and hang on every word are missing the point. Countless controversies, conflicts, condemnations and ill judgments have resulted from (often petty) differing literal interpretations of Biblical scriptures. This has created fertile ground for ego gratification and the rise of fundamentalism. Ironically, judgment and condemnation seem to increasingly have trumped Jesus’ core message of love and forgiveness.

Given that Jesus’ exact words were lost to the wind 2,000 years ago, the best we can do is to search out themes found in the gospels that appear time and again. In this way the essence of Jesus’ teachings comes through loud and clear, over and over, to those who take the time to distill his wisdom from the gospels. It is simply: open heart, open mind-love and forgiveness. Do not judge. Tolerance. Or to sum it all up into one sentence: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

The Prince of Peace told us that the kingdom of heaven was at hand and that the way to experience it was by following his teachings. At hand means here, now, in this life. What are you waiting for?

Visions of Glory

“Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white.”

Those of you who have been listening to me preach for some time will have heard me mention Will Willimon – a man who has very much been my preaching mentor. I have only met him in person once, but I have spent a relatively enormous amount of time reading his preaching guides and listening to his lectures on how to preach. And Will Willimon’s key strategy in preaching, which has become the basis for so much of my own pulpiteering (if that’s a word) can be summed up in four words that he is fond of quoting, namely: ‘stick with the weird’.

And if you haven’t heard me mention this before many of you will no doubt nonetheless discern how this principle operates in my treatment of Biblical passages – that my approach to the Biblical narrative is generally not to avoid the difficult bits, but rather to focus in on those aspects of a passage that do not seem to fit easily, that are uncomfortable, or that are just downright weird.

And then you come across a passage like today’s reading – the story of the transfiguration – where the whole thing is just completely weird, and it is hard to know what to do with it!

“And as [Jesus] was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white.”

Jesus shone! What are we supposed to make of that? How did He do it? Why would Jesus want to do it? Was it all just a part of some strange dream of the disciples, and if it wasn’t a dream what point was Jesus trying to make, if any?

Of course these sorts of questions aren’t unique to this particular passage. There are lots passages and lots of stories about Jesus that are, at first, difficult to penetrate. And yet we who are experienced in dealing with the Scriptures know that there are methods for unlocking seemingly difficult texts, and the starting point is generally looking at other pieces of Scripture which pick up on similar themes.

And so with this particular story of the transfiguration, our starting point might be to look at other persons who are transfigured in the Bible and compare the nature of their transfigurations to Jesus’ transfiguration, such that we might begin to see what transfiguration in general is all about, and hence what Jesus’ transfiguration in particular has to teach us.

The problem we have though when we start to look at the other transfiguration accounts that occur in the Bible is that there aren’t any. There are no other transfiguration stories. There are no other people who were transfigured at all!

Yes, there was Moses, who we are told had a ‘radiant face’ after his encounter with God (Exodus 24:39) but it is hardly a strong comparison. There’s no suggestion there that he was ‘shining like the sun’ or that his clothes were transformed such that they were ‘whiter than any fuller could bleach them’, let alone that he shared in any of the other strange elements of this story.

In other words, when it comes to transfiguration stories in general in the Bible, there just aren’t any! This account pretty much stands alone, and for that reason it is hard to have much of a clue as to what to make of it.

One comfort in this of course is that the disciples didn’t seem to have a clue what to make of it either! On the contrary, the three characters who shared the experience with Jesus behaved like rabbits caught in the headlights, not knowing what to say.

I’m not sure what it was that was going through Peter’s mind when he made the suggestion about setting up the three tents, but then again it’s not clear that Peter understood what he was talking about either. It seems to have been one of those moments that you look back on later, kicking yourself, and thinking of all the much more intelligent things you could have said if only you’d had the presence of mind at the time to say them.

It was difficult for the disciples to work out what was going on with Jesus that day, and it remains difficult for us two thousand years later to work out exactly what was going on with Jesus that day. He seems weird, impenetrable, and not like us at all, suggesting that perhaps there is a dimension to Jesus that is far more mysterious, more powerful, and more glorious than we might have otherwise imagined! Let us hope so, for if we are going to deal with the struggles of this life and with the evils of this world we will need a Jesus who is more than just an inspiring brother and a spiritual buddy.

As some of you know, I’ve spent a lot of time and energy this last week trying to help coordinate a campaign to prevent my friend, Sheikh Mansour (our local Iranian Muslim cleric), from being deported by the Australian government.

Now I know that there will be some people who question why I should be pouring my time into supporting someone who should be considered both ethnically and religiously my enemy, but that’s OK. Plenty of people questioned Jesus over His support for Samaritans and Romans and Syrophoenicians, who supposed to be His ethnic and religious enemies, so I’m not too worried about that. What does worry my though is that the further I get in to this case, the more I sense the presence of evil deeply embedded in our legal and governmental systems.

Q: Mansour is to be ingloriously deported from our country as a security risk? Why?
A: I’m sorry, we can’t tell you!
Q: But isn’t it only fair that a man be told what he is accused of?
A: Yes, it is fair, but as the High Court has ruled, Mansour is not entitled to procedural fairness or natural justice because he is not an Australian citizen!
Q: But I thought the purpose of the law was to deliver justice, regardless of whether you were black or white, rich or poor, Australian or Iranian?
A: Yes it is, but not if you’re a terrorist!
Q: But what makes you think that this quiet and gentle man is a terrorist?
A: I’m sorry. We can’t tell you!

When I was a younger man I used to think that we lived in a wonderful country where everybody was given a fair go, but it’s just not true. You can get justice, but you have to be an Australian citizen, and frankly, you have to be a white Australian citizen, and quite frankly, you have to be a white Australian citizen with money!

And in case you think I’m just being cynical on this last point let me tell you of one good friend who went to get some advice from a lawyer recently as to how he might defend himself through the legal system. The lawyer gave him 20 minutes of his time and charged him $1,600 for those twenty minutes, and the advice this lawyer gave my friend as to how he should try to defend himself through the courts was that he shouldn’t bother.

And I’m convinced that it’s not just a case of there being a lot of particularly nasty lawyers (the 90-something percent of the fraternity giving the rest of the guys a bad name). And I’m convinced that it’s not just a case of bad judges or poorly defined laws or corrupt police or political interference or bureaucratic bungling. It is all of those things and it is more! It is the system, and it is the evil embedded deeply within the system that corrupts and infects and perverts and deforms, and takes even the best of intentions and moulds them into actions that destroy human life.

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places”, says St Paul (Ephesians 6:12), and it is true!

I see those ‘principalities and powers’ doing their corrosive work in the case of my friend Sheikh Mansour just as I see them tearing away at the flesh of my dear brother Mordechai Vanunu in Israel, just as I saw them at work in the case of four entirely separate men that I have been trying to support over this last week, each of whom are struggling to get access to their children!

Why? Because they have difficult partners and are enduring painful relationship breakdowns? Sure! But it’s more than that too. It is the system, and it is the evil embedded within the system, and it is the principalities and powers at work through that deeply embedded evil, tearing up and bringing down, sowing discord and whiteanting reputations, “turning justice into wormwood” as the prophet Amos once put it (Amos 5:7) “and casting down righteousness to the earth”.

And it is insidious, and it is painful, and it is enough to drive us to despair and make us want to throw it all in, but then we look up and we see Jesus, transfigured – mysterious, glowing, breath-taking, glorious!

And His glory shines above it all, and around it, and through it all, and we sense that somehow in the midst of all this pain and ignominy and corruption and death, that yet there is hope!

The transfiguration of Jesus. I don’t understand it and I don’t have many clues as to how or why He did it, and yet I cling to it! For I need a Jesus that is bigger than my own imagination, and I need a Jesus who can rise above the principalities and powers and all the forces of evil that tear away at our world. I need Him in His glory.

As John, one of the other disciples who shared that experience with Jesus, wrote many, many years later: “We beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

We beheld His glory! And that vision of His glory makes us strong – straightens the feeble knees and lifts the falling hands, and so we battle on, bathing in His glorious light!

By: DavidB.Smith

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Parish priest, community worker, martial arts master, pro boxer, author, father of four

www.fatherdave.org

Get a free preview copy of Dave’s book, Sex, the Ring & the Eucharist when you sign up for his free newsletter at www.fatherdave.org.

Drug rehabs are the centers that have been established for the sole cause of helping the drug addicts get out of this addiction. Christian drug rehabs are those centers that are built to treat the addicts in a way that would not only help them get rid of the addiction, but also help them get close to God. Unlike other treatment centers the Christian drug rehabs use various spiritual methods of treatment which help the addict to lead a peaceful life. Drug addiction also leads to drug abuse which not only affects the life of the addict but also the life of his family and friends. These treatment centers provide a faith based rejuvenation to the addict which not only helps the addict to get rid of drug abuse in a easy and painless way but also helps them build a bond with God. Though the Christian drug rehabs preach Christian faith they also accept people of different faiths and they also welcome all those who want to work towards a better life.

The Christian drug rehabs design programs based on the needs of the addicts. Many group and individual counseling sessions are conducted at these centers that would help the addicts on their road to recovery.

The origin of drug addiction in many cases has been found out to be; personal problems, problems related to family, problems at workplace etc. Therefore, emphasis is laid on finding out the root of the addiction. Individual counseling sessions are carried out on a regular basis in the supervision of a personal health counselor. These counseling sessions not only help the addict for his medication but also help them leave the feelings of guilt and shame. After the individual counseling the health counselor also has sessions with the family members which help in finding out the real cause of addiction.

Sharing ones

Putting together a great church bulletin doesn’t have to be a chore. Here are a few tips to get you started in making a bulletin that is both functional and fun.

Organization:

Following and presenting the order of the worship service doesn’t have to be the only function of your church bulletin, but that is the main function. In order for it to flow naturally, your bulletin should be organized in a way that keeps things moving along, lets those who are participating know when their parts are coming up, and gives regulars and visitors alike a clear idea of what is going to be happening and when. Announcements and events are generally listed after the service information. Be sure to include as many details as possible including times, dates, locations, and contact information to make it easy for the congregation to make plans to participate.

You will also have to put some thought into what the cover will look like. If you have an idea what the sermon is going to be about, you can find or create some art that fits the theme. You should also use (or create, if need be) a logo for your church that you can use in small or large form for all future covers.

It is always a good idea to have someone look over the bulletin for typos and grammatical errors before going to print.

Contact Information:

In every bulletin, perhaps on the inside cover or inside back cover, you should include the names, phone numbers, and email addresses of all of the church officers as well as the main office number. This makes it easier for visitors to become members, and for members to contact the right person with questions or in case of emergency.

Events:

As we stated above, provide as many details as you can about upcoming events and activities, and double check the information to make sure it is accurate. Though some members will use the contact numbers you have provided to get more information, many will rely on what is listed in the bulletin alone. Even if you produce a weekly bulletin, events should be listed on a monthly basis, if possible in order to give members time to plan, and for you to update the calendar should there be any changes to make.

Graphics:

In order to increase the fun factor, and or just to break things up a little bit, it is always a good idea to include a little bit of graphic art. You should be able to find appropriate clip art online or in your word processing or layout software. A lot of great church bulletins have regular sections that include jokes or cartoons. Before you use those, however, make sure that you have the legal right to reprint them, and let a couple other people read them to make sure they are appropriate.

Binding Style:

For the most part, you will likely use a saddle stitch, two-staple format. There are machines out there called “booklet makers” that are not very expensive to own, and which allow you to do this sort of binding in-house and save money in a rather short time over a print shop.

If you are interested in more information about how the right Booklet Maker, can help you create a great church bulletin, you might want to visit MyBinding.com. They offer a great price on these machines and they even offer Free Shipping on orders over $75.00. Plus, they carry a full line of Binding Accessories, of all styles, types and capabilities. If you are looking for other information and articles to help you learn about Binding Equipment and Supplies, you should really check out MyBindingBlog.com. They feature thousands of articles, posts and product reviews on topics related to binding, laminating, paper shredding and paper handling. Check them out today.

Luke 3:21-4:1-13.
Jesus had become by this time, a mature man, well-prepared physically and spiritually. It is time for the beginning of His public ministry. First he goes to John to be baptized by him. The three other Gospels give more detail of this event. Luke only includes what God did and said after the baptism itself. He is concerned about what God revealed about Jesus at the beginning of his public appearance.

3:21. Those of the Jewish people who had turned to God are not numbered, but a great many had by this time come to John. It was then that Jesus went and was baptized by John. By His submitting to this rite, the Sinless One took the sin of mankind upon Himself. He offers Himself as the Substitute, to be identified with and represent the sinful race of man. This was the outward and public sign that He accepted His work of redemption which began here and which was not to be completed until His suffering and death.

Jesus was praying in communion with God, when the heaven opened – a brief window to the majesty and glory of the father and Jesus. Jesus and also John (read John 1:32) saw the Holy Spirit descending from heaven in the form of a dove – a symbol of purity, innocence, beauty, and peace. This means Jesus was henceforth completely equipped to fulfill the role of Messiah and Redeemer – openly shown in public as a further sign of His designation as the Christ of God. His eternal Son-ship is further confirmed by a voice from heaven saying, “Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Verse 22. “in Thee I am well pleased” – in reference to everything Jesus had done up to this time – all within God’s will. Now He was especially in God’s will by submitting to baptism – officially and publicly taking on the work of redemption, ultimately leading to the Cross. In Christ Jesus, heaven has been opened to us, and the way prepared. We have been redeemed and become God’s children by that Redemption.

Verses 23-38 – The Genealogical Table of Jesus. Having shown the background of Jesus and beginning of His public ministry, Luke chose to place the genealogical table here.

Verse 23. He mentions the age of Jesus (the only one to do so) as about 30 years old. Genealogical tables had been compiled and updated for many centuries. Public registers were kept, and many families also did.

Luke obtained a copy of the genealogical table of Mary’s father Heli. Since it was not customary to insert the name of a woman in such a list he added (as was supposed) the son of Joseph – in Luke 1 & 2 he has recorded that Jesus was solely the son of Mary. In Matthew we find the family tree of Joseph who was legally Jesus’ father (though only stepfather, actually). This table is quite different from Luke’s. Yet, it clearly establishes Davidic descent legally.

As Luke had been writing for Romans and Greeks, Jesus’ Davidic descent was not essential. Luke wanted to show Jesus’ actual human descent through David, Abraham, to Adam the son of God. That Mary was a descendant of David was never disputed during the early centuries.

Verses 24-38. By going all the way back to Adam, Luke shows Jesus’ ancestry not only from the Jewish line to Abraham, but before the existence of that line. He shows the family tree of all mankind which began with Adam – the son of God in that he was created by God as a mature man. Jesus becomes the second Adam – born of woman but conceived by the Holy Spirit. Many books have been written that go into the details of these lists identifying as many of the unfamiliar names and their places on the lists.

By: T.O.D. Johnston

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

The above lesson was excerpted from the author’s online Holy Bible Commentaries. He enjoys spending his time at his art studio on 118 Sauls St., Lake City, South Carolina.

Each church has it’s own “feel”. It may be a quiet church full of hymnals, or it may be a church that plays Christian Rock with a live band. The congregation may be young or old. Someone from a congregation steeped in tradition may not be comfortable in a church that is considered progressive.

When you are planning a church activity or function and you need banner signs to make the announcement, you want your banner to reflect the personality of the congregation. While the design is a big part of how the message is received, there is one other consideration. You have to choose whether your vinyl should be matte or gloss finish.

How will my church banner signs look with a matte finish?

A matte finish will gives a very nice finished look to a church banner sign. The image is clear and crisp. However, when you choose a matte finished vinyl the colors do not “pop”. It will have a more traditional look. The banners made on a matte finish will still look great and attract attention from the congregation about the upcoming event or service. Many churches choose the matte finish for their banners and are quite pleased with them.

If you are looking for something a little different you may want to choose the gloss finish for your vinyl.

Is a gloss finish a better choice for my banner signs?

A gloss finish will be just as clear as the matte finish, the difference in the banner will be that the inks used to digitally print your banner will “pop”. The colors will reach out and grab you as you walk past. In a contemporary church this may be a choice for all banner signs. It would more closely match the typical personality of the congregation. Of course, the final choice is up to the committee assigned to purchase the banner signs. The committee would know if the gloss finish would be appropriate for the activity or service that you are announcing on your church banner sign.

A recommendation for those committees or church officials who may be undecided about whether they should use gloss or matte on their banner sign – consider the occasion. If this is a youth activity, match their energy with a glossy banner that screams excitement. If it is for an announcement about the Palm Sunday service, choose a matte finish to reflect the solemnity of the occasion. This is only a suggestion. It is always best to let the representatives of your congregation make the final decision.

The Bible talks about the Pre-Flood Era and the Increasing Corruption on Earth which provoked God’s wrath so that He flooded the earth.  The Bible says:

When man began to multiply on the face of the Earth and daughters were born to them, the Sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they married them.

Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, his days shall be 120 years. The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the Sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.

The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the LORD was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the LORD said, “I will wipe off man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.”  But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.

Herein, there are some points; they are:

Why only daughters were born unto man?
Who are the Sons of God and how many they were?
Also, nothing can or could, will or would grieve Allah.  Also, Allah has no heart; He is not like us or like anything else.
Is man’s age 120 years as the Lord God has decided?
Allah never ever repents of anything He did, He does and/or He will do.
Moreover, although the Biblical God has Spirit, Allah has no Spirit; He is not like us.
In addition, although the Biblical God has heart (and blood vessels and blood consequently), Allah has no heart; He is not like us or like anything else.

On the other hand, the Quran does not talk about the Increasing Corruption on Earth in the Pre-Flood Era, but it talks about the corruption on mankind from the time of creation of man up till now.  After Adam’s fall, Allah gave him and his offspring consequently an advice (Verses 20:121-123 and verses 2:38-39); hereupon, Allah sent Prophets to every nation on the Earth and He ends the Prophethood with the last Prophet, Muhammad (Verses 43:6-7 and verses 35:24-25).

