Arms Opened Wide

When I think of Jesus, I think of a pitiful man on the cross whose arms are spread wide. They're outstretched to receive the nails. However, those arms were always outstretched and the Romans adapted punishment by death to accommodate Jesus. That is to say that crucifixion was invented so that Jesus would die in his normal position: with outstretched arms! God had a secret plan for mankind and mankind adapted to that secret. Even evil men were used for the good of all!

Revelation 2:7b "To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God."

This verse should be crystal clear to those who seek clarity! For those who "overcometh" (have enduring faith), they will be rewarded; "eat of the tree of life". Since salvation is through Jesus alone, and salvation is the Christian's reward, then "the tree of life" is symbolic of Jesus Christ. To validate that conclusion, the tree of life is in the midst of "the Paradise of God" (heaven) and was in the midst of paradise (Eden). It's the same  and only tree!

 Genesis 2:9 "And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Therefore, it's necessary for the Christian to understand since Jesus was there in the beginning (John Chapter 1), he had to be somewhere, and that "somewhere" was in the midst of the garden!  Why was he there? God had a plan!

Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV) "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."

That plan is "a hope". Not just hope, but A HOPE!

1 Timothy 1:1 " Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour, and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope;"

The tree was in the midst of the garden was symbolic of Jesus who is "The Word" and was with God, and Jesus, The Word, is our hope!  God's plan all along was that Jesus would die for the sins of all mankind! How was he to die? With outstretched arms!

Exodus 17:11 (NIV) "As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning."

Moses, through the power of God, was the "savior" of the Hebrew people from the hands of the Egyptians. Upon approaching Canaan, Moses "saved' the people again with the raising of his hands. When his arms were outstretched the battle went in favor of the Hebrews. This signifies that by faith in the coming savior that the people would be saved. The outstretched arms were symbolic of Jesus whose arms were always lifted high welcoming his children to approach!

As I close my eyes, I can see Jesus as he ministered to those around him:

Matthew 11:28 "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

I'm sure that he had those arms opened wide and outstretched as they would be on the cross! As he died his death was saying "Come unto me... I will give you rest!"

Jesus's arms weren't opened wide because he died on the cross. The cross was used to crucify Jesus because his arms were always outstretched!

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica the first record of crucifixion was by King Darius I of Persia in 519 B.C. This was before the Roman Empire was even founded in 27 B.C. As history reveals, crucifixion was invented as a means of capital punishment 482 years before the Roman Empire even existed.  In turn the Roman Empire used this type of punishment for criminals. However, an innocent man died on that cross instead of all of us! The cross was invented to accommodate the outstretched arms of Jesus. God knew how Jesus was to die way back when, and it was his plan that it was by the cross!

Jesus' arms opened wide beckoning all who will to come unto him, was the plan all along. Romans were merely were pawns in God's plan. The cross was made for Jesus!

On Reconciliation: Conflict Among Christians

A custom among Christians is to "go to the altar". It's there at the front of the church in view of everybody that we kneel and seek solace, assistance, supplications and forgiveness. In essence, it's right there that we humble our "self" and put our flesh in the hands of God where we ask for his mercy.

First off,  Christians no longer offer blood sacrifices, but have but one sacrifice to offer:

Romans 12:1 "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service."

The altar is where we present our gift to God! The only gift we have to give is our "self". Jesus has already bled for us; now all that needs to be done is to cover our Self with the blood which has already been shed. When Jesus shed his blood, it was an act of grace!

 Ephesians 1:7 "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace..."

As we are saved by the grace of Jesus in sacrificing himself, we are take our Self and offer it back to Jesus! As Jesus offered grace we are to offer the same:

 Hebrews 12:15 (ESV) "See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled..."

In essence this says "Because Jesus has been so graceful to us, those who claim Jesus as Savior shall offer the same grace to others!" If we fail to be graceful to others "bitterness springs up and causes trouble".

