Seriously, brothers and sister, God’s ban on same-sex marriage is still in effect. Furthermore, God’s ban on civil unions and homosexuality is still in effect. You see, beloved, while legislatures, judges, and other individuals may decide that it’s okay to be homosexual, God’s law remains in effect.Now, there are many that will read this and accuse me of being intolerant. They will wonder why I am so behind the times while society has shown itself very progressive and tolerant in accepting homosexuality. Here is my response. First of all, I thank the Lord God Almighty for my intolerance. Furthermore, I would rather grow in God’s timeless and lasting word rather than lose my soul to the “progressiveness” of this world. Society has indeed shown itself progressive in its ability to separate itself from God on this particular issue.

Beloved, God created a woman for Adam; not a man. You may think that’s harsh, but it is the truth. Consider the following:

“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.’” – Genesis 1:27-28 (KJV)

Brothers and sisters, a man cannot multiply with a man, and a woman cannot multiply with a woman. Only a man and woman can multiply. Consider also:

“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” – Genesis 2:24 (KJV)

Beloved, these words were not initially authored by me. The Author of these words is God himself. Though many people of this world have decided to compromise on this issue, the fact of the matter is that we are to be obedient to God in this matter, and all other matters. It is His will, not ours, that we are to commit ourselves to doing.

Whether you believe that homosexuality is genetic, or whether you believe it is a choice/lifestyle, the truth is that it is an affront to God. All sin is an affront to God. To repent of a sin, while planning on continuing to live in that sin, is not repentance at all. It’s lip service.

I remember several years ago when a battle over this issue within one of the religions caused that particular denomination to split into two separate organizations. The more liberal of the two approved of allowing homosexual ministers, while the more conservative opposed allowing homosexual ministers. I can still remember watching an interview with minister of the liberal portion of the church that thought it should be allowed. His statement was that while they believed strongly in God’s word, they also saw the need to compromise on the issue in light of the changing times.

Beloved, anyone that is willing to attempt to compromise God’s word/law/will is not serving the Lord. They are essentially trying to bend God to their own will, which is based in sin. Beloved, when we give our lives to Christ, we are to let go of our embrace of our sinful lifestyle. Our old selves are to die, as we become new creations in Christ.

Some people have gone so far as to take advantage of people’s ignorance of God’s word by claiming that God’s word does not specifically address homosexuality. Beloved, this is an absolute lie, and it is a lie sponsored by none other than Satan itself. Do you want some examples of just how specific the bible is about God’s view of homosexuality? Consider the following:

“Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: It is abomination.” – Leviticus 18:22 (KJV)

“For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men and women working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.” – Romans 1:26-27 (KJV)

“Know ye not that unrighteousness shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.” – 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (KJV)

“If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.” – Leviticus 20:13 (KJV)

That’s pretty clear, isn’t it? Did the last verse strike you as particularly harsh? It shouldn’t have. We know that the wages for all sin is death, so why would it be any different for this particular sin?

So how are we to deal with homosexuality? Are we to compromise our obedience to the Lord and say that its okay? No!!! We don’t say lying is okay. We don’t say murder is okay. We don’t say rape is okay. We don’t say homosexuality is okay!!! Purposely rejecting God’s word and will in order to satisfy your own affection for the pleasures of sin is never okay, no matter what that sin is. So here’s what we ought to do when dealing with someone who engages in homosexuality:

• Love them unconditionally, just as the Lord loves all of us unconditionally. Beloved, we are not to judge them. We are to love them with the Lord’s love. Remember that we were all lost to sin at one time in our lives.
• Share God’s word with them and encourage them to repent of their sins and to receive the deliverance that only Christ Jesus can provide.  That means living in that sin no more.
• Encourage them to separate from those things that would be likely to draw them back into homosexuality.

Beloved, I love homosexuals, murderers, liars, whores, pimps, drug dealers, and all other sinners, as I know that God does as well. We are never to pass judgment on those lost in sin. We are, however, to share the Truth with them at every opportunity so that they may see the light, repent of their sins, and be reconciled unto God.

As I’m sure you have come to know by now, it is not my style to be indirect and not speak God’s word in order to avoid offending anyone. Just know that my intention is never to offend. My intention is to always speak God’s word clearly, accurately, and consistently so that more may come to the Lord.

So in closing today, the choice is simple. Will you be tolerant of homosexuality so that we can all just get along, and because various men and woman have said its okay to do so, or will you obey the Lord God Almighty in truly living His word and protecting the sanctity of marriage? The choice is yours.

Thank you for joining us for today’s discussion. I hope you will be able to join with us for our next message.

Have a wonderful and blessed rest of the day!

May the Lord bless you, keep you, guide you, and make His face to shine upon you and your loved ones always.

Your brother in Christ,

Rev Jason Thurwanger

“These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations,
which ye shall proclaim in their seasons.”
~Leviticus 23:4 KJV~

Pesach (Passover)

Related Bible References: Leviticus 23:4-8; Exodus 12:1-17; 1 Cor 5:7b;
Exodus 12: 24,26-27; Exodus 2:23-24; 6:5-8; 13:3,14
Symbol: BLOOD Remembers the Exodus from Egypt. A great time to have
one of our “Messiah in the Passover” programs. Remember Israel’s
deliverance from Egypt.
Reading: Song of Solomon
Fulfillment: 1 Cor 5:6-7; John 8:34; John 1:29; 1 Peter 2:5; Galatians
4:3-5,9; 5:1; 2 Peter 2:19; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; 1 Peter
1:18-19; 1 John 1:7; Revelation 1:5; Hebrews 10:1-10; John 1:36;
John 13:1-16 & Luke 22:13-20

Feast of Unleavened Bread – (Hag Ha Matzah)

Related Bible References: Exodus 12:15-20; 1 Cor 5:7-8 & Leviticus
23:4,6-14
Celebrated: one week — Nisan 15-21
Symbol: Matzah. A week of eating bread made without yeast (Matzah),
to remember how God brought the Isrealites out of Egypt in haste.
Fulfillment: 1 Cor 5:6-8; Acts 12:3-4 & Acts 20:6

First Fruits – Yom HaBikkurim

Related Bible References: Leviticus 23:7-14
Celebrated: Nisan 16 The day after the Sabbath.
Symbol: Known as the Feast of First Fruits. Presenting a sheaf of the first harvest. Jesus’ resurrection: He is “the firstfruits” from the dead (1 Cor 15:20,35). Harvest Offering First day after the Sabbath after Passover (Sunday) Leviticus 23:9
Reading & Fulfillment: 1 Cor 15:20-21

Shavuoth – (Feast of Weeks – Pentecost)

Related Bible References: Leviticus 23:9-22 & Deut 16:9-12
Symbol: It celebrates the time of the giving of the Law to Moses on
Mount Sinai. From Acts 2:1-41, this holiday is a celebration of the
birthday of the church. Holy Spirit was given the Day of Pentecost…..
“and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit” –Acts 2:1-13. Harvest
Offering Fifty Days (hence: Pentecost) after Passover.
Reading: Ruth
Fulfillment: Acts 2:1-13 & Acts 26:23

Rosh Hashanah – (Feast of Trumpets)
The Jewish New Year

Related Bible References: Leviticus 23:23-25
Celebrated: Tishri 1
Symbol: Celebrates the beginning of the Jewish Civil year. It is both a time of rejoicing as well as a holy occasion (see Nehemiah 8:2, 9-12). The Shofar (Ram’s horn Trumpets are blown to proclaim a gathering for worship. A trumpet is often a symbol of war. It is also a symbol of calling together or gathering. There are two different “schools of thought”, so to speak on how it will be fullfilled, either The Feast of Trumpets is representative of The Second Coming of Jesus Christ or The Rapture.

Yom Kippur – (Day of Atonement)

Related Bible References: Leviticus 16:1-34 23:26-32 & Isaiah 34:5-6
Celebrated: 10 Tishri
Symbol: Is the holiest day of the Jewish year. A time to consider Jesus as our atonement. Sacrifices for sins of the nation. Hebrews 9 & 10 and Romans 5:10,11. Some believe that this will be fulfilled by The Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Succoth – (Feast of Tabernacles/Booths)

Related Bible References: Leviticus 23:33-44; Neh 8; Zechariah 14:16-19 & Zechariah 14:1-4, 9
Celebrated: Beginning at sunset. Lasts 7 days. Tishri 15-21
Symbol: Sukkot recalls 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, living in tents (booths) and worshiping in a portable tabernacle. Sukkot is also known as the Feast of Ingathering – a wonderful harvest holiday. Wanderings in the Wilderness. Feast of Tabernacles Temporary Booths are constructed to remind Israel of the Wilderness wandering. A Lulav of Palm Branches are waved ushering the Kingdom. This feast consists of seven days with the first day being a Sabbath. Concludes and on the 8th day The Last Great Day (of the Feast) is celebrated. See John 7:37-38. Some believe that this will be fulfilled by the Millenium Reign of The Lord Jesus on earth.
Reading: Ecclesiastes

NOT INCLUDED IN THE 7 -

Feasts but not part of the Major Seven:

Hanukkah – (Feast of Dedication)

Related Bible References: Daniel 8:13-14 & John 10:22-23
Celebrated: 25 Kislev
Symbol: Hanukkah commemorates the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem in 165 BC, and Hanukkah holds great meaning for Christians today. Jesus celebrated Hanukkah.