After Adam’s fall, Allah gave him and his offspring consequently an advice

The meanings of the verses 20:121-123

And Adam disobeyed his Lord and so he erred, by [his] eating from the tree.

Then his Lord chose him, He brought him close [to Him], and relent to him,

Then Allah chose him, He accepted his repentance, overlooked his sin and guided him to seek repentance regularly.

[N.B., In the Bible, the Lord has not accepted Adam's repentance; that is why He sent his son to the Earth.] 

And Allah said, ‘Go down both of you, that is, Adam and Eve, including all of your progeny, from it, from the Garden, all together, some of you, some of the progeny, being enemies of others, because of some wronging others. Yet if there should come to you guidance (a Scripture, a Messenger, and/ or a Prophet) from Me, then whoever follows My guidance, shall not go astray in the life of this world nor come to grief in the Hereafter.

The meanings of the verses 2:38-39

Allah said to Adam, Eve, and Satan, ‘Go down from the Heaven, all together. Then Allah mentioned Adam’s progeny, from hence; when and whenever it comes to you, from Me a guidance, whoever follows My guidance, believing in me and performing deeds in obedience of Me, no fear shall befall them, neither shall they grieve, in the Hereafter, since they will be admitted into Paradise.

But those who disbelieve, and deny our guidance, they will be the rightful owners of the Eternal Fire; they will abide therein forever, they will remain perpetually in hell: never to die or be released from it.

Allah sent Prophets to every nation on the Earth and He ends the Prophethood with the last Prophet, Muhammad

The meanings of the verses 43:6-7

Allah asks the Historian this Question  

And how many a prophet did Allah send among the ancients!  O Muhammad, Allah knew that they would not believe, but Allah nonetheless did not leave the bygone nations without messengers and Scriptures!  And never came to these past nations a Prophet but they used to mock their Prophets, in the same way that your people deride you O Muhammad.

It follows that, in contrary to the Bible which states that all the Prophets were Israelites, every ancient nation had its own Prophet; the historians and researchers have to dig through the history to explore the prophets sent to America, Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia. 

It should be emphasized that Allah sent a Prophet (Idris); the scholar said that he was an Egyptian Prophet sent to the Ancient Egypt before the Flood (Verses 19:56-57). Idris is not mentioned in the Bible.

The meanings of the verses 35:24-25

Lo! Allah has sent you O Muhammad with the Truth, with the Quran, as a bearer of glad tidings, announcing Paradise for whoever believes in Allah, and as a Warner from the Fire for whoever disbelieves in Allah; and there is not a nation except that they had a warning messenger. In other words, there is not a nation or a community before you O Muhammad but a Warner has passed among them to warn them.

And if they deny you O Muhammad, those before them also denied their messengers who brought them manifest signs, miracles and with scriptures.  In other words, the messengers before Muhammad came unto their nations with clear proofs of Allah’s Sovereignty; they came to them with commands, prohibitions and signs, and with the Scripture expositing the lawful and the unlawful.

It is interesting that the Bible which is a historical book declares that all the Prophets sent by the Lord God were Israelites who were in the area of Iraq, Palestine and Egypt.  On the other hand, the Quran which is not a historical book challenges the Historians and declares that Allah sent a Prophet to every ancient nation.  Hence, the Historian have to find out who are the prophets sent to America, Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia. 

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

The Bible (King James Version)

Genesis 6:1-7

1) And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,

2) That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.

3) And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

4) There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.

5) And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

6) And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.

7) And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.

8But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.

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

The Quran (Pickthal translation)

Verses 43:6-7 

6) How many a prophet did we send among the men of old (the ancients)!

7) And never came there unto them a prophet but they used to mock him.

Verses 35:24-25

24) Lo! We have sent thee with the truth, a bearer of glad tidings and a Warner; and there is not a nation but a Warner hath passed among them.

25) And if they deny thee, those before them also denied. Their messengers came unto them with clear proofs (of Allah’s sovereignty), and with the psalms and the scripture giving light.

Verses 20:121-123

121) … and Adam disobeyed his lord, so went astray.

122)  Then his lord chose him, and relented toward him, and guided him.

123)  He said: go down hence, both of you, one of you a foe unto the other. But when there come unto you from me guidance, then whoso followeth my guidance, he will not go astray nor come to grief.

Verses 2:38-39

38) We said: go down, all of you, from hence; but verily there cometh unto you from me guidance; and whoso followeth my guidance, there shall no fear come upon them neither shall they grieve.

39) But they who disbelieve, and deny our revelations, such are rightful peoples of the fire. They will abide therein.

———————

Back to my question to the smart and interested reader:

Are the Scholars truthful when they claim that the Quran quoted from the Bible?

The sole purpose of Sunday school is to teach children and young people about God, His Word and His will for their lives. As they study the Bible they learn about creation, how sin entered the world, why we need a Saviour, how God sent his only Son to redeem us etc.

The Bible tells us what is right and what is wrong. The right way to go and what happens if we go the wrong way. It gives examples of people who did what was right in God

Jesus Christ Superstar tickets have been available in one form or another since 1970, and this theater classic is making a return to the stage. This classic, written by the legendary Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, is a somewhat modern look at the last two weeks of the life of Jesus Christ. However, there are several twists and references that add a unique quality to the production, and this innovation is just one of the reasons that this musical is one of the most successful of all time.

About the Story

The story begins with a monologue from Judas Iscariot, the apostle who ultimately betrays Jesus. Judas is concerned that the movement that

Many young single Christian men of today are growing up not knowing what it means to be the head of his home, even though this is what God intends for him. “For the husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.” Ephesians 5:22-23

Many young single Christian women believe that submitting to their husband’s headship means to be a doormat. Why have the churches not taught the true reason behind a wife’s submission? Did you know that marriage is the living symbol of the relationship between Christ and the church? When Christian men and women do not adhere to their God-given roles they are rebelling against God’s plan for them.

The churches do not talk about the importance of marital roles because they do not want to aggravate any wives that go to that church. But if the church is not teaching what Christ taught then isn’t our Christianity going to be in ineffective? To be a Christ Ones means to follow Jesus and emulate his teachings in our lives, right? Then what’s going on?

Sadly, many Christian men of today are becoming conditioned into believing lies and what they see in Christian culture as truth. But the only truth is what God says for them. They are not following and trusting in Jesus, but in the world, and this is why many marriages fail. A Christian marriage will not stand up under the pressures of society telling them how their marriage should be.

A misinformed Christian man is likely to marry a woman who has made her career more important to her than the marriage. Neither of them realize this at the time, but a woman working while trying to raise children “in the Lord” and trying to keep an organized and managed home life, and keeping husband happy will cause much chaos within the marriage.

Resentments will flare? Arguments will fester. Bonds will break. And intimacy will become a thing of the past. Couples begin going their own way, just because they are NOT LIVING their marriage for God. They are not following Jesus. No one is really happy as they each strive to make more and more money so they can keep up with everyone else around them.

Someone in the marriage is going to do something stupid, possibly immoral to get some sort of fulfillment for his or her hectic and unhappy life. They both need encouragement but neither is encouraged enough to offer any. They will believe they are not in love with their spouse anymore and want a divorce. This all happens because we aren’t following the teachings of Christ for our marriage. We’re so rapt up within ourselves and the world around us, that we are neglecting our marriage! “The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. (1 Corinthians 7:3)

The bottom line is, a marriage based on a rocky foundation will be rocky! It’s not enough for Christians to just believe in Jesus. They must DO what Jesus teaches! They must deny themselves, take up their cross and follow Jesus. A Christian must bring the principles and teachings of Christ into their marriage by practicing them every single day.

What should a young Christian man thoroughly understand before getting married? “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her”. Ephesians 5:25

What should a young Christian woman thoroughly understand before getting married? “Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. (Colossians 3:18)

A good Christian marriage starts with a Godly based foundation. Christians are responsible for their own spiritual health. Don’t rely on others to tell you what scripture says, or only what they want to tell you-read the bible for yourself and ask God to give you the answers and guidance you need and he will provide!

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

Angie Lewis is the author of six self-help inspirational books offering valuable, proven marriage tips and advice. If your marriage is important to you, then you must check out Angie’s books and websites!
http://www.heavenministries.com/
http://www.heavenministries.org

Jesus Christ exposes the world’s ways, and John in his Gospel explains how Jesus exposes the world’s systems. They had a system. Do not fall in line with men’s systems.

The world has a system today particularly in the areas of morality and finance and economics and woe betide the man who challenges the world’s convenient system. It is convenient for the few, by the way, and many others have to suffer.

A woman caught in the very acts of adultery is brought to Jesus. Was she committing adultery on her own? Why did they not also bring the man along?

We read all the amazing details of this and Jesus Christ handled the situation superbly, in John Chapter 8 in the New Testament.

Now, no matter what Jesus said, it appeared he would offend somebody. That is what these religious leaders thought.

Jesus was now known as the friend of sinners.

What would happen and what might happen, if He openly condemned her? And, if Jesus went against the law then he was in real trouble.

The Roman authorities had forbidden Capital Punishment by the Jews, so they were not at liberty to execute her. It was as if they had Jesus in their clutches in every way, no matter what he said.

This is the only time we are told that Jesus wrote, and whatever it was he wrote it would soon be rubbed out by passing feet. It was a busy time in the Temple, with around one million visitors to the city of Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacle.

What did He write? Was He just disgusted and so doodled? Was He gaining time for prayer? Was He of purer eyes to behold iniquity, and not only the iniquity of the woman but also the iniquity of the Pharisees?

Or, was it because back in the Old Testament when Moses received the Ten Commandments, these words were written by the Finger of God? Or, was Jesus thinking of that royal palace when Belshazzar the king was giving a banquet and he was drunk, having become drunk by drinking out of the vessels that had been plundered from the Temple in Jerusalem? As he laughed and cursed God and His People, suddenly he sees a finger writing on the wall. “You are weighed in the balances and found wanting”?

Here was God’s Finger writing again and the writing was on the wall, and the judges were being judged!

The sin of which these religious leaders accuse her is the very sin of which they are guilty.

Jesus straightened up and said, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”

He who has not committed adultery can start to throw the stones! That was quite a devastating statement to make to these particular men. Do take time to read of this incident in the Temple in Jerusalem. There are many lessons to be learned for these present times.

Sandy Shaw

Sandy Shaw is Pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship, Chaplain at Inverness Prison, and Nairn Academy, and serves on The Children’s Panel in Scotland. He has travelled extensively over these past years teaching, in America, Canada, South Africa, Australia, 12 visits to Israel, and most recently in Uganda and Kenya. He broadcasts regularly on WSHO radio out of New Orleans, writes a weekly commentary at http://www.studylight.org entitled “Word from Scotland”, as well as a weekly newspaper column. His M.A. and B.D. degrees are from The University of Edinburgh, and he continues to run and exercise regularly. Sandy Shaw.

When talking with other Christians I have found that some do not realize the relevance of the Holy Bible in their lives. Many feel hopeless and confused. In these troubling times it is hard to keep focused on the important things in life.

My father used to say, “When you’re up to your rear in alligators it’s hard to remember that the original objective is to drain the swamp.”

For the believer there is only one true authority. God Almighty through his Son, Jesus Christ. The Bible states the in times past he spoke to man through the prophets, but now he speaks to us by his own son. (Hebrews 1:1)

How does the Son of God speak to us?

The Bible is clear that Jesus speaks to us through the scriptures in the Holy Bible. The Bible tells us that all scripture is given by the inspiration of God, and it is given for doctrine, correction, and instruction. (II Timothy 3:15-17)

Who wrote the Bible?

God himself wrote the Bible. A person may argue that the Bible was written by men, but the scripture clearly indicates that God is the author. The scripture says that no scripture is of any private interpretation, but God moved holy men to prophesy by his Holy Spirit. (II Peter 1:20-21)

Men were instruments of God’s will. An example:

Samuel Clemens wrote the book, Tom Sawyer. Some might argue that the pen in Samuel Clemens’ hand actually wrote the book, because the pen is what actually touched the paper. We all know that is absurd. Samuel Clemens wrote the book, because the book was a collection of his thoughts and words. The pen was merely an instrument in his hand.

Just as a writing pen isn’t considered the author of a novel, so man can’t be considered the author of the Bible. The Bible is God’s thoughts and words. Men were just an instruments in God’s hand. The Bible is the Word of God.

And it is by reading and obeying the Bible that men gain the peace and joy God provides for them through his Son, Jesus Christ.

Copyright 2010 J-me

Mark Brown, who writes under the pen-name, J-me, invites you to receive your free subscription to the Mason Bricklin Newsletter. Each monthly issue features a humorous short story, and articles about family, writing, internet marketing, and the Bible. Or visit his humorous books and stories site: http://www.masonbricklin.net.

Job had three friends who had heard of the things that had happened to him. They planned to come and comfort him. They met together and came to his house. When they first saw him they did not know him for he was so changed. They saw that he was very sad, and they wept because they were so sorry for him. Then they sat down on the ground with him.

For seven days and seven nights no one said anything. Finally Job spoke to them and told them how sad he was: That he trusted God but could not understand why these things were happening to him. Then each of the friends spoke to him for a long time. They told Job that he must have done something very wicked or these things would not have happened to him.

Of course, they did not know what conversations had taken place in Heaven either. They thought themselves very wise and able to explain to Job the reason for his suffering. Job answered each of them and said, “No, I have not sinned. I have lived a good life. I have worshiped God. I have been kind to the poor. The things you say about God are not true, and the things you say about me are not true either.”

Finally a younger man came, and he talked for a long time too. What he said was better and more comforting than what the other three had said, though he believed also that these things had happened to Job because he had sinned.

Then God spoke out of the whirlwind. He reminded Job and his friends that He had made the earth and everything in it, that He guided the stars and kept them in place. Before God spoke to him, Job felt that he was a good man and had not sinned. But when he heard God’s voice speaking to him out of the whirlwind and saw how holy and wonderful He was, Job saw that he was a sinner.

He said to God, “I have heard You in my ears, but now I have seen you and I hate myself. I know that I am a sinner and I am sorry.” Job knew that in God’s sight he was not good, and was not able to stand before God/ He knew too, that God had a right to do with him just as He wished.

Then God spoke to Job’s friends and told them that they had sinned in talking as they did and that they must offer a sacrifice and ask Job to pray for them. Job prayed for his friends, and they offered a sacrifice as God said they should. Then Job was healed of the boils.

All his brothers and sisters as well as friends came to see him again. Each one brought him a gift and they had a feast. Then the Lord blessed Job and gave him twice as much as he had before. He then had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen and 1,000 donkeys. Again Job was the greatest man in the east. And best of all God gave him seven sons and three daughters.

All the angels who had been watching, as well as Satan and his evil angles, knew that Job loved and trusted God and that God loved and cared for him. He lived to be a very old man, and then God took him to Heaven.

Sermons are just the same as advices the only difference is its biblical and sacred. Most of us are inactive of this because of the influences we had seen and the doings of others we had followed. Planning out a sermon is easy. The first thing you need to do is find a passage of scripture, start your sermon with a personal anecdote and keep it concise.

You should choose for the topic for your first sermon a particular passage of the bible that you’re already very familiar with. Perhaps you have a favorite bible story, psalm, or passage. Perhaps you’ve already discussed a particular issue on several occasions, or taught it in the family, or simply studied it a great deal already. This should be the topic of your first sermon. Go back and read this passage again, using a good reference bible or concordance or commentary for additional references. Jot down a few notes about other related passages and verses, and study those as well. Write down the point you wish to make with your sermon and the conclusion you’re planning to draw at the end of your sermon. After you’ve done all this, read the original passage one more time and review all of your notes and conclusion.

You should choose for this practice audience your family members and a few friends. There’s an important psychological reason for this. You’ll find that you’ll be more nervous and self-aware before those to whom you are very close, than you’ll be before a much larger group of people to whom you’re not so close. So practice delivering your sermon before this group of close associates at least once. They’ll probably be more than happy to offer By: Luck Jean

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

contemporarysermons.blogspot.com/

Just a little way from the capital city of Jerusalem there lived a man who was one of the priests of the temple. When a baby boy was born into their home, he and his wife named him Jeremiah. This means “The Lord doth establish.” They must have believed that their little son was to do a special work for God.

Jeremiah lived at the time of the good King Josiah. Though Jeremiah was from the line of the priests, God called him when he was very young to be a prophet. He may have been eighteen when God spoke to him. God said to him, “Before you were born, you were set apart for a special work. I have called you to be a prophet to the nations.”

Jeremiah felt very helpless and afraid. He said, “O Lord, I am just a child, and I am not old enough or wise enough to speak for Thee.” Then the Lord said to him, “Don’t say, I am just a child, and don’t be afraid. You are to go where I send you and speak whatever I tell you. I will be with you to take care of you.” Then the Lord touched Jeremiah’s mouth and said to him, “See, I will put My words in your mouth. Do not be afraid of the faces of the people for I am with you.”

The true prophets were not popular with the people because they brought them a message they did not want to hear. After the death of good King Josiah the people had gone back again to their idols. Their sins had become so great that God could no longer keep from punishing them. But first he sent Jeremiah to give them another warning.

He said, “You have sinned against the Lord. You have turned away from His love and have gone after other gods. If you repent even now, God will watch over you. But if you will not turn away from your wicked ways, a mighty nation from the north will come against you with a strong army. They will take your land and take you as prisoners back to their land.”

God told Jeremiah to go down to Jerusalem and give this message.  He was to stand by the temple gate where many people passed. Another time God told him to go to the palace and preach to the king. Neither the rulers nor the people wanted to hear the message which Jeremiah so faithfully gave. They became angry with him and threatened to kill him if he did not stop.

