Contemplations

  Becky Wall History of the American Restoration Movement Dr. Pabarcus, Professor May 10, 2000 My Ownership of the Restoration Plea The Restoration Movement is built on two key concerns: Christian union and biblical authority. I totally agree with the two principles, but I would sacrifice the quest for unity if the other wings of the Brotherhood did not consider the Bible as their source of faith and practice, if Jesus were not considered the Son of God, and if His death, burial and resurrection were not part of their doctrine of belief. According to I Corinthians 15:12-17: “But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ fro

IS NOT GOING TO CHURCH A SIN? Is it acceptable to God for a person to worship under a tree or for the able-bodied person to sit in a rocking chair in his or her own home? The simple answer can be found in Hebrews 10:25, which says: "Not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is." The New International Version says it in a more current language:  "not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching."  This is not a suggestion. The building is not the church. The people are the church. And there were churches established after Jesus ascended into heaven. Paul wrote letters to most of them: the church at Corinth, the church at Ephesus, the church at Thessalonica, the church at Galatia, and the church at Phillipi. The church at Antioch is also mentioned many times in Acts.  The book of Acts is about the acts of the Apostles who started the church, th

A STUDY OF ANGELS GOOD AND BAD Note: This is a long compilation of verses about angels so the best way to approach this writing is to pick a section that interests you. There are "angels of the Lord," lower ranking angels, Lucifer/Satan, Seraphim, Cherabim, and Archangels. Angel/Angels: Genesis 16:5-11 - And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the Lord judge between me and thee. 6 But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thine hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.7 And the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. 8 And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. 9 And the angel of the Lord said unto her, 'Return to thy mistress, and

PROFANITY Ex. 20:7 - ""You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name." Ps. 10:4-7 - "In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. His ways are always prosperous; he is haughty and your laws are far from him; he sneers at all his enemies. He says to himself, "Nothing will shake me; I'll always be happy and never have trouble." His mouth is full of curses and lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue. Ps. 59:12 - "For the sins of their mouths, for the words of their lips, let them be caught in their pride. For the curses and lies they utter," Prov. 2:12 - "Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men, from men whose words are perverse..." Prov. 4:24 - "Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk far from your lips." Prov. 8:12-13 - "I, wisdom, dwell together with prudenc

ABOUT ANGELS   I was at the Right-to-Life Rally in Springfield in 1992. I sat at the table with a man who couldn't stop talking about angels and how we don't use them enough. He said we should name our Guardian Angel. I had never met anyone so obsessed with angels. We had a friendly discussion and took each other's addresses so we could further bolster our beliefs. Following is my partly edited letter to him. I never heard back. '92  I'm still waiting for your information on angels.­ In the meantime, I'm learning to use my new word processor.­ In doing that, I'll list the reasons I have a problem with putting too much emphasis on angels, other than a healthy understanding of their place in the spiritual realm. 1.­ Angels appear to be the latest fad.­ Oftentimes people who are drawn to the powers of angels are also drawn to the supernatural in general. I feel charismatics often do this. 2.­ Any out-of-the-ordinary attention given to angels or any other being

  Our Wholy Holy God                 Who is God?   That question has no simple answer, unless it be, “Our Creator.”   That answer is true, but is much too simplistic.   God is complex in nature, yet easy to get to know when the heart is receptive.   Volumes upon volumes have been written about God over a period of several thousand years, but the best source of information is still the Bible, His Word.                 God reveals Himself to us through nature (natural revelation), but it is through reading His Word (special revelation) that we come to know Him.   Reading the Bible brings us into a relationship with Him, for this is the means through which He communicates with us.   Through His Word He comforts, He warns, He teaches, He professes His love.   His promises bring us hope or fear, depending on which path of life we choose. Those choices are defined in His Word.   When we read His Word with our hearts, and not just our eyes, He reveals Himself to us as our loving Father, t

    From the Highest Court in the Universe, The State of Misery County of Mocksaints The Person of God Vs. Christian A. Crook In re: The Offense of Theft CHRISTIAN A. CROOK, of 666 Notsogrand Street, County of Mocksaints, the State of Misery, on this 13th day of August, the year of my Son, 2013, is hereby charged in the Court of God with the offense of theft. For this indictment he will stand in final judgment before the Court of Christ on the Day of Reckoning. He will not under any circumstance, save repentance and willing retribution, be found blameless for this offense. Count 1 - Let it be known that Christian A. Crook is not charged with reaching into the offering plate and taking the money for his own, but instead became guilty when he did with full knowledge withhold much of the riches God gave him — in fact that part which was God’s. Count 2 - By his offense, and the added offenses of many others, the church as a building and as a people have suff

  THE DAY THE SUN STOOD STILL (Joshua 10:5– 27) Five kings of the Amorites united. With their troops they took position. The Gibeonites who were attacked, Were outnumbered in the confrontation. So they quickly sent word to Joshua, "Do not abandon your servants. Come fast if you are to save us! The kings and their armies are fervent. So Joshua marched up from Gilgal, His army was fully manned. The LORD said to him, "Do not be afraid; I have given them into your hand" After making an all-night march, Joshua took his foes by surprise. The LORD threw them into confusion, Which would lead to their demise. Israel pursued them along the road, As they fled for their lives back to town.. As they headed up to Beth Horon, God hurled large hailstones down. More enemies died from the hailstones, Than died by an Israelite’s sword. On the day the Amorites fell to Israel, Joshua said to the LORD: "O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the Valley." So the sun s