"Burn the Quran Day"...WHAT???

SHAME ON this pastor from Gainesville, FL..."Burn the Quran Day"...WHAT??? Doesn't he realize the MORAL and ETHICAL damage this will cause, the THREAT OF LIFE towards our Troops, Christians, & Americans; but, more importantly, the DISGRACE and DISHONOR to the name of JESUS CHRIST??? Apparently, NOT!!! May THE HEAVENLY FATHER be with this confused man and work in the hearts of all those who support this TRAVESTY…

Elements In History: Religion & Philosophy

Exploring the Origins and Various Details among History’s Religions and Philosophies that are still around today.

Hinduism: Transmigration (Reincarnation)

Hinduism, the religion of India, is the world’s third largest religion next to Christianity and Islam. Its origin stems from the Indo-Aryan religion, Brahmanism (c1500BC), during the ancient times of India. Hinduism is not associated with one sole founder; however, much of its teachings came from the words of Krishna (manifestation of Vishnu: “Supreme God”) written down in the Bhagavad-Gita (Hindu religious text). The Laws of Manu (laws of social classes) are essentially the commandants by which all Hindus follow and observe, and Transmigration (continuous cycles of life; i.e. reincarnation) is the major teaching within. Transmigration is the result there of -- good or bad -- in the next life instituted by the teaching of Karma, which defines one’s actions of the mind, speech, and body as either good or bad (sinful) and gives the consequences that will come from these actions in the next life.

For those who commit sins of the mind (envy, impure thoughts, or falling into false religions) the consequence is rebirth into the low caste (Hindu social class associated with the poor); if a person commits sins of speech (harsh words, lying, belittling, or idle talk) the consequence is rebirth to some kind of bird or beast; and lastly, if a person commits sins of the body (stealing, causing harm to creatures, or adultery) the consequence is rebirth to an inanimate (non-breathing) object.

The goal (though teachings vary) within Hinduism is to correct and abstain from all sinful acts in order to gain total liberation from Transmigration (reincarnation) which ultimately leads to Moksha (full spiritual state free from all self desires) -- Hindu’s version of Buddha’s Nirvana.

Buddhism: The Four Holy Truths

Buddhism, the religion of Buddha, was born in ancient India by Siddhartha-Gautama (Buddha: c500BC); and is associated as being a branch off of Hinduism. Although its roots come from Hindu-India, Buddhism migrated further east due to Hindu majority push and landed in the South East Asian countries with Japan having the largest Buddhist population today. According to Buddhism, Buddha was sitting under a tree when he experienced the enlightenment of the four key teachings that all Buddhists must follow -- The Four Holy Truth. The first Holy Truth is that life is going to bring suffering one way or the other; the second Holy Truth is that suffering is caused by craving worldly desires; the third Holy Truth is that suffering ends when craving desires ends; and the fourth Holy Truth comes from following the holy eightfold path of right conduct in order to achieve total self-improvement over all desires, then the path to Nirvana is finally received.

The reality of these Four Holy Truths promotes an almost endless cycle of self-improvement through reincarnation for the follower; but when total self-improvement is finally gained, the cycles stop, and liberation into Nirvana (full spiritual state free from all self desires) is obtained.

Confucius: The Golden Rule

Confucius, ancient Chinese philosopher, derived many philosophical teachings in his lifetime; but upon his death (479BC), his followers took the task of organizing his teachings into an elaborate set of rules and principles called, Analects. In the Analects, Confucius identified five basic relationships for a society to successfully become well-ordered, which consisted of the father and son (loving/reverential), older brother and younger brother (gentle/respectful), husband and wife (good/listening), older friend and younger friend (considerate/deferential), and ruler and subject (benevolent/loyal).

Although, Confucius is known as one of the greatest philosophers in history and influenced many areas in South East Asia, it would be one of his teachings on how humanity should treat one another that would influence the entire world, The Golden Rule: “Do not do to others as you would want them not to do to you.”