Offering grace to others is not a suggestion. It's a requirement because it is a demonstration of love. As Jesus showed unconditional love to us, that love is to be shown to others! Therefore, before we go to the altar with our own Selfish bequests, we are to present the Self to the Lord. It's a show of obedience! Foremost in demonstrating our love for God is loving others

 John 13:34 "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another."

The message here is to show grace to others just as Christ has been graceful to us! With that said, if there is something on our heart which is an obstacle to God's accepting our living sacrifice, it is to be made right!

Matthew 5:22 "But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: ...23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift."

The first thought here is to resolve our own anger by making amends with those to whom we are angry. However, it goes well beyond that! We are to make things right even with those who may be angry with us! Before we offer our living sacrifice, the Self, we are to rid that selfish animal of flaws. The main flaw is lack of love. God wants the best of the flock as a sacrifice and before we offer the Self to the Lord,  it must be the best Self which we have. He cares little about appearance nor deeds, but the condition of the heart. The only thing which men have to offer Jesus is the heart. It must be cleaned up, through him, in order to offer the love of a living sacrifice! We need to make restitution and be reconciled!

You now know what to do, then now all you have to "do" is to "do it"!

James 4:17 "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin."

I have went to the altar to pray with a brother who was already kneeling there.  Of course I wanted to do this out of love. However, before I can show love to my friend and pray for his sins, my own sins need to be forgiven. How effective is prayer if a guilt ridden sinner goes forward to pray for the redemption of another when his own sins have yet to be repented?

Before I could pray for my brother, I had to make things right with another. I had no resentment nor anger for that person, but I knew that the other person had anger with me!  Before I went forward to pray with person B, I dealt with person A (Me) and to do that, I made things right with person C. Person C may not comply with my attempt at reconciliation because of a hard heart, but it is obligatory for me to show that person love by making a contrite attempt to right wrongs.

The onus is always on the Self to make things right with others. However, we never are alone! God is with us when we do his will!

Downers

"Downers" are medications which are depressants which slow down levels of arousal. Why anyone would want to be "down" on purpose perplexes me! However, I've seen people with little motivation to even eat, let alone be motivated to accomplish objectives.

However, the topic of this commentary is about what others do to contribute to feelings of being "down". Yes, people are "downers" too because being around them brings others down. Such people may be melancholic themselves or, on the other hand, be exuberant. However they are, their disposition brings others down.

We've all been around people who are down. It's hard to leave their presence with a positive attitude. Their lackadaisical non-caring attitude demotivates any who come in contact with them. When they are around, there is "no joy in Mudville"!  (Casey at the Bat, 1988).  However, wise people avoid others that bring them down!

Matthew 27:5 "And he (Judas) cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself."

Judas was the ultimate "downer". Because he felt badly, he hanged himself. My guess is that Judas was not very pleasurable for Christ's faithful band to hang around.  Although Judas did bring down Jesus, if he had lived, he could have brought them all  down.  Guilt made Judas depressed. Depression brought him down. There was "no joy in Apostleville that day"! If he had lived, the melancholy of Judas could have took the joy out of Christianity. Dissension in the church is how Satan endeavors to defeat Christianity.

We all know of Judas' in the church. One man I knew was nicknamed "Grumpy". When I was around him, I soon became as grumpy as Grumpy was! With negative Christians like him around, the church would soon become a dire place to attend. Of course my prayer is that Grumpy would get a little joy in his life and assist in making church a pleasant place for  him and everybody else!

In contrast to Grumpy are those who rob sanctuary from those who go to church for fellowship and peace. Let's call those overly exuberant people "Dopey". They seek attention and the minute they enter church the "Dopey Show" ensues. Dopey is disguised as another of the dwarfs: "Happy". Everything is always hilarious and Dopey is always ecstatic. They are attention seekers and attention they get. Church is all about them!

Mark 10:35 "And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him, saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire. 36 And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you? 37 They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory."

These two apostles were "Dopeys". They missed the entire point of why Christ came.

 Mark 10:40 "But to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared. 41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John."

