Odd....

I have had 99 blog hits since my previous two posts concerning the 'religion of peace' (just over an hour ago). Odd how they happened all at once. There are certain words that command attention of unwanted readers. These were all from the United States. I would wager that if I traced them more carefully, I would come up with a location very close to Washington DC (which is another suspect word...just you watch the hits just keep on comin). It is so annoying. All you have to do is express an opinion and the thought police are on it. It's true that I do not know which thought police at this point, but it does not matter. They are all the same fascists. My opinion again.

UPDATE...make that 113 hits

Dreaming of Jesus In the Lands of Muhammad

There is apparently salvation for the followers of Islam through Jesus Christ. The odd part is that this is not happening through missionary efforts. Reports reveal that Muslims all over the world are having dreams and visions of Jesus Christ. Because of the dreams, they are compelled to investigate the claims of Christ and the veracity of the Bible and many, many are converting.

God's grace and love knows know bounds, but it does make sense. These misguided Muslims are the sons of Abraham through the hand maiden of Sarah (whose name escapes me). Why would God not offer them redemption through Jesus?

I also admire the courage of those that convert to the One True Faith. In Muslim culture it is very dangerous to live as a Christ follower and that brings me to my last point here.

Why is this happening? It is because, we, the western church, have failed in our approach to Islam and where we failed, Jesus stepped in to make it happen. This is a powerful event that should not be ignored. Jesus is taking His own from every race and faith on earth. He will not be hindered by His followers. If we will not do the job, He will do it for us. Go here for another good article on the subject. 

I have about as much grace and love for these uncivilized animals as I would for a pederast or a serial killer. None. Yet Jesus is finding the ones He wants and is taking them for Himself. That is as much a warning to me as it is a blessing to them. Who am I to judge another man's servant?

Islam Adapts as the World Changes....ya right

There is an interesting story on the World Net Daily website about recent fatwas issued by the religious authorities in Turkey and also the Grand Mufti in Saudi Arabia. For those unfamiliar, a fatwas is a religious edict put forward by high ranking Imams within Islam to settle religious questions. Most of them concern what is permissible behavior and what is not. Here are some excerpts.

"In Turkey, the top religious authority, known as the Directorate of Religious Affairs or Divanet, proclaimed that though water is the preferred method of cleansing oneself after using the toilet, paper is now an acceptable alternative if a water source is unavailable, reports the nation’s Hurriyet Daily News.
“If water cannot be found for cleansing, other cleaning materials can be used,” the Divanet statement said. “Even though some sources deem paper to be unsuitable as a cleaning material, as it is an apparatus for writing, there is no problem in using toilet paper.”"

And this one is my favorite....

'Meanwhile, in Saudi Arabia the grand mufti has reportedly found a new definition of halal – determining that, in the event of extreme hunger, it is acceptable in Islam for a man to chop up his wife and eat her – or one of them as the case may be.
The edict has been attributed to Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah, though it is yet to be officially confirmed.
The rationale, according to multiple local reports, is that the husband and his wife’s body will “fuse together after the husband eats his wife.” The husband would be permitted to eat “parts of her body” in such cases."

Islam. The religion of peace and civilized behavior. I wonder what wine you would serve with leg of wife...or perhaps he is a "breast man".

These people are animals. How we can regard them as allies is beyond me. If this makes me intolerant, then so be it.

Lord, if they cannot be saved, then please bring down your judgement on such people. Crush them with your righteous hand and send them to the Abyss along with the demon they worship.  

The Flathead Beacon Police Blotter

I'm not sure why I enjoy reading this so much. It's kind of like Mayberry in the 21st Century I guess. Anyway, her you go...

7:57 a.m. Someone called 911 regarding a Shetland pony that was standing on the side of Highway 2 West.
9:50 a.m. A woman on Whalebone Drive reported that a mechanic stole the stereo system out of her car.
10:06 a.m. Someone in Kalispell found someone’s W2, an iPod and seeds in their drop box.
1:32 p.m. A county inmate fell off of his chair yesterday.
3:49 p.m. A lost and lonely beagle was rescued from its aimless journey down Highway 93 South.
4:45 p.m. A new transient camp was discovered behind the old Walmart.
5:08 p.m. A resident on Ezy Drive reported that a few of her chickens have gone missing. She suspects that the neighbor’s dog may be involved.
6:32 p.m. A complaint was made about a guy on a street bike who was “showing off” by standing on his seat and such.
9:37 p.m. A local man called 911 to report that a man who looked like he “had been on meth for thirty years” approached him and his girlfriend at a gas station and made a very uncomfortable proposition.
10:01 p.m. A resident on Ridgewood Drive in Whitefish reported that his roommate found a “husky” man in their laundry room.

