faith

True faith in God results in Love

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The true message of the Bible. The true message of Jesus. The true message of the Bible is truly love.
The theme of Christ’s teachings was to love all. This is not the teaching others say. This is not the teachings even those within the church teach.
Many teach that self-glorification and self-satisfaction is the road to God. However, this is not the truth at all.
To truly love you must be willing to place all others before yourself. If you do not or cannot do this, than is what you believe really of God? The answer is no.
Do you take what men say the Bible says to be real? Have you truly read the Bible yourself?
Then how can you tell who is telling you the truth. I challenge you to pick up a Bible and read it. I challenge you to see that the words I now type are those based upon the teaching of the true Bible. I encourage you to see that what I say is true. That it is filled with the love of God and His Son Jesus Christ the living Savior of all that come to understand and accept the true. That to truly love yourself means to place ALL others before yourself and to love them no matter what they say or do.
Start with the New Testament. Once you read that then expand to the rest of the Bible. For the entire Bible aims you toward Jesus Christ.

Am I fear mongering?

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“I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.” – Isoroku Yamamoto

Admiral Yamamoto called the USA a sleeping giant. Why make such a comparison? Because the US is separated by oceans that keeps us away from those countries that are going through turmoil. Then we have a news media that no longer gives us all the news but selective views that that contain more commentary then news. It is also not the news.

The fourth estate’s intent was to give unvarnished and complete news about all issues and allow those that read the news to make their own conclusion. Now they give us their conclusions and expect us to take them at their word.

As a result, the United States of America is not fully aware of many things going on outside the door of their own home.

I asked a good friend if she had heard what was going on in the middle-east as the news of beheadings was stating to finally make its way into this nation. She is a good Christian and God-fearing woman. Her response: “I have no idea what you are talking about.”

I look about me and see Christians stating they should only care for those within their church and their own family. This is not what we were command by God to do. We are to spread the Word of God throughout the entire world. The world does not begin at the boarder of this nation. This nation is part of the world as well. Therefore, the Bible is to be taught not just in our homes, and churches. It is to be taught everywhere.

It is this mentality that we are to cage up God inside a building that has allowed those that oppose God to gain in power and strength within this nation that was originally founded to worship God.

There is no such thing as “Politically Correct” there is only “Biblically Correct”

If they choose not to listen that is their choice, but if they do not hear of the Bible or its views then they cannot make a true decision without all the facts given to them.

As Christians sit in their home and churches, those that oppose Christian views and principles sit in the colleges and universities teaching that there is no God and the Bible and those that follow the Bible are stupid. This is what happens when Christians disobey God.

It is not fear mongering. It is a wake-up call to those within the Christian community that sit around, do, and say nothing. For as they do this nation falls deeper and deeper into crisis. Christians are to be active in all aspects of this nation. They are to not only just go to church, but also go to the town hall, state capital and national capitol and make their views heard. Let those that are in office know how you think and if they do not support your views. You vote them out of office and if need be run yourself and take their place. That is the duty of all Christians not just a handful.

Stop saying “Oh someone else is going to do.” That is what everyone is saying. Stand up and be heard. PERIOD.

A friend’s post

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Today I read a friend’s post on Facebook. The more I thought on it the more it bothered me. In the first part of it he said “how does someone that calls themselves Christian act.” This is paraphrased by the way.
The word “act” which was not paraphrased bothered me.
Now I must say that he went on to state that the only way into to heaven is through Jesus and asking Jesus into your heart. This I fully agree with for those that have been exposed to Christian believes and teachings, but there are still those out there that have never heard of not only Jesus but also the Bible. For these people their actions will be how they are judged at the white throne judgment, but this is not how those that have heard of God, Jesus and the Bible will be judged at this time.

Those that have heard of the Trinity, God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Ghost. These people must answer if they have asked Jesus into the heart and souls. Those in the United Stated have heard of the Trinity. Many believe they are Christian. Many others have turned their back upon God and denied that God even exists. There are even those that call themselves Christian but in reality are not.

