Tag: Holy Spirit

“The Rapture”: Christians Ascending to meet Jesus?

Christians have very different view points on this subject: some never heard of it, some don’t believe it, some think the “rapture” will happen before “the tribulation” occurs, some think it will happen in the middle of “the tribulation” and some think it will happen at the end of “the tribulation”- before God’s wrath occurs. In my opinion, the timing doesn’t matter, but a person’s knowledge about this event and preparation does matter. As we know, the Bible is open to interpretation and people present compelling reasons for their beliefs, but the truth will exist (despite any erroneous beliefs), so on this subject (because it is not a Heaven or Hell topic, but could be), it’s important to know about it and consider all views, look into it yourself, pray about it and most of all be prepared no matter what interpretation turns out to be correct on the timing. The “Rapture” event is in the Bible, I can confirm that!

First of all, what is “The Rapture”?

  • rapture[ˈrapCHər]NOUNthe Rapture (noun)
  • a feeling of intense pleasure or joy.” Leonora listened with rapture”synonyms:ecstasy · bliss · euphoria · elation · exaltation · joy · joyfulness · [more](raptures)expressions of intense pleasure or enthusiasm about something.”the tabloids went into raptures about her”synonyms:enthuse · rhapsodize · rave · gush · wax lyrical · [more]
  • NORTH AMERICAN(the Rapture)(according to some millenarian teaching) the transporting of believers to heaven at the Second Coming of Christ.

When I first heard it explained I heard that it was derived from the Latin word which had the meaning “snatch, carry off” which is where “rapture” came from. In scripture, the Greek word is harpazō which is defined as:

  1. to seize, carry off by force
  2. to seize on, claim for one’s self eagerly
  3. to snatch out or away

raptura ( Latin)

  • rapturus ( Latin) Future active participle of rapiō (“snatch, carry off”).

So that is how the word “Rapture” came about, and Yes, it (the event) is in the Bible.

Jesus was crucified, was dead for 3 days, then rose from the dead and visited numerous people, it was reported that he had been seen (alive again) by a group of over 500 people over a series of days. (1 Corinthians 15:6) He then ascended, was “carried up” while he was giving a blessing to his disciples. (Luke 24: 50-51), (Mark 16:19) (Acts 1:9) In a similar way believers will ascend. Enoch was also believed to have experienced this, maybe that’s why Paul refers to Jesus as the “first fruits” (plural) because Enoch also went this way; and fruit, seeds, growing, and harvesting is a commonly used symbol used throughout the bible.

Secondly, where is “The Rapture” of believers mentioned in the Bible?

BABY CHRISTIAN. Before I read and began studying the Bible, I never heard of “the Rapture”, yet I called myself a Christian. I was a little shocked at what I found in the Bible: so many things I never heard about, nor remember being taught. Not knowing much of what is the Bible, besides the “famous” Bible stories of Noah’s Ark, The “edited” 10 Commandments, Miracles, The Last Supper, the Crucifixion, and I was raised “Christian.” What I realized is that I was “a baby Christian“- at least that’s what I call it now! I didn’t understand what a true Christian/Believer meant or entailed. But I think this is very common, Paul refers to it in the Bible! I believed in Jesus and I knew I was supposed to “be good” and I hoped in the end, God would decide that I lived my life “good enough” to make it to Heaven. I now know those beliefs are not correct, according to the Bible: we can know right now if we WILL or we won’t be in eternity with God: it is a simply a heartfelt DECISION (decide to love God, prioritize Him, ask Him to guide your life, give your “control” to Him/surrender, willingly accept His commands with the intent to abide by His commands) we choose and by the grace of God, a “gift” made possible by Jesus’s death and resurrection, we are offered eternity, because God loves us that much! A huge amount of anxiety goes away when a person finally comprehends this! We can be “saved” while we are still broken, imperfect people, working towards improvement, if we simply choose God, prioritize God in our life, believe the information found in the Gospels about Jesus.