Purim – (Feast of Lots)

Related Bible References: Book of Esther
Celebrated: Celebrated 14 Adar.
Symbol: Commemorates the story of Esther when King Ahasuerus denounced
Haman’s plot to annihilate the entire Jewish population of Persia. Purim is
a joyful celebration of thanksgiving for Esther’s courageous acts
and God’s faithfulness. Jesus celebrated Purim.

 Source: Annies Home Page

Enjoying some good old testament reading from the book of Exodus.
Tenth Plague: The Death of the First-Born.

The Passover ritual Consist of the slaughtering of Lambs during the evening twilight. ISRAEL were suppose to take some bold and place it at the door post of every house. That night God strikes down every first-born son the Egyptians; including animals. Those that have the blood of the LAMB would be spared.

Submitted by Elaine Thorpe, who adapted it from Richard Olney’s Cookbook, circa 1970.

• 1 or 2 large HEADS garlic
• 1 ½ cups chicken broth
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 Tablespoon oil
• 3 to 4 pounds chicken parts
• 1 lemon, peeled, seeded and thinly sliced
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• ½ cup dry white wine
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Separate cloves of garlic and place in a saucepan. Cover with cold water and bring to a boil.  Discard water, cover with cold water and peel garlic.  Simmer peeled garlic for 30 minutes in stock. (Partially cover pan)

In a heavy skillet, melt butter and add oil.  When hot, sauté dried chicken pieces until golden.  Remove chicken and place in a 9 by 13 Pyrex or other casserole. Put garlic cloves and lemon slices over chicken.  Make sauce by stirring flour  into the fat in the skillet where the chicken used to be and stir till it’s beginning to thicken; Pour  over chicken, garlic and lemon.  Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes or until chicken is done.

Keeping with the blogs about rocks, while having a conversation with someone the other day, I began recalling the story of my grandmother’s conversion. She was a wonderful woman who didn’t come to know Christ until she was 80 years young. I remember how a neighbor came and sat down with her and shared the Good News of Jesus Christ. What a glorious day it was for her and our whole family.

Thinking about that caused me to remember some other great events in my life. I have been so blessed throughout my years to have some great times with family and friends. In the midst of turmoil, it is good to have joyful memories to recall. No matter what happens, I will always have these embedded in my mind.

While certainly not being one who totally understand all of the complexities of the human mind, I’ve come to learn that major events of joy and pain cause a chemical to be released in the brain that in essence burns the experience in. What is so miraculous is that even many years later, you can still remember the smells and sounds of the occurrence.  It’s not just confined to the emotional tag either. Many times a sound or a smell can trigger the emotional tag.

In the Old Testament they had sites where they piled some rocks and named the place after the event. They were called stones of remembrance. Everyone around knew what took place there. Some where places of great joy or victory. There were a few places where the memory was not one of happiness but of defeat or mourning.

This got me to thinking….why would you want to remember the bad things? Wouldn’t it be much better to only focus on the happy moments? I for one don’t want to think about the bad things that have happened.

I don’t believe we should focus on or dwell in the times of pain or regret but I do believe it is healthy to visit those places. Just don’t stay there. There is, however, one place of suffering and shame that we could all probably do better by visiting more often….the Cross of Christ. In fact, during the Passover, He broke the bread and gave them drink symbolizing His body and blood. He even said “as often as you do this, do it in remembrance of me.” What happens here is that a horrible act is remembered and because of that joy is birthed within. While I believe in being reverent during communion, there is also something to the joy that erupts within. His sacrifice bought my freedom. His death gave me liberty. His atonement brings me life eternal. For the joy that was before Him, He endured the cross.

I invite you to take some time to remember. Remember the good things. And old song I recall hearing in church asks God to remind me. It says to “roll back the curtains of memories now and then. Show me where You’ve brought me from and where I could’ve been.” Get into the discipline of taking communion at home once in a while. Remember the Cross. Remember the sacrifice. Remember Him.

This I recall to mind, therefore I have hope.
Lamentations 3:21

It’s time for Volume 3 of the prestigious and greatly overrated Fancy Plans’ Biblical remixing series. In this edition, we tackle a passage from the book of Joshua (chapter 5 to be exact) in which we find that being the leader of the nomadic Jews wasn’t all about laying siege to Jericho, but it was also about the tedious detail of running a well-organized tribe. It involves knives and other unmentionables.

Previously on The Bible:Fancy Plans’ Edition:
Vol. 1 – Revelations 22
Vol. 2 – Leviticus 5

A victorious Joshua claims Jericho for his people, setting them up for a lifetime of near-constant circumcisions.

Joshua 5

1 And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, which were on the side of Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, which were by the sea, heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of Jordan from before the children of Israel, until we were passed over, that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more, because of the children of Israel. They cried to the LORD, what the fuck, dude? Our water is gone and our hearts are melted. Morale is like, way low. The last pep rally sucked. Harsh.

2 At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time. And next time, measure first. It’ll save you a whole lot of trouble.

3 And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins. This is down by Jerry’s place. The guy who has the sign posted in his yard and the windowless van.

4 And this is the cause why Joshua did circumcise: All the people that came out of Egypt, that were males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came out of Egypt. And nothing turns boys to men faster than a good old-fashioned wiener chopping. Be sure and chop one high and tight, because you can’t sing “The End of the Road” without an alto.

5 Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people that were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, them they had not circumcised. And Joshua said, really, what the fuck? How many people are here total? Because I had taken the earlier number to mean that I was done with the “unpleasantness,” but now it’s a regular bris-a-thon.

6 For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD. They all had their reasons, mainly that it had been four decades without being able to sign anything more than a month-to-month lease. Oh, and all the dick chopping. Unto whom the LORD sware that he would not shew them the land, which the LORD sware unto their fathers that he would give us, a land that floweth with milk and honey, which is all well and good, I suppose. But it does seem a little weak in return to forty years of aimless wandering and crotchal knifings.

7 And their children, whom he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised: for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them by the way. And Joshua complained, For the love of LORD, can a day go by without me having to get all stabby in people’s crotches? I mean, I love the work but a day off now and then would be fantastic. It’s been forty years of this and I can’t even throw hot dogs on the grill without wanting to head to the back to the tent and decapitate myself.

Joshua, fresh from a "double-header," charges into battle. Not pictured: Foreskin Hill.

8 And it came to pass, when they had done circumcising all the people, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were whole. Well, mostly whole. They were missing a little foreskin but everyone was free to head up to Foreskin Hill and grab one. Just steer clear of Jerry.

9 And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal unto this day. And Joshua stared at his knives and said, “Whatever.”

10 And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. Because you just can’t be Jewish without Passover. Or circumcision. Bi-weekly Passovers and near-constant circumcisions.

11 And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day. And thus began the tradition of brunch, which was used to get rid of last night’s leftovers at a “reasonable” price.

12 And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. Goodbye, manna. Hello, old corn. Could things get any better? (No. Hey, get that knife away from me! I’m grandfathered in!)

13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? Or are you one of the members of the twice-circumcised club? Heehee. “Member.”

14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant?

15 And the captain of the LORD’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so. And hurled it at the captain, swearing vengeance for forty long years of nomadic existence, crappy food and endless foreskinning.

-CLT

It is incumbent to await the coming of Moshiach every single day, and all day long.. It is not enough to believe in the coming of Moshiach, but each day one must await his coming..

Furthermore, it is not enough to await his coming every day, but it is to be in the manner of our prayer ‘we await Your salvation all the day,’ that is, to await and expect it every day, and all day long, literally every moment!

- Chafetz Chaim, Chizuk Emunah

These words lay out another important principle for the building of a mature Messianic Judaism and that being the primacy of our righteous Messiah and the hope of His return to bring the Messianic age.