When someone accepts Jesus and you ask Him into your life a real change occurs within you. You begin to change. For some a change that completely created a new person immediately. For most, it is a gradual change that can take days, months or even years to fully see how you have become a new person.

If you truly stand before God, pleading for His Son to come into your life you will see and feel the difference. There will be no need, want or desire to “act.” For you will do it because you know it is the right way to behave and act. Sure, you will slip and fall time to time, but if your faith is real, you will pick yourself up and once again continue that journey that will in time lead you first to heaven and then finally passed the white throne to an eternal life in an eternal body.

The ongoing rebirth of the church

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Since Jesus made Paul his thirteen disciple, we have witnessed more than once the rebirth of the church. Sometime it changed by the simple posting of doctrines on a door. Other times with blood being shed.
This was not the promise to Israel though. They have been promised to be the first children of God and so they have not had to go through a true rebirth. Have they been through trials? Yes, and many would say they still are.
Since we Christians have been given the blessing of becoming the thirteen tribe of God. The true essence of free-will has been reinstated.
Within Revelation in the second and third chapters are letters to seven churches. Each reflects the acts of free-will and their results. Be they good or bad.
This is why the Christian church as a whole has gone through these rebirths. Now we can learn from the trials of Israel. Within this nation, there have been intercession. Usually by their leader or prophet. We within the Christian church have those that have intervened. For example Martin Luther. He intervened due to the corruption within the Catholic Church and as a result, the church was reborn. Once again focused on God and His Word. This rebirth is seen in Israel as well, but it is not manifested as highly as it has been for those of the Christian faith.
It is now once again time for rebirth with in the Christian church on whole. We have pedophiles hidden and protected within the Catholic Church. We have churches that support same sex marriage, abortion and greed. Many teach that we are too seek reward from God now. That God is our servant not the other way around. Many just sit by waiting for someone to say something. Mostly though when someone does say something they are ignored and called troublemakers. Seems I have heard many in the Old Testament called the same.
It is now that there is a need for a rebirth of the church. Once again, we need to return our focus unto God and His Word. Stop burying your heads in the sand as the world falls to the minions of Satan. It is now that we must shout our faith and stand for the teachings within the Bible.

Spiritual warfare and experiencing it in this reality

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I was having a discussion with my middle son. He is in his thirties. He brought up a situation that happened soon after I had recently been born-again. Myself, and my two sons, who were just getting close to or at ten years old, noticed as well.
Several times I felt the presence of something not welcome in the house, the boys had a more vivid experience. They descript it as woman or witch as one said that was coming into their room. They both saw at the same time and as I said I felt its presence.
I was still young in my faith and very flamboyant about my faith those first few years after being born-again. This I have found out is typical behavior; I have also learned this is the time when many lose their faith.
This presence hunted my boys and I did my best to fight it off through prayer, but as I said I was young in my faith and didn’t approach anyone else with this issue. It wasn’t till my first divorce that was done and I was out of the house until my boys found peace.
Me on the other hand have gone through trial after trail. Why? Because I still believe and follow God, but as I grew in my faith I learned to place most of my burdens to God, and yet I know I have a long way to go still. As I talked to my middle son, he told me he had been reading on what he encountered. For there have been others that have experienced this, enough to write books about.
Most of these books go from a secular point of view and that is how my son presented it to me. One thing he made perfectly clear is that his presence was evil. Now think on that.
To acknowledge God is to also accept that there are angels. To accept angels then you accept that there is a devil since Satan was an angel, and he has followers and they are evil and are not, for the most part, of this reality. They do show up and have influence here, as my boys and me will attest too.
This is most likely one reason Christians have such a tough time for the most part. Why we go through trial after trial, and yet as we place our faith in God and His Son Jesus we come out better and stronger. Willing to face the diversities that will come until that time that we are called to join Jesus.