Places that mention “the Rapture” (being taken, caught up)

  • Matthew 24: It’s important to read and pay attention to every statement in this chapter in regards to the timing of the rapture. It tells us “one will be taken and the other left” when Jesus returns. I believe Jesus will take the one who prepared and leave the one who is not prepared, as the wrath will occur next. Also in Revelation 14, One like the Son of Man (Jesus) gathering his people, the “good grapes” (the earth was harvested) and then leaving the remainder for the angels with the sickle. Logically thinking when a harvest occurs, the good is gathered and the rest is left to perish, right?
  • 1 Corinthians 15: especially verses 23 and 52, this is when the resurrection occurs for those “who belong to Him” meaning those who have surrendered/given/chose to give their life to Him
  • 1 Thessalonians 4: this tells us those who have died (as Believers) will rise first, then those true believers who are still alive will be “caught up to “Jesus in the clouds when he returns (the Second Coming)- I think this happens to protect the true believers during the Wrath of God. This is very interesting because this could be something we experience!

What are the various beliefs about when it happens and why do people believe what they do? Here is an excellent resource (link) for detailed thoughts and opinions about this question: www.gotquestions.org

Are the Rapture and the return of Jesus are the Same Event? To be honest, this is my thought/opinion. I have a different view from the Got Questions link: I believe the second coming and the rapture ARE the same event after reading the bible, I don’t think the rapture is kept “secret,” because it is revealed in the Bible, for any of us who read it. It is only “a secret” for the people who don’t read the Bible, they will not know about this, that’s where the “secret” is. There are many “secrets” about the universe that only those who read scripture learn. After reading the Bible, my opinion is that Believers will go through Tribulation, but will not go through God’s Wrath, I believe the rapture is the first resurrection described in Revelation. (Revelation 20: 4-6) and because in Daniel 7:21-22: The “saints” are being persecuted by the AntiChrist (described as the “horn”) so how could the saints be persecuted if they were already raptured? In Daniel 7:25 the saints/holy people are persecuted for 3.5 years (a time, times and half a time)- just prior to Jesus’ return. Revelation 13:7-8 this says that the saints will be at war with the beast that was “given authority” through the power of Satan, the ruler of the air- the saints are those whose names are written in the book of life.

Defining Saint. It’s probably important to define the word “saint” because I understood through the religion I grew up with there was a special process that had to be done to determine if someone was a saint and there were miracles involved typically, but today, I believe differently, yes those are definitely saints but so are more people than those who were involved with miracles, there is much to study in the original scripture to arrive at this conclusion: (link here) from this, I believe that “saints” or “holy people” are all those who have surrendered their life to God; those who have God’s spirit residing in them as a result of surrendering their life to God. As Jesus once said, “only God is good” meaning we are all sinners, there is not one person who is “good” naturally, it is a choice that someone makes; therefore all people have the ability to be a “saint” or “holy”. It is a choice and when a person chooses to live their life according to God’s commands, God sends his spirit to help that person (God’s spirit resides within a person), therefore they are a “saint”. Revelation 7:13 also seems to explain this: those who have washed their robes (ie. symbolically made themselves “clean/holy” by changing their natural ways, deciding to live by God’s commands).

Defining Tribulation. As I mentioned, my opinion is Believers will go through Tribulation, but not Wrath. So what is the Tribulation? Everything that happens before Jesus returns (Matthew 24: 29-30) John 16: 33: Jesus warned everyone that in this world we will face trials, trouble, etc. known as tribulation (but it is temporary). Tribulation is the persecution, trouble, affliction caused by evil people/Satan, not punishment from God prior to Jesus’ return. The Great Tribulation is the final test of faith that God allows to happen, just like he allowed a test of faith with Job, just like he allowed with Abraham and Issac, just like he did with Noah and the flood, just like he did with Moses coming out of Egypt and the manna. Why should we think we will avoid all tests when some of the most faithful in the Bible were tested? We need to be prepared. If we are certain that we will avoid the Tribulation, then what happens if we see these things occurring? Will we doubt God’s promise? Will we think we are not in the Book of Life? Will we loose faith? No, we shouldn’t. We should keep this possibility in the back of our mind (or in the forefront ideally), we could very well be here during the Tribulation, but remember it is only a test of our faith; it is not punishment from God. We just need to endure it, persevere, don’t loose faith, because Jesus forewarned us about this.

