Bible Discussion Replies PAGE 344

Hi Ronald.

Brother I certainly misread your text!

I thought you were saying there is no 3 and a half year tribulation period. I re-read the text and couldn't do nothing but laugh at myself.

I think I combined your text with another and didn't read through neither.

Sorry for that!

More on the wide gate and "broad way" mentioned in Matthew 7:13-14.

I don't think you will find least resistance in the wide gate because because it is a "broad way"!

This group doesn't necessarily agree with one another! The only thing they have in common is they reject Christ and some don't even know it.

One's narrow view can be found in the wide gate.

I believe that is what makes the wide gate a broad way. People are willing to take any other way but the Lord's way.

That's why those on Christ narrow path is persecuted by the world and half of them goes under the banner of Christianity so I would be careful not to be prejudice against a view point because it is taught by what is believed to be the majority or minority view.

We study scripture to learn and grow. Not to differentiate or to disprove aview point.

It can become an obsession and lead you down the wrong path.

God bless.

Hello Rainwalker - and Ronald Whittemore

Greetings in Christ JESUS

I could not see in your reply what is your interpretation on Dan.9:27, you just limited yourself to informing other interpretations are erroneous, your answer did not bring your interpretation.I did not understand what you meant: 'one issue with Dan 9:27 is that it's all about the Messiah'.

But what does Daniel 9:27 reveal?

27 - And HE shall confirm the covenant with many for one week(of years):and in the MIDST of the week(after 42 months)HE shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,and for the overspreading of abominations HE shall make it desolate, even until the consummation,and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. Just curious.Who is HE in your understanding? (Remember:In Matthew 24:15 our Lord JESUS LITERALLY referred to this desolation spoken of by Daniel as a signal of His coming imediately after the period of sorrows- Matthew 24:3-8).

Then,according to the above,'HE shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease',but verse 26 says:And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off (crucified),but NOT for Himself: and the people (WHAT PEOPLE?)of the PRINCE (WHAT PRINCE?)that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary(for me Ezekiel 21:25 reveals who is this profane Prince); and the end thereof shall be with a flood,and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.

You said 'the Ministry of JESUS' was 3,5 years, but the current and universal record of the period of JESUS's Ministry is only 3 years, not 3,5 years. What is your source? Just curious,it's unknown to me.

Sorry, our posts are read by many brothers and sisters, so my concern is to FIND the true interpretation of Scriptures in the current perilous times, and also overspreading of apostasies, beyond manifestation of the son of perdition very soon( John 5:43-47 combined with 2Thessalonians 2:1-4 and Revelation 13:11).

May our Lord GOD bless us,and give us His pretection

Amen

Last post the Deity of Jesus:

I forgot to identify the topic as to who God is.

God is the "SON"

Anyone who wants to give biblical evidence that disproves the deity of Jesus is welcome to post their views as I did. Both views cannot be true, so we must find out which one is true and which one is heresy. It is such an important matter for believers to have correct doctrines about who God is according to Scripture so that we can worship God in Spirit and in Truth.

The Deity of Jesus

Then Peter says that Jesus is the Son of the Living God. Remember that the Jews of the first century understood that Son of God is a divine title, as I explained earlier. So for Peter to say that Jesus is the Son of the Living God, He is saying that Jesus is God.

In Matthew 16:16-17 Jesus again asked a very profound question. "Who do you say that I am." Again, Peter the same statement. "Thou are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." Jesus receives this statement as true and declared that Peter didn't come up with this idea on his own but that the Father had revealed this truth to Peter (because God can only tell the truth).

In john 20:28, Thomas, upon seeing and touching the risen Jesus exclaims, "My Lord and my God." Jesus does not rebuke Thomas for saying He is God, nor does He say Thomas is mistaken and then correct Thomas. No, Jesus accepts Thomas' statement of worship.

In Is. 43;15, YHWH says, "I am the LORD, your Holy One, the creator of Israel, you King." In Jn. 1:49, after Jesus calls Natanael, Nathanael says, "Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel." Jesus does not negate what Natanael states because this disciples is equating Jesus with YHWH of Is. 43:15.