“Kingdom of Heaven” (2005): Understanding the many layers within it. Part 3 – The warrior monk.

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Hospitaler the warrior monk appears throughout the movie “Kingdom of Heaven.” Sometimes when and how he appears causes you to wonder and think. That is as it should be. Each person must make up their own mind about this character.
What is important is that this soldier of God seems to have the most wisdom of God’s teachings. He is an adviser to first the lead characters father and then to the lead character.
He provides keys of wisdom. Like stating that all God desires is your mind and your heart. As well as God seeks that you be good and perform good deeds.

Base Storyline: 5 swords out of 5 swords

Acting: 5 swords out of 5 swords

Special Effects 5 swords out of 5 swords

Overall: 5 swords out of 5 swords

“Kingdom of Heaven” (2005): Understanding the many layers within it. Part 2 – Balian de Ibelin

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Balian a man in torment and a man tormented when he is first introduced. His wife had just committed suicide after losing their child during birth.
He is a common blacksmith and yet not. He is also an artificer, an engineer and a warrior. He has been educated and so exposed more to the Bible than most. He can read and write so he is not common, for if he were he would be illiterate and ignorant as those in power wish their commoners to be.
This is the first message that is taught by this man. Do not allow yourself to be ignorant, but you say: “I have been taught and so I am not ignorant.” I would challenge this. How did this man become so talented? Through a desire to learn and better himself. This is what God wants all humans to do. Yet most do not. They allow themselves to accept what little the schools offer and seek out no more than that, yet the schools offer less and less as designed by those in power. Designed to create the ignorant and truly uneducated. They are taught selfishness, but not self-worth. All humanity if they truly wish to seek out God will seek Him. They will seek through knowledge and the desire to gain this knowledge. For through knowledge you can truly study the Bible and so then can truly understand what is within the Bible. To allow others to dictate to you what is in the Bible is to invite ignorance of a different type. The type that we find illustrated within this movie.
We find he was born out of wedlock. A bastard. His father, the younger son of the noble that rules the lands conceived him then was sent off to the Crusades to redeem himself for this sin. His father did learn the Bible and so returned as a baron to his place of birth to claim what is his. Not his land, his son.
This causes Balian to journey to the Holy Lands. Here he arrives a nobleman, more than he was a few short months before. He is forced into a fight, prevails, and so gains an escort to Jerusalem. Here he shows true Christian faith. First for not killing the second man and then for releasing this same man. The statement is made: “Your quality will be known among your enemies before ever you meet them.”
These are the qualities that all people who call themselves Christian should have. The qualities that are taught to us within the Lord’s Prayer. ”Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Balian forgave and even prayed for the man that attacked him and he was forced to kill defending himself.
The next key element within this movie that defines not only this man, Balian, but also Christianity itself. It happens when he meets with the King of Jerusalem. In their conversation, they start to discuss chess. Within this discussion is where the nugget of truth is found. The King states that when we stand before God we cannot say “’But I was told by other to do thus’ or that virtue was not convenient at the time” for our own souls are in our own keeping he also said. This is possibly one of the most profound statements I have heard in this modern era.
It is people’s responsibility for their own actions. It is something many do not accept as being true. It is another facet in the word “ignorance.” As the saying goes, “ignorance is bliss,” for within ignorance you can lead a live of peace and enjoyment because all you care for is yourself. As I have said before Selfishness is to me the ultimate sin, so ignorance is sin.
Throughout this film, you see a man, a human. Balian commits sin, yet who hasn’t? Do we hold this sin against him? No, so why should we hold others accountable for their. What people need to understand is that sin in the end will only affect the person committing these sins. When someone comes to God, they come to understand this in some way. They become remorseful and repentant when they sin. They try not to sin and then they try to do good as well to help overcome the sins they have committed.
In the final encounter between Balian and Imad. Imad turns to him and says (paraphrased) If God did not know him, then how did he do what he had done?
God knows all that we do. He only places burdens upon us that He knows we can handle. It may not seem so at the time, but we must work through it and seek out life. In movies and books, we are witness to this through struggles of violence and battle. Battles like that for the city of Jerusalem in this movie.
Study the man Balian in this film and learn. Do not just look upon it as escapism, which to a degree it is, but learn, from it and the man.