Defining Wrath. As I mentioned, my opinion is Believers will go through Tribulation, but not Wrath. So what is the Wrath? Wrath is God’s punishment. Here is a link to wrath references. God is not going to punish His people (the people who have committed to Him; made Him a priority; agree to live by His commands, have His spirit residing in them)! God’s wrath is pretty intense. Here is a link, if you want to know about it.

In summary. The Bible is clear to me that the “Rapture” will occur. There are many differing opinions which I shared and explained my personal opinion too. Ultimately when it happens doesn’t matter as much as being prepared PRIOR to it happening. That means seek God, reconcile/make up with Him, don’t be an enemy of God, tell Him you choose to give Him the rest of your life, ask Him for the Holy Spirit to help you through the rest of your life, then you/we have nothing to worry about! The rest is in His very capable and powerful hands. We will be “fine”, and better than “fine”, once Jesus returns! After God’s wrath, it is going to be AWESOME. This is what God has planned: Revelation 21

Now is the time to prepare.

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Is Satan the embodiment of Sin?

I woke up with this concept on my mind: “Is Satan the embodiment of sin?” Please give this some thought, does this make sense to you?

Mornings tend to be the most spiritual time for me. Some mornings, I wake up with a strong thought about something and I have no idea why that thought popped into my mind. Sometimes it’s a dream, sometimes it’s a clarity about something, sometimes it’s a “message” that I feel compelled to share. Often when it is the “message” type, later in the day I will see the same message, sometimes even the exact same sequence of words being spoken by another Christian, and sometimes numerous Christians in the same day will say the same thing. When that happens, I can’t help but think there was more to it. It wasn’t just “my thought”, it was God using various people to pass on the message. I don’t know if God is giving me clarity here about Sin and Satan?

Let’s think about when “sin” entered the world. It happened in the biblical story of Adam and Eve when the serpent deceived Eve and she disobeyed, then caused Adam to disobey the only command God gave them. Pay attention to this too: God was walking (and you can trace this back to the Hebrew word: Halak in scripture) in the garden when He called for Adam. My conclusion is that God was present with Adam and Eve. This concept works whether you believe the story of Adam and Eve is figurative or literal. God was present with mankind on earth at that point in time, before sin entered, but then the Bible doesn’t seem to describe the same possible “physical” presence after that: God remains omnipresent though, it just seems “differently described” after that. It seems (my opinion) that if God is present and a sinful person comes into His presence, the “sinful” person will die: an example is when God told Moses to keep the people away or they would die at Mt. Sinai when he revealed the 10 Commandments to Moses. And interestingly, the 10 Commandments were placed in the Ark of the Covenant and God appointed a specific group of people, the Levites, to be the ones to carry the Ark. The arc was known to be “holy” and there were many rules about being in the presence of the Ark. In fact, there was a story of men transporting the Ark and one of the men reached out and touched the Ark to save it from falling (which would be a “kind” action), but he instantly died. If the man was sinful (and all people are naturally) and the Ark is holy, that would make sense, follow the logic, explaining why he died instantly. Yes the bible tells us God caused that to happen, but was it because of the law (Sin leads to death and the sinful will die in the presence of God or what God defines as “Holy”)? There were also stories of people who stole the Ark and then had calamities happen to them and at one point there was a passing back and forth of the Ark (you take it, “no, you take it”) that I recall from reading the Bible too. This logic seems to make sense to me.

