River Forum

Monday, April 19, 2010

20 Questions: Disputing Eternal Security

1. Why Endure if you are Eternally Secure?

Matthew 10:22

2. How can the Eternally Secure who know God and willfully walk away from Him denying Christ, not escape his wrath?

Romans 1:18-32

3. Why should the Eternally Secure "patiently continue in well-doing"?

Romans 2:7-8

4. Are the Eternally Secure continuously obedient?

John 15:14

5. Why should the Eternally Secure remain diligent in God's Word at all?

Hebrews 2:1-2

6. Can the Eternally Secure neglect their salvation and escape the wrath of God?

Hebrews 2:3

7. Why must the Eternally Secure person "take up his cross daily"? Shouldn't it be enough that person picked it up once to be saved? After all, why should the Eternally Secure person need to go back to the cross at all, having gone once?

Luke 9:23

8. Can the Eternally Secure person sin and not die?

Genesis 3:4

9. Can the Eternally Secure person or church have their minds so deceived by Satan as to lose their salvation?

2 Corinthians 11:3

10. Can the church, the collective of Eternally Secure people, be conquered in this world?

Matthew 11:12

11. Can someone rob a Christian of their salvation?

Revelation 3:11

12. Peter Denied Christ. Was he Eternally Secure?

Matthew 10:33

13. Can we deny Christ and maintain that we are Eternally Secure, having once professed Him?

2 Timothy 2:12

14. Can one know God, exhibit no fruit, and yet be Eternally Secure by their profession of Faith?

Luke 9:16

15. Is one "Once Saved, Always Saved?"

2 Peter 2:20-22

16. Can one be saved from the world and still partake of it without risk to salvation?

Luke 9:62

17. What happens if "We" (the elect) deny Christ or refuse to suffer for his Name?

1 Timothy 2:12

18. Can we continue to sin and expect that our Eternal Security will keep us saved?

Hebrews 10:26

19. Can people who have been sanctified for salvation lose their salvation? Can they be totally lost? Or are those who have partaken of salvation and who deny Christ still Eternally Secure?

Hebrews 6:4-6

20. Will all professing Christians make it to heaven?

Matthew 25:1-13

Christian Heavy Metal?

I'm writing this as one who used to front a heavy metal band before salvation, played in church, and who now plays original christian rock music.

The real barometer is, "Does it magnify your flesh?" or "Does it magnify God?"

If you want to reflect Christ in your music, then you need to reflect him in your presentation. The Character of Christ. Screaming like Sepultura, Mastadon, Testament, etc is confusion. If, at first listen, you cannot understand the lyrics, it is confusion. If the music is too dissonant without enough resolution, or simply thrashes on like a drone.. you get into repetition, and invite an almost chant-like mindset that can open the spirit up to the demonic a la Maryln Manson's Beautiful People.

The main thing is that with most harder rock, Christ is not glorified.. the musicians are.... but that is not limited to genre.
If you have ever watched Michael English sing on TBN, that is probably one of the best examples of self-glorification in music.
The bible teaches us that no flesh should glory in the sight of God. Music and worship were the office of Lucifer before it was given to the church. Music has a way of bringing the inner psyche of a person to a place where it can be easily manipulated. Even our churches abuse this principle when they contrive services toward a specific end like an alter call or tithes and offerings.

But, if the aim of the music is to express the angst of the human condition in song or lyric, then the music itself as reflecting that problem should also direct the listener to the solution through resolution both musically and lyrically.

Leaving one at the end of a song with the same feeling of angst, anger, rebellion, as when it began only fuels that mindset and helps lock the person into that disposition. There are two types of christian music in my mind. The first brings people to the cross and the second maintains them there. If we are bringing more secular reconciliation music to the unsaved, then the message of salvation should be present. Our goal should be to craft music that addresses where a person is at and then through that music help them progress to a place where they are at least one step closer to the cross and reconciliation.

Music as ministry and music as entertainment are two different animals.

I play ministry music, and I play secular music that is family friendly that entertains but still contains threads of the human condition and a pointer to the cross or to get someone to deal with a tough issue like loss, woundedness, etc...

We are supposed to put off anger, malice, hate, as works of the flesh...
Jesus didn't express hatred even toward the devil. And the Angels did not bring railing accusation against him.

Are we entitled as children of God to walk in anger, rebellion, malice... EVEN if against sin? No.

We are to follow peace with all men. Blessed are the peacemakers...

Does the music help someone acheive peace? Or does it only discuss the problem and emotion without a true solution?

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Pay with a wave of your hand? Implantable Chips on MSN.COM

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Banking/FinancialPrivacy/pay-with-a-wave-of-your-hand.aspx

An implantable chip could allow you to charge purchases or even start your car. It'd be convenient, to be sure. But would it be too creepy?

It's a simple concept, really: You inject a miniature radio frequency identifier the size of a grain of rice between your thumb and forefinger and, with a wave of your hand, unlock doors, turn on lights, start your car or pay for your drinks at an ultrachic nightspot.

RFID hacks

The problem is, the whole concept is a little geeky for most of us, nauseating for some, Orwellian for a few and even apocalyptic for a smattering of religious fundamentalists.

Forget the science of it -- and yes, it does work remarkably well. Forget the convenience of it. Forget that similar identifying technologies, from bar codes to mag stripes, overcame similar obstacles and are now ubiquitous.

Radio frequency ID implants face a hurdle the others did not: ickiness.

"There is sort of an icky quality to implanting something," says Rome Jette, the vice president for smart cards at Versatile Card Technology, a Downers Grove, Ill., card manufacturer that ships 1.5 billion cards worldwide a year.

How RFID devices work
The RFID technology is un-yucky, however. The implanted tag -- a passive RFID device consisting of a miniature antenna and chip containing a 16-digit identification number -- is scanned by an RFID reader. Once verified, the number is used to unlock a database file, be it a medical record or payment information. Depending upon the application, a reader may verify tags at a distance of 4 inches up to about 30 feet.

The RFID implant has been around for more than 20 years. In its earliest iteration, it provided a convenient way to keep track of dogs, cats and prized racehorses. Few took note or voiced much concern.

Then, in 2002, Applied Digital Solutions (now Digital Angel) of Delray Beach, Fla., deployed to its foreign distributors a beta version of its patented VeriChip technology for human use. Two years later, the VeriChip became the first subcutaneous RFID chip to receive FDA approval as a Class 2 medical device.

One VeriChip distributor in Spain sold the concept to the ultratrendy Baja Beach Club, which offered its patrons in Barcelona and Amsterdam the option of having an implant inserted in their upper arms to pay for their drinks without having to carry wallets in their swimsuits.

Judging by the ensuing outrage, you would think VeriChip had given the pope a wedgie.

'Mark of the beast'?
Web sites sprouted like mushrooms, accusing VeriChip of being the biblical "mark of the beast" predicted in the Book of Revelations as a foreshadowing of the end of the world.

CEO Scott Silverman was equally vilified as being tied to Satan or, worse, Wall Street. Big Brother was surely coming, though he'd have to get pretty close to read your implant. Claims that the tags cause cancer based on lab rat tests upped the amps of outrage.

Were people suddenly curious about RFID implants?

"Curiosity is probably an understatement," Silverman concedes. "People have always taken interest in VeriChip. Part of the lore and part of the trouble of this company over the past five years has been just that."