Daoism: Asian Philosophy

Daoism (Taoism) is an ancient Chinese philosophy attributed to the Chinese philosopher, Laozi (c600BC). The essential element within Daoism is wu-wei -- the state of acting selfless in order to cease the ego (effortless action). According to Daoism, nature acts in a state of constant harmony with its self; for example, water helps plants to grow without any knowledge of doing it, and likewise, the plants grow without any knowledge of doing that either; both are working in harmony with each other in effortless action. Humans, on the other hand, are quite different than water and plants, as a person knowingly acts upon his or her desires; therefore, whether the desire is good or bad, nonetheless, according to Daoism, the knowledge of that acting on that desire disrupts the state of harmony which then effects the alignment of the world resulting in the happening of negative elements. However, if a person obtains the state of wu-wei (state of effortless action) through discipline and meditation, he or she is then working in sink with the harmony of nature, and thus, bringing perfect alignment to the universe.

Islam: The Five Pillars of Religious Duty

The religion of Islam (“submission to Allah”) was founded by the Islamic prophet, Muhammad of Mecca (SW Saudi Arabia) around 622AD. The structure of the religion is found in the Islamic religious text, the Koran. According to Islamic tradition, the Koran was given to Muhammad by Allah (Arabic word for “God”) through the angel Gabriel in 610AD. During the time of Muhammad, the Koran was in oral form rather than written. The written version of the Koran was later compiled and standardized by the third Islamic Caliph (Islamic leader of faith), Uthman. Within the Koran, there are five major duties known as the Five Pillars of Islam that all Muslims (followers of Islam) must observe.

First is the Shahadah, which is the basic creed of Islam: “There is no other God but Allah, and Muhammad is His prophet.” The second is the Salah, which is a prayer ritual that must be performed five times a day facing towards the Kaaba (cubical tent which represents the first pagan idols offered to Allah) in Mecca. The third is the Zakat, which is charity giving based on one’s wealth that goes to help the poor and needy, and to aid in the spreading Islam. The fourth is the Sawm, which is a period of fasting (no food or drink), from dawn to dusk, during the month of Ramadan (9th month of the Islamic calendar; most often observed in August). And fifthly is the Hajj, which is a pilgrimage to Mecca that all able Muslims must do in his or her lifetime during the Islamic month of Dhu al-Hijjah (12th month of the Islamic calendar; most often observed in December)

Islam: The Hadith on Jihad

The Hadith is an Islamic religious text that many Muslims consider to be holy and a companion to understanding the Koran; and, it is often used as a reference guide for Islamic laws. One subject discussed in the Hadith is Jihad, which means struggle, effort, or more commonly, holy war; it was adapted by the second Islamic Caliph (Islamic leader of faith), Umar (634BC). Jihad is essentially the actions used by which a Muslim should spread and/or defend Islam. According to Jihad, killing is only justified in self defense, when other nations attack an Islamic state, or when another state is oppressing Islamic practice; however, even in these cases, women, children, aged men, or wounded -- non-combative -- enemy soldiers should be spared from killing. Furthermore, Jihad expresses the action for Muslims to expel (cast out) all other religions such as Christianity and Judaism from Islam’s holy land Arabia by any means necessary -- “by the sword” if need be.

**Sources of Information:

1> The Human Venture, 5th Edition; Anthony Esler
2> The Global Experience: Readings in History, 5th Edition; Philip F. Riley

No Matter Who You Are <>< A Poem

Have you heard about this man
Who is now in glory and at peace with Him

He paid the price for the laws he didn’t abide
But when it was time to die
He made a choice to save his life

There is not much said about this man.
Only a one phase that he said

But his story is one that speaks
How with two simple words
You can be redeemed

Blessed was this man who was lost
Who was beside the Savior on the cross
When he turned and said, “Remember me”
Jesus replied, “In my paradise you will be”

So…

No matter who you are
No matter where you are from
No matter what you did
You have a choice to live again

All you need is faith
To live in the Father’s grace
So turn to Christ like this man
And one day in paradise you will also stand

Written By ForwardThought (November 2007)

No Need To "Burn" Your Non-KJV Bible

I wrote this in response to a recent blog that condemns any other versions of The Bible besides the King James Version. I have nothing against the KJV, I grew up with that version; and although, my preference today is the NASB, I still refer to the KJV often and uphold it as one of the best translations for a Christian to use.