James and John were overly exuberant! They wondered "What's in it for me?" My impression is that they were the two that when they gathered in the upper room, the attention of the crowd was on them, not humble Jesus! Indeed, even John was popular with Jesus. He was the one whom Jesus loved! Because of their zeal, James and John wanted attention. Their attention-seeking ways was a "downer" for the others. "They began to be much displeased with James and John."

James and John were doers. They were active disciples. They made things happen in the church. However, from these passages, at least some of the time, they were zealots for themselves. Many doers in the church are attention-seekers if they do it for a special position. Of course hard workers in the church may be humble servants as James and John matured into, but others are flamboyant in their desire for recognition. We always need to be careful as to why we do things!

Those who are perceived to be seeking popularity in the church bring others down. Others become displeased because of the narcissism  they witness. Overly and falsely exuberant people bring others down just as do melancholic people! Both types of people are "downers".

Matthew 6:5 "And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward."

Those attention-seekers are those who are self-righteous. They do things to build themselves up at the expense of those who do their works in secret! If the hypocrites had been ordained by Jesus, church today, would be filled with glory-seekers!

Oh, what are we to do?

Matthew 9:29 "Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you. 30 And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them, saying, See that no man know it. 31 But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country."

We are to keep our eyes on Jesus and do what he says! Some spread the word of his fame because people have a tendency to glorify themselves to be the first out there with the story! I think Jesus expected that! However, the glory stops with him. Jesus didn't come to magnify people, but so that people would magnify God!

On Addictions

An "addiction" is a strong need to have something or do things on a regular basis which may be dangerous or cause harm to the person, or more specifically,  "A state characterized by compulsive engagement in rewarding stimuli, despite adverse consequences." per Wikipedia referenced to six different psychological resources.

Are addictions modern? Not at all! Modern people have just recently started referring to them as "diseases"!

Matthew 26:41 "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

"The flesh" is human desire. It's our instinct to provide pleasure to our self. It can be anything which causes one or more of the senses of self-gratification; it causes a person to "feel good". It's our addictions!

Galatians 5:19 "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."

 The most notable of these acts of self-gratification is drunkenness. This is one of the most practiced and acceptable forms of self-worship in existence. It, being linked to insobriety, would include drug use of any nature when those drugs are used to altar the state of consciousness. Throughout history drunkenness has been a sinful behavior. Now it's a mere disease! Oh, how we fool ourselves! Our gods are easily deceived.

"People with alcoholism — technically known as alcohol dependence — have lost reliable control of their alcohol use. It doesn't matter what kind of alcohol someone drinks or even how much: Alcohol-dependent people are often unable to stop drinking once they start. Alcohol dependence is characterized by tolerance (the need to drink more to achieve the same "high") and withdrawal symptoms if drinking is suddenly stopped. Withdrawal symptoms may include nausea, sweating, restlessness, irritability, tremors, hallucinations and convulsions.
Although severe alcohol problems get the most public attention, even mild to moderate problems cause substantial damage to individuals, their families and the community." (American Psychiatric Association [APA], underlines mine).

The American Medical Associattion (AMA) declared in 1956, and again in 1991, that alcoholism is a disease of the brain and as such is an illness.  It is "The Disease Theory of Alcoholism".

It seems odd that a behavior which God expected people to refrain from doing, suddenly, in 1956 becomes a disease. Many Christians accept  the disease theory as fact and by implication, minimizes the omniscience of the Creator!  Their god becomes the wise one and the One True God becomes the fool!

First off, "theory" is little more than a "guess". Scientists develop a  generalized "theory" based on an anecdotal situation and then proceed to test it by one or more hypotheses. Oftentimes, they just stand back, look at the body of knowledge and believe what they choose to believe based on observation, even without testing. At best, even if the hypotheses are "tested", the conclusions can be no more than "failing to disprove" one or more of the hypotheses.  In other words, theories are not provable, but yet, people accept educated guesses without question!

Secondly, if an addiction is a "disease" that is fatalistic. Many diseases can never be cured, but merely minimized so life can go on. "The Disease Theory of Alcoholism" promulgates the notion that once a person has that disease, they will always have it! In other words alcoholism is incurable and thus, is fatalistic in nature!

On the other hand "God's Declaration" is that drunkenness, as is murder and many other activities, is not a disease, but a sin; not withstanding that all men have a propensity to sin. This is human nature and is a result of "original sin". We all inherit a desire to satisfy or pleasure ourselves!

Romans 5:12 "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned..."

The "other god besides me" as I often attest to is our "self(s)". When we pleasure ourselves with fornication, lasciviousness, drunkenness, etc. we are appeasing our idol. Our "Self" wants things and we give things to our "Self". In comes to the point where our god gets greedy. He wants more and more and can't be appeased! Then we respond in kind. We give "the Self" more and more pleasure until our god is an addict! We may even come to the point where we tire of appeasing our god and want out, but he is a selfish god. He requires more and more tribute to keep the pleasure coming. What's strange is that those who live to appease their god, their "Self", are no longer free. They become slaves to their god and their entire life is all about providing pleasure to keep their god happy.

It's not just drunkenness, but any sin is slavery. Those who are slaves to any sin are addicted to whatever sin which their god prefers. Some gods prefer lasciviousness. Others prefer drunkenness. Some even are serial killers and get happiness from pleasuring their thrill-seeking god!  Any sin is an addiction when the sinner can't quit although he (or she) has a strong desire to quit sinning. "The Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak!"

Some say homosexuals are born that way. Not so! Like any other person, they are born with a desire to pleasure their god; their "Self". It just so happens that their god is a little on the queer side. It titillates!. For one reason or the other, this is the type of pleasure the homosexual god desires. They are born with rebellion in their heart. Their god must be appeased! It just so happens that lasciviousness is their addiction!  They are slaves to same-sex gratification to the extent that that's what they live for! It becomes of utmost importance because their god craves that pleasure.

Because God calls it a sin, homosexuality is neither specifically genetic nor is it a disease. It's an acquired behavior, and I will present "Herrin's Theory": "Since I have seen normal people 'turn', they weren't that way in the first place!" The body of knowledge is with me! "Girls Gone Wild" weren't all born lesbians; they merely seek to provide more intense pleasure to their gods. If they continue in their behavior, they become addicted to that behavior. Their Spirit might be willing, but their flesh is weak. Their flesh becomes their god and they must appease their god!

Nowadays, progressive apologists have labeled most sins as "diseases". People are no longer responsible for their behaviors. They are merely suffering disease symptoms. The thief is is a cleptomaniac, the adulterer has sex addictions, those who cause strife have anger management issues, and so forth! All they need to do, according to psychobabblers, is to quit feeling guilty and go through some ten or twelve step process and voila, they will never be cured, but can manage their disease!

On the other hand, with God all things are possible. He can cure the behavior of anyone, if that person has enough faith. God is a healer, but the disease he heals with grace is "sin". We all have that disease and we have our individual addiction of choice as carriers of that disease. This disease and all it's symptoms has a great prognosis! Everyone who believes can be saved from sin!  All disease is curable, but there is only one disease, but many addictions. Our addiction, whatever it is, is symptomatic of that disease!

Sin is not fatalistic and addictions are certainly not fatalistic because they are merely the symptoms of the disease!

Romans 3:25 "Whom (Jesus) God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God..."

The blood of Jesus is the cure! Addictions no longer are necessary to appease our old god, because as a new creation, our God is, well, God!

Out of the Closet

The kingdom of Judah, the city of Jerusalem and the faith of the Jews was about to die! It was the end-of-days for the Jewish people. Time was no more as they once knew it! Isaiah the prophet forewarned them of their ultimate destruction and how times would be before they were destroyed. (Note they were destroyed because they continued in their evil ways!)

Isaiah 3:9 (NKJV) "The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves. 11 Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.."

God made a covenant with Abraham. It boiled down to this: "Obey me and you shall prosper. Disobey and you will not!"

 Genesis 12:1-3 (AKJV) "Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: 2 and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 3 and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."