Though VeriChip played no part in using its implant as a payment device, the company quickly moved to calmer waters. Today, it markets its VeriMed Health Link patient identification system to help hospitals treat noncommunicative patients in an emergency. Its future may include more advanced medical applications, including a biosensor system to detect glucose levels.

"A lot of the negative press that we received was a direct result of people having a misconception of what this technology is all about," says Silverman. "We believe that the medical application was and still is the best application for this technology.

"That said, if and when it does become mainstream and more patients are utilizing it for their medical records or for diagnostic purposes, if they want to elect to use it for other applications, certainly they'll be able to do that. But it's going to take a company much larger than us to distribute the retail reader end of it into the Wal-Marts of the world."

Versatile's Jette has watched contactless RFID battle for acceptance in the credit card arena. Just as Silverman suggests, the dynamics and scale of the payment industry tends to work against widespread deployment.

"Mobil Speedpass tried to do it; they got some traction and decided to see if there was any mileage to take this to a Walgreens or McDonald's. You used to be able to use your Speedpass at McDonalds, but that ended because, at the end of the day, you still only have two gigantic payment processors out there, Visa and MasterCard," he says. "To me, the idea of any kind of payment device having ubiquity requires an awful lot of back-end cooperation, of people willing to say, 'I don't need my brand in the customer's wallet.'"

Although the coolness factor is effective from a marketing standpoint -- American Express Blue with its smart (if largely unused) chip is a good example -- Jette says most cardholders would balk at the very thought of a needle.

"With the implanting in the nightclubs, there is a cache of exclusivity there, especially among a certain demographic where people are piercing themselves and getting tattoos. But those are things that really only 20-somethings do a lot. I really doubt that there will be any market for injectable RFID tags or even any single point-of-sale payment device."

Video: Protect yourself against credit, debit card hackers

"A lot of times, the technology is a solution looking for a problem. Sometimes people fall in love with the technology for its own sake and then try to evangelize a home for it. My business group is just smart cards, and I never forget that although we make money with smart cards, the bills are paid with mag stripe cards. As backwards and old-fashioned as they are, that is still the bulk of what the transactions are going to be in America for a very long time."

This article was reported by Jay MacDonald for CreditCards.com.

Pay With a Wave of Your Hand: Articles from creditcards.com

http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/rfid-chips-convenient-but-creepy-1273.php

Implantable credit card RFID chips: convenient, but creepy
By Jay MacDonald

It's a simple concept, really: You inject a miniature radio frequency identifier the size of a grain of rice between your thumb and forefinger and with a wave of your hand unlock doors, turn on lights, start your car or pay for your drinks at an ultrachic nightspot.

Radio frequency identifier (RFID) chips are so tiny they can be injected under the skin -- and here are 12 cool ways that the technology has been put to use.

The problem is, the whole concept is a little geeky for most of us; nauseating for some, Orwellian for a few and even apocalyptic for a smattering of religious fundamentalists.

Forget the science of it -- and yes, it does work remarkably well. Forget the convenience of it. Forget that similar identifying technologies, from bar codes to mag stripes, overcame similar obstacles and are now ubiquitous.

RFID implants face a hurdle the others did not: It's icky.

"There is sort of an icky quality to implanting something," says Rome Jette, vice president for smart cards at Versatile Card Technology, a Downers Grove, Ill., card manufacturer that ships 1.5 billion cards worldwide per year.

How RFID devices work
The RFID technology is un-yucky, however. The implanted tag -- a passive RFID device consisting of a miniature antenna and chip containing a 16-digit identification number -- is scanned by an RFID reader. Once verified, the number is used to unlock a database file, be it a medical record or payment information. Depending upon the application, a reader may verify tags at a distance of four inches up to about 30 feet.

The RFID implant has been around for more than 20 years. In its earliest iteration, it provided a convenient way to keep track of dogs, cats and prized racehorses. Few took note or voiced much concern.

Then, in 2002, VeriChip Corporation of Delray Beach, Fla., deployed to its foreign distributors a beta version of its patented VeriChip technology for human use. Two years later, the VeriChip became the first subcutaneous RFID chip to receive FDA approval as a Class 2 medical device.

One VeriChip distributor in Spain sold the concept to the ultratrendy Baja Beach Club, which offered its patrons in Barcelona and Amsterdam the option of having an implant inserted in their upper arm to pay for their drinks without a wallet bulging their bikini bottoms.

Judging by the ensuing outrage, you would think VeriChip had given the pope a wedgie.

'Mark of the beast'?
Web sites sprouted like mushrooms, accusing VeriChip of being the biblical "mark of the beast" predicted in the Book of Revelations as a foreshadowing of the end of the world.

CEO Scott Silverman was equally vilified as being tied to Satan, or worse, Wall Street. Big Brother was surely coming, though he'd have to get pretty close to read your implant. Claims that the tags cause cancer based on lab rat tests upped the amps of outrage.

Were people suddenly curious about RFID implants?

"Curiosity is probably an understatement," Silverman admits. "People have always taken interest in VeriChip. Part of the lore and part of the trouble of this company over the past five years has been just that."

Though VeriChip played no part in using its implant as a payment device, the company quickly tacked to calmer waters. Today, it markets its VeriMed Health Link patient identification system to help hospitals treat noncommunicative patients in an emergency. Its future may include more advanced medical applications, including a biosensor system to detect glucose levels.

A lot of the negative press that we received was a direct result of people having a misconception of what this technology is all about.

-- Scott Silberman
VeriChip CEO

"A lot of the negative press that we received was a direct result of people having a misconception of what this technology is all about," says Silverman. "We believe that the medical application was and still is the best application for this technology."

"That said, if and when it does become mainstream and more patients are utilizing it for their medical records or for diagnostic purposes, if they want to elect to use it for other applications, certainly they'll be able to do that. But it's going to take a company much larger than us to distribute the retail reader end of it into the Wal-Marts of the world."

Jette has watched contactless RFID battle for acceptance in the credit card arena. Just as Silverman suggests, the dynamics and scale of the payment industry tends to work against widespread deployment.

"Mobil Speedpass tried to do it; they got some traction and decided to see if there was any mileage to take this to a Walgreens or McDonald's. You used to be able to use your Speedpass at McDonalds, but that ended because, at the end of the day, you still only have two gigantic payment processors out there, Visa and MasterCard," he says. "To me, the idea of any kind of payment device having ubiquity requires an awful lot of back-end cooperation, of people willing to say, 'I don't need my brand in the customer's wallet.'"

Although the coolness factor is effective from a marketing standpoint -- American Express Blue with its smart (if largely unused) chip is a good example -- Jette says most cardholders would balk at the very thought of a needle.

"With the implanting in the nightclubs, there is a cache of exclusivity there, especially among a certain demographic where people are piercing themselves and getting tattoos. But those are things that really only twentysomethings do a lot. I really doubt that there will be any market for injectible RFID tags, or even any single point-of-sale payment device."

"A lot of times, the technology is a solution looking for a problem. Sometimes people fall in love with the technology for its own sake and then try to evangelize a home for it. My business group is just smart cards, and I never forget that although we make money with smart cards, the bills are paid with mag stripe cards. As backwards and old-fashioned as they are, that is still the bulk of what the transactions are going to be in America for a very long time."