There are indeed many bad translations out there that have modified The Bible in horrible ways that have reduced The Bible to mockery. However, to say that the only proper translation is the KJV and everything else is Gnostic-philosophy junk is a fallacy; and in no way, can be proven. Furthermore, it undermines the changing power to Christ that many have experienced through these other great and equally accurate translations.

Casting doubt on what God actually says has been a huge strategy of Satan from the beginning; Genesis chapter 3, first of many examples. And casting doubt towards the validity of the words of The Bible would not be a far cry in this strategy of his--he loves to divide and conquer. Division is no stranger within the Christian body, and not only has division been caused over the proper version of the Bible, but in other such issues as commuinion and baptism. Sadly, though, all this division has steered us away into fighting amongst ourselves instead of fighting the real enemy.

My intention in this post is not to stir up more division, as I would be contridicting my beginning message; but rather give an explaination to why a person cannot conclusively state that one version of the Bible is the more accurate while all others are heresy trash that need to be “burned.”

Anyone translating between languages will understand one thing, it is quite an impossible feet to accurately translate between languages. The delimma for any translator is how to properly convey the original idea when wording and language identification can be different from one culture to the next; and more often than some, it is impossible to express the idea of one language in another.

Therefore, the original always supercedes the copy in accuracy; and in a sense, compromise is forced on the translation, as expression of idea is all in accordance to the personal ideas and understanding of the translator.

Many claim that the KJV (King James Version, 1611 AD) as the only true accurate Bible, asserting that the translators of the KJV were divinely inspired just as the original New Testament writers. Unfortunately, there is no conclusive evidence to support this claim (not personally claiming it wasn’t, sake of agruement). They also claim that the KJV was the only “perfect” Bible translated into English; but asserting this, does not take into account that word modification or word meaning has its cultural ties depending on the time: example below

I Thessalonians 4:15 (KJV), “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.”

I Thessalonians 4:15 (NASB), “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.”

The main difference, as I highlighted, are the words “prevent” used by the KJV translators and “precede” used by the NASB (New American Standard Version) translators. The word “prevent” changed meaning between 1611 and now; and if you did not know that, this verse in today’s English would cause some confussion.

The issue here are the words you think you know, but through time, have changed meaning; unless you are aware of such wording changes, you will definitely have problems reading the KJV. Furthermore, no hasitation from the KJV translators was given in applying their very culturally based thou’s and shalt’s words. These words do not take from the original idea; however, these words did not exist in the original Greek text. However, the issue of the best translation does not stop at translation word identification, it goes even deeper.

Two main lines of Greek texts exist, which most agree that both date back to the same time, first century AD. The text that was mostly used up until the 1800s was Textus Receptus (a.k.a: Majority or Bynzintine text) related to the Syria region. However, other Biblical manuscripts were discovered in Alexandria (Egypt-North Africa region), which many newer translations stem from; nevertheless, the question of its reliablity has been questioned for centuries.

Erasmus, Catholic Theologian, in 1525, compiled the first Greek text using manuscripts from the Textus Receptus. The Alexandrian manuscripts were available at the time, but for unknown reasons, the Alexandrian text was not used. However, in 1853, Brooke Westcott and Fenton Hort, were the first to compile a Greek New Testament, which took 28 years to complete. They, unlike Erasmus, relied heavily on the Alexandrian text; and what influenced them to go this route was that Alexandian text was written in a more polished Greek writing style, where as, the Textus Receptus seemed more paraphrased in style, which led them to question its’ reliablity.

So, which one is more reliable? Actually no one really knows; however, many studies of the two show that the texts are very must alike in both quality and quanity, agreeing 98% of the time, and that the 2% differences are so minor that they neither show up in translation nor affect understanding.

In conclusion, to assert that Alexandria text is a product of heresy, a rather interesting question can be posed, “Was the Alexandrian texts the only resource the Egyptian Christians had during the first three or four centuries?” If not, no problem; but if so (no evidence to say either way), then the conclusion would be that the Egyptian Christians only had access to this heresy version of God’s Word. But to take such a conclusion would essentially place the doctrine of preservation into a serious dilemma; and if you define preservation in terms of the Syrian Textus Receptus; you would be speaking poorly of God's sovereign care of the Christians in old Egypt.

My advice is this, we must have balance and no translation is 100% perfect, they all have their problems. This does not mean errors or inconsistencies exist in The Bible, but it is important to understand how your translation came to be, what methods were used in its creation, and what crediable Christian scholars and theologians have to say.

Nevertheless, the most important thing to consider in all of this, always seek the Holy Spirit of Christ on all questions; taking the pursuit on your own without the Spirit’s quidance can lead into crucial errors.

Broad Way...Narrow Way: Two Ways On The Same Road

“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. (14) For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”>>Matthew 7:13-14

Most Christians would agree that this passage in Matthew chapter 7 is perhaps one of the most widely known. The principle that Jesus was portraying is simple; there are two ways that every human will follow.

One way is the broad way--the easy way--that many will take. The people who go this way will put their faith on themselves and/or false teacher rather than in Jesus Christ. This way is full of deceit, denial, self-satisfaction, and hopelessness. This way can bring its bright moments for those who chose it; however, in the end, this broad-wide path will ultimately lead to the gate of eternal destruction.

The other way is the narrow way--the hard way--that few will take. Those people who go this way put their faith only in Jesus Christ and deny all selfish desires. This way is full of truth, love, humbleness, self-sacrifice, and hope. This way can bring isolation, ridicule, persecution, or even death for those who chose it; however, in the end, this narrow-small way leads to the gate of life everlasting.

I am sure the depictions of these to ways are nothing new to most of us; and more often then some, we often in vision these two ways as two road from a fork in the road; and then, branching of into two separate directions--one wide leading to hell and a one narrow leading to heaven.

But is there really a fork in the road leading people into two separate roads; or perhaps, just one road leading people into opposite directions?

All humanity, from birth, inherits the nature of sin; and its consequence--“Therefore, just as through one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). There is no way around it, we all receive it. So, at birth, all humanity starts walking the same way; and that way is the broad way, which leads to the sin consequence of destruction. However, God through the loving sacrifice of His only Son, Jesus, made it possible for humanity to one day choose to overcome this inherited sin and walk another way--the narrow way, back to Him, which leads to eternal life.

The few, who come to the realization of Jesus’ sacrifice, and then, humbly accept it; instantly stop in his or her tracks on the broad way, take a 180 turn, and start walking the opposite way. Indeed, this opposite way becomes very small and narrow; the new Christian is now going against the grain and has to start dodging, weaving, and maneuvering around the many who are going still going the other way-- the broad way.

To give an analogy: Have you ever been immersed in a large crowd exiting out the same door; but then, you realize you forgot something and you have to turn around go back in? Needless to say, it is not going to be easy; and many obstacles, difficulties, and push backs in squeezing and maneuvering around every one instantly becomes your reality; but eventually, through perseverance, you will make it. Well, this is similarly the Christian’s reality in his or her narrow way--many obstacles, many difficulties, and many push backs (set backs) will come; but through perseverance in the Lord, the Christian will make it.

So, I encourage you Christian, as we walk our narrow way; to always seek the Lord for strength because there are many obstacles fighting against us; and we are going to need that added perseverance to get around them.

“Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”>>James 1:12

Obama's School Day Propaganda

On Tuesday, Sept. 8, at 12:00 noon Eastern Time; President Obama will be broadcasting an address directly to students in the nation’s public schools for age’s kindergarten to sixth grade. The text of Obama’s school speech has not been made available to parents at this point, although lists of classroom activities for elementary school students and older students are available at the Department of Education website.

