And so, Patty ran from the UNite helicopter...
The world will want to UNite in the face of such a crisis.
And right in the middle of the 7 years, after 1,260 days:
Posted on 11/01/2022 9:30:29 PM PDT by george76
'What has happened to me has only furthered the cause of Christ, and for that I rejoice,' said Pastor Tim Stephens
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Canadian pastor who was arrested twice in 2021 for continuing to congregate with his church in Calgary, Alberta
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The Provincial Court of Alberta tossed out charges against Pastor Tim Stephens alleging he violated provincial public health orders regarding physical distancing
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Stephens was imprisoned twice last year for keeping his Fairview Baptist Church open.
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Stephens' acquittal comes weeks after Danielle Smith, Alberta's new premier, promised a plan to pardon COVID offenders in the province. Her administration follows that of Jason Kenney, who publicly apologized after his political opponents excoriated him when he was secretly photographed violating his own COVID rules 24 times during one dinner with his cabinet ministers in 2021
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COVID rules in Canada .. some of the strictest mandates in the world.
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this discrimination was politically motivated; that it was the political science and not the medical science that led to the persecution of churches
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Stephens was one of several pastors who were imprisoned in Alberta for refusing to obey the government by shuttering their churches. Pastor James Coates, who is a friend of Stephens and was the first clergyman to be jailed in Canada in the name of public health, spent more than a month in prison in 2021 after he reopened his GraceLife Community Church in Edmonton...
Federal law enforcement later raided GraceLife's building at dawn, locked it and barricaded it behind three layers of fencing.
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The pastor expressed concern that any potential pardon would "potentially get the court system off the hook in terms of having to rule on the constitutional issues."
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
No Amnesty for Lockdownders!
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4105475/posts
The entymology of the surname Stephens is very germane to this case and its outcome.
Stephens is a derivative of Stephen, the Deacon and Protomartyr from the 9th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles who witnessed courageously for the faith until his final breath.
“Stephano” in Greek means “crown”...so this pastor, akin to his namesake had been vindicate and crowned with glory and honor.
Praise be to God!
The process is the punishment.
Praise God the pastor is free.
Forgive, for the purposes of moving on sans paralyzing bitterness, but do not ever forget what your own government or employer is capable of doing to you in the blink of any eye.
About the Mark of the Beast... I’ve heard it said that the Mark on the hand refers to your actions, and the Mark on your forehead refers to your thoughts.
[in the blink of any eye]
An appropriate phrase; given my first post on the thread
The word in Revelation chapter 13 for “mark” is the Greek word for a mark of ownership.
Such as a tattoo - perhaps similar to how one marks cattle by branding.
Or how Hitler’s Nazis branded Jews with tattoo numbers for identification purposes.
(below for the thread)
Revelation 13:16-18
King James Version
16 And 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:
17 And 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.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.
Revelation 14:9-12
King James Version
9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Just a thought, could be wrong, but... being owned by someone doesn’t necessarily mean a tattoo or a mark. If you are owned by Satan it could be by your thoughts and actions, alone.
However, for a person Saved by Christ - it does make you think differently and act differently. Though the old sin nature is still there.
Different struggles for different people, so YMMV.
(Lurkers can visit my FR home page by clicking on my screen name for a small amount of additional Bible info)
The word for “mark” in Revelation 13:16-18 is “charagma”
Greek word “charagma”:
https://biblehub.com/greek/5480.htm
Strong’s Concordance
charagma: a stamp, impress
Original Word: χάραγμα, ατος, τό
Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter
Transliteration: charagma
Phonetic Spelling: (khar’-ag-mah)
Definition: a stamp, impress
Usage: sculpture; engraving, a stamp, sign.
HELPS Word-studies
5480 xáragma – properly, an engraving (etching); (figuratively) a mark providing undeniable identification, like a symbol giving irrefutable connection between parties.
5480 /xáragma (”brand-mark”) was originally any impress on a coin or a seal, used by an engraver on a die (stamp, branding iron). 5480 (xáragma) later became “the identification-marker” (like with an owner’s unique “brand-mark”).
I’d have to look at the other verses but here is Revelation 13:16
Revelation 13:16 Greek - English Bible
I’m unable to preserve the formatting (I tried!)
https://biblehub.com/interlinear/revelation/13-16.htm
5480 [e]
charagma
χάραγμα
a mark
N-ANS
(it’s in the middle of the translations; to the furthest right - FWIW)
That may well be an additional interpretation, but there is simply no reason to not take that passage literally, especially these days in light of technology, biochipping, and the push for a cashless society.
Meaning I AM preaching to the choir when I say it, LOL
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