Some say that this covenant is unconditional!  It's not!  Why not? Because when the Jews disobeyed God, he allowed them to be destroyed. Furthermore, they were required to do something! They had to get out of where they were! They were in a sinful place. They were in Haran, the home of the Maobites and Ammonites, two sinful idolater tribes. God said "Get away from these people!"

Before Abram could be blessed he had to get out of sin! However,  by the time of Isaiah, the line of Abraham was already devoted to sin again. Although God had already made a great nation under King David, now the last of David's kingdoms was going down the tubes. There was an unconditional aspect of it though. Through Abraham the nation of Christ still exists today! Although,  he allowed the peoples to be destroyed, he allowed hope in one person to live on!

Galatians 3:16 (NKJV) "Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ"

That's the unconditional promise fulfilled! There were stipulations for blessings, but the main blessing, Jesus, was without stipulation. Hence, we find beyond a rebellious peoples, a person who fulfilled the covenant and offers hope to all people!

Now back to the times of Judah.  (Isaiah 3:9). The "conditional" part of the covenant is falling apart while the unconditional is still intact. The seed of Abraham, in their rebellion, are biting the dust. They were again as was the city of Sodom. How was Sodom before it was destroyed. It was reprobate!  There was no hope for most of its citizens, but a few were blessed. From that few the "seed" would sprout!

Those few became many. Those few became that great nation. Then that great nation, because they were Sodomites, were on the precipice ready to jump. The seed was to become a mere remnant all over again because of sin! Whenever people sin, they always turn to the same thing: sexual-gratification, and the most profound and despicable gratification is homosexuality, sodomy!

Here we go again: "...they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not..." They not only did deviant acts, but they came "out of the closet". The people accepted their sinful behavior, and the abnormal became the norm, the same as in the days of Noah and Lot!

Today, the abominable men and women again proudly display their deviancies. Many everywhere announce to the world "I am one and I'm proud of it!" There is no shame in their own eyes.

Romans 1:27 (AKJV) "...and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. 28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind..."

"Reprobate" is serious business! Those who did homosexual acts damned themselves. It was not God, but by doing that which is unseemly that did them in. They were victims of their own devices.

Again, this nation, the world even, is on the precipice. It's just like Sodom was and as Judah before it fell. People are unseemly, and their unseemliness came out of the closet. Same-sex marriage is now legal, and frankly, except for a few seed, the nation and the world is damned again. God will NOT BE mocked!

Before long, just as in Sodom, the faithful will be lifted out of this evil nation and meet Jesus in the sky. Those few who fled Sodom and Gomorrah, were walking through the narrow gate to prosperity and are symbolic of those few who will meet Jesus in the sky at his second coming! Everything in the Old Testament is about Jesus, and the fleeing of Sodom is symbolic of the rapture. The faithful few will be part of the eternal covenant of Abraham. They will be saved and taken to a better land by the "seed of Abraham", Jesus!

Think on the symbolism! Just as God created a new world from the sins and homosexuality of the pre-deluge world, out of Haran, out of Sodom, out of Egypt, and out of Judah; God will again do the same for those "out of the flesh" of this world! What hope they had! What hope we have! That hope is in the seed. That hope is in Jesus! Few will make it. Will you?

Rewinding Life's Events

I have "Herrinisms". It's the saying or doing of things for which I am immediately sorrowful. Sometimes while I'm doing, I'm feeling bad about it! The feeling associated with Herrinisms is "I just screwed up, and I feel the acids in my stomach telling me so!"  I'm not unlike anyone else. You all have "Yournameisms"!

When a Herrinism occurs, normally I'm on a teeter-totter. The new Herrin is on one end and the old Herrin on the other. I'm not tottering with myself. There is an invisible being on the board with me. He can't be seen, is virtually without mass, but he's there. He has enough weight to effect the totter board!

Most of the time new Herrin is collected. He has read scripture that day, pondered God's word and prayed. Because the new Herrin is walking with God, that invisible presence jumps off that teeter-totter and goes to another board where conditions are not so unfavorable for him. He can play with Herrin another day when Herrin is occupied on himself!