A Prayer

Lord, sometimes my concentration is not the best. My mind wanders. So I write.

I do want to be sure and thank you for the important things - things that make the rest of life possible. Thanks Lord for food, clothing and shelter - the necessities. Having those things available makes other things easier.

Thanks for the time I've had with the parents and the grandparents in the past years. Thanks for putting the grace in their heart to welcome me back after my time away.

And thank you Lord for welcoming me back into your family. Thanks for your patience, kindness, forgiveness and compassion. You give me hope. I know I tend to sit back in the corner and watch. It may be better that way for both of us. :^))

Thanks for church, work and Sunday school. Those things are the best part of my week.

Lord, please forgive me when I fail you. I know sometimes I don't even see it. Please help me to see it so someone does not have to tell me about it. Sometimes I just look right through people like they are not even there. I know it's not right. Please give me the strength and the desire Lord to just smile and say 'Hi'. Help me to see with your eyes instead of the eyes of my cold, hard heart. You showed me mercy and grace. Help me to return the favor with others.

Please take care of my Dad today while I am absent. Help him to focus, to think, to pay attention and to remember. Keep him safe and do not let him hurt himself in some way. Give him the where with all to call me if he is in need.

Please bring healing to my friend Nina. I have known her and Phil for a good portion of my life. Raise her up and help her move forward Lord. Make your presence known to her as you have done for me. And ask her if she has planned my trip to New Zealand yet. (:^))).

Lord, please place your hand on the staff and leadership of our church. Help them to find the direction in which we should go and so take us there.

Lord, please bless our efforts at work today. Please bring resolution to the current difficulties and help us move forward. Please help me to lead them and show them the way. Inspire me Lord. I need some inspiration.

Finally lord please bless and bring faith to all those that I have known and befriended in the past. I was not carrying or torch for you back then and I was probably not the best example for them. We did have fun Lord, but it was a bit self centered and hedonistic.

It's good to have you in my life. We can really talk because you already know me inside and out. I can't hide from you so why bother. Thanks for the opportunity to know you again. Thanks for the love. I love you too. I know I ask for way too much, but there are some things that only you can provide.

In Jesus Name I pray these things.

Amen

Russia - UPDATED

I had 19 blog hits from Russia today. What is up with that???

UPDATE....19 more hits today...I heard Obama got hacked by the Russians yesterday too. What are they up to?

2nd UPDATE...as you can see, I did not write anything new today...not because of the Russians...having a bit of psychomotor brain fog...if I start having de ja vu, there will be trouble...I have to give it a rest.

The Cost of Leaving the United States

I'm not talking about going on a vacation abroad. I am talking about leaving the United States and making another country somewhere in the world my new home. Have you ever considered that? Renunciation of US citizenship is a big step. Most folks that go cite tax reasons or dissatisfaction with the political direction of the US or the cost of living in the US. And it's true that your US dollar will go farther in some other countries, at least right now.

So I was wondering how much it would cost to leave. I was just curious, so I did about 40 seconds of research and came up with an article in Forbes magazine about it. 

"Over the last two years, the U.S. has had a spike in expatriations. It isn’t exactly Ellis Island in reverse, but it’s more than a dribble. With global tax reporting and FATCA, the list of the individuals who renounced is up. For 2013, there was a 221% increase, with record numbers of Americans renouncing. The Treasury Department is required to publish a quarterly list, but these numbers are under-stated, some say considerably."

Apparently we are leaving in record numbers. Soon they will have to build walls to keep us in.

"To leave America, you generally must prove 5 years of U.S. tax compliance. If you have a net worth greater than $2 million or average annual net income tax for the 5 previous years of $157,000 or more for 2014 (that’s tax, not income), you pay an exit tax. It is a capital gain tax as if you sold your property when you left. At least there’s an exemption of $680,000 for 2014. Long-term residents giving up a Green Card can be required to pay the tax too.
Now, the State Department interim rule just raised the fee for renunciation of U.S. citizenship to $2,350 from $450. Critics note that it’s more than twenty times the average level in other high-income countries. The State Department says it’s about demand on their services and all the extra workload they have to process people who are on their way out."

So there is a fee of $2,350.00 just to renounce and if you are rich or close to it, there is an exit tax.

It seems to me that someone is trying to keep us from leaving and that makes me want to go before it becomes impossible. On the other hand, do I want to be an immigrant in another culture? Even a legal immigrant? Well maybe if they spoke English in my new country and there was a Walmart and a Hy Vee. What are the odds? I guess I could immigrate to Kansas, but that would defeat my purpose of getting away...unless Kansas secedes from the Union. Is there any hope of that?

I did hear that there is a danger of secession in California, New Mexico and Arizona and it's because of the huge number of immigrants there. Spanish is becoming the first language in those states and I suppose there is some poetic justice in Mexico maybe getting back what it lost back in the 1840's.

Whatever the case, it would seem that the manifest destiny of the white man is just about at an end. Europe is falling to immigration from the middle east. Muslims are taking over what was once Christian territory and why not? Christianity is all but dead there. They are almost post post Christian. Europe will soon change forever unless the nationalists there can get their immigration problem fixed. They better hurry. There are not a lot of white folks left.

Western Caucasians have had a death wish for most of the last century and into the 21st. The convenience of birth control and abortion along with the need for two income families has shrunk the size of white households considerably and even below replacement levels. Governments have been forced to open the flood gates to hordes of immigrants that are not melding into the once white culture of the west. Socialism requires taxes. Taxes come from workers. If workers are not produced in sufficient numbers, then they must be imported to support the social welfare system.  The reality though is that increases in immigration into the host countries also increases the size of it's welfare rolls. It is a burden that could bring down the entire west and fracture the nation status of the US and EU. I do believe that day is not far off.

ISIS is a minor threat by comparison.

And that is why I'm thinking about a place to escape to. I do not want to be here when the feces hit the oscillating wind device.

Can they build a wall around Kansas? Probably not. We are all doomed. What is a groundhog to do?

I Was Advised To Take A Day Off

....and on The First Day of The Week

 
It was a new day. It was early Sunday morning. Pilate slept. The high priests slumbered. Judas was dead. The Devil was in Hell and those in his prison had been released (1 Peter 3:19, 20). God's Chosen One, once again, walked the earth. He was ALIVE!

John 20:1-18

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. ² So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”
³ So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. ⁴ Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. ⁵ He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. ⁶ Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, ⁷ as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. ⁸ Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. ⁹ (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) ¹⁰ Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
¹¹ Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb ¹² and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
¹³ They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”
“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” ¹⁴ At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
¹⁵ He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”
¹⁶ Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).
¹⁷ Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
¹⁸ Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.

He defeated death and the power of sin. He can do the same for you. There is still time. He is waiting.

Another Perspective

Bad Moon Rising

Actually, it will be setting here in Iowa. There will be a total lunar eclipse at around 5:30 AM on the western horizon just before moon set in the morning. The actual eclipse will happen quickly, and will probably not last for more than 5 minutes. The shadow of the earth will cover the moon, blocking the rising sun's light and making the moon appear blood red, hence the name "blood moon". There are many religious types, among them the  fundie Christians and orthodox Jews, that are seeing this as some kind of sign from the Almighty since this is happening on Easter/Passover weekend. It is being interpreted as a sign of impending judgement or some other gloom or doom. For me, it's just a natural phenomenon and a thing of beauty. Somehow, I think if God wanted to tell us something, there would be frogs and locusts or maybe the death of the first born. God does not mess around with moon shadows when there is serious judging to be done.  Enjoy the light show.  

The Day Love Died

 

Mark 15:25-41

²⁵ It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. ²⁶ The written notice of the charge against him read: the king of the jews.
²⁷ They crucified two rebels with him, one on his right and one on his left. ^{[28] [a] 29} Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, ³⁰ come down from the cross and save yourself!” ³¹ In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! ³² Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.
³³ At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. ³⁴ And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).^[b]
35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, he’s calling Elijah.”
³⁶ Someone ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down,” he said.
³⁷ With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
³⁸ The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. ³⁹ And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died,^[c] he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!”
⁴⁰ Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph,^[d] and Salome. ⁴¹ In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.