This is not the only broadcast Obama has planned. Today, Sept. 3rd at 9:00 am EST, Obama is making a nation wide televised broadcast to many or all public schools to welcome the kids back--a co-worker of mine called his children’s school; and the school did confirm that this was indeed happening today at the above stated time.

I am sure that Obama’s “Welcome back to school” broadcast is just a prelude skem to set up his broadcast for next week; nevertheless, on September 8th, I know my children, who are ages 7, 9, and 11, will be taking that day off. Please take note, Christian parents; this is not just a speech, but a full out program--it’s “Obama Day.” I have been hearing through many--call you local school for the details (I will be)--that before and/or after his speech children will have available literature to “read up” on Obama and/or his agendas and ask questions if they choose. If this concerns you; please, don’t sit on it; call or write your local school and let them know your feelings of concerns (Christian: know the difference between expressing your convictions and attacking with your convictions).

This is blatant--by definition--propaganda by Obama to manipulate our children to his ways. His ratings are at an all-time low (47% approval) and he is desperate to gain back his once “Hopeful” (Hopeless) message. Going after our child proves his lack of respect for the home. I am not “shocked” that our public school system is allowing this propaganda; after all, they are a state governing system. However, though I am aware of this and choose to send my children to a public (“secular” a more appropriate term) school--I do not have to stand for it. Principle alone, whether you agree or disagree with Obama, should strike a core to many; however, many have been fooled for the past eight months and just don’t see anymore.

Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 (NASB)

Just a thought: “Why is his second speech focused to elementary age children and not to junior-high school ages?” Well, it’s simple; any body that has a thinking brain knows the elementary age children are most influenced by the world around them; and typically, if the child have caring parents, by junior-high school age children have somewhat a level grasp on things. However, our teens are not being left out from Obama’s propaganda: “What is one major teen influence besides their peers?” You guessed it: Music. Obama is calling on the music industry to push support for him and work with him to promote his agendas.

If a man or woman has to resort to tactics of propaganda; it truly speaks to the nature of person he or she is. Scripture and history tells us, “Don’t trust them…”

President Obama and his team’s deceit show no boundaries or limits; they will go to any measure to get done what they will. They have proven this time and time again by all their various smoke screens, propaganda, and careful, always planned-out, wording. Obama and most of our other government “leaders” only serve themselves and only care about their “needs”; but we all should known, true leaders, serve and care for the needs of others. May God be with us all who see and know the truth.

Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
because of my enemies—
make straight your way before me.

Not a word from their mouth can be trusted;
their heart is filled with destruction.
Their throat is an open grave;
with their tongue they speak deceit.

Declare them guilty, O God!
Let their intrigues be their downfall.
Banish them for their many sins,
for they have rebelled against you.

Psalms 5:8-10 (NASB)

The Atheist (Part Two)

“Taking in separate bits and pieces of the Bible for information alone is like examining the discrete parts of a mosaic before recognizing its overall design. The Christian understanding of God affirms that we have been divinely wired for relationship with God - and that in Christ, God has come seeking us. Therefore, when we come to the bible with an open heart and an open mind, we can expect the sudden clarity of recognizing the living God who calls to us through its pages.

In the wake of the violence of the Bolshevik Revolution, a member of the Russian Imperial Diplomatic Corps immigrated with his family to Paris. His teenage son found himself adrift in the sudden shift from fighting hardship and danger to the relative ease of safety and peace. Happiness seemed meaningless if there was no purpose behind it. He decided that if he did not discover a meaning for his life within a year, he would commit suicide. As he neared the end of the year with nothing to show, the young man asked to attend a lecture by a Christian speaker. He did not believe in God and had absolutely no use for the Church, and the lecture did nothing to change his convictions. Angry at what he had heard, he went home and asked his mother for a Bible so that he could check to see if the Gospels truly supported these views or not. He chose to read the Gospel of Mark because it had the fewest chapters and he did not want to waste any unnecessary time. He was in for a surprise:

‘I do not know how to tell you of what happened. I will put it quite simply and those of you who have gone through a similar experience will know what came to pass. While I was reading the beginning of St. Mark's gospel, before I reached the third chapter, I became aware of a presence. I saw nothing. I heard nothing. It was no hallucination. It was a simple certainty that the Lord was standing there and that I was in the presence of him whose life I had begun to read with such revulsion and such ill-will.....This was my basic and essential meeting with the Lord. From then I knew that Christ did exist. It was in the light of the resurrection that I could read with certainty the story of the Gospel, knowing that everything was true in it because the impossible event of the Resurrection was to me more certain than any event of history.’

This young man became Father Anthony of Sourozh, who established the Russian Orthodox diocese of Great Britain and Ireland. Although he was not looking for Jesus when he went to the Bible, he found Him nonetheless; or perhaps, more accurately, Jesus found him. He was examining the "pieces" of the Bible's witness to Christ, but it was the reality of the risen Christ that revealed God to him which then enabled him to read the rest of the Scriptures in relationship to this central reality.”

An excerpt from the book--Life With God, by Richard Foster--which truly speaks to what can happen when the doors of biasness and pride are closed; and the door of possibility becomes open…God bless you and thank you for reading.

The Atheist (Part One)

Atheist: One who disbelieves or denies the existence of God or gods.

There are, of course, other definitions one could find in defining the atheist; however, in a nutshell, this has to be the simplest form and one that both the Christian and Atheist can agree on. Although simple this definition maybe, the atheist has proven that it can go evermore deeper or broader--if you will--of the true nature of one who claims the title: Atheist.

What you are about to read is a compilation derived from my own personal experiences; either through books, articles, blogs, personal studies, and conversations. If you are an atheist reading this; I just want you to know that I, throughout all my various experiences, have made something of a habit to step out of my religious box of thinking in order to maintain an objective approach; and in every instance, I have never once ran to my religious security blanket because the other truth scared me. In fact, I became more confident of my Truth, the only Truth, every time. Is there absolute truth? Indeed, there is.

With most atheists, the issue of people believing in God bothers them. What is it about atheists that would compel them to spend so much time, attention, and energy refuting something that they don't believe even exists? What causes the atheist to do that? They often attribute their intentions for caring for those poor, delusional people who believe in God in order to help those poor people realize that their hope is completely ill-founded. Atheists have also proven to go a bit further within their intentions; it is as if, they purposely place--out of deep curiosity--a challenge to those who believe in God to simply see if the God-believers can convince them otherwise. However, there is yet, an even deeper intention, as I have come to know; it seems they seek to become free from the question of God; and their persistence to convince the other side of their right thinking speaks to this. In other words, if they could conclusively prove to the God-believers that they are right, then the issue is off the table--debate won; and now, they can stop fretting about disproving God and live free to go about their life.

Nevertheless, what the atheist does not realize is that the reason why the topic of God weighs on their mind is because God is really pressing the issue--God wants to be known, not rejected. God created every one of us with the intention that we should know Him. He has surrounded us with evidence of Himself to keep the question of His existence right before us. It seems as though the atheists with all their blogs, books, and other writings cannot escape from thinking about the possibility of God. In fact, it might be that the underlying reason atheists are bothered by people who believe in God is because God is actively pursuing them.

Malcolm Muggeridge, Socialist and Philosophical Author: “I had a notion that somehow, besides questing, I was being pursued.”

C.S. Lewis, Author: “...night after night, feeling whenever my mind lifted even for a second from my work, the steady, unrelenting approach of Him whom I so earnestly desired not to meet. I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all of England.”

Understanding the full existence of God is an impossible task for us in this life. God cannot and never will be fully comprehended by human minds; and the very nature of an infinite reality can never be understood by a finite mind: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD (9) As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”>> Isaiah 55:8-9

The Creator-God, The Biblical-God, The God of Abraham--The One and Only God of this universe--gave humanity that which is physically visible in order to gain the knowledge Him and His existence. To deny that is just mere excuses and the biggest error one can make. So, if you haven’t already, just open your mind and your heart to the possibility and see what you will find…What will it hurt?

“…that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. (20) For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. (21) For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. (22) Professing to be wise, they became fools,”>> Romans 1:19-22