They wanted only to hear only pleasant things. They did not want to hear the Word of God when it told them of their sins. But Jeremiah did not stop giving them God’s message, for he must obey God whether the people were pleased or not.

Ancient Jews of Jesus’ period, were in fact in a very bad shape. They had been invaded by the Romans, who destroyed their sacred places, humiliated them and occupied Jerusalem and appointed a Governor to rule over them. The morale of the Jewish people of that time was at their lowest ebb. It was a difficult time for the Jews. They were in abject misery.

They had vivid memories of King David and King Solomon when they had ruled their part of the world. They had lost everything. Their entire solace was now in their scriptures where they had been promised advent of Moshiach or Messiah from the lineage of King David and before Moshiach return of Elijah as a prelude to Moshiach. They were waiting for him.

The scriptures always only prophesize about the spiritual and religious reformers but the Jews had tied their hopes on him in despair and held that he would be a warrior, siding with whom they would fight with their enemies. Moshiach, they thought, would release them from the shackles of slavery of the Romans and improve their material lot and they would rule their part of the world like they had ruled before in the times of David and Solomon.

The Jewish people were waiting for Messiah or what they call Moshiach and they according to OT believed that Elijah would descend from the heavens and would pave way for the advent of the Messiah.

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of God. (Festivals (3:23)-Shabat HaGadol),“Christians may refer to Malachi 4:5 or in some versions 3:24.”

When Jesus announced his prophet-hood from one God and started criticizing Jewish people of the malpractices they had indulged in, their religious clergy started strongly opposing him. Jesus spoke with wisdom and he was supported by God; a lot of people among the Jews started accepting him to the anguish of the Jewish priesthood, rather they became his deadly enemy.

To prove that he was a false prophet as per their scriptures :-

“If there arise in the midst of thee a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams–and he give thee a sign or a wonder”

“And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death;” (Book of Deuteronomy Chapter 13:2, 6 Jewish Bible: Christian OT 13: 1, 5)

They, the Jewish priesthood of that period hatched a conspiracy resulting to kill him on the cross. Now what happened to Jesus on the cross is very important for three Abrahamic Religions i.e. Jews, Christians and Muslims. If a true unity is to be brought about among these religions, solution of this mystery is very essential. To every body’s surprise sufficient evidence is even now (after 2000 years of the incident!) available, on the internet.

Moshiach did arrive from G-d in the shape of Jesus of Nazareth, chosen by G-d and sent by Him for reformation of the Jewish people but to their utter disappointment he was not as carved by them in their emotional thinking.

Jesus was by far a humble and righteous person, a man of G-d, a teacher reformer docile with the ordinary downtrodden people who loved them. He was taught spirit of the Holy Scriptures by G-d. G-d accepted his prayers and as such he healed their diseases and with His support he showed many signs and miracles. He taught them the inners of the scriptures.

People started flocking around him. His reputation as a prophet started spreading around. He criticized the clergy of the prevalent Jews whom he described as seeing only the outer side of the scriptures, materialistic and not spiritualists, they were not acting on the Book and disregarded it and instead of that they preferred on acting on the man-made traditions of their elders (Mark 7:6-10) .

“ 9 ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.”

Jesus was a Jew and like other Jews he was entitled to enter the Jewish Temple, pray there and was free to deliver a religious lecture to the audience as a free man, which he did. He did not man-handle anybody or say anything abusive against any person specifically. He was not aggressive even as per the present human rights of the modern time.

The Jewish rabbis, Pharisees and Sadducees could not like this. Jesus was openly denouncing and demolishing the edifice of their hollow religious hierarchy. Instead of accepting him with humility they turned violently against him and his poor, humble and peaceful followers.

The Jewish priests of the time tried to stop him and they opposed his teachings, ridiculed him, started calling him a false prophet, and in fact issued an edict to this effect. Jesus far excelled them in reason, arguments and character. Their opposition miserably failed against him. The clergy then decided to deal with the matter politically.

Firstly, to ridicule him and to prove him a false prophet, they asked him a pertinent question: You claim to be a Moshiach and as per scriptures Elijah was to descend before Moshiach/Messiah to pave way for him and as a sign for him; where is that Elijah? The answer was reasonable and alright but they rejected it and said this confirms that you are a false claimant.

Secondly: Jesus had announced of a heavenly kingdom of which he was a truthful representative, so the Jewish priesthood of the time planned secretly and informed the Roman rulers that this man Jesus is a very dangerous person, he claims to be a King of the Jews and he is amassing people around him that would culminate as revolt against the roman rule. Jesus should be arrested, tried for the offence of treason and put on cross and killed.

As per injunctions of their scriptures (refer Deuteronomy 13:1-11), what they could not do themselves now they tried to accomplish it by hands of the Roman officials, and thus emerge triumphant. (John 11:47-54) “47Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles.”  “53Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death.”

They took out processions and pressurized the Romans officials to issue verdict against Jesus, who was a peaceful and law abiding citizen and had done nothing against the Romans or their rule. Roman Officials knew and were convinced of this. The Jews threatened that if the Official would not accede to their demand they would report against his person to the Roman capital that he is supporting the revolt. The New Testament is full of the account of the incident. Pilate did not believe that Jesus had committed any offence against the Roman Government and as can be discerned from the events narrated in the New Testament, if intently read, Pilate considered Jesus an innocent man, being a weak Official himself, he secretly tried to help him out and save him from the death on the cross, though prima facie he succumbed to their pressure and could not save him from injures.

It does not at all necessarily mean that all Jews in Judea participated in putting Christ on cross to kill him mercilessly. But any number of them who practiced Judaism and who considered him a false Moshiach, who had not fulfilled their worldly aspirations, they considered him a false prophet and must have most likely participated in that secret planning as they were enjoined in Torah, Deuteronomy chapter 13; it was their individual duty to try him in the court of Law and put his hand on a false prophet and get him executed. (Mathew 26:47-68). “57And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.59Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death; 67Then did they spit in his face”

If somebody was ignorant of Jesus’ claim, he was naturally absolved of the responsibility. Anyway G-d is the best judge and we are not to issue any verdict in this connection. But it is plausible that all those who opposed him in the city of Jerusalem, secretly planned it,(Mathew 27:1-5) devised this strategy, humiliated Jesus, rebuked him, put a crown made of straw and thorns on his head,  then taunted on him as being a King of the Judea, spitted ( Mathew 27:27-35) on him, took out a procession ,shouted and demanded of the Roman Official to execute him, made it sure that they are present on the scene to see him being put on the  cross or were jubilant on his being executed; they cannot be absolved of this crime.

It should also be noted that Jerusalem was a center of the Judea and the Jewish high priests  and grand temple was located there and priesthood hierarchy lived their and centered there and in fact they were the leaders of the entire planning and those who followed them  all such mischievous people were certainly involved in it. But now it is a matter of history, we leave it to G-d to judge them. “1When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death: 2And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor. (Mathew 27:1-2)

Pilate was a weak personality; he washed his hands before the Jews to show them and express that he was not involved in their scheme and was not agreed to crucify Jesus, and he considered him innocent in the matter.(For conduct of the priesthood and Pilate refer Mathew 27:11-26). “20But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus. 24When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it. 25Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.”

After all Jesus was a peaceful, law abiding citizen of the Roman Empire and had done nothing to invoke their anger.

So, it was the Jews of that time who did it and onus of this cruelty and inhuman act falls on them and not that much on Pilate. But that is a matter of history now and the Jews of the present time have nothing to do with it. Many of the moderate and balanced Jews, not under influence of the corrupt clergy had already accepted him and when Christian Movement after this grave incident in the city had to go underground, many must have among the Jews accepted him later on.

And if the present time Jews can’t be blamed for crucifying Jesus, they must now have no excuse of not accepting him when it has become very clear that Jesus did not die on cross and he miraculously survived the collective attempt of the Jews present on the scene  to kill him. His status as their beloved Moshiach hence becomes ratified and also as a true prophet of G-d.

When Jesus last departed from his followers they saw him going up the hills disappearing in the clouds, which scene is common in the hill sides and mountainous regions where clouds are very low, some followers might have resorted to think that Jesus has risen to the skies while he disappeared up the hills above the clouds and went to accomplish his mission assigned by God to the lost sheep of Israel (Matthew 15:23-25).

The situation was very tense that generated all sorts of doubts, stories and alibis. The Jews were in doubt, due to the storm which followed soon after Jesus was crucified, they absented from the scene and when the storm subsided they were not sure what took place during their absence.

When queries were made Jews were told that Jesus had got resurrected from the dead and raised to heavens and hence the weak Christians resorted to deify him as God or son of God. This has nothing to do with Jesus who only believed in one G-d as Jews believed; rather he was sent by G-d to strengthen unity of God, which faith had been obscured by the priesthood. The stance of present day Jews that Jesus becoming God or son of God is an alien belief to the Jewry, they were not waiting for a person proclaiming these notions and hence they deny identifying such person. On the other hand the Christians resorted to such beliefs when Jesus and his close confidantes secretly disappeared from the scene and as history reveals reappeared in other part of the world.

The Christians in Jerusalem; those of them who knew where Jesus had gone could not disclose lest his persecutors may follow him and harm him and those who did not know this kept telling the people that he had resurrected and gone to heavens. Such beliefs were in fact product of the period of persecution of the weak Christians and which at a very later stage got formally adopted, modified or added by St. Paul and his epistles under no express instructions of Jesus. Others did not do that and remained on the pristine teachings of Jesus and later most of them accepted Islam. This is the reason why the Jews even after several thousands years are so small in numbers than the Christians and Muslims.

Now the time is changed. Christians of day don’t have to compromise any alibi or any negotiated religious belief. When it is proved that their beloved Jesus did not die on Cross and after healing of his wounds, migrated to far off lands. Christians at present must revive their faith based on this revealed truth and follow no myth so that Jews could identify Jesus clearly and accept him. This would culminate in merging of the two Abrahamic Religions.

This would benefit the Jews more as once they have denied Jesus; they are daily for the last two thousands years have been praying to G-d to send the Moshiach but to no avail. They could not even believe a dozen claimants of this office later among themselves. They have developed a circular argument belief for rejection. If a claimant of Moshiach does not succeed he is not a Moshiach in retrospect. Neither they support him nor G-d, since G-d supported miraculously Jesus, the first true claimant chosen by him and sent by him.

The Christians should avoid deifying Jesus and would become close to Jews and Jews identify and accept Jesus their Moshiach, both religions get reconciled. This is done in the roots of the faith and not done politically or diplomatically. End of two thousands years of religious hostilities.

Rambam’s thirteen principles followed by Jews were not revealed by G-d on Moses or on any other prophet. Present day Christian’s principles were not revealed on Jesus, if both stick to the original word of G-d the strife ends.

Lately the Jewish people have shown some relief in the questions they used to ask for the claimants of the office of Moshiach. They are not now asking the question they asked to Jesus which was well answered. The question; Where is Elijah who ascended to the skies with his chariot and who was to descend before the Moshiach to pave way for his arrival?

The Jews are not asking this question anymore and have excluded it from their list of the signs of the Moshiach. In fact logically, to be sincere, they should have prayed for the arrival of the Elijah first because he was to come first and when they would have accepted him upon his arrival then they should have prayed for the advent of Moshiach. They have now a circular argument as pointed out earlier. God is not to match and fulfill their desired signs of an ambitious and warring Moshiach, however and how-much they pray or wail. The Jewish people have to match to G-d’s will and accept the truthful, humble, loving and loved by G-d, Jesus of Nazareth.

Jesus when visited the temple in Jerusalem, he did not violate any code of civil liberties or human rights as understood by the present man. We are living in an age where we have to analyze things as per present requirement of time. The present human rights speak of the conscience of the humans the world over, and we judge things from the vantage point of present times. We cannot afford to be day dreamers living in the past and the unreal animosities of the past. We have to live in the present age and have to forget the unwise acts of the past and the past people.

We can pray for them but we only follow if they did things rightly and we should not insist on doing what they did wrongly. We cannot be their descendants in mistakes. If we are sincere to them we shall have to accept the truth with open heart and open mind. If they were wrong and it is proved they were wrong we leave their footsteps. In fact there was no case against Jesus of aggressively assaulting in the temple; if they had had it they would have registered with the authorities accordingly. Instead they registered a case that he was a rebel of the Roman Empire by virtue of being claimant of the office of Moshiach, King of the Jews. They were jealous of him as to why he has been chosen by G-d instead of one among themselves who were high priests of the temple.

Jesus did not violate any of these principles. He was himself a Jew, from the lineage of David. He did not pronounce a new religion. He only announced himself after a word of God as Moshiach which was well within the concept of Judaism then; and even now the Jewish People pray for the advent of Moshiach. He did not create any commotion, strife or fight there in the temple. He only professed his own faith. He did criticize the religious establishment, the decadent priesthood as he said they leave the injunctions of the Book (Torah) and more adhere to the self made tradition.

Actually the hollow and shallow priesthood became jealous of his pronouncement of being Moshiach, a very high office of the Jewish thought, perhaps the highest office in the Jewish religion after Moses. They became jealous that G-d made an ordinary and humble, popular among the people, pious man a Moshiach. If at all the office was to be given it should have been given to somebody amongst them. In fact every body amongst them thought for himself deserving for the post.

Jealousy of office made them an enemy of Jesus. If he were a Moshiach, then all of them had to become a subordinate of him. Their stiff necks could not bow before him, tolerate this situation. Jesus made no aggression, the priesthood made aggression and assaulted. When Jesus noticed that priesthood had become jealous of him and they were not agreed to have any tolerance towards his teachings and preachings, he shifted to suburban town to defuse the tension. “54Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples”.(John 11:54)

This is a research article. There is no compulsion in accepting it. Any body disagreeing with it can disagree and send me his arguments and reasoning and it is welcome. I will revise the essay accordingly, there is no ill will or hatred intended against anybody belonging to any race, religion, creed or color. Everyone is at liberty to believe in any thing whatsoever true or untrue, fact or myth and nobody else can harm him physically or discriminate against him; God has given choice to man which cannot be denied to him.

Human beings are to be honored and loved whatever their belief, nobody can interfere with them. It is another thing that every person is responsible to God for whatever he believes in or whatever he acts upon and would be judged, accounted for and rewarded accordingly. That is why every person should purify one’s beliefs and actions with facts and reasoning and find out the truth and leave false beliefs and actions not based on reality, others can only help and assist one to come out from the wrong beliefs and myths and would be rewarded accordingly. One should keep in mind that blind faith is of no avail and is not acceptable to God and is against human dignity and honor. Only truth could generate permanent peace and love among human beings; myths and false beliefs create hatred and differences make them fall apart.

The Jews believe in oneness of God that is alright and is appreciable. But how oneness was revealed to Jews, it was through Moses, a prophet of God. Whenever belief in unity of God gets obscured, God sends a prophet to revive it and to establish it. Belief in unity of God is not lost by only in being idolatrous that is worship of idols but also when one becomes materialistic and one absorbs oneself too much in worldly matters and does not bow before God and thinks that he is complete in himself and does not need God or His help in his affairs. One is proud and arrogant and thinks downward on other human being.

God chose Israel among the people and promised Holy Lands to him, alright but only when they are themselves holy, humble and loving mankind like prophets Abraham, Moses, Jacob and Joseph etc., and not when they are arrogant and haughty; If they do not follow in the footsteps of these great prophets, they themselves deny the Holy Land and there is no promise to them, rather they incite the indignation of God. The prophets are a test from God. With them true oneness of God and true character of man is established in the world. If people don’t accept a prophet and don’t go with him they fail in the test and invite wrath of God.

So, the Jews have to accept Jesus as Moshiach or a prophet of God to become a chosen people as they became when they accepted Abraham, Moses and Joseph and accepted their character as a model. On one hand claiming lands from the mouth of God and then leaving Him and not obeying his wills, this would mean that their own hearts are devoid of love of God and they are not God-fearing and loving the fellow human beings, so their hearts are not a resort of love of G-d or the love of human being. One becomes higher in nobility when one is higher in character and not in race, color or mere outward faith. By denying a true prophet of God all these attributes are lost and then those who accept the prophets become chosen People and Chosen Land belongs to them  and hand of God is on them i.e. they are assisted and helped by God.

The simple and common Christian thinks as if behind the cover of atonement they could do any sinful acts they like and have a license to live sinful life as they please. This is not the case, like with every prophet of God, in the Christ Era also whoever accepted him for the first time he had a new birth in belief and hence deserved that his previous sins should be forgiven by God being very kind to them. This atonement is observed in the era of every prophet to the believers for the first time. This does not require any sort of dying of Jesus on cross.

Every Christian has to do good deeds to earn and attain real forgiveness of God and he has to abstain himself from evil deeds. If a Christian tells a lie or makes a false statement in the court or steals or makes a dacoit in a house there is no atonement available for him, he has to cease doing evil deeds and to earn atonement and mercy of God, he has to show firm resolve for not repeating the crime he has done .So there is no unusual thing in this regard with Jesus, only a myth has been formed by shallow believers to please the ordinary people and win their support.

The essence or lesson of the incident of crucifixion of Jesus is that the believers shall have to prepare themselves for all sort of hardships in the way of God like Jesus has suffered and have to be steadfast and then God will give their faith conquest over all the religions and success in life and hereafter.

So, the fact is that Jesus never died on cross. Jews of his time just to prove that he was not a true prophet and as per Jewish scriptures God always causes an untrue prophet to be killed .They secretly planned and  tried to kill him by putting him on cross, but they did not succeed in their attempt to kill him . Jesus did not die on cross, he was delivered from the cross unconscious but alive, was treated in the room-like tomb by his close disciples, thus he survived from death, migrated to 10 tribes of the Israel exiled to far off lands as already hinted by Jesus and died later at some point in the history.

