I pray you are having a good day, Cheryl. This is a very good question and a great concern. The interesting thing about the Sons of God it is clear that these beings are what are normally described as Angels in the Bible. When the Angels take on the form of Humans they appear to be able to obtain their anatomy and internal structures. Such as the time when the Angels came to visit Lot and his family they ate with them Genesis 19:3. In order to eat it would take more for them than just taking on the form of a human. So I am sure that they must also possess the reproductive system if they possessed the immune system. Jesus was a different occasion He had to be born human in order for His sacrifice to be valid. He had to be born of spirit so that the corruption of man could not seep in yet at the same time be human because blood had to be shed to signify the sacrifice. God doesnt bleed so human blood was needed. What was miraculous about the conception of Jesus Christ was the fact He could be born with no man involved. But there is nothing in the scriptures stating Him to be the firstborn of the spirit and flesh. Jesus was 100% God and 100% man all at the same time, however, the results of the Nephilim were spirit and flesh due to their forbidden nature (hence the name Nephilim which means The Fallen ones (from the Hebrew naphal, "to fall")) they where never meant to be, but because God allows the free will of man to dictate what goes on in the earth they happened. This resulted in their deformed states. They were the best-looking creatures. They were exceedingly great in stature and power though and they, of course, being birthed from evil were diabolical. And their wickedness leads to the flood of the earth. Yes, there was a level of free will used in the demise of the people of that day. But the people of that day had barely a say in what occurred. So the Lord had mercy on them and the Lord preached to the spirits of those people. God always supplies grace.
There IS fear in love; but perfect love does NOT cast out fear; because LOVE hath torment. HE that loveth IS made perfect in fear. I must choose one or the other as to which is true and eternal; from the Voice for God.
The truth is true and nothing else is true. This statement has two parts: without the first, the second has no meaning, but without the second, is the first no longer true. Truth cannot have an opposite. This can not be too often said and thought about. For if what is not true is true as well as what is true, then part of truth is false. And truth has lost its meaning. Nothing but the truth is true, and what is false is false. Truth must be true throughout, if it be true. It cannot contradict itself, nor be in parts uncertain and in others sure. What God creates has no alternative. The truth arises from what He KNOWS; not what we perceive.
Perception has a focus.It is this that gives consistency to what we see. Change but this focus, and what we behold will change accordingly. When seeing a wholly sinless world is ALL we want to see, when this is ALL we seek for in the name of true perception, are the eyes of Christ inevitably ours. What the body's eyes see/perceive is only conflict.
Much of our strange behavior is directly attributable to our definition of guilt; we've accepted the belief the guiltless are guilty. Love and guilt cannot coexist, and to accept one is to deny the other. Guilt hides Christ from our sight, for it is the denial of the blamelessness of God' children. Love creates Itself and nothing but Itself. To the "devil" purity is seen as arrogance and the acceptance of the self as sinful is perceived as holiness. TEACH ONLY LOVE.
Romans 2:11Romans 13:10Eph. 1:4Eph. 5:14Eph. 3:17-19Eph. 4:29Philippians 4:8Titus 1:15 2 James 3:17-181 John 1:5 1 1 John 4:7-8
Your not going to understand everything at one time, Christs feeds you daily, as he see fit; keep studying, when Christ wants you to see, YOU WILL SEE, it's HIS WORKS and HIS TIME FRAME, there are about 750,000 words and thy all have a key to understanding, when you don't understand something, move on to other scriptures, Christ will reveal himself as you study. The more he reveals of himself the more you will want to know, you will come to the point when you can't get enough, you will hunger and thirst after his righteousness.
True perception is the basis for knowledge, but knowing is the affirmation of truth and beyond all perceptions. We can be right- minded or wrong-minded, and even this is subject to degrees, clearly demonstrating that knowledge is not involved. The term "right-mindedness" is properly used as the correction for "wrong-mindedness," and applies to the state of mind that induces accurate perception. Only perception involves partial awareness. Knowledge transcends the laws governing perception, because partial knowledge is impossible. It is all one and has no separate parts. In time, we perceive. Only God is knowledge, and eternal.
From knowledge and perception respectively, two distinctive thought systems arise which are opposites in every respect. In the realm of knowledge no thoughts exist apart from God, because God and His creation share one Will. The world of perception, however, is made by the belief in opposites and separate wills, in perpetual conflict with each other and with God. What perception sees and hears appears to be real because it permits into awareness only what conforms to the wishes of the perceiver. This leads to world of illusions, a world which needs constant defense precisely BECAUSE it is not real. The Holy Spirit must perceive time, and reinterpret it into the timeless. He must work through opposites, because He must work with and for a mind that is in opposition.
The opposite of Love is fear, yet what is all encompassing cannot have an opposite. Yet we can perceive incorrectly that it does, thus believing fear is of God and not its opposite. Could we say that love is the source of the opposite of God? Hmm. 1 John 4:18 . There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear; because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. The opposite of this verse which would obviously derive from an opposing source, would be.....
Yes. Yuinnik, that was helpful but I read that and here wheer I still need understanding , Jesus was the only spirit that came down from heaven and had to be born of women to get his human form, yes to appear in human form is one thing but how did become human when, Jesus had to be born.
This is a tough scripture, the sons of God and the daughters of men. Some consider the sons of God to be the line of Seth and the daughters of men the line of Cain. Then if we throw in what Jesus said in Matt. 22:30 For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven, wow.
There is no need for angels in heaven to marry, they are immortal, and no need to reproduce as we will be after the resurrection in the kingdom on the new earth. Angels are called sons of God in Hebrew b'nai Elohim in Job 1:6Job 2:1Job 38:7.
Through scripture angels take on human form, they eat and drink Gen. 18:7-8Gen. 19:3 and physically wrestle with man, Gen. 32:24. If they eat and drink would that mean they have all the organs of man on earth? Scripture tells us there are devils/demons and fallen angels on earth along with Satan but there is another group of angels. These angels are different, they are locked in chains of darkness in the bottomless pit until judgment. 2 Peter 2:4-7Jude 1:6-7. We see in Rev. 9:11 this pit has a king, and this is where Satan will be locked up for 1000 years.
They left their first estate, heaven and in 2 Peter and Jude it says making them an example, (going after strange flesh), they corrupted God's creation Gen. 6:5-7. Even though there are fallen angels roaming the earth this set of angels God made an example to the others they will be locked in chains of darkness until judgment. We see the devils in Mark 5:9-10 were in fear Jesus might cast them down to the bottomless pit.
We see that this happened again after the flood, Gen. 6:4 "and also after." The description in scripture is clear these are not just tall people. 2 Samuel 21:16Joshua 12:4Numbers 13:33Deuteronomy 2:19-21Deuteronomy 20:17Amos 2:9. This is just a small amount of information but may it will help in your study.
Ruby Gbu for all the scriptures you have given us...But this forum has folks that are just like old Israel wanting to stone anybody that will not dance to their music...Remember Jesus said WHICH of the Prophets have not your fathers stoned..The bondwoman, natural Israel,...Stoned every prophet that God sent them....Jesus rebuked them saying which of the Prophets have not your fathers stoned....They cd not understand spritual things simply b/c it was hid from the wise and prudent...but revealed unto Babes and sucklings so they decided to stone these men of God....Bro. Paul said they were like Hagar and in bondage with their Children...Churchanity...Old Jerusalem....They even tried to stone Jesus several times...But Jesus tells them they were of their father the devil...They cd not believe that Jesus was gonna initiate a new covenant in his own blood...And putting the very Kingdom of God with in them....Abide in me and I in you...The N.C....They wanted to retain the O.C. and the works of the law...And they are still in violation of the N.C...Telling folks that water baptism cd remit sins...Not wanting to remember the gift of God is the H.G...Which is another Jesus that has to be born in us...A number that is gonna be as the stars of HEAVEN...GBU Ruby....Behold i send you another Comforter and he will abide with you forever....GBU
I agree and I'm so glad you are finding comfort in Him . That's a big part of why God has given and preserved His Word for us . That we may find comfort in this life , through His Word , which is always True , Everlasting and will be accomplished perfectly . His Word is the only One you can trust in 100 per cent . It doesn't matter if you can't understand every bit of it or memorize passages , just to know that , you can always read the Words of the Great God Almighty , you can feel His love through His Words , especially so in the Psalms , I go there every time this world starts to annoy me , I'm calmed and comforted instantly . Keep up your reading and give thanks to God in prayer every day . Every good thing in your life comes from Him . Remember , we are like the Israelites of old , wandering the desert ( this world ) and totally dependant on Him , acknowledge Him and His generosity and mercy in your life every day and He will lead you through this desert and bring you into His promised land .
Yes ! We , humans , are the serpent , our hearts and minds which are full of all kinds of wickedness ! The battle is within us , not without , we must fight against our own inclinations , when we have the Spirit of Truth within us , then we are no longer ignorant and we have eyes to see and ears to hear and then , we walk in the light and our life is in Christ . We live in him , not in sin , we are alive in a world full of dead people !
I read they were removed in 1828 for various reasons.
Here's a few things you might find interesting.
In Luke 11:51, the Lord said something definitive about the extent of the canon of the Old Testament which He accepted. In condemning the leaders of the Jewish people for killing God's messengers throughout their history, He charged them of being guilty of shedding the blood of all the righteous from Abel to Zechariah. Now the murder of Abel is recorded in Genesis 4, and the murder of Zechariah in 2 Chronicles 24 which in the arrangement of the Hebrew canon was the last book in order (as Malachi is in our arrangement). So the Lord was saying, "From the first to the last murder recorded in the Old Testament." Now, of course, there were other murders of God's messengers recorded in the Apocrypha, but the Lord does not include them.
Evidently He did not consider the books of the Apocrypha to be of equal authority with the books from Genesis to 2 Chronicles.
If the writers of the New Testament considered the Apocrypha to be Scripture, we would certainly expect them to refer to it in some way. However we find no direct quotations. This is in contrast to over 250 quotations from the authoritative Old Testament Scriptures.
The fact that the present canon was repeatedly quoted as being divinely authoritative as well as the absence of any direct quote is another indication of the extent of the canon - it did not include the Apocrypha.
There is no evidence that the books of the Apocrypha were in the Septuagint as early as the time of Christ. The earliest manuscripts that contain them date back to the fourth century A.D. This does not demonstrate that the books of the Apocrypha were part of the Septuagint in pre-Christian times. Even if they were in the Septuagint at this early date, it is noteworthy that neither Christ nor the apostles ever quoted from them as they did with most of the Old Testament books.
In past posts I believe that Alex mentioned that he is in his late 70's or so.
So, statistically, especially with the longevity of women on my mothers side (living almost to 90 or even 95 going back many generations, it is most likely I will outlive someone 10-15 years older than me, that is all I meant. I am not wishing that either Alex or I die soon, but that in all likelihood, he will probably pass before me. I hope I did not alarm anyone, but i do look forward to the day I will leave this mortal life behind and begin living in eternity with Jesus. But in the mean time, I will enjoy the days He gives me and attempt to make the most of the opportunities I have to love others and share what I know of Christ and His faithful word.
Not sure if this is exactly what you are looking for but here's a few of many references of a future Kingdom here on earth.
Revelation 5:10
And have made us kings and priests to our God;
AND WE SHALL REIGN ON THE EARTH.
Psalm 2:6-8
"Yet I have set My King
On My holy hill of Zion." "I will declare the decree:
The LORD has said to Me,
'You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
Daniel 2:34-35
You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and FILLED THE WHOLE EARTH.
Zechariah 14:9-11.
Zechariah 14:16-19
And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, on them there will be no rain. If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the LORD strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
I was taking a look at John 18:36 from my Greek study notes, and literally it is in the imperfect tense with a subjunctive particle that means "Up until now, my servants would have been fighting if my kingdom is from out of the earth as a source, so that I would not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from here.
I just wanted to share this as I do believe it supports what you are saying!
I would agree with your reply. I think the "beginning" declared by Moses would be the starting point of what we know now. It is crucial that we know who gave us our beginning. God, who has no beginning did. His only begotten son came to earth to defeat the works of the devil and we seem to be part of that plan as we are the reason Jesus went to the cross. He has defeated all the sin and death caused by Satan there and he will eventually cast him into the Lake of Fire. It is all so amazing to be able to know even the bit we do know of the wonderful creator of the universe.
What my first statement means; or I should have said is that we ALL go through a phase more or less known as the "honeymoon" phase after being saved. The proof of true salvation; however next has us go through trials to test us to see if we are truly in the faith or not. There are some who as the parable points out weren't truly "rooted" in Christ hence it was the emotional high which was the cause of the initial excitement rather than joy as say a spiritual gift or proper response to the Holy Spirit's prompting.
I hadn't considered your second point. I'm not sure in the context if it is valid. In one sense the gifts and calling are irrovocable or "without repentance" ( Romans 11:29). Again; much as with the first point; people can get more caught up in the gifts than the giver of the gifts. We also have to consider people's natural intelligence; physical prowess or social standing as something more in line with the idea in James that the rich tend to be oppressors. We also need to realize that someone operating at one time in spiritual gifts doesn't mean their overall walk will be one of great reward if they allow bad fruit to be maintained or sin to gain a foothold. There are those who may not manifest things at least obviously but are committed to loving the Lord and obeying His commandments ( John 14:15). There is also the need for proper use (such as interpretation of tongues); and sharing different gifts with the Body of Christ. These include discernment and wisdom which may not be as dramatic as some others "signs and wonders" type which some believe exist today and some don't. Of course we need to make sure that the "light in us isn't darkness" ( Luke 11:35). Without discernment than anything goes and demons can mimic true gifts. Therefore we have to make sure that "doctrines of demons" don't maintain a foothold ( 1 Tim. 4:1).
I was reading through this conversation and I am in agreement with what you are saying. I always enjoy reading your posts and I agree with you most of the time and I have also learned a few things I didn't know, mainly things you share on the Old Testament (my weaker area). So for that I say thank you.
But there is something you said that has me "scratching my head" and made me go hmm!
In your conversation with Alex, you said, "I just turned 66 a few days ago, and you have less time than I do before going to meet our Savior face to face."
I am just wondering how you can know that? Is it because he is older? Just curious, and I hope you don't mind me asking.
Blessings to you in Christ Jesus, and thank you for everything you share with us!
Hi Ana. I agree with Adam's thoughts on this matter. We are indeed blessed to have medical help & advancing technology available to help us deal with problems in body & mind. I don't see this as a total non-reliance on God to grant healing - God does heal & if coupled with proper sincere medical help & trust in the Lord, I feel that's the proper way to go. After all, doesn't the Lord expect that we render whatever help to others & ourselves? And this help can come in various ways which must include, for the Christian, utter dependency on God to "establish the work of our hands upon us" ( Psalm 90:17).
And if a person chooses to refuse medical help or has elected to not be on any life support, then that is their choice and I don't believe that decision in any way violates God's Command concerning murder or any perceived determination by us that life must be preserved at all costs.
We have a few relatives connected with the Ceylon Pentecostal Mission & a couple of them have passed on, refusing any form of medical intervention in spite of great discomfort leading up to their death. This was their belief & of the Church, & of course, admirable. In spite of the tragedy of it all when their lives could have been saved, I couldn't help but admire the faith expressed to the Will of God for their lives & willing to face the consequences as the Lord chose for them.
But the matter of euthanasia, even if death is imminent, is a completely different matter to my belief.
Hello, i dont believe the Word addresses that other than do not kill and our bodies are mot our own. I think active euthanasia is wrong. Passive like turning off a ventlator i think is ok if its Gods will for that person to go. I also see that differently than someone who has gangrene but stubbornly refuses to see a hospital or just watching someone bleed to death and doing nothing.
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
Isaiah 28:16.
THAT ROCK IS THE LORD JESUS.
The Lord is going to judge his Church BUT the Church is not backed into a corner by the adversary screaming for help!
Matthew 16:18 is not a picture of the Church on defense! It's hell needs the Gates.
We march straight forward with the truth! THE WORD OF GOD.
We're not of the world where we compromise it.
We're separated and the Lord done the separating!
And by his word the climax of victory shall be seen.
I Love what you said! Christ is the HEAD OF THE CHURCH.
How could someone supposedly having the Spirit of God come against it?
If you have not the Spirit of God you're none of his.
We're not all Brothern!
The difference in the Gospels speaks for itself.
If that sounds harsh listen to Paul in
Galatians 1:6-10.
I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.
Did Paul say let him be accursed?
Lord help anyone else that says that!
The scripture is to sharp!
If I left out scripture and used secular definition here's what I come up with.
IMPOSTER; a person who pretends to be someone else in order to deceive others, especially for fraudulent gain.
Ronald, wells stated and sensible. I agree. We do not know what God has done outside of earth's history and earth's as our abode. I think it is wise to leave such matters to the hidden counsel of God. What He has not revealed He does not want us to know in this life.
Hello again, Alex, let me clarify one more thought. The verse of John 18:36 says:
My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence."
When Jesus spoke the last sentence He was not speaking in terms of timeframes, using "now" to indicate time, but as a way of saying "as it is" as when someone says to another, "now, now, that is what I said." (not meaning now as pertaining to time, but pertaining to the surety of what was said. "Surely" could be faithfully used instead of "now" in this sense.
Jesus was not saying that at that point in time, ("now") Kingdom was not of this world but would be hence" (someday but- surely, His kingdom is not earthly and not from here (earthly).
We may disagree on this, Alex, but by the words of our Lord, I don't believe He said He ever planned to set up an earthly kingdom. You and many may differ with me on this, and I am open to consider what others can present with Scriptural support.
I have a very important question. What does the Bible say about a dying person not wanting to continue with medical care. Is this considered suicide if you refuse to continue suffering with medical treatments?
The truth is true and nothing else is true. This statement has two parts: without the first, the second has no meaning, but without the second, is the first no longer true. Truth cannot have an opposite. This can not be too often said and thought about. For if what is not true is true as well as what is true, then part of truth is false. And truth has lost its meaning. Nothing but the truth is true, and what is false is false. Truth must be true throughout, if it be true. It cannot contradict itself, nor be in parts uncertain and in others sure. What God creates has no alternative. The truth arises from what He KNOWS; not what we perceive.
Perception has a focus.It is this that gives consistency to what we see. Change but this focus, and what we behold will change accordingly. When seeing a wholly sinless world is ALL we want to see, when this is ALL we seek for in the name of true perception, are the eyes of Christ inevitably ours. What the body's eyes see/perceive is only conflict.
Much of our strange behavior is directly attributable to our definition of guilt; we've accepted the belief the guiltless are guilty. Love and guilt cannot coexist, and to accept one is to deny the other. Guilt hides Christ from our sight, for it is the denial of the blamelessness of God' children. Love creates Itself and nothing but Itself. To the "devil" purity is seen as arrogance and the acceptance of the self as sinful is perceived as holiness. TEACH ONLY LOVE.
Romans 2:11 Romans 13:10 Eph. 1:4 Eph. 5:14 Eph. 3:17-19 Eph. 4:29 Philippians 4:8 Titus 1:15 2 James 3:17-18 1 John 1:5 1 1 John 4:7-8
Peace
GOD IS
Your not going to understand everything at one time, Christs feeds you daily, as he see fit; keep studying, when Christ wants you to see, YOU WILL SEE, it's HIS WORKS and HIS TIME FRAME, there are about 750,000 words and thy all have a key to understanding, when you don't understand something, move on to other scriptures, Christ will reveal himself as you study. The more he reveals of himself the more you will want to know, you will come to the point when you can't get enough, you will hunger and thirst after his righteousness.
God Bless You!
pg. 1
True perception is the basis for knowledge, but knowing is the affirmation of truth and beyond all perceptions. We can be right- minded or wrong-minded, and even this is subject to degrees, clearly demonstrating that knowledge is not involved. The term "right-mindedness" is properly used as the correction for "wrong-mindedness," and applies to the state of mind that induces accurate perception. Only perception involves partial awareness. Knowledge transcends the laws governing perception, because partial knowledge is impossible. It is all one and has no separate parts. In time, we perceive. Only God is knowledge, and eternal.
From knowledge and perception respectively, two distinctive thought systems arise which are opposites in every respect. In the realm of knowledge no thoughts exist apart from God, because God and His creation share one Will. The world of perception, however, is made by the belief in opposites and separate wills, in perpetual conflict with each other and with God. What perception sees and hears appears to be real because it permits into awareness only what conforms to the wishes of the perceiver. This leads to world of illusions, a world which needs constant defense precisely BECAUSE it is not real. The Holy Spirit must perceive time, and reinterpret it into the timeless. He must work through opposites, because He must work with and for a mind that is in opposition.
The opposite of Love is fear, yet what is all encompassing cannot have an opposite. Yet we can perceive incorrectly that it does, thus believing fear is of God and not its opposite. Could we say that love is the source of the opposite of God? Hmm. 1 John 4:18 . There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear; because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. The opposite of this verse which would obviously derive from an opposing source, would be.....
see pg. 2
This is a tough scripture, the sons of God and the daughters of men. Some consider the sons of God to be the line of Seth and the daughters of men the line of Cain. Then if we throw in what Jesus said in Matt. 22:30 For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven, wow.
There is no need for angels in heaven to marry, they are immortal, and no need to reproduce as we will be after the resurrection in the kingdom on the new earth. Angels are called sons of God in Hebrew b'nai Elohim in Job 1:6 Job 2:1 Job 38:7.
Through scripture angels take on human form, they eat and drink Gen. 18:7-8 Gen. 19:3 and physically wrestle with man, Gen. 32:24. If they eat and drink would that mean they have all the organs of man on earth? Scripture tells us there are devils/demons and fallen angels on earth along with Satan but there is another group of angels. These angels are different, they are locked in chains of darkness in the bottomless pit until judgment. 2 Peter 2:4-7 Jude 1:6-7. We see in Rev. 9:11 this pit has a king, and this is where Satan will be locked up for 1000 years.
They left their first estate, heaven and in 2 Peter and Jude it says making them an example, (going after strange flesh), they corrupted God's creation Gen. 6:5-7. Even though there are fallen angels roaming the earth this set of angels God made an example to the others they will be locked in chains of darkness until judgment. We see the devils in Mark 5:9-10 were in fear Jesus might cast them down to the bottomless pit.
We see that this happened again after the flood, Gen. 6:4 "and also after." The description in scripture is clear these are not just tall people. 2 Samuel 21:16 Joshua 12:4 Numbers 13:33 Deuteronomy 2:19-21 Deuteronomy 20:17 Amos 2:9. This is just a small amount of information but may it will help in your study.
God bless,
RLW
I read they were removed in 1828 for various reasons.
Here's a few things you might find interesting.
In Luke 11:51, the Lord said something definitive about the extent of the canon of the Old Testament which He accepted. In condemning the leaders of the Jewish people for killing God's messengers throughout their history, He charged them of being guilty of shedding the blood of all the righteous from Abel to Zechariah. Now the murder of Abel is recorded in Genesis 4, and the murder of Zechariah in 2 Chronicles 24 which in the arrangement of the Hebrew canon was the last book in order (as Malachi is in our arrangement). So the Lord was saying, "From the first to the last murder recorded in the Old Testament." Now, of course, there were other murders of God's messengers recorded in the Apocrypha, but the Lord does not include them.
Evidently He did not consider the books of the Apocrypha to be of equal authority with the books from Genesis to 2 Chronicles.
If the writers of the New Testament considered the Apocrypha to be Scripture, we would certainly expect them to refer to it in some way. However we find no direct quotations. This is in contrast to over 250 quotations from the authoritative Old Testament Scriptures.
The fact that the present canon was repeatedly quoted as being divinely authoritative as well as the absence of any direct quote is another indication of the extent of the canon - it did not include the Apocrypha.
There is no evidence that the books of the Apocrypha were in the Septuagint as early as the time of Christ. The earliest manuscripts that contain them date back to the fourth century A.D. This does not demonstrate that the books of the Apocrypha were part of the Septuagint in pre-Christian times. Even if they were in the Septuagint at this early date, it is noteworthy that neither Christ nor the apostles ever quoted from them as they did with most of the Old Testament books.
God bless.
The serpent has always had legs, the serpent is not a snake.
The serpent is the carnal mind of the beast, MAN.
Revelation 13:18 Here is wisdom ....for it is the number of a MAN
Job 1:17 .....the Lord said to Satan, Whence cometh thou .....from walking (on legs) up and down on the earth
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field God made ...
Psalms 73:22 I was so foolish, and ignorant, I was as a beast before thee.
Romans 8:20 For the creature (man) was made subject to vanity (a carnal mind), NOT WILLINGLY, but by reason of him (God) ......
Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman .....enmity between the carnal mind and the bride of Christ ....
Romans 8:7 For the carnal mind is enmity against God .....
God Bless YOU as you study and Christ reveals himself to you.
In past posts I believe that Alex mentioned that he is in his late 70's or so.
So, statistically, especially with the longevity of women on my mothers side (living almost to 90 or even 95 going back many generations, it is most likely I will outlive someone 10-15 years older than me, that is all I meant. I am not wishing that either Alex or I die soon, but that in all likelihood, he will probably pass before me. I hope I did not alarm anyone, but i do look forward to the day I will leave this mortal life behind and begin living in eternity with Jesus. But in the mean time, I will enjoy the days He gives me and attempt to make the most of the opportunities I have to love others and share what I know of Christ and His faithful word.
Not sure if this is exactly what you are looking for but here's a few of many references of a future Kingdom here on earth.
Revelation 5:10
And have made us kings and priests to our God;
AND WE SHALL REIGN ON THE EARTH.
Psalm 2:6-8
"Yet I have set My King
On My holy hill of Zion." "I will declare the decree:
The LORD has said to Me,
'You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
Daniel 2:34-35
You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and FILLED THE WHOLE EARTH.
Zechariah 14:9-11.
Zechariah 14:16-19
And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, on them there will be no rain. If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the LORD strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
Matthew 6:10
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
"ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN."
Matthew 5:5.
Matthew 25:31-34.
Isaiah 2:2.
Jeremiah 30:10.
Ezekiel 34:25-31.
Daniel 2:44.
Micah 4:1-2.
Zechariah 8:1-3.
Revelation 11:5.
God bless you.
Goodnight.
I was taking a look at John 18:36 from my Greek study notes, and literally it is in the imperfect tense with a subjunctive particle that means "Up until now, my servants would have been fighting if my kingdom is from out of the earth as a source, so that I would not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from here.
I just wanted to share this as I do believe it supports what you are saying!
I would agree with your reply. I think the "beginning" declared by Moses would be the starting point of what we know now. It is crucial that we know who gave us our beginning. God, who has no beginning did. His only begotten son came to earth to defeat the works of the devil and we seem to be part of that plan as we are the reason Jesus went to the cross. He has defeated all the sin and death caused by Satan there and he will eventually cast him into the Lake of Fire. It is all so amazing to be able to know even the bit we do know of the wonderful creator of the universe.
Littlesooz
I hadn't considered your second point. I'm not sure in the context if it is valid. In one sense the gifts and calling are irrovocable or "without repentance" ( Romans 11:29). Again; much as with the first point; people can get more caught up in the gifts than the giver of the gifts. We also have to consider people's natural intelligence; physical prowess or social standing as something more in line with the idea in James that the rich tend to be oppressors. We also need to realize that someone operating at one time in spiritual gifts doesn't mean their overall walk will be one of great reward if they allow bad fruit to be maintained or sin to gain a foothold. There are those who may not manifest things at least obviously but are committed to loving the Lord and obeying His commandments ( John 14:15). There is also the need for proper use (such as interpretation of tongues); and sharing different gifts with the Body of Christ. These include discernment and wisdom which may not be as dramatic as some others "signs and wonders" type which some believe exist today and some don't. Of course we need to make sure that the "light in us isn't darkness" ( Luke 11:35). Without discernment than anything goes and demons can mimic true gifts. Therefore we have to make sure that "doctrines of demons" don't maintain a foothold ( 1 Tim. 4:1).
Agape.
I was reading through this conversation and I am in agreement with what you are saying. I always enjoy reading your posts and I agree with you most of the time and I have also learned a few things I didn't know, mainly things you share on the Old Testament (my weaker area). So for that I say thank you.
But there is something you said that has me "scratching my head" and made me go hmm!
In your conversation with Alex, you said, "I just turned 66 a few days ago, and you have less time than I do before going to meet our Savior face to face."
I am just wondering how you can know that? Is it because he is older? Just curious, and I hope you don't mind me asking.
Blessings to you in Christ Jesus, and thank you for everything you share with us!
When was it stop being included?
And if a person chooses to refuse medical help or has elected to not be on any life support, then that is their choice and I don't believe that decision in any way violates God's Command concerning murder or any perceived determination by us that life must be preserved at all costs.
We have a few relatives connected with the Ceylon Pentecostal Mission & a couple of them have passed on, refusing any form of medical intervention in spite of great discomfort leading up to their death. This was their belief & of the Church, & of course, admirable. In spite of the tragedy of it all when their lives could have been saved, I couldn't help but admire the faith expressed to the Will of God for their lives & willing to face the consequences as the Lord chose for them.
But the matter of euthanasia, even if death is imminent, is a completely different matter to my belief.
Well stated, The Church is built on a rock!!
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
Isaiah 28:16.
THAT ROCK IS THE LORD JESUS.
The Lord is going to judge his Church BUT the Church is not backed into a corner by the adversary screaming for help!
Matthew 16:18 is not a picture of the Church on defense! It's hell needs the Gates.
We march straight forward with the truth! THE WORD OF GOD.
We're not of the world where we compromise it.
We're separated and the Lord done the separating!
And by his word the climax of victory shall be seen.
I Love what you said! Christ is the HEAD OF THE CHURCH.
How could someone supposedly having the Spirit of God come against it?
If you have not the Spirit of God you're none of his.
We're not all Brothern!
The difference in the Gospels speaks for itself.
If that sounds harsh listen to Paul in
Galatians 1:6-10.
I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.
Did Paul say let him be accursed?
Lord help anyone else that says that!
The scripture is to sharp!
If I left out scripture and used secular definition here's what I come up with.
IMPOSTER; a person who pretends to be someone else in order to deceive others, especially for fraudulent gain.
I'll stick to scripture.
God bless.
My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence."
When Jesus spoke the last sentence He was not speaking in terms of timeframes, using "now" to indicate time, but as a way of saying "as it is" as when someone says to another, "now, now, that is what I said." (not meaning now as pertaining to time, but pertaining to the surety of what was said. "Surely" could be faithfully used instead of "now" in this sense.
Jesus was not saying that at that point in time, ("now") Kingdom was not of this world but would be hence" (someday but- surely, His kingdom is not earthly and not from here (earthly).
We may disagree on this, Alex, but by the words of our Lord, I don't believe He said He ever planned to set up an earthly kingdom. You and many may differ with me on this, and I am open to consider what others can present with Scriptural support.
I have a very important question. What does the Bible say about a dying person not wanting to continue with medical care. Is this considered suicide if you refuse to continue suffering with medical treatments?
Thank you so much!