Also, even demons knew that Jesus was God, calling Him the "Holy One of God" in Mk. 1:24; Lk. 4:34.

Next, I want to go to Hebrew1:6 where the inspiration of God had the author say that the angels worship Jesus, In Rev. there is worship of Jesus, the Lamb, along with the Father, who sits on the throne. How could this worship be allowed in heaven if Jesus was not God?

For now I will stop. There are many, many more verses that speak to Jesus; divinity. One can look on this site under the question "Is Jesus God?"

For me, I am convinced that Jesus is God and worthy of worship as God. And it is not idolatry to worship the Father and Jesus, the Son, for there are not two Gods (or three), but one God who exists as several divine persons who are one in nature.

The De3ity of Jesus

Part 5

The apostles knew that they were to believe and worship only YHWH. So, why would Jesus tell them to believe in the Father as God and also believe in Himself as God? In verse 7 He tells Thomas that if they know Him they would also know the Father and have seen the Father in knowing Himself. Right away, Philip asks Jesus to show them the Father. Jesus says, "He that has seen me has seen the Father." and in vs. 8 He says "I am in the Father and the Father is in Me." Her Jesus is telling the truth that He is in a oneness relationship with the Father. He speaks that the Father is one person and he is another, but together they are truly one.

In vs. 23 He says that those who love Him, the Father and Himself will come and together with the Father (and the Spirit -vs.17) God will live within the believer. In Chapter 15:23 Jesus says that He who hates Him also hates the Father, once more speaking to their divine oneness.

John 17 is Jesus' high priestly prayer (which I so love to read again and again) After saying in vs. 2 that the Father has given Jesus power over all flesh (divine sovereignty) and that Jesus give eternal life to all the Father gives Him, in vs. 5 Jesus speaks of the Father glorifying Him again just as He was glorified within the Father eternally from before he came into the world. This is clearly a statement of His Deity because in Is. 42:8, 48:11God said He will not give His glory to another.

Next, I wish to cite passages that tells us what the disciples believed about Jesus. Jesus asked a very pointed question to His disciples in John chapter 6 after telling the crowds that He was the Bread of Life and many followers deserted him. He asked "Who do you say that I am (again using the name YHWH). in vs. 62 He says "What and if you see the Son of man (Himself) ascend up where He was before? (Speaking about His eternal existence with the Father). In vs. 69 Peter boldly proclaims that Jesus is the Christ (Messiah) see part 6

The Deity of Jesus

Part 4.

Since the essential nature of the Godhead is changeless, the Father would eternally be the Father of the Son, and the Son would eternally be the Son of the Father. Since John, under inspiration says that the Son is God, then it would be a conflict to say that the Son had a beginning of His begetting because that would indicate a change in the internal nature of the Godhead.

Next, I want to cite a few instances in John's Gospel where the Jewish leaders took up stones to kill Him or worse because in their first century thinking, they accused Jesus of making Himself God or equal to YHWH. These citations are John chapter 5:16-47; (for healing on the Sabbath and making Himself equal with God, vs. 18) 8:59 (where Jesus us the name YHWH to say that he existed before Abraham); 10:18 (Jesus says that He has the power to resurrect Himself) 10:20 (the Jews said that He had a devil and try to arrest Him) vs, 30 where Jesus states "I and the Father are one." and 31-39 where the Jews wanted to stone Him for blasphemy because He said He was the Son of God, thus making Himself to be God.

In all of these citations, Jesus knew already before He spoke how the Jews would understand His words, and He spoke them very deliberately, knowing they would accuse Him of saying He is God. He did not restate his words in ways such as, "No, no, I did not mean to say that I am God or equal to Him, you have misunderstood." No, He let his words stand affirming that their understanding of Him stating his deity was correct. If their understanding of His words were wrong, then He would have corrected their misunderstanding, but He didn't, and thus they wanted to stone him for blasphemy.

Next, I wish to go to the Last Supper Discourse in John. Right away, in john 14:1 Jesus tells His disciples to believe in God (His eternal Father) and also to believe in Him (the eternal divine Son). I say this because He never once retracted His claims to Deity. See part 5

Hey Oseas,

Sorry for the delay, I did not reply concerning the two beasts in Revelation 13 my reply was about the last week of Daniel 9:27 being put at the end times, my understanding is different. As far as the sea means waters and could be the Gentile nations you may be correct, we know it won't be Israel.

If we look at Revelation 11:7 and Revelation 17:8 this beast ascendeth out of the bottomless pit, so the word sea in Revelation 13 may mean the abyss, just a thought.

Thanks, and God bless,

RLW

The Deity of Jesus

Part. 3

Most of all, John would have known the doctrines being taught about Jesus and the writings of the other apostles. After being released from Patmos, John returned to Ephesus where he remained until his natural death. Polycarp, Ignatius and Papias were his pupils who were appointed as bishops either by John or Peter. Irenaeus was taught by Polycarp. John was active in ministry in Asia Minor prior to his imprisonment on Patmos. He planted churches in the region.

So, what was John inspired by God to say about J9esus' deity?

He begins his Gospel right away claiming Jesus was God ( John 1:1-3, that Jesus the divine Son of the Father, became enfleshed in human form. (vs. 1:14, Immanuel, God with us). John says that the Father (God) sent divine Son from Himself to be born into the world, fulfilling Is. 9:6-a child is born, a son is given). John says in vs. 1:4 that in Jesus was Life (just as the Father had Life within Himself ( Jn. 5:26, divine, eternal life that both the Father and Jesus can give to believers). Vs. 3 says that Jesus created ALL things ( Rev. 4:11 says the same) which is an act only God can do (see 1 Cor. 8:6). John goes on to say that in Jesus was the fullness of God bodily. (vs. 14. 16) Paul says the same thing in Col. 2:9.

In Jn. 1:18 some of the earliest Greek manuscripts wrote Theos instead of the Greek word of Son, but both speak of the Son/God being the only begotten. The Father is completely unbegotten, but the Son is begotten and it is the Son who reveals the Father to humanity. This gospel was written in Greek, and in Greek, 'only begotten' is written "monogenes", which, (from what I read) means a unique, one-of-a-kind offspring-as having the nature of its father. So, it seems that 1;18 is saying that Jesus , as the only Son of God by nature is divine as the Father is. This verse does not seem to say that the Son had a beginning in the Godhead. see part 4

The Deity of Jesus

Pt. 3

In Rev. 1:8 Jesus a says that He is "the Almighty" which is equivalent to "Mighty God" and the name that YHWH named Himself to Abraham ( Gen. 17:1; Ex 6:3) This harkens back to Isaiah's prophecy 9:6 as well as to Abraham and Moses as identifying God. Jesus was saying in Rev. 1:8 that he is God Almighty, just as Isa 9:6 prophesied.

In Mic. 5:2 another Messianic prophecy concerning Jesus is:

"For thou, Beth-lehem-Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me who is to be ruler in Israel, whose goings forth have been of old; from everlasting." This verse is saying that the Messian existed eternally. He is from everlasting, just as the Everlasting Father is.

Again, in Is., 48:12 YHWH speaks, "Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am." the last." Jesus attributes this title to Himself in his statement to John in Rev. 1:8; 22:13.

Just from these statements from the OT that are attributed to Jesus in the NT, it is clear that the Scriptures attest to the deity of Jesus, as He calls Himself God explicitly in Rev. 1:8.

The witness of both OT and NT teach that Jesus is God, so I believe that this is the truth concerning His nature.

But next I will go into the NT to see other examples that attest to the truth that Jesus is God with us, God made flesh.

John the author of the Gospel, 1,2 and 3 Jn. and Revelation, was alive in the 90's A.D. All the other apostles had been martyred and he had been imprisoned on the Isle of Patmos (in the northern Aegean Sea) by the emperor Domitian 88 A.D. - 96 A.D. He was most likely released from Patmos in the mid-90's by the succeeding Emperor Nerva who became Emperor in 96 A.D.

John , having been one of the 12 apostles during Jesus' earthly lifetime, had much knowledge about the formation, expansion, and establishment of the early church in the first century. He knew Jesus well and the other apostles. cont

The Deity of Jesus

Part 2.

The past weeks I have taken much time in Scripture to once again find out what it teaches on the deity of Jesus. It is very important to me to believe what the Scriptures do say as the basis for my belief in Jesus. Jesus asks us to believe in Him, and to me, this means believing the truth about Him from Scripture as well as trusting in Him for salvation. So, in the following posts I will accept what the Scriptures say about Jesus' nature. What does the Scriptures say concerning Jesus in this view?

First, I will bring forward some OT prophecies concerning Jesus:

Psalm 45:6

"Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever; the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre."

The writer of Hebrews applies this prophecy to Jesus in 1:8

"But unto the Son, he (God) saith: "Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever; a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre ofthy kingdom."

Verses 9-13 goes on to speak of the Son as creating the foundations of the earth and of the heavens; that the Son will fold these up again, and bring about the changed to them; but the Son is changeless and eternal.

Isaiah 7:14 gives a prophecy concerning Jesus.

"Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and they shall call him Immanuel."

Matthew 1:22-23 cites this prophecy as being fulfilled in Jesus, who is Emmanuel (another spelling of Immanuel) which means "God with us."

isaiah 9:6 prophesies that:

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, The Everlasting Gather, the Prince of Peace"

Here, Isaiah the prophecy of vs. 9:14 is extended and still refers to Immanuel who Jesus is. In this verse Jesus is called Mighty God (an OT name for God) along with the Everlasting Father: (which shows Immanuel's oneness with the Father as Jesus said that "I and the Father are one" in John 10:30. cont. to pt. 3

Good morning,

I am coming back to my study of Who God is. last time I wrote about God being "SAVIOR". Before I continue I wanted to clarify something from the last post on this series. I showed how Jesus is our Savior and that in the OT it is stated that only God is our Savior. Thus, the Scriptures show that Jesus is God who was prophesied to save mankind from sin.

I also gave a quotation (which I did not remember to source) and this quote offended some here. I wish to explain my motivation further concerning this quotation.

First of all, I never would post something to purposely offend another person. My heart is not like that.

Secondly, I did not direct that quotation towards any particular person.

Thirdly, I posted that quotation because I believe that the topic of whether or not Jesus is God just as the Father is God or not is a very important matter for believers to resolve. And that it should be resolved with what Scriptures do say.

I think that coming to a Scriptural conclusion on this aspect of Jesus nature is vital to whether one believes in the Jesus of Scripture or "another Jesus".



Jesus exhorted people time and again to believe in Him to have eternal life. So, believing truly about Jesus is so very important to any believer.

The quotation I posted was intended to make this point:

And please note that it was prefaced with an "IF"

IF anyone believes that Jesus is God and Scripture says that He is not and continues to believe He is God and worships Him, then they are idolaters. AND IF anyone believes that Jesus is not God and Scripture say that He is God and refuse to believe that Scriptures reveal his deity and will not worship Him, they are also idolators.

ALSO, IF anyone who continues to hold on to a false belief concerning Jesus' deity or non-deity when Scriptures say that He is God or not God then they are either blaspheming the Father if Jesus is not God or blaspheming the Godhead if Jesus is God.

So this is a very vital matter.

Hey S Spencer,

Thanks, brother, I did not intend to combine salvation issue and eschatology. I was just referring to it being an innate human nature to follow a crowd and taking the path of least resistance. I did not mean to base any truth on the majority or minority. I agree we can apply Matthew 7:13 with salvation but we can also apply it to what is being taught as in verse 15 is a warning of false prophets. This includes false teaching that is attractive and the larger the crowd the easier it is to deceive people.

I agree we should put Scripture above all that is taught out there for in them is the only truth, but many people do not, they just go with what they hear from a preacher, TV, YouTube, etc. Some never open a Bible and study and pray, asking God for the truth and the larger the follower's impact what they believe is the truth.

We can be deceived if we do not try the spirits, 1 John 4:1 that only comes from prayer and study being guided by the Holy Spirit. Hope this makes sense, we have discussed this before and this is not to debate we both know each other's understanding and I am not asking you but honestly, I have not found or have been shown one verse that out-and-out says we go or are taken to heaven that some teach.

I must disagree, I am not Amillennialism, I do not spiritualize Scripture, I believe in a literal 1000-year reign of Jesus with His chosen and faithful at His second coming, Revelation 5:10 Revelation 20:4-6. Also, I do not believe the Church has replaced Israel. We are probably closer in our understanding of the end times than you think.

Hope you had a good vacation I guess you are on the road again.

God bless,

RLW

Dear GIGI

Amen. GOD bless you and all your family.

Hi Brother Ronald.

When Jesus said "broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat" I believe that is a salvation issue, "Not eschatology"

You said yourself that we shouldn't tie the two together!

We should hold to and run with scripture, "Not majority or minority as you stated but if the majority or minority is correct on a matter there is nothing we can do against the truth whether it is a salvation issue, eschatology, or any other issue.

Concerning the wide gate. Most and confess we are saved by faith in the working of God by way of the cross but out of that group many will be deceived. "It's just a confession. Not faith.

In the context of that portion of scripture man puts his trust in the work in his own hands.

I agree with you when you say that your interpretation on eschatology is different from most,

However, I don't agree that the view that Richard, myself and others has shared on this topic is a majority view point.

Today the Amillenial view point "where one spiritualize much of the text is widely accepted and your views is closer to theirs than the narrow viewpoint the we premillennials hold to.

So brother you are in that wide gate that has been passed down since st Augustine.

I believe this viewpoint has a faulty hermeneutics.

I agree 100 percent with Richard on this but I wouldn't be willing to debate it again at this time.

However I believe you have been shown the proof of what you are asking multiple times by several people on this site.

God bless.

amen brother.

"Heart of God" Ez.28:1 (2 of 2)

Mind of man is not brain which facilitates assembling information it receives into a thought pattern. Mind like heart is a spiritual space. By breathing into the nostrils of Adam he made him a living soul. So truth in man's inward pars make heart and mind interchangeable. Heart supplies the force from the inclinations that mind of man assembles. Thus King of Tyrus understands his advantages, "By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence,"(28:16) This pre-eminent position of the seafaring nation did not come by playing by the rules but with violence, 'greed is good' the king would have rationalized. In order to maintain their lead meant playing a dirty cut-throat game. The pride and ruthlessness showed their DNA came from Lucifer, the covering cherub.

Satan or Lucifer was set up perfect in beauty. Whereas Jesus Christ the Son was perfect in the beauty of holiness. "Thus saith the LordGod; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty./Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God" (28:12-13)

God blessed man in his Son. So the river from Eden watering the garden shows Eden as a kingdom where the Son had his presence even as Satan has had. Eden is qualified as the garden of God. It is also described as the mountain of God. In Is.14 Satan would want to sit higher than the rest of the congregation to which we shall come in the next post. Eden and Zion have their own significance.

The point we need to understand the creature telling the creator, "I will want more honour than you are willing to give." It is the spirit of disobedience which marks the children of darkness or the children of wrath. Either you have the inheritance among the heirs in the kingdom of light or with Satan,"Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me./Why do ye not understand my speech?...."

( John 8:42-45)

"Heart of God" Ez.28:1 (1 of 2)

"Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the LordGod; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God:"

What does the heart signify for a child of God?

God calls Prophet Ezekiel the son of man, a generic term to indicate the covenant of God with Man. St Paul explains it, "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world" and another verse tells us in whom we have been chosen. "Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,"(Ep.1:4-5)

We are chosen in the Man component so each one of us is a son by adoption. Jesus Christ is the firstborn and we are His children in his Son. It is according to the good pleasure of his Will that is one idea we need understand well before we explain the nature of God.

By His breath he garnished the heavens so we shall interpret the verse, "Who (God) maketh his angels spirits"(104:4) in context of a quote from the Book of Job. "By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens; his hand hath formed the crooked serpent." ( Job 26:13).This crooked serpent refers to the red dragon and also Lucifer which in turns brings us to the King of Tyrus, a man. As Ezekiel is addressed by God King of Tyrus is the son of Perdition, We trace here children by adoption according to the good pleasure of the divine Will. On the other hand the king of Tyrus owe his parentage to Lucifer who resisted the will of his Father. "I will" is his credo while the Son said,"Lo I come to do they will." God is a Spirit. The Son chose to totally align his will to that of the Father. The heart of the Son, obedience, trust faith delineate the holiness of the Son. Ph.2:5-9 explains the mind of Christ or the heart as a spiritual space.

Hey Oseas, one issue with Dan 9:27 is that it's all about the Messiah. The seventy weeks are all about Jesus, no antichrist. Jesus did cause the oblation to cease 3 and a half years into his ministry " annoint the most holy", which was his baptism. There is no prophetic "covenant" with Israel for seven years made by the antichrist, this is an erroneous teaching.

Ronald Whittemore & Rainwalker

The message below is for your meditation, as a clue, to decipher an enigma / conundrum.

As you know, Revelation 13 describes two terrible different Beasts:

Beast of sea(verse 1),

Beast of the earth(verse 11)

Which of the two Beasts are you referring to?

According to the Revelation, sea means waters, waters mean peoples, and nations, and multitues of all tongues- Revelation 17:15-i.e. Gentile nations, so the Beast of sea is a Gentile Beast.

The Beast of earth has two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a DRAGON (a false lamb), by allegory, earth here is Israel, the clay( Isaiah 64:8) a dry land, like an isle in the sea, a portion of earth surrounded by waters (gentile peoples) on all sides.

According to the Daniel 9:27, he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week. Revelation 13:2 says the DRAGON shall give to the GENTILE Beast of sea his Power, and his Seat(his throne in Jerusalem), and great Authority. And in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations( Daniel 12:11) he shall make it desolate until the consummation.

GOD BLESS

Hello Stephanie V. I am happy to continue to pray for you and your health. You have been posting your prayer needs here for a long while and I am glad you do. May the Lord bless you and heal you and restore to you your energy, strength, resistence to illness, and increase your body's health from day to day.

Hey Rainwalker,

We have similar understanding on some things, Jesus said Take heed that no man deceive you, to be deceived is to be taken out of the way. He also said broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: We as humans tend to go with the majority thinking so many believe one thing it must be the right way, Satan's best deception.

It has been taught for so long now, that many are looking for something that is not the truth and will be unable to stand when the hour of temptation comes. There is not a first and second half of tribulation there are 3.5 years given to the beast as we see in Revelation 13. Many are looking to be taken to heaven before the beast arises out of the bottomless pit.

I have not seen anywhere in Scripture where we are taken or we go to heaven, if someone can show me, I would be grateful.

God bless,

RLW

One thing to bear, there is no "first half" of the tribulation, "second half", there is no specified time of the tribulation period, just saying.

Hello Ross, I can suggest a verse for you and it is a command from God. "He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions." (Ps.107:20). The psalm is specifically about God's manifold mercies to Israel which is merely a springboard for Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever. He is the word became flesh. So this verse is eternally true. This is what we have in the healing of a man for thirty eight years by the pool in John 5. The Spirit has chosen this to prove literally what Is.55:11.

" So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." God has sent the word before you and Debra were born. Jesus being present at Bethesda so healing him proves that Gods word works at many levels. So praying in faith means you are claiming victory as God promised. All his promises are 'yea' in his Son. May God work with your faith. In case if there are unconfessed sins confess them to God so there is nothing that Satan can claim against you.

Your healing comes from God and from his Son. In your heart check out if there is no anger, malice or anything to hinder from being healed. God is good and merciful. May God heal you and your sister, Amen

Amen, Oseas,

Beautiful and thought full prayer. This prayer blessed me as I recall all the ways God has worked in my life. God is good and we can be assured of His faithfulness in our care and needs.

