Grace, Back to Fundamentals

"Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." - Genesis 6:8
"We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone." - Martin Luther

Ask yourself, 'What is grace' ?  One of my pastors defined it like this:
Gods
Riches
At
Christs
Expense
I have come to believe that grace is much more than that.  I have also come to the conclusion that grace is the absence of legalism, the rules of do's and don't s.
To inherit God's grace one must believe by pure faith that it is freely given because of Christ.  This is total freedom, knowing there is nothing we have to do to obtain it or receive it.
Grace lifts the burden of shame and guilt and in grace there is no condemnation.
Grace is both horizontal and vertical.  It allows us to approach God and also change how we approach others.
During the scandals of the late 1980's there were those who declared that those preachers should never enter a pulpit again.
My stand on the subject is this, Grace is a two way street.
Parishioners expect that there leaders to show forgiveness when asked, but pastors who fall from grace should also expect grace from the parishioners.
I have learned to live by faith that I have God's grace all the days of my life.  If I were to transgress, I can go boldly to God and ask for His' forgiveness, and freely receive grace.

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Point of Order - Change of View

As a young preacher I was very steadfast on views of Bible themes and doctrines.
I was 17  and a woman started attending my home church along with her husband.  He was sort of a quiet and staid man, but she was very outgoing.  It turned out that she was an evangelist out of a large church in Detroit, Michigan.
I liked her and we became friends.
I was looking for work and one day her husband asked me if I would like to work in an orchard that he managed.  I told him yes.
I began having conversations about different things with the woman.  Sometimes we would agree, other times we would differ.  One day she chuckled, looked at me and said that I would mellow one day.  I just shrugged off that comment.
I am no longer active in any ministry, but I do still study and do research.
Lately, my mind has been on things to come according to Bible Prophecy.  How does the things mentioned in the Old Testament mesh with ideas mentioned in the New Testament.
What did Jesus mean in Matthew 24, or the Apostle John when he penned the Book of Revelation on the island of Patmos?
Mankind has unleashed some terrible horrors on each other.  Just in the 20th century alone we have seen a nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima.  Could this be something John saw and wrote about?
The wars that have been fought in just the last hundred years have been the reason for millions of lives lost.
Brother against brother.  Wars between factions of the same culture and faith.  Wars launched for the sole purpose to eradicate a whole race of people.
In every time, event, there have been religious alarmists that have declared that this was the end times and that Christ is coming very shortly.  This is a message I have heard since my earliest memories.  I believed that message for most of my life.
Yes, I believe in the end times but just not how I was taught to believe.
Christ warned that not even the Son of Man knew the hour of His' return.  So, those who are preaching that we are in a certain period of Bible prophecy, I would caution those who are listening to them.
I have resigned myself to the idea that no one has the correct meaning of the time when events will unfold.
I now live like it could be tomorrow, but I have trust in God no matter what.  I really do believe in the words of the hymn, "God Will Take Care of You" :

1. Be not dismayed whate’er betide,
   God will take care of you;
   Beneath His wings of love abide,
   God will take care of you.
• Refrain:
  God will take care of you,
  Through every day, o’er all the way;
  He will take care of you,
  God will take care of you.

Scriptures teach us not to worry over tomorrow.
Someone reading this probably thought I was going to elaborate on Bible prophecies, sorry I am not doing that.
I am writing this because of how many are panicking over the markets on Wall Street, the price of oil, etc.,.
To worry is useless, because it will not change things.

Do the Bible and Science, Do they Agree?

Most scoff at the idea that the Bible and Science agree.  To the scoffers it is like asking, can the left and right leaning politicians agree?
The left only believe what can only be found in a test tube in a sterile labratory.  Where the right won't accept science and they stand firm only in the Bible.
I truly believe as I have grown older that both agree and each prove the validity of the other.  A millenial ago writing a thesis on this topic would be labelled heresy and the author a heretic.
I believe in what Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, 'study to show yourself approved rightly dividing the Word of God'.
Over the passing centuries church goers were taught not to question the conventional thinking of organized religion.
Martin Luther came along questioning the theory of salvation of works.  He believed it was salvation by grace.  Eventually he broke away from the church of Rome.  Now we have a group named after him known as The Lutheran Church.
How many things would we not be able to enjoy if scientists and inventors did not challenge the accepted thoughts of their day.
We have light because of Edison, flight the reward from the hard work of the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawke.
The staunch creationists believe the earth is approximately six thousand years old.  Science declares it is at least five billion years of age.  So, which is right?
I don't have the answers about dinosaurs, but I have to accept the evidence of the fossils found.  Somehow they did exist, they lived and roamed on earth.
My theory is that they existed before man.  During their time something major took place that started their extinction.
I feel it was a time before the period that we read about in the book of Genesis.  This is a theory that answers both science and creationists.
At times we have to challenge conventional thought.  This is my reason why I started this blog.
During the three years of his' ministry, Christ challenged the accepted organised religion of his' day, both Jewish and Roman.
The Jewish heirarchy called him a heretic, a false prophet.  They didn't believe what his' followers were saying.  The followers thought of him as messiah, the King to the throne of David.  Christ asked his' disciples, 'who do men say that I am?'  One of the answers was 'the Son of God'.
The more I learn, the more I discover that every  thought of theory has a counter-thought of theory.
Science has proof that the earth went through an ice age.  They also know there has been some type of flood, because of finding fossils of ocean species in places for which there is no logical explanation.
In Genesis we read of a man, Noah, who was told to build an ark because, God was going to flood the earth.  For God was displeased with man.
Yes, I believe that science and the Bible agree.  It just takes putting all of the facts into evidence.

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2015, Back to the 1930's

Former president FDR made this statement during his' inauguration, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself".

In the Bible Job said this as he was going through his trials, "(Job 3:25 MSG)  The worst of my fears has come true, what I've dreaded most has happened."

Our parents did teach us when we were children something I would like to call, 'good fear'.  It was for our benefit and that was to keep us safe.  Things like to look both ways before crossing the street, and many more things.

Mankind is a compilation of feelings.  Not everyone fears the same things.  One may have a dreadful fear of water, while someone else fears spiders.

Many would present the argument about Nature vs. Nurture.

I was once told that if a baby does not feel love during its infancy it will not be able to show love to others.  It also has been theorized that if a baby is left alone and not receive any type of affection for a length of time, it will become sickly and die.

All of mankind has a deep need of love and acceptance.

A proven theory is that a person who has been abused will more than likely to become the abuser.

So, I lean towards the idea of nurture instead of nature.  It may be the fact that mankind is sentient being.  The idea of nature most likely applies to all other species on the earth.

So, we have a choice about which emotions we give into.  Receive love, show love, receive fear, show fear.

The voice of fear that is sounding around the world, but is very prevalent and strong in the USA.  This voice that is condemning a whole people of the Muslim faith and also refugees and immigrants is basically the same voice as the fear during the 1930's and the presidency of FDR.  The only real difference is back then it was not Muslims, but the Jewish community.

This voice is condemning ninety-nine percent for the evil that only one percent of extremists and radicals are causing.

Yes, it is true that those who forget history and doom to repeat it.

Christ gave us a commandment to Love our neighbors as  ourselves.

I would rather choose Love instead of fear!

More Clues, More Understanding

"You need to know that I have other sheep in addition to those in this pen. I need to gather and bring them, too. They'll also recognize my voice. Then it will be one flock, one Shepherd." (John 10:16 MESSAGE VERSION)


Years ago if you were to ask me questions on certain ideas of the Bible I would have given you a very unbending answer.  Today, not so rigid in my theories.
I remember when I was in high school there was a part of science that I was steadfast about, the theory about creation.  As I have said in my last post I was raised evangelical.  The science class though, was teaching that the earth was created differently.  The theory of Darwin was to me total non- sense.  Dinosaurs was something that someone was hoaxing scientists.  I was a pure creationist, dead stop.  Well, it was final exam time and there was part of the exam that dealt with Darwin, and I refused to answer what the teacher wanted.  Of course I failed, but I stuck to my belief.  I wasn't shamed into believing otherwise.  Some of the other students did join me in this, and others did not.


As I have grown older I have developed a keen interest in science and I watch many shows that deal with many areas of science.  I find it quite interesting how man has created telescopes that are orbiting in space and also probes that have been sent to explore planets and other stars.  These were things that in my childhood were only thought of in sci-fi shows.  The amazing part is that things that were once considered science fiction are now science fact.


I now there are some, no matter what, are like I was, un-yielding in their beliefs.  They have not grown in when it comes to understanding.  I am probably sure that if Davince were alive today and I could see and hear what science has discovered would think it was fantastical if he were just using the understanding of the time he lived in.


Many know the saying about not judging someone until you walk a mile in their shoes.  The more I learn the less I realize I know.


I cannot understand my neighbour until I really know and understand my neighbour.  What are his' likes, what does he believe.  My mother told me something before I was ever a parent that the hardest thing for a parent to go through would be the loss of a child.  I now have a daughter and grand children.  When I hear of someone losing a child I can only imagine the extreme terrible grief and pain they are going through.  I think of what I might feel like if I were to lose my daughter or grand child, and I cannot conceive that type of loss.


Today the world is experiencing a type of fear that is all gripping.  It leading some to make judgements against one whole segment of humanity just because the extreme radicals among that group.  Ask yourself if  could I spot a person's faith just by looking at them if they were in a large group.  The answer that should come back to you is 'No' .  The color of skin is not a criteria either in judging the person's faith, nor is the country they live in.


In history we have seem this type of fear grip countries before, when Jewish people were emigrating to the U.S.A., some were preaching fear about them.  The jewish community was trying to escape the horrors happening in Germany under a dictator trying to wipe them from planet earth.  The men that created the huge movie studios in Hollywood actually changed their names to hide the fact that they were of the Jewish faith, just so they would not be persecuted.


Today it is no different.  The Muslim community is experiencing persecution because of a small segment of people are extreme radicals who have bastadize the name 'Islam'.


In the community where I live, I can tell you that I know several people of the Muslim community.  They are fine outstanding people who are doing great things for all those in the community. 


So, let's not be so quick to offer judgement on things we don't understand or know.  Let's take time to get to know and understand our neighbour.


When you hear someone making broad strokes against a whole culture, speak up and tell them they need to keep quiet and stop showing their ignorance.


End of discussion!

Re-Thinking Scriptural History

In the past several months I have been studying various forms of religious information.  Different Bible Translations, the background of cultural societies in the Bible.

Also, I have been studying the history of what was happening in the known world when authors in the Bible were experiencing at the time of the writings.  I came across a thought that was mentioned in a documentary on the History Channel.  The younger me wouldn’t have given it the time of day and would have dismissed it as heresy.  It was the study of the books in the Bible found in the Douay-Rheims Bible, Challoner Revision, which is books like the Macabees, etc.,  Also the Catholic Bible.  These books were not included in the accepted King James Version which most Protestant churches use.

I believe that a person who wants to grow needs to be always opened to new thoughts and to explore these thoughts.

I have written in the past that we need to use every available tool, whether it be the tradition hard copy, or the 21st century internet and computers.

I hope that anyone who reads this will have the courage to look at the Scriptures with a new zeal and an openness.

A point of interest; I was raised as an evangelical, but now I can see things that do not align with scriptures and with history.

When I Study, Which Bible Version Should I Use?

I've banked your promises in the vault of my heart so I won't sin myself bankrupt.
(Psalms 119:11 MSG)

Since the invention of the printing press man began to have access to facts, stories, and of course the printed Word.  The Bible is still the most sold book in the world.

Well man began to study looking at different reference materials to get a better understanding of the Holy Scriptures.  They would compile what they had researched and began offering varying translations of the Bible.  These translations would soon become within the price range of the average working person.

A debate began and it is still ongoing, which is the best version of the Bible is best.

Most found themselves choosing one version, The King James Bible, sanctioned to be created by King James of England around the year 1611.

Before the advent of the computer and the internet it was difficult for a person to house many translations in their book shelves.  To have at least 2 versions many would purchase a parallel Bible.  Two versions side by side on the page.  Also, many would have cross-references and footnotes.  One Study Bible rose to the top of people’s favourites, The Thompson Chain Reference Bible.

Now everyone can have as many multiple Bible versions right on their computer.  There are two free Bible software that I use constantly.  E-Sword.  The other is The Word.Both have lots of free modules that can be installed into the programs.  I would encourage you to try both.  Also try various Bible versions.  You soon will find your favourites.  There are also many other help modules, like Commentaries, Dictionaries, etc…

So, we no longer have any excuses to any road blocks to studying the Bible.

Finally, most books of the Bible have been transcribed from original texts.  No one Bible is the definitive version, no set rule.

Find your computer, boot it up, install the software and start your many long years of enriched studying.

What Would Jesus Do?

You need to know that I have other sheep in addition to those in this pen. I need to gather and bring them, too. They'll also recognize my voice. Then it will be one flock, one Shepherd.
(John 10:16 MSG)

As I write this the attacks in Paris is still being covered by news media everywhere.

As I am watching the news I am wondering one thing, what would Jesus do?  When I ask myself that question I remember the story of the good Samaritan.  A man had been beaten and robbed and left for dead on the side of the road.  One man went by and basically ignored the man.  Another also went by, he said yes I see your needs and kept going on his’ way.  Yet another man came upon the man, he saw the needs and instead of going on his’ way he stopped and attended to the man’s wounds and the rest of the needs.

There is a certain segment of people in the west who are playing a game of fear about the security and safety of their own.  They are wanting to close their doors to the refugees.  Like the story of the man on the side of the road they are walking by, seeing and knowing the refugees needs but do not want to stop and offer help.

Of everything I know about the true faith of Muslim People they are a peaceful people.

The group called ISIS is not a true Islam.  They are some radical bunch of hateful, murderous, and divisive people.

Are you the reader, going to be a follower of the crowd or are you going to be inclusive of people of the Muslim Faith.

I believe if Jesus were here on earth, he would be offering a hand up to the many who are hurting and running from terror in their homeland.

I realise that writing this post that it could invoke some controversy but I am willing to take that risk.

Let’s all love our brother and sisters even if they do not look like or speak like us.

Studying in these times

Study and be eager and do your utmost to present yourself to God approved (tested by trial), a workman who has no cause to be ashamed, correctly analyzing and accurately dividing [rightly handling and skillfully teaching] the Word of Truth.
(2 Timothy 2:15 AMP)

From the time we start school there is one theme that we are taught all throughout our school years, to get good grades we must study.  Yes, most of us complain how hard it is to study and how difficult it is to finish an exam on what we have studied.

We finally reach the end of grade twelve and we are now graduating and the next chapter of our learning starts with post – secondary education.  Then after all the hard work we leave with a degree, masters, etc.,

Somehow we have the impression that our study life is now over only to become aware that as we go through life we learn from life’s every aspect.  First job, marriage, then children.

The continuation of learning from life starts a new phase.  Retirement, children’s marriage, and the arrival of grand – children.

It is the same with our walk with God.  All through the scripture we are told to study.  The ten commandments, proverbs, sermon on the mount and the writings of the apostles,  Sometimes we ask how relevant is all these things.  We may not see the purpose immediately but somewhere down the path that the things we have learned become useful.

I am in my fifties and I am still learning new things as I study and read.  It is like the new day, fresh and vibrant.  Each time causing me to forge ahead to study and learn more.

I hope you will continue your studies in the scriptures it will bring about great dividends.

 

Evangelicals where are you!

Technorati Tags: Camping,rapture,May 21,Koran burning,evangelicals,study to show,2 Timothy 2:15,Luke 6:37

In the past several months there have been several incidents that have caught my attention which made me question asking what are pastors teaching behind their pulpits.  While pondering this my thought was, someone needs to go back to Sunday School and re-learn the basics and essentials of the Scripture.

During these events I watched and listen to the news media and how they were handling and presenting the stories behind the events.  I watched intently to see if there would be a spokesperson from the field of evangelicals, and to my dismay there was absolute silence from the evangelicals of North America.  I was to the point that I if asked what faith I belonged to I would consider lying about being raised in a Pentecostal, Evangelical background.  So here I am drawing attention to the one Bible verse that most seem ignore.

2 Timothy 2:15 -Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

In this 21st century it is not enough just to graduate from grade twelve because employers want is an employee who are well educated and always finding ways of keeping up with the trends that are changing not only the home but the workplace.  No matter what field you choose, it is going to be expected of you that you are on top of everything so you can stay ahead of the curve, so that you are not left behind while someone else are out there just waiting to take your position.

The verse I have used since started this blog really is relevant today.  When countries like the United States find themselves looking at an education system that needs to reform the system and getting the students the best education.

I live in Canada and the education system is also crumbling.

Now lets look at two events that should have raised red flags for all those who claim they are evangelical.

A so called pastor goes before the press and announces that he is going to burn a Koran and urges others to join with him. Now if this had been a leader in the Muslim community announcing he was going to burn a Bible evangelicals and others would have been in a complete stage of rage.

Christ gave us the correct answer of how we are to handle a person who we disagree with strongly.

Luke 6:37 - “Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:”

In the end only Koran was set on fire but that was still one too many.

The next event started in May 2011 when a pastor/radio host declared that the rapture would take place on May 21, 2011 beginning around 6 p.m.

For those who have studied scripture know that this pastor, Camping, was way off the mark.

Christ in the scriptures gave us several warnings about this type of person and this type of prophecy.  Mr. Camping was declaring that at a very certain time an event would take place. Now, either Mr. Camping didn’t read the scripture in its entirety or was deceived himself trying to deceive others. Christ himself declared that He the Son of God didn’t even know the timing of when He would return to earth, but did tell of what it would look like on earth around that time.

Mark 13:22  For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

Mark 13:23  But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.

Mark 13:24  But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,

Mark 13:25  And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.

Mark 13:26  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.

Mark 13:27  And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.

Mark 13:28  Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When her branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is near:

Mark 13:29  So ye in like manner, when ye shall see these things come to pass, know that it is nigh, even at the doors.

Mark 13:30  Verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done.

Mark 13:31  Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

Mark 13:32  But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

May 21, 2011 came and left with no event happening where there was a rapture and people disappearing from earth.

There was a group of believers in scriptures called the ‘Bereans’.  They used every wakened moment studying the scriptures to see whether certain things we true or false.

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.

Acts 17:12  Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.

So once again I encourage everyone to study and get to know the scriptures so that it would be very difficult for those to come around wanting to deceive people.

As someone said, ‘if you don’t stand for something, you will fall for everything.’

Please find your Bible, dust it off, and use it everyday not just on Sundays.

p.s.  - you can know reach me with questions, thoughts at: rethinkingscripture@gmail.com