James 4:7 "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

Herrinisms occur when I am fooled into thinking how righteous I am, but I haven't truly submitted to God. Yes, that varies from day-to-day. Even after praying through, Herrin has strongholds which he fails to submit.

 2 Corinthians 10:3 "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ..."

If we look at the military, a stronghold is where the soldiers are behind earthen-works or in a trench. They just won't give up this position as long as they're dug in. That's the way our own strongholds are. It's a sin or sins which we just won't submit to God because we're so entrenched that we just won't give it up! I know... we're talking about playground analogies, but trust me, adults play war with dangerous forces as well. There is another army out there, and we must fight to win.

 Ephesians 6:12 "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

We are in a war. We shoot from the trench, but if we don't let go of what we're holding onto, a fight with strong resistance, we fight in vain.

Likewise, the force on that teeter-totter is not flesh and blood. He is a powerful spirit who fights in the devil's brigade. He laughs as he moves toward the old Herrin and says "Remember the pleasure!" That is just enough weight to make the board teeter toward sin. When the powers are not resisted, the old Herrin does wrong. While he's teetering there is a dilemma.  "Is this pleasure worth the guilt and consequences?" The new Herrin want's to flee. The old Herrin looks back, as did Lots' wife, and longs for just a little more pleasure. When submission is made to pleasure, the moment the wrong decision is made is a Herrinism. The instant a new Herrin fails God, sorrow kicks in! Herrin feels sick because his stronghold wasn't submitted.

Have you ever missed a scene in a movie and want to go back and view it over? All we have to do, is rewind. The one thing that we all must remember, is that there is no rewind on life. Herrinims can't be rewound! No matter how hard we try to make things as they were before, things just can't be undone!

When we do things which are against God we can't go back and change that. When we do things bad against others, it's too late! God forgives the Herrinism, but the Herrinism is still there. When God forgives your sin, the affects of the sin are still there.

King David did a Davidism.  Not one, but many, because one Davidism leads to another. He was tempted and allowed the unseen forces move toward the old David on the teeter-totter. That temptation had just enough weight to pull David down toward unrighteousness. Then when David consummated his desire, he coveted. When he coveted the teeter-totter was weighted again. He murdered. Davidisms compound themselves because of those invisible powers on that teeter board. Yournameisms do that  too!

All is not lost. David could never rewind and make it as it never happened, but in God's eyes, the scene/sin can be rewound. His forgiveness is nearly as if David never did it! I say "nearly" because there are consequences to Davidisms. There are consequences to Herrinisms and Yournameisms. David's son died because of his grievous sins, even though Psalm 51 is all about David's sorrow and repentance!

Herrinisms can never be rewound, but the quality can be adjusted. The new Herrin can move on that teeter-totter. Perhaps Herrin can add weight so that the board balances more favorably for himself and God! Yes, Herrin, you can put on some armor:

Ephesians 6:11 "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."

This armor carries so much weight that the devil gives up. He flees and the teeter-totter no longer teeters. How it teetered before doesn't change. That can't be undone, but with this heavy armor, it won't happen again! What is the armor? "Your loins girt about with truth, having on the breastplate of righteousness, your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel, taking the shield of faith, take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; and praying always"!!

I believe that's enough weight to make the devil get off that teeter-totter. Why waste his time when the new Herrin has on so much weight in the armor of God?

Herrinisms stink! The minute Herrin gives in and submits to the devil, the Holy Spirit opens that check valve. Guilt comes on Herrin because he knows better and the Spirit is still in him. That's a hedge God puts around Christians to help overcome the devil and to crawl away from those strongholds. Guilt kicks in at the minute one is tempted. The instant that those powers move toward the old Herrin on the teeter board guilt begins to happen.Guilt continues even when the old Herrin makes room for the invisible power on his end of the board. He remembers the pleasure, feels guilty about it, then makes the decision: I think I'll do that just one more time. God will forgive me! Thinking like that is irrational and dangerous. God can forgive any sin, but we need to be careful, for our sorrow may not truly be sincere!