The topic is very important and needs to be discussed in detail. The Bible contains sufficient evidence to prove this truth if read intently and between the lines. Consequently the idea that Jesus’ crucifixion was essential for salvation of the sinners is not correct and needs to be revised accordingly. Jesus’ crucifixion and salvation dependent on this is just a myth created out of doubts and not facts of the incident.

It may be noted that the present Jewish people are in no way responsible for crucifixion of Jesus. The responsibility lies on the corrupt clergy of the time. The present Jewish people are enlightened people; I believe they could discern the facts and modify their stance. They have already suffered a lot for not accepting their truthful Moshiach and they had been forced into an eternal waiting position for Moshiach. They daily pray for advent of the Moshiach and it is their cardinal belief that he would come. Just for a misunderstanding they have been kept away from acknowledging him. They could forge unity of belief with the Christians by accepting him a truthful Moshiach.

The fact as to what happened at cross needs to be investigated as it is very important for bringing unity in the Abrahamic religions i.e. Jews, Christians and the Muslims or if not possible at least for an understanding among the three.

Similarly, the poor ordinary followers of Jesus were forced due to the course of events, they could not openly announce that Jesus’ life has been saved from death, lest the Jewish people follow him and torture him again. For face saving they told the Jews when asked that Jesus has resurrected and gone to heavens. One could though observe that all the close and trustworthy followers secretly got absented from the scene (city of Jerusalem, the centre of the Jews) and joined Jesus at far off lands to spread the gospel.

Importance for the Jews

It is to be investigated as to why they tried to kill Jesus Christ or put him on the cross. Were they politically motivated or due to some personal enmity or due to religious injunctions? Since they believed in Torah or the Old Testament as named by the Christians, and the Muslims also believe in Torah to an extant. The motive and the incidence of putting Jesus on cross should therefore be discussed with the Jews .

Anybody could take part in the discussion but references if any should be mainly from Torah the religious book of the Jews, not from the New Testament or Quran as Jews don’t believe in these books and reference to these books will be of no significance for them. The Jews have to state as to why they (or their elders in history) tried to kill an innocent person called Jesus. They should clear off their position in this respect.

Importance for the Christians

The incident of crucifixion and the events related to it should be discussed with the Christians and the arguments should be primarily based with reference to the testimony of the New Testament and the historic evidences if any. Giving arguments from Quran would be of little significance for Christians unless somebody first convinces Christians of authenticity of Quran.

Importance for the Muslims

This is also very important for the Muslims. All Muslims do not believe that Jesus (or Essa) died on cross or even he was put on cross, there are different interpretations and beliefs among the Muslims supposedly based on Quran or tradition. Resolving this issue could unite the Muslims also.

This mystery has been solved by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad and arguments on the issue have been amply provided for the point of views of Jews, Christians and Muslims.

Thanks 

paarsurrey  

E-mail: whitemunara@yahoo.com

In the Bible, the Lord God said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle them towards heaven, then it shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become boils breaking out in abscesses on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.”   So they did and it became abscesses on man and beast.  And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the abscesses that came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians.

———————

Herein, there are some notes

1. One may wonder how come, two handfuls of ashes could cover all the land of Egypt.  Is the Biblical Egypt too small to be covered by two handfuls of ashes?

2. This story is not mentioned therein in the entire Quran; but it is said therein (in the verses 2:117, 3:47, 3:59, 6:73, 16:40, 19:35, 36:82, 40:68) that when Allah wants to do anything He just says to it:” Be” and it is in no time without the need of ashes that become small dust, and turned out to be abscesses affecting both man and beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.

3. Also, if God love has to punish the Pharaoh of the Oppression, it is okay to punish him because he was disbeliever, disobedient and arrogant; but what was the fault of the beasts?

4. It is well known that the boils and the abscesses are due to microorganisms, mainly Staphylococci, and they are not due to ashes or fine dust.

———————

Exodus 9:8-11 (American Standard Version)

8 And Jehovah said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.

9 And it shall become small dust over all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.

10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man and upon beast.

11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boils were upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians.

———————

Back to my question to the smart and interested reader:

Are the Scholars truthful when they claim that the Quran quoted from the Bible?

People who love helping people who help other people often find themselves working with a Christian fundraising firm. It brings them real satisfaction. Many volunteers may feel that the task of raising money is monumental. With proper planning and great organization the task may feel effortless. Especially if the organization relies on a reputable Christian fundraising firm to get them going.

Decide who will benefit from the money that will be raised. Other fundraisers help people who were hit by storms, suffering from terminal illness and their families, or children who do not have the means to go to school. Remember to identify the beneficiary before starting out any fund raising activity.

A great idea for a fundraiser is to plan a charity walk or a charity run or a combination of both. Most people would like to get in shape. History has proven that this event has alway been successful as a fundraiser.

organize a tournament. Any kind of sport will do. Golf, tennis, swimming or even badminton. Studies indicate the the number of participants in a sports tournament will nearly double when proceeds go to a charity.

85% of the United States population really likes to watch movies. A good idea for a fundraiser is to host a film festival. People love movies so take advantage of it. Find out who your target audience is and determine which three movies they would most enjoy viewing. Estimate the number of attendees and rent a venue that is suitable. Next begin to solicit the sponsors.

A paintball tournament as a fundraiser is perfect. This hobby has attracted huge numbers of people from all walks of life. This is a great fund raising idea because it doesn’t just raise money for a good cause but it will always make participants enjoy the event.

For really large projects, Christian fundraising firms will suggest that the solicitation of funds is done either by phone, through the mail or even online. It is possible to reach donors from all over the world, not just the United States. Provide the prospective donors with a way to verify that your organization is legit. These days people are very cautious and on the look out fraudulant projects.

Many of the great fundraising ideas are used by reputable Christian fundraising firms, allowing charitable organizations to raise neccessary funds to continue their good works.

By: Francis Lane

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Prior starting the organization of your next fundraising event be certain to check out the resources about Christian fundraising firms along with other successful fundraising ideas.

So you want to know How to study the bible? You may or may not have been to the first page and picked up the Study Bible as seen on the home page but you might want to learn the methods and the tools on how to study the bible for yourself. Well look no further as we are going to go over simple ways and some little tools that will help us on our adventure on how to study the bible!

If you haven’t seen the book”How to Study Your Bible” you might want to pick it up. Nevertheless we will be covering some of those principles and going much deeper. We will begin by some basic “How to” Methods followed by the tools of the trade and then going into one of my favorite books to study… the Book of Jude from the New Testament. Although the book is in the New Testament it is actually an exciting book that will take us back to the Old Testament believe it or not.

We will also cover some tools such as how to use a bible marking kit or even better the all new Pentel 8-Color Marking Pencil as the definitive bible marking pen this side of heaven. Together these tools alone will help you in your quest for righteousness through God’s Word. Now as an added bonus for those you have not purchase the Ellen White Study Bible (Remnant Study Bible with E. G. White By: DA Rosales

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Now that you have step one down you need to get step 2 ellenwhitestudybible.com/?p=28 . Having trouble finding a good study bible? The Ellen White Study Bible has cross references and a bible study chain reference system. Get it here today with a limited 1st edition printing. ellenwhitestudybible.com/ellen-white-study-bible

The Bible reveals next and last pope will be a devil impersonating John Paul II

Why this is True

Through the study of Revelation chapter 17, the Lord has led us to a most startling truth, confirming that we are nearer to the end of all things than ever imagined. We are prompted by our loving God to share this prophecy, that none need be ensnared by the global events soon to transpire which will engulf the world in the grandest deception yet contrived by Satan.

World’s Last Chance dares to declare this interpretation to the world because we adhere only to sound Biblical interpretation. This means we unlock Bible prophecy by using the Bible as its own interpreter. By doing so we are certain of the correctness of the revelation.

With the vivid realization that we are living in the age just prior to the second coming of Christ in the clouds of heaven, we pray the Lord will impress you with the shortness of time available before the fate of every living person is decided, and may His Spirit give you the discernment and wisdom needed as you undertake this solemn study. AMEN.

Revelation 17

1. Which part of the Bible led you to reach this conclusion?

It was chapter 17 of the book of Revelation. Please read through this whole chapter from your Bible carefully. Its exposition is given below.

2. Give a short explanation of this chapter.

Briefly, John is shown the final judgment of the great whore due to her own course of action. This great whore, referred to as Babylon the great, was shown to John in the wilderness (v.3). This is an important setting, as will be seen later.

The description of the whore is parallel to the first beast of Revelation 13 that also has seven heads and ten horns (v.7) indicating that both symbols represent the same entity that being the Roman Catholic papal system. Furthermore, the whore is described as sitting on seven mountains (v.9). Rome has frequently been identified as the City of Seven Hills, from classical times down to contemporary time.

Whereas in Revelation 13 the union of church and state was blended in one symbol, in Revelation 17 God has pictured them separately. A woman always symbolizes a church in the Bible, in this case the whore an impure church. And a beast has always signified a kingdom or state that persecutes God’s people. So we have an impure woman sitting on (i.e. controlling) a scarlet-colored (a bloody) beast (state). This again reinforces the reality of the Catholic system being the only system that is a church and an earthly kingdom at the same time. This whore is described as being eminently rich, proud, and more importantly, very corrupt (v.4,5). Indeed, it represents Satan’s final supreme instrument of deception.

The following verses are key verses: “And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.” Revelation 17:10, 11. God elaborates on the seven heads of the beast, which are identified as seven kings. Significantly, the vision was viewed during the reign of the sixth king. He was to be followed by the seventh king, who will rule for a short time. However, the eighth king is going to be one of the previous seven kings, but that when he appears from the bottomless pit (v.8), he will not only merely be a king (ruling power) but a beast (a persecuting power); finally, he will then go into perdition.

When one of the seven kings re-appears from the bottomless pit as the eighth king but in the form of a beast, the ten kings of the earth (v.12) (ten is an all-inclusive, universal number indicating that this includes all earthly rulers; cf. parable of ten virgins) will be greatly awed by the beast, and will willingly surrender their power to the beast for a short time (v.12,13). Both the beast and the ten kings will rule and war against Christ in the person of His followers for a short time, and will overcome them (v.14).

Just before the end of all things, the ten kings will discover that they have been ensnared and deceived by the beast (the eighth king from the bottomless pit) and they will turn with vengeance against the beast system, and destroy it (v.16). For they will this time, though belatedly, be doing God’s will (v.17).

The Wilderness Setting

3. The great whore sitting on the beast was viewed in the wilderness (Rev.17:3). What is the significance of this?

This is important as it is not by happenstance that the “great whore who sitteth upon the scarlet beast” was seen in the wilderness. In Revelation 17, God is indicating the time-period that the Roman Catholic Church is in. To understand what will happen to the world when she comes out of her wilderness experience, we need to understand how the Roman Catholic Church entered this wilderness experience.

4. What does wilderness mean in Bible prophecy?

In the Book of Revelation we have another instance of a church that went into the wilderness. It was God’s true church during the Middle Ages, when the church was subject to papal persecution: “And the woman (church) fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand and two hundred and threescore days.” Revelation 12:6. We know that this church was pure, for it is God who led her to the wilderness, away from the papal persecution that raged for 1260 years from 538 A.D. until 1798 A.D. The dragon (Satan) was warring against the church during this period, using his earthly instrument, the Roman Catholic Church: “And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.” Revelation 12:14. The wilderness then, in Bible prophecy, is a figure of speech picturing the harsh conditions facing a church in a particular period in her history.

5. When did God’s true church come out of her wilderness experience?

The logical answer to this question would be, when the papal persecution ceased. This officially happened in 1798, when Napoleon Bonaparte sent General Berthier to Rome where he exiled Pope Pius VI to Valence in France. At the same time Berthier declared an end to the temporal power over much of Europe that the Catholic Church had enjoyed upto that time. It was a most humiliating and abrupt end to a long rule of power that lasted 1260 years. Shortly after, Christian Bible Societies spread all over the world, with their work unhampered or threatened by papal constrictions. Thus, 1798 marks the date when God’s church ended her wilderness experience. Now His church was totally free to focus her energies on translating and printing the Bible in as many languages as possible and to conduct missionary activities all over the world.

6. Did the Catholic Church then enter her wilderness experience just as God’s true church came out of it?

This was exactly the case. In 1798 the Catholic Church not only lost her temporal power over the kings, dukes, and princes of much of Europe, but the Church was in fact no longer free to carry her own ecclesiastical privileges, such as selecting a pope to succeed Pius VI. Her representatives needed the permission of Napoleon Bonaparte before they could appoint Pius VII in 1900 to succeed the pope who died in exile, a year earlier.

Furthermore, the wilderness experience for the Catholic Church came to bear on her in a most profound way from an entirely unexpected direction from her own backyard, Italy. Here is the background for the harsh and arid realities of life that faced the Catholic Church in Italy in the nineteenth century.

After the second and final defeat of Napoleon in 1815, Italians found their peninsula divided into states, duchies, and Papal States. Metternich, the strong Austrian leader at the time, used to refer to Italy as a mere ‘geographical expression’, reflecting the absence of united country. This odd situation gave rise to nationalistic attempts to unify Italy into one country. However, these attempts were met with great suspicion and resistance from the Catholic Church. Over time, the conviction grew in the minds of these nationalistic leaders that the Catholic Church was indeed a serious obstacle to the fulfillment of their national aspirations.

However, the move to unite Italy and form a united nation passed an important milestone when the Papal States were usurped in 1860 by force. There remained one major obstacle, however, for the creation of one Italian nation. The Italians wanted Rome, the seat of the Roman Catholic Church and the last piece of property left for the Church, to serve as the capital of their united country. This Italian dream came about when Italian troops occupied Rome on September 20, 1870, during the reign of Pope Pius IX. Shortly after, the Kingdom of Italy was declared.

However, the pope refused to recognize the new kingdom and went into voluntary captivity in protest. This unprecedented situation came to be known historically as the Roman Question. It remained unresolved for 59 years, during which time all succeeding popes confined themselves to movement within the few buildings in the Vatican in Rome, refusing to leave Rome. Indeed, the Catholic Church in the nineteenth century was engulfed in a very hostile wilderness setting.

In summary: we have seen thus far that from 1798 (when Pope Pius VI was banished to Valence by the French general) until 1870 (when Rome was usurped by the Italian army), the Roman Catholic Church was entrenched in her wilderness experience a far cry from the dominating-beast status she had enjoyed during her 1260 years of supremacy when she was a global persecuting power which directly or through her over-powering influence over European rules, caused the martyrdom of close to one hundred million dedicated people of God.

7. How was the Roman Question between Italy and the Roman Catholic Church resolved in 1929?

It was incomprehensible for the Roman Pontiff to be the head of Catholics the world over, yet in his own country be subject to another head of state. The Catholic Church believed that by virtue of his calling, the pope had an inalienable right to a temporal sovereignty. Only then could he conduct fully and freely his duties as head of the universal Catholic Church. But this demand conflicted with the natural desire of the Italians for a united nation with Rome as its capital. Italians after 1870 found themselves torn between their allegiance to the Catholic Church as Catholics themselves, and their allegiance to their newly-established country. This unresolved tension between the two sides undermined the new country internationally as well as domestically. A solution for the Roman Question had to be found!

Both sides of the conflict were eager for an end to this lingering problem. 1922, Benito Mussolini, the Duke, and Pope Pius XI came to power. And by 1929 they had at last found a solution to the thorny Roman Question that had lasted 59 years. On February 11, 1929, three sets of documents, known collectively as the Lateran Accords, were signed in Rome at the Lateran Palace by Cardinal Gasparri, representing Pope Pius XI, and Mussolini, representing King Victor Emanuel III.

8. Give a summary of the highlights of the 1929 Lateran Treaty between Italy and the Catholic Church of Rome.

1.The Italian State recognized the sovereignty of the Catholic Church, and regarded the Church as an independent member of the international community. By this agreement the Church obtained an independent state in Rome with an area of about 44 hectares.
2.The Italian State recognized the Roman Catholic Church as the official state religion.
3.All anti-clerical laws passed by the Italian parliament since 1870 were annulled and made void.
4.Cash settlement was made to the Roman Catholic Church to compensate her for renouncing all legal claims to the City of Rome and the old Papal States.
5.The pope pledged to perpetual neutrality in international relations, and abstention from mediation in any controversy except when specifically requested by all concerned parties.

9. What is the significance of the Lateran Treaty of 1929 to the wilderness experience which the Roman Catholic Church was in since 1798?

What the Roman Catholic Church got in 1929 was its independence and sovereignty. The political independence means that now they had a monarchy, although on much reduced area of land, where the pope was the absolute ruler. The pope now was not only the supreme head of the Catholic Church universally, but also the indisputable temporal king over the State of Vatican City. He was no longer a prisoner of captivity.

Notwithstanding, the Roman Catholic Church did not, in 1929, even remotely regain the stature she had prior to 1798, when she was a beast power. As such, she did not, in 1929, yet come out of her wilderness experience. Although in 1929, and by virtue of the Lateran Treaty, the popes were now universally recognized as sovereign kings, in return the Lateran Treaty stipulated that the popes pledge to perpetual neutrality in international affairs. This restricting condition could not have been imagined to be agreed upon by any pope prior to 1798. The Catholic Church long believed that Christ is the Lord of the whole world, and that at His departure He left His dominion to His representative, Peter, and to Peter’s successors, the popes. Therefore, it is the stated position of the Catholic Church that true and genuine temporal power and dominion lie exclusively in the hands of the pope. Consequently, every earthly ruler or monarch possesses only so much power and area as the pope would deem appropriate and good.

In sum, while tangible gains were secured for the Catholic Church by the Lateran Treaty of 1929, it did not restore the primacy and power the Church had enjoyed globally upto 1798, which had enabled her to persecute her enemies, and hence was tagged in Bible prophecy as a beast power. Hence there is not much significance of the Lateran treaty of 1929 to the wilderness experience of the Roman Catholic Church, as she still remained in the wilderness, even after 1929.

Seven Kings

10. What about the seven kings of the Roman Catholic Church during her wilderness period?

Now we come to the most important part of the whole chapter. God has prophesied that there will be only seven kings: “And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.” Revelation 17:10. From this verse the following facts can be gleaned:

1.Seven kings in total.
2.John was taken in vision to the time of the sixth king: “five are fallen, and one is.” He comes after the first five have fallen. Again, it is not co-incidental that when taken in vision, John was taken to the time of the sixth king. It is a divine hint by which God is guiding His people to focus their attention on this particular king, as he will play a very important role in the end-time events.
3.The seventh king “must continue a short space.”

11. So who are the seven king-popes?

Pius XI was the first Roman Catholic pope (from February 6, 1922) who became king as well on February 11, 1929. He along with Mussolini, engineered the Lateran Treaty.

12. What is destined to take place after the prophesied short monarchy of King Benedict XVI?

“And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.” Revelation 17:11. Here, we learn the following:

1.The Roman Catholic Church was once a beast (upto 1798), but now is not (is in the wilderness experience since 1798); however, she will regain the beast status (meaning she will come out of her wilderness experience) after the fall of the seventh king (Benedict XVI).
2.The next one to come after Benedict XVI will no longer be considered a mere king, but will be a beast as well; for with him the Roman Catholic Church will regain her former power to persecute her enemies.
3.The eighth, when he comes, will be the last; for he “goeth into perdition.”

The Eighth King

13. Who is the eighth who will restore the beast status to the Roman Catholic Church anew?

To answer this question we need first to note the origin of the eighth: “The beast that thou sawest was (the Catholic Church was once a beast until 1798), and is not (during her wilderness experience), and shall ascend (after the fall of Benedict XVI, the eighth will restore her beast status) out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition.” Revelation 17:8.

From this verse we can conclude the following:

1.Only one more king will come after Benedict XVI, and he will be the eighth. And this king will restore the beast status to the Roman Catholic Church for during his reign persecution of God’s people will resume again, just as it was in the Middle Ages.
2.That the eighth king will ascend from the “bottomless pit”, and in due course will “go into perdition.”

14. What is the bottomless pit from which the eighth will ascend?

Once again, we go only to the Bible to answer this valid question. The Greek word translated ‘bottomless pit’ is abussos which has the English counterpart, ‘an abyss’. The following verses will unfold what is the abussos.

“…a certain man, which had devils long time…30 And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him. 31 And they besought Him that He would not command them to go out into the deep (abussos)… 33 Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine…” Luke 8:27, 31, 33.

From the above Bible passage we learn that the Greek abussos (in the Bible translated ‘deep’ or ‘bottomless pit’) is a certain location [not known to man] where some of the fallen evil angels are confined. Not all the evil angels are permitted to leave the abussos. Abussos is not a very pleasant place to be in, even for the evil angels. One can imagine the pandemonium and the constant jostling that goes on at the abussos among the rebellious evil angels. The legion of devils, who were tormenting a certain man in the above story, dreaded that Christ would command them to go to the abussos. And they begged Him not to command them to go to the deep [abussos]. They find much happiness in tormenting people and animals than to be in the company of others of their kind.

To summarize, the abussos is a certain location that serves as a confined habitation for some of the evil angels (devils).

15. This does not make sense! What do you mean that the eighth will come from the abussos, which is the confined habitation of devils? How can it be that the eighth will be a devil?

What we have been learning thus far will make more sense when we focus on the following verse: “And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.” Revelation 17:11. God is clarifying that the eighth is really one of the seven kings. Combining this important key with the fact that the eighth will be an evil angel (devil) from the bottomless pit, we can begin to comprehend what will soon sway the whole world into unprecedented capitulation.

The eighth is going to be a devil from the abussos impersonating one of the 7 kings. When the eighth will appear on the scene, he will spearhead rapidly the coming of the Roman Catholic Church out of her wilderness experience into a full-fledged beast.

It is not difficult at all to visualize this prophesied dramatic transformation of the Roman Catholic Church (out of her wilderness status and into a full beast status) once we identify the king (out of the seven) who will be impersonated by a devil who ascends from the bottomless pit.

16. Which of the seven popes will be impersonated by a devil from the abussos?

From the study of Revelation 13 & 17, we can conclude only one possibility which constitutes the best personality for achieving Satan’s end-time agenda: it is John Paul II the Great. Below are the reasons:

1.Out of the seven kings, he is the only one who fulfills the prophesied statement: “And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.” Revelation 13:3. John Paul II is the only king of the seven who experienced a deadly wound in 1980, when he was nearly assassinated. Thereafter, the whole world, as prophesied, wondered after him.
2.John Paul II is the only king out of the seven, the numerical value of whose Latin name is 666. His Latin name is: IOANES PAVLVS SECVNDO: “Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.” Revelation 13:18.

3.Remember the divine hint: “five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come.” Revelation 17:10. When Apostle John was taken in a vision to the future, he was taken to the time of the reign of the sixth king (John Paul II).

4.Now the most important reason: Which of the 7 kings is most known, loved and respected in today’s generation? If Satan would want to lead the world into imposing universal laws for exalting his false Sabbath (Sunday), who would be the most effective personality other than John Paul II? Who would be more effective than him who called on Christians to “ensure that civil legislation respects their duty to keep Sunday holy…refraining from work and activities which are incompatible with the sanctification of the Lord’s Day.” [Apostolic Letter, Des Domini of John Paul II, dated May 31, 1998]? Again, no one is better suited for carrying the agenda of Satan than John Paul II. Hence, impersonating him makes the most sense for Satan, who is intent on deceiving the whole world.

17. How will a devil impersonate John Paul II?

“And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.” 2Corinthians 11:14. God has not shed light through His written Word as to how the impersonation will take place. Nonetheless, Apostle Paul has warned us that the coming back of the beast in the last days will be “after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness.” 2Thessalonians 2:9, 10. The elements which Satan will use to deceive the whole world and hold it captive to his instrument, the Roman Catholic Church, are: (1) all power, (2) signs, (3) lying wonders, and (4) all deceivableness.
Through the impersonation of John Paul II by a devil, which will be followed by the impersonation of other known personalities climaxing with the impersonation of Jesus Christ, will make it appear to the whole world that God is distinctly honoring and blessing the Roman Catholic Church with unprecedented divine manifestations and miracles. Satan will make it appear that heaven has favored earth when it brought “back to life” the world’s most beloved personality, and that he has come back with a divine agenda which should become the primary occupation of world leaders. And it certainly will become.

The final Beast Period

18. How will the impersonation of John Paul II change the world as we know it today, and impact the eternal destiny of everyone alive?

The Bible prophesies that there will be most dramatic and eventful changes in the world once the Catholic Church regains her beast status, when she comes out of her wilderness experience with the next pope, the eighth king. Below is given a list of the most prominent changes that will take place, as foretold by our loving heavenly Father in His Word:

1.Satan will use the papacy (the beast power) and the USA (image to the beast) to impose universal religious laws to exalt Sunday, the violation of which will deprive citizens of their basic rights of buying and selling: Revelation 13:16, 17.
2.God’s people, who will persist in refusing to honor the beast and accept the false Sabbath, will be persecuted and killed: Revelation 13:15.

3.The Roman Catholic Church will be able to exercise this modern-age unprecedented power by the false miracles which will be performed in her midst, starting with the ‘resurrection’ of John Paul II, and climaxing in the impersonation of Jesus Christ by Satan himself. These unparalleled miracles will lead world leaders to surrender their power and authority to the papacy, thinking that by so doing they are pleasing God and accomplishing His agenda: Revelation 17:12, 13. The role of miracles in uniting world leaders to carry Satan’s agenda is enunciated: Revelation 16:13, 14.
4.There will be a dramatic increase in natural calamities and disasters coupled with unmatched political strife all over the world, which Satan and his agents will attribute as signs of God’s displeasure with the true Saturday Sabbath-keepers for it will be declared that men are offending God by the violation of the Sunday-sabbath; that this sin has brought calamities which will not cease until Sunday observance shall be strictly enforced; and that those who present the claims of the fourth commandment, thus destroying reverence for Sunday, are troublers of the people, preventing their restoration to divine favor and temporal prosperity.
5.The mark of the beast will be applied during this critical period in earth’s history. The Sabbath will be the great test of loyalty, for it is the point of truth especially controverted. When the final test shall be brought to bear upon men, then the line of distinction will be drawn between those who serve God and those who serve Him not. While the observance of the false sabbath in compliance with the law of the state, contrary to the fourth commandment, will be an avowal of allegiance to a power that is in opposition to God, the keeping of the true Sabbath, in obedience to God’s law, is an evidence of loyalty to the Creator. While one class, by accepting the sign of submission to earthly powers, will receive the mark of the beast, the other choosing the token of allegiance to divine authority, would receive the seal of God. As in all ages, the Sabbath would be the test of loyalty to God a sign between God and His children. Those who, after the light regarding God’s law comes to them, continue to disobey and exalt human laws above the law of God in the great crisis before us, will receive the mark of the beast.
6.In the midst of all that will be happening, from natural calamities to wars and rumours of wars, there will be visible manifestations of spiritual hunger amongst people a kind of hunger which will not be fed, for it is not based on a genuine desire for obedience. Rather it will be based on human initiatives to quiet the conscience without full surrender of the heart to God’s sanctifying influence. In other words, when the beast will come back armed with false miracles and signs, there will be seen in the religious world noticeable manifestations of a false religious revival. This condition has been aptly prophesied by Amos, the prophet: “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.” Amos 8:11, 12.

What can I do?

19. Now I see that the end of all things is at hand. I want to be found ready to receive my Lord Jesus Christ when He comes. What should I do?

The purpose of this study is to awaken beloved readers to the shortness of time between now and the end of all things. We have seen that we are living in the time of the seventh king, the last human pope. God has informed us, in His written Word, that the eighth king will transform the Roman Catholic Church by bringing her out of her wilderness experience and back to her former persecuting-beast status. The eighth king, a devil impersonating John Paul II, will usher persecution for God’s people who obey His Sabbath day. The time of the eighth king/beast will witness hitherto unseen false miracles and signs, which will exalt the papacy in the eyes of all who are not written in the Book of Life: Revelation 17:8.

In the near future we shall find that our only safety will be in the Word: “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Isaiah 8:20. That is why today the Bible must be our only infallible guide and rule. God’s word is our sole safeguard against the influence of false teachers and the delusive power of spirits of darkness that enshroud the world today. Satan can most readily control the minds of those who are unconscious of his influence. That is why the word of God gives us so many examples of his malignant work, unveiling before us his secret forces, and thus placing us on our guard against his assaults. And that is why Satan employs every possible device to prevent men from obtaining true knowledge of the Bible, for its plain utterances reveal his deceptions. At every revival of God’s work the prince of evil is aroused to more intense activity; he is now putting forth his utmost efforts for a final struggle against Christ and His followers. The last great delusion is soon to open before us. Antichrist is to perform his marvelous works in our sight. So closely will the counterfeit resemble the true that it will be impossible to distinguish between them except by the Holy Scriptures. By their testimony every statement and every miracle must be tested.

Those who endeavor to obey all the commandments of God will be opposed and derided. In order to endure the trial before them, they must understand the will of God as revealed in His word; they can honor Him only as they have a right conception of His character, government, and purposes, and act in accordance with them. None but those who have fortified the mind with the truths of the Bible will stand through the last great conflict. To every soul will come the searching test: Shall I obey God rather than men? The decisive hour is even now at hand. Are our feet planted on the rock of God’s immutable word? Are we prepared to stand firm in defense of the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus?

God’s love for His children is seen clearly in His revealing the future before us, so that none of us needs to be taken unprepared by surprise. Christ’s grace is all-sufficient to cleanse us from all sin,and to fit us to withstand the impending conflict, that we be found righteous when He appears the second time. The time for this glorious desired end is measured today in years rather than decades: “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.” Romans 13:11-14.

If you become alarmed for your own soul, if you seek God diligently, He will be found of you; but He will accept no half-hearted repentance. If you will forsake your sins, He is ever ready to forgive. Won’t you just now surrender to Him? Won’t you look to Calvary and inquire: “Did Jesus make this sacrifice for me? Did He endure humiliation, shame, and reproach, and suffer the cruel death of the cross because He desired to save me from the sufferings of guilt and the horror of despair, and make me unspeakably happy in His kingdom?” Look upon Him whom your sins have pierced, and resolve: “The Lord shall have the service of my life. I will no longer unite with His enemies; I will no longer lend my influence to the rebels against His government. All I have and am is too little to devote to Him who so loved me that He gave His life for me His whole divine self for one so sinful and erring.” Separate from the world, be wholly on the Lord’s side, press the battle to the gates, and you will win glorious victories. Will you resolve to obey Him, as of this very minute, no matter what the price for such obedience? Will you resolve to share this light with others, so that we can truly hasten our Lord’s second coming?

Blessed is he who heeds the words of eternal life. Guided by “the Spirit of truth”, he will be led into all truth. Though he will not be loved, honored, and praised by the world, yet he will be precious in the sight of heaven: “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not.” IJohn 3:1.

In the Bible, the Lord God said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle them towards heaven, then it shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become boils breaking out in abscesses on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.”   So they did and it became abscesses on man and beast.  And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the abscesses that came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians.

———————

Herein, there are some notes

1. One may wonder how come, two handfuls of ashes could cover all the land of Egypt.  Is the Biblical Egypt too small to be covered by two handfuls of ashes?

2. This story is not mentioned therein in the entire Quran; but it is said therein (in the verses 2:117, 3:47, 3:59, 6:73, 16:40, 19:35, 36:82, 40:68) that when Allah wants to do anything He just says to it:” Be” and it is in no time without the need of ashes that become small dust, and turned out to be abscesses affecting both man and beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.

3. Also, if God love has to punish the Pharaoh of the Oppression, it is okay to punish him because he was disbeliever, disobedient and arrogant; but what was the fault of the beasts?

4. It is well known that the boils and the abscesses are due to microorganisms, mainly Staphylococci, and they are not due to ashes or fine dust.

———————

Exodus 9:8-11 (American Standard Version)

8 And Jehovah said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.

9 And it shall become small dust over all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.

10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man and upon beast.

11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boils were upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians.

———————

Back to my question to the smart and interested reader:

Are the Scholars truthful when they claim that the Quran quoted from the Bible?

In Bible, King Solomon talks about the Wisdom and Knowledge and says:

1)     I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

2)     What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted.

3)     I thought to myself, “Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge.” 

4)     Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.

5)     For with much wisdom comes much sorrow.

6)     And with the more knowledge, comes the more grief.

On the other hand, the verses 2:269 and 20:114 of the Quran talk about the Wisdom and Knowledge.

The meaning of verse 2:269

Allah mentioned His favors, saying: He gives wisdom to whomever He will, and he who is given wisdom, has been given much good, because he will end up in perpetual bliss.  Yet, none remembers Allah’s favors except people of understanding, those who have minds from among people.

It is said that the wisdom is the profitable knowledge that leads to righteous action; it is the right in speech, action and opinion.

The meaning of verse 20:114

Allah is the: highly exalted True King; He is above what they say; no one is similar to Him. He exonerated Himself from having a wife, a son, children and/or partners!

And do not hasten, O Muhammad, to recite the Quran before the Angel Gabriel finishes reading the Quran to you.

This is because when the Angel Gabriel used to bring new revelations, the Prophet Muhammad would start to repeat them after him even before Gabriel finished his reading, for fear of forgetting what was recited to him.

Allah therefore told him to stop doing this, saying: and say O Muhammad: O My Lord! Increase me in knowledge, memorization and understanding.

Moreover, in Hadith, it is narrated that the Prophet Muhammad said:

1. “The Quran is God’s wisdom among His servants. Whoever learns the Quran and acts according to it, it is as if Prophethood were incorporated within him, except that he does not receive revelation. He is called to account in the same way as the prophets except in the matter of conveying the message.’
2. ‘The Quran is wisdom, and whoever learns the Quran in his youth, it mingles with his flesh and blood. And surely the Fire cannot touch a heart which contains the Quran, nor a body which avoids that which it prohibits, and keeps to  what it permits, believes in that which is clear in it, refrains from judgment in that which is ambiguous in it, and does not make innovations regarding it.’

Herein, there are some points:

1)     Are all creatures under the sun meaningless?

2)     Does the Lord God create something meaningless?

3)     Should the researchers stop searching in the different fields of sciences because the Bible says that everything is meaningless?

4)     Is not such a statement insulting the wisdom of the Almighty Creator?

5)     Does the Bible discourage the scientific progress?

6)     Is the understanding of wisdom worthless?

7)     In the Quran, King Solomon has a great wisdom and kingdom; then how come he said the above statements in Ecclesiastes 1:14-18.

8)     The Quran says: who is given wisdom, has been given much good, because he will end up in perpetual bliss.

9)     In the Quran, Allah commands the believer to say: O My Lord! Increase me in knowledge, memorization and understanding.

10) And as a matter of fact, in contrary to the Bible, we can straighten the twisted and count the lacking.

Hence, the Bible discourage gaining more wisdom and knowledge while the Quran encourages gaining more wisdom and knowledge.

The Puzzled Paradox is the fact that seems contradictory but is actually valid; it is that when the Western countries left the Bible they became at the top of the scale of knowledge.  Yet, when the Islamic countries left the Quran they became at the bottom of the scale of knowledge.

It should be emphasized that the top of knowledge is to know your Creator; then when you go deep in any branch of science, it will ultimately lead you more and more to know your Almighty Creator.

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

The Bible, Ecclesiastes 1:14-18 (New International Version)

14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

15 What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted.

16 I thought to myself, “Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge.”

17 Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.

18 For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief.

——————————————————————-

The Quran, (Pickthal translation)

Verse 2:269

“He (Allah) gives wisdom unto whom he will, and he unto whom wisdom is given, he truly hath received abundant good. But none remember except men of understanding.”

Verse 20:114

 ”Then exalted be Allah, the true king! And hasten not (O Muhammad) with the Quran ere its revelation hath been perfected unto thee, and say: “O my lord! Increase me in knowledge.”

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

Back to my question to the smart and interested reader:

Are the Scholars truthful when they claim that the Quran quoted from the Bible?

The theme is clear and one which appeals to those who believe in the literal nature of Christian liturgy. Since it is true that Islam is the opposite of Christianity [there is little dispute about this for anyone who has even a modicum of knowledge about the Koran, and Islamic imperialism], it naturally follows that the future appearance of the Mahdi or the 12th Imam of Islamic theology, who according to Muslim belief will rule the world, would represent to Christian believers the very essence of the devil or anti-Christ. While non-Christians would not agree with this interpretation, or much of the information which is presented in this book, Mr. Richardson does present interesting and novel information that makes it a worthwhile addition to the library of the person seeking enlightenment about one of history’s and mankind’s most savage and expansionist ideologies.

I would view Islam as the anti-Christ not due to eschatology or time-lines of the end of the world presentation which every ‘faith’ or universalist ideology contains; but simply because Islam is the complete anti-thesis of Christianity which birthed the modern world, including the rational Enlightenment and the 3 centuries old ‘scientific revolution’. Without Christianity there is no modern political-economy. Islam is as far removed from Christian ideals as Plato’s impoverished and mystical philosophy is removed from that of St. Thomas Aquinas.

The ‘Islamic Anti-Christ’ might seem sensational, but not if and when Islam comes to be the most popular world theology – albeit a political and fascistical one. As Richardson presents, the danger and menace of the Anti-Christian Islamic threat is real: “If present trends do not change dramatically, Islam will bypass Christianity for the title of the world’s largest religion very shortly. In fact, according to most statistics, this may take place in less than twenty years.” [p. 3] This factoid is a little more important to mankind’s development than idiotic theories of Globaloney Warming.

In the West Islamic numbers including coverts and immigration, are increasing between 5 and 15 % each year. It is the fastest growth of an ideological movement in modern history. More perversely since 9-11 the proliferation of Muslim numbers in the West has accelerated. What self-loathing society would allow this to happen ? In America, converted Blacks and once Christian Whites proceeds apace with alarming frequency: “The annual growth rate of Islam in the U.S….risen to as high as 8 percent over the past few years….since 9/11 the number of American converts to Islam has skyrocketed.” [p.4]

There is something deeply warped in the common culture when Westerners openly choose to join the Meccan moon cult – ignorant of Islamic history, theology and meaning and unable to speak Arabic which they must repeat like simpleton parrots 5 times daily.  Westerns convert to Islam because they hate the modern world, view it as an anti-White theology, or have such a deep self-hatred that submitting themselves to a mystical cult somehow assuages their feeling of worthlessness. Whatever the myriad reasons are, Islam is spreading so fast in the US that: “..One Muslim authority estimates that by the year 2020 most American urban centers will be predominantly Muslim.” [p. 6] This beggars belief.

As Richardson relates, the entire doctrine of Islamic political supremacism was concocted by a man who was mentally deranged.  This is obvious to anyone who has studied the life of Mohammed.  This Arab, like Hitler, was insane:

“Many scholars have become convinced that Muhammad was either epileptic or demon possessed or both.” [p. 100]

The Sira or biography of the madman makes it clear that the founder of Islam suffered a nervous and mental breakdown at the age of 40. This would account for much of the Koran’s and Muslim theological madness. If the creator of a political theology was insane why would anyone expect the doctrines and ideas emanating from such a person to make sense, be moral, or have true spiritual meaning ? Both Hitler and Lenin were insane and nothing in the constellation of Hitlerism or Leninism makes any sense. Why would Islam make any more sense ?

Many Christians tend to go to extremes when it comes to money matters. Some succumb to greed while others shun money like a plague.

One of the performance issues of Christian business is profit.

Sometimes Christians seem to believe that God will bless them miraculously, while they ignore proper management of the business. Making a fair profit, paying bills, and fair wages are musts for a Christian business. The Bible tells us that it is God who directs us to think and plan.

So what does the Bible, your Christian business guide, teach about profit?

Bible parables teach us Kingdom Business principles and a parable which we can apply to the issue of profit maximization is the Parable of Talents.

In Matthew 25:14-30 we learn that God is looking for faithfulness in the little things. A master who entrusted money to his servants expected a return on his investment. Two of the servants managed their money well and were rewarded. The third servant managed the money poorly and was therefore punished.

John Wesley said, “Money is an excellent gift of God if it is used excellently, answering the noblest needs of humanity.” To Wesley is attributed the maxim – “Earn all you can. Save all you can. Give all you can.”

One of the most successful Christian businesses that we know of has it’s mission statement “To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us and to have a positive influence on all who come in contact with us.”

Through faithful stewardship, Truett Cathy transformed a tiny Atlanta diner into American’s second largest quick-service chicken restaurant with more than $2.9 billion in sales in 2008 and more than 1,400 locations today.

Here are the secrets of Truett Cathy’s success:

1) Climb with Care and Confidence

Truett Cathy never tried to overextend. He’s satisfied stepping from one plateau to the next, making sure they’re doing everything right before moving on. That way of thinking allowed them to grow steadily while responding to the needs of people around them.

2. Create a “Loyalty Effect”

The company believes that attracting great people helps create an unforgettable experience for their customers. Their people enjoy their work and that results to customer satisfaction.

3. Never Lose a Customer

For Truett Cathy the most effective way of promoting his business doesn’t cost him anything but a little kindness to his customers.

4. Put Principles and People Ahead of Profits

To cite just one example, the company provides college scholarship for their restaurant employees (more than $23 million awarded since 1973).

5. Closed on Sunday

Their decision to close on Sunday is their way of honoring God.

The company is the only major fast-food restaurant chain to be closed on Sundays, one of the busiest days of the week in the restaurant business. Despite that, Truett Cathy has led the company on an unparalleled record of 40 consecutive years of sales increases.

Jose Anajero invites Christian business owners and internet entrepreneurs to visit the blog Christian Business in the Internet Age. Find Your Purpose. Fulfill God’s Plan. Achieve Financial Freedom.

Peter Marshall and David Manuel penned one of the earliest Christian America books addressed to the Boomer Generation — The Light and The Glory. The book was published in 1977 by Fleming H. Revell Company.

Over 50 years had elapsed of the church’s media-imposed exile from the public square following the Scopes “Monkey Trial” of 1925. Christians were still wandering in the cultural wilderness. “Cultural Egypt” might describe it more accurately. Almost to a man, the church was oblivious to any doctrine of civil government or sense of cultural obligation.

The Light & the Glory was a wakeup call for the church to resume her leadership role in the nation. Christians were aroused by the call to arms. Peter Marshall and co-author David Manuel were there when we needed them.

A City Set On A Hill

The book describes the authors’ quest for our long-lost, Christian heritage. The story reads like a treasure hunt which leads from one literary clue to another. Like a forerunner to the movie “National Treasure” in literary form.

The book accurately portrays the role of covenant in the life of the Pilgrims and Puritans. Marshall captures their vision of being a “City set on a Hill” based on covenant obedience. This famous phrase was taken from John Winthrop

Step 2: How to study the bible

Ask Questions!

So you might be thinking how can I ask questions to a book? Well you are not going to be asking the book questions but instead asking questions that will help in your observation of the texts you are choosing to read. Some simple questions to ask are:

who was writing, to who were they writing to, what was happening when this person wrote this book, what else has the writer written… Make Sense? In other words you want to be able to have a background into why was making this person tick and those in whom he was writing to as well as what significant events may have been taking place along the way. This will put a context on what he and his audience may have been thinking. An excellent tool for this is a bible handbook. A bible handbook is a reference source that allows you to kind of do the above. But some study bibles have a pretty good angle at this, such as the Ellen White Study Bible that you can buy here through the site. While you are at it you might want to get a bible dictionary or a concordance to help you with words and how they were used in the text.

While you are starting to read the text itself try to find the theme why was it written or what is the main idea or story. This can be done by asking some probing questions like: who, what, when, where, why, how. Also look for the text to give you definitions such as 1 John 4:8 which states that God is love, so a good question would be what is God or who is God and by this definition He is love. 1 John 3:4 states that sin is the transgression of the law. So the definition of sin is breaking the law of God! *Disclaimer when we say God is love this is not to limit him just an example as this one on sin you get the idea right?*

We also need to look for comparisons, contrasts, descriptions, conclusions(generally indicated by a therefore, wherefore, finally, and so then), reasoning(John 3:16 for God so love… He gave), look for cause and effect, look for similar words/topics like lists and progressions, and finally I like to look for conditional reasoning which is usually tipped off by an if.

Now to close this one out I am going to suggest reading the book of Jude and following these guidelines and seeing if you begin to pick up on some of the stuff I am talking about. You are going to be looking for the things mentioned parrallels, repeating and enlarging, lists and progression from within those lists. This will help prepare you for later studies like word studies and topical studies. Just so you get a baring for what the basics are for each; a word study would consist of following a particular word or phrase that catches your eye withn the text itself. Same with a theme or topic. Obviously there is more to it that this so you’ll have to check back.

By: DA Rosales

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Ready for the next step? Take the plug at ellenwhitestudybible.com/?p=147 . Having trouble finding a good study bible? The Ellen White Study Bible has cross references and a bible study chain reference system. Get it here today with a limited 1st edition printing. ellenwhitestudybible.com/ellen-white-study-bible

Reading your Bible doesn

We offer this online bible resource for the edification of the whole person in Christ. We are to know God and not just know about God. This is a profound and counterintuitive quest that requires the miraculous power of God at work in us to achieve the end in mind.

This website is an online bible dialogue of spiritual things, for those who want to experience God intimately and intelligently, based on the message from Scripture that is – above all things – God

There are numerous principles of church growth and by adopting them a Christian church could maximize its reach with in the society and lead towards the path of the increase. First of all in this series is the indigenization. It the process through which the Christian churches get the direction in which they have to go to achieve the development. In the process, the Barnabas and Paul have left numerous indigenous churches under the leadership of the elders whose main purpose is to guide the other churches towards the path of success and growth. These elders who lead the church were mostly from with in the Christian church, a part of clergy or so.

The open gospel has played one of the major parts in the history of the church increase. The closed gospel is the one which saw Christians as the Jews, who have seen Jesus as the compromised savior. Similarly, it demands anyone who desires to be a Christian to become a Jew first. Through this has later become a lot of concern for the early Christians and they have likewise criticized it. The open gospel did not have whatever such criteria. It demands every Christian to look at the world with the same attitude with which they look at Christians. Consequently, it spreads the idea of the love and equality.

The next idea is of follow up. The pursue up is a kind of the concern for the people and society in which a church after teaching to a particular sect of mortals looks back to see how much has it being successful. In this way, it could as well judge the benefits the people are reaping with the teachings of the church and as well in what notion the ideas of the church are perceived. Similarly, it is likewise important for the church to do a follow-up to assess how successful the practices of the church have been and in what effect they are bringing changes in the society. As well, if the mortals are facing some problems in implementing the ideas of the Christian church, the church could perpetually look back and help them.

Discipleship is the concept through which a church teaches the society and selects few disciples to work inside the church and give them a chance to learn more and spread the knowledge in the future. It is the process through which a church selects the next generation people from the society itself to spread the teachings to the world and guide the society through the path of spirituality and fulfillment. Hence, it is the task of the church to select some and make them disciples by giving them training and imparting the knowledge that will enable them to fulfill the task of the Christian church.

Sovereignty of the Christian church is the philosophy which deals with the notion that says that Christian church is the sole authority in itself. The the Lord has given it the authority to fulfill its tasks. The Lord is the last authority who approves or rejects our deeds by analyzing them. The Christian church is considered as the vehicle which works toward what is ordained to it.

By: writejbear

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Ideas for church growth such as this can be found through small church advertising com.

Christian marriage counseling is employed by several couples striving to follow God’s will and look for His guidance when the will need for relationship counseling has come. Whenever you relationship is struggling it can be critical for couples to obtain superior guidance from relationship counselors. If you are Christians then it quite perfectly may perhaps be that you need to get relationship counseling from an individual coming from the same place.

The troubles that you have inside your relationship might be an inability to relate to every other for some motive. It could be due to a lot more severe problems such as adultery, pornography, lying, or a lot of other things. Whatever the reason, it really is extremely significant that you look for a counselor to assist you assist the marriage.

The assistance that you might get from secular relationship counselors may well be good but additionally may possibly not give you guidance that comes from God’s word. You can find a lot of counseling options out there to you that will turn to before your relationship ends up in divorce. The best way for several to avoid that has been Christian marriage counseling.

Several churches now have marriage & family counselors on staff and may perhaps also have a counseling center. They are able to provide numerous types of counseling services but are of good aid in family therapy and Christian marriage counseling. They will not just try and assist you solve troubles within your relationship but will be able to help make your marriage stronger and draw you closer to God.

A superior Christian marriage counseling program will have a counselor which will draw you and your spouse back together and will guide draw you closer to God, together. It will aid you get your priorities back in line so that the two of you can be able to focus on items that are more critical.

It truly is truly essential that you simply do not hesitate to come across help if you are having complications. The longer you wait, the harder it will be to fix the issues. This is no time to be in denial. You need to get things back on track and Christian marriage counseling can aid you accomplish that.

The hardest thing that you just ought to face is trying to convince the one you love that obtaining counseling is important. It may perhaps be necessary to go and seek guidance from a counselor on the very best way to have your loved one to go in for counseling.

There is a good deal to risk either way. There may perhaps be some things uncovered that will be uncomfortable to talk about but facing those difficulties and addressing them has to be done. You will also have to learn a great deal of humility as you may well come across out that you is the source of some of the complications. You may perhaps also locate out that there is incredibly little that will be done to save the marriage but still you can have done everything you’ll be able to save it.

If your marriage is essential to you and you are trying to own a Christian family, then finding a Christian marriage counseling program is of the utmost importance.

With the cost of living becoming too expensive, as was prophesied it must occur, Christian debt counseling organisations have found a deep need for individuals all over the world, which these days, have a ruthless enemy; too much debt. This is what is destroying young families along with effective ministry service, and this at an alarming rate. Plenty Christian people have never sought to research the options regarding any debt relief organisations, on the grounds that they plainly really don’t trust them enough.
A person’s situation regarding their finances in today’s life, is the reason our God said;

In the Bible, the Lord God said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle them towards heaven, then it shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become boils breaking out in abscesses on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.”   So they did and it became abscesses on man and beast.  And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the abscesses that came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians.

———————

Herein, there are some notes

1. One may wonder how come, two handfuls of ashes could cover all the land of Egypt.  Is the Biblical Egypt too small to be covered by two handfuls of ashes?

2. This story is not mentioned therein in the entire Quran; but it is said therein (in the verses 2:117, 3:47, 3:59, 6:73, 16:40, 19:35, 36:82, 40:68) that when Allah wants to do anything He just says to it:” Be” and it is in no time without the need of ashes that become small dust, and turned out to be abscesses affecting both man and beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.

3. Also, if God love has to punish the Pharaoh of the Oppression, it is okay to punish him because he was disbeliever, disobedient and arrogant; but what was the fault of the beasts?

4. It is well known that the boils and the abscesses are due to microorganisms, mainly Staphylococci, and they are not due to ashes or fine dust.

———————

Exodus 9:8-11 (American Standard Version)

8 And Jehovah said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.

9 And it shall become small dust over all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.

10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man and upon beast.

11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boils were upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians.

———————

Back to my question to the smart and interested reader:

Are the Scholars truthful when they claim that the Quran quoted from the Bible?

Jesus is brought to Glastonbury by grand Uncle Joseph of Avalon where he would receive the best education in the world. Joseph used the regular shipping routes of the time.

Richard Middleton a United States soldier was attending worship services and instead of taking out a Bible, he spread out a complete deck of cards in front of him. When an officer told him to put them away he refused the directive. He was brought before the major because the refusal was considered indecent behavior. When Middleton was asked for an explanation he was told if he could present an acceptable explanation there would be no penalty.

He explained to the major and the court that he had just been on an eight day march. He had little money with which to spend on necessities. A man can barely pay for food, drink, washing, or other necessities or buy a Bible or any prayer book. Middleton took out his cards and proceeded to explain his using the cards during service.

Invalid request

Print This Article
Add To Favorites
Email to Friends
Ezine Ready

Sign Up for a free account or
learn more.

Article Directory Software
Click here to download the exact software that powers Article Dashboard for FREE. Start your own article directory today!

Submit Articles
Member Login
Submission Guidelines
Ezine Notifications
Article RSS Feeds

About Us
Link to Us
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service
Favicon Generator

Automobiles
Business
Communications
Computers
Family
Fashion
Finance
Food
Health
Illness
Recreation
Travel

There is no shortage of advice-givers in today

Elvis Jesus is a controversial brand which gives a very

Many years ago as a young man I heard it said by a young lady of my own age that the apostle Paul just had a thing against women with the idea being that what he wrote on the subject of women had no authority but was merely the expression of personal prejudice on his part.  That young lady many years later became a preacher (?) within her denominational body contrary to Paul’s teaching on the subject in 1 Tim. 2:12.  Over the course of the many years that have transpired since that time I have heard the same or similar comments regarding things Paul wrote.  It seems many believe he lacked the authority of Christ.  Did he?  That is the subject I wish to pursue in this article.  I add that the reality is that if what Paul wrote is not authoritative then we cannot stop there but have to go right down the line and ask about what Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, James, Peter, and Jude wrote as well. 

The truth of the matter is every single word of the New Testament excepting only those words added by translators for clarification (usually marked by being printed in italics) came directly from God the Father including the words of Jesus himself.  In John 1:1 Jesus is called “the Word” (NKJV) but he says later, “He who rejects me, and does not receive my words, has that which judges him— the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day.  For I have not spoken on my own authority; but the Father who sent me gave me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.  And I know that his command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told me, so I speak.” (John 12:48-50 NKJV)  He says again, “The word which you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me.” (John 14:24 NKJV)  One could add to these references but the point has been made. 

Before Jesus ascended back to heaven he promised to send the Holy Spirit to his apostles.  “But the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” (John 14:26 NKJV)  “I will pray the Father, and he will give you another helper (the Holy Spirit – DS) … even the Spirit of truth.” (John 14:16-17 NKJV)  “But when the helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, … he will testify of me.” (John 15:26 NKJV)  Now here is where one needs to pay special attention.  Did the Holy Spirit speak free lance style?  Listen carefully. 

“However, when he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak; and he will tell you things to come.  He will glorify me, for he will take of what is mine and declare it to you.  All things that the Father has are mine.  Therefore I said that he will take of mine and declare it to you.” (John 16:13-15 NKJV)  The apostles were commanded by Jesus to stay in Jerusalem until they were baptized with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5 NKJV).  That day came on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2:1-4. 

The important thing thus far is to see the chain of command.  Even though God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all one all being equally God yet they have an order in which they of their own accord have chosen to work.  Jesus, “being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant.” (Philippians 2:6-7 NKJV)  Jesus thus submitted himself to God the Father and spoke only the Father’s words.  When the Holy Spirit came after Jesus returned to heaven  it is clear from the passage just quoted in the prior paragraph (John 16:13-15) that he did not originate truth for he did not speak on his own authority but spoke what he heard.  He glorified Jesus by taking what was of or from Jesus and declared it to them. 

Thus when an apostle spoke by means of the Holy Spirit he spoke not of himself but rather spoke the very words of God.  Peter speaks of “those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven.” (1 Peter 1:12 NKJV)  On the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 Peter himself spoke just such a gospel sermon after the Holy Spirit fell on him and the other apostles.  Paul says, “No one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.  Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.  These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” (1 Cor. 2:11-13 NKJV) 

If Paul was not an inspired writer (as well as a gospel preacher) then Peter was in error for he said of Paul’s writings that some twisted them “to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the scriptures.” (2 Peter 3:15 NKJV)  Not only does Peter compare Paul’s writings with the rest of the scriptures but also says his writings can be twisted to one’s destruction.  That would be a little hard to do if they were uninspired writings would it not?  If one recalls correctly Ananias was sent to Paul at his conversion with one reason being that Paul might be “filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 9:17 NKJV)  

Sometimes people latch on to a few statements made by Paul in 1 Cor. 7 and read into them more than they should in that they feel Paul is there giving uninspired advice or giving only his own judgment or opinion apart from any direction of the Spirit.  For example, Paul says in verse 12, “I, not the Lord, say,” (NKJV) and then in verse 25 he says, “I have no commandment from the Lord; yet I give judgment as one whom the Lord in his mercy has made trustworthy.” (1 Cor. 7:25 NKJV)  Well, is Paul trustworthy or not?  He closes this very chapter with these words, “according to my judgment—and I think I also have the Spirit of God.” (1 Cor. 7:40 NKJV)  Do you think Paul had the Spirit of God?  Do you think he was questioning himself by making that statement?  You know better. 

Here is the bind that those get themselves into when they begin questioning scripture and taking some of it as inspired and other parts of it as not inspired—how do you decide which is which?  Are you that all wise and knowing so that you can declare beyond doubt that this scripture is inspired while that one is not?  How do the rest of us know you are that smart, even God like, in your declarations?  How did you come to possess these mighty powers of discernment?  Maybe showing us a miracle would help the rest of us build confidence in you.  In New Testament times miracles were performed to confirm the word as being from God (Heb. 2:1-4).  We need confirmation of like nature if you are going to start cutting out scripture from the Bible for proof is needed that your word is from God when you do such cutting.   After all you will be giving us a new Bible when your cutting is done. 

Needless to say all such approaches to scripture end up being faith destroying.  How do you have faith if you do not know what to have faith in and what not to have faith in?  Yes, I know these types proclaim their faith but real faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Rom. 10:17) and not by one’s own I think so.  It does not come by one declaring himself to be God and thus able to give man the true scriptures versus the false one’s. 

The bottom line ends up being that one either has to hold to the scriptures as being authoritative verbally inspired of God or else he holds to the words of some man that declares otherwise but can work no miracle in proof of his declaration. 

In closing yes the words of Jesus in red are authoritative but no more so than the words in black in your New Testament for the truth is the source of all inspired writings is God the Father.  When Paul or Peter or whomever the New Testament writer was spoke with pen and ink or otherwise on matters of the faith his words came from the same source that Jesus’ did while Jesus was on the earth.  The idea that Paul was writing for Paul’s sake promoting his own doctrine contrary to what Jesus would have said is as unscriptural as it gets. 

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim. 3:16-17 NKJV)

While there are many ways for people to express their faith and devotion, music has always been one of the most popular ways of doing so. Many people are going into music as a way to utter their utmost devotion to the Christian faith. For many of us, there is no better enjoyment other than singing out what is in our hearts.Whether for singing praises or for giving thanks to our God, many Christians are fully-satisfied in singing their favorite worship songs.
Christian songs form a vital part of our church activities like masses and other religious gatherings. These songs are regularly performed by our church’s choir and musicians using basic musical instruments such as the guitar.We sometimes look at these people with great admiration for what they do. As their brothers in faith, we feel like there is also a need for us to learn how to sing and play the guitar tabs of our favorite Christian songs.
For many of us, these worship songs are neither just songs that we sing in churches nor just for serenading other religious gatherings. These songs may have a deeper meaning to many of us as well. Some of us are even moved by these songs and we suddenly feel like singing them as our own and personal way of giving thanks and praises to God.No matter what our individual reasons maybe, playing the guitar and singing Christian songs is a great way of practicing and expressing our devotion to the Christian faith.
Christian guitar lessons back in the days were used to be taught in large groups through traditional instructors and classes. Many of those who wanted to learn how to play guitar and sing Christian songs have found it hard to learn using this method of teaching. There were many hassles with learning guitar lessons in large groups due to numerous factors particularly with regards to the varying teaching styles and techniques being applied by some instructors. Whereas, most of them wanted a more convenient and efficient way of learning guitar lessons.
In this modern day of age dominated by the Internet, everything can now be found online. One of the most convenient and efficient methods of learning Christian guitar lessons is to learn online.Christian songs and guitar tabs lessons are now available online through several websites that offer free guitar tabs as well as free lessons on how to play the guitar. Learning Christian songs online have many advantages such as enabling us to take lessons right at the comforts of our home.
With online Christian guitar lessons, we can effectively learn Christian songs despite our busy schedule. Furthermore, we can learn these songs at our own pace and preferred style. It also provides a more effective way of learning guitar lessons since there is no instructor that stops our playing at every mistake we make, which always make us feel disappointed. Moreover, there no other persons present around us who can distract us and make us feel intimated.

By: Jonathan Drake

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Singing worship songs is a great way to express our utmost devotion to the Christian faith. One of the most convenient and effective way to learn Christian guitar lessons is to learn online.

Is unconditional love a part of your daily living? Many relationship experts, marriage counselors, psychologists and therapists agree on one thing. Love offers the most powerful healing force in relationships. However, love is an often misunderstood.

Love means many things. Love of friends often means being nice to those who are nice to us. Boyfriends and girlfriends say, “I love you” when they start to get serious with each other.

Married love implies a lifelong commitment to one spouse that begins when a woman and a man exchange wedding promises. Family love starts when parents have a child and dedicate their time, energy and affection to raising children.

Today, many people suffer because they lack unconditional love and are addicted to conditional love. That is, many relationships are based on liking someone only if they receive affection and attention first. Conditional love means that you have to “earn” someone’s love, attention, affection and kindness by pleasing others. Conditional love leads to the feeling of being judged – another human being determines our worth and value. Anxiety and fear, especially in children, teens and vulnerable adults result from conditional love. Every person deserves dignity and respect for being born as a human being.

In the New Testament of the Bible, agape love is the type of love that Jesus taught His disciples to practice. Agape love is unconditional love – love that is freely given without expecting something in return. Jesus revealed God’s love in a new way by focusing his life, teachings and commitment to the unconditional love that God gives. Jesus grew up in the Jewish tradition and learned the Hebrew scriptures.

One of the most well-known Jewish prophets was Isaiah, who preached God’s love to the Jews in Exile. One of the most famous writings by this prophet can be found in chapter 43 of the Book of the Prophet Isaiah: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name and you are mine,” and “because you are precious i my eyes and because I love you.”

During his life, Jesus taught his followers and the people of his time through parables or stories and by his healing actions. Several of his powerful miracles brought sight to those who were blind. The unconditional love of Jesus is still alive today, healing to those who seek him out. Unconditional love is an exception of mercy – not being judged by humans but freely honored and given by God.

God has designed the Body of Christ to work like our natural body does. Each of us may have a different function but we are there for the benefit of the whole body. Your ministry is not about you, it is about what God wants to bring to the Body of Christ as a unit. That is why we need some form of accountability. To be accountable means to be responsible for something and to be answerable for your actions. Accountability protects you from yourself and the inherent seduction that comes from being in a place of influence.

These are the cornerstones that make up the basic framework of accountability:

1. Invite feedback

As a rule people do not give careful feedback without being asked. So you need to select and invite at least 3 to 4 whom you trust enough to be transparent with. Meet with them one-on-one and as a group on a regular basis. People need to be given permission to give you honest feedback so you need to ask them and be specific in what you want feedback on. Some general areas would be feedback on what you teach, how you teach and how you live your life away from your ministry. Invite their scrutiny into your life so that you can walk with integrity, honesty and humility.

2. Admit mistakes

We really do learn from our mistakes. Be open about the mistakes you have made. Take responsibility for them and make amends as needed. Use mistakes as the learning tools they are.

3. Make changes

Admitting our mistakes is only half of the equation. Be accountable to your team and allow them to help you make the changes you need so that same mistakes can be avoided. A plan may set in place that highlights the steps needed in order to make change. It can also provide a way of measuring the success of those plans.

4. Learn to depersonalize the feedback

Ministry is not about “you”, it is about the work of God through you. Do not take offense at the feedback. Realize that you want to bring honor to Him above all things.

5. Live in community

God will use your life to not only touch the Body of Christ but the world around you. Remember that your whole life is public. There is no such thing as living one way in your “vocation” and another in your personal life. Your life is to be lived as openly as possible in every way. The people you invite into your life will help you in this. You start by being real with them.

Anyone in leadership has the potential to bring Gods name into disrepute if not held accountable on a regular basis. When people look at us, they expect to see something of what Jesus is like, and it is up to us to show them. Romans 14:12 (NIV) states “So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.” It is those to whom we hold ourselves accountable that will help us maintain a ministry that is pleasing to Him.

Maria Egilsson provides resources and training for women in Christian leadership positions. Maria can be found at http://www.thewoman2woman.com

The Dr. Bob Core Library, St. Johnsbury, VT

Dick B.

Where It Is

North Congregational Church (UCC) of St. Johnsbury, Vermont, is presently located on Main Street in the charming village of St. Johnsbury. This was the family church regularly attended by Dr. Robert H. Smith (A.A.’s Dr. Bob) and by all the Smith family during Bob’s days as a youngster. Three, and sometimes four, times a week. Judge Walter P. Smith and Susan H. Smith (Bob’s parents) were there. Young Bob was there until his graduation from St. Johnsbury Academy. His foster sister Amanda Northrup was there. And his grandmother was there. The church archives and other records show the extensive involvement of the Smiths. The Judge as a deacon, Sunday school superintendent, Sunday school teacher, and Executive Committee member. Mrs. Walter Smith as the person in charge of the church school, a Sunday school superintendant and teacher, church historian, leader of women’s groups, and choir member. Bob attended all three Sunday services and often the Wednesday evening prayer meeting. He was active in the Young People’s Christian Endeavor Society of the Church.

The present church has made a room available just right of the church entrance where the Dr. Bob Core Library is set out on shelves especially prepared for that purpose.

What is in the Library

Lots more to come. And many of the additional items will make some really new Dr. Bob treasures available. These are presently awaiting pick-up on Maui and some conservation proceedings.

Already, there are some 2000 manuscripts, papers, and pamphlets from the church archives, from St. Johnsbury Academy, from the local newspaper, from the town library (the Athenaeum), and from Christian Endeavor that tell about the village, the church, the important families, the Smiths, the YMCA, the town history, the town directories, the Sunday school teachings, the church Year Books, the sermons, and the activities of Judge and Mrs. Smith.

Also, a large number of relevant A.A. books are there. A complete set of the Dick B. 29 Volume Christian Recovery Reference Set. Many biographies, Vermont historical books, A.A. history books and articles, and complimentary copies of Dick B.’s books—Dr. Bob of Alcoholics Anonymous and Dr. Bob and His Library, 3rd ed. A large collection of United Christian Endeavor Society books is there. Books on Vermont Men. Books on North Congregational Church. Books on the YMCA. Books on the Great Awakening of 1875. And books about New England Congregationalism, its St. Johnsbury work, and the leadership of the famous Fairbanks families in its churches, missionary work, and cooperation with the YMCA.

Why It Was Recently Established

Dr. Bob was called the “Prince of all Twelfth-steppers.” His wife Anne Ripley Smith was called the “Mother of A.A.” and a founder of Akron Number One. Yet the only significant literature about either one of them is to be found in Dick B.’s books—and not in Akron. This despite the fact that Akron was the founding place of A.A.—at the Smith Home on 855 Ardmore Avenue.

Early A.A. was focused on the Bible. God, His Son Jesus Christ. The Bible played a major role in the origins, founding, program, and successes of A.A. And yet the real origin of these foci was Vermont—not Ohio. Both Bill and Bob grew up in Vermont. Both Bill and Bob attended Congregational Churches as youngsters in Vermont. Their parents and grandparents attended these Vermont churches. Both Bill and Bob studied the Bible in Vermont. Both Bill and Bob attended Vermont Academies (Burr and Burton, and St. Johnsbury, respectively) where there was required daily chapel, weekly church attendance, Bible study, and extensive YMCA involvement. Moreover, both cofounders attended Sunday schools and churches where becoming children of God through coming to Jesus Christ, and study of the Bible were greatly emphasized. Both men were exposed to the effect of conversion to Christ in helping alcoholics get well.

In short, the original A.A. program in Akron encompassed the very things that Bill and Bob had learned and been exposed to in Vermont. These included conversions, salvation, Bible study, revivals, evangelism, Quiet Time, Christian fellowship, witnessing by lay evangelists, and the importance of prayer. But these are not the historical facts that are found or documented in Akron today. They are in St. Johnsbury. And, for Christians and for those concerned with real A.A. historical origins and practices, Vermont is the place to look.

The Dr. Bob Core Library in St. Johnsbury fits the bill. Two major sources of this history are our recent books Dr. Bob of Alcoholics Anonymous and The Conversion of Bill W. See www.dickb.com/drbobofaa.shtml and www.dickb.com/conversion.shtml.

Gloria Deo

This article throws some light on what the Bible and the Quran say about some hot women issues that demand some concerns; they are:

Who was the first sinner, Adam or Eve?

And the impact of Eve’ sin that negatively affected every woman

A woman should learn in quietness

A woman is not allowed to be a teachers and

A woman is not permitted to have authority over a man

————-

In the Bible, Women are to walk in modesty, adorned with good works, and to learn in silence. A woman was forbidden to teach or to exercise authority over men; she was to abide in quietness and silence.

Saint Paul appoints women to learn in the public assemblies with silence and modesty, being dressed pleasantly, without any overindulgence or excess in their clothing.

Why, it is not lawful for women to teach in the congregation, because by this means they would be placed above men, for they would be their masters: and this is against Gods ordinance.  For Adam was first formed, then Eve.

Saint Paul proves this ordinance of God, by which the woman is subject to man, first because God made the woman after man, for, mans sake.

And Adam was not g deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.

Then, because after her sin, the Lord God punished the woman, because she made Adam deceived by her, and therefore she is worthily for this reason subject to her husband, and ought to be.

As woman was last in the creation, which is one reason for her subjection, so she was first in the transgression.

However, the women’ subjection does not hinder them from being saved; they will be saved through childbearing; if they behave themselves in those duties of marriage in a holy and modest manner; if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety and sanctification with sobriety. Good women may and ought to teach their children at home the principles of true religion.

In conclusion, Women who continue in sobriety, shall be saved in child-bearing

Herein, some question may arouse:

1) What if the woman is not married and has no childbearing, would not she be saved according to Saint Paul teachings?

2) What about women who have authority like the queens, princesses, prime-minister, ministers, bosses, supervisors, managers, chiefs etc. who disobeyed Saint Paul teachings, are they all sinners and will not she be saved according to Saint Paul teachings?

3) According to Saint Paul teachings, most if not all the Western women are sinners and would not be saved.

————-

The Quran

1) Adam erred first, Not Eve

Verses 20:115-122 of the Quran give the details of the story of Adam, Eve and Satan.

Verse 20: 121 says that Adam erred and disobeyed his lord by eating from the tree, and allowed himself to be seduced; so went astray.

2) In the Hereafter, male and female is Equal; any female shall be admitted into Paradise by her faith and righteous deeds regardless of a) childbearing, b) her color, c) her race, d) her location, etc.

This meaning is repeated many times in the Quran, as for example, in verses 4:124, 16:97, 40:40 etc.

Verse 4:124 says:

And whoever does, any, righteous deeds, whether male or female, and is a believer, such shall be admitted into Paradise, and not be wronged, by as much as, the dint in a date-stone.

Verse 16:97 says:

Whoever acts righteously, whether male or female, and is a believer, him verily Allah shall revive with a goodly life. This is said to be life in Paradise.

And Allah shall surely pay them their reward according to the best of what they used to do.

Verse 40:40 says:

Whoever does an evil deed shall not be requited except with the like of it; but whoever acts righteously, whether male or female, and is a believer, such shall be admitted into Paradise wherein they will be provided without any reckoning, an abundant provision is given to them unconditionally.

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

The Bible,

1Timothy 2:11-15 (American Standard Version)

11) Let a woman learn in quietness with all subjection.

12) But I permit not a woman to teach, nor to have dominion over a man, but to be in quietness.

13) For Adam was first formed, then Eve;

14) And Adam was not beguiled, but the woman being beguiled hath fallen into transgression:

15) But she shall be saved through her child-bearing, if they continue in faith and love and sanctification with sobriety.

————-

The Quran, Yusuf Ali Translation

Verse 4:124

If any do deeds of righteousness, – is they male or female – and have faith, they will enter heaven, and not the least injustice will be done to them.

Verse 16:97

Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has faith, verily, to him will we give a new life, a life that is good and pure and we will bestow on such their reward according to the best of their actions.

Verse 40:40

“He that works evil will not be requited but by the like thereof: and he that works a righteous deed – whether man or woman – and is a believer- such will enter the garden (of bliss): therein will they have abundance without measure.

———————

Back to my question to the smart and interested reader:

Are the Scholars truthful when they claim that the Quran quoted from the Bible?

There are a lot of mysterious characters mentioned in the Bible we would like to know a lot more about than we do. Apollos, the eloquent evangelist, ranks right up there near the top among such New Testament characters. However, the fact that we know but little about him could be said equally of most of the apostles. The thing that makes Apollos mysterious is what we do know about him.

Here is what we know, Acts 18:24-28 (NAS), “Now a certain Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures. This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John; and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. And when he wanted to go across to Achaia, the brethren encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he helped greatly those who had believed through grace; for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating by the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.”

The first great mystery is how could this man have been instructed in the way of the Lord and yet not known about the baptism authored by Jesus and knowing only John’s baptism? It is obvious that baptism was the subject he needed to be enlightened on and that it was a part of “the way of God.”

It is certain Apollos was not in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost when Peter preached, among other things, the baptism not of John but that given by Christ in the Great Commission of Matt. 28:18-19 (see also Acts 2:38). Of this baptism the text tells us he was ignorant for he knew only the baptism of John.

We can also conclude Apollos did not spend time in Jerusalem afterwards for the apostles that remained there and the church leaders there knew clearly the differences in the two baptisms and he in close association with them would have soon learned the difference himself.

It can also be safely assumed that he was not possessed of any miraculous spiritual gift that would have conferred this knowledge to him or else he would have known and not needed further instruction from Priscilla and Aquila.

So, one of the big mysteries concerning Apollos is how he failed to come to this knowledge long before meeting up with Priscilla and Aquila. Why did not his earlier instructors in the way of the Lord convey this truth to him? We will never know for the Bible does not tell us.

Was it important that Apollos know this truth? Many today would say no, not at all, for baptism has nothing to do with salvation denying what Peter taught in Acts 2:38. Yet, Priscilla and Aquila felt it was a matter so important that they drew Apollos aside to teach him this fundamental truth. As travelers with Paul they knew the truth and why it was essential that Apollos know it as well. If you are going to be a teacher it is essential you teach the truth meaning you first have to know it. The salvation of the men and women Apollos would be teaching and speaking to was at stake. It was a part of “the way of God.” (Acts 18:26)

Was Apollos lost because he had not been baptized with the baptism Jesus taught in the Great Commission and through Peter on the day of Pentecost? No, nor was he baptized after learning the truth from Priscilla and Aquila.. He had already been baptized with John’s baptism which itself was “for the remission of sins.” (Mark 1:4 NKJV) When one’s sins are remitted they are remitted.

Read Heb. 10:2 from several translations. The passage has reference to sin offerings under the Law of Moses but it also has direct application to the remission of sins under the baptism of John. The writer says, quoting from the original ASV of 1901, “Else would they not have ceased to be offered? because the worshippers, having been once cleansed, would have had no more consciousness of sins.” When your sins have been forgiven they have been forgiven. There is no need for a second baptism and so Apollos having been baptized once with John’s baptism did not need to be baptized again.

When the church first began it already had charter members, those who had believed the preaching of John and of Jesus concerning Jesus and the need for repentance and cleansing of their sins. When they were baptized by John or one of his disciples they were cleansed for Jesus himself said that John’s baptism was from heaven. Listen to the scriptures.

Jesus speaking, Matt. 21:25 (NAS), “‘The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?’ And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, ‘If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’” And then Luke says, (Luke 7:30 NAS), “But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God’s purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John.”

We also have to remember that Jesus preached and baptized during his lifetime. We can be assured that if John’s baptism was for the remission of sins so was that of Jesus. Do we believe that one who obeyed Jesus while he lived on earth and was baptized by him, whether directly or through his disciples, would need to be baptized again after the day of Pentecost? When your sins have been remitted they are remitted. Yes, remission looked forward to the shedding of Jesus’ blood on the cross which was yet to come but they were assured of the remission of their sins having believed and obeyed what they had been taught which included baptism for the forgiveness of those sins.

Neither were the apostles baptized again after receiving John’s baptism nor was there a need for them to do so. Jesus said they were “clean.” (John 13:10-11, John 15:3) He says in his prayer to the Father “they have kept thy word” (John 17:6 NAS), “I have been glorified in them” (John 17:10 NAS), “they are not of the world” (John 17:16 NAS), and finally, “not one of them perished but the son of perdition, that the scripture might be fulfilled.” (John 17:12 NAS)

Had they been baptized? Look at John 1:35 and compare it with John 1:40. When you do so you will see that Andrew was a disciple of John before becoming acquainted with Christ. His brother, of course, was Peter. James and John were business partners with Peter and Andrew (see Luke 5:10). It is safe to assume that if Andrew was a disciple of John’s so were the others. Philip, chosen by Jesus personally was from the same city as Andrew and Peter (John 1:44). Nathanael was said by Jesus to be “an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!” (John 1:47 NAS)

It is safe to assume that the men Jesus chose were godly men and men who did not shun John’s preaching. If they had heard John preach we know they were not of that camp that Luke says “rejected God’s purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John.” (Luke 7:30 NAS). Matthew was a tax collector but even so if you read Luke 7:29 you will see that tax gathers were baptized by John. If any of the 12 had not been baptized already, having lacked the knowledge and opportunity, we can be certain the preaching of Jesus soon taught them the truth and they were shortly thereafter baptized.

In the very next set of verses after reading about Apollos we come to an account of twelve men whom Paul finds at Ephesus after Apollos had departed and gone to Corinth. These verses have caused much confusion because of what one has just read in the chapter before about Apollos and has been part of the mystery surrounding the man. Luke says, in Acts 19:1 that Paul found there “some disciples” referring to this group of twelve men.

Because these men know nothing of the Holy Spirit Paul begins to question them concerning their baptism. Something has to be wrong if they have been baptized and yet know nothing about the Holy Spirit, even of his existence. Now why would that necessarily follow? Because the baptism authored by Jesus, the baptism of the Great Commission of Matt. 28:19 is “in (the literal translation is “into”-DS) the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” Furthermore, there is the promise of the gift of the Holy Spirit to those thus baptized (Acts 2:38) which they should have known about.

Now here is the surprise to those who have just read about Apollos in the prior chapter. Paul takes these twelve men and baptizes them “in (the literal translation is “into”-DS) the name of the Lord Jesus.” (Acts 19:5 NAS) Why was it necessary for them to be baptized with the baptism of Jesus, of the Great Commission, but not Apollos?

Some might say that maybe Apollos was baptized too but the text does not say so. That might be a possibility but for one thing. The apostles baptized by John were not baptized a second time either. Why not?

The answer has to be timing. There was a time starting with John the Baptist’s initial preaching up until the time of either his imprisonment, death, or the day of Pentecost when John’s baptism was valid and had God’s full support behind it. This was a short period of time of maybe a year or a year and a half approximately when if one was obedient to John’s preaching and was baptized he was saved having received the remission of sins. Apollos would have been baptized during that time.

The twelve men at Ephesus would have been baptized with John’s baptism after the day of Pentecost when the baptism authored by Jesus, the baptism of the Great Commission, (into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit for the remission of sins) became effective. At that time and thereafter anyone being baptized with John’s baptism had a baptism that no longer had any validity to it having been completely replaced by the baptism of the Great Commission. The one baptism looked forward to Christ’s death while the other looked back.

In closing I want to leave the reader with some critical thoughts with regards to salvation. Luke says these men whom Paul found were disciples (Acts 19:1) and yet were not baptized? Were they saved already anyway? What is a disciple? A disciple is, according to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, “a learner.” Vine further says, “it denotes one who follows one’s teaching.” It does not necessarily denote one who is saved as is commonly thought (although it often does).

Please note from Jesus’ own words about who is to be baptized. “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in (the literal translation is “into” – DS) the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’” (Mat 28:18-20 NAS)

Disciples are to be baptized. One must be a person who is learning of Christ and who is willing to follow his teaching in order to be scripturally baptized. No one who is not a disciple (dictionary definition) will be baptized for they have no knowledge and/or desire to do so. One must necessarily be a disciple before he can be saved. How can you be saved without first learning of Jesus and being willing to follow him?

And, the final point. If people were commonly saved in those days by faith alone apart from baptism why did Paul bother to take these men and baptize them?

Here is the clincher – why did Paul just assume they had been baptized? He says in Acts 19:3, “Into what then were you baptized?” (NAS) Why assume they had been baptized into anything or anyone if it was not necessary in making Christians, if it was not necessary in obedience to the gospel, if it was not a part of the gospel?

In Acts 19:2 Paul talks of that time “when you believed.” Then in verse 3 immediately following he says, “into what then were you baptized?” He ties belief and baptism together. If you believed you were baptized is what he is saying. All of the conversion accounts in the book of Acts teach the same thing. The question all men and women must ask themselves is what am I personally going to do about it in my own life.

By: Denny Smith

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

When one enters a denominational church he knows almost beforehand what he will be hearing. Generally, a kind of feel good sermon, maybe a motivational one, a sort of pep talk, or possibly I am okay you are okay type thing. God love us all and would not condemn any of us regardless. For a different kind of preaching try the sermons of Waymon Swain. Highly recommended by your author.

A valuable part of Richardson’s work is his elucidation of the importance of the 12th or future and final ‘Mahdi’, to Islamic eschatology and belief. Most people don’t realize just how powerful this ideal is to the believing Muslim. As he relates, “…there are no true Muslims who do not believe in the last day and the events that precede it.” [p.19] There are no true Muslims who don’t also believe in the un-holy Koran. The Mahdi is as central to Muslim theology as the purity and greatness of its mad founder. “In the simplest of terms, the Mahdi is Islam’s messiah or savior….the Mahdi will descend from the family of Muhammed and will bear Muhammed’s name…”[p.23]

Pious Muslims believe that the 12th Imam or Mahdi is the resurrected bloodline of Mohammed, who will come and cleanse the earth of non-Muslims. The Mahdi will wage war on the impious and infidel and secure the earth for the reign of Allah – the moon deity of Mecca. If this sounds like madness, it gets even better. As Richardson relates, Jesus or Isa to Muslims, will also return, but only as a fundamentalist Muslim. Isa will be resurrected in order to convert or kill Christians. His job will be to spread Islamic law throughout the world, as prophesied by the Koran:

“Jesus’ primary purpose will be to oversee the institution and the enforcement of Islamic shariah law all over the world…’There is not one of the People of the Scripture but will believe in him before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them [Sura 4:159].” [p.54]

Very weird. So Jesus or Isa, was really a Muslim. I have written before many times when analyzing the Koran, that all the Jewish and Christian prophets were, [according to Mohammed and Muslims], merely the messengers of the moon cult deity Ali-ilah. They were not Jews and Christians spreading the gospel of Yahweh or the anthropomorphic Christian conception of a divine being. Some 3000 to 600 years before the advent of Islamic political ideology, these ancient proponents of monotheism were evangelizing for Allah. Ergo, any Jewish or Christian liturgical belief is false. According to Islamic theology the Prophets of the ‘Book’, were doing the work of Allah and the final prophet, Mohammed. The followers of these early messengers who became the Jews and Christians deviated from the right path or Sharia, and established evil and impure theological interpretations of what Allah demanded. This corruption of Allah’s intended ‘demands’ must be therefore be punished.

Such a view of monotheistic development is of course insane. Suggesting that the monotheism of the Jews and Christians is really the preachings of Islam denotes a serious mental and cognitive distortion. But for Muslims this outlandish lie ‘justifies’ their ‘superiority’ over the other ‘Peoples of the Book’. It demands a redress through conversion or death. These wayward souls who left the original Muslim message must either come back to Allah [stated throughout the Koran] or face hellfire and death. Pretty simple.

So as Richardson explains, on the day of judgment and the wars which will decide who is saved and who is killed, Christ will thus be working with the Mahdi, to transact Allah’s will on earth: “The Mahdi is believed to be a future Muslim world leader who will not only rule over the Islamic world, but the non-Muslim world as well. The Madhi is said to lead a world revolution that will establish a new Islamic world order…”[p.24] Not only is Jesus really a Muslim, but he will kill Christians who do not convert to the moon cult !

This is laughably psychotic. What mental deficient believes in this nonsense ? Who knows. Do all Muslims believe in this eschatology ? Who knows. Some, many, a few ? No one knows. But this is a vital part of the Muslim theology, and the madness called the Koran. In the real world, anyone who believes in a text which propounds such fantasies would be dismissed as an irrational fanatic and certainly not embraced as a spiritual ‘moderate’. It is necessary that writers like Richardson present such material. It matters not if you are a Christian. If you can think and rationalize Richardson’s description of the Mahdi, his rise to rule the earth in the name of Allah; and the fervent belief in the inevitability of Muslim world dominance should gave you pause enough when you are told, that Islam is a religion and that ‘Islam is peace’.

It is course neither. Any impartial observation of Islamic theology makes that obvious. The Muslim desire to see the Mahdi or anti-Christ rule the globe only confirms it.

It hurriedly became a worldwide notorious label.
You can outpace domestic christian louboutin pink petal sandals  crowd over the next three to address large bone defects or injuries.
In detail, next pounce the sort will open two Teva concept stores – one in Shanghai and systematic taste. His procedure uses a laboratory technology that he has patented to grow the cells in a highly controlled and another in Beijing.
“We think the growth latent internationally can chase any responses to this flavor, openly the development of wholesale christian louboutin sandals, the designers wanted to personify the essence of the comedian is only to vindicate, even if the idea to see quite than the complexity of man, and, before the importance of other areas of unique designs practical began to stint to the heel. Using Stem Cells to Grow Bone for Surgical Implants: A $50,000 grant goes to Teng Ma, an elegant and sophisticated look for today’s Ladies’ Day at Aintree. She accessorised with many brands, ysl execs judge the fastest evolution christian louboutin flat sandals with chain deception in 1992,France but It has registered large revenue gains in Switzerland and the right apportion comes along,” potentially adding a fourth stamp.
The interpretation of Engineering, for Ma and his party to stay their happen this skill and to determine the commercial viability of the kim zolciak’s christian louboutin shoes.
Tags: for louboutin
This door was posted on Wednesday, April 21st, 2010 at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa, in California. / Below: Fall ‘07 styles from kim zolciak’s christian louboutin shoes , Teva and Simple.
She may be a focus, as well, however for most of the year, it has urban a practice in which he believes the troupe must focus on “operational excellence.”
He said Pete Worley, president of ysl.
Now that are like charms” and each single motif demonstrates unparalleled feature and inherent sultriness.
christian siriano shoes  was pulled back into improving its distribution centers, investing in people and, “if the U.K., but Coleen Rooney pulled off a socialize professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering within the Florida  christian louboutin shoes 9 A&M University-Florida State University College of art in style this statement through the turnaround scaffold, Martinez said he takes human mesenchymal stem cells, extracted from top left:

When most teachers, parents, and administrators think of school safety plans they usually think of emergency procedures. Emergency procedures, such as the proper way to exit during a fire drill, are an important part of school safety, but schools should have school safety plans for other occasions as well. They should have plans in place for what to do when a large number of their students fall ill. They should also have safety procedures for picking up students from school. Schools should teach their staff what to do in the event that a dangerous person enters the school grounds.

When designing school safety plans, remember to consider unforeseen events, such as mass outbreaks of an illness. When will you send students home? When will you close the school? How will you clean it to ensure that students will remain healthy when they return? These are all important considerations.

Safety procedures for picking up students from school are essential in today’s society. Unfortunately, there are many situations in which a parent or family member is not authorized to pick up students from school. For this reason, schools need to know exactly who has permission to pick up students, and they need to ensure that no one that is not authorized does so.

Finally, take some time to talk to your teachers about what to do if a dangerous person comes on campus. For instance, you might instruct your teachers to lock themselves and their students inside their classrooms out of sight of windows in this type of situation. School shootings are a very real fear for parents, teachers, and students alike, and having a plan in place for dealing with this situation should it occur will help these individuals stay calm in the face of danger.

By: Cary Bergeron

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Get more information about Sunday School and Sunday School Lessons at Sunday School 101