As I was writing this, I had more clarity about “sacrificing.” I wrote about this before and have always struggled with God requiring a “sacrifice.” Why would He ever do that? Why would God allow people to kill animals in the sinner’s place? I really struggled with these questions. However, I just recalled there are many entries in the bible where God states: “I am not happy with your sacrifices! They are worthless!” But yet God told the people specifically what they had to do. Think about this logically: if sin leads to death, then death is a consequence of sin. We know God places a high value on people and doesn’t want people to perish so if God made the law that Sin becomes Death, then if a person sins, according to God’s law, the person must die, but God didn’t want that, but in accordance with His law, there had to be a death as a penalty for sin. Therefore a life must be sacrificed or given up, so God allowed animals as a substitute for people during the Old Testament time. Of course I would not question God about that sacrifice not being proper, knowing who He is, I just didn’t understand this, I couldn’t accept it, but I knew there had to be a reason for it, I just didn’t understand. But throughout the Bible it states that God’s word will remain. Now I think I am beginning to understand: God didn’t want ANY OF THIS! Remember one of the 10 Commandments God gave us: Do not murder. (Does this have a slightly different definition than kill?) The living sacrifice only came about because of Sin and the law was the penalty of Sin is death. There had to be a resolution, an end to the killing, an end to the sacrificing. But it couldn’t stop unless the law was fulfilled, so God (the only one more powerful than all) took personal action, through Jesus, who became the final sacrifice that ended it. Jesus was the sacrifice that no one else could be, no one else has the value of Jesus, was sinless, without blemish, only Jesus. The Son of God is the only one who is worthy to be the substitute for all the sacrifices, and to be the sacrifice for our sin, Jesus was the final sacrifice. We should be thankful, Jesus ended this horrible act.

Getting back to Satan being the embodiment of Sin. The Bible tells us the life we are experiencing is more than what most of us realize: it is a spiritual war happening. Satan, and his followers, rebelled against God and are fighting against God still today. You may ask: Why doesn’t God simply kill Satan then? If He is all powerful, why doesn’t He just take care of it now? My opinion, from what I understand from the bible is that God gives everyone a choice to love and obey Him, but God has a timeline for each and every one of us already determined: a time to be born and a time to have a physical death and that time in between is our opportunity to choose God or reject God. We have numbered opportunities (so don’t waste them). If God did that for us, wouldn’t it be possible for God to do that for Satan too? If God is Love, that conclusion/opinion makes sense.

Here is another opinion/thought about the Bible: maybe God knew how confusing and tough this spiritual war would be for all of mankind to comprehend and experience, so in His love for us, He spoke through the authors and gave us this information (the scripture), so we would know there is a good ending (God wins): don’t give up!

The Bible reveals the last thing that Jesus conquers in this spiritual battle is DEATH. The Sin that leads to death is blasphemy of the Spirit. (Blasphemy: the act or offense of speaking sacrilegiously about God or sacred things; profane talk.) All other sins can be forgiven by God, if a desired change in action occurs and one asks God for forgiveness, God is merciful and he forgives. Satan is cast into the lake of fire for eternity = Sin and Death are gone forever.

Think about this: God is Love. Satan is Sin. There is a spiritual battle happening and it is between God and Satan.

Sin separates us from God. Satan is sin. Satan wants to separate us from God; he seeks to kill and destroy. When we choose sin, we are allowing, permitting Satan spiritual access to our bodies, our mind, our being. Satan/Sin is powerful, appealing but deceiving, it’s manipulative, full of lies and people are influenced and drawn to it naturally (sin is an evil spiritual force). People are not more powerful than the spiritual beings, but God is. Who/whatever we give access to will influence and determine the outcome of our existence.

When we allow God access (by surrendering our life, or asking God to take over/guide our life) we then permit God spiritual access (through the Holy Spirit) to our bodies, our mind, our being.

God has always allowed “choice.” So what are you choosing?

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Loss.

Everyone deals with loss differently. This morning when I woke, I found out my smiling, happy, “funny smiling” little 1 year old nephew Sebastian went to be with God at 3:30 am. I was at a loss of words, we all were praying for a miracle leading up to this. I firmly believe in the possibility of miracles; they can happen through the power of God’s spirit, but what we don’t know is God’s will and plan and whether or not our request matches up with that. Yes, God works all things for the good of those He loves, but that doesn’t mean that our knowledge and understanding is as broad as God’s. He knows things we don’t, so this is where trust in God is necessary.