Right now I think of hundreds of things I'd like to rewind. They can't be! However, I can change the end of the movie! Yes, there are multiple endings and I can choose the one I want the most. For me, I choose forgiveness. That's a happy ending with hope. My ending which I choose is Psalm  51. God finds that pleasing too!

Moral or Social Issues

There is a lie out there! It's one of Satan's biggest whoppers. It has caused millions of people to die. It has caused turmoil in civilized countries. This lie will rent the fabric of civilized nations. This lie poisons the very elect! Satan smiles! No, Satan LOL at those fooled because he is the only winner.

Polls show that "the economy" always ranks high on what is important to Americans. Most place it in the top 30% On the other hand "social issues" is ranked as low as 2% in importance.Moreover, in recent times conservatives and liberals are trending together on social issues. What are some of the social issues?

• abortion
• sexual orientation
• same-sex marriage
• race relations
• environment
• death penalty
• freedom of religion and expression
• human rights
• fair judiciary
• immigration
• poverty
• geriatric concerns

Of course there are many more "social issues", but these top the list. All people are concerned with "social issues", but it's the DIRECTION of the concern which is of importance! What is "fair" in the minds of some is "unfair" in the eyes of others, and vice-versa.

Some believe that all facets of a nation are either "social" or "economic". In that case all issues are discreetly about money or morality. However, since social issue propagation most often require spending and the economy drives the ability to pay for issues, the economy and social issues are not independent. Polls do not reflect that people know nor care about that! Indeed, most people fail to understand that concept. One of the most often quoted thoughts is "I'm a liberal on social issues and a conservative on economic issues." which is how liberal Republicans explain their dychotomy.  

In effect incontinent thinking such as that is a classic case of "doublethink", the accepting of two contrasting beliefs by the same person and the same time! In order to doublethink the thinker has to put aside one belief to make room for the other and fail to see that he even disagrees with himself, if he knew the entire content of his thought. Although the most educated people seem to be those who doublethink the most, to accept opposing propositions is caused by shallow intelligence in that wisdom is secondary to bias!

The list above is referred to as "social issues" by those who are biased toward minimizing the impact of morality on government. "Social issues" are those things which effect and affect the quality of life of  the people.  It's things for "the good of society". This is a Marxist concept!

"From each according to his ability, to each according to his need." ( Karl Marx ;1875; Critique of the Gotha Program).

That means with the abundance of goods in a socialist society there will be enough to satisfy the needs of everyone. (Marxism is antichristianity). Of course the shortcoming of this principal is that half of society must work to nourish, house and cloth those who do not work! In practice entitlements even drive the expense of entertainment of those who won't work on those who do! Of course only a nation of idiots would work hard to provide comfort to those unmotivated to work! Of course a synonym for "progressive" just may be "fool" because it takes a fool to work hard for those who won't work!

How should these issues be referred? "Moral issues" is suitable nomenclature which fits the religious beliefs of everyone. When people fail to see "social issues" as important, the implication is that "morality" is of little significance. It's a shame that civilized nations confess to a lack of morality whether it be Christian, pagan or humanistic!  It's saying "I care about myself more than others!" because the economy is more about the self and morality is more about others! Americans are narcissistic! They worship themselves grandly!

Civilized nations should value "moral issues" more than anything else. Placing the economy over morality is how tyranny comes into acceptance. In 1933 the Nazi Party (National Socialist German Workers Party) had the 44% of the popular vote, and with alliances, became the ONLY party. Thereafter, that party had support of 98.8% in the 1936 German elections.  People cared little for his "social issues", placing sole importance on the economy. And the truth is, Hitler followed through with what he promised, a thriving economy, until it was squandered by World War II. Because people cared little for "social issues" (moral) it cost millions of lives there and the same later in socialist Russia!