Psalm 116:12-13

12 What shall I render unto the Lord for all His benefits toward me?

13 I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord.

Prayer of the day in favor of God's people throughout the Earth, in favor of His beloved Church, until He returns to be with us forever and ever, as He promised us

Beloved GOD, father of the Lord JESUS Christ

We thank you for more this day of life that you have granted us

We lie down, we get up, because you have kept us alive until this moment that we call upon You, it in Your presence

We thank you for this daily bread that you have not missed on our table

To nourish and strengthen our body

but above all, beloved Lord, strengthen our soul in the Power of your Word,

the bread of life, the bread of heaven, the heavenly manna

Bless us throughout this day, keep us and deliver us from all evil and all danger

May your angels be encamped around your people, your servants in whole Earth, to protect them, today and always

Give us victory in struggles, in difficulties,

supplies our needs, and heals us of our illnesses,

heals the illneness in the midst of your people throughout the Earth,

Lord, in our work, in our activities, bless us and prosper them

Your kingdom come to us according to your Word, as is written "the

kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of the Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever",

It continues to accompany us and guard us throughout the day, protecting us from all danger and all evil, today and always.

We ask, we pray, and we thank You, in the name of the Lord JESUS Christ, now and forevermore

Amen

JESUS' own testimony of Himself is wonderful,it reveals in depth the mystery of His existence in the greatness of the Universe created by GOD the Father,full of heavenly bodies,and on Earth specifically He populated the planet with living beings,and He sat in the circle of the Earth: Is.40:21-22:->21Have ye not known?have ye not heard?has it not been told you from the beginning?have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? 22 It is GOD that sits upon the circle of the Earth,and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers;

That said,we must remember what JESUS said from His own existence:Jo.17:4-5:

4I have glorified thee on the earth:I have finished the work which thou gave me to do( John 1:3&5:17& Hebrews 1:1-2 testify what JESUS said.Check it)

5And now,O Father,glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the WORLD was.(John the Baptist,angel of the LORD,testified about this,saying:Jo.1:18-No man has seen GOD at any time,the only begotten Son,which is in the bosom of the Father,He has declared Him)

Paul testified:Col.1:14-16:

14 In JESUS we have redemption through His blood,even the forgiveness of sins:

15 Who is the image of the INVISIBLE GOD,the firstborn of every creature:

16 For by Him-by JESUS-were all things created,that are in heaven, and that are in earth,visible and invisible,whether they be thrones,or dominions,principalities,powers:all things were created by Him,and for Him:( John 1:3&5:17& Hebrews 1:1-2 confirm)

Acts 4:11-12:

11This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders,which is become the head of the corner.

12Neither is there salvation in any other:for there is none other NAME(except JESUS)under heaven given among men,whereby we must be saved.

Mat.11:27-No man knows the Son,but the Father;neither knows any man the Father,save the Son,and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him.

No man has seen GOD,the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He has made Him known.John1:18

Continuing with conviction of the Spirit vs man made manipulation.

In light of John 16:8 it is hard to understand the concept of bending over backwards to have people feel comfortable and "fit in" to a church. In fact; I would even go so far as to say it wouldn't be a bad slogan for a church to say in their bulletin that people should "plan to feel UNcomfortable" in their services. How can the fear of the Lord be something which is entertaining to anyone?

How can to so called "hole in men's hearts that only God can fill" appeal to anyone who doesn't conceive their own hopelessness before a righteous and Holy God who they have offended and continue to do so as long as they are unregenerate? ( Psalm 7:11-13). God is angry with the wicked every day; and it is truly sad that many don't get that to appreaciate His love; mercy; and kindness that we have to understand who we are and what great cost it was that He had to send His only Son to die in our stead.

We need something powerful enough to stand against an intractable foe; who seeks to kill; steal and destroy. Let's be real; if a church wants to seek and save the lost they won't be focusing so much time on flashy entertainment; and expensive building projects but will focus on missionary efforts. Many have bought into either careless giving with unscrupulous ministries that are not biblically sound or doing a bunch of service projects without the MAIN priority being presenting the Gospel. We can't err on the other side either with resources; but I have found it is often individual efforts of laypersons on a consistant basis that have more effect than occasional outings where everything tends to be rather scripted. And of course there is the BIG issue of cult personalities where noteriety becomes a snare; sadly that seems to have occured with Billy Graham when he didn't protest having a star in hollywood with his name on a pavement. SEE LUKE 16:15. We don't need approval of politicians or the world.