This is important in dealing with two potential issues:

1. That Yeshua gets lost in practicing Judaism.

2. That we get so focused on the Messiah’s return that we don’t build a mature Messianic Judaism for the future.

The first point is seen by many critics of our movement to be our critical error, in that Yeshua is secondary to our Jewish practice. We need to realize that Yeshua is the one that is so ever present in the prayers of the siddur and embodies the hopes of Judaism, including the Judaism of today. As Judaism has developed since the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, the messianic hopes of the Jewish people have sought for the coming redeemer. We who are followers of Yeshua know that this one that is alluded to each day in the prayers of the Jewish people is our righteous Messiah, Yeshua.

This plays a significant role and was a part of a homily that I gave one Shabbat during Passover, relating the eating of matzo per the Torah’s command to an act of love for Yeshua. A Messianic Jewish life within Judaism, seeking to follow Torah is performing an act of honoring the Messiah. So then this is also another response to those who hold to a Yeshua-Judaism dichotomy.

The second point and actually more direct to the words of Chafetz Chaim, is the prime duty to await the coming of Messiah. Yeshua is the long awaited Jewish Messiah that will come and establish Yom Shekulo Shabbat (A time of unending Shabbat). Though much of those in the Jewish world are expecting this to be the first appearing of Messiah, we know that this will be His glorious return. The coming of Messiah will be the full flowering of G-d’s consumation of history and the hope of the ages, yet this Messianic hope must not keep us from seeking to continue to build a mature Messianic Judaism for the future.

We must as the words say “await the coming of Moshiach, every day, even every moment”, but while waiting we must be doing those things necessary to building our future, including establishing new Messianic syangogues, establishing educational programs, writing books, mentoring future leaders, writing children’s curriculum, dealing with formation of Messianic halakha and other vital tasks.

We need to see that our Messianic hope be tied to the work that will bring about this consumation of all things and to do our part to fulfill the words of Rav Shaul in Romans 11:26,

“On that day all Israel shall be saved”.

The renewal and atonement of the Jewish people is intrinsically tied to the work of our righteous Messiah and we as His followers must do our part to establish a place wherein the over 1900 year old breach of Yeshua from Jewish space will again be bridged and we can be the place where Jewish people can follow Torah, live in Jewish space and honor the Messiah of Israel and this can be done if we build a mature Messianic Judaism.

May we be worthy to see the coming of Yeshua, our righeous Messiah and if he tarries may we earnestly await His appearing and do our part in His service to establish Messianic Judaism for the future.

http://www.towardblog.com

my new favorite band, great psychedelic rock

So Moses told the Israelites to celebrate the Passover, and they did so in the Desert of Sinai at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. The Israelites did everything just as the LORD commanded Moses.

But some of them could not celebrate the Passover on that day because they were ceremonially unclean on account of a dead body. So they came to Moses and Aaron that same day and said to Moses, “We have become unclean because of a dead body, but why should we be kept from presenting the LORD’s offering with the other Israelites at the appointed time?”

Moses answered them, “Wait until I find out what the LORD commands concerning you.”

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites: ‘When any of you or your descendants are unclean because of a dead body or are away on a journey, they may still celebrate the LORD’s Passover. They are to celebrate it on the fourteenth day of the second month at twilight…. But if a man who is ceremonially clean and not on a journey fails to celebrate the Passover, that person must be cut off from his people because he did not present the LORD’s offering at the appointed time. That man will bear the consequences of his sin.’” – Numbers 9:4-14

This was Israel’s first celebration of the Passover Feast after the night they left Egypt in the middle of the night. They had come to Mount Sinai where Moses received the Law, including the law of the Passover. It is now a year later, and time to celebrate their deliverance from Egypt; but some of them had a problem. They were ceremonially unclean because of a dead body. What were they to do? They asked Moses, who in turn asked the LORD.

The LORD said they should wait one month, and then celebrate the Passover as commanded, but in the second month instead of the first. He cautioned them, though, that this exception applied only if they were ceremonially unclean or on a journey at the appointed time. Otherwise, they would be cut off from among the people.

Fast forward now about eight centuries. Hezekiah had just become King of Judah in place of his father, Ahaz. Ahaz had been unfaithful to the LORD, and in a time of trouble, he became even more unfaithful. Even the people of Judah did not respect him. When he died, he was buried in Jerusalem, but not in the tombs of the kings of Judah (2 Chronicles 28:27).

In the first month of his reign as king, Hezekiah charged the Priests and Levites to consecrate themselves and the Temple. They were to remove the impurities from the Temple. This they did, throwing all of the impure things into the Kidron Valley and restoring the worship of the LORD in the Temple as He had commanded. The story of this great restoration is in 2 Chronicles 29. “Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced at what God had brought about for his people, because it was done so quickly” (2 Chronicles 29:36).

As chapter 30 opens, Hezekiah sent an invitation, not only to the people of Judah, but also to the Kingdom of Israel to come for a celebration of the Passover. He, along with his officials, decided to have this Passover in the second month of the year because they had not had enough time to consecrate enough Priests to do it in the first month as prescribed.

Many of the people in the northern kingdom scorned and ridiculed the couriers bearing this invitation (which reminds us of some of our Lord’s parables of invitations given in His name!). Some, though, came from the northern kingdom and “a very large crowd assembled in Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast” (v. 13).

Although most of the many people who came from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun had not purified themselves, yet they ate the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the LORD, who is good, pardon everyone who sets his heart on seeking God – the LORD, the God of his fathers – even if he is not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary.” And the LORD heard Hezekiah and healed the people. – 2 Chronicles 30:18-20 (Emphasis added, JS)

They were not indifferent to God’s Law, as were Nadab and Abihu (See this post). Nor was this an irreverent violation, such as that by Uzzah (See this post). These people came joyously to celebrate the Passover, but they did not have enough time between receiving the invitation and the time of the celebration to purify themselves from their ceremonial impurities.

According to the Law, they could not eat the Passover since they were unclean, but they ate it anyway. Hezekiah prayed at that time,

“May the LORD, who is good, pardon everyone who sets his heart on seeking God… even if he is not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary. And the LORD heard Hezekiah and healed the people” (Emphasis mine, JS).

As we have noted repeatedly, God is more interested in the hearts of His people than He is in their perfect obedience to the details of the rituals of the Law.

Hezekiah and the leaders in Jerusalem had already moved the Passover from the first month to the second month. In this, they followed the precedent set in Numbers when those unclean because of a dead body waited until the second month to celebrate. Yet, when some came who got the word too late to purify themselves, but ate the Passover anyway, Hezekiah asked God to accept and pardon them.

Was their worship acceptable? According to the letter of the Law, it was not. In the goodness and mercy of God, it was. Was God arbitrary or unjust in not demanding that they comply with His Law? Of course not! God is more interested in hearts that seek Him than in straining every gnat out of the cup of salvation!

Does this mean we are free to disregard what God has said? No, it does not. It simply shows where God’s heart is. He is more interested in our coming to Him in humble joy than in the minutia of His own Law. After all, He is the Lawgiver; He can set aside the requirements of the rituals of that Law. He never sets aside Law based in His own Holiness, but when occasion demands it, He can set aside the demands of ritual obedience. Thus, He always says, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy.”

Jesus appealed to this principle when Pharisees charged His disciples with guilt for plucking grain as they passed through a field on the Sabbath as He answered the Pharisees,

“If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent” (Matthew 12:7 – Emphasis added, JS)

How many times do we condemn the innocent, not because they have broken a command of God, but because they have violated one of our cherished traditions?

Let’s always remember the principles illustrated in Hezekiah’s Passover celebration. It was not in the “right” month, for they celebrated the second month, not the first. It was not by the “right” people, for many who ate it were unclean. Further, they even extended it beyond the prescribed seven days of unleavened bread!

Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites, who showed good understanding of the service of the LORD. For the seven days they ate their assigned portion and offered fellowship offerings and praised the LORD, the God of their fathers.

The whole assembly then agreed to celebrate the festival seven more days; so for another seven days they celebrated joyfully…. The entire assembly of Judah rejoiced, along with the priests and Levites and all who had assembled from Israel, including the aliens who had come from Israel and those who lived in Judah. There was great joy in Jerusalem, for since the days of Solomon son of David king of Israel there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem. The priests and the Levites stood to bless the people, and God heard them, for their prayer reached heaven, his holy dwelling place. – 2 Chronicles 30:22-27 (Emphasis added, JS)

Remember this the next time someone wants to go beyond the bare minimum in obeying God. Maybe someone goes to a nursing home to conduct a worship service – and eats the Lord’s Supper twice on a Sunday! Maybe they joyfully burst into applause while the church is in worship together. Maybe they do any of many things that are “over and above” the specific commands of God. Remember Hezekiah’s prayer and that of the priests and Levites: “God heard them, for their prayer reached heaven, His holy dwelling place.”