See related: 12 cool uses of RFID chips, Contactless credit cards 'floundering', Cell phone + contactless credit card = Yak, wave, buy, 'Contactless' credit cards spark concerns for data privacy

Published: August 5, 2009

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Concordant Church Positions on Tongues as the Evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Ghost

PENTECOSTALISM (FROM WIKIPEDIA):

Estimated to number around 115 million followers worldwide in 2000, Pentecostalism is sometimes referred to as the "third force of Christianity." Pentecostal and Charismatic church growth is rapid in many parts of the world. The great majority of Pentecostals are to be found in developing countries although much of their international leadership is still in North America.

LYCOS
http://www.lycos.com/info/pentecostalism--world.html
Pentecostalism was estimated to number around 115 million followers worldwide in 2000; lower estimates place the figure near to 22 million (eg. Cambridge Encyclopedia), while the highest estimates apparently place the figure between 400 and 600 million. The great majority of Pentecostals are to be found in Developing Countries (see the Statistics subsection below), although much of their international leadership is still North American. Pentecostalism is sometimes referred to as the "third force of Christianity." The largest Christian church in the world is the Yoido Full Gospel Church in South Korea, a Pentecostal church. Founded and led by David Yonggi Cho since 1958, it had 780,000 members in 2003. The True Jesus Church, an indigenous church founded by Chinese believers on the mainland but whose headquarters is now in Taiwan.

(YEAR 2000 ESTIMATED ADHERENTS WORLDWIDE) Wikipedia

Catholic 1,200,000,000
Eastern Orthodox: 210,000,000
Pentecostal: 133,000,000
Baptist: 105,000,000
Lutheran: 87,000,000
Anglican: 82,000,000
Oriental Orthodox: 75,000,000
Methodism: 75,000,000
Reformed: 75,000,000
Non-Denominational Evangelical: 40,000,000

2000 RECENT PENTECOSTAL STATISTICS FROM WIKINFO.ORG

African...........................41.1 Million
South American....................32.4 Million
North American....................21.5 Million
Asian.............................15.3 Million
European...........................4.3 Million
Oceania............................3.3 Million

Ethiopian Outpouring:

Modern figures are distinctly higher as Pentecostal churches
have the highest growth rate of any Christian sect.

Pentecostals & Charismatics in Latin America
............................................1900 1970 1990 2005
Pentecostals and Charismatics (in millions) 0.01 12.6 118.6 156.9
Pentecostals and Charismatics
as % of Total Population.....................0.0 4.4 26.9 28.1
Source: World Christian Database

200 Filled in the Phillipines

Apostolic Churches

"In order to obtain salvation, we believe that an individual must be born of the water and of the Spirit by being baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and being filled with the Baptism of the Holy Ghost, with the evidence of speaking in other tongues as the Spirit of God gives the utterance"

Assemblies of the Lord Jesus Christ (AOLJC)

"SALVATION consists of deliverance from sin through the blood of Christ. This is accomplished by REPENTANCE from sin, WATER BAPTISM IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST for the remission (forgiveness) of sins, and receiving the BAPTISM OF THE HOLY GHOST with the evidence of speaking in other tongues, and the continuance of a godly life"

Assembly of God (AG)

"The baptism of believers in the Holy Spirit is witnessed by the initial physical sign of speaking with other tongues as the Spirit of God gives them utterance. The speaking in tongues in this instance is the same in essence as the gift of tongues, but is different in purpose and use."

Church of God

"In speaking with other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance and that it is the initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Ghost."

Church of God in Christ (COGIC)

"that tongue-speaking is the consequence of the baptism in the Holy Ghost with the manifestations of the fruit of the spirit"

Four Square

"We believe that the baptism in the Holy Spirit empowers believers to exalt Jesus, to live lives of holiness, and to be witnesses of God’s saving grace; we expect the Spirit’s incoming to be after the same manner as that in which He came upon believers in the days of the Early Church"

Full Gospel Churches International

"We believe that the speaking in tongues is the initial evidence that one has received the gift of the Holy Ghost."

International Pentecostal Holiness Church (IPHC)

"We believe that the "initial" (or first) evidence of the reception of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is the speaking with other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance"

Pentecostal Assemblies of the World (PAW)

"Presently, there are more than 193,000,000 Pentecostals world-wide. Out of that number, 20,000,000 are oneness Pentecostals whom we call Apostolics. When we examine the move of God through the baptism of the Holy Ghost, we understand why we are called the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World.."

Pentecostal World Fellowship (PWF)

"that for the salvation of lost and sinful man regeneration by the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus Christ is absolutely essential;
in the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance according to Acts 2:4, and in the operation of the spiritual gifts and ministries.
in the ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life;"

United Pentecostal Church

"Another reason why God chose other tongues as the initial sign of receiving the Spirit is that speaking in tongues is a uniform evidence. It applies to everyone, regardless of race, culture, or language."

Outpouring in Mexico

Worldwide Pentecostal Fellowship

“Being baptized in” or “with”, “being filled with”, and “receiving” the gift of the Holy Spirit are all synonymous biblical phrases which describe the same experience. Luke’s description of this phenomenon is: “They were all filled with Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues (languages) as the Spirit gave them utterance,While there are a number of signs that are recorded as accompanying the infilling of the Holy Spirit, the normative New Testament experience upon the initial receiving of the Holy Spirit included speaking with other tongues. (Isaiah 28:11,12, Mark 16:17, Acts 2:4 10:48, 11:14, and 19:6, I Corinthians 14:14, 15, 18). Speaking in tongues in Acts 2:4, 10:46, 19:6 and the gift of tongues as explained in I Corinthians 12 and 14 are the same in essence, but different in use and purpose."

OTHER MINISTRIES

Billy Cole

Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN, or The 700 Club)

Now, having asked and received, begin to practice the power of the Spirit. An ideal place to begin is where the first apostles did, praising God in a new language. To do this, begin praising God out loud in whatever words come to you. Tell Him how much you love Him. Thank Him, worship Him, and yield your voice to Him. Now let Him give you new words of praise you never heard before. Praise Him with those words, too. You'll find that thiscan be a very rewarding experience of communication with God that will build up your faith. Continue to pray to God each day in the language that the Holy Spirit has given you. But this "prayer language" is just one of the gifts that God wants to give you through the baptism in His Spirit.

Joyce Meyer Ministries

"The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is a gift from God. He helps empower the believer to develop the character of Christ and live every day in God's will." ... "The Holy Spirit's gift of tongues has not passed away--and every Christian should be open to it. " ..."when we pray in tongues, we are assured that we are praying as we should because the Holy Spirit is praying through us..."

John Osteen's Experience (father of Joel Osteen)

Dad continued by showing John the various scriptures dealing with the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. John began to see that receiving the Baptism in the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues was scriptural, and he therefore had faith to receive this outpouring. Mom and Dad laid their hands on Osteen, and he was filled with the Spirit and spoke in other tongues.

Reinhard Bonnke - Christ for All Nations (CFAN)

Re-generation by the HOLY SPIRIT is essential for personal salvation.
The redemptive work of Christ on THE CROSS provides healing for the body in response to believing prayer. The BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT, according to Acts 2:4, is given to believers who ask for it, with the evidence of "speaking in tongues". In the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit, by whose indwelling the Christian is able to live a HOLY LIFE.

Kenneth Hagin

"The Baptism in the Holy Ghost is a gift and is accompanied by the initial evidence of speaking in other tongues"

Pastor Dan Dean of Phillips, Craig, and Dean

"We believe that in order to live the holy and fruitful lives that God intends, we need to be baptized in water and be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. This was the normal experience of all in the early Christian Church."

