Posts filed under ‘Religious – Christian – Theology’
Prophets Without Honor
The immediate problem of course is that if God is anointing people for the offices of prophet and apostle, then it also assumes that God is not yet done writing His Word. When prophets of old spoke, they either spoke the directly revealed Words of God or they were liars. Liars, according to the Mosaic Law, were to be taken outside the camp and stoned to death. Seems harsh. Why was this to be the punishment? Simply because if a person said they spoke the very words of God but were in fact, speaking falsehoods, that tended to come back on God Himself. The people didn’t necessarily say, “Oh, that man is a liar.” Instead, they would be inclined to say, “God must have changed His mind.”
A False Word of the Lord?
It is clear from verse 15 that this older prophet attempted to turn the younger/first prophet away from God and what God had specifically told him to do. The old prophet finds the younger/first prophet and invites him home to eat with him. The first prophet responds to the request by the older prophet in verses 16 – 17.
Whistleblowers Are Always Generally Despised by the Guilty
Whether it is Frank Serpico standing against the corruption of one police department or President Trump standing against the unbelievable amount of corruption throughout many areas of government, the job is the same. It is to change what is wrong, replacing it with what is right.
King Saul vs King David – Lessons in Character & Integrity
Instead of thinking we are better than Saul (or David), we need to examine ourselves so that we are guarded against problems that attack every Christian. We also cannot rest on the fact that the Holy Spirit lives within us sealing us unto the day of redemption. We need look no further than the Corinthians to know that though they “prophesied” and spoke in “tongues,” they were extremely carnal, selfish, and lacked integrity and godly character.
Omnibus Bill, Gun Control and Second Amendment
I believe had Trump held his ground, refused to sign the Omnibus, he would’ve been absolutely vilified as a “dictator.” In fact, I firmly believe his signing the Omnibus has taken many Leftists up short. I think the Left in Congress was expecting Trump to veto it. There’s a possibility Congress might’ve overridden his veto, but in any case, the acrimony would have been ramped up to unbelievable levels. Trump took what he got and is literally running with it. And again, in six months, Congress will need to do something else because the Omnibus will have run its course. Had Trump not signed, these Democrats could’ve used that as part of their campaign slogan to get elected or re-elected. You’ll notice that President Trump also reminded everyone several times that there was virtually nothing in the Omnibus about DACA and repeated that he was willing to deal with it, but Democrats seem uninterested. This will play well come this November when Dems will have nothing to show regarding DACA.
1 Samuel 15 To Obey Is Better Than Sacrifice
Is that sad or what? Imagine being Saul and hearing those words. Tragic. However, we need to read those words and also take them to our own hearts. We think that because we do things that are sacrificial, God is pleased. Ultimately, God wants our obedience. Samuel says “to obey is better than sacrifice…” This means to obey from the heart. We are to do all that the Lord requires of us. This is essentially what we are promising to do when we become Christians in the first place. God wants our obedience and He wants to see it from our hearts, doesn’t He? We all know this is true, but it is difficult to follow through at times.
Dagon is No Match for Yahweh in 1 Samuel 5
It amazes me how often God has proven Himself over the centuries, yet people fail to see it. They fail to recognize Him, His sovereignty, and His authority over all. When faced with the conclusion that God of Israel was far greater than Dagon, the false god of the Philistines, those people simply did what they could to get rid of the artifact that God had chosen to represent His judgment, the Ark. Though they knew the Ark was a problem for them, the Philistines did not go to the natural conclusion of thinking that the God of Israel might also be the only God they should worship. No, they’d keep their inferior god, Dagon, even though they had to carry him around, lift him into place and never saw any sign from him that he cared for the Philistines. In effect, Dagon was powerless, yet they persisted in worshiping him.
Over the Top Gun Violence in Movies
But the shootouts I watched in my youth were bloodless. A bad guy was shot, he fell over and died and there was no blood anywhere. It was the implication that told the story. Decades later, we watch as people are systematically dismembered, blood spattering everywhere. People are not just shot. They are shot until they look like swiss cheese, with blood spurting in all directions. Limbs are chopped off, women are raped violently, with detail after detail shown on the silver screen.
The Ups and Downs of Israel in Judges
Whose fault is this? Why did this new generation of Israelites grow up without knowing about God Himself or the things that He had done for Israel?! It is solely because parents did not instruct their children in this. If parents did not pass this wonderful information onto their children, how would the children have known? They couldn’t possibly know. This also tells us how lax the nation of Israel had become regarding the Law of God and the sacrifices. It appears there was a large vacuum where God was concerned in the very nation He created.
Joshua Calls Israelites on Failure to Obey
As Christians, we have something the Israelites did not have. We have the Holy Spirit living within us. He seals us unto the day of redemption and nothing can break that seal, not even our puny “free will” (Ephesians 4:30). God the Holy Spirit also empowers us to live a life whereby our words, thoughts, and actions bring great glory to God. Would you agree with me that even with the Holy Spirit within us, it is often difficult to live the life that God requires? Yet, we must persevere. As Paul says, we must work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12). Of course, Paul is not saying we must work for our salvation. He is saying we must work or cooperate with God as His character is being formed in us in this life. The results of our salvation are what need to work out in and through us. It is a process called sanctification that must happen for each and every Christian.
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