It was not a Good Friday for Jesus, but it is what He was born to do. He became the lamb of God. He took on our sin and then became our sacrifice. He stood in our place, taking our punishment, suffering the worst form of execution devised by the hand of man - crucifixion. The hope of the whole world rested on His act of selflessness. His death became our gain. He made it possible for us to stand before God without fear, forgiven of sin as children of the living God. 

But it was not over. Sunday was coming and the hope that He gave in His death would translate to victory and life eternal on the first day of the new week. Sunday was coming...                     

Good Company To Be In

I can relate to this...

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

I am no Paul, but I understand this. My situation is not the same, but the thorn I have is every bit as perplexing and it certainly proves to me daily that I have nothing to be conceited about. I am not sure I am to the point of delighting in weakness, but I may be getting there. 

Paul, thanks for sharing. Someday I hope to tell you so in person.   

My Anger

From the age of about 14 to 19, I was a legalist. I subscribed to the Christian faith, but I was all about making others live in fear of losing their salvation if they did not do things the way I saw them in scripture. I was skilled from an early age at negatively motivating people and holding their feet to the doctrinal fire. It was also a very good way to keep people from looking at my life and holding me to the same standard. No one wants to challenge their inquisitor.

I also had a smoldering anger with God. I felt like He had set me up to fail because of certain issues in my personal life which I hoped I would grow out of as time went on. One of them I did grow out of, but the other one remained....to this day. I still take it to God with no result except maybe the will to resist. But getting back to my legalist persona... 

The problem with living like this is that no one could live up to the standards I set....including myself.  Like everyone else, I had character flaws as mentioned above. Like everyone else, my flesh was bent, and I had some pretty serious bends. I was setting up a conflict within myself that was going to make me lash out at God in anger and send me to the desert for 18 years.

I went to Bible college when I was 17 ready to receive my tassels so I could sit in the seat of judgement with the other Pharisees. This is not a good motivation for going to Bible college. I learned quickly that most of the Christians there were not like me. They were submitted people that realized they were sinners saved by grace and they wanted to help other people get there. That was not me.

Anyway, I took many classes, most of them from the Old Testament and I sharpened my rhetorical skills. In my personal life however, I undertook a study of Romans in the New Testament and this...this became the source of my irritation and anger with God. There were things in there that were completely out of line with my personal interpretation of the scriptures. At the same time, I was searching for answers regarding my personal spiritual issues that I could not harmonize with God's Word. 

I was in conflict. I had determined that God was unfair and unjust for many reasons. Then I got to Romans 9. Adding to what was God's utter rebuke to my approach to the faith, He sent me a very strange room mate. He was a Catholic charismatic from Cleveland. Looking back, I think God did that on purpose. Kind of rude Lord. Anyhow...

Being 18 years old (by that time), I was completely frustrated by the time I read this:

Romans 9:14-21

¹⁴ What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! ¹⁵ For he says to Moses,

“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
    and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”^[f]

¹⁶ It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy. ¹⁷ For Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.”^{[g] 18} Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.

¹⁹ One of you will say to me: “Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?” ²⁰ But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’”^{[h] 21} Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?

These words, to my mind, were completely unfair. Who could stand against a God that treats His creations this way? Why would I want to submit to this? 

It turns out that submission was part of the problem. To that point in my life I had not submitted to much of anything. When you're right, you don't have to submit to anyone? So it became my will against God's Will. All of my personal standards that I had spent so much time developing fell to the ground like a shattered pane of glass. I was going to Hell because I could no longer justify myself, the junk in my personal life or the way I was living. On top of this, I had a Catholic Charismatic room mate that was trying to get me to lighten up, be more tolerant and enjoy my faith.

I was a walking tragedy. I gave up. I quit praying, left the school I was in and moved to Texas to pursue a liberal arts degree in political science. I went to a Christian college there, but I did not participate in the Christian life. I found a group of nere-do-wells and spent a lot of time doing drugs and drinking. I also fell in lust with someone that I had a relationship with for about 9 months. It was a strange and completely different life. I found that I liked these people. They seemed more normal and in touch with themselves than any Christians I knew. They were real. They were open and honest about their pain and their pleasures. They were not afraid to be who they were.

Having never lived that way, I found it refreshing and fun. I really pushed the envelope. It is a wonder I did not end up in jail. I did get suspended from school for a couple of weeks, but my grades were good and my life was uncomplicated by excessive rule keeping.

The problem with living like that is that it can shorten your life. It can also inhibit your ability to support yourself in the real world where what you do really matters. So at some point after graduation, I had to get my life back together, at least enough to work. I managed to do that. I have worked for a number for reputable companies without ever quitting my job. Lots of buyouts and mergers kept me employed.

I never did get back to the church in those early years. From age 24 to 37, I was unchurched and I did not really miss it.  I found I did not like Christians all that much; even the 'cool' ones. So I worked and did little else except go fishing and go home once and a while.

Home was a problem for me. I found that every time I went home, I would get depressed. I missed home, my parents, my grandparents and...yes...even the church I grew up in. It set up a longing in me to go home that did not stop until I actually got here. It was this longing for home that put me in touch with God again. I wanted to go home so badly that I prayed. It was like He was waiting by the phone. It all happened very quickly. I ended up back in the church after a time and I have not really looked back since that time.

I know the Lord in a different way now. The lens through which I view Romans 9 has been refocused. In my anger, I had completely missed the most important part of that passage in verse 16.

 ¹⁶ It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.

It is by God's mercy and grace that we are saved. There is nothing I can do to earn it. I have nothing of value to offer in exchange for it. I can only accept it when He gives it. I am pleased to say I have accepted.

I still slip into Pharisee mode occasionally. I usually receive reminders when I do. As for my personal issues with God - we still discuss them. There may be some lingering anger, but I love Him too much to hold the bentness of my own flesh against Him. I still wish He would have fixed them, but I would have missed so many other learning experiences if He had done so.

Looking back, my own failure to submit my life to Him is what has been the real issue. I still cling to some things that I should not. I need to let them die. I think there is time for that to happen. I may be looking pretty good when I get to the Pearly Gates. 

What a long, strange trip its been 

News of Flathead County

From the Flathead Beacon Police Blotter

7:42 a.m. Someone driving down Highway 35 in Kalispell reported that a woman with “irregular leg movements” was standing next to her car on the side of the road.
12:50 p.m. An uncatchable cocker spaniel remains at large on Farm to Market Road.
1:28 p.m. Cigarettes and sunglasses were reported stolen from an unlocked vehicle on South Cedar Drive.
1:40 p.m. Reportedly, people have been stealing items out of a collection bin at a thrift store in Bigfork.
2:52 p.m. A woman was overheard laughing with a man and discussing the fit of someone’s tunic during an accidental call to 911.
6:37 p.m. A local man reported that someone stole money out of the wallet he left in his unlocked car. He called back later claiming that his money was never actually stolen.
6:50 p.m. A runaway dog adamantly refused to return to its home in Columbia Falls. The owners granted the dog’s request and it was taken to the animal shelter.
7:33 p.m. A Bigfork man reported that his ex-wife crept in through a window and stole his cat.

The crime wave continues unabated. How can a community live like this when miscreants run wild and unchecked.

Resurrection

Sunday is Easter.  I prefer to call it  Resurrection Sunday. It is celebrated by Christians around the world as the day on which Christ rose from the dead three days after His brutal execution on a Roman cross. It is the central miracle of the New Testament; that someone who is dead can live again. It is the driving force behind the Christian faith, that you too can enjoy resurrection to a better life after you have shuffled off the mortal coil. It is one reason why believers actually believe.

You find allusions to resurrection throughout the New Testament, but Paul does an excellent summary of 'resurrection knowledge' in 1 Corinthians 15. He writes first about the resurrection of Christ and the witnesses to the event that includes himself, having seen Jesus at a later date than the other witnesses. In shear numbers, there were over 500 witnesses. To me, this constitutes proof. Jesus Christ lives.

Paul also talks a bit about the resurrection of all the dead in general, but his focus is mostly on believers. The fate of the resurrected unbelievers is not discussed here to any extent, but we know their outcome is not good.

He ends the discussion with a description of the process of resurrection itself. The prospect is exciting. He says,

1 Corinthians 15:51-58

    ⁵¹ Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— ⁵² in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. ⁵³ For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. ⁵⁴ When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”^[h]

⁵⁵ “Where, O death, is your victory?
    Where, O death, is your sting?”^[i]

⁵⁶ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. ⁵⁷ But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵⁸ Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Those of us that still live when Christ returns will not die in the classic sense, but we will be changed, we will be transformed. Our physical selves will become our everlasting selves in unity with our immortal spirits. From that point, we will live forever.

Those of us that are dead at His second advent, will receive new physical bodies and we too shall live forever with Christ. The universe will be renovated, renewed (not discussed here) and we shall rule and reign with Him forever. 

The future is bright. As the old creation, marred by the effects of sin and death winds down, it will give birth to the true new age and we will be there with life that will never end. The day is coming.

The nature of the resurrection body is a bit of a mystery, but we have clues. The record of Jesus' resurrection body can be found in the gospels. When he appeared to the disciples on the road to Emmaus  in Luke 24 and again to the apostles shortly after this, there was some confusion about the nature of His physical self. Initially some thought He was a ghost, but He proved to them He was not merely spiritual, but also physical. He was both body and spirit as a man should be. Humans are incomplete without both (and this is why death is an unnatural state for humans). Nevertheless, there were differences between Christ the man and Christ the resurrected man. 

As the resurrected Christ, Jesus was able to prevent people from recognizing Him until He desired to be known. He was able to pass through locked doors and just 'appear'. We know however, that He was a physical being. It was possible to touch Him. The wounds from His execution were apparent. He was able to eat and to drink and speak. It was as though He was existing on another plain of reality, but was still able to enter our reality. Truly a miracle man.

Will our resurrection bodies be like His? I believe so. 1 John 3:2 says this,
 
² Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.

This is my hope, to be like Jesus, both spiritually and physically.  

Thank you Lord for the hope. Thank you for your willingness to come here and struggle with us and offer your life to save us. You have marked us with your Blood and your Word. You have joined your Spirit with our spirit. You have made us Yours for all time. I praise your precious name for this kindness and grace. You are Mighty God and Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the One True God and I do not know where I would be without you...wait...yes I do. Thank You for saving me from that fate. Praise and honor and glory to you Lord. In Your name I pray...Amen

Random Notes

This will probably be all over the place today, so bear with me. First of all, my friend Steve the preacher, put out an excellent sermon on the nature of righteousness. It managed to move even me, the tower of ice and self righteousness, to tears, so you know it was good. Steve is pictured below waiting for a deer to walk by.




I also wanted to add a comment to my Genesis 3 post.  When I teach, I always like to ask the class how they would react if they were in the situations we are studying. So I asked myself this morning, If I were Adam, would I have fared any better during the whole temptation process?

The short answer is no, but the whole scenario would also have gone down differently. If I had been Adam, I think that God and I would have had a long discussion immediately about this tree. I would have asked Him why he even put it there. I would have asked Him if He was setting me up to fail. I would have said, why the challenge? Do you not trust me? And I think all of this would have occurred long before Eve came along. Shortly after the discussion, I'm sure I would have ceased to exist and God would have started over if you know what I mean. So I guess it's good I was not there.

Please pray for my friend Nina. She is having medical issues. The prognosis is good, but it never hurts to pray about these things.

It was good to talk to my special friend, Eric on Saturday. He is the closest thing I have had to an accountability partner in my life besides Jesus. Eric, I appreciate the things you have to say to me. You are not as smart as Jesus, just so you know, but you make great back up. :^)))

Dad broke a tooth yesterday. He goes to the dentist tomorrow.     

I Am A Goat

In biblical terms, a goat is not a good thing to be. They are self willed and sometimes a real pain in the shepherd's backside, but they can serve a purpose in the herd if they make peace with the shepherd. I made peace with the Chief Shepherd some time ago, and looking back on it now, I think my training may end up being successful despite early prognostications to the contrary. I am still happily a goat and I still have a will of my own. I just struggle to keep it in alignment if you know what I mean.

If this mood continues, then tomorrow should be interesting. Look out Sunday School class. The Old Goat is coming.

Follow me. Never mind the associate shepherds. They think they know where they are going. We will have to show them other avenues of pasturage. Bring some sheep. They are clueless, but there is strength in numbers. We can make them aware. Making a sheep look up is fun. Forcing the shepherds to work is even more fun.

See you in the pasture.

The Passover

The Passover feast is a celebration of the time when God, by His Mighty Hand, forcibly removed His people, the nation of Israel, from involuntary servitude in Egypt. He eventually brought them into their own land and settled them there, but they were commanded to remember that Day annually when God acted on their behalf and saved them from bondage and servitude in Egypt.

The Passover celebration took prep time but it always ended with the eating of a meal that was symbolic of their hasty departure from the land of Egypt. At the first Passover, young lambs were slaughtered for the feast. The blood of these lambs was painted on the doorposts and lentils of all the houses where the Hebrew people lived. God was about to judge Egypt with the death of all her first born and the Destroyer (angel of death) would recognize the Hebrew houses by that blood and pass over it, saving it's first born inhabitants from God's wrath that was being poured out upon this nation. God did this for the Hebrew people because of the promises He had made to their ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He is a God that keeps His promises and He is also a gracious, forgiving God to those He calls. And such was the occasion on the first Passover.

The people roasted the slaughtered lambs, ate it with bitter herbs and unleavened bread and drank some wine. The lamb provided a mark that set them a part with it's blood. The bitter herbs reminded them of their bitter bondage in Egypt. And the unleavened bread was the bread of haste. There was no time for a nice yeasty loaf. In the morning the Lord would call and they would have to depart quickly. It was a time of thanksgiving and it was a time of sadness. Many died in Egypt on that night. If the blood of the lamb was not on your doors and lentils, your firstborn would perish in God's judgement. But it also represented a new day for God's people.

Fast forward now almost 1500 years to Passover in Jerusalem. Jesus and His disciples have taken to the upper room. They are in the midst of the meal. Jesus knows His time is short. He has been trying to reveal as much as He can to his disciples so they will be prepared for the events that are about to unfold. Here is how it went down.

Luke 22:14-23

¹⁴ When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. ¹⁵ And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ¹⁶ For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”
¹⁷ After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. ¹⁸ For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”
¹⁹ And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
²⁰ In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.^{[a] 21} But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. ²² The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed. But woe to that man who betrays him!” ²³ They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.

At the beginning of Jesus' ministry, John the Baptist announced Jesus as "the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world". After three years of teaching and preaching, Jesus was now ready to become that lamb in the fullest sense. He was betrayed by one of His own, He was tried by the authorities, both Jewish and Gentile. And he was finally executed by the state. Prior to those events though, Jesus transformed the meaning of the elements of the Passover. The unleavened bread would represent His body and the fruit of the vine would represents His blood. From this point on, when His disciples ate this meal, they were to remember Him and offer thanksgiving for the grace and love of God that was made available to all humanity by His selfless act.

Brethren, Christ is our Passover lamb. It is His blood that is painted on the door posts and lentils of our hearts. It is His mark; a sign to His Father, that when judgement comes, He will pass over us. We will be saved by the blood of Christ and the grace and love of the Living God.

It is a powerful thing. He brings us out of the land of sin and selfishness and makes us new. We are His new nation as promised; a people called by His name. We are His light in a dark world.

In today's church, we celebrate what Christ did for us when we take communion. It is not the Passover meal of the Jews, but is to be a time of remembrance and thanksgiving. It is not to be a time of repentance or petition for forgiveness; the time for that was before you approached His table.

It is to be a time of celebration! The creator God of the universe loved us so much that He saved us in spite of our choices. We are forgiven. We are free. We will live and reign with Him forever. The cost was high, but Jesus turned our mourning to joy. We no longer need to fear the wrath of God.

We are saved. Remember that when you take the cup and the bread on Sunday. Praise God for His grace.

Frustrating People

Ya, I know. It's funny. I have been a frustrating person (turns out I'm pretty good at it) and I have also had to deal with people that frustrate me to no end. So I have experience at both ends of that spectrum.

For myself, I think I am an acquired taste. Some try and try, but they just can't find a way to be able to warm up to me. It's mostly because I do not cooperate. I do not trust easily and if I sense any trace in you of the manipulator or user, you just ain't gettin in my head. Sorry. But I am also very set in everything I do and that gets on peoples nerves. I refer to it as my 'Aspergers like demeanor'. I have purpose and intention. I do not need your interference. Just stand back as the feces hit the oscillating wind device.

The people that frustrate me are the ones that always want to help me or involve me in their plans or find a place for me in their big picture. Problem is that I do not usually want to play. Please do not try to make me play. You want to be my friend? Then let me be. Do not frustrate me. I have work to do.

Ya, but what about growth and working together and being involved with each other?

What about it? Why do things always have to be a group activity? Are you so unsuccessful on your own that you need me? Come on. I'm sorry, but a bunch of people pooling their ignorance on a subject does not promote growth.

There is much to be said for the solitary life. Frustrating huh?