HILLSONG CHURCH STATEMENT OF FAITH:

"We believe that in order to live the holy and fruitful lives that God intends for us, we need to be baptised in water and be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit enables us to use spiritual gifts, including speaking in tongues."

Allan Anderson for the Cambridge University Press:
"An Introduction to Pentecostalism: Global Charismatic Christianity"

Pentecostal churches constitute the fastest growing group of churches in Christianity today, representing already a quarter of all Christians worldwide (1). Depending on the definition, the global number of Pentecostal adherents may range from about 250 million to over 500 million (11–12).

Rev. David Yonggi Cho's South Korean Yoido Full Gospel Church -
The Largest Church in the World(over 700,000 members):

""Full Gospel" is literally taking the Bible and accepting fully and totally all that is in the Bible, to revitalize the faith and fullness of the Holy Spirit as was done in Pentecost." ... "The two most visible, outward signs of the Holy Spirit baptism are the speaking in tongue and truly effective witnessing. When the gift of the Holy Spirit (the outward signs) and the fruit of the Spirit (inner signs) continue to be manifest, it is called the filling of the Holy Spirit."

Smith Wigglesworth

Smith Wigglesworth got to a point in his walk with God where he said, “I cannot rest any longer, I must have these tongues.” A woman in the faith replied, “Brother Wigglesworth, it is not the tongues you need but the Baptism. If you will allow God to baptize you, the other will be alright.” When she rose up and laid her hands on Smith, the fire of God fell. Wigglesworth cried out, “The fire’s falling.” Wigglesworth said of the experience:

“Then I saw that God had purified me. It seemed that God gave me a new vision, and I saw a perfect being within me with mouth open, saying, ‘Clean! Clean! Clean!’ When I began to repeat it I found myself speaking in other tongues. The joy was so great that when I came to utter it my tongue failed, and I began to worship God in other tongues as the Spirit gave me utterance.”

Indeed, as it was on the day of Pentecost when the Spirit of the Lord came as fire and filled all who had assembled to pray, so too does the Spirit of God fill hungry hearts today. Upon being filled with the Holy Spirit, they did not just begin to speak – but they spoke “with other tongues” (Acts 2:4)."

Kirk Franklin - Gospel Musician / Singer
Lyric Excerpt: "Let it Go"

Church taught me how to shout and how to speak in tongues
But preacher, teach me how to live now when the tongue is done, help me...

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Three in One Bearing Record in Heaven?

It has been said by Kenneth Copeland Ministries in defense of the Trinity that:

The deity of the Lord Jesus Christ is something that can never be questioned by any born-again believer. Our very salvation rests on the fact that Jesus Christ is divine, the second person of the Godhead, God--the Son.

The Apostle John puts to rest any doubt about that in his account of the gospel: "In the beginning [before all time] was the Word [Christ], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself" (John 1:1, "The Amplified Bible").   

Anyone who doubts what that verse says could not possibly be born in the kingdom of God. For the deity of Jesus forms the very foundation of our faith in Him.   

God is revealed in three persons and this three-part Godhead is referred to as the Holy Trinity. In the Trinity none is greater or less than another, but the whole three persons are coeternal and coequal together. "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one" (1 John 5:7).

Upon first reading, this passage seems to be a very orthodox treatment of the Godhead as it conforms to the larger teaching of Christian Sects. Even though this teaching is prevalent it still must bear the Berean Test, which applies the Scriptures in a legal sense to these statements. Truth bears record of itself. If our terminology and concepts come directly from the Bible and not from popular teaching, we can escape a Spirit of Error and be free from intellectual mistakes regarding the person and nature of our God and Savior, Jesus.

One of the main cries of the Reformation was "Sola Scriptura"...Scripture alone. If scripture really is to be our standard for our Doctrine, and the Bible warns us to remain in the Apostle's Doctrine that was first delivered to the Church through their oracle, it behooves us then to conform our understanding to exactly what that Doctrine is and represent it accurately before mankind, lest we be made ashamed by the Word itself. Paul instructed Timothy to Rightly Divide the Word. In so doing, the popular teaching of 1 John 5:7 will be examined,

1 John 5:7 in the KJV says:
"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one" (1 John 5:7).

But in the NIV it says something completely different which makes more sense when looking at the preceding verse 6:
7For there are three that testify: 8the[a] Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. (1 John 5:7, 8) NIV

The Alfred Marshall Greek NT interlinear says literally:
Because three there are the [ones] bearing witness, the Spirit and the water and the blood, and the three in the one are.

Marshall explains that Late Manuscripts of the Vulgate (Latin Vulgate) only offer this rendition which was accepted by trinitarians into the King James English Bible, however the passage is not found in any Greek Manuscript extant before the sixteenth century! (1500's A.D.)

The KJV added the above verse interpolated from the Latin Vulgate which,is an Old Catholic translation relying on only a few late Greek manuscripts. These late maunscripts themselves bear record of Catholic meddling.

Applying the rule that the majority of existing, and indeed the earliest, Greek Manuscripts did not contain this augmentation to 1 John 5, it forces us to throw out the entire selection in regular typeface below, leaving only what is behind in bold...

6This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.
7For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
8And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.

For centuries this passage, this vestige of Catholic revisionism, has plagued our New Testaments offering an addition to the words of John, effectively rewriting his view of the Godhead as Triune when truly John the beloved understood God and the Lord Jesus much differently.

Just as men today try to rewrite our American Constitution using revisionist principles, supposing the founders meant something they did not (that too, only after a few hundred years) Others take a more constructionist view in that they believe that the founder's said exactly what they meant.

Just as the majority view may be that abortion does not violate someone's right to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness, the Trinitarian theologians of the day thought (and still think!) nothing of interpolating a majority view when faced with the problems presented for them by leaving the passage as it was written - without further elucidation.

How then should we read 1 John 5:7-9?

Exactly as it is written, and within its given context which discusses how the elements of water, spirit, and blood bear witness of the testimony of the Christ.

If we see Spirit (holy ghost baptism) Water (water baptism) Blood (covenant) as bearing record in heaven as one testimony in agreement before God, we can see that this passage actually has nothing to do with the Godhead but has to do with the witness and testimony of Jesus Christ who came by water and blood, and the Spirit witnesses of his coming.
Another way to approach this verse is looking at Christ on the Cross who "gave up the Ghost" or Spirit, and when he was pierced water mixed with blood gushed forth from him. Spirit, Water, Blood.

The typology of Spirit Water and Blood is all over the bible. It's in the Tabernacle, In the Wilderness, At the Cross, at the Birth of the Church...

Just as the 4 Gospels "agree as" or "agree in" one, so too do the witness of Spirit, Water, and Blood "agree as" or "agree in" one combined witness of Jesus Christ. Spirit is not blood. Jesus said so in

Careful study of the word will always help us live free from the bonds of tradition and of the doctrines of men.

John 5:39
Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.

Acts 17:10-12 (King James Version)

10And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.
11These 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.
12Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.

"God the Son" or "The Son of God" - Does it make a difference?

GOD THE SON or THE SON OF GOD? DOES IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
Excerpt: Bernard, Oneness of God

We should consider the dual nature of Christ into the framework of biblical terminology. The term Father refers to God Himself - God in all His deity. When we speak of the eternal Spirit of God, we mean God Himself, the Father. God the Father, therefore, is a perfectly acceptable and biblical phrase to use for God (Titus 1:4). However, the Bible does not use the term "God the Son" even one time. It is not a correct term because the Son of God refers to the humanity of Jesus Christ. The Bible defines the Son of God as the child born of Mary, not as the eternal Spirit of God (Luke 1:35). Son of God may refer solely to the human nature or it may refer to God manifested in flesh - that is, deity in the human nature.

Son of God never means the incorporeal Spirit alone, however. We can never use the term "Son" correctly apart from the humanity of Jesus Christ. The terms "Son of God," "Son of man," and "Son" are appropriate and biblical. However, the term "God the Son" is inappropriate because it equates the Son with deity alone, and therefore it is unscriptural.

The Son of God is not a separate person in the Godhead, but the physical expression of the one God. The Son is "the image of the invisible God" (Colossians 1:13-15) and "the express image of His [God's] person" (Hebrews 1:2-3). Just as a signature stamp leaves an exact likeness on paper, or just as a seal leaves an exact impression when pressed in wax, so the Son of God is the exact expression of the Spirit of God in flesh. Man could not see the invisible God, so God made an exact likeness of Himself in flesh, impressed His very nature in flesh, came Himself in flesh, so that man could see and know Him.

Many other verses of Scripture reveal that we can only use the term "Son of God" correctly when it includes the humanity of Jesus. For example, the Son was made of a woman (Galatians 4:4), the Son was begotten (John 3:16), the Son was born (Matthew 1:21-23; Luke 1:35), the Son did not know the hour of the Second Coming (Mark 13:32), the Son could do nothing of Himself (John 5:19), the Son came eating and drinking (Matthew 11:19), the Son suffered (Matthew 17:12), a person can blaspheme against the Son but not the Spirit and be forgiven (Luke 12:10), the Son was crucified (John 3:14; 12:30-34), and the Son died (Matthew 27:40-54; Romans 5:10). The death of Jesus is a particularly good example. His divine Spirit did not die, but His human body did. We cannot say that God died, so we cannot say "God the Son" died. On the other hand, we can say that the Son of God died because Son refers to humanity.

As stated above, "Son" does not always refer to the humanity alone but to the deity and humanity together as they exist in the one person of Christ. For example, the Son has power to forgive sin (Matthew 9:6), the Son was both in heaven and on earth at the same time (John 3:13), the Son ascended up into heaven (John 6:62), and the Son is coming again in glory to rule and judge (Matthew 25:31).

Son Of God

One note needs to be added to our discussion of the phrase "God the Son." In John 1:18 the KJV uses the phrase "the only begotten Son" and the RSV says "the only Son." However, the NIV says "God the only Son" and TAB says "the only unique Son, the only begotten God." These last two versions are based on variant readings in some Greek texts. We do not believe these variant readings are correct. If we could justify the use of the phrase "God the Son" at all, it would be by pointing out, as we have done, that "Son of God" can mean not only the humanity of Jesus but also the deity as it resides in the humanity. However, John 1:18 uses Son to refer to the humanity, for it says the Father (the deity of Jesus) is revealed through the Son. This verse of Scripture does not mean that God is revealed by God, but that God is revealed in flesh through the humanity of the Son.

What is the significance of the title "Son of God"? It emphasizes the divine nature of Jesus and the fact of His virgin birth. He is the Son of God because He was conceived by the Spirit of God, making God literally His father (Luke 1:35). When Peter confessed that Jesus was "the Christ, the Son of the living God," he recognized the Messianic role and deity of Jesus (Matthew 16:16). The Jews understood what Jesus meant when He called Himself the Son of God and when He called God His Father, for they tried to kill Him for claiming to be God (John 5:18; 10:33). In short, the title "Son of God" recognizes the humanity while calling attention to the deity of Jesus. It means God has manifested Himself in flesh.

We should note that the angels are called sons of God (Job 38:7) because God created them directly. Similarly, Adam was the son of God by creation (Luke 3:38). The saints (members of God's church) are also sons of God or children of God because He has adopted us into that relationship (Romans 8:14-19). We are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, having all the legal rights of sonship. However, Jesus is the Son of God in the sense that no other being is or can be, for Jesus is the only begotten Son of God (John 3:16). He is the only One ever conceived or begotten by the Spirit of God. Thus, His unique Sonship attests to His deity.

Son of Man

The term "Son of man" draws attention primarily to the humanity of Jesus; it alludes that He is the offspring of mankind. The Old Testament uses this phrase many times to refer to mankind. For example, the following verses of Scripture use it to mean mankind in general or any man without specific identification: Psalm 8:4, 146:3; Isaiah 51:12; Jeremiah 49:18. (Psalm 8:4 has an underlying meaning that refers prophetically to the Messiah, as shown by Hebrews 2:6-7.)

The term "son of man" also refers many times to a specific man, especially in Ezekiel where it designates the prophet (Ezekiel 2:1, 3, 6, 8; Daniel 8:17). In a few verses of Scripture, it connotes a man to whom God has given sovereignty and power (Psalm 80:17; Daniel 7:13). This last meaning appears frequently in Jewish apocalyptic literature of the intertestamental period. [15]

Jesus applied the term "Son of man" to Himself many times. In most instances, He used it as a synonym for "I" or as a title emphasizing His humanity. In some instances, it connotes not only the mere fact of His humanity, but also the power and authority given to the Son by the eternal Spirit of God (Matthew 24:30; 25:31). In short, Jesus adopted the title with its connotations of power and world rulership, but applied it to Himself in all situations. The title serves to remind us that Jesus really was a man.

The Word

We discussed the concept of the Word in Chapter 4 - JESUS IS GOD. However, we look again at this term to distinguish it in usage from the term Son. The Word or Logos can mean the plan or thought as it existed in the mind of God. This thought was a predestined plan - an absolutely certain future event - and therefore it had a reality attached to it that no human thought could ever have. The Word can also mean the plan or thought of God as expressed in the flesh, that is in the Son. What is the difference, therefore, between the two terms, Word and Son? The Word had pre-existence and the Word was God (the Father), so we can use it without reference to humanity. However, the Son always refers to the Incarnation and we cannot use it in the absence of the human element. Except as a foreordained plan in the mind of God, the Son did not have pre-existence before the conception in the womb of Mary. The Son of God pre-existed in thought but not in substance. The Bible calls this foreordained plan the Word (John 1:1, 14).

Begotten Son Or Eternal Son?

John 3:16 calls Jesus the only begotten Son of God. However, many people use the phrase "eternal Son." Is this latter phrase correct? No. The Bible never uses it and it expresses a concept contradicted by Scripture. The word begotten is a form of the verb beget, which means "to procreate, to father, to sire." Thus begotten indicates a definite point in time - the point at which conception takes place. By definition, the begetter (father) always must come before the begotten (offspring). There must be a time when the begetter exists and the begotten is not yet in existence, and there must be a point in time when the act of begetting occurs. Otherwise the word begotten has no meaning. So, the very words begotten and Son each contradict the word eternal as applied to the Son of God.

We have already discussed that "Son of God" refers to the humanity of Jesus. Clearly the humanity of Jesus is not eternal but was born in Bethlehem. One can speak of eternality - past, present, and future - only with respect to God. Since "Son of God" refers to humanity or deity as manifest in humanity, the idea of an eternal Son is incomprehensible. The Son of God had a beginning....

...In conclusion, we have learned that the term "Son of God" refers to the Incarnation, or the manifestation of God in flesh. God planned the Son before the world began, but the Son did not come into actual substantial existence until the fulness of time. The Son had a beginning, for the Spirit of God begat (caused the conception of) the Son in the womb of Mary. The Son's reign will have an ending, for when the church is presented to God and when Satan and sin and death are finally judged and subdued, the role of the Son will cease. The Son fills many roles that in the plan of God could only be fulfilled by a sinless human being. Of course, the ultimate purpose of the Son is to provide the means of salvation for fallen mankind.

We conclude three things about the use of the term "Son of God." (1) We cannot use it apart from the humanity of Christ, for the word always refers to the flesh or to the Spirit of God in flesh. (2) Son is always used with reference to time, for the Sonship had a beginning and will have an ending. (3) As God, Jesus had all power, but as the Son He was limited in power, Jesus was both God and man.

The biblical doctrine of the Son is a wonderful and beautiful truth. It presents some complex ideas primarily because it is difficult for the human mind to comprehend a being with both a human and a divine nature. Yet through the Son, God vividly presented His nature to man, particularly His matchless love.

The doctrine of the Son does not teach that God the Father so loved the world He sent another person "God the Son," to die and reconcile the world to the Father. On the contrary, it teaches that God the Father so loved the world that He robed Himself in flesh and gave of Himself as the Son of God to reconcile the world to Himself (II Corinthians 5:19). The one Jehovah God of the Old Testament, the great Creator of the universe, humbled Himself in the form of man so that man could see Him, understand Him, and communicate with Him. He made a body for Himself, called the Son of God.

God Himself provided a means of redemption for mankind: "He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him" (Isaiah 59:16). His own arm provided salvation. A proper understanding of the Son, therefore, has the effect of magnifying and glorifying the Father. In His role as the Son, Jesus prayed to the Father, "I have glorified thee on the earth… I have manifested thy name… I have declared unto them thy name" (John 17:4, 6, 26). The Father has both revealed Himself to the world and reconciled the world to Himself through the Son

Monday, June 01, 2009

Understanding Michael Servetus

Excerpts from the Preface to “The Man from Mars: His Morals, Politics, and Religion, by William Simpson, 3rd ed., Beattle, San Francisco, 1900.

PUBLIC DOMAIN

The persecution of Michael Servetus by John Calvin, one of the leaders of the Reformation, was one of the most unjust and inhuman exercises of religious authority that the world has seen. There were many features in this tragedy of burning at the stake, that were out of the common. The victim was a man of unblemished character, of great learning, and a scientist, with a genius for investigation. He was a skilled practitioner of medicine out of which profession he derived his income. He had made some advances in medical science, coming so near to a discovery to the circulation of the blood, that it is quite likely, but for his untimely death, he would have reached it instead of Harvey, many years afterward. His active mind led him to devote much of his leisure to the study of theology, and, laboring among its problems, he strove to reconcile a number of orthodox beliefs and doctrines with the scientific knowledge of his time, not combating them or contriving at their destruction, but by changing the sense of the words, to make them apparently accord with known elements of truth. He was an ardent supporter of the Reformation, and a friend and admirer of Calvin, and he began and maintained for some time, a correspondence with him, with the view of obtaining his advice and support. The proposed modification in the sense of scriptural texts was not favorable received by Calvin, and the two were drawn into a controversy which finally became acrimonious. The world, at present, partially recovered from its long period of hypnotized reason, is able to appreciate the small value of the questions which engaged these two men, and which led one to strike the other down to death, and it is also able to judge how much Servetus was in advance of his adversary in their discussions.

Calvin maintained, that under instructions from God through the Bible, an infant, dying without baptism, could not escape the tortures of Hell, a locality described by the same authority, as a place of horrors, of endless burning amid sulphurous fires, of never ending thirst, and of a “weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth” through all time to come. Servetus expressed his doubts of the justice of this infliction upon sinless infants, and attempted to show that it was not authorized by the Sacred Book. He also denied the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, as it was commonly received. He did not deny a kind of Trinity in the unity of God, but believing that it was merely formal, and not personal, mere distinctions in the divine essence, and that, as generally understood, it was a dream, and an invention of the Fathers of the Church. He also asserted, upon good authority, that there was a Christian doctrine before there was any adoption of the Hebrew legends; that these legends did not become a part of the church, until nearly a century after the great moral teacher had met his cruel death. He also came as near as he dared, to expressing his belief, that the Son was merely a man, with the divine inspiration in a large degree. Such advanced ideas as these, asserted with the positiveness of conviction, and backed with answerable argument, were the cause of his undoing.
Calvin, at this time, was at the head of a church already powerful. He ruled it with autocratic will, and upon all questions of doctrinal beliefs, he was the last court of appeal. He had long accepted the homage of his followers, as one selected by the Almighty for their spiritual guidance, and, with the common weakness of humanity, he became arbitrary and despotic in his management of church affairs. He was always ready to advise and direct, and in his first letters to Servetus, assumed some show of argument while denying his doctrines. Servetus answered him, not with that deference that his adversary usually received, but in all the spirit of earnest debate. Nothing more exasperating to Calvin could have occurred, and to cap the climax of affront, his adversary, a mere layman, published a book of “Christianity Restored” setting forth his advanced views and with a reckless temerity, sent the reformer a copy.

The controversy between them immediately degenerated into mutual recrimination and abuse. Calvin’s anger was raised to a white heat, when he saw the errors and blasphemies, as he regarded them and which he had vainly sought to combat, confided to the printed page, and thrown broadcast upon the world. Besides the alleged heretical matter of the book, he found himself taken to task, declared the error, and in his most cherished doctrines controverted. But he discovered withal some matter in the book which pleased him. His enemy had committed himself in abusing the Papacy: evidence sufficient to convict him at once of blasphemy in the Roman Catholic city of Vienne in France where Servetus then resided, and he proceeded at once to put the cruel scheme of his death into execution. By information to the authorities at Vienne through dictated letters, he succeeded in having Servetus thrown into prison there, from whence he escaped, and became an outcast for months. The malignant and inhuman manner in which this Christian leader followed his innocent victim, could scarcely have occurred upon any other question, but a religious one, and his murderous intent, form the first, is shown by a letter from Calvin to a friend in which he says “Servetus wrote to me lately, and besides his letter sent me a great volume of his ravings, telling me, with audacious arrogance, that I should find there things stupendous and unheard of until now. He offers to come thither if I approve; but I will not pledge my faith to him; for, did he come, if I have any authority here, “I SHOULD NEVER SUFFER HIM TO GO AWAY ALIVE.” And he proved himself, in this instance, true to his word.

The Roman Catholic authorities of Vienne, discovering after a while the connivance of Calvin, in putting the execution of his enemy on them, contrived, it is said, to make his escape easy. They had no mind to have this work thrust upon them. They probably felt that the reformers should take care of their own heretics. Servetus, after his escape, wandered about from place to place, all the time his life in imminent danger, and finally brought up in Geneva, the home of Calvin, disguising himself, and hiding on the outskirts. What induced him to take such desperate chances is not positively known. His intention is supposed to have been to go to Naples, and to be gone from Geneva on the first favorable opportunity. Weary of confinement, and always piously inclined, he ventured imprudently to show himself, at the evening service of a neighboring church, and being there recognized, intimation of his presence was conveyed to Calvin, who, without loss of a moment, demanded his immediate arrest, making his arraignment himself, and industriously working until the end, as chief prosecutor and witness. The barbaric cruelty during imprisonment to this famous man, in an eminently Christian community, and by a Christian leader is shown by the following letter from his prison cell. “Most noble Lords, it is now three weeks since I petitioned for an audience, and I have to inform you that nothing has been done, and I am in a more filthy plight than ever. In addition, I suffer terribly from the colic, and from colic and my rupture, which causes me miseries. It is very cruel that I am not allowed to speak, nor not have my most pressing wants supplied; for the love of God sirs, in pity give orders on my behalf.” And here is another one: “My most honored Lords, I humbly entreat of you to put an end to these great delays, or to exonerate me of the criminal charge. You must see that Calvin is at his wits ends, and knows not what more to say, but for his pleasure, would have me rot here in prison. The live eat me up alive, my breeches are in rags, and I have no change, no doublet, and but a single shirt in tatters.”

Thirty-eight articles of impeachment were drawn up by Calvin, and after a protracted trial, wherein he acted as chief interrogator, this unhappy victim was sentenced to be burnt at the stake. Servetus, during his whole examination, showed himself to be a brave, conscientious, religious man. His answers to each one of the articles was able, consistent, and would have been considered in this day unanswerable, and what is more his views have since been adopted by the most advanced of Christian sects. The following is a description of his execution recorded at that time.

“When he came in sight of the fatal pile, the wretched Servetus prostrated himself on the ground and for a while was absorbed in prayer. Rising and advancing a few steps he found himself in the hands of the executioner, by whom he was made to sit on a block, his feet just reaching the ground. His body was then bound to the stake behind him by several turns of an iron chain, whilst his neck was secured in like manner by a coil of a hempen rope. His two books, - the one in manuscript sent to Calvin in confidence six or eight years before for his stricture, and a copy of the one lately printed at Vienned were fastened to his waist, and his head was encircled in mockery with a chaplet of straw and green twigs bestrewed with brimstone (sulfur). The deadly torch was then applied to the fagots and flashed in his face; and the brimstone catching, and the flames rising, wrung from the victim such a cry of anguish as struck terror in the surrounding crowd. After this his was bravely silent; but the wood being purposely green, although the people aided the executioner in heaping fagots upon him, a long half hour elapsed before he ceased to show signs of life and suffering. Immediately before giving up the ghost, with a last expiring effort he cried aloud, “Jesus, thou Son of the Eternal God, have compassion upon me!” All was then hushed, save hissing and crackling of the green wood, and by and by there remained no more of what had been Michael Servetus, but a charred and blackened trunk, and a handful of ashes.”

So died in advance of his age, this victim of religious fanaticism and personal hate, a fitting triumph of the theological over the scientific methods of thought, the result among many thousands like it of the adoption of the Jewish Legends by Christianity, and in this case, brought about by a Christian leader, the founder of a creed, in which to this day, enough of his spirit remains to make it the greatest enemy of free thought and liberal opinion, among all the creeds of Protestantism. Of this disgraceful tragedy was it the spirit of the Master which led the inhuman crowd to vie with each other in piling on the fagots, or was it the malign influence of a vindictive and cruel Hebrew God?

Every conflict between science and theology since the days of Copernicus has resulted in an unequivocal victory of the former. Both churches resisted the truth of the rotundity and movement of the earth as though their existence depended on it. They fought each question as it arose in the same spirit. The Mosaic account of the creation, the age of the world, the deluge, the length of man’s sojourn upon the earth, are questions as effectively settled adversely to the “truths of scripture” as the one for which Galileo suffered. (…)

…The intention of the new church (reformed church) was to do away with those rituals and ceremonies, which had been adopted from paganism a compromise in the second and third centuries, and to bring their church back as far as possible, to that simplicity which characterized the first teachings of Christianity. But the leaders of the Reformation never attempted nor had they any desire to bring back that entire freedom of thought and expression which existed in the early days. No one with immunity would be allowed to deny the doctrine of the Holy Trinity…as the Greek philosophers were wont to do. Such vital questions it was torture and death to adversely consider, Servetus being an early victim to such temerity. There were questions enough however within the limits of safe discussion, to set agoing those unending controversies which distinguished Protestantism to this day. The newly acquired privilege of discussing sacred affairs among laymen as well as others, were indulged in to such an extent that the debate between the sects, in defense of their several interpretations of scriptural texts, monopolized in society its hours of intercourse and conversation...Questions that had been settled centuries before by authority in the old church were dragged forth to renewed discussion.

In these beliefs the two churches (Catholic and Protestant) were in entire accord and must equally answer for the miseries and cruelties they have inflicted upon humanity in enforcing them. Theories and doctrines so persistently advanced and upheld by both churches, and which have proved so disastrous to humanity do not properly belong, and should have no place in Christianity. They are not only without the authority of the Master (Jesus Christ), but are mostly in opposition to his teaching and example. The most harmful of them owe their origin to the fables and myths introduced…

In these days of enlightenment and higher thought, the vestiges are everywhere of our fifteen centuries of misdirection. Almost every life bears the impress of these cruel traditions. If we have, for more than fifteen centuries, yielded ourselves to doctrines conveyed to us through all the highways of life, so assiduously, that neither infancy, youth, manhood, or old age, have escaped their tireless importunities for acceptance’ doctrines, which consign seven eighths of humanity to eternal torture for no faults to most of them but a lack of opportunity, which under (Calvin’s) Providence has been denied, it is not unreasonable to conclude, with this experience of the mutability of human understanding, that there are other beliefs fastened on our minds by ages of custom and mistaken thought, equally untenable, which may be as justly placed in our catalog of errors.

We shall never know how much the industrious promulgation of error is due to the selfish love of corporate, power. But for all that, we shall never arrive at the extremity of despair; for the cultivation of the mind, the deductive use of positive knowledge, and the untrammeled exercise of reason, lead to truth, as directly, as the line of gravity points to the center of the earth, and only by these will its reign be established in the world.

-- W.S.

Friday, February 13, 2009

The Expurgation of Reason: Manifesting the Doctrines of Calvin

Saturday, January 31, 2009

Will the Closing of Gitmo Launch the Mark?

The major question on everyone's mind lately, is "When President Obama closes Guantanamo Bay, what will happen to the terrorists?" I believe that the answer will unfold in this next year and a half.

If you have been following RFID, Verichip, GPS, and other implantable chip technology, it is not suprising that the technology exists to implant chips in people which track their whereabouts.

I submit that the world will be calmed when they learn that all of the Guantanamo Bay prisoners will be microchipped with GPS trackable chips contain a number code that will serve as their identification. They will not be able to make a move without alerting global authorities. Also, they will not be able to move money.

In a global cashless fiscal system with implantable microchips, every transaction will be able to be tracked by the the number identifying the parties to the transaction, this number is embedded into the microchip and is scanned or used like a Social Security Number.

The gateways to the public acceptance of this process are these issues:

Freedom from Terrorism,
Access to medical records,
Identification, tracking,
Tracking of Criminals/Felons
Fraud prevention,
Identity theft prevention,
Tax fraud prevention
Controlling Illegal Immigration,

These things fit in very nicely with President Obama's declaration that we do not have to sacrifice our freedoms for our ideals.

Here are some likely scenarios:

CASH WILL NO LONGER BE VALUED AS A MEANS OF PURCHASE:
Why would people no longer desire to use cash?

Perhaps when the cash no longer has its value. When there is so much of it in the market that is not circulating that it drives inflation up so high that it becomes worthless like many African countries. When we no longer value our cash, and it is not backed by specie, we will demand revaluation of our currency. This will be demanded globally when triggered by a worldwide recession. By leveling global currencies electronically and insuring commerce and financial transactions through positive measures of identification, the chip will be introduced to the global scene as the "Solution" to most of the world's economic and social woes. Already more and more people are using cards instead of cash. When the government has large interested in private banks, and the banks cannot repay the loans, guess who owns the banks? The Government. When the government owns the banks, they own your entire personal banking history which includes your income, payments, debts, credit and more. The thin wall of separation between the public and private sector will be eroded to the point where it no longer exists.

UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE WILL BE THE STANDARD:
When the government introduces universal health care, the government will also demand that those records will be accessible nationwide. Universal Applications need systems and controls in place for them to be effective. The chip is that control. It positively identifies the patient whether or not they are conscious, links to their medical records, can be implanted/read by any medical staff with a scanner (just like your vet can do now!) This system is already FDA approved and it exists. The makers of this chip are already partnered with Microsoft to help deliver the network to patient consumers. Global applications of this technology will mean that governments will effectively be able to see outbreaks of infectious diseases as they are reported medically. By geo-tracking patients, they can contain viral diseases and pinpoint their origins, whether natural or contrived. Companies producing the chip are peddling fear with common diseases that require tracking like alzheimers, epilepsy heart disease, diabetes and more.

THE DEFEAT OF TERRORISM WILL COME THROUGH SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY:

By introducing the chip, it will allay fears of wondering who is hiding in the shadows to commit a heinous act of terrorism. It will positively identify who is entering or leaving a country. The identification capabilities can also be linked by virtue of the Patriot Act, inter-departmentally. This means any institution that the government has oversight into: Universities, Post Offices, Banks that are Federally Insured, Driver Licensing. It will also help civil and military authorities locate, identify, and track domestic and international criminal populations. Any time anyone buys or sells, travels, enrolls in a civil program, gets arrested, walks into an airport or courthouse, that ID will pop up on the network. In this way, criminals cannot escape being found. Military troops can be tracked using this technology.

FRAUD AND MANY OTHER CRIMES WILL BE VIRTUALLY ELIMINATED:
With the chip, no one will ever be able to steal your wallet and your ID, hack your computer for your credit card information. No one can kidnap your children and not be caught. Missing persons will never be missing. Drug dealers will no longer be able to move across borders with ease. Felons cannot disappear into the shadows when they can be tracked. If they even try to buy a stick of gum, they will need their chip. So how will the government handle catching and incarcerating all of these repeat offenders? In the secret FEMA prisons. The reason FEMA could not react to Hurricane Katrina is because it was spending so much money being diverted to create secret prisons. The closing of Guantanamo Bay is no problem because these prisons have already been built with Federal Dollars.

It is being peddled as the answer to crime, and also as a security measure to control access to secure government facilities.

What are the problems now facing our once-great nation?

Drugs and Gangs?
The chip can track them physically and financially

Medical Access?
Universal Healthcare and easy access to medical records via the chip

Immigration?
Anyone who is not chipped will not be able to get an income or buy food or escape taxation.

Kidnapping?
When children or travelers are chipped, they can be located via GPS

Terrorists?
They can be found, tracked, or monitored. Visas can be monitored and passports will be unneccessary.

Theft?
Who can steal cash or credit cards from you when you never have to carry them

Identity Theft/Fraud?
When all forms of identification are reconciled to the chip, no identity can be stolen.

Tax Evasion?
Making sure that everyone pays their fair share will be obligatory as the chip will be the gateway to your employee ID, your TAX ID, your Social Security, your Medicare, your Unemployment insurance.

So why if this all sounds like such an enormous resolution to world issues, does the Bible warn against it and proclaim it as part of the system of Antichrist?

First one must understand that Antichrist is not going to be some overtly diabolical mad person like one would see in "The Omen" or "The Exorcist". Instead, he will be a man of the world, highly intelligent, an inspiring leader with a global appeal. He will be seen as a visionary, and as a result of his work, the world will cry "Peace, Peace".

Antichrist simply means, opposed to, against, or countering Christ. Christ is controlled by God to offer salvation to people from heaven. The Antichrist will be controlled by Satan to offer salvation to people from within the world system.
There are many Antichrists, and there always has been a spirit of Antichrist.
Anyone who denies Christ, is in fact "anti" Christ. Because Hollywood has so portrayed evil as embodied by some Demon or creature from Evil Dead 2, the world has been deluded from understanding what evil really is. The AntiChrist will not be shockingly morbid or diabolical in appearance like Marilyn Manson. Rather he will be attractive and well-liked. Revered. Worshipped.

Evil is simply the opposite of Good. In essence Evil is Lie, Good is Truth. All evil has a root in some form of deception, distortion, omission, or perversion of Truth. Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no man comes to the Father but by me." But of Satan, Jesus warned that he was the "Father of Lies".

So, a man being filled by Satan, or posessed, may truly be utterly wicked. But one forgets that Satan, a fallen archangel, posesses supreme intelligence and cunning. Of course he does use fear, violence, and malevolence to control people and shock them, but no one would truly accept a world leader so universally if this was his demeanor. He already tried it in Hitler. But... even Hitler used Charisma and oratory strength to delude the masses. Privately he was deeply involved in the occult.

No, the universal leader of our time will use the chip system and harness it as a global solution. He will broker true peace between Palestine and the Jews, how? Because Satan, being the spirit provoking the sides to violence, will send his ambassador (antichrist) to sort it out. He being the architect of the violence, will influence the concessions that will allow for the peace itself. The Bible even speaks of him confirming this Covenant, a 7 year treaty of peace which he himself will break after 3.5 years.

Some teach that the rapture of the church will help make this possible because the main wedge keeping the antichrist system from rising will be taken from the earth. However, even without that event happening before the advent of this system, many will compromise their beliefs when forced with the fact that they will not be able to make financial transactions without chip identification. They will choose financial security and "staying on the grid" rather than suffer being shut out of the entire domestic and global system. Some people will refuse to take the chip, but they will be forced out of mainstream civilization into pockets of resistance. With antichrist and that system having free reign, he will declare world peace and be hailed as the Messiah.

During this process, the Jewish Temple will be rebuilt. As I write this, everything is already in place for that to begin. The Sanhedrin, the artifacts, the red heifer, etc. The global man will declare himself to be messiah in that temple and will be accepted as such. Muslims will hail him as the Mahdi, some Jews as Messiah, some as the returned Christ, agnostics and atheists will revere him for his accomplishments.

So how close is this? in 2006 Tommy Thompson who was the former Secretary of Health and Human Services under GWB, joined (and now has left) the board of Verichip, the company owned by 'Digital Angel' (interesting name eh?) that produces the implantable chip, placed in the right arm that when scanned, produces a 16 digit number.

The gentleman Scott Silverman in this video, just took over Verichip as the controlling interest. The newscaster comments: "I already have them in my dogs, why wouldn't I have them in my children too?"

Revelation 13
16And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.