“Kingdom of Heaven” (2005): Understanding the many layers within it. Part 1 –The priests.

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Within the movie “Kingdom of Heaven” there are multiple types of characters represented throughout the movie.
One of the first we are introduced to is a priest. There are three prominent characters that are priests in the movie. All represent the religion of Catholicism at that time period. It was a business. Gathering money, building churches, and acting like they are better than the common people.
The first priest is conniving, manipulative, and a thief. He is a perfect example of the corruption that was running rampant within the priests of the Catholic Church during the period the story is based within. It is not representative of true Christianity though, but in a way that is what they would like you to think.
There are many movies and shows around that people can and do watch, but there are few designed to actually make you think and when they do people usually do not think. “Kingdom of Heaven” is not a movie for shallow people. You have to look. You have to think, then you have to do it all over again. Simply, this is a movie you do not watch once, and it is also best to watch the director’s cut as well.
Religion is shown for what it is. A business, and within the business are those that wish to manipulate it to their benefit. The lead character’s brother is one of these. As you watch it you will see that there are two religions represented. One Christian and one Muslim and a prime example of its presence is when those that follow the religion and not the faith make the statement “’Fill in the blank’ wills it.”
What is something that needs to be understood is that the Bible was not the most published book of all times in 1184. In fact the first printed Bible did not happen until 1450. The Bible was kept away from the commoners and many nobles as well. Humans learned the truth of the Bible through a few priest that truly understood the teachings of Christ and so tried to pass this true knowledge on. In this movie that was done by a warrior monk.
For the most part though religion was made by and for humans. It is still that way today. It is done when humans manipulate the words within the Bible for their own benefit. It is done when humans say you can pray for wealth and it shall be given unto you if you give them money first. This is a lie. For those that follow the Christian faith are promised their reward after their time in this temporary life we live at this time.
Then we have the Bishop of Jerusalem. Who at one point says to become a Muslim and then to repent later. It is here that the lead character states “You have taught me much about religion.” This was an important message within the movie that clearly states do not follow religion, instead follow faith.
Then we have the statement: “The pope has said: It is not a sin to kill an infidel, but the path to heaven” This is the most poignant example of a human changing the words of God for their own glorification. It was this type of mentality that caused the Crusades. It is something that was not needed to be done. It was done to make the Catholic Church, the central government of the time, rich and thus those in charge of it rich.
As you watch movies like this, it is time to think. It is time to understand. If you do not desire knowledge then you are destine to be the pawns of other humans. You are destine to allow wars, the destruction of nations and people. You are destine to look like those citizens that lived in Germany during World War II, which resulted in nearly 13 million innocent deaths.

Review: Angel and the Badman (1947) – a portrait in salvation and faith

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This John Wayne movie which he produced is something not seen in today’s cinema. It shows true Christianity and its influence on those that do not practice it. It is also the story of how a man finds the Lord.
The faith is shown through that of a family of Quakers and their community, which was built for the common use of all within it. A prime example within the movie is when John’s character Quirt Evans goes to a rancher that took over another Quaker’s homestead that had the community dam placed upon it. The rancher soon comes to see the way of kindness and sharing and becomes friendly to his neighbors that he had treated wrongly before.
We see Quirt change from a hardened man bent on revenge to a man that follows the way of God with the help of the woman he falls in love with.
We also see how those that knew him before have a hard time seeing that the man had changed.
I highly recommend this movie for those that wish to learn more on how those that call themselves Christian should really act.

Base storyline: 5 swords out of 5 swords
Acting: 4 swords out of 5 swords
Special Effects: 4 swords out of 5 swords
Overall: 4.33 swords out of 5 swords