When we are more concerned with details of ritual than we are with the God whom we worship, we need to be more like the Levites “who showed good understanding of the service of the LORD.”

NEXT (7) Vain Worship of the Pharisees

PREVIOUS – (5) Irreverent or Undignified?

Gotta Love this Judge!

You must read….a proper decision by courts…for a change.

In Pennsylvania, an atheist created a case against the upcoming Easter and Passover Holy Days.  He hired an attorney to bring a discrimination case against Christians and Jews and Observances of their holy  days.  The argument was that it was unfair that atheists had no such recognized days.

Beloved, I want to share my joy with you today for answered prayer: for some time now I have been asking the Lord to hook me up with like-minded believers, and with people who know more than I do, who have something to teach me, who understand the times we are living in, people who are different from the Christians and leaders surrounding me at my physical church (I’ll expound on that at a later post), and just these last few days I have encountered a number of excellent blogs and sites to learn from. I am trully thankful to the Lord for that, and for all of you also, who add so much to my spiritual life with your comments and insights during our discussions. Glory to God!!!

The following article is most excellent, and it spoke volumes to me! I know it will bless you also, my fellow truthseekers. Please read it, it will be worth your time.

Following article written by Pastor Larry DeBruyn, originally found at http://www.frbaptist.org/bin/view/Ptp/PtpTopic20090916205418, although I came accross it here: http://herescope.blogspot.com/2009/09/x-men.html (another EXCELLENT site)

Someone once said that sin is as much breaking God’s heart as it is His Law. When God looked down on the perversity of the people on earth before the Deluge, it was recorded that He “was grieved in His heart” (Genesis 6:6b). When confronted by resident wickedness both without and within the professing church, Christians can manifest one of three reactions: approval (1 Corinthians 5:2), indifference (Zephaniah 1:12), or disapproval as indicated by the presence of either anger (Psalm 119:53) or grief (Psalm 119:136). So the question becomes, as we see the worldliness-wickedness invading the church, how do we feel about it? Are we agitated by, indifferent to, or accommodating of it?

Not unlike the society and church of our times, during Ezekiel’s ministry Judah found herself in a moral and spiritual “melt down.” Fraud, violence, adultery, and idolatry were running rampant amongst God’s chosen people. Idols had been set up in the Temple (Ezekiel 8:17; 9:9).

From his location in Babylon, the Lord took Ezekiel on a virtual reality tour of the Temple, the place where on the Mercy Seat beneath the Cherubim, God’s Shekinah glory was to have been seated (Ezekiel 8:4). What he saw in that place of worship stunned the prophet. On his guided tour of the inner court, the Lord showed the prophet where first the people had substituted an idol image for Yahweh; where second, the elders worshiped animals; where third, the women sobbed over the death of Tammuz, a mythological fertility god who had married the Egyptian goddess Ishtar; and where fourth, the priests worshiped the sun (Ezekiel 8:5-18). Up-close and personal, the prophet saw how the nation had abominated into apostasy, how Israel had turned from worshiping the Creator to idolizing the creation and its creatures (See Romans 1:21-23.).

Yet in the midst of all those “alternative spiritualities,” and like the remnant of Elijah’s day who refused to bow their knee to Baal and kiss the idol god (1 Kings 19:18), some believers preserved themselves to be holy unto the Lord. So the Lord instructed the angel dressed in white to mark an “X” on the foreheads of the faithful, a mark that would spare them from the coming divine judgment (circa 600 BC).[1]

Most have heard about “the mark of the beast”, the mark the deceived will receive at the end of the age, an identity without which they will neither be able to buy or sell (Revelation 14:9-12). The prophet Ezekiel wrote about a different mark, an “X” that was to be written on the foreheads of those in Judah who had refused to go along with the popular spiritual trends of that day. The “X” would spare them from the coming divine wrath. So the Lord instructed the angel: “Go through the midst of the city, even through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst” (Ezekiel 9:4). Pause with me . . . for a moment let’s project back to that era and ask ourselves the following question: If we had been alive in Ezekiel’s day, would the angel have marked us to be spared from divine judgment?

It was a remnant who strongly disapproved of the apostasy of the majority. In the words of the Lord, they groaned and sighed over the “abominations” (Ezekiel 8:6, 9, 13, 15, 17; 9:4) they saw being committed in the name of religion in their midst. What they saw sickened them to the core of their spiritual and emotional being. Would the angel have marked us if we had lived in that day? We should check out our feelings. Charles Feinberg observed: “Grief is always the portion of those who know the Lord in an evil day. The marked ones were penitent and faithful at a time of widespread departure from the will of the Lord.”[2] Another commentator adds that the criterion for receiving the mark was “an affair of the heart–a passionate concern for God and His people. Failing that, there was no mark . . .”[3]

Some in the mainstream Christian media have called those involved in discernment ministry “Christian attack dogs.”[4] Maybe a better metaphor-label would be “Christian guard dogs”! Discerners so love their Master (i.e., the Lord Jesus Christ) and His Bride (i.e., the church) that they agonize to protect His truth and her purity.

Allow me to propose a litmus test as to whether or not we might have been marked in Ezekiel’s day. But before asking some questions, we should note the Apostle Peter’s warning: “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you” (2 Peter 2:1; Compare Matthew 7:13-15; Jude 17-19.). Based upon Peter’s prediction, does the worldliness that is invading the church bother us? (James 4:4) Does it concern us when we see churches being manipulated by the mechanics of church growth, when the end of growth justifies any means to achieve it? (2 Corinthians 2:17) Does it bother our souls to see the goal of growth eclipsing the Gospel, to see methods employed usurping the Message preached? (Romans 1:16) Does it grieve us to observe the church believing God’s truth less while enjoying “worship celebrations” more? (Matthew 15:8-9) Does the rampant immorality amongst professing evangelicals cause us to sigh? (1 Corinthians 5:2) Were you bothered a few years ago when one evangelical leader, who led a movement in his state to preserve the institution of traditional marriage, was cornered into admitting that he solicited sex from a male prostitute? (Jeremiah 23:14) Do false teachers with their strange and unbiblical teachings annoy you? (Revelation 2:2) Given our media age, does the development of the personality cults around evangelical leaders and speakers, where appearance and a schmoozing style trump substance, concern us? (1 Corinthians 1:12; 2 Peter 2:3; Jude 16) Are some of us even unaware that there are such critters as false teachers who stupefy their followers with their heretical teachings? (Romans 16:17) Does it upset us to see the Christian faith being publicly maligned for reason of the immoral behavior and unbiblical teachings prevalent amongst professing evangelicals? (2 Peter 2:2) In short, are we discerners? (Hebrews 5:14) If we are not, then we should not expect to be marked.

Well, you might be asking, how can we know whether or not a person is a false teacher? Through Jeremiah the Lord provided this description of false prophets: “The prophets are prophesying falsehood in My name. I have neither sent them nor commanded them nor spoken to them; they are prophesying to you a false vision, divination, futility and the deception of their own minds” (Jeremiah 14:14). Of such prophets Jeremiah said that, “They speak a vision of their own imagination, not from the mouth of the Lord” (Jeremiah 23:16b). Again, I ask you, do you know of any false prophets today? You may protest the question saying, “Well, I know men who speak for God who are true.” But that’s not the question. Do you know any false teachers? I know this is a discomforting question–but do you? If you don’t, I would say that you have a very grave problem . . . a very grave problem indeed. And it is this: You may not value God’s truth enough to know what it is and thereby be incapable of discerning “the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error” (1 John 4:4-6).

From his study of human history, a famous historian once remarked how he observed that the majority was seldom right. Jesus agreed. He said: “Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide, and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter by it.” He continued to say, “For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it.”

Then the Lord concluded: “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves” (Matthew 7:13-15). Interesting, isn’t it . . . that the Lord warned the multitudes to watch out for false prophets in the very context in which He differentiated the way of the majority from the Way of the minority. Jesus knew that to their own destruction the majority will follow the way of the false prophets and teachers. They will not be marked out for salvation. They will not be “X-Men”. Like the compromisers of Ezekiel’s day, they went along to get along. So allow me to ask you again: Dear Reader, do you know of any false prophets around today, or are you living in denial, in “a spiritual never-never land”? Will you choose to remain unwarned by the very warning that Jesus and the rest of the prophets and apostles warned you about; mainly, that false prophets and teachers will arise who will lead multitudes to walk the broad way leading to destruction? Remember: Seldom is the majority right.

For any Christians concerned to discern, they may be comforted to know they’re taking the narrow Way. A spirit of discernment is symptomatic of true faith. The Lord’s sheep care, yes, even “sigh and groan” when they see fellow evangelicals lapsing into worldliness and ungodliness. Goats however, are unmoved (Matthew 25:31-46). Yet the caring can be comforted to know that their discernment evidences their solidarity with the One who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Being concerned to discern marks them out– “X” — as true believers (See 1 John 2:18-24.). Yet the overriding emotion of discernment ought to be that of grief. Yes, there may be a time for anger. God gets angry. He was with Ezekiel’s generation, so much so that after He had told the angel in white to mark the believing remnant, the Lord instructed the other six angels, “Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.” (Ezekiel 9:5b-6). Yet we must remember that, “the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God” (James 1:20).

So it’s truly a sad day when we see those professing to know God believing and behaving as if they do not. So it’s significant to note that the divine judgment was to begin in the sanctuary and then work its way out through Jerusalem and the rest of the entire nation (Compare 1 Peter 4:17.). This order of judgment compelled Paul to command the congregation at Rome: “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple” (Romans 16:17-18, KJV). But if we are to engage in such marking, we ought to be reminded that the accompanying emotion ought to be one of grief. Yet we ought also to be reminded that in the end those who refuse to mark false teachers may not be marked by the Lord to be spared divine judgment.

Earth about to collapse: Nature Stings, Economic/War Terrors, H1N1, Ecoli, Lose Ears, Boss Hostile, Day/Night, Lawless, Gay Weddings, Good/Stupid News, 2-Critical Seals

Prophecy’s Extra Oil Update 29: News Two Critical Seals
copyright 2009 Bonita M Quesinberry

News 11/03-11/06: 3.5 days in “terrors of end days,” 4-pgs explosive world/US news, US murders/huge economic losses~ prophetic events at speed of Light—URGENT watch clouds, pray for victims’ families, pray unceasing . . .

Nature— (Plagues) CARRIBEAN, tropical storm might become hurricane, aimed at Gulf of Mexico, now 60+mph winds; CA, Diamond Bar fires threaten homes; WA, record temp mid-hi 60s Wed, storms due Thurs thru Wed next week w/hi winds, expect rivers to flood; SUN mega-bursts affected T-Mobile~ customers lose texting, calls dropped or not received, working on problem; NC, I-40 rockslide to take 4-mo to clear; MX, emergency declared for towns flooding;

Animals: GEORGIA, Aquarium Beluga whale dies; FLA, Miami man working on roof dies from stings of swarming Bees; Round up/kill Boa Constrictors overrun, origin pets released, countless; MILWAUKEE, zoo elephant trapped in deep concrete mote, keepers’ efforts failed to get him out, hours later elephant extricated self; AUSTRALIA, Kangaroos overrunning towns in great numbers, “could kill 700 and not make a dent”;

Quakes: — last 3.5 days~~ IRAN, Tues pm, M4.8 quake Bandar-e Abbas, Southern Iran, 71+ kilometers deep, 700 injured, no report of deaths; TSaS did not check website for totals, know quakes are numerous and constant;

Volcanoes: 2009 docu/History Channel revealed 20,000 active volcanoes beneath earth’s Atlantic/Pacific oceans, most in tectonic plates’ ring of fire, many violent/not seen above water ’til cone nears surface, temps from 2500 to 6000 degrees~~ you read right: 20,000 lava spewing beasts just in our oceans, not to mention all those on land masses;

Economy— (Sign) PHILADELPHIA transit workers strike; JOHNSON & JOHNSON to cut 8000 jobs; MICROSOFT to cut 800 more jobs; Warren BUFFETT firm buys Burlington Northern Railway for $34-Bil betting on economic upturn; US KIDS, 50% up to age 20 on food stamps, 90% of black children~~ due to low income, unemployment; BRITAIN, Qatari firm buys US Embassy London building; CREDIT CARD companies raising rates, so House speeds up credit card reform; BOEING, RyanAir demands price cut or cancel orders; WA, capital Olympia to cut 27 jobs to reduce deficit; US, 2009 job cuts to exceed 2008 losses; BANKRUPTCY, 9% surge in personal filings; WALL STREET on roll of triple-digit rises but still on roller coaster; HUD, Fannie Mae reports $19-B loss in bad loans; HOUSE extends unemployment benefits/first time home buyer tax benefit into 2010; US unemployment hits 10.2%, under-unemployed not included; BRITISH AIRWAYS reports record losses;

correction~~FORD only maker to not take Fed Bailout money, billion $ profit due to reorganizing, cutting expenses, cutting jobs, “way ahead of the game compared to other auto makers”, Ford to introduce inflatable seat belts; GM cancels sale of European arm Opal, German Gov wants $-Bil loans paid; AUTO sales Oct~~ GM up 5%, Ford up 3%, Chrysler down 30%; Chrysler drops Viper line, Fiat to have new design by 2014, financial crunch halting new development; US Vendors look to Cuba’s markets;

Rush LIMBAUGH accuses Obama of destroying US economy; actor Ted DANSON accuses Limbaugh and Religious Right (extremists) of exploiting fear; TSaS affirms that God does not give a spirit of fear to His people, only upon wicked in days of His wrath; NYC, billionaire Mayor Bloomberg spends $100-mil own money to win 3rd term (to hold public offices must be expensive, only rich can afford); OBAMA announces, “schools that perform poorly will be shut down”;

Wars— (Sign) Thurs 11/05 No US casualties this week in Middle East, all were in US:

TEXAS, Blood donations urgently needed. Army’s best: Ft. Hood, largest facility in world, between Dallas/Austin outside Killeen, pop. 72,000 resident families, soldiers, civil employees; On heels of Ft. Hood’s 2008 suicides 10/1-killing, Thurs 1:30pm CST, shooter 39yo Sgt. Major Nadal Hasan kills 13 = 12 soldiers+1 civilian, wounds 30 in “Readiness” Center prep to deploy for Afghan/Iraq; Hasan-w/2 handguns 15 rounds each, normally not armed as Army Psychiatrist treating PTSD soldiers; wounded female civilian cop Kimberly Munley took him down w/4 shots; 3 soldiers “not involved;” Ft. Hood lock down fast, continued during probes to assure facility safety before reopening; some US military bases up security. Witnesses said Hasan lone shooter, hospitalized in stable condition but no interrogation now. Obama promises probe updates.

11/05 LOUISIANA, Camp LeJuene, Marine held in homicide of fellow Marine, recent Camp scandal about contaminated water supplies cause of male breast cancer: it does not end with military bases, see “Lawless” reports below;

IRAN shuts down leading newspaper; Iranians clash w/police on anniversary of 1979 US Embassy hostage crises; ISRAEL, detains ship loaded with weapons from Iran to Syria for Hezbollah, attack threat despite Hezbollah should be armless, ship later released; H. Clinton speech causes controversy w/Arabs; PAKISTAN train crash kills 12, injures 19; Pakistan seizes another Taliban stronghold; Drone strike kills 4; US, warned of need for more satellites in southern hemisphere to monitor China rocket/missile firings;

AFGHAN, 5-Brit soldiers killed when their assistant Afghan policeman opens fire; 2-NATO soldiers missing; PALISTINE, Taliban says “tactical retreat” in face of army offensive; Tunnel scam targets “dirt poor” Palestinians; Leader does not want another term in office; ITALY, convicts CIA agents in kidnapping/torturing Muslim Cleric, US did not get diplomatic immunity for agents prior to operation, will serve 5yrs prison; UN pulls 600 staff after Kabul attack;

Health— (Plagues) H1N1, recent tests show vaccine safe for pregnant women/babies; Side affects reported~~ sore arm/legs ache/nausea/low fever; Boyz II Men singer with H1N1; PA, schools lose 5000 flu shots; Clinics run out of vaccine w/1000s in lines outside; (see Health Reform below, re: H1N1); Not enough vaccine for military troops here or in Middle East; TX, TSaS’ Tammy loses friend to H1N1 first treated as a cold resulting in massive heart attack; CDC says vaccine shortage due to fewer makers than expected and too optimistic about spread; Canada, handful of schools close to H1N1; World’s dominant flu virus is now H1N1;

ECOLI, now 28-cases/2-deaths, Fairbanks Farms recall .5-mil pounds beef; BPA, chemical in aluminum cans leaches into canned foods/drinks~~ responsible for heart disease, aggression in kids, comprehension problems~~ stop eating/drinking from cans BPA levels in body drop fast; get foods only in glass, plastic containers or frozen; Aspirin, daily doses cause problems outweighing benefits; Byetta, FDA says diabetic med tied to kidney problems; Ian’s Law passed to prevent insurance companies from dropping costly patients; Cancer, excess body fat causing 100,000 new cases each year, holocaust survivors at high risk; Statins, may be cause of worsening heart failure;

ND, 3 Dickinson Univ female softball players, 20-22yo, stargazing trip/run Jeep into 150-ft by 150-ft by 12-ft deep pond, the 3 + small dog found dead after tracking 2 cell calls; INDIA, 29 killed when bus plunges into gorge; US, doctors warn “turn down volumes to protect hearing,” more patients seen with hearing loss; PARENTS grieving for college son beaten to death by student, days later receive $29k hospital bill despite son fully insured; DR. HESS UDDER OINTMENT, 1893, not just for cows, works wonders for babies, people, Hess family revives/sell online;

HEALTH REFORM: Bill ready for full House vote but abortion and immigration threaten viability; bill posted on .gov website, not yet Congress/President approved, small part really good for small businesses, self-employed; Small business supply 60% of jobs, drive economy, need Health Care Reform; Employers to pay 5 days SICK LEAVE due to H1N1 if person has no leave, applies to companies w/15 or more employees; AMA, AARP back HR bill; SURVEY, 54% Americans approve of Obama, TSaS says, “Give him some latitude, people; Obama’s job is in vain! No man can prevent God.”

Misc. — Great whore, harlot daughters: AZ, Phoenix Bishop to appeal conviction of disturbing the peace w/church bells every half hour 24/7, complaint filed by neighboring homeowners; FLA, Tammy, in Tampa, reported to TSaS that wife of her boss hostile re: Tammy’s seventh day obedience~ wife, boss both seminary grads, he Sunday assoc. pastor told Tammy, “We work seven days a week!” Despite obedience to God, Tammy still has the job until “God says otherwise,” boss cut her hours but failed when she had to be called in anyway (Don’t treat God’s children badly, for He takes care of His own!); NY, preacher’s rally peaceful but spoke violence in front of Muslim Mosque;

Speaking of whore/harlot daughters: Nov 01, FALL BACK time— God’s wrath for man’s daylight savings, “they make day night and night day,” with Daniel’s warning, “they hope to change times and laws:” God’s day of sunset to sunset opposed to man’s midnight to midnight AND man’s change to God’s prophetic times/events AND changing His Statutes of Life— just a few reasons the dregs of God’s wrath still pour upon earth today;

Lawless— (Sign) NC, Fayetteville man murders wife, two kids then self; AZ, 20yo girl dies from injuries when Iraqi Dad ran her down w/car; Phoenix, 2 men arrested, police recover 1000 pieces of Sky Harbor Air passengers’ luggage; US, 38% of kids ignore age requirements at websites, i.e. FaceBook, My Space, put too much info in profiles; Missing baby found in box beneath sitter’s bed, Mom and Sitter arrested; Police say “job getting more dangerous out there by the day”; OR, man arrested digging for gold on State forestland, left much damage; CA, 7th arrested in gang rape; US, 14yo boy to be tried as adult in clothes dryer murder of 4yo; Inmates come to guard’s aid in jail attack; MX, officials report death of Drug Cartel leader; Army apologizes to Brian Seacrest of Amer Idol for armed military stalker; Iowa, Mom guilty of killing 2yo son; TX, polygamist guilty of sexual assault; FLA, 11/06, Orlando arrest Jason Rodriguez kills 1, wounds 5, 1 possible heart attack in former 2007 employer office at Gateway Center hi-rise;

WA, Tacoma, 2-men sought for posing as undercover cops robbing restaurants, raped 1-employee followed home; Bremerton, woman killed in house fire/homicide; Greenwood, shopping center fire destroys 4 business, severe water damage 2 others, police fear serial arsonist on loose; Anacortes, beloved dog trainer murdered by ex-wife’s boyfriend, suspect refuses to reveal body location, blood-soaked home revealed death; Seattle, $102k reward for killer of policeman; Moses Lake, silicon factory fire cause for evacuation; SeaTac, Houston felony fugitive creates havoc fleeing plane in police chase; Middle School student arrested for assault with knife; Lakewood, 31yo arrested/charged with 2 bank robberies; OR, reports reflect much the same as events in Washington State; (What is happening in your State?)

OH, Cleveland ex-Marine/registered sex offender 50yo Anthony Sowell, held w/out bail, 11 bodies, 2 decapitated/more expected, 2-vics IDed~~52yo from nearby town reported missing 1yr ago/30yo missing since June~~ police might open walls 3-story house owned by ex-mother-in-law, bodies on each floor~crawl spaces~ceilings~buried in yard; MAINE, votes reject gay marriages; LA, Judge resigns over interracial marriage scandal; FBI reports “Granddad Bandit” on loose; Police say teen drowned 4yo to protect secret; Mom guilty of killing 2yo son; Missing baby found alive in box beneath sitter’s bed, mom & sitter in custody; TANZANIA, 4 to hang in death of Albino;

Good or Stupid News— Mel GIBSON/girlfriend have baby girl; MUSIC degrees now given for Hip-Hop; CANADA, Prince Charles, wife, visit Newfoundland; DISNEY to build theme park in Shanghai; HOLLYWOOD, Michael Jackson’s “This is It” tops weekend box office; MOSCOW, forklift runs amuck, destroys $150k worth of Vodka, Cognac; Tyra BANKS hypocrite? due to weight loss; X-RAY is top modern invention.

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God’s Seal of Authority
©copyright 2006 Bonita M Quesinberry

What is God’s Seal, as mentioned in Revelation 7:2-3?

Note: TSaS is not responding to this question with any intent to convince anyone. That is God’s task, for He “chooses whom He will” to follow in Christ’s footsteps and to receive His Truths. The job of TSaS is to provide God’s Truths as given by His Holy Spirit and clearly set out in God’s Bible, that all who read may make an informed choice for “life or death.” God urges, “Choose life.”

SIGN: TOKEN, something indicating a fact, a MARK or symbol, to write one’s name on as in acknowledging authorship, to express, indicate or signify with a sign, points to a fact or conveys a meaning. SYN: sign, mark, token, symptom, indication, SEAL: proof of authenticity, confirmation, guarantee, pledge, confirm the truth or genuineness of a promise, marks of office and authority. ~Webster’s’ World Collegiate Dictionary

Sign, seal, mark, and token are synonymous, each used in the Bible, words meaning the same thing but not used for identical purposes or of the same design. Many signs are spoken of in the Bible, i.e. the rainbow signifying God’s promise not to ever flood the entire earth again; yet, only one sign is God’s Seal and a counterfeit of it is Satan’s Mark.

There are several worldly opinions amidst corporate Christendom as to what is God’s Seal of Authority mentioned in Revelation 7:3, though most approach it from the Mark of the Beast viewpoint without clarifying what is God’s seal—
1. “Or his number 666″ will be tattooed on a person’s forehead or hand; or,
2. a microchip will be inserted beneath the skin; or,
3. special credit card with 666 on it will be issued to all who do not bear God’s Seal. None of these are the beast’s Mark, not even 666. In fact, nowhere in the Bible does it say that the Beast’s mark is 666. Determining God’s Seal will aid in discovering Satan’s Mark, which the beast has confirmed in public statements both oral and in writing as a matter of numerous validated records.

Another theory taught in only the last 15 years is based solely on two verses, Ephesians 1:13-14 and 4:30— “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed [confirmed] with that holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest [deposit] of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory . . . And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”

The first passage is not saying that the Holy Spirit is God’s Seal; rather, it advises that the Holy Spirit fulfills Christ’s promise to believers of becoming anointed with one or more spiritual gifts plus the Spirit’s comforting as well as teaching: which serve as a deposit of all that believers will inherit in the “new earth.” Revelation 7:2 clearly states an “angel having the seal of the living God.” Obviously, this new theory would have the Holy Spirit being carried around by another angel. However, Ephesians 4:30 is clarified by one word:

Whereby defined as administered by. This would identify the angel in Revelation 7:2 as the Holy Spirit, Gabriel as it were. Whether corporeal (tangible) or spiritual, a seal of authority cannot be a living being; rather, a seal is administered by a living being: i.e. the President presses his Seal next to his name after signing a bill into law, the seal both validating his signature and the National Seal making the law enforceable across the USA domain. Without the seals, the laws would not be enforceable and neither would God’s Law be enforceable without His Seal, regardless of whom and how many He has chosen.

