Free Republic

Joe Biden showed his bigoted side on April 23 when he spoke in Tampa, Florida about the glory of abortion. It wasn’t abortion, per se, that got him going—it was those whom he identified as pro-life that set him off.

And what Biden and his cohorts consistently ignore -- to their detriment -- is that Almighty God is NOT on his side over this. Biden may claim to be a "devout" Catholic but his actions consistently prove is that it is all talk. God sees the heart!

My prayers for the peace that passes all understanding to guard your hearts and minds as you process this loss of your mother. My own mom went through this last year and I praise the Lord that I was able to be with her in her hospice room as she went with the angels to meet the Lord. We “sorrow not as others who have no hope”, but look forward to the blessed reunion with our loved ones in eternity with our Savior and Redeemer. How I long for that day!

Good one!

But I wouldn’t worry too much about it. He’s only a “spiritual king” and not a literal king (except to a few American-style Fundamentalist Protestants).

Jesus is BOTH! And one day ALL will acknowledge this truth.

Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. By Myself I have sworn; truth has gone out from My mouth, a word that will not be revoked: Every knee will bow before Me, every tongue will swear allegiance. Surely they will say of Me, ‘In the LORD alone are righteousness and strength.’ ” All who rage against Him will come to Him and be put to shame. (Isaiah 45:22-24)

Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11)

For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, mighty, and awesome God, showing no partiality and accepting no bribe. (Deuteronomy 10:17)

They will make war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will triumph over them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and He will be accompanied by His called and chosen and faithful ones." (Revelation 17:14)

I read a recent article that said the noted atheist, Richard Dawkins, claimed that although he did not believe in the tenets of Christianity he still counted himself as a "cultural Christian" and that he wants Christian ideals and values to be the foundational elements of government. He said, “If I had to choose between Christianity and Islam, I choose Christianity every single time. It seems to me to be a fundamentally decent religion in a way that I think Islam is not.” (see https://afn.net/culture/2024/04/02/world-famous-atheist-loves-attributes-of-christian-faith-he-loves-to-mock/)

The true church/ecclesia/called-out ones isn't an organization but all believers in Jesus Christ who are redeemed by His blood - past, present, future.

As you come to Him, the living stone, rejected by men but chosen and precious in God’s sight, you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture:

“See, I lay in Zion a stone, a chosen and precious cornerstone; and the one who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”

To you who believe, then, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word—and to this they were appointed. But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (I Peter 2:4-10)

I choose to be a “fool for Christ” who believes in the “foolishness of the cross”.

The apostle Paul was so convinced of the central importance of Christ’s death on the cross that he told the Corinthians, “I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2). Paul knew that without the cross of Christ there is no salvation and no true Christianity.

It always struck me when Paul wrote to the Corinthians:

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”

Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand signs and Greeks search for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. (I Corinthians 1:18-25))

The unsaved hear that Christians believe Jesus died on the cross for our sins and it doesn't compute -- they think it's ridiculous. But the cross is the true POWER of God. Christ's resurrection is indisputable and we commemorate it at this time of year because, the cross without the resurrection WOULD be foolishness. As Scripture says, "If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins." (I Cor. 15:17). There is no Christianity without the cross AND the resurrection.

“Elsie, we are ALL sinners...you, me, boatbums, imardmd1, etc... I repent and ask the Holy Spirit to give me strength to live a Holy life according to Christ and His commandments, for what He did for me on the cross.”

And that is the prayer of all who are found in Christ, not having our own righteousness - which is of the law - but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith. (see Philippians 3:9) The difference is we don't depend on that living a holy life to be the reason we are saved. It was ALL Christ - and to Him goes ALL the glory!

Our FRiend has a mental block that prevents a TRUE understanding of grace. It is the ancient sin of PRIDE where one holds to the idea that he/she can merit salvation by what they do for God. Nobody has ever stated that God winks at sin in a believer's life or that it doesn't matter if they live in sin as long as they profess faith in Christ. All of that is a strawman. Paul dealt with the same arguments 2000 years ago! They presume themselves judge and jury over another person's heart and eternal salvation.

We continue to plant the seeds and water them and trust the Holy Spirit to give the increase and enlighten the heart.

We who are Jews by birth and not Gentile “sinners” know that a man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

But if, while we seek to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are found to be sinners, does that make Christ a minister of sin? Certainly not! If I rebuild what I have already torn down, I prove myself to be a lawbreaker.

For through the law I died to the law so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. I do not set aside the grace of God. For if righteousness comes through the law, Christ died for nothing. (Galatians 2:15-21)

Happy Resurrection Day!

Never said they did. You assume I believe that because you don’t/can’t/won’t understand God’s Judgment, and that He expects obedience from those that claim grace.

On the contrary, you won't understand because you are trusting in your own law keeping righteousness to save you. Let go of your PRIDE and allow the Holy Spirit to enlighten you.

The judgment seat of Christ involves a time in the future when believers will give an account of themselves to Christ. This is the plain teaching of Scripture: “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10). The warning is to Christians, not unbelievers. As Jesus taught in His parable, the king is going to return, at which time he will require an account from his servants (Luke 19:11–26).

The judgment seat of Christ is different from the Great White Throne Judgment. That will be the final judgment of the wicked prior to their being cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11–15). Appearing before the Great White Throne will be unbelievers. Believers will appear before the judgment seat of Christ.

The judgment seat of Christ does not determine our salvation; that matter was settled by Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf (1 John 2:2) and our faith in Him (John 3:16). All our sins are forgiven, and there is “no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). Jesus said, “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life” (John 5:24, emphasis added).

So, believers are secure in Christ, but they still must appear before the judgment seat of Christ. It will be a time of examination and a time of reward. Jesus will inspect our works. What did we do with the resources God gave us? How faithful were we? Were we yielded to the Spirit, seeking to honor Christ and further His work in the world? If so, we will have reward (see Matthew 10:41–42). Did we neglect our opportunities to serve the Lord? If so, we will suffer loss of reward. Paul likens our Christian service to erecting a building:

Each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames (1 Corinthians 3:10b–15).

Note, in the above passage, that our works subsequent to Christ’s salvation are of two different types—good and bad. The “fire” of God’s scrutiny will reveal the quality of our works. As Arthur Pink points out, “‘Gold, silver, precious stones’ are of intrinsic value, whereas ‘wood, hay, stubble’ are a natural growth” (The Redeemer’s Return, ch. 8, pt. 5). Rewards are distributed to those whose works withstand the test. Those whose works have a natural source will “suffer loss.” Their works will be burned up, but they themselves “will be saved.” The judgment seat of Christ, then, does not confer or rescind salvation.

The judgment seat of Christ is also not a time to punish sin. Jesus took our punishment once and for all. The judgment seat of Christ is a time when we will be called on to report, to render an accounting of what we did for Jesus. It will be a serious and necessary time of reckoning, but, as God’s redeemed, we will never be condemned with the wicked. As one theologian put it, “It cannot be too strongly emphasized that the judgment is unrelated to the problem of sin, that it is more for the bestowing of rewards than the rejection of failure” (Chafer, L. S., Systematic Theology, Vol. IV: Ecclesiology-Eschatology, Dallas Seminary Press, 1948, p. 406).

In the Greek, a single word is used for “judgment seat” in Romans 14:10 and 2 Corinthians 5:10—the word is bema. A bema was a raised platform on which judges sat to view athletic games. Their job was to make sure contestants followed the rules and to present awards to the victors (see 1 Corinthians 9:24–27). The bema was never a place to reprimand the athletes or to punish them in any way. It was a place of testing and reward. In the same way, the bema of Christ will not be a place of condemnation or censure.

In anticipation of the judgment seat of Christ, we are careful in what we say and do in this life. James gives this advice: “Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom” (James 2:12; cf. Matthew 12:36). We want to give our account with joy on that day, and that is why we strive to serve the Lord faithfully today.

The Bible speaks of believers receiving crowns for different things. The various crowns are described in 2 Timothy 2:5, 2 Timothy 4:8, James 1:12, 1 Peter 5:4, and Revelation 2:10. We believe the judgment seat of Christ is when the crowns will be awarded, and this will take place in heaven soon after the rapture of the church (as described in 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18).

At the very end of the Bible, Jesus said, “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done” (Revelation 22:12). In preparation for the judgment seat of Christ, what are you choosing to “build” with? Gold, silver, and precious stones—things that will last? Or wood, hay, and straw—things that will not stand the day of testing? (What is the judgment seat of Christ?)

I really do pray you come to understand the truth of how amazing God's grace really is. As we sing:

Amazing grace (how sweet the sound)
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
was blind, but now I see.

'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
and grace my fears relieved;
how precious did that grace appear
the hour I first believed!

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come:
'tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
and grace will lead me home.

Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like

Hmmmm...don't see anything in there about Sabbath keeping... Do you understand that it isn't the keeping of the commandments or the abstaining from the works of the flesh that saves you? You continue to insist you believe salvation is by grace through faith but you contradict yourself (something the Holy Spirit inspired Scriptures do NOT do) every time with your SDA cult-speak. If our works don't save us, they don't keep us saved, either. I've tried, as have many others to show this essential truth, but I'll keep praying that the Holy Spirit turns on the light in your heart to what grace really means.

And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work. (Romans 11:6)

BTW...you need to get over your obsession with Ravi. It almost sounds like you're jealous.

Nope. God takes everyone at their word when they claim his saving grace. Those who claim grace but later don’t keep God’s commandments, are called LIARS (stomp on the blood of the covenant, etc...). They will not be in heaven.

You who are trying to be justified by the law have been severed from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. All that matters is faith, expressed through love. (Galatians 5:4-6)

Praying for Anna, her baby and the family.

Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. Yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness. (Isaiah 41:10)

OSAS/OJAJ will still deny that God’s laws apply to them.

Why do cultists always leave out the context of the snippets they post thinking it proves their point? Let's look at that passage, shall we:

Now there was another famine in the land, subsequent to the one that had occurred in Abraham’s time. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines at Gerar. The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt. Settle in the land where I tell you. Stay in this land as a foreigner, and I will be with you and bless you. For I will give all these lands to you and your offspring, and I will confirm the oath that I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed, because Abraham listened to My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”(Genesis 26:1-5)

Nothing there about giving them eternal life or their everlasting salvation being dependent upon their keeping of His charge, commandments, statues and laws. They, as we are today, are saved by the grace of God through faith in what the Messiah has done in our place. For all the talk about your belief in grace, you continue to demonstrate you don't even know what the word means. This is a common trait amongst the perverted gospel cults.

Remind the believers to submit to rulers and authorities, to be obedient and ready for every good work, to malign no one, and to be peaceable and gentle, showing full consideration to everyone. For at one time we too were foolish, disobedient, misled, and enslaved to all sorts of desires and pleasures—living in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. This is the Spirit He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by His grace, we would become heirs with the hope of eternal life. This saying is trustworthy. And I want you to emphasize these things, so that those who have believed God will take care to devote themselves to good deeds. These things are excellent and profitable for the people. (Titus 3:1-8)

Find rapture in the Bible. I’ll give you ten years.

Um...you know the Bible wasn't written in English, right? In fact, the English language wouldn't even come into existence until 1500 years or so later! Like MANY theological beliefs, it is the concept that is taught in Scripture. The term "rapture":

Rapture is a state or experience of being carried away. The English word comes from a Latin word, rapio, which means to seize or snatch in relation to an ecstasy of spirit or the actual removal from one place to another. In other words, it means to be carried away in spirit or in body. The Rapture of the church means the carrying away of the church from earth to heaven.

The Greek word from this term “rapture” is derived appears in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, translated “caught up.” The Latin translation of this verse used the word rapturo. The Greek word it translates is harpazo, which means to snatch or take away. Elsewhere it is used to describe how the Spirit caught up Philip near Gaza and brought him to Caesarea (Acts 8:39) and to describe Paul’s experience of being caught up into the third heaven (2 Cor. 12:2-4). Thus there can be no doubt that the word is used in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 to indicate the actual removal of people from earth to heaven. (https://bible.org/question/where-did-term-8216rapture%E2%80%99-come)

Do you deny that there WILL be a catching away of believers from the earth to heaven? Maybe you disagree about the timing, but there's no denying that Jesus DID say He would come again and receive believers unto Himself that where He is, there we will be also. Was He lying?

That “fashion” as you called it has been around for more than 20 years now! Kinda old for a fad - I didn’t think they lasted that long. Don’t they realize how stupid they all look? The good news is it sure makes it harder to run from the police.

Compared to the Creator of all things, we should never forget the words of Jesus:

And He said to them, “Watch out! Guard yourselves against every form of greed, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (Luke 12:15)

For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? (Matthew 16:26)

This is what invariably happens when there is no accepted absolute truth and everything is relative. Take out the Creator/Lawgiver and every man does what is right in his own eyes. Man, left to his own devices and because of his innate sin nature, will always gravitate to anarchy and devolve into his own destruction. How many times does it have to happen before we finally get it?