Let's look at how people are deceived. "Social" is directed toward the "nature of society". "Morality" is directed toward obedience to a "higher power" or "thought" and the love shown by that obedience. While it's more positive to care for people because "that's the right thing to do", than do it merely because a voter happens to be a member of a civilization. With that bias, it's easier to minimize "issues which show care" because they are merely "societal issues"!

Most, but not all social issues are because of natural law; which follows from the Law of God, which are the Ten Commandments. As explained by Jesus, the first three of the ten are directed toward loving God and the latter seven toward loving others. (The Greatest Commandment and the one like into it). In the western world caring for others is from the Law of God, like it or not! By saying that "social issues aren't significant" compared to economic, that flies in the face of the Law of God! Other than loving him with all our hearts, loving (showing charity) to others is paramount! Of course the question remains "Who is it that needs to be charitable?" Scripture teaches that Christians are to provide an umbrella of support to the widows and orphans and only if the widows have no one to marry them and are elderly!

Where will the money come from for the widows and orphans? From the prosperity of the people! And what makes people prosper? Obeying God by loving him and others!

Genesis 12:1 "Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

In short "go with me and your nation will be blessed"! The promise is conditional: "Follow me" and if you do "you will prosper"! Note that God does not say that he will bless before he is followed. Abraham and the Hebrew people were to follow God, then he would prosper. Guess what? That makes "moral issues" more important than "economic issues". Without morality (following God) mankind will never prosper! With morality (obedience to God) the nation will prosper!

Because of our times "morality" in the United States is associated with "religion", primarily Christianity. Hence, when "moral issues" are the topic, that can be construed to be "Christian issues". The Law of God isn't in vogue right now in America and the "goodness" of  Jesus has been deemed "intolerant" by the citizens of Babylon-America. 

For example, if people are "pro-choice" that's considered to be "good" and "democratic". It's associated with "reproductive freedom". Therefore, abortion from their standpoint, is a mere "social issue" and legislation for that is expected because it's "goodness" is just a given. On the other hand people who are "pro-life", which they refer to as "anti-abortion" because of it's negative connotation of "being against" call that a "moral issue" (wink, wink) "Christian issue". For ungodly people it's more important to have the liberty of unprotected sex than the old Victorian, even Christian idea, of self-control! 

On the other hand "the sanctity of life" as taught in the Bible, for them, is a mere "Christian belief" although it is actually a Constitutional right!

Amendment 5: "No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation."

which comes from one reason for the fight for freedom:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. (United States Declaration of Independence).

Any fool, (I'm sorry Supreme Court), can see that "the right to life" is a democratic freedom and that it is unalienable (impossible to take away, except by fools on the court)!

Whereas, progressives see the protection of life as "evil" the Christian right see it as "good". They are both "moral positions", but one must ask "By the moral law of whom?"  Progressives create their own law as disciples of "the Self". Moral people (Christians) follow the Law of God.  The Law of Self has always been in competition with the Law of God! Since day one, men have always desired to do what they wanted to do without regard to any supreme regulation.

Proverbs 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.
Proverbs 21:2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the Lord pondereth the hearts.

Doing "what is right in his own eyes" is the mantra of both libertarians and socialists. For libertarians it's the anarchy of doing whatever it is that pleases, and for socialists, it's willingly doing what society allows you to do! Either way, both of these groups of fools are belligerent to God and victims to the supreme lie.

Genesis 3:5 "For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."

All people know "good" and "evil". However, they too have "reason". As such, they rationalize that knowledge to suit their own purposes. Yes, their "eyes shall be opened", but they wear gray shaded glasses. They DO what is right in their own obscured eyes!

Satan deceives the fools who can be easily fooled. When it suits his purposes, his lie is "These are mere social issues". When it furthers his agenda he says "That's just right-wing Christians opinions!"  The "moral issues" are of first priority for us to prosper and they are more than moral issues; they're what's right in God's eyes!

If the nation wants a good economy all they have to do is for the nation to follow God as did Abraham. Abraham's line prospered. If we follow God, we too will prosper. If you believe that the economy is of utmost importance, the way to achieve a prosperous economy is by strong "moral values"!