Conviction of the Spirit vs. man made manipulation

When God gets a hold of a man; He has no interest in using a man's intellect; beauty; or any other thing the old nature has to offer. He must put these things to death through the power of the risen Christ to begin His transformation and make a man suitable as a servant for His Kingdom. Compare this to a cult leader; he is using one of two techniques; flattery in order to draw in susceptible victims (usually young attractive women whose true purpose is only later realized); or fear and control to keep them in. At the inception; therefore is a weakness in a person which sucks them in to their hypnotic mind control where in the beginning there is often a period of time when a person can free themselves from such a fate if they truly seek the Lord.

More often we are in situations which are rather nebulous or ill defined as right or wrong. Particular denominations or individual Pastors can have their own temperment; or doctrines that are more or less severe or restrictive than others. This can result in what has happened with a friend of mine who is a young Pastor; where the influence of the church founders often controls the narrative which in his case has been a hindrance to maturity in the congregation. I won't focus here on the various nuances in regard to remaining with or leaving a particular fellowship and I probably covered it some time in the last 2 years on this site.

When it comes to things like prayer; for instance things seem to usually swing toward an extreme of a bare bones diet in today's churches. When people are pressured to do things we have to be certain we are not creating our own kingdom. When I got to see an elderly lady preaching to someone living on the street and the lady was in tears it wouldn't have happened with a half hearted effort; but with a true anointing of the Spirit of God. Would you want someone who doesn't demonstrate love praying for you? Food for thought..

Concluding thoughts on John 16:8

For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. ( 2 Cor. 7:10).

Giving careful thought to the subject at hand I thought I would mention some more scripture. Romans 14:17 says:

For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

Understanding sin; first of all has to go beyond what we are used to in this world. Our actions are sinful; and our bodies corrupted but nothing is inherently evil about the physical part of man; indeed we are "fearfully and wonderfully made" ( Psalm 139:14). Jesus demonstrated as a perfect man that he could weep; eat; drink; and sleep as others did but set an example of serving rather than being served ( Matthew 20:28). All things are right in their place; physical intimacy in the marriage bed ( Heb. 13:4) is one good example. Killing a man in defence of a family or serving in the armed services is diametrically opposed to murdering someone out of spite.

As believers; we should find not only repugnant the desires we once had of the world flesh and the Devil but also find that what was once the obsession of our daily lives; although we are to work diligently to serve the Lord and continue with our families whenever possible the everyday procedures are strangely dim; as it were to our heavenly hope which we have now "seated in heavenly places" ( Eph. 2:6). Our focus goes away from OURSELVES and to the Body of Christ as well as seeking to reach the lost. Proverbs 11:30 says The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.

Again; as per some of my older posts in regard to the Christian "music industry" as well as many megachurches or those supposedly exercising "manifestations" which of these exactly is causing conviction of sin to occur and is focused on God's righteousness? Finally where is the Godly fear of His wrath; that is what brings revival

An exposition of John 16:8-11

8And when He comes, He will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: 9in regard to sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see Me; 11and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world has been condemned.

"And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever." ( Revelation 5:13)

"Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." ( John 20:29).

Starting with the middle verse; I thought it interesting to consider that IF this is to be taken chronologically; IMMEDIATELY after the Rapture and before the onset of the first seal being opened; everyone will praise God and Christ. I had originally noted that this occurs at the sixth seal; when mankind runs away from God and realizes His judgments have begun. This brings to mind what was said in the passage from John; we don't want to wake up in the Tribulation and have to face the horrors of that time and martyrdom to boot which will be the basic change once everything is revealed; the church age is over and the saints are to be overcome ( Daniel 7:25).

The Spirit reflects Christ in its operation. When Jesus spoke it was often in regard to bringing out the full meaning of the law (lust and anger) as general teaching to the crowd; or specific allegations to a group of Pharisees in particular as well as lawyers.

The Spirit causes individuals to have a general conviction of sin because we have a sense of God's holiness against our own condition. The end result of sin is death ( Romans 6:23) and hell. Godly sorrow brings repentance (and life) worldly sorrow death.