Gftt Vs. Wage

I enjoy helping out those who are less fortunate than I am. It makes me feel good because charity is a sign that I am able to love.  There is a rule, though: we are to help widows and orphans (James 1:27). The assumption here is not only to visit, but to aid. In essence, we are to help others who help themselves.

By being generous to others we are giving a gift. We give to others out of love, not because we expect something, other than appreciation. Of course appreciation is demonstrated when those who are helped love the giver. The intention can't be to buy love, but only to give. Love is merely the normal human response to charity.

On the other hand, we can help those who are able as well. Sometimes, they are less fortunate than we are for various understandable reasons: long-term sickness, large families, a poor economy, etc. If they are already working, then we still give to them. If they are not working, but able to, we give them help through wages. Providing a job to those able to work is also an act of love.

If the worker works productively and is a good employee, his paycheck is a reward for doing right things well. If the worker is careless and lazy then rather than a pay check, the payment is a pink slip.

Therefore, there are rewards and punishments. Both are wages. The righteous master rewards the worker with what he deserves. His desire is to reward with good things, but only for right things done. Rewarding bad behavior or laziness is positive reinforcement, but creates negative behavior. People use that technique, but it makes mischievous children worse.  On the other hand fear of negative consequences is positive punishment in operant conditioning. It seems to be an oxymoron, but it's the threat of punishment to create right behaviors.

Now let's look at a passage in scripture:

Romans 6:23  ^"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

First off, this was written by the apostle Paul to the faithful saints in Rome (Romans 1:7-8).  Paul is presenting the dilemma "to sin or not to sin" to Christians. After expounding on grace versus law, or freedom v. slavery, as it can be called; Paul offers the outcome of choosing wrong. Note two things: 1) Both of these possible outcomes are for faithful saints, and 2) "death" means the absence of eternal life, or spiritual death.

For the Calvinists out there, be sure that your unpardoned sins will at some time catch up with you! Romans 3:25 indicates that past sins are propitiated by his blood, meaning that future sins are atoned for, but must be repented of. Being a faithful saint is not living in prolonged sin without regard to the tears which God cries for us, not to mention the blood he shed in our place! This last statement should induce repentance in those who have sins not repented in their lives.

God offers two things as an outcome to behavior. Just like we mold our children's behavior through operant conditioning, God molds us! Why take the trouble? Because as a good parent he loves his children!

Positive reinforcement is used: the gift of God (for not sinning - called righteousness) is eternal life, and incidentally that's through the giver of live, Jesus the Christ.

Positive punishment is threatened as: the wages of sin is death. Remember that he is counseling faithful saints on how to live right, or in the will of God. As a just God he promises reward (gift of eternal life) for those Christians who are righteous, or eternal death for those who sin. His goal is not to make his children rebel, but to submit to his authority. He shows fairness in his expectations because he doesn't owe the gift, but it being available is grace.

Within that operant conditioning lies justice. Jesus is the giver of eternal life. However, he is the judge as well. The punishment is fair. It's the same for everyone. We get to choose our own punishment for rebellion. We don't like to think that Jesus, the author of love, will allow us to be punished, but he must to motivate right behavior (Matthew 25:31-46).

A wise parent offers reward and punishment. He not only is the bearer of rewards, but punishment as well. That must be in order for the parent to be effective and respected. It would be horrendous if the father rewarded, but then get another to punish. That's what dictators do!

Paul wrote this so that Roman Christians, in the citadel of sin, would stay away from the temptations there. They needed to know that there are consequences to sin! He also wanted to remind them that if they stay away from sin, it's worth it, for a gift lies ahead; what he often called "the hope of salvation" which leads to salvation. In effect this is the Abrahamic Covenant repeated in the dispensation of grace.

Shorthand for the Abrahamic Covenant is: be righteous and you shall be rewarded, sin and you shall be punished. Not that with the Jews God was faithful and gave them thousands of chances to change. However, after they did what was right in their own eyes over the years, God punished them with dispersion and death.

We don't worship two Gods. Jesus and the Father are just because they are one. God is the giver of gifts and the punisher.  Jesus cries for us, but yet he must be just. Just as an innocent Adam chose sin and was punished, an innocent Christian who chooses sin over God, must not test God's patience. It's not like he's standing there with a whip just waiting for a chance to use it, but that he mourns as we bury ourselves in sin.

His desire is that we obey him out of love (the gift we don't deserve is the reinforcement) rather than the fear of eternal death (positive punishment), but if it takes that to keep us from turning to Satan he will certainly use it! That's just.

Personally, I came to trust Jesus, not because I loved him, but because I feared eternal death. Jesus offered eternal life so I took the gift that was offered, and it was free on top of it!  Because he gave me the gift, I love him for it, and as such I endeavor to live right to please him out of gratitude. It helps me to please him if I know in advance that salvation is not a ticket to sin, but freedom from the bondage of sin. I am still allowed to sin. That's my choice, but there is a danger in living for sin. By offering just consequences, he actually helps me to not kill my own spiritual self!

The Church and Who It Is and Is Not

It's not my church and it is not your church. It is not even our church. Some believe it's Peter's church, and indeed he is buried under St. Peter's Basilica, the church of the Vatican in Rome, the city-state ruled by the Roman Catholic Pope. It is Christ's Church!

The Church belongs to Jesus as scripture says.

Ephesians 2:19  "Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord..."

The construction of the church is not constructed of material things, but of the heart:

 Acts 17:24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands..."

The Church (capitalized because it is God's Church, not the building), is the Lord's holy temple (Ephesians 2:21).

Let's look at the Church. Look right through the bricks and mortar, and through the gypsum and what do you see? A vast array of people. Some who sit there are saints. They sit among others who are not. What you're looking at is a small part of the Church. The Church is the few among the pews who have faith in Jesus Christ and trust him for salvation. They are those born-again with a new nature given to them by the Holy Ghost.

In a typical church (small "c") those are few. However, all over the world whether sitting in a building or not, are millions of others who are born again and have a new nature. All those folks combined are the Church. You each are fellow citizens with the saints. Citizens of what realm? The kingdom of God. God's kingdom is made of all the saints in the world who have the Holy Ghost in their hearts.

1 Corinthians 6:19 "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?"

So the Church is of three components: 1) Jesus is the Cornerstone, 2) the apostles and prophets are the foundation and that includes Peter, and 3) citizens of the kingdom of God which are the saints. All this is from Ephesians 2:19-20. Each of these are framed together and made the Church (Ephesians 2:21).

In order for the stones to build a solid building there must be mortar. The mortar of the church is love! It's what holds the spiritual building blocks firmly in place. That love is the mortar called "accord" in the following passage: 

Acts 2:1 "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place."

The Holy Ghost comes unto each saint, and he arrives when love is in the air. Accord is the demonstration of that love. When discord is there, all these temples, each of the saints, are spiritually tearing down the church. All the saints who are temples of the Holy Ghost, when they are in harmony, then accord is the atmosphere in which the Church is built. Right after the saints were of one accord, the Holy Ghost came upon them and the Church was built! Where was Jesus? It was his "Ghost" which was the Cornerstone. The apostles at Jerusalem were the foundation and the disciples were the building blocks, each of their individual temples in unity bonded by love!

Soon after that it was announced:

Acts 11:26 "And when he (Barnabas) had found him (Saul), he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch."

In this passage the Church was finally built. All those who followed Jesus and were temples themselves became the Temple of the Lord. There was no building, but the spiritual framework were the Christians, as they were first called here. Thus, the entire body of Christians are the Church.

For those who pride themselves in being of the modern Christian Church or the Churches of Christ, shame on you for excluding other saints from your churches. It's noble that those Christians there endeavor to be like the New Testament Church, but many have removed millions of the bricks from their mortar. All who are born again and are temples of the Holy Spirit are bricks in the true spiritual Church.

1 Corinthians 1:11 "For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. 12 Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. 13 Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?"

The Christian and Church of Christ denominations have divided the church! Yes, they too are denominations because they divide the spiritual building by removing some of the bricks, They help crumble the mortar and allow the church to fall apart. However, you folks are no more guilty than are the Roman Catholics, the Orthodox Catholics, or even the Baptists! All those divided from the Church are contentious and prideful and erode the mortar of love which is the accord that binds the Church together. We can't play games with non-denominational sounding names. We all are equally guilty. My own church is included!

As long as the assembly of believers teach Christ and him crucified,  are those who are born again and trust Jesus as their Savior, then they are the Church. They come from all denominations and also from those who claim not to be denominational.

Roman Catholics are prideful that they are the apostolic church. They are not any more than Baptists are not! The catholics (small "c"; the universal church) which existed in the apostolic age are those called Christians at Antioch. The only organization they had were that they were disciples of Jesus Christ. From those few Christians the Church was born, then Satan began to divide!

The first division among the Church was the separation of Roman Catholics from the Orthodox and Coptics. It was because of discord. The bond of love weakened the spiritual mortar.  The Roman Catholics began to place too much emphasis on the apostles and off Jesus Christ. Their focus became works and off grace. Papa became more important than the Father. From there Mary became a human goddess to help out Jesus. Later, saints were bestowed with powers reserved for God. Finally, the Pope became essential for forgiveness and salvation.

We owe much to the Roman Catholic Church because we were all once part of their parent church, the true universal (catholic) Church of God.

Martin Luther spelled out 95 Thesis where the Roman Catholic Church was in error to scripture.  His intent was to correct the errors of his church, not to divide into a new denomination! If the Pope and Cardinals had tested his theses the errors would have been corrected, but that was not the case. A new denomination was formed and the Church was further divided.

As time went on the disagreements continued and denominations were built. The Church was torn down by discord, but it was still there in spirit. Within each of these denominations lies saints who are part of the true church. Their qualifications are being temples of the Holy Ghost and as such have a new nature. They are few among many! Even my own church has bricks without straw and so does yours. Much of the time even the reverend is the least reverent and his (or her) brick is the most hardened and prone to breakage!

If you're a Baptist you come from discord. You separated from the Anglicans. If you're the Church of Christ, you are a product of discord. You separated from the Presbyterians and Baptists. If you're Methodist you are from discord as well! There is one Church and we all are products of discord.

Many who sit in their pew this Sunday will never admit it, but their belief is that their church is the Church, and that those in other churches are confused or heretical. Some churches have doctrine closer to the Church than others, and that is admirable. However, no church and no denomination is without error! I've never seen a perfect doctrine which is in full accord with Jesus's teachings.

It may be doctrine or it may mean apathy. It may be mean-spirited and prideful. It may mean that people are unloving and not compassionate. It may mean that some are not even friendly. That love which is called accord, is not there in many churches. People hate each other and hate other churches. There is even unhealthy competition among churches of the same denomination and splits within the church. Right now there are people in your church who hate you. There are people who hate me! It's not that they despise one another for hate is just lack of love.

The Pharisees had destructive doctrine. Jesus called them vipers because they were of the serpent. They added regulations to the Law which were impossible to keep and enslaving to the people. Rather than believers being led out of bondage, they were ensnared within bondage.

Even today churches have added rules to scripture to further enslave. Many are carryovers from Roman Catholicism. Even some Baptists take pride in Landmarkism, that they are from a direct line from John the Baptist. Truly, that is very Roman Catholic of them since they claim the same from Peter. The Church (saints) is built on the foundation of ALL the apostles and disciples, not just one, and Jesus is the Cornerstone!

If it's not scriptural it's a millstone; it will sink the church and the church is sinking fast! As you sit there in your pew, you can do your part for the true Church. It starts with love and compassion and includes obedience and meekness. As each person loves another, the chinks in the walls of the Church are pointed with accord. Love bonds the bricks of the temple into a spiritual Church on a New Testament foundation!

Christians: Comfortable With Others Going to Hell

An unidentified atheist said something to the effect, "If Christians were serious they couldn't sleep at night because the unsaved are going to hell."

Here I am in the middle of the night, worrying about whether I care enough about lost souls. Like you I'm certainly too comfortable with others going to hell. That's why we are to share the gospel. The epitome of love is telling others about the hope of salvation! Not sharing the faith is a sign of weak faith. If Christians truly trust in Jