By Gina Burgess
Lifestyles Editor
A six year old girl is walking home from school. The street is deserted and there are no other children at play close by. Suddenly an older girl stops her bicycle in front of the little girl. She grabs the little one’s chin and slaps her face leaving a redden hand print on her little cheek. The older girl then verbally abuses the child and slaps her again, threatening the child with more of the same treatment if the older girl sees her walking down her block again.
The child’s parents are concerned, but don’t have a recourse because they don’t know the older girl’s name or where she lives and the incident didn’t happen on school grounds.
Bullying like this is more prevalent than most people realize.
Dr. Ken Druck, the founder of Families Helping Families program, worked with families at Columbine High School and Santana High School and other families who have had tragedies. He describes bullying as having two faces: physical bullying and social bullying. Other researchers from around the world agree with him.
The US National Center for Education Statistics breaks the two different categories into direct and indirect bullying. The center goes on to define direct bullying as pushing, shoving, poking, throwing things, slapping, punching, biting, pulling hair, grabbing, kicking and the like. Indirect bullying, or social aggression, is characterized by isolating a victim with various techniques such as forming cliques to ostracize a person, rejection of former friends, bullying others who desire to socialize with the victim, deriding manner of dress or ethnic background, religion or disability. Other forms of indirect bullying are also delineated as spreading false rumors and gossip, name calling, manipulation, reminding of past failures, as well as taunting which is different from teasing because it has a malicious intent to harm.
Mona O’Moore, PhD of the Anti-Bullying Center, Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland says the growing body of research indicates bullying victims faced with many risks.
"Whether child or adult, those who are persistently subjected to abusive behavior are at risk of stress related illness which can sometimes lead to suicide. Individuals who bully others now risk judicial correction and conviction in courts," O’Moore said.
"Furthermore, passive bystanders in any bullying situation also risk suffering from anxiety that is brought on by the shame and guilt so often felt at not being able to intervene or defend a victim."
Bullying is a problem that knows no cultural or county boundaries. It is as prevalent in Ireland and England as it is in Canada and the U.S.
It is a behavioral problem that affects the lives of thousands.
O’Moore points out the humiliation, fear, social isolation and loss of self-esteem results in absenteeism from school, deteriorating grades, personality changes, depression, illness and even suicide.
Unfortunately, it is often called horseplay, or just a game, O’Moore warns, but the roughhousing can lead to brutal physical attacks.
In this day of advanced technology a new term has come into play:
cyberbullying. In an article by Chris Page, a BBC news producer, he made the point that one in 10 students admit to sending a harassing e-mail or text message according to a survey of school children in England. It is difficult to stop these cyberbullies because of the anonymous nature of the Internet.
"People often think bullying just involves the bully and the victim, but the bystanders can make a big difference, particularly if they’re in an Internet chatroom," Children’s Commissioner of England Al Ansley-Green said.
Closer to home, the BullyingPolice.org has researched the laws regarding bullying in school. Not every state has an anti-bullying law.
BullyingPolice.org gives Mississippi a C for its law.
The website states, "It is the belief of many experts that conflict resolution and peer mediation is not appropriate for a bully vs. victim situations, especially after the bullying has occurred." Confronting the bully is akin to coming face to face with one’s rapist, the explanation continues. The usual response in situations such as this, the victims will try to save themselves from further retaliation by assuming some of the fault. The site cite incidents such as abused wives being confronted with their abuse in front of their abusing husbands, "many times she even feels the beating she received for burning dinner was justified."
"Mississippi’s policy rarely mentions the word bullying and the code is not an anti-bullying law, but Mississippi gets a C for having a well written policy as well as a clear code to punish bullies who intimidate or use threats against other students," BullyingPolice.org says.
That little girl’s parents told her to walk with her head up high and shoulders back. Told her to not stop walking when someone stopped in her path, but to walk around the person, and told her to be on the look out for the older girl at school and report what she did to a teacher or the principal.
One week after the incident, the little girl spied the bigger girl on
the school playground. She marched up to her and accused her of the dastardly deed in front of the girl’s circle of friends. She also told her what her parents would do if it ever happened again. The six year old was never bothered again on her walk home.
Gina Burgess
Lifestyles Editor
601-798-4766 ext. 117
More than a door part 3
God justifies a person on their faith alone. Anyone who believes God, and believes Jesus died for and took care of our sins, is justified from that instant. That can be anytime between the first instant of understanding to the instant before physical death.
Sanctification is not the same thing as justification. And justification is not cleansing. Sanctification is a process. Justification is something that happens in an instant and is permanent.
Eph 5:26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it (The Bride, the Church Body) with the washing of water by the word, Eph 5:27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. LITV
Eph 5:26 That he might sanctify it, cleansing it by the laver of water in the word of life: Eph 5:27 That he might present it to himself, a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. 1899 Douay-Reims Bible
Eph 5:26 that he might sanctify it, having cleansed it with the bathing of the water in the saying, Eph 5:27 that he might present it to himself the assembly in glory, not having spot or wrinkle, or any of such things, but that it may be holy and unblemished. Young's Literal Translation
Sanctify is to make holy. And Cleanse is to make clean from stains and dirt or
1b) in a moral sense
1b1) to free from defilement of sin and from faults
1b2) to purify from wickedness
1b3) to free from guilt of sin, to purify
1b4) to consecrate by cleansing or purifying
1b5) to consecrate, dedicate Please note the bold definition.
We're not saying that any Christian is sinless, or that any Christian would never commit another sin. The cleansing and purging of sin is an ongoing process. It is not a one time thing.
However, I do believe that Christians do sin less and less as they mature in Christ.
Please note in the verses above the use of the word "washing" along with the phrase "in the Word". The word Paul uses is Loutron which means bathing, bath, or the act of bathing.
The root word is Louo which means to wash a dead person or to cleanse blood from a wound.
Therefore the sanctification and the cleansing comes from bathing in the Word.
And Rhema means that which is spoken by a living voice, or a thing spoken of as in a matter of narration, or of a command, or a dispute, or a matter of law.
Jesus is the Word, John tells us that. And God's Word is the Bible. Christians do sin. As they learn more about God's and Jesus's character through the written Word, or commands, the Christian is continually washed in the Word, and by the Word.
This washing by the Word cleans the world's filth that accumulates on a Christian's feet as he traverses this place which is not Home. It is a continual process. Remember in John 13 when Jesus washed the feet of His disciples?
Peter was horrified that his Master would do such a lowly servant's service as wash his feet. Then Jesus told him that if Peter didn't allow Him to do it, then he could never have a place with Jesus. He goes on to explain that a person who has been completely bathed (leloumenos) the entire body, only a part needs washing--the dirty part that touches the earth, the feet. He told Peter that one day he would understand the whole of what He was teaching with this act. It was not the removal of the physical dirt from the feet. Jesus describes here exactly what I am talking about.
There is a difference between the first baptism of the Holy Spirit which is a complete cleansing which is the absolute justification, and the continual washing required to keep the world's filth from influencing the Christian's mind. Justification is what get us into Heaven. But God's work does not stop there and it never truly stopped at the cross.
Do you recognize there is such a thing as a Carnal Christian?
Yes! A person is changed, has a new, circumcised heart when he is saved. But, if a person is not taught, does not read the Bible, does not immerse himself in godly things, then he remains a Carnal Christian. Paul calls the Corinthians carnal Christians. He tells them they should be eating meat, but they are still subsisting on milk. He is talking about those Christians, for they absolutely are Christians and Paul recognizes this, have not matured in Christ.
A Christian absolutely cannot mature in Christ, does not look like his Father in Heaven if he does not know what that looks like. The only way for him to know what that looks like is if he studies in in God's Word. The act of studying/reading God's Word is not what sanctifies. Get this, please.
The True Blue Christian does not have false hopes that his pious acts will move mountains. The only way a person would know this is if they read all Jesus miracles and see where Jesus said time and again, "Go in peace, your faith has healed you." I'll let you have the last word. I don't know any other way to explain it, so I'm done here. God bless and keep you and I pray that you will never let a day go by that you do not pick up God's Word and hide it in your heart.
Satan takes a personal interest in each and every Christian's weaknesses. He has a list and is checking it twice. When he can entice a Christian into his web, then he has spoiled the witness and that makes him happy.
When the Christian takes those darts to God, that makes Satan mad and he picks up the assault firing more and bigger fiery darts. Which is why we are commanded to put on the full armor of God.
Being forgiven at the foot of the Cross is just the beginning of the journey. Being forgiven at the foot of the Cross is only the threshhold of the Door into Heaven.
Whether Jesus says, "Well done My good and faithful servant," is ALL about how the Christian lives.
Whether Jesus says, "Depart from Me, ye workers of iniquity," is ALL about what happens at the Cross.
Sanctification is not the same thing as justification. And justification is not cleansing. Sanctification is a process. Justification is something that happens in an instant and is permanent.
Eph 5:26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it (The Bride, the Church Body) with the washing of water by the word, Eph 5:27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. LITV
Eph 5:26 That he might sanctify it, cleansing it by the laver of water in the word of life: Eph 5:27 That he might present it to himself, a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. 1899 Douay-Reims Bible
Eph 5:26 that he might sanctify it, having cleansed it with the bathing of the water in the saying, Eph 5:27 that he might present it to himself the assembly in glory, not having spot or wrinkle, or any of such things, but that it may be holy and unblemished. Young's Literal Translation
Sanctify is to make holy. And Cleanse is to make clean from stains and dirt or
1b) in a moral sense
1b1) to free from defilement of sin and from faults
1b2) to purify from wickedness
1b3) to free from guilt of sin, to purify
1b4) to consecrate by cleansing or purifying
1b5) to consecrate, dedicate Please note the bold definition.
We're not saying that any Christian is sinless, or that any Christian would never commit another sin. The cleansing and purging of sin is an ongoing process. It is not a one time thing.
However, I do believe that Christians do sin less and less as they mature in Christ.
Please note in the verses above the use of the word "washing" along with the phrase "in the Word". The word Paul uses is Loutron which means bathing, bath, or the act of bathing.
The root word is Louo which means to wash a dead person or to cleanse blood from a wound.
Therefore the sanctification and the cleansing comes from bathing in the Word.
And Rhema means that which is spoken by a living voice, or a thing spoken of as in a matter of narration, or of a command, or a dispute, or a matter of law.
Jesus is the Word, John tells us that. And God's Word is the Bible. Christians do sin. As they learn more about God's and Jesus's character through the written Word, or commands, the Christian is continually washed in the Word, and by the Word.
This washing by the Word cleans the world's filth that accumulates on a Christian's feet as he traverses this place which is not Home. It is a continual process. Remember in John 13 when Jesus washed the feet of His disciples?
Peter was horrified that his Master would do such a lowly servant's service as wash his feet. Then Jesus told him that if Peter didn't allow Him to do it, then he could never have a place with Jesus. He goes on to explain that a person who has been completely bathed (leloumenos) the entire body, only a part needs washing--the dirty part that touches the earth, the feet. He told Peter that one day he would understand the whole of what He was teaching with this act. It was not the removal of the physical dirt from the feet. Jesus describes here exactly what I am talking about.
There is a difference between the first baptism of the Holy Spirit which is a complete cleansing which is the absolute justification, and the continual washing required to keep the world's filth from influencing the Christian's mind. Justification is what get us into Heaven. But God's work does not stop there and it never truly stopped at the cross.
Do you recognize there is such a thing as a Carnal Christian?
Yes! A person is changed, has a new, circumcised heart when he is saved. But, if a person is not taught, does not read the Bible, does not immerse himself in godly things, then he remains a Carnal Christian. Paul calls the Corinthians carnal Christians. He tells them they should be eating meat, but they are still subsisting on milk. He is talking about those Christians, for they absolutely are Christians and Paul recognizes this, have not matured in Christ.
A Christian absolutely cannot mature in Christ, does not look like his Father in Heaven if he does not know what that looks like. The only way for him to know what that looks like is if he studies in in God's Word. The act of studying/reading God's Word is not what sanctifies. Get this, please.
The True Blue Christian does not have false hopes that his pious acts will move mountains. The only way a person would know this is if they read all Jesus miracles and see where Jesus said time and again, "Go in peace, your faith has healed you." I'll let you have the last word. I don't know any other way to explain it, so I'm done here. God bless and keep you and I pray that you will never let a day go by that you do not pick up God's Word and hide it in your heart.
Satan takes a personal interest in each and every Christian's weaknesses. He has a list and is checking it twice. When he can entice a Christian into his web, then he has spoiled the witness and that makes him happy.
When the Christian takes those darts to God, that makes Satan mad and he picks up the assault firing more and bigger fiery darts. Which is why we are commanded to put on the full armor of God.
Being forgiven at the foot of the Cross is just the beginning of the journey. Being forgiven at the foot of the Cross is only the threshhold of the Door into Heaven.
Whether Jesus says, "Well done My good and faithful servant," is ALL about how the Christian lives.
Whether Jesus says, "Depart from Me, ye workers of iniquity," is ALL about what happens at the Cross.
More than a door part 2
Now, the sacrifice that Jesus made willingly of His life was to satisfy the Law. It paid for all the sins ever to be committed, from Adam until the end of time.
Hebrews 9 explains it in detail. The sacrificial blood of goats and bulls was only the shadow of Jesus' sacrifice. Here, see this... 9:14 by how much more the blood of Christ (who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God), will purify your conscience from dead works, to serve the living God!
From verse 14 through 23, the Hebrews author describes the reason for sacrifices. Then in verse 24 Heb 9:24 For Christ did not enter into the Holy of Holies made by hands, types of the true things, but into Heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf, Not so that He should offer Himself over and over, but once and for all as a Testimony in the Heavenly Court of Law that the Law was satisfied, once and for all.
Before that happened, no human soul could enter into God's presence. It was a matter of Law, not Grace. Heb 10:12 But He, offering but one sacrifice for sins, "sat down" in perpetuity "at the right hand" of God,
Until Jesus sat down at the right hand of God, we could not enter God's presence. Jesus resurrection was the single sign that all debt had been paid. If there was just one sin that had not been paid for, Jesus would have remained locked in the grave.
His resurrection was the victory over death AND over sin. Because the wages of sin IS death. Jesus was raised FOR our justification. Look up the different translations and then look at the original Greek.
Jesus was raised for the perfecting and completing of our justification. Sanctification and justification are two different things, very closely related, but they are two different things.
When Jesus was buried, He took the punishment or the consequence of our sins upon Himself. He was locked in prison, just as those OT saints were locked in Paradise with no way out until The Door opened in Heaven giving them their way into God's presence.
It is the resurrection of Jesus that proves we are not justified by our own works. It is the resurrection that proves God was satisfied... proves remission of sin... proves salvation is through Jesus and only Jesus because only Jesus is the First Fruit of the First Resurrection. Jesus was raised from the dead in His glorified body. Unlike Lazarus who died again. Unlike Enoch and Elijah who did not again walk the earth. Unlike Moses who's foot first touched the promised land when he was TRANSFIGURED that night.
We are justified because He was raised. Justified, declared righteous, sacrifice accepted. We are sanctified because He died on the cross. Sancified, purified, made holy by His blood, for without blood there is no remission of sins, but without perfect blood there is no purification. Again, Hebrews 9. Justification is a one time act. Sanctification is a continuing process because we are human. Eph 5:26 that He might sanctify it, cleansing it by the washing of the water in the Word,
If you do not read the Bible and hide His Word in your heart every day, then God has no foundation in your heart with which to build the sanctification.
God did not pour manna into the Israelites bowls during the night. They had to wake up every morning and gather the manna for the day's food. They had to participate in their own feeding.
That directly relates to sanctification. We must work at it. God planned our good works that we should do at the very foundation of the world. It is by our good works that we glorify God.
Mat 5:16 So let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works, and may glorify your Father in Heaven. Of course the works do not get us into Heaven.
Eph 2:9-10 not of works, that not anyone should boast for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God before prepared that we should walk in them.
Without the resurrection, there would have been no eternal life, for death would still have the sting. Without the resurrection, the Holy Spirit that would not dwell within us. It would have remained as it did in the Old Testament times. Without the resurrection there would have been no salvation with glorified bodies because there would have been no firstfruit.
Rom 8:23 And not only so, but also we ourselves having the firstfruit of the Spirit, also we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly expecting adoption, the redemption of our body;
The Cross and The Resurrection are of such equal and great importance that the two make the fulfillment of One Promise. You cannot have one without the other for the redemption of our souls.
He most certainly does perfect His work by sanctifying those who participate with Him in the process. Those who do not particpate in it with Him find an empty Spiritual bone. Their plate is never full and they find themselves starving. When God says we have only to open our mouths and He will fill them up.
Psa 81:10 I am Jehovah your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt; open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. It is participating with Him in the work He does in us that brings Him glory.
Eze 2:8 But you, son of man, hear what I am saying to you. Do not be like that rebellious house of rebellion. Open your mouth and eat what I am giving to you.
It is precisely the reading of our Bibles, the study of His Word, the prayer and the listening to Him that changes us into being more like Christ. A person who was lost and then believes and then Jesus saves, absolutely is a new creation in Christ... a new man.
But, the New Man must put off the Old ways. That can't happen unless a person works at it with Jesus. Certainly there are some drug addicts that walk away from that life as soon as they become a Christian, but how many of those stay out of that life if they do not replace that old way with the New Way?
But a Christian does not fight the fight alone. We are commanded to put on the whole armor of God. Eph 6. That is an active part we must play.
Listen, the General of the army doesn't go out and put the clothes on his soldiers, does he? Of course not, the General provides the clothes and the soldier dresses himself. This is precisely what Paul is talking about in Ephesians 6.
We are made powerful in the LORD, with that same power that raised Jesus from the dead. We have to put on the belt of Truth. Our hearts are protected with the breastplate of righteousness, and we have the boots of peace, and the shield of faith to ward off the fiery darts from Satan, and the helmet of salvation and the Sword which is the Word of God. All of that is to be set in place and covered in prayer. The equipment is provided, but we must put it on. This is the process of sanctification. We are being sanctified because we are being perfected. Eph 4:12. That is the Greek verb which is an ongoing state.
I hope I have shown you how sanctification is an ongoing process. One day we will be like Him.
1Jo 3:2 Beloved, now we are the children of God, and it was not yet revealed what we shall be. But we know that if He is revealed, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.
Jesus changes the old man into the new man who becomes a brand new creation. But, it is like the story Jesus tells of the man who had many demons and those demons were banished from him. The man had a clean, and freshly swept heart. Then the demon, seeing that nothing had come in, came back into the man and brought all his friends, so the man was worse off than before.
Of course this would not happen to a True Believer because we have the Holy Spirit as a seal upon our hearts Who protects us from any demon invasion and from Satan.
However, if this man has no knowledge of the Bible, where is the foundation of comfort and wisdom that God can call to the man's mind in times of trials and tribulations which are common to man? If this man who is washed by the blood and completely cleansed does nothing to gain a greater understanding of his Redeemer, then how will he know His voice? How can he tell the difference between Satan's whisper and God's still small voice?
Rom 6:5 For if we have been joined together in the likeness of His death, so also shall we be in the resurrection,
The metamorphasis of the old man into the New Creation is exactly that. The Holy Spirit enters and dwells within, changing the old man exactly as a caterpillar metamorphs into a butterfly. Something old and ugly changing into something beautiful. Another example is the planted seed. The plant cannot grow unless the seed dies and is planted. The metamorphsis is God's doing and God's creation.
Hebrews 9 explains it in detail. The sacrificial blood of goats and bulls was only the shadow of Jesus' sacrifice. Here, see this... 9:14 by how much more the blood of Christ (who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God), will purify your conscience from dead works, to serve the living God!
From verse 14 through 23, the Hebrews author describes the reason for sacrifices. Then in verse 24 Heb 9:24 For Christ did not enter into the Holy of Holies made by hands, types of the true things, but into Heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf, Not so that He should offer Himself over and over, but once and for all as a Testimony in the Heavenly Court of Law that the Law was satisfied, once and for all.
Before that happened, no human soul could enter into God's presence. It was a matter of Law, not Grace. Heb 10:12 But He, offering but one sacrifice for sins, "sat down" in perpetuity "at the right hand" of God,
Until Jesus sat down at the right hand of God, we could not enter God's presence. Jesus resurrection was the single sign that all debt had been paid. If there was just one sin that had not been paid for, Jesus would have remained locked in the grave.
His resurrection was the victory over death AND over sin. Because the wages of sin IS death. Jesus was raised FOR our justification. Look up the different translations and then look at the original Greek.
Jesus was raised for the perfecting and completing of our justification. Sanctification and justification are two different things, very closely related, but they are two different things.
When Jesus was buried, He took the punishment or the consequence of our sins upon Himself. He was locked in prison, just as those OT saints were locked in Paradise with no way out until The Door opened in Heaven giving them their way into God's presence.
It is the resurrection of Jesus that proves we are not justified by our own works. It is the resurrection that proves God was satisfied... proves remission of sin... proves salvation is through Jesus and only Jesus because only Jesus is the First Fruit of the First Resurrection. Jesus was raised from the dead in His glorified body. Unlike Lazarus who died again. Unlike Enoch and Elijah who did not again walk the earth. Unlike Moses who's foot first touched the promised land when he was TRANSFIGURED that night.
We are justified because He was raised. Justified, declared righteous, sacrifice accepted. We are sanctified because He died on the cross. Sancified, purified, made holy by His blood, for without blood there is no remission of sins, but without perfect blood there is no purification. Again, Hebrews 9. Justification is a one time act. Sanctification is a continuing process because we are human. Eph 5:26 that He might sanctify it, cleansing it by the washing of the water in the Word,
If you do not read the Bible and hide His Word in your heart every day, then God has no foundation in your heart with which to build the sanctification.
God did not pour manna into the Israelites bowls during the night. They had to wake up every morning and gather the manna for the day's food. They had to participate in their own feeding.
That directly relates to sanctification. We must work at it. God planned our good works that we should do at the very foundation of the world. It is by our good works that we glorify God.
Mat 5:16 So let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works, and may glorify your Father in Heaven. Of course the works do not get us into Heaven.
Eph 2:9-10 not of works, that not anyone should boast for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God before prepared that we should walk in them.
Without the resurrection, there would have been no eternal life, for death would still have the sting. Without the resurrection, the Holy Spirit that would not dwell within us. It would have remained as it did in the Old Testament times. Without the resurrection there would have been no salvation with glorified bodies because there would have been no firstfruit.
Rom 8:23 And not only so, but also we ourselves having the firstfruit of the Spirit, also we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly expecting adoption, the redemption of our body;
The Cross and The Resurrection are of such equal and great importance that the two make the fulfillment of One Promise. You cannot have one without the other for the redemption of our souls.
He most certainly does perfect His work by sanctifying those who participate with Him in the process. Those who do not particpate in it with Him find an empty Spiritual bone. Their plate is never full and they find themselves starving. When God says we have only to open our mouths and He will fill them up.
Psa 81:10 I am Jehovah your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt; open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. It is participating with Him in the work He does in us that brings Him glory.
Eze 2:8 But you, son of man, hear what I am saying to you. Do not be like that rebellious house of rebellion. Open your mouth and eat what I am giving to you.
It is precisely the reading of our Bibles, the study of His Word, the prayer and the listening to Him that changes us into being more like Christ. A person who was lost and then believes and then Jesus saves, absolutely is a new creation in Christ... a new man.
But, the New Man must put off the Old ways. That can't happen unless a person works at it with Jesus. Certainly there are some drug addicts that walk away from that life as soon as they become a Christian, but how many of those stay out of that life if they do not replace that old way with the New Way?
But a Christian does not fight the fight alone. We are commanded to put on the whole armor of God. Eph 6. That is an active part we must play.
Listen, the General of the army doesn't go out and put the clothes on his soldiers, does he? Of course not, the General provides the clothes and the soldier dresses himself. This is precisely what Paul is talking about in Ephesians 6.
We are made powerful in the LORD, with that same power that raised Jesus from the dead. We have to put on the belt of Truth. Our hearts are protected with the breastplate of righteousness, and we have the boots of peace, and the shield of faith to ward off the fiery darts from Satan, and the helmet of salvation and the Sword which is the Word of God. All of that is to be set in place and covered in prayer. The equipment is provided, but we must put it on. This is the process of sanctification. We are being sanctified because we are being perfected. Eph 4:12. That is the Greek verb which is an ongoing state.
I hope I have shown you how sanctification is an ongoing process. One day we will be like Him.
1Jo 3:2 Beloved, now we are the children of God, and it was not yet revealed what we shall be. But we know that if He is revealed, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.
Jesus changes the old man into the new man who becomes a brand new creation. But, it is like the story Jesus tells of the man who had many demons and those demons were banished from him. The man had a clean, and freshly swept heart. Then the demon, seeing that nothing had come in, came back into the man and brought all his friends, so the man was worse off than before.
Of course this would not happen to a True Believer because we have the Holy Spirit as a seal upon our hearts Who protects us from any demon invasion and from Satan.
However, if this man has no knowledge of the Bible, where is the foundation of comfort and wisdom that God can call to the man's mind in times of trials and tribulations which are common to man? If this man who is washed by the blood and completely cleansed does nothing to gain a greater understanding of his Redeemer, then how will he know His voice? How can he tell the difference between Satan's whisper and God's still small voice?
Rom 6:5 For if we have been joined together in the likeness of His death, so also shall we be in the resurrection,
The metamorphasis of the old man into the New Creation is exactly that. The Holy Spirit enters and dwells within, changing the old man exactly as a caterpillar metamorphs into a butterfly. Something old and ugly changing into something beautiful. Another example is the planted seed. The plant cannot grow unless the seed dies and is planted. The metamorphsis is God's doing and God's creation.
More Than a Door
If you come here from Studylight.org and you have been following the discussion titled the same as this post, then this will be a repeat for you. I'm sorry. However, I have noticed how many do not seem to understand the difference between sanctification and justification, a topic I have studied for more than five years now, off and on.
I won't post the whole discussion, and I'll only post my part of it.
More than a Door...
Well, it is tempting to say, 'If you don't move away from the door, other people can't get in!' But, that isn't the case because the Cross is not the door. Jesus is the door. Joh 10:7 Then Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you that I am the door of the sheep. Joh 10:8 All who came before Me are thieves and plunderers, but the sheep did not hear them. Joh 10:9 I am the door. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in, and will go out, and will find pasture.
The key here is that Jesus was not the door before He rose from the dead. Matthew 27:51 And, behold! The veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And the earth quaked, and the rocks were sheared, Mat 27:52 and the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep arose, Mat 27:53 and coming out of the tomb after His resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. Rom 4:25 God gave Jesus to die for our sins, and he raised him to life, so that we would be made acceptable to God. The point is that Jesus is the perfect sacrifice, but that was to satisfy the Law. When God raised Jesus from the dead, that is when we moved from the Law (which had no strength to change a person’ s character or heart) to Grace (which is a higher standard of living). Do not confuse entrance into God's physical presence with relationship. Jesus became the Door into the Father's presence when He rose from the dead. When Jesus died on the cross, the first part of God's plan was fulfilled. Payment. When Jesus rose from the dead, the second part of God's plan was fulfilled. The sting of sin AND death were plucked and were no longer a threat to the believers in Jesus and what He did. 1 Corinthians 15 Through Jesus, the OT saints were escorted into the Throne Room of Heaven. Before Jesus rose from the dead, there were no human souls in the Father's presence. They were in Paradise, to be sure. They were with Abraham and all other OT saints. Luke 16 When Jesus rose from the dead, He lead Captivity Captive, opened the Door to Heaven and sat down at the right hand of the Father. Those who's graves were opened and walked the earth AFTER Jesus's resurrection, went with Him to Heaven into the Presence of God. He was the Door, He is the Door and He will be our Door. He is the great I AM.
They were not free to go into God's presence the second Jesus died on the cross. The Father did not invite them to come into Heaven before Jesus got there. Jesus brought them into the Father's presence. No one could go into His presence until they had been changed as Jesus was changed into His glorified body. He was the first fruits of the resurrection. No one was changed until He was. No one ever had a glorfied body before Jesus did. 1Co 15:50 And I say this, brothers, that flesh and blood is not able to inherit the kingdom of God, nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 1Co 15:51 Behold, I speak a mystery to you: we shall not all fall asleep, but we shall all be changed. There is still a mystery surrounding that.
Oh, not what the glorified body can do. We'll eat and drink and think and be there. No beaming up, Scotty, but we'll be instantly transported. And we won't look the same as we do here. No one recognized Jesus until He spoke or told them who He was. It is an exciting thing to look forward to, eh? Paul goes on to say, 1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1Co 15:54 But when this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and this mortal shall put on immortality, then will take place the Word that has been written, "Death was swallowed up in victory." Isa. 25:8 Isa 25:7 And He will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering which covers all people, and the veil that is woven over all nations. Isa 25:8 He will swallow up death in victory! And the Lord Jehovah will wipe away tears from all faces. And He shall reprove the reproach of His people from all the earth; for Jehovah has spoken. Yes, the veil was rent in twain, but death still held reign until Jesus rose from the dead.
That is the second part of the whole plan. Jesus had to be raised. The same power that raised Jesus, saved us from God's wrath. That same power, thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Amen and Amen. If Jesus had never been raised from the dead, our sins would have been paid for, but we would still be constricted and restricted by the Law. The power of the law is weak and it doesn't change hearts as Jesus does. Only Jesus' resurrection brought victory over sin AND death. See?
The ripping of the veil is not the invitation from God into Heaven. The ripping of the veil is physical. It was a Spiritual symbol in a physical manifestation, a physical sign to humans that we have direct access to God. But more directly, it was a destruction of the Jewish worship and ceremonial practices. It was a signal that the Shechinah was no longer in the Temple. Look at Zech 11:10 & 12 and Hosea 5:14.
I won't post the whole discussion, and I'll only post my part of it.
More than a Door...
Well, it is tempting to say, 'If you don't move away from the door, other people can't get in!' But, that isn't the case because the Cross is not the door. Jesus is the door. Joh 10:7 Then Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you that I am the door of the sheep. Joh 10:8 All who came before Me are thieves and plunderers, but the sheep did not hear them. Joh 10:9 I am the door. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in, and will go out, and will find pasture.
The key here is that Jesus was not the door before He rose from the dead. Matthew 27:51 And, behold! The veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And the earth quaked, and the rocks were sheared, Mat 27:52 and the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep arose, Mat 27:53 and coming out of the tomb after His resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. Rom 4:25 God gave Jesus to die for our sins, and he raised him to life, so that we would be made acceptable to God. The point is that Jesus is the perfect sacrifice, but that was to satisfy the Law. When God raised Jesus from the dead, that is when we moved from the Law (which had no strength to change a person’ s character or heart) to Grace (which is a higher standard of living). Do not confuse entrance into God's physical presence with relationship. Jesus became the Door into the Father's presence when He rose from the dead. When Jesus died on the cross, the first part of God's plan was fulfilled. Payment. When Jesus rose from the dead, the second part of God's plan was fulfilled. The sting of sin AND death were plucked and were no longer a threat to the believers in Jesus and what He did. 1 Corinthians 15 Through Jesus, the OT saints were escorted into the Throne Room of Heaven. Before Jesus rose from the dead, there were no human souls in the Father's presence. They were in Paradise, to be sure. They were with Abraham and all other OT saints. Luke 16 When Jesus rose from the dead, He lead Captivity Captive, opened the Door to Heaven and sat down at the right hand of the Father. Those who's graves were opened and walked the earth AFTER Jesus's resurrection, went with Him to Heaven into the Presence of God. He was the Door, He is the Door and He will be our Door. He is the great I AM.
They were not free to go into God's presence the second Jesus died on the cross. The Father did not invite them to come into Heaven before Jesus got there. Jesus brought them into the Father's presence. No one could go into His presence until they had been changed as Jesus was changed into His glorified body. He was the first fruits of the resurrection. No one was changed until He was. No one ever had a glorfied body before Jesus did. 1Co 15:50 And I say this, brothers, that flesh and blood is not able to inherit the kingdom of God, nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 1Co 15:51 Behold, I speak a mystery to you: we shall not all fall asleep, but we shall all be changed. There is still a mystery surrounding that.
Oh, not what the glorified body can do. We'll eat and drink and think and be there. No beaming up, Scotty, but we'll be instantly transported. And we won't look the same as we do here. No one recognized Jesus until He spoke or told them who He was. It is an exciting thing to look forward to, eh? Paul goes on to say, 1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1Co 15:54 But when this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and this mortal shall put on immortality, then will take place the Word that has been written, "Death was swallowed up in victory." Isa. 25:8 Isa 25:7 And He will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering which covers all people, and the veil that is woven over all nations. Isa 25:8 He will swallow up death in victory! And the Lord Jehovah will wipe away tears from all faces. And He shall reprove the reproach of His people from all the earth; for Jehovah has spoken. Yes, the veil was rent in twain, but death still held reign until Jesus rose from the dead.
That is the second part of the whole plan. Jesus had to be raised. The same power that raised Jesus, saved us from God's wrath. That same power, thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Amen and Amen. If Jesus had never been raised from the dead, our sins would have been paid for, but we would still be constricted and restricted by the Law. The power of the law is weak and it doesn't change hearts as Jesus does. Only Jesus' resurrection brought victory over sin AND death. See?
The ripping of the veil is not the invitation from God into Heaven. The ripping of the veil is physical. It was a Spiritual symbol in a physical manifestation, a physical sign to humans that we have direct access to God. But more directly, it was a destruction of the Jewish worship and ceremonial practices. It was a signal that the Shechinah was no longer in the Temple. Look at Zech 11:10 & 12 and Hosea 5:14.
God answers prayers
As my daughter said yesterday, "God answers prayers."
Today was probably the most stressful day I've had in a long time.
The hospital should never have released Mom until all the ducks were in a row. Today I found out that the home health that was supposed to come give Mom her shot couldn't because a doctor had to sign off on the orders. She didn't have a regular doctor here in P-town.
So... I busily set to work to find her a doctor so she could get her shot. (We won't even go into the 14 syringes that cost $900, and come to find out she only needs 7 of them. That was just a minor rumple in the carpet.) I called every physician in Picayune that had a phone number and who was not a specialist.
Everyone turned me down flat. Not one doctor would consent to see Mom today. My first question was, "Are you taking new patients?" If the answer was yes, then I told them the problem. I did not get hung up on, but I got told...
"He's not taking Medicare patients."
"She's not taking any new patients. Is it urgent?"
When I said it was. She said, "I'm sorry. Try Dr. ......"
I exhausted the boxes in the yellow pages with one phone call. Went through the bold print and landed on the tiny print. That doctor was on vacation and wouldn't be back until next week. Sigh...
Then one nurse said she would talk to the doctor about Mom.
I waited...
Waited...
Waited...
No phone call.
I called back.
"Oh, yes, I talked to him and he said she would have go to the doctor she saw in the hospital. He couldn't take her on."
I lost my cool. I told her to give him a message. Please tell him that if my Mom dies, it's all on his head.
Oh, yes.
I said it.
Then the home health called back and said the cardiologist would not sign off on it because he just read her EKG. It must be all about money, and not life.
Anyhoot... Michelle at the home health called the hospital and ran them through the wringer over letting Mom go with out having this settled. The hospital called all apologetic and got it all straightened out. So I called the doctor that was on vacation and set up an appointment for Mom to see him on Thursday.
Monday we go get her thyroid scanned. Evidently, this goiter on her thyroid is most likely causing the atrial fibrillation. Take care of the goiter and we take care of the AF... maybe. It is good news.
It's been a bad day, then a good day and now I'm really tired.
Today was probably the most stressful day I've had in a long time.
The hospital should never have released Mom until all the ducks were in a row. Today I found out that the home health that was supposed to come give Mom her shot couldn't because a doctor had to sign off on the orders. She didn't have a regular doctor here in P-town.
So... I busily set to work to find her a doctor so she could get her shot. (We won't even go into the 14 syringes that cost $900, and come to find out she only needs 7 of them. That was just a minor rumple in the carpet.) I called every physician in Picayune that had a phone number and who was not a specialist.
Everyone turned me down flat. Not one doctor would consent to see Mom today. My first question was, "Are you taking new patients?" If the answer was yes, then I told them the problem. I did not get hung up on, but I got told...
"He's not taking Medicare patients."
"She's not taking any new patients. Is it urgent?"
When I said it was. She said, "I'm sorry. Try Dr. ......"
I exhausted the boxes in the yellow pages with one phone call. Went through the bold print and landed on the tiny print. That doctor was on vacation and wouldn't be back until next week. Sigh...
Then one nurse said she would talk to the doctor about Mom.
I waited...
Waited...
Waited...
No phone call.
I called back.
"Oh, yes, I talked to him and he said she would have go to the doctor she saw in the hospital. He couldn't take her on."
I lost my cool. I told her to give him a message. Please tell him that if my Mom dies, it's all on his head.
Oh, yes.
I said it.
Then the home health called back and said the cardiologist would not sign off on it because he just read her EKG. It must be all about money, and not life.
Anyhoot... Michelle at the home health called the hospital and ran them through the wringer over letting Mom go with out having this settled. The hospital called all apologetic and got it all straightened out. So I called the doctor that was on vacation and set up an appointment for Mom to see him on Thursday.
Monday we go get her thyroid scanned. Evidently, this goiter on her thyroid is most likely causing the atrial fibrillation. Take care of the goiter and we take care of the AF... maybe. It is good news.
It's been a bad day, then a good day and now I'm really tired.
The Hospital
I am breaking a cardinal rule here and posting my Sunday column on Wednesday night on my blog. But, I figure the 6 people who come here are the ones I would really love to have praying for my Mom.
08-12-07 The Hospital
Nothing like getting to know a place up close and personal, is there?
Tuesday was voting day. Mom and I are very patriotic and take our responsibility personally. I had to go to work early that day because it was the first day of school for some and I wanted to get first hand experience at it. It’s been too many years to count since I’ve had a first day at school, college doesn’t count.
So I got my pictures and swung by home to get Mom to go vote really quick then on to work. Just another day.
Mom wasn’t feeling well. We went to Urgent Care since she didn’t have a local physician, yet. Dr. Stephanie Harper took one look at her EKG and called the ambulance, then called Highland to let them know she was on her way.
A lovely lady took all Mom’s information and then I caught up with Mom in the hall of the Emergency Room. The hospital was very busy Tuesday morning.
Beth took Mom under her wing and took such good care of her. Then Dr. Danielson stopped by to take another look at her EKG. Things in her chest had calmed down by that time. She was feeling pretty good by then.
Someone came out of one of the ER rooms and moseyed down the hall. When she came back she told me,
“Go to Hattiesburg. They are really good there in Hattiesburg.”
“For heart troubles?” I asked.
“Oh, no. Hip replacements. I’ve had three.”
Sigh…
More blood work and then finally Dr. Barton comes around. He’s adamant that Mom will visit here a while.
“How long ‘a while’?” I asked.
“A couple of days probably. We’ll need to run these tests and then get her on medication.”
Atrial Fibrillation is when the upper heart muscles are just sitting there like quivering jelly and the lower muscles are pumping like crazy. That is my definition, not Dr. Barton’s or Dr. Danielson’s. They both used most excellent hand motions that better describe the condition than my words, but maybe you get the picture. It is something that is not an unusual condition in the elderly. Which reminds me that once someone called Dad 'elderly', just before he died and he took great exception to that. I think, the term is more in the eye of the beholder than in the beheld.
Anyhoot... I wanted everyone to know that the nurses and doctors at our little hospital here in Picayune are most conscientious and dedicated and Johnny-on-the-spot.
Mom got up and moved around a bit, and the nurse monitoring her heart functions was right there asking if she was all right.
At first Mom was puzzled, “Well, yes. I’m fine.”
Then as Mom got finished with other morning things, the nurse was back again asking if she was all right.
“Well, yes. I’m fine. I was just brushing my teeth.”
“You heart monitor is saying that your heart is racing, so I wanted to make sure.”
Mom is getting better care there than ever at home. I do not serve her breakfast in bed, or any meal in bed. For that matter, I don’t make up her bed, either. She may not want to come home tomorrow.
I do not want to have anything wrong with me like Atrial Fibrillation, but gee… it would be nice to have breakfast served to me in bed. And someone could bring me a cherry limeade from Sonic, don’t forget the lime slice and the cherry, please.
Bad Idea
I'm doing everything wrong. I'm more than a week late for the FIRST thing and I'm not posting the first chapter. I'm incredibly sorry, but I've been taking care of my Mom.
I want you to click on the title of this post and check out Bad Idea. It is a very different kind of book written from the point of view of a fresh out of high school on his way to college young man.
It is disturbing in some ways, but it explores some things that teens face today and I strongly recommend every parent of a teen to read this book. Then let your teen read it. Then discuss it. It just might save some heart aches, and I guarantee you'll do more than chuckle. In places it is hysterical. You won't be sorry.
I want you to click on the title of this post and check out Bad Idea. It is a very different kind of book written from the point of view of a fresh out of high school on his way to college young man.
It is disturbing in some ways, but it explores some things that teens face today and I strongly recommend every parent of a teen to read this book. Then let your teen read it. Then discuss it. It just might save some heart aches, and I guarantee you'll do more than chuckle. In places it is hysterical. You won't be sorry.
A cold day
From my column This Crazy World
The PRC school board meeting had not started yet, there was a question about the air conditioning. The women sitting in front of the a/c were cold so Jodi Penton had turned it off. It didn’t take long before the men were waving papers and commenting on the heat.
Dennis Penton said it was strange but men had different thermostats than women did and they were usually cold and men were usually hot. He made the comment to Billy Spence.
Only my family and possibly my work family can understand the white- knuckled grasp I have on restraint at any public meeting. Maybe you could tell I’ve got a huge collection of opinions on just about everything. I have teeth indentions in my tongue at meetings I attend for the purpose of reporting on them. So you know I just had to interject after Penton’s comment, “Only to a certain age.” But, his comment did remind me of something.
I do remember the days a long time ago and not quite in a galaxy far away, when I my thermostat was normal and I was generally cold when my husband was sweating buckets. It was a good thing there wasn’t such a thing as dual controls on the air conditioning in automobiles back then or we would have been like Rita Rudner and her husband in their new, dual-control equipped car. She said when they discovered that feature, she would turn the temperature up on her side and he would turn his down to glacier level. They had hardly gotten to the corner of their street before clouds began to form in their car.
What Penton said is true up to a certain age. Then it reverses. Have you notice this phenomenon?
A fifty year old woman can be standing in front of a glacial gale and her face will turn beet red, her hair will plaster to her head and her clothes will become sticky. It is called hot flashes. I read some where that old women don’t have hot flashes, they have power surges. Regardless, it is most uncomfortable.
I also read somewhere that some doctor did a study and these hot flashes only last about three minutes. I should be so lucky. Then I got to paying attention and that does seem to be true, they last for three minutes. Unfortunately, they sometimes come in waves and the three minutes may stretch into half an hour. If the air conditioning is turned down to a comfortable 68 degrees, then the hot flashes are not a problem, just a minor irritation.
It took moving back to my mom’s and dad’s after my divorce to fully appreciate the reversal of gender thermostats. At temperatures that fry eggs on concrete, dad would be drinking coffee and admiring what ever project he was working on. At temperatures that melt chocolate, he was most comfortable watching TV.
I would go in my room and raise both windows so the arctic temperatures that freeze water could combat the temperatures that melt wax which raged in my body. I had to let mom fend for herself on this, while I shut the door. I prayed that God would skip summer just that year so I could go outside when these power surges flooded my face, so I could cool down.
One night we were watching TV. I was comfortable for once. Dad commented he was cold. Mom said she was fine. I was praying the conversation wouldn’t end with the temp rising. Ever innovative, dad could usually solve any problem. Soon he came out from the back all wrapped up in his down-filled parka, his hood pulled up and the ties dangling at his cheeks.
“Dad, where are you going?”
“To the couch,” was his reply.
The PRC school board meeting had not started yet, there was a question about the air conditioning. The women sitting in front of the a/c were cold so Jodi Penton had turned it off. It didn’t take long before the men were waving papers and commenting on the heat.
Dennis Penton said it was strange but men had different thermostats than women did and they were usually cold and men were usually hot. He made the comment to Billy Spence.
Only my family and possibly my work family can understand the white- knuckled grasp I have on restraint at any public meeting. Maybe you could tell I’ve got a huge collection of opinions on just about everything. I have teeth indentions in my tongue at meetings I attend for the purpose of reporting on them. So you know I just had to interject after Penton’s comment, “Only to a certain age.” But, his comment did remind me of something.
I do remember the days a long time ago and not quite in a galaxy far away, when I my thermostat was normal and I was generally cold when my husband was sweating buckets. It was a good thing there wasn’t such a thing as dual controls on the air conditioning in automobiles back then or we would have been like Rita Rudner and her husband in their new, dual-control equipped car. She said when they discovered that feature, she would turn the temperature up on her side and he would turn his down to glacier level. They had hardly gotten to the corner of their street before clouds began to form in their car.
What Penton said is true up to a certain age. Then it reverses. Have you notice this phenomenon?
A fifty year old woman can be standing in front of a glacial gale and her face will turn beet red, her hair will plaster to her head and her clothes will become sticky. It is called hot flashes. I read some where that old women don’t have hot flashes, they have power surges. Regardless, it is most uncomfortable.
I also read somewhere that some doctor did a study and these hot flashes only last about three minutes. I should be so lucky. Then I got to paying attention and that does seem to be true, they last for three minutes. Unfortunately, they sometimes come in waves and the three minutes may stretch into half an hour. If the air conditioning is turned down to a comfortable 68 degrees, then the hot flashes are not a problem, just a minor irritation.
It took moving back to my mom’s and dad’s after my divorce to fully appreciate the reversal of gender thermostats. At temperatures that fry eggs on concrete, dad would be drinking coffee and admiring what ever project he was working on. At temperatures that melt chocolate, he was most comfortable watching TV.
I would go in my room and raise both windows so the arctic temperatures that freeze water could combat the temperatures that melt wax which raged in my body. I had to let mom fend for herself on this, while I shut the door. I prayed that God would skip summer just that year so I could go outside when these power surges flooded my face, so I could cool down.
One night we were watching TV. I was comfortable for once. Dad commented he was cold. Mom said she was fine. I was praying the conversation wouldn’t end with the temp rising. Ever innovative, dad could usually solve any problem. Soon he came out from the back all wrapped up in his down-filled parka, his hood pulled up and the ties dangling at his cheeks.
“Dad, where are you going?”
“To the couch,” was his reply.
To dance in the desert
Here's a keeper. From the very first page I was drawn into this story. The characters are well defined and seem three dimensional. It is a smooth storyline and very readable. It is slow in some places, but the characterizations are superb.
I highly recommend this book.
Jane Austin tossed
By Gina Burgess
Lifestyles Editor
The Herald Sun reported on Thursday that David Lassman sent to publishers in London England several of Jane Austin’s works: “Pride and Prejudice”, “Northanger Abby”, and “Persuasion” with his name on them. He did this because he was bumfuzzeled his own work, a thriller, had not been bought. ABC reported Friday morning that nine publishers returned the submissions unopened because they do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.
Lassman said only one editor called him on the unabashed plagiarism. However, his point was made.
I have been bogged down with so many bad works that I am bumfuzzeled there isn’t at least one or two new authors out there that have the talent of Jane Austin or Alexander Dumas or Baroness Emmuska Orczy who wrote “The Scarlet Pimpernel”. Their works were not blatantly Christian, although God was mentioned and morals played a large part in the plots. There was no foul language or graphic sexual content in their works. They wrote excellent stories. The emphasis was story, not “realism”. The realism came through, of course, because of human nature. That is what makes an excellent story real, not foul words or graphic scenes. When will writer’s learn this simple fact?
I know publishers have huge amounts of slush piles (that’s a stack of unsolicited manuscripts that are almost never read). But, if Jane Austin gets tossed, we are in real trouble. That speaks volumes about how books get chosen for publishing.
Here we have a situation that is not only annoying, but frightening, too. Publishers who are very well respected in the literary circles as well as by the buying public rejected the works that have stood the test of time for 200 years, not to mention the multi-millions of dollars they have made around the world (remember “Bride and Prejudice from Bollywood”?).
Maybe the publishers problem is the screening process. Maybe their problem is... I don’t know what their problem is.
In my job, I am not at liberty to just review Christian books. I must also look at things from the secular lists. That scares me to death.
It would seem that standards have deteriorated to fluffy-nothings or course discourses peppered with vulgarities of foul words and graphic scenes. What, I ask you, is literary about that?
I hear the refrain, “I wanted it to be as real as possible.” That is the mantra of almost every writer I have come in contact with, including the Christian fiction writers on two message boards. It is fiction. What, I ask you, is real about fiction? But, that is beside the point.
When I was about 10, a new mall was built in Monroe, La. My mom and sister would shop the clothes stores and I would shop the book store. I used to spend my entire allowance on books at a secular bookstore. I spent my evenings and free time on weekends reading. Television never held any fascination for me, besides my imagination was much more vivid when reading than watching something on TV. The books are always better than the movies. (Remember “Bride and Prejudice” from Bollywood?)
Even the movie “Gone With the Wind” paled in comparison to the book by Margaret Mitchell. My parents were subjected to many burned dinners until I finished that book.
I think movies and television have snatched the creativity from our children, which is why there are so few really creative, imaginative, and good literary works today. And which is why publishers seem satisfied with publishing fluffy nothings or course discourses. And which is why the buying public is not discriminating enough to demand better fare.
Lifestyles Editor
The Herald Sun reported on Thursday that David Lassman sent to publishers in London England several of Jane Austin’s works: “Pride and Prejudice”, “Northanger Abby”, and “Persuasion” with his name on them. He did this because he was bumfuzzeled his own work, a thriller, had not been bought. ABC reported Friday morning that nine publishers returned the submissions unopened because they do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.
Lassman said only one editor called him on the unabashed plagiarism. However, his point was made.
I have been bogged down with so many bad works that I am bumfuzzeled there isn’t at least one or two new authors out there that have the talent of Jane Austin or Alexander Dumas or Baroness Emmuska Orczy who wrote “The Scarlet Pimpernel”. Their works were not blatantly Christian, although God was mentioned and morals played a large part in the plots. There was no foul language or graphic sexual content in their works. They wrote excellent stories. The emphasis was story, not “realism”. The realism came through, of course, because of human nature. That is what makes an excellent story real, not foul words or graphic scenes. When will writer’s learn this simple fact?
I know publishers have huge amounts of slush piles (that’s a stack of unsolicited manuscripts that are almost never read). But, if Jane Austin gets tossed, we are in real trouble. That speaks volumes about how books get chosen for publishing.
Here we have a situation that is not only annoying, but frightening, too. Publishers who are very well respected in the literary circles as well as by the buying public rejected the works that have stood the test of time for 200 years, not to mention the multi-millions of dollars they have made around the world (remember “Bride and Prejudice from Bollywood”?).
Maybe the publishers problem is the screening process. Maybe their problem is... I don’t know what their problem is.
In my job, I am not at liberty to just review Christian books. I must also look at things from the secular lists. That scares me to death.
It would seem that standards have deteriorated to fluffy-nothings or course discourses peppered with vulgarities of foul words and graphic scenes. What, I ask you, is literary about that?
I hear the refrain, “I wanted it to be as real as possible.” That is the mantra of almost every writer I have come in contact with, including the Christian fiction writers on two message boards. It is fiction. What, I ask you, is real about fiction? But, that is beside the point.
When I was about 10, a new mall was built in Monroe, La. My mom and sister would shop the clothes stores and I would shop the book store. I used to spend my entire allowance on books at a secular bookstore. I spent my evenings and free time on weekends reading. Television never held any fascination for me, besides my imagination was much more vivid when reading than watching something on TV. The books are always better than the movies. (Remember “Bride and Prejudice” from Bollywood?)
Even the movie “Gone With the Wind” paled in comparison to the book by Margaret Mitchell. My parents were subjected to many burned dinners until I finished that book.
I think movies and television have snatched the creativity from our children, which is why there are so few really creative, imaginative, and good literary works today. And which is why publishers seem satisfied with publishing fluffy nothings or course discourses. And which is why the buying public is not discriminating enough to demand better fare.
On the road to Damascus
I posted a portion of this a couple of years ago... this was my column on Easter Sunday...
Oh, I've been on that road to Damascus many times...
You know the one, where you’re breathing fire and murder. My fingers furiously typing out Truths in bold italics, thinking all the while that the receiver of my words deserved the blistering I meted out.
Yet, that still small voice was whispering in my ear urging me, “Breathe, Gina, breathe” and then I would sit back appalled at my vindictive verbage, wincing at the bald words before my eyes, or worse echoing in in my burning ears.
How could such a sweet and loving person spew out all that sharp and jagged-edged shrapnel?
I cringe, even now to think of those times when I let my ire replace my reason.
Yea, I walked down that road which wound through the valley of spurs and loose swords slicing and dicing my fellow man in my full-blown anger at my perception of their “blatant stupidity” or at their callous disrespect of my person and well-being.
How does one ever retract that sword without leaving a wound so deep the repair of it leaves jagged scars? No matter how many times we say “I’m sorry,” the words are not a balm for the ragged wounds in tender feelings.
Sigh... Where is the satisfaction in letting loose the reins on temper?
There is none. After screaming, the head hurts, the throat hurts and the blood pressure is raised making various other things hurt. And even if one does not scream, but holds that temper in, it still makes the head hurt and the chest hurt. It does no good.
But, there is something about physical activitiy that makes the blood pump rather than press. It rushes through the veins gathering up the bad things and handing out the oxygen. The brain releases endorphins and suddenly ire is replaced with a sense of well-being and reason tip-toes back in, settling in the mind like a comforting quilt. We’re not talking about spankings here, more like a brisk walk or brisk sweeping-of-the-porch kind of exercise.
A soft word turns away wrath. I learned that lesson at a young age. I remember when my girls were little, and they were tired and cranky, whining etc. I would talk in a really soft voice and they’d quite down so they could hear what I was saying. Kinda like those folks in the E. F. Hutton commercials. It was amazing. Yelling only made everyone more cranky.
Lesson learned and peace descended upon my being as well as those around me. Until...
A monster out there snatched my lessons learned, twisting them into oblivion leaving more gray hair than sense.
Menopause.
That word makes men shiver in their tracks and women lock up the guns and kids look at each other wide-eyed, wondering what’s gotten into mom.
Words of advice to the wary:
- Do not disagree with a menopausal woman. She is always right.
- Before things blow up, hand her the broom and nod toward the porch. Do not disagree with her.
- Flowers are nice, chocolate is better. When handing the offering to her, say, “You’re right.”
- Recognize the fact you have done absolutely nothing wrong and it’s all your fault.
- Remember to stop and pick up chocolate. We’re in it for the long haul so fluids and air filters need changing regularly.
- Walks are highly recommended. Getting out of the house while she sweeps the porch makes for cool heads.
- Hugs and saying “I love you,” work better than all of the above.
Oh, I've been on that road to Damascus many times...
You know the one, where you’re breathing fire and murder. My fingers furiously typing out Truths in bold italics, thinking all the while that the receiver of my words deserved the blistering I meted out.
Yet, that still small voice was whispering in my ear urging me, “Breathe, Gina, breathe” and then I would sit back appalled at my vindictive verbage, wincing at the bald words before my eyes, or worse echoing in in my burning ears.
How could such a sweet and loving person spew out all that sharp and jagged-edged shrapnel?
I cringe, even now to think of those times when I let my ire replace my reason.
Yea, I walked down that road which wound through the valley of spurs and loose swords slicing and dicing my fellow man in my full-blown anger at my perception of their “blatant stupidity” or at their callous disrespect of my person and well-being.
How does one ever retract that sword without leaving a wound so deep the repair of it leaves jagged scars? No matter how many times we say “I’m sorry,” the words are not a balm for the ragged wounds in tender feelings.
Sigh... Where is the satisfaction in letting loose the reins on temper?
There is none. After screaming, the head hurts, the throat hurts and the blood pressure is raised making various other things hurt. And even if one does not scream, but holds that temper in, it still makes the head hurt and the chest hurt. It does no good.
But, there is something about physical activitiy that makes the blood pump rather than press. It rushes through the veins gathering up the bad things and handing out the oxygen. The brain releases endorphins and suddenly ire is replaced with a sense of well-being and reason tip-toes back in, settling in the mind like a comforting quilt. We’re not talking about spankings here, more like a brisk walk or brisk sweeping-of-the-porch kind of exercise.
A soft word turns away wrath. I learned that lesson at a young age. I remember when my girls were little, and they were tired and cranky, whining etc. I would talk in a really soft voice and they’d quite down so they could hear what I was saying. Kinda like those folks in the E. F. Hutton commercials. It was amazing. Yelling only made everyone more cranky.
Lesson learned and peace descended upon my being as well as those around me. Until...
A monster out there snatched my lessons learned, twisting them into oblivion leaving more gray hair than sense.
Menopause.
That word makes men shiver in their tracks and women lock up the guns and kids look at each other wide-eyed, wondering what’s gotten into mom.
Words of advice to the wary:
- Do not disagree with a menopausal woman. She is always right.
- Before things blow up, hand her the broom and nod toward the porch. Do not disagree with her.
- Flowers are nice, chocolate is better. When handing the offering to her, say, “You’re right.”
- Recognize the fact you have done absolutely nothing wrong and it’s all your fault.
- Remember to stop and pick up chocolate. We’re in it for the long haul so fluids and air filters need changing regularly.
- Walks are highly recommended. Getting out of the house while she sweeps the porch makes for cool heads.
- Hugs and saying “I love you,” work better than all of the above.
Fearless
This is a well written sequel to "Relentless". Plus, Bethany House contracted Robin Parrish for all three in this series. Very impressive!As I read this, I kept thinking about USA channel's "4400". I know Robin thought of this first, before "4400" made the airwaves because of what I read on his online magazine Infuze.
Anyoot. I strongly suggest that if you like that kind of eery story, packed with tension and action, click on the title and purchase this book.
disturbing
I just read one of the most disturbing stories on the AP wire. (Sorry, I can't share the article here.)
It was about a gang of teenage boys that gang raped a woman and her 12 year old son. They repeatedly raped her and beat the boy to within an inch of his life and then they forced her to perform oral sex on her own son.
That is disturbing enough.
What was the most disturbing to me was the reaction the reporter got when he asked a resident of the area about the incident.
"Oh, that's nothing," she said, "there are worse things that go on around here than that."
Other people's reactions were the same. One person was angry that it was a rape that caused more police vigilence in the neighborhood.
It seems to me this is just one more example of the love of man growing ice cold. I'm afraid compassion is dissapating like a vapor. It makes me physically ill.
Two of the boys were caught and the others are being sought. One young man's mother was devastated and tried to convince the officers that her boy was a good boy. She said she was raped twice, once when she was 9 and again at 12. She said her son witnessed her being attacked and almost raped a third time. "He came to me crying and saying that he'd never do that to anyone."
Be not decieved. God is not mocked. Even the elect would be deceived if it were possible.
It was about a gang of teenage boys that gang raped a woman and her 12 year old son. They repeatedly raped her and beat the boy to within an inch of his life and then they forced her to perform oral sex on her own son.
That is disturbing enough.
What was the most disturbing to me was the reaction the reporter got when he asked a resident of the area about the incident.
"Oh, that's nothing," she said, "there are worse things that go on around here than that."
Other people's reactions were the same. One person was angry that it was a rape that caused more police vigilence in the neighborhood.
It seems to me this is just one more example of the love of man growing ice cold. I'm afraid compassion is dissapating like a vapor. It makes me physically ill.
Two of the boys were caught and the others are being sought. One young man's mother was devastated and tried to convince the officers that her boy was a good boy. She said she was raped twice, once when she was 9 and again at 12. She said her son witnessed her being attacked and almost raped a third time. "He came to me crying and saying that he'd never do that to anyone."
Be not decieved. God is not mocked. Even the elect would be deceived if it were possible.
Island Inferno
Rarely have I enjoyed a book so much as this one. It is Rip-roaring, edge-of-your-seat, nail-biting suspense. And there wasn't one single foul word in the whole book. Chuck Holton is a Wowser writer.It takes a real man to pray and to admit he needs God to be in control.
How many men out there are still struggling with being in control?
I read this in two sittings, only because I had to go to work this morning and I was late, because I was so late going to bed. Choose a different time to read this book than Sunday afternoon. You won't want to put it down. I promise.
What are you still sitting there reading this for? Go get the book! Click on the link above and buy the book. You won't regret it.
You want to know what it's about? Sigh...
This fellow is a special ops guy... did I tell you that this is the second book of a trilogy? Anyway, the special ops guy and his team must track down this liquid bomb stuff called ITEB. When it combines with oxygen, it explodes. (Which is why so many water bottles were conficated by the airlines--did anyone but me wonder about that?)
It's a boy meets girl story only this guy literally falls into her lap.
It's a God taking control story...I do not believe in coincidences, I'm reading a book called "God Winks" which is about that. At one point in the story, I was thinking, that is just too far to stretch believability when I slapped my forehead like "Wow, skip the V-8, it's God at work without the author coming out and saying, "Hey, stupido, God is at work here performing miracles."
It's about not being ashamed of your faith.
It's about real men and how they deal with God. (Great insight, girls!)
It's about a beautiful, but deadly island off the coast of Panama.
Warm, tropical breezes, warm sea water, paradise island, what could go wrong?
Everything! Get the book.
Delightful Picayune
I just took a tour this afternoon of my hometown.
We are a Certified Retirement Comunity and that is a big deal. Carol Fitzwilliam took us around Picayune and we met some wonderful people, we went to some great places, and I just can't understand why anyone would want to live somewhere else.
My daughter says she hates Mississippi.. I haven't a clue why. It's a gorgeous state. It's recovering quite nicely from Katrina. All is not perfect, but it is coming back, unlike Louisiana which is such a sad situation, especially New Orleans.
There have been 90 murders in New Orleanse in six months. Ninety... nine, zero, murders. I cannnot fathom that. There are few people there than before Katrina and there are three times as many murders in six months as in a year before Katrina. I can hardly wrap my brain around it.
Thank you, God for my home town. It is thriving and it is lovely and it is historic and the people are wonderful. That is a great combination.
We are a Certified Retirement Comunity and that is a big deal. Carol Fitzwilliam took us around Picayune and we met some wonderful people, we went to some great places, and I just can't understand why anyone would want to live somewhere else.
My daughter says she hates Mississippi.. I haven't a clue why. It's a gorgeous state. It's recovering quite nicely from Katrina. All is not perfect, but it is coming back, unlike Louisiana which is such a sad situation, especially New Orleans.
There have been 90 murders in New Orleanse in six months. Ninety... nine, zero, murders. I cannnot fathom that. There are few people there than before Katrina and there are three times as many murders in six months as in a year before Katrina. I can hardly wrap my brain around it.
Thank you, God for my home town. It is thriving and it is lovely and it is historic and the people are wonderful. That is a great combination.
the health/wealth movement -- word of faith
Let me quit dancing around here and just outline the problem I have with this Health/Wealth kind of false teaching.
Hear me well any who proclaim this type of false teaching for it will not go well with you.
First... To say that a person just doesn't have enough faith is the reason they are not healed is an out right lie straight from the Father of Lies, Satan himself.
You want to know why?
Because God takes care of His children and their needs regardless of what, when or how they ask. Matthew 6 You don't have to believe when you pray for something. It is best when you believe God has the power to answer your prayers. But, God is not a genie in a bottle up there to grant every wish or desire.
Go read Acts 12. Peter was amazed he was standing outside the prison. The church was absolutely shocked that Peter was standing outside the door completely free.
Please note, I am not at all denying clear Scripture that we have not because we ask not. (James) I am trying to point out that God's compassion for His people is overwhelming!
Jesus brought back to life the widow's son...just because He had compassion on her.
The storm at sea was calmed completely without the faith of the disciples.
The 5000 were fed without the faith of the disciples or the crowd.
The 4000 were fed without the faith of the disciples or the crowd.
The water was turned into wine at Cana without the faith of the servants.
The man at Bethesda Pool was healed by Someone he didn't even know.
Through no help of the disciples, Jesus walked on water.
Through no help of any one of us, Jesus was raised from the dead.
God does not need our help to do anything. However, God requires us to grow Spiritually in Him. There is no 12 Step Program to follow for God to grant our wishes. There is nothing magic about God's miracles. He pours out His blessings upon us because He loves us and cares for us and wants us to have the best and because we obey Him and put Him above all in our lives.
Seek ye first God's face and everything else will be added to you. From Genesis to Revelation there are multiple examples of God taking care of His people who are called by His name. Praying in the Spirit is NOT just for a special few of God's people called by His name. This is something that is given to all True Believers along with their very own motivational Spiritual Gift. Praying in the Spirit is not achieved by speaking in some garbled estatic tongue only understood by God Himself. Praying in the Spirit is achieved by being wholy in tune with the Lord, having the desires of the Lord in the heart attitude and having Jesus as the Lord of all aspects of life. Praying in the Spirit is achieved by turning one's back on enticing sin, by repenting any practiced sin. It isn't some magic formula. It is not a mantra to be "performed".
And for this reference--read all of Paul's letters plus Hebrews. And when you pray, do not heap up phrases (multiply words, repeating the same ones over and over) as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard for their much speaking. Matt 6:7
The reason God did not do in Athens what He did in Ephesus is this: The Athenians did not recognize their need for God. God stooped to the level of the Ephesians and met them there with all His miracles. The Athenians refused to even meet God on their own level.
Hear me well any who proclaim this type of false teaching for it will not go well with you.
First... To say that a person just doesn't have enough faith is the reason they are not healed is an out right lie straight from the Father of Lies, Satan himself.
You want to know why?
Because God takes care of His children and their needs regardless of what, when or how they ask. Matthew 6 You don't have to believe when you pray for something. It is best when you believe God has the power to answer your prayers. But, God is not a genie in a bottle up there to grant every wish or desire.
Go read Acts 12. Peter was amazed he was standing outside the prison. The church was absolutely shocked that Peter was standing outside the door completely free.
Please note, I am not at all denying clear Scripture that we have not because we ask not. (James) I am trying to point out that God's compassion for His people is overwhelming!
Jesus brought back to life the widow's son...just because He had compassion on her.
The storm at sea was calmed completely without the faith of the disciples.
The 5000 were fed without the faith of the disciples or the crowd.
The 4000 were fed without the faith of the disciples or the crowd.
The water was turned into wine at Cana without the faith of the servants.
The man at Bethesda Pool was healed by Someone he didn't even know.
Through no help of the disciples, Jesus walked on water.
Through no help of any one of us, Jesus was raised from the dead.
God does not need our help to do anything. However, God requires us to grow Spiritually in Him. There is no 12 Step Program to follow for God to grant our wishes. There is nothing magic about God's miracles. He pours out His blessings upon us because He loves us and cares for us and wants us to have the best and because we obey Him and put Him above all in our lives.
Seek ye first God's face and everything else will be added to you. From Genesis to Revelation there are multiple examples of God taking care of His people who are called by His name. Praying in the Spirit is NOT just for a special few of God's people called by His name. This is something that is given to all True Believers along with their very own motivational Spiritual Gift. Praying in the Spirit is not achieved by speaking in some garbled estatic tongue only understood by God Himself. Praying in the Spirit is achieved by being wholy in tune with the Lord, having the desires of the Lord in the heart attitude and having Jesus as the Lord of all aspects of life. Praying in the Spirit is achieved by turning one's back on enticing sin, by repenting any practiced sin. It isn't some magic formula. It is not a mantra to be "performed".
And for this reference--read all of Paul's letters plus Hebrews. And when you pray, do not heap up phrases (multiply words, repeating the same ones over and over) as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard for their much speaking. Matt 6:7
The reason God did not do in Athens what He did in Ephesus is this: The Athenians did not recognize their need for God. God stooped to the level of the Ephesians and met them there with all His miracles. The Athenians refused to even meet God on their own level.
Diva Nash Vegas
I give this book 2.5 stars. I do understand that nonChristians do not live Christian lives. I also understand that people who need Jesus have to meet Him where they are standing. I love stories like that.
Telling a story in present tense, as if it is happening as I read it -- like a movie script -- is okay for a chapter or two, but not all the way through the book. Short sentences are super as exclamation points, but too many leave me breathless and make me tired.
This is why I've given it only 2.5 stars.
Otherwise, it is a pretty good book. It moves fast and slows down when necessary so the good parts can be savored. I like it that Hauck says they went to bed and doesn't go into details. That would turn me off quicker than a light switch. It's a good, rainy afternoon read.
You can click on the title to order the book, or go to your local bookstore and ask for it by name.
Difference between the OT saints and NT saints 3
Faith saved them from the 2nd death, but they were not purified or rather justified so they could go into God's presence.
Rom 3:20 because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. and Acts 13:39 and through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses.
Faith was not a free pass into the presence of God. Men lost their lives for mishandling the Ark and for offering profane fire and for other things as well. Moses was with God but God hid His face from Moses. The Law provided for the same sacrifices year after year but could never bring the worshippers to perfection for all time. (Heb 10) Then it goes on to say that God did not delight in sacrifices and whole offerings although the Law prescribed them.
verse 10, it is by the will of God that we have been consecrated, through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once and for all. Verse 13 For by one offering, He has perfected for all time those who are thus consecrated. Verse 19 So, my friends, the blood of Jesus makes us free to enter boldly into the sanctuary by the new, living way which He has opened for us through the curtain, the way of His flesh.
Before the Veil of the Temple was torn in two, the people whether living or dead had no direct access to the Living God Almighty. This is why the veil between the Holy of Holies and the Holy was torn from top to bottom opening the way for man to come into God's presence. Not flesh and blood to go into His presence. (Cor 15) But, for the souls of men to be justified and sanctified to go into God's presence.
The OT saints were prisoners per se' in paradise because they could not go into God's presence (Heaven). They had not been consecrated by Jesus' perfect sacrifice yet. But when He willingly laid down His life for us, His perfect blood sacrifice satisfied the Law's requirement in our stead and thus He freed the captives and He conquored death by rising from the dead. It was a legal thing set up by God.
Those saved before the Cross were saved by God's promise of the Cross and those saved after were saved by the literal blood of Jesus. (Of course by faith and belief!!)
The Law required blood sacrifice and yet, there was no blood perfect enough to cover, pay for and release a human from his sins until Jesus' perfect sacrifice whereby God was satisfied that the Law was fulfilled. J
esus is the door into heaven. He said so Himself.
Matthew 7:8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door [ Lit knocks, it] will be opened.
Matthew 25:10 "When they had gone to buy some, the groom arrived. Then those who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet, and the door was shut. [ Mt 22:2; Lk 13:25;]
John 10:1 [ The Ideal Shepherd ] " I assure you: Anyone who doesn't enter the sheep pen by the door but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber.
John 10:7 [ The Good Shepherd ] So Jesus said again, " I assure you: I am the door of the sheep.
John 10:9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture.
Until Jesus laid down His life as perfect sacrifice, there was no door into Heaven by which mankind could walk through into God's Holy presence after Adam sinned. It is my understanding that Paradise was the place of comfort designed as a place for the OT saints to go while waiting for God's promised Son, the Messiah, to appear and follow through with God's perfect will.
Rom 3:20 because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. and Acts 13:39 and through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses.
Faith was not a free pass into the presence of God. Men lost their lives for mishandling the Ark and for offering profane fire and for other things as well. Moses was with God but God hid His face from Moses. The Law provided for the same sacrifices year after year but could never bring the worshippers to perfection for all time. (Heb 10) Then it goes on to say that God did not delight in sacrifices and whole offerings although the Law prescribed them.
verse 10, it is by the will of God that we have been consecrated, through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once and for all. Verse 13 For by one offering, He has perfected for all time those who are thus consecrated. Verse 19 So, my friends, the blood of Jesus makes us free to enter boldly into the sanctuary by the new, living way which He has opened for us through the curtain, the way of His flesh.
Before the Veil of the Temple was torn in two, the people whether living or dead had no direct access to the Living God Almighty. This is why the veil between the Holy of Holies and the Holy was torn from top to bottom opening the way for man to come into God's presence. Not flesh and blood to go into His presence. (Cor 15) But, for the souls of men to be justified and sanctified to go into God's presence.
The OT saints were prisoners per se' in paradise because they could not go into God's presence (Heaven). They had not been consecrated by Jesus' perfect sacrifice yet. But when He willingly laid down His life for us, His perfect blood sacrifice satisfied the Law's requirement in our stead and thus He freed the captives and He conquored death by rising from the dead. It was a legal thing set up by God.
Those saved before the Cross were saved by God's promise of the Cross and those saved after were saved by the literal blood of Jesus. (Of course by faith and belief!!)
The Law required blood sacrifice and yet, there was no blood perfect enough to cover, pay for and release a human from his sins until Jesus' perfect sacrifice whereby God was satisfied that the Law was fulfilled. J
esus is the door into heaven. He said so Himself.
Matthew 7:8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door [ Lit knocks, it] will be opened.
Matthew 25:10 "When they had gone to buy some, the groom arrived. Then those who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet, and the door was shut. [ Mt 22:2; Lk 13:25;]
John 10:1 [ The Ideal Shepherd ] " I assure you: Anyone who doesn't enter the sheep pen by the door but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber.
John 10:7 [ The Good Shepherd ] So Jesus said again, " I assure you: I am the door of the sheep.
John 10:9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture.
Until Jesus laid down His life as perfect sacrifice, there was no door into Heaven by which mankind could walk through into God's Holy presence after Adam sinned. It is my understanding that Paradise was the place of comfort designed as a place for the OT saints to go while waiting for God's promised Son, the Messiah, to appear and follow through with God's perfect will.
OT and NT saints are different part deux
Let me ask you this...
Matthew 11:11 "Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
Why did Jesus say this if there was no difference between OT saints and NT saints? I am not trying to prove a hierarchy, just that Jesus pointed out a difference between OT and NT.
John was the awaited Elijah, Jesus said so.
John died before Jesus did. John died under the Law. Those "least in the kingdom of Heaven" died under grace just as those who die after Jesus rose. Both are saved by faith. Both believed God, believed Jesus is God's Son, but the only thing that is different is that Jesus led captivity captive when He rose from the dead.
(Eph 4) Those things that had imprisoned humans since Adam's fall from grace were sin and death. It was a legal thing set up by God. Those saved before the Cross were saved by God's promise of the Cross and those saved after were saved by the literal blood of Jesus. (Of course by faith and belief!!)
The Law required blood sacrifice and yet, there was no blood perfect enough to cover, pay for and release a human from his sins until Jesus' perfect sacrifice whereby God was satisfied that the Law was fulfilled.
By faith and by God's perfect Grace, the OT saints were held in comfort for the day that Jesus' sacrifice would imprison sin and death and unlock the door to God's presence.
Jesus is that Door! There was no door at all until Jesus rose from the dead and then suddenly the Door was there and was opened and all the OT saints came out from Paradise and went to God's Presence through Jesus the Door. Jesus explains this in John 10, but a word study of "door" is quite revealing.
In reality, all that has changed is the amount of the gospel that has been revealed. The Blood of Christ is eternal, and works both backwards and forwards in time. So, Abraham was saved by faith, and the last christian on earth was saved by faith, both through the power of the atonement. There is no question that this is true.
The Blood of Christ works backward in God's promise that it would happen and foreward from the literal happening. No matter from Adam to right now... no one was saved from God's wrath without belief and trust in God. Faith has been a factor always. However, Faith and Hope will fade away and the only thing that is eternal is Love.
Luke 16:16 Jesus says the Law and the Prophets were until John. So be thinking of exactly what that means.
Luke 16:19-31 The story is more like an eye witness account than a parable, of Lazarus and the Rich Man.
Ex 33:18 Moses asked to see the Glory of God, but he was denied that request. It is very interesting that it took 3 days for God to raise Jesus from the dead. Why so long?
Ephesians 4:8 YLT: So then, the holy writings say, `When Christ went up to heaven he took those he had won with him. And he gave gifts to men.'
That says a lot to me about what Jesus was doing during those 3 days
Matthew 27:50-53 Jesus went to Sheol, Hades but to the Comfort side as described in Luke 16 where Lazarus was. I find zero evidence that He went to the Torment side like the Rich Man. All the OT saints that died before Christ, had to wait to get into Heaven until the blood price had been paid. Why?
Matthew 11:11 "Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
Why did Jesus say this if there was no difference between OT saints and NT saints? I am not trying to prove a hierarchy, just that Jesus pointed out a difference between OT and NT.
John was the awaited Elijah, Jesus said so.
John died before Jesus did. John died under the Law. Those "least in the kingdom of Heaven" died under grace just as those who die after Jesus rose. Both are saved by faith. Both believed God, believed Jesus is God's Son, but the only thing that is different is that Jesus led captivity captive when He rose from the dead.
(Eph 4) Those things that had imprisoned humans since Adam's fall from grace were sin and death. It was a legal thing set up by God. Those saved before the Cross were saved by God's promise of the Cross and those saved after were saved by the literal blood of Jesus. (Of course by faith and belief!!)
The Law required blood sacrifice and yet, there was no blood perfect enough to cover, pay for and release a human from his sins until Jesus' perfect sacrifice whereby God was satisfied that the Law was fulfilled.
By faith and by God's perfect Grace, the OT saints were held in comfort for the day that Jesus' sacrifice would imprison sin and death and unlock the door to God's presence.
Jesus is that Door! There was no door at all until Jesus rose from the dead and then suddenly the Door was there and was opened and all the OT saints came out from Paradise and went to God's Presence through Jesus the Door. Jesus explains this in John 10, but a word study of "door" is quite revealing.
In reality, all that has changed is the amount of the gospel that has been revealed. The Blood of Christ is eternal, and works both backwards and forwards in time. So, Abraham was saved by faith, and the last christian on earth was saved by faith, both through the power of the atonement. There is no question that this is true.
The Blood of Christ works backward in God's promise that it would happen and foreward from the literal happening. No matter from Adam to right now... no one was saved from God's wrath without belief and trust in God. Faith has been a factor always. However, Faith and Hope will fade away and the only thing that is eternal is Love.
Luke 16:16 Jesus says the Law and the Prophets were until John. So be thinking of exactly what that means.
Luke 16:19-31 The story is more like an eye witness account than a parable, of Lazarus and the Rich Man.
Ex 33:18 Moses asked to see the Glory of God, but he was denied that request. It is very interesting that it took 3 days for God to raise Jesus from the dead. Why so long?
Ephesians 4:8 YLT: So then, the holy writings say, `When Christ went up to heaven he took those he had won with him. And he gave gifts to men.'
That says a lot to me about what Jesus was doing during those 3 days
Matthew 27:50-53 Jesus went to Sheol, Hades but to the Comfort side as described in Luke 16 where Lazarus was. I find zero evidence that He went to the Torment side like the Rich Man. All the OT saints that died before Christ, had to wait to get into Heaven until the blood price had been paid. Why?
Difference between the OT saints and NT saints
Here is how I understand it...
Absolutely the spirit ascends now to be with the LORD. Paul said to die is gain and it is to with Him. But the difference between David and Paul is Jesus death and resurrection.
David is before the resurrection and Paul is After.
Before Jesus was resurrected, the sacrifices were in place and were necessary to foretell, be a shadow of Jesus, but were never good enough to cancel out sins. After Jesus died on the cross, God was completely satisfied legally concerning the sins of the world. Just like the Israelites had to bring the bull, slit its throat and burn it on the altar which was an admission of sins and was acceptance of admitting responsibility of sins which was supposed to bring them into alignment with the LORD God Almighty. None of that was good enough to cancel out the literal sins.
Enter Jesus. The perfect Lamb who knowingly and willingly laid down His life for us. That sacrifice was perfect and acceptable to God for the canceling out of all sins: past, present and future. It satisfied the legal issue.
Then and only then could the OT saints be covered by the blood of Jesus and be justified by His blood and sanctified by His loving action.
This is what made it possible for all the OT saints to enter into heaven after Jesus rose from the dead. Am I repeating myself?? Sorry.
I know I won't change anyone's mind, so I guess I'll quit trying. I really just wanted to say that when the all the pieces fit together then there are no holes in an interpretation. The only way for there to be no holes in this one is for there to be a definite distinction between how God handled the dead before Jesus died on the cross and after He died on the cross.
There is only one story that Jesus told where he used two names: Abraham and Lazarus. Plus he tells this story more like an eye witness account rather than a teaching example. That is why I don't think the story in Luke 16 is a parable, but a real life event.
We each have an identity which is written in the Book of Life. When we die, we do not lose our identity and we are not given new names until Jesus gives it to us after the 1000 years. Just because we cannot see the spiritual world unless God reveals it to us, does not mean that the souls of men are not "recognisable entities" to each other, angels and to God.
Are you with me so far?
Absolutely the spirit ascends now to be with the LORD. Paul said to die is gain and it is to with Him. But the difference between David and Paul is Jesus death and resurrection.
David is before the resurrection and Paul is After.
Before Jesus was resurrected, the sacrifices were in place and were necessary to foretell, be a shadow of Jesus, but were never good enough to cancel out sins. After Jesus died on the cross, God was completely satisfied legally concerning the sins of the world. Just like the Israelites had to bring the bull, slit its throat and burn it on the altar which was an admission of sins and was acceptance of admitting responsibility of sins which was supposed to bring them into alignment with the LORD God Almighty. None of that was good enough to cancel out the literal sins.
Enter Jesus. The perfect Lamb who knowingly and willingly laid down His life for us. That sacrifice was perfect and acceptable to God for the canceling out of all sins: past, present and future. It satisfied the legal issue.
Then and only then could the OT saints be covered by the blood of Jesus and be justified by His blood and sanctified by His loving action.
This is what made it possible for all the OT saints to enter into heaven after Jesus rose from the dead. Am I repeating myself?? Sorry.
I know I won't change anyone's mind, so I guess I'll quit trying. I really just wanted to say that when the all the pieces fit together then there are no holes in an interpretation. The only way for there to be no holes in this one is for there to be a definite distinction between how God handled the dead before Jesus died on the cross and after He died on the cross.
There is only one story that Jesus told where he used two names: Abraham and Lazarus. Plus he tells this story more like an eye witness account rather than a teaching example. That is why I don't think the story in Luke 16 is a parable, but a real life event.
We each have an identity which is written in the Book of Life. When we die, we do not lose our identity and we are not given new names until Jesus gives it to us after the 1000 years. Just because we cannot see the spiritual world unless God reveals it to us, does not mean that the souls of men are not "recognisable entities" to each other, angels and to God.
Are you with me so far?
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