God grieves with us, death was not part of His original plan for us, but the evil one, Satan, changed that when sin entered into creation. But it won’t be like this forever. I didn’t understand until recently why God protected the tree of life in the garden of Eden after sin entered, but I finally do: God didn’t want those he loves to live with sin eternally. Life spans in the Old Testament were once incredibly long, but because of sin, God shortened life spans. This is another truth revealed by God in the Bible and it is a protection for those God loves; our time here is limited and those with shorter life spans are more protected by God.

The power, peace and strength that God extends to those “in Jesus” is amazing. I have so much love and respect for my brother Kevin and his wife Shay for the way they were strong, loving, faithful parents doing everything possible for Sebastian; there is no way they could have been as strong as they have been if they didn’t have the faith in Jesus they do. I pray they are comforted and that God continues to reveal His goodness going forward because this is not something we can prepare for, strength will be needed; please pray to Jesus with me for them! I also pray for sweet little MJ, Sebastian’s sister, she is such a happy, playful, sweet girl with a very grown up personality and ask that you pray for her too. Pray for the whole family.

Heaven isn’t the final destination, but during this time, Sebastian will have the greatest Dad of all (God) caring for him until God’s kingdom is brought to earth, then we (those who believe and follow Jesus’ way) will be living once again without pain, suffering, death in real living bodies, but glorified ones we can’t yet comprehend. This is not the end, this is a transition time: read more about this here.

This is the truth; all praise, honor and glory to God for ever and ever. Amen.

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When the Obvious Isn’t.

How many times have we had this happen: something that puzzled us becomes known and then we think: “Wow, I should have seen that!”? Often it happens when we consider another person’s thoughts, another person’s perspective, someone who notices something we didn’t initially, until that person points it out. This is how each of us can help each other. So many people throughout my life have unknowingly influenced me; they unknowingly contributed to my direction in life: some were positive influences and others were negative influences, but both influenced change in me. This is also a reminder to “be thankful in all circumstances.” when that influence contributes to a positive change, and even if the circumstance is negative. But sometimes the change was negative: a great reminder to be intentional with friendships.

Those are examples of “small details” in life, the bigger picture in life is something that I gradually became aware of, through other people who pointed out very obvious details that I’ve passed over so many times throughout my entire life:

There is a literal Kingdom that has been and is forming right in front of us; it’s a “right in front of your face” “secret” formation (only because we are “blind” to it), so subtle that many don’t see it!

Thinking about a “Kingdom” in a literal sense is not something a US citizen would necessarily embrace, and many others may not either because of the mistrust and corruption we see every day. But this literally is happening right now, but not by force as many historical Kingdoms have formed in the past; with this one, each of us is allowed and encouraged to decide if we choose to live in this Kingdom which is currently forming.

Something finally connected with me this morning, many people might know the words to this prayer, but many of us may have simply memorized it, not thinking about each and every word. Here is the prayer, the prayer Jesus gave by example of how to pray to God:

“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,[a]
    but deliver us from the evil one.[b]’

This is what I see now, some of which I didn’t see before:

  1. Where is God? “in heaven“- a spiritual realm we can’t fully comprehend because we haven’t seen it, (click the links for supporting documentation).
  2. Hallowed: “greatly revered and honored”- God, and only God, is to be worshipped, nothing should be more important than God in our lives (the first 3 Commandments given by God, summarized here)
  3. your kingdom come: This is literal, I didn’t comprehend this until now! God’s Kingdom will be coming to us, to earth, a NEW earth with a NEW ruler (Jesus) pay attention to how many times Kingdom is referenced, Kingdom – of heaven, not only that but the bible references “heavens”, plural, not a single place where people will permanently be! There is a new literal place that is offered to those who accept God’s Kingdom and God’s commands/God’s Kingdom’s rules will live, a place so beautiful, so challenging to describe, so peaceful, without sickness or evil.
  4. your will be done: God’s plan will happen, but along the way people’s choices are allowed by God, but eventually His plan will prevail, Jesus was part of God’s plan, part of God’s plan from the very beginning, prophesized by Isaiah approximately 700 years before Jesus was born!
  5. on earth as it is in heaven -the Kingdom of heaven will be brought here, to earth, under Jesus as ruler (see prior links)
  6. Give us today our daily bread – if we seek God first, all that we need will be provided to us, Jesus said this.
  7. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors – Jesus explained how important it is for us to forgive others, it affects us if we don’t forgive.
  8. and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. This is where we see that those who are still controlled by the devil, do not recognize Jesus; it is our choice to break from and abandon that (be born again) and with the help and power of the Holy Spirit given to those who obey and ask God for help in Jesus’ name, we can overcome that slavery to sin.

It’s pretty amazing how much is within this simple prayer and referenced in other teachings Jesus gave us and throughout the Bible! There are a couple of videos I recommend on this subject, if you, or someone you know prefers to watch rather than read ?

Video 1: The Kingdom of God -AOC Network

Video 2: Walking in the Spirit – AOC Network

Video 2: The Millennial Reign of Christ – Pastor Daniel Batarseh

This is something I certainly look forward to! I love to travel, so I think about the beautiful places I’ve experienced (like driving the Na Pali Highway in Oahu, HI), or other places I’ve only seen through photos….and God created all that, but He has plans for something even better than that, something new- now THAT is VERY exciting to think about!!

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What do I need to do to get to Heaven? Believe? Obey?

This is a follow up to “Heaven or Hell?” Most Christians will say all we need to do is believe in Jesus, so a bunch of people who don’t understand what “believe” means feel a false sense of relief, erroneously thinking: I can live however I want, because I believe, I have God’s grace and I will go to Heaven. (WRONG!)

But what did Jesus say? Jesus didn’t say all we have to do is believe! He said:

Believe what you want to believe, it’s your choice how your live your life, but for me, I don’t want to find out when it’s too late: I’m focusing on keeping The Commandments. So what are the commandments and where are they in the Bible? Exodus 20 (linked to Bible)

The 10 Commandments:

  1. Acknowledge there is only ONE God: God is not “whatever/whomever” modern society/culture tells us is okay to believe, all “gods” are not all the same, people do believe in different Gods. God has a personality, God is a spiritual being, God has emotions, God is living, God is our Creator, God is love, God created love, God will not be mocked, God is just, God is powerful. (bible link)
  2. Love God above all. If you want to “test” your adherence to this one, fill in the blank with what comes to mind: Who or what is most important in your life? _______ Be honest answering this question, only you will know your honest answer. If you answered anything other than God, you have a potential “idol” in your life, you are potentially worshiping something other than God and you may not even realize it! There is something else that many may not realize is breaking this commandment: if a person prays to a “saint” that person is breaking this commandment. We are supposed to go to God with everything, why would a person pray to someone less than God? Wouldn’t it make more sense to pray to the most powerful, most capable directly? It really doesn’t make sense, but it is taught in a Christian faith. There are parts of the Bible when a person falls down on their face in front of an angel who visited, and the angel often tells them: basically don’t worship me, I’m just a messenger. Other biblical people did great great things, had incredible roles given to them by God, as there are some people today doing the same, they were (or are) God’s messengers, but they were (or are) human, not God. They deserve respect, but NOT our prayers addressed to them. (bible link)
  3. Only say God’s name with respect when referring to Him. Yes, when a person cusses saying “God…” that is breaking this command. (bible link)
  4. Every week, devote a day to resting and connecting with God. If we don’t, we are breaking this commandment. As I understand, originally the Sabbath day was what we refer to as Saturday, but some religions changed it to Sunday, for what reason, I’m not sure, but this is one of those “technicalities” that may not be worth debating? It’s probably more important to identify: What’s the main point of this command: resting and making it holy (connecting with God). Get your work done the other six days, but on the 7th day, take a break, connect with God. (bible link)
  5. Realize that our natural parents were used by God for us to be here and God wants us to honor our parents. Some people have wonderful loving parents and some people don’t, but that isn’t what matters. They are human, and not perfect, just like us, so they deserve “honor” for bringing us into this world and this was important enough to God to issue a command to us regarding this. (bible link)
  6. Do not murder/kill anyone. For those who happily say: I don’t have to worry that I’ve not broken that one! Jesus put a heavier meaning on it and we all break this commandment! Jesus tells us “anger” is included in this command! Read Matthew 5: 21-25 (here) and more about fighting, paybacks, enemies Read Matthew 5: 38-48 (here) and the (bible link) to the command.
  7. Do not commit adultery. But Jesus puts a heavier meaning on this command also: looking at someone lustfully, Jesus also addresses divorce, remarriage and oaths. Read Matthew 5: 27-37 (here)
  8. Do not steal. It’s worthwhile to read the definition of “steal” because it happens a lot today in business, politics, and among people in general. (bible link)
  9. Do not lie (deceive others or make an untrue statement). (bible link)
  10. Do not desire something that belongs to someone else, whether the desire is for a material thing or a person. (bible link)

It’s interesting in the Bible when the Commandments were given to Moses by God to share with people, the people were in fear of God, but what Moses said is interesting:

20 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.”

Fear was used by God to TEST people and keep people FROM SINNING. When Jesus talked with his disciples, he also elaborated about the commands:

We need God to make the impossible happen: Jesus made it possible for us (he was the final sacrifice). We need Jesus to get to Heaven, we couldn’t do it by being good, because we fail at that. We need the Holy Spirit’s help living our lives: wisdom, guidance, self-control, etc. Obedience to God’s commands does matter because it shows our love to God; deliberate dis-obedience shows disregard for God and what He’s asked of us; it doesn’t show love to God. So if we honestly BELIEVE this, then we will try our best to live the way God wants us to live, out of thankfulness and respect for God because of what Jesus did for us. If we mess up along the way (and we will, Jesus acknowledged that), God is the most forgiving of all, but He also won’t be mocked, and don’t forget He is omnipresent (nothing is hidden from Him) and He is just, so it does matter how we live. It is important to remember that some of the most well known figures in the Bible broke commandments: Moses killed someone out of anger, David committed adultery and killed Bathsheeba’s husband, Paul (Saul) had persecuted and killed Christians prior to his conversion but he ended up writing much of the New Testament. However, the one thing in common all these people had was love and respect towards God and Jesus’ death and resurrection was the price paid for sin. This further supports Jesus’ statement that the 2 greatest commandments are: #1 Love God and #2 Love Others.

God acknowledged Jesus when Jesus was baptized:

People in the Old Testament also acknowledged Jesus, these are just a few examples, because I’m still studying the books written by the Prophets:

Isaiah (740 BC to 681 BC): Jesus’ birth and second coming referenced (here) and (here) and (here) and (here) and (here) and (here) and (here) and (here) and so many more places that I haven’t underlined in my study bible yet.

Jeremiah (626 BC to 585 BC): Jesus (here)

Ezekiel (593 BC to 571 BC) Jesus (here)

Daniel (536 BC to 530 BC) Jesus (here)

Joel (c. 609 BC) Jesus second coming (here)

In summary, from what I’ve read, it doesn’t seem like we can ignore The Commandments and anticipate Heaven. God knows our intentions and we will be judged after we die, or if we are alive, after Jesus returns.

Jesus said we have to be “born again” to enter God’s kingdom. “Born of the Spirit” (read this)

Regarding Jesus’ return: this is something else that wasn’t focused on very much in the “religion” classes I had growing up. But it’s very interesting reading what most of the Prophets in the Bible foretold will happen prior to and when Jesus returns. That event remains in the future for all of us, as of now. I may write about that next? As I was speed reading those books looking for the references to Jesus, I was amazed how connected each Prophet’s book is regarding the future and how similar the Old Testament is to the New Testament’s Book of Revelation and also what Jesus told his followers about his return. Things that can’t be ignored.

by Categories: FAITH, God, Improvement, Love, Make It Count, Marriage, priorities, RELATIONSHIPS, SexTags: , , , , , 1 Comment

Heaven or Hell?

I’m back again! I started this topic through IGTV but after a day of posting and then watching a “documentary” last night about “Evangelical Christian Fanatics” I thought I better have a back up, so the videos aren’t taken out of context. Anyone who wants to “discredit” a person can easily take “snippets” of a video out of context and use it to harm them. This topic will be a sensitive topic for many people because “truth hurts”: we don’t want to see ourselves anything less than “good,” HOWEVER, despite our shortcomings, God still loves each and everyone of us in our current state and hopes that we CHOOSE to love Him back, but He doesn’t force this; it remains our choice until we die, then our choice is “sealed” for its destiny!

For me, the most critical aspect/”take away” from reading the Bible (from a selfish viewpoint, which we all have; we want to know: “what’s in it for us?”) is:

There is eternity and it’s either Heaven or Hell.

Matthew 25:46

For me, the most important aspect from reading the Bible is God’s love for us. It’s hard to find that unconditional love from anyone here on earth, that’s for sure, haha, but we have it from one source: God.

There are so many lessons, insights, wisdom and teachings from the Bible. And there are many different interpretations of the Bible from various religions. Personally, I don’t affiliate with ANY religious denomination because I don’t believe we should be divided, we should simply be Christians. I believe what is in the Bible (this also is a choice: to “believe” this) and when it comes to interpreting/understanding confusing topics, I believe we should first pray to God requesting clarity and understanding from Him. It doesn’t hurt to talk to others who are educated on the subject matter to hear their interpretation about a subject, but before we accept what they say, pray to God and ask God to show us the truth in a personal way. The most important question I wanted the answer to is:

How do I get to Heaven?

  1. We must accept, acknowledge that Jesus is the way to God, here is the supporting information from the Bible:

2. We must TAKE ACTION: Repent. (if you want to go to Heaven, those who didn’t repent were/are destroyed) here is the supporting scripture:

3. We must TAKE ACTION: Get Baptized. Even Jesus was baptized, surprisingly. Why? Because He was here to show others the way to eternal life (Heaven) and to lead others by His example. In that same way, he wants Christians to be a living example to others, but since we are not perfect, when we don’t live how God intends, we become a bad example and do more harm than good. This is a commitment that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Baptism is an outward sign to others that we have surrendered to God and choose to live as He instructed. Jesus showed us the ultimate surrender, He prayed and asked God twice if it was possible, to take away His suffering, but also in the same prayer submitted to God’s will, as the prophesized sacrifice who would “atone” for all our sins by His death on the cross and resurrection thereafter. When we sincerely intend to live this way, it is a sacrifice, a living sacrifice but God offers us help through the Holy Spirit giving power, that others do not have or receive.

4. We must TAKE ACTION: Then pray to God and for the Holy Spirit.

5. We must TAKE ACTION: Obey God’s Commands. This subject will be my next article because there is too much detail about what this means to cover here, so I’m only showing the scripture that tells us we need to obey God’s commands:

In summary and what the Bible tells us about Heaven (eternal life) here are a few quotes from scripture about eternity:

Believe what you want; it is your choice. After I read the Bible, began studying it, and continued praying; I ended up believing. It changed my prior beliefs. As I always remind people: God did not and does not force anyone to believe this, so neither should any of us (force our beliefs on others). But I do believe we have an obligation to let others know what we have learned because it may become important to them; then they can make their own choice. The relationship with God is personal anyway. Love is a choice and that’s the greatest commandment that God gave us: to love God and love others….which means allowing people to make their own choice.

by Categories: Face Fear, FAITH, FRIENDSHIP, God, HAPPINESS, Improvement, Letting Go, Love, Make It Count, priorities, RELATIONSHIPS, WellnessTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment