Enabling a good life...

My son with Williams Syndrome, my wife and I were in attendance at the biannual Williams Camp at Living Springs on the Port Hills of Christchurch. While we were there a female presenter gave brief seminar on the subject of “Enabling a Good Life.” She described how there is a move toward bulk funding for people with disabilities. She was very positive about this even though successive governments have struggled to garner much interest in the proposal beyond the pilot scheme. Mainly I suspect because placing all of the funds for a disabled person in the hands of a parent or caregiver is no guarantee that those funds will be spent on them. So even though it costs a great deal to administer the current program and it is by no means perfect it makes more sense to try to refine what we have rather than change to a system with no checks and balances.

However, this discussion raises another question along similar lines. Should our communities take responsibility for the well being of the disadvantaged members of our society. Shall we say the disabled, the mentally ill, and the poor. The reason I ask this is because it is the subject of a famous interaction in the bible. The parable of “The Rich Young Ruler.” in Matthew chapter nineteen verses sixteen to twenty two. 

Matthew 19:16-22  

Verse 16 And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” 17 And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” 18 Then he said to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not commit murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; 19 Honor your father and mother; and You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?” 21 Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” 22 But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property. NASB

Now a largely unseen aspect of this text is the fact that those who ruled society in Israel in Jesus’ time were become extremely selfish. You see under Jewish tradition the community has a responsibility to care for the poor and less fortunate members of society. The ruling class were seeking to take a step away from this practice because it meant that the community had to make physical and monetary resources available to assist these poor people. If they didn’t care for them then it meant the rich became significantly wealthier because they did not have to contribute to the community. So this a major factor causing the change in the Rich Young Ruler’s demeanor. He hoped to trick Jesus into approving his lifestyle. That of the rich and influential. However instead he received an instruction to care for the poor. The very thing that the rich of Jesus period were seeking to detach themselves from. Hence a sullen countenance and heavy footsteps.

To me this is entirely about community and the need for Christian values. Secular values are rights based but have no heart. There is a discussion of what might be fair or right but there is no moral impetus to fulfill an obligation. We are after all just matter and energy so even if we recognise a need to care for the poor if we fail to meet the obligation and the poor perish it doesn’t matter in the eternal arch of time immemorial. 

Whereas in the Judeo Christian world view we are our brother or sisters keeper. We have a genuine responsibility to them and the existence of the poor or under-privileged is an affront to our society before God. We are to ascribe resources to their care. We believe that God expects us to care for those who cannot care for themselves and to assist them to a position where they can eventually care for themselves once more. Because they are our brethren before God they are family and community. They are to be treated as such and we are to make sure that they are looked after to the highest standard. 

Just as the Good Samaritan did with the person that he came across on the road as related by Jesus in Luke chapter ten verses thirty to thirty seven.

Luke 10: 30-37

Verse 30 Jesus replied and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead. 31 And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, 34 and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’ 36 Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?” 37 And he said, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.” NASB

In the nation of Modern Israel wounded Syrians and Palestinians are given field treatment and then transferred to hospitals throughout Israel for first class treatment which is provided for free and under strict conditions of anonymity because the lives of the patients and their families could be endangered for even accepting such life saving treatment from the enemy. This is the policy of the people of Israel toward even their enemies and of course is the policy of bible believing Christians toward their enemies also as directed by our Lord Jesus in the book of Luke chapter six verses twenty seven to thirty six.

Luke 6:27-36

Verse 27 “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. 31 Treat others the same way you want them to treat you. 32 If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. 35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. NASB

So if we have such love toward our enemies how much more will we have love toward our community and family. How much more love for our poor and disabled. So although it may be disparaged as inefficient and ineffective by central government who wish only to maintain total control of the social welfare system. It is the way of Jehovah and should be the way of his people for the community to gather around their disadvantaged and to lift them toward wellness and prosperity in a spirit of love and generosity. 

This is the way of God.

Reference List

Ahronheim A. Treating wounded Syrians who arrive in Israel is ‘holiest of holy. https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Treating-wounded-Syrians-who-arrive-in-Israel-is-holiest-of-holy-494602 02.02.2019

Charity (Tzedakah): Charity Throughout Jewish History. https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/charity-throughout-jewish-history 01.01.19

Atheism, Communism, Evolution and Secular Humanism = The Spirit of Antichrist...

How could this be I hear you say. Communism and secular humanism (socialism), contain so much doctrine that seems to be what Jesus was saying. This is why the socialism has drawn so many clergymen away from the fold. If they were ever in it to begin with? At first glance the idea distributing wealth across society and guaranteeing personal well being does seem to be what Jesus was talking about. But Communism has been well trialed in the last century and it does not equate to the teachings of Jesus. In fact communists have gone to great effort to purge Christians and Christianity from their society. One could say they are obsessed with the idea.

 

Now, the real difference between Christianity and the Communist conglomerate of Atheism, Socialism, Evolution and Humanism is that all of Communism is devoid of morality. Such that, Communists tend to believe that the Universe is filled only with matter and energy and there is no purpose for being. If then, there is no higher purpose and no God. There is no consequence of action. You can literally do what you like because there is only matter and energy in the Universe. So in the opinion of the Communist the Universe has no purpose and therefore no morality. No code of conduct. Nothing to guide or control the actions of the megalomaniac anymore than the lowly peasant. So you can literally “Do want you wilt.” Sound familiar?

 

Hitler although a fascist was an ardent evolutionist and insisted that we should not tolerate disabled people in our society as it violated the Darwin’s theory on natural selection. It is estimated that between 11 and 12 million non combatants were killed under Hitlers reign. Stalin based much of his philosophy on Darwinism, as well, and his purges were in effect Social Darwinism. He apparently was not interested in racial cleansing but ferreting out those who showed a propensity toward the merest amount of independent or free thinking. One can see why Christianity would cause an issue to that form of mindless tyranny. Imagine, a whole section of society focused on the fulfilling the desires of the divine most high God, Jehovah. A people who would question any command that was at odds with the will of God. Needless to say millions of free thinking people died under the Stalinist regime. Chairman Mao was a Darwinist also and once again we see a regime where anyone who questioned Mao and the Party was liable to face intense torture, persecution and death. Once again millions of free thinkers and Christians passed into oblivion in purges like the The Great Leap Forward from 1958 - 1962 which is said to have killed 45 million people. The following so called Cultural Revolution is conservatively estimated to have claimed the lives of another 1.5 million between 1966 and 1976. One concludes that if you can find away to dispense with morality then issues of conscience can easily be cast aside and any outcome, even the deaths of millions of innocent fellow humans, is justified without fanfare.

 

With modern technology it is possible to communicate a line of thought to an audience of billions and so it has been with Darwinism. In the past smaller populations of humanity were goaded by feudal Lords to achieve the political and religious ends of small elites guided by mystical powers. Today huge populations take more finesse to herd into even loose agreement with policies that are so often to their detriment and just as often filled with lies and deceits. But with media and education the people are so often lulled into a spirit of passivity and apathy that darkness is ever so slowly and stealthily pervading their lives and snuffing out the light of freedom.

 

Sin and and the absence of sound moral values are promoted as the way of the scientific world (i.e.: abortion, homosexuality). Christianity, the Bible and our God, Jehovah are characterised as the stuff of fairy tales and mysterious nonsense. The people are immersed in atheism, Darwinism and secular humanism through the media and Internet while Christians are portrayed as judgemental and backward people who are out of step with reality. It is as though mankind is asleep, unaware of the creeping death that is covertly moving to ensnare them. George Orwell’s 1984 is upon them and most don’t even want to know that the jig is almost up.

 

I spoke of the mystical power that has long sought to manipulate and enslave humanity. Throughout history a multitude of religions have sort to raise up and worship a host of pagan deities. In our age we rationalise these religious expressions of the past as the efforts of the less evolved to acknowledge the existence of the universe around them. A natural part of the evolution of mankind. Again manipulation of humanity to conceal those who have always followed the Gods of the esoteric religions and an attempt to conceal the real work of creation by Jehovah Elohim (the one creator God). 

 

Yet we see in so much of the literature, theater and media of our time attempts to describe pagan religions and their dogma and to influence the ways of thinking of humanity today. Buddhism and Hinduism give the worship of self and the need to seek fulfillment or personal development within on the journey toward perfection. They also remind us of the coming Maitreya or Christ (Antichrist). The Esoteric religions of Egypt, Greece and Rome bring us the notion of secret knowledge that only the elite may know and that each may know according to his or her point of advancement through the levels of knowledge. The worship of Lucifer (Angel of Light), and Satan (Emissary of Darkness), where those who indulge in the worship of the devil flirt with practices relating to the service of that pagan deity. Note that this concept of light versus darkness is put forward in the Star Wars movie franchise. The idea of the force and that light brings goodness in the Jedi Knights (Lucifer), but that the dark-side brings out evil with the Sith (Satan), who closely resemble those who are involved in Satanism. The Earthly reality that the two forms of worship are one as Lucifer and Satan are one being. The fallen archangel of Heaven who was indeed formerly called Lucifer and now known as Satan. 

 

Our society is pervaded with this esoteric knowledge and the encouragement to reject Jehovah and His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. We are bombarded with propaganda exhorting us to take on the New Age Teachings of the occult as the true source of enlightenment. Our leaders and indeed the entire elite political and religious class of our planet are, I believe, completely enmeshed in the occult New World Order system that is a reality in our day. 

 

Everywhere people are inundated with information that tells them self is God. Do yoga, meditate and practice mindfulness. Look inward to find that real strength of the Godliness that is within you and so forth. This is the teaching of the New Age Leaders and this is the teaching of the esoteric religions which have infiltrated the Christian Church as they infiltrated the Roman Church in the reign of the Emperor Constantine through the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D.. This is the merging of the pagan and Christian Church to become Mystery Babylon as described in the Bible in Revelation chapter seventeen. The ancient religion of Babylon now harlot drunk on the blood of the saints through oppression and persecution of the true Christian Church. The false teachings of paganism are dusted off, mixed with elements of Christianity, and presented as new spiritual light but in reality are the same teachings that Nimrod and Isis purported in ancient Babylon. These are the teachings of the occult religions through the ages that have poured forth strange light through myriad religions and secret societies in the effort to bring all the World under the domination of Satan.

 

Friends, the esoteric knowledge that leads you to worship self. The secular humanism which condemns the bible as intolerant and unduly judgemental because it states clearly the division between working righteousness and working evil. The world system that is about to unfold upon all of humanity living in this end time. The Darwinism and Evolution that seeks to discredit the Bible and to bring forward a new society where morality is cast aside and any action is justified because we are all just matter and energy without cause. This is all simply best described as the Spirit of Antichrist.

 

In fact, these are the last days of this the Age of Grace. Soon Jesus Christ will return to gather His elect from throughout the Earth. The nation of Israel is regathered in this time and the generation that saw that regathering shall not pass away but He shall have returned. So I believe time is short. The New World Order and Religion are drawing together those who have been moved by the spirit of antichrist and soon this world will tolerate the followers of Jesus Christ no longer. It remains only for the restrainer (the Holy Spirit), to be removed and the time of tribulation (war and great turmoil), will be upon us. My call to you is that you repent of your sins and are baptised for the forgiveness of sins and in order to receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38

 

Reference List

 

Carter, R. 2014. Evolution’s Achilles’ Heel. Creation Book Publishers. Powder Springs. Georgia. USA

 

Herzog C.E. Star Wars The Truth Behind the Fiction. https://rcg.org/realtruth/articles/345-swttbtf.html 15.01.19

 

Johnson I. Who Killed More: Hitler, Stalin, or Mao?https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2018/02/05/who-killed-more-hitler-stalin-or-mao/ 13.01.19

 

Phillips T. The Cultural Revolution: all you need to know about China's political convulsion https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/may/11/the-cultural-revolution-50-years-on-all-you-need-to-know-about-chinas-political-convulsion 13.01.19

 

Roman Catholicism: Merger Of Paganism And Christianity. http://www.exposingtheenemy.com/what-we-believe/--paganism-in-the-church/the-merger-of-paganism-and-christianity 15.01.19

 

The Power Triangle Of Buddhism, Yoga And Mindfulness Meditation. https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/buddhism-meditation-mindfulness-yoga/ 15.01.19

Why do we print New Testaments today? Why do some Christians only read the New Testament? Is the Old Testament still relevant?

In answer to the first part of the question “Why do we print New Testaments today.” I would say we print New Testaments today because for the believer / evangelist who hopes to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with people that they come across who are open to hearing the gospel. It is very handy to have a light, strong and portable version of the New Testament scriptures from which to share supporting verses from God’s word.

In recent times bibles have become very light and quite small and it is possible to have a complete bible the same size as New Testaments of yesteryear. There can be issues with font type and clarity today that weren’t such and issue in the past but if you look around it should be possible to get a small but fit for purpose copy of the Bible to assist you in your Christian outreach. So there may not be the demand for New Testaments that there was, perhaps, fifty years ago

This brings us to the second part of the question. Why do some Christians only read the New Testament? There are a few different reasons that people reject reading the Old Testament. One is that with the advent of Darwinism in the Nineteenth Century. Christianity in the New Testament was seen as a natural evolution of the thought of mankind and therefore the Old Testament was considered not to meet the ethical and moral standards of the New Testament.

These opinions tend to pervade Christian thinking to some extent even today although I’m not certain that some of those who hold them completely understand why they adhere to them. In some circumstances there is a tendency to hold them because someone else taught them that this was the truth and they haven’t really thought to challenge the ideas behind them. By this I mean is it really true to say that the Old Testament is pre Christian and sub Christian and therefore we should not read it? Personally I would disagree with that statement. I don’t believe that the age of a text makes it less valid and I don’t think that we can dismiss a text as being sub Christian based on our evaluation of the ethical and moral values of the people who wrote it. There may be very good reasons for those people to have acted in the way that is described in the Old Testament.

Another reason Christians become centred on the New Testament is that they feel the gospel is based on faith, grace and God’s love. Such that, the emphasis is on the life of Jesus of Nazareth and his death burial and resurrection. The New Testament is written to Christians and for the benefit of the Church. Israel and the Law of Moses are not longer the focus of God’s work and Jews are saved through the gospel and are part of the Church. The solution to this equation is that the Old Testament is no longer relevant and has no meaning to the modern Christian.

The final part of the question “Is the Old Testament still relevant?” can be approached through two perspectives. The first states that God’s work and promises to the nation of Israel are everlasting. Genesis chapter seventeen says “4 As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, And you will be the father of a multitude of nations. 5 “No longer shall your name be called Abram, But your name shall be Abraham; For I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. 6“I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings will come forth from you. 7“I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you. 8“I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” So the covenant with Abraham and his descendants is an everlasting one and the Old Testament is still relevant to all believers because of this.

The second perspective is that the Law of Moses is also eternal and although we are saved through grace in Jesus Christ. The sin we are set free from is defined in the Law. Hence we need to read and understand the Old Testament to understand what the Messiah set us free from and how Jehovah achieved our Salvation. Remember Jesus said of the Law “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” Matthew 5:17-18 KJV

So the Old Testament is not just relevant to the believer today it is essential to read and understand the books of the Old Testament to gain an understanding of the events it describes. Everything from the Creation, the Fall of Man, The Flood, The dispensations God made to mankind including Grace and the reign of Jesus Christ in the Millennium and beyond to eternity. Also included are the books of Psalms, Proverbs and Lamentations and the Word of God through the Prophets and the accounts of the many Old Testament Saints in the book of Judges, Samuel, Chronicles, and the Kings. Not to mention the Captivity described in Daniel, Jeremiah and Isaiah and the return to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple and the Wall of the City in the time of Nehemiah and the Prophecies relating to the Messiah and the End of the Age of Grace.

Why wouldn’t you read the Old Testament?

Reference List

Goldsworthy G. Why Read the Old Testament. https://www.monergism.com/why-read-old-testament 06.01.19

All Scriptures http://www.biblehub.com King James Version. 06.01.19

Are You Saved?

I want to preach to you briefly from the book of Romans. Firstly Romans chapter 3 and verse 10 says “There is none righteous, not even one...” So if I ask you are you righteous what would you say to me? In truth if you are already a Christian you probably already know that your righteousness is as filthy rags before the Lord (Isaiah 66:6 NKJV). So what can we say then. How about you can’t save yourself so you must get your righteousness from Jesus Christ.

Romans chapter 3 verse 23 says “...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” So you are not righteous and you have sinned and fall short of God’s glory. Sin separates you from God and unless you jolly well sort it out you are going to die in your sins in eternal fire separated from God.

Romans chapter 6 verse 24 says “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The wages of our sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life in his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ who bore our sins on the Cross and paid the sin debt that we owe in our place. Yes God took your place and was judged instead of you and me that if we believe on Jesus Christ our Savior we have eternal life. Our sins forgiven.

My friend II Peter chapter 3 verse 9 says “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” Know that God has made preparation before you were born that if you choose Jesus Christ as your savior then your sins are forgiven and your salvation is assured. Jehovah loves you and is not willing for you to perish in your sins. If you are not saved then it is time to get down on your knees and seek the Father to forgive your sins in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son and to ask him come into your heart in the person of the Holy Spirit of God. If you have faith then he will do this for you

God bless you my friends.

Reference List

All scriptures from http://www.biblegateway.com From either the NKJV and NASB Versions of the Bible.

A Festival of Sin

We live in a time when it is almost illegal to point out biblical sin. Idolatry, Cursing the name of God, Keeping the day of worship, Respect and obey your parents and elders, Do not kill (In any way including Abortion), Do Not commit adultery (Almost laughable today because so many fail to even marry.), Do not steal (Our Police don’t have time to even police theft now.), Do not lie (You only need to look at politics to see that today the crime is not to lie but to get caught lying.), Do not covet your neighbour's goods (In this Godless society what don’t we covet?) None of these commandments are considered relevant anymore and Christians are considered to be and intolerant nuisance. In the secular world if Christians stick their necks out by bringing the truth of the Word of God to bare on wickedness of the people then they will be persecuted through prosecution.

The Ten Commandments of Exodus chapter twenty state:

The Ten Commandments

1. You shall have no other Gods but me.
2. You shall not make for yourself any idol, nor bow down to it or worship it.
3. You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God.
4. You shall remember and keep the Sabbath day holy.
5. Respect your father and mother.
6. You must not commit murder.
7. You must not commit adultery.
8. You must not steal.
9. You must not give false evidence against your neighbour.
10. You must not be envious of your neighbour's goods. You shall not be envious of his house nor his wife, nor anything that belongs to your neighbour.

The Ten Commandments above are a foundation to the laws that our Western Societies are founded on. Non God fearing folk want to ignore these laws and to have what they call a more tolerant and open society. A place where everyone has the freedom to do as they please as long as it doesn’t interfere with anyone else. What they don’t realise is that you can only have that freedom if God’s laws underpin your society. The world they are living in is a hybrid of Good and Evil. Once the law is completely removed and replaced by evil that freedom no longer exists. Then they will find themselves in the a Dark and Satanic Kingdom where their only right is complete obedience to their the devil. A world of complete lawlessness and utter tyranny. A place where horror is routine and hatred, malice and contempt are the fruit of the spirit of evil. A place best described in the book of Genesis as Sodom and Gomorrah epitomised by the actions of Ahab (King of Israel), and his infamous wife Jezebel in the book of Kings in the service of Baal.

You can’t have a society without moral values and have freedom. You can have a hybrid society of good and evil but eventually the people either repent and follow God or, continue in sin and end up facing the judgement of God. Most people in their right minds don’t want to live in an evil and unsafe society like Sodom and Gomorrah. These people were so evil that the men of the city wanted, one of their citizens, Lot to give them the Angels that came to take him out of the way of God’s judgement. This so that they could have carnal knowledge of them. The Angels smote them with blindness and even that didn’t stop them trying to find a way into Lot’s house to have their way with them. Lets face it, the world we live in kills unborn innocent babies by using the most barbaric methods and no one raises an eyebrow. How different is our society from that of Sodom and Gomorrah? How far are we from the point at which God decides to judge this society. You can read in Genesis chapter nineteen what happened to the cities of the Dead Sea Plain.

The Greek philosopher Plato described the various types of government which unfold in a kind of perpetual cycle over time. In his opinion first came Aristocracy or the rule of a King. Secondly followed Timocracy or the rule of benevolent or often more accurately a benign military rule. This is followed, thirdly, in Plato’s opinion by Oligarchy which is rule by wealth and land holding or the Free Market. The final, or fourth type of legitimate government is Democracy or rule by liberty and equality where the people vote to make laws and choose representatives. Aristotle called this the rule by many or the free citizenry. Plato believed this cycle of government always lead ultimately to to tyranny or “Rule by fear, without just laws; like a despot.” Plato also believed that a perfect Republic contained a blend of all of these types of government and the ultimate goal was to create a government that avoided Tyranny for as long as possible and at all costs.

We see the tension between the types of government that Plato considered played out in real life in the Roman Empire. Rome had it all: Aristocracy, Timocracy, Oligarchy and Democracy in various configurations through the seven hundred years of the Empire. The Romans employed all of Plato and Aristotle’s collective wisdom to save Western Civilisation as the Empire began to decline and fall. Changing to Christianity as the state religion and incorporating the pagan elements in that new hybrid religious Church State. Attempting to ensure that a scaffold was put in place to sustain unity of government in Europe and to halt the decline into anarchy and eventual tyranny by making certain that enough of the key structures of government survived the transition from Empire to Church State.

Probably the closest governments to Plato and Aristotle’s model of blended government have been the British Empire and in the current United States of America. The British Empire was far from perfect but God allowed righteousness to prosper in the British people and the Christian Church that other type of Government resulted from the freedom to share the gospel of Jesus Christ during the Empire’s period of influence. America has been an interesting blend of righteousness balanced against the wickedness. I don’t know if Plato and Aristotle counted the influence that the one true creator God could have on the government of a nation. Anymore than they factored in the negative influence of Satan and his forces of darkness. The United States as we see it right now is the principal actor to usher in the New World Order. The New World Order will enact Plato’s worst fears. A sustained period of Tyranny and Lawlessness.

I doubt that many people realise that God represents all that is good in the universe. He embodies love, light and righteousness. In our world he is the champion of the lost, the embattled and the disenfranchised. He loved mankind so much that he came to us as the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, that he might redeem us from our sins and that we might have eternal life. So that we might live in glory with God fulfilling the destiny that God has had for us since the day he created Adam and Eve. His purpose is to demonstrate the righteousness is the only wise and true form of government and that there is no greater act of love than when a God lays down his own life as a human being to provide a path back to a restored relationship with Jehovah Elohim through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Satan was once a great and glorious ArchAngel. Probably the most powerful being in the Universe next to God himself. He was perfect until sin was found in him. He embodies hatred and unrighteousness. He rules through tyranny and gives no quarter to anyone or anything. His hatred of God is such that he deliberately subverted the work of creation here on Earth and usurped the place of man becoming the Prince of this World. Most of the people in his service don’t truly understand Satan or his plans for mankind and the Earth. Part of his revenge against God for casting him from heaven will be the total annihilation of mankind from the face of the Earth and the destruction of every aspect of God’s perfect creation. Those who worship him in his various guises are simply and completely deceived. He is a master liar and is the Prince of Deception. Loyalty is not in his nature and he will casually reward a lifetime of service with a knife in the back. Those who are valuable to him are only valuable for their skills in the pursuit of wickedness. Beyond that he has no sentimentality or attachment to his tools. Serve him and die or fail him and die. It matters not to the devil. Tyranny is his only aim, that and to take the place of Jehovah God on the throne in heaven. His greatest motivation is to oppose and if possible to destroy people’s faith in God so that they are eternally separated from God. If he could he would destroy God and all of the Creation and then to supplant himself on the throne of God. Ultimately he is doomed and Satan and all of those who follow him will be thrown into the Lake of Fire in the day of judgement.

In the end The Festival of Sin that so many describe in an almost euphoric way as “Wicked Man” will have been seen to be only possible if there is a semblance of a moral framework underpinning it. Once that is completely eroded by tyranny and wickedness there is no freedom and so no seemingly enjoyable “Festival of Sin.” The devil and his throng will have seen to have failed to produce a substantial case for his model for the universe based on evil and those who have watched for so long will understand that Jehovah’s way of righteousness is only viable system of rule for the universe.

THEREFORE MY FRIENDS. Come to Jesus Christ in repentance so that you may truly say as the apostle Paul did in the book of Galatians chapter two: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me...”

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Reference List

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Ancient Political Philosophy. First published Mon Sep 6, 2010; substantive revision Fri Dec 7, 2018. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ancient-political/ 22.12.18

Michelle T. Plato’s Five Regimes: Understanding The Classical Forms of Government as Presented By Plato. http://factmyth.com/platos-five-regimes/ 22.12.18

Sodom’s Depravity. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+19&version=NKJV 15.12.18

What are the Ten Commandments. Topmarks. https://www.topmarks.co.uk/judaism/the-ten-commandments 15.12.18

Jezebel. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jezebel 15.12.18

The Nineteenth Century: English Revised Version Bible

The Nineteenth Century (1800 -1899), was a busy time for Christians and the Antichrist movement alike. In America an event happened in the early part of the century called the Great Awakening where millions heard the gospel of Jesus Christ preached and were converted. In 1844 there was an event called the Great Disappointment which happened because a pastor called William Miller didn’t believe Jesus Christ when he said in scripture “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only...” Matthew 24:36. He made several predictions on the date of the Second Coming of Jesus and after being thoroughly humbled he repented of his error. Unfortunately he had in the process of his folly started a movement which became known as the Adventists. Out of that movement came the Seventh Day Adventist Church and the Jehovah’s Witness Cult.

As I mentioned the Antichrist movement was also very active at the time as well. Ellen White of Seventh Day Adventist note is often described as being from an esoteric background and as a result the Church that she founded (SDA), has a number of false teachings and doctrines, such as, the Investigative Judgement and Soul Sleep. During this period Joseph Smith was busy meeting with angels and finding golden plates and so was born the Mormon Church of the Latter Day Saints. I think it is fair to say that the nineteenth century was a time of great growth amongst the Christian Church and significant progress in the Mystery of Iniquity.

One such work was a Romish attack on the 1611 King James Version of the Bible through a revision that occurred in the 1880’s. This is the only official revision of the King James Bible ever undertaken. There were a number updates to word spelling and printing errors by the publishers at Cambridge (1762) and Oxford (1769) and many subsequent word updates which made the KJV more current to the language of the day. I will add that I am not approaching this topic from a KJV only point of view. I firmly believe that if we were to be given a 1611 King James Version bible that we would not be able to interact with it from a meaningful perspective. The language was far more shakespearean in nature and simply wouldn’t convey a lot of meaning and, therefore light on the Christian narrative four hundred years on.

On this theme I would like to focus on the revision of the 1611 King James Version culminating in the 1881 English Revised New Testament and the 1885 English Revised Old Testament and subsequently the English Revised Version of the Bible (1881-1895). Two well known theologians, Brooke Westcott and Fenton Hort, were involved in the bible translation side of the project and represented the more esoteric or, dare we say papist concerns. To be fair there was a substantial process put in place under the Convocation of Canterbury and many fine churchmen, scholars and theologians worked together to produce an elegant, modern, clean reading bible with efficient reference tools that still stands up well even today.

However, when compared on verse by verse basis with the King James Bible it becomes apparent that there may have been certain agenda’s enacted in the text of the English Revised Bible. Which has been used as the template for virtually all of the modern translations of the last one hundred years. Many modern translations are identical in most texts on an almost word for word basis. It appears there has been considerable work done to alter the way the deity of Jesus Christ is portrayed. Certain verses have been left out that either impact the deity of Christ or effect the accuracy and validity of the bible. For instance where a New Testament scripture directly quotes from the Old Testament there are a number of instances of the New Testament verse being removed. References to the blood of Jesus have in some cases been removed. There also appears to have been an attempt to shift the emphasis of salvation from the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on the Cross toward a somewhat more works based model involving the Church and the clergy. If I were to describe the process that has taken place then I would say that the scholars involved with this translation have optimised the bible for a more Catholic and Esoteric audience.

Here are a few verses to highlight some of the strategies used to achieve various agendas. Here I will compare the American Standard Version which is essentially the same Bible version as the English Revised Version.

1.

II Samuel 21:19 “And there was again war with the Philistines at Gob; and Elhanan the son of Jaareoregim the Beth-lehemite slew Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.” ASV

II Samuel 21:19 KJV “And there was again a battle in Gob with the Philistines, where Elhanan the son of Jaareoregim, a Bethlehemite, slew the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.”

As you can see there is a difference between the two versions as to who slew Goliath. The confusion comes from a scribal error over a word which means bread but with an extra letter means brother. The translators of the KJV were concerned for the accuracy of the record and assumed the word to be brother. The translators of the ASV were concerned for the accuracy of the translation and omitted the word. This means that they are saying that the record of David slaying Goliath is put under some doubt because here it says that Jaaraoregim slew him. It raises the question can we believe the Bible? It gives the Papists the opportunity to say “You see how inaccurate the bible is, how can you know if it is accurate about who Jesus Christs is?” “Come to us, our Pope and his Church can save you.”

2.

Matthew 5:44 “..but I say unto you, love your enemies, and pray for them that persecute you..” ASV

Matthew 5:44 “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you...” KJV

As you can see in Matthew 5:44 above “do good to them that hate you..” and “..which despitefully use you, and..” have been removed and it completely changes what is being said here. You could say less is more but it really isn’t if it weakens the narrative.

3.

Matthew 20:16 “So the last shall be first, and the first last.” ASV

Matthew 20:16 “So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.” KJV

Once again an essential part of the verse is omitted. “.. for many be called, but few chosen.” KJV Few being chosen conveys that a person might not be saved. From a Catholic perspective the Church can and will save everyone so a bible which omits some of the exclusivity of God calling man but few men being chosen works well with the Papist dogma. So hence the change. It had to go.

4.

Matthew 25:13 Watch therefore, for ye know not the day nor the hour. ASV

Matthew 25:13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh. KJV

Fairly obvious the issue here. The subject has been deleted i.e.: What are ye watching for? The hour... wherein the Son of man cometh. Why has this been deleted? Because the papists are not looking for the return of Jesus Christ in glory and neither are the esoteric supposedly enlightened ones.

5.

Matthew 24:36 But of that day and hour knoweth no one, not even the angels of heaven, neither the Son, but the Father only. ASV

Matthew 24:36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. KJV

Here the ASV adds two words “the Son” and it makes a big difference because it is saying that Jesus doesn’t know the day of his return. Note that this in not in the KJV. Those two words are not in the KJV. Why? Well if Jesus and the Father are one as Jesus stated in John 10:30 I and my Father are one. If Jesus and the Father are one then wouldn’t he know the hour of his coming? So to add those two words in Matthew 24:36 implies that Jesus and the father are not one. It is a direct attack on the deity of Jesus Christ.

6:

Mark 6:11 And whatsoever place shall not receive you, and they hear you not, as ye go forth thence, shake off the dust that is under your feet for a testimony unto them... ASV

Mark 6:11 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgement, than for that city. KJV

What happened to Sodom and Gomorrah? If you had problem with things of that nature in your church wouldn’t such a saying be offensive to you? Perhaps you could just edit it out and it wouldn’t be a problem anymore?

7.

1 Peter 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in your obedience to the truth unto unfeigned love of the brethren, love one another from the heart fervently:...ASV

1 Peter 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:... KJV

So your obedience to the truth rather than obeying the truth through the Spirit. In other words salvation by your works rather than saved by grace in faith alone. We can do nothing to redeem ourselves or even to obey the truth except through faith in Jesus Christ’s redemptive work on the Cross, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit revealing the nature of Jesus in us but, that is not what this verse is implying in the modern translations.

So to conclude. At the head of this article is a picture of some of the verses you might like to check out for yourself. You can use the parallel bible feature of the Bible Hub website to compare multiple versions at one time. Acts chapter 17 verse 11 tells of the Bereans who studied the scriptures to see if what Paul had told them was true. Acts 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. So my friends I admonish you to study to show yourself approved by reading the bible regardless of translation to increase your knowledge of the Almighty God and his ways.

One of the translators of the English Revised Translation Brooke Foss Westcott, of infamous Westcott and Hort notoriety, had this to say about the New Testament revision process at the time (circa 1885). “Difficulties and differences of opinion necessarily arise in determining the relative claims of faithfulness and elegance of idiom when they come into conflict. But the example of the Authorised Version seems to show that it is better to incur the charge of harshness, than to sacrifice a peculiarity of language, which, if it does nothing else, arrests attention, and reminds the reader that there is something in the words which is held to be more precious than the music of a familiar rhythm. The Bible, indeed, has most happily enriched our language with many turns of Hebrew idiom, and I believe that the Revision of the New Testament does not contain anything unusual either in expression or in order which is not justified by the Old Version.”

As I mentioned earlier the ERV and the ASV are elegant, modern, clean reading bibles with efficient reference tools that still stand up well even today. The point here is the deliberate weakening of the scripture in these two bibles and it’s continuation in subsequent bible translations up to date. The optimization of these bible’s to accommodate a Romish and Esoteric world view by changing scriptures and deleting texts to affect a more general interpretation in doctrine. Even so I am not recommending anyone stop using the translation that they are currently using. I am all too aware of the damage to faith caused by unhelpful disputes over scripture and doctrine. What I would suggest is that believers use a number of translations including the KJV and ASV to broaden their knowledge of the themes and doctrines of the Word of God. Find out what the scriptures relating to the blood of Jesus are and what they mean to our salvation. Search as the Bereans did and understand the credentials of Jesus Christ and his deity as the Lord of Lords and King of Kings, Immanuel who is God with us. Seek to understand all of scripture to apply it to your faith and enhance your witness of the gospel.

Blessings to you all in Jesus Christ, our glorious Lord and Savior.

Bruce Gibbs

Reference List

Brooke Foss Westcott, Some Lessons of the Revised Version of the New Testament (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1898), pp. 4-7.

English Revised Version (1881-1895) http://www.bible-researcher.com/erv.html 09.12.18

Norris R. 2014. Todays KJV and 1611 Compared and More. Unbound Scripture Publications.

Veith W. Changing the Word/ Total Onslaught. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqBEuxGY7DI&t=423s 09.12.18

Technology Transformation

Our nations classrooms are being transformed by technology as our children are consumed by the mobile revolution. Games, social media and the growing connectedness experienced by i-Gen are making traditional learning settings irrelevant. Living in fantasy or mixture of reality with the digital world is more important to many i-Gen than living a real life that requires concentrated effort and self discipline. 

 

As a result significant numbers of students at high school are literally dropping out of school because they are seeing the current learning environment as no longer worth their time. In many instances they know that their chances of getting a job are slim at best even if they get their 80 credits by the end of year twelve. So why bother appears to be their thinking. Why not just stop going to school? After all the teacher’s just give them grief about the work they haven’t done all the time. Who needs that?

 

Schools are lagging far behind i-Gen in this environment. I don’t think they realise what the implications of these symptoms are. They realise that through digital technology they have lost control of student learning but think that by retrenching and placing restrictions on the use of cell phones that they will reverse the situation. They underestimate how embedded the students have become in this technology. The students would sooner continue with their digital synthesis of life than continue with their frustrating school life. At some point i-Gen will simply revolt and demand a more relevant system of learning that embraces their current saturated information holistic digital reality.

 

Digital technology is about to take a quantum leap in capability. Powers beyond government level are guiding this process and the next generation of cell phone technology will be based around microchips with an ability to link humanity in a way simply not possible using a cell phone or personal computer. Because i-Gen live a large part of their life in the digital domain as the technology becomes more sophisticated they will begin to be connected together in a virtual shared reality. It will become possible to establish a link between the brain and computers, alter behavior, restore sight, medicate people and enable a permanent link with the world system at a personal and global level. They will interface at a mental level sharing thought with each other. 

 

Imagine how this could revolutionise systems like the Chinese Sky Net population monitoring system. It would give the state access to your very thoughts. The concepts of pre-crime and thought control would become a reality enabling the state to arrest criminals as they think of the crime and incorporating software in the microchips capable of deleting and rewriting thought - mind control. This is not a far fetched prophecy from the distant future. There are companies working with this technology and the science is well developed.

 

The likely impacts on i-Gen are going to be profound as they move from hand held digital reality synthesis to virtual reality within the confines of their own minds. The ability to think and feel with a virtual community. The ability for the community to assert moral precepts on the individual in much the same way as a hive mind. Anyone familiar with the Borg on the series Star Trek The Next Generation would understand what I am intimating here. I believe that cell phone technology has been used to induce humanity to accept technology as benign and if anything beneficial. I think the uptake of the next generation of that technology will be immediate.

 

Christians have postulated the idea of a rapture of the Church in the end times of the Church Age. I must admit to having been very dubious about the idea of God removing the Church to spare them in the time of trouble. I have to say though that with the advent of the microchip biotech and the likely assimilation and control of every human that receives the technology. It seems to me that no one who receives this technology could function independently of the 666 system described in the book of Revelation. It may well be that the Rapture would be the only way that God could preserve the saved status of the bride of Christ - The Bible Believing Christian Church.

 

AS to i-Gen? I think that schools will have to change rapidly to accommodate the digitally enhanced reality of their students and even then there will be those so addicted to their digital devices and the instant gratification now available to them. Many will quit school and begin their fulfilling digital lifestyles. This combined with the growing influence of the gang culture and new and more addictive games will doubtless lead to increasing social disorder and lawlessness. Again bible prophecy has pointed the way to this happening in these last days of the Age of Grace. Now as it happens.

 

Reference List

 

Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation+13&version=KJV 02.12.2018

 

Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+24%3A12&version=NKJV 02.12.2018

 

Biochip Implants. https://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/ciencia/secret_projects/implants.htm 02.12.2018

 

BioHax International. https://www.biohax.tech/ 02.12.2018