There are clues scattered throughout the Bible that lend to greater understanding of God’s “weightier matters;” in this case, the most applicable are “On earth, as it is in heaven,” and “I have given similitudes on earth of that which is in heaven.” Similitudes are earthly things that in tangible form—seen and touched— resemble heavenly things that are in spiritual form— not seen or touched, instead those spiritual things are noted in human behaviour. With this in mind, we are led to discover what, according to mankind’s laws, makes any seal of authority valid and legally binding: the same proof applies spiritually; as will be shown later.

Any Seal of Authority must:
1. Cite the name of the author who formed the law or laws; and,
2. Cite the domain over which those laws are enforced; and,
3. Cite reason author has the right to enforce such laws; and,
4. Seal must be unique, not another like it in the world or universe, if spiritual. With respect to the US Presidential and National Seals noted above, there are no others like them in this world. Even national seals differ from any other of the world’s nations. God’s Seal of Authority is unique, no other like it in this world or in the universe or in heaven.

God stated His Seal of Authority in Exodus 31:13-17 and Ezekiel 20:12, 20— “Keep thou the Sabbath as a sign between thee and Me that I AM the Lord thy God”— the same sign over which Jesus said He also is Lord, meaning He applies the same Seal to His sheep as His Father applies to the Jews; and, Christ exhibited the Seal by His obedience to God’s Twelve Precepts, omitting none. The Exodus and Ezekiel passages belie new teachings that the Holy Spirit, a living being, is God’s Seal: instead, it is the Holy Spirit carries the Seal and who administers God’s Seal, to-wit: a person sealed is detected by his or her behaviour revealing the seal, obedience to the Fourth Precept.

Exodus and Ezekiel refer us back to Exodus 20:8-11 as well as Deuteronomy 5:12-14, where we find that God’s Seal meets every requirement for a valid sign of authority: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger [heathen] that is within thy gates: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it [made it holy].”

Other O.T verses declare the 7th day Sabbath perpetual, “even in the new earth and heavens.” In fact, all 12 of God’s Precepts are declared perpetual, to stand forever; as noted in various Bible books including Psalms. Twelve? Yes, God’s Law begins with the two Royal Laws of Love first stated in the Old Testament— contrary to man’s tradition— inasmuch as no one can obey the Ten without first loving: love compels obedience.

1. Author of Two + Ten Commandments: Lord thy God
2. Domain of Enforcement: heaven, earth, sea, and all that in them is
3. Reason for power to Enforce: God made heaven, earth, sea, and all that in them is
4. Unique Seal Design:
Seventh day Sabbath, sundown Friday to sundown Saturday— Unique, Webster’s Dictionary defines as “having no like or equal;” as the Bible says of those who bear God’s Seal, “a peculiar people.” Peculiar, Webster’s definition is “unique, of an exclusive group.” Indeed. God defines His “exclusive group” as His chosen people the Jews. Jesus defines this “exclusive group” as His small flocks of once heathens, whom God chose for Him and says they are greatly outnumbered but have the Power of God upon them.

There is not another sign, seal, mark or token mentioned in the Bible that fulfills the requirements of a valid spiritual Seal of Authority. Neither is there another seal in the universe like this one. How so? A 2009 “Prophecy’s Extra Oil” included a scientific report proving God’s existence/signature in all things, including our moon thus the universe. Since He is the Creator of all, then His Seal is the same for all who accept God as their God and His Son as their Saviour.

Look at the day of worship for various single-God religions in the world— only one was in its beginning and remains today Saturday, Judaism (there are pitiful few Christian religions embracing His Sabbath); other religions took Friday and a great number took Sunday in homage to Papal Rome; the latter with “time” marked from midnight to midnight, contrary to God’s definition of “a day is from even to even.” For the purposes of His and Christ’s Sabbath, the day is sundown Friday to sundown Saturday~~ a new day begins at sunset, for the world began in darkness and God divided it with light.

Friday and Sunday fulfill Daniel’s warning that “they hope to change times and law,” a clear distinction identifying Satan’s synagogues of whatsoever denomination or religion and his Mark, which mark does not meet the criteria necessary to declare it a valid Seal of Authority: therefore and according to God’s Word, Satan’s reign on earth is temporary, in nature and fact, and he plagiarized God’s Law by teaching it altered in all his synagogues.

Many denominations teach Saturday as exclusively Jewish and Sunday as exclusively Christian; albeit, all theologians agree there is no scriptural validation for Sunday, its origins in pagan worship instituted into Christianity by Revelation’s great whore 200 years after, then 348 years after Christ ascended: after 200 years a civil law, at 348 years declared ecclesiastic law. Other Judaic-like religions, i.e. Islam etc, established Friday.

God did not set His Sabbath exclusively for or by way of the Jews. He sanctified it at creation for all humans that would serve Him as their only God, Genesis 2:1-3, to clearly identify who belongs to God and, later, His Christ: both Jew and Gentile. Christianity never was to be separate from the Judaic faith; that is, the part embracing Christ as God’s Son, often referred to as Messianic Jews. It was and is the Jewish faith that was and is offered to Gentiles, as stated clearly in the Old Testament and offered to heathens even in those days— “to the stranger (heathen) who obeys my Sabbath I will give names better than sons and daughters.”

Many teach that Jesus did away with God’s Doctrine, specifically the fourth Precept, by hanging on the cross; thus they teach only 9 of His 10 Statutes yet state that only the Royal Laws now apply: totally illogical IF Christ did away with all the Statutes. After all, Jesus said “Upon these two hinge all the Law,” which according to their teachings would have placed God’s Doctrine of Twelve on the cross; after all, God first stated the Royal Law in the Old Testament, Jesus merely repeated them to the people as a reminder of what it takes to become obedient.

Detractors make their assumption on the fact the Sabbath Law, God’s fourth precept, also appears in the midst of Moses’ Ordinances— specifically the ordinances of Sacrifice and Oblation including circumcision, the only laws Christ revoked. Paul told us that it was those ordinances symbolically hung on Christ’s cross in the form of His body sacrificed and offered as payment for humanity’s “past sins.”

A Seal of Authority must be impressed upon all laws for them to be enforceable, whether on earth or in heaven, whether Statutes/Precepts or Ordinances; the latter always short-term by nature. The term Law is used interchangeably in the Bible to indicate Statutes or Ordinances, preceding or subsequent verses clarifying of which laws are being spoken.

Just because temporary laws are revoked does not remove a Seal of Authority from all other laws still in force. If that were the case, then all of man’s statutes and ordinances would not be enforceable today AND none of God’s Statutes or Ordinances would still stand, including even the ordinances of health and Passover and . . . Revocation removes the Seal only from the specific laws cancelled, rendering only those unenforceable: both on earth and in heaven.

AKJV Scripture References — want God’s proof? Pray the Lord you read and hear by the Spirit, then read the following passages:

Exodus 20:8-11; Deuteronomy 5:12-14; Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 16:23,25-30; 23:12; 31:13-17; 34:21; 35:2; Leviticus 19:3-4; 19:30; 23:3; 26:1; Numbers 15:16; Deuteronomy 13:3-4; Nehemiah 9:13-14; 10:31; 13:14-18; Esther 8:8; Psalm 111:7-10; 119:150-152; Ecclesiastes 12:13-14; Isaiah 56:2,5-7; 58:1-8,10,13-14; 66:22-23; Jeremiah 17:21-22; Ezekiel 18:21; 20:12,20; 23:38; Hosea 8:1; Matthew 5:17-20; 7:21; 12:8,50; 15:3,6,9; 24:20-21; 28:1; Mark 1:21; 2:27-28; 3:4,35; 6:2; 7:6-7,13; Luke 4:16; 6:5-6,9-10; 13:10,14-16; 14:1-5,11,14; 16:17; 23:54-56; John 3:33-35; 4:23-24; 7:16-17; 12:49-50; 13:15; 14:15,21; Acts 5:29-30; 13:14-15,42,44; 16:13; 17:2; 18:4-5; 21:24; 24:16; Romans 1:21,25,30-31; 2:13-15; 3:31; 7:7,12-13,22; 8:4;Ephesians 5:3,9; Philippians 2:5-8; I Thessalonians 5:21-22; I Timothy 4:16; II Timothy 3:1-5; Titus 1:14-16; Hebrews 4:1-11; 13:9; James 2:10,14,14,26; I John 2:3-7; 3:4-6,8; 5:2-3; II John v.6; Revelation 2:9; 7:2-3; 12:17; 14:12; 22:14

——Watch the clouds between mid-October to mid-November henceforth until no later than 2011. Hebrews indicates Jesus will not be late. If not fully converted now, time is your enemy; total conversion must be instant, this day, TODAY: do not delay. Pray unceasing! Be watchful; stand fast even to death. WE HAVE GOD’S POWER. KEEP WALKING and TALKING, even when it seems useless: you might snatch one lost, lukewarm sheep from the flames. Saith the Lord, “Ye lukewarm await consuming fire.”

——TSaS post archives open to public; members access Bible Lesson FILES. TSaS ministry neither needs nor asks for money and never will: God provides our basic needs. We ask only for prayer and that you share God’s Truth with all who will hear/read and obey in “the instant.” Be good stewards of God’s Word: share Extra Oils, lead everyone to God’s Biblical Truth at — http://groups.yahoo.com/group/truthseekersandspeakers

Much Love in Christ, Sister BonnieQ

One of my “hobbies” is the value of the Old Testament writings.  I have even outlined a book dealing with the heresy of Marcion among churches of Christ that I hope to write some day.

It is a problem not contained to any one group of Christians. “Conservative/traditionalists” might “rightly divide” the OT right out and  “progressive/liberals” might not want to include God’s Wrath and violent past while emphasizing Grace.

My biggest pet peeve surrounding this issue, is the polytheism that arises when trying to drive a wedge between the “god of the OT vs the god of the NT” by placing them in stark contrast.  Some have backed themselves into this corner because they don’t like what the “god of the OT” did so they have to rationalize that he drastically changed at/after the cross, that Jesus the Son is somehow better, more loving, than God the Father.

Or, we assume that God the Father was repulsive and cranky, so he sent Jesus to win us over with his gentleness and personality, instead of with Truth and His Blood.  We make a fool of David and others who had deep relationships with the Father.

At least Marcion was straightforward and claimed the OT god was a lesser god.  Sadly, some Christians believe that today although they would never admit it.

Anyway, the following are links to a sermon series I preached on the Grace and Mercy of God in the Old Testament days, before the Cross.  I hope they will help some to re-evaluate their understanding of God.  I hope you will read the OT scriptures with God’s great love, grace, and mercy in view.

Grace in the OT, Part 1:  Introduces the series by looking at how God revealed himself to Moses on Mt Sinai.  Then, deals mainly with God’s mercy in the book of Genesis

Grace in the OT, Part 2:  This lesson looks at Grace and Law.  And then deals with a specific incident in Leviticus 10.  Thanks to Tim Archer’s articles which were considered in my preparation.

Grace in the OT, Part 3:  Hezekiah’s Passover in 2 Chronicles 30.  John Mark Hicks wrote some helpful articles on this topic.

Grace in the OT, Part 4:  God’s Passionate and Jealous Love.  This lesson starts with the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. and then moves through the Prophets to see that God doesn’t just love, he is a lover and a passionate lover.  His wrath and anger are rooted in his passionate and jealous love for his people.

As Jesus and His followers approached Jerusalem at the time of Passover, rumors began to spread of a rebellion against Rome. People were worked up and excited over the idea that Jesus would establish the throne of David, and rule His people. However, instead of inciting violence, Jesus told a parable.

And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear.

Luke 19:11

This parable serves as a warning to the people of God even today. It is a warning to stay busy until the Ruler of the Kingdom returns.

And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

Luke 19:13

What will believers on the Lord Jesus Christ do with the treasure of the Gospel message as we await the return of our King? Will we fail to guard it, and allow it to be taken from us and corrupted? Or will we, in seeking to protect it, hoard it up, and fail to put it to maximum use?

When the ruler in the parable returned to obtain an accounting of the treasure he had given the servants, he found that he could trust and reward those who had worked diligently with what they had been given.

And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.

Luke 19:17

Today is the day for believers to get busy, and stay busy, using the great gift of the Gospel message to do the work of our Ruler, anticipating His soon return!

Tonight, over sour cream-laden chimichangas and icy Cokes, my husband and I had our annual gift-giving budget conversation.  At our house, November and December are packed with several family birthdays and, of course, the simultaneously beloved and commercially vexing: Christmas.

We sat there looking at each other saying something like, “What are we going to get him?!“  We have this amount of money “to spend”, and all he wants is a flashlight and a pack of cheese.  And so we look at each other realizing that everyone in our lives has everything they need and at least 90% of what they want.

And yet, we insist that we “should” get them something.  It’s the thing to do, we suppose.  Could we make a donation to the “Human Fund?” Rather than relaxing down into the pool of gratitude, we stress upwards into obligation and wrack our brains for more, more, more.

In Ed Dobson’s The Year of Living Like Jesus, there is a lovely Jewish prayer taken from the Passover Seder that affected me deeply.  Especially as we enter a shopping extravaganza for some of the richest people on the planet, it is words like these that make me stop and think.

Pg. 97:

“Toward the end of the story came a beautiful section entitled dayenu, a word that means “that alone would have been enough, but for that alone we are grateful.

Adoni took us out of Egypt.  Dayenu.

Punished the Egyptians and destroyed their idols.  Dayenu.

Divided the sea and led us across on dry land.  Dayenu…

…[several more]…

For all these–alone and together–we say Dayenu.

Dayenu is a powerful concept.  It is learning to be grateful for what God has already done and not asking him to do more.  For me, as a follower of Jesus, it means being grateful for what God has done through Jesus Christ in restoring me to God.  Dayenu. It is getting up every day and realizing God has given me one more day to live.  Dayenu. In times of economic difficulty, it is realizing that I have food on my table and clothes on my back and a warm place to live.  Dayenu. It seems to me that Western Christians are always asking God for more–more money, better health, larger houses, better jobs, a boat.  I want I want I want I want.

Dayenu contradicts this kind of thinking.”

~~

Regardless of your personal beliefs and convictions surrounding Jesus or Judaism or Christmas shopping, it seems to me that we could all use a little dayenu.

Some contentment.

Some gratitude.

Some joy.

A little peace.

I pray that for myself tonight, and for you.

~~

If you are interested in what others are saying about Ed’s book, click here for a complete list of those participating in his November Blog Tour.

It wasn’t even Passover, yet on Sunday, October 18th at West Hills, California’s Milken Jewish Community Campus, an innovative program called  ”Feeding the Hungry Project” opened the doors and Project Elijah, a MAZON-funded hunger response nonprofit, walked through it.

Project Elijah’s Executive Director, Julie Kaufman and its founder, Alan Zuckert flew into town from Des Moines, Iowa, with crates of supplies and packaging equipment. With local organizers, they set up assembly lines and bag-sealing stations in the auditorium and proceeded to set the stage for a transformative experience for the hundreds of volunteers that would soon arrive.

From 10am and 2pm, two shifts of volunteers, mostly from Temple Ahavat Shalom in Northridge, California, donned bright orange t-shirts, aprons, gloves and hairnets and began to scoop, measure, package and seal a nutritious blend of grains into 4-serving bags.  Rabbi Barry Lutz blew a shofar to launch the event and as each 5000-meal milestone was achieved, he blew the shofar again to the cheers and applause of the volunteers.

The “Feeding the Hungry” project came together because Temple Ahavat Shalom member Stephanie Howard believed it was possible. It became reality with guidance from MAZON and grants from the Los Angeles Jewish Federation’s Valley Alliance and other funders.  It generated over 35,000 meals for beneficiaries of the SOVA Community Food and Resource Program, a long-time MAZON grantee, because more than 1,000,000 men, women and children in Los Angeles are at risk of hunger and SOVA’s three food pantries are among the premiere front line responders to the hunger crisis in Los Angeles.

Here are Ms. Howard’s reflections on the event:

Wow!  Four hundred volunteers + four hours = 35,000 meals for SOVA!  That’s what we can accomplish with some long-range planning, a passion to feed the hungry and a little Chutzpah.

We did it!  And we didn’t have to “reinvent the wheel.”  All we had to do was “roll in” a high-protein, vitamin-packed food product and assembly line system developed by Project Elijah in Des Moines, Iowa.  Temple Ahavat Shalom started dreaming about this one-day event years ago.  Thanks to grants from the Los Angeles Federation Valley Alliance and the Ted and Sarah Seldin Family Fund we were able to pay for the food and shipping of the equipment to package the meals.

Of course, the best part of the equation is the volunteers.  There was so much enthusiasm for Feeding the Hungry that we had to close down the sign ups weeks ahead of time when we reached our maximum of 400 volunteers. People brought their patience, passion and willingness to do a great mitzvah so we could meet our goal to help the needy.

Thanks, MAZON, for co-sponsoring Feeding the Hungry and for fighting the battle every day to draw down hunger.

She also has event photos available on Flickr.

Anyone can open the door and end hunger.  Start by opening the door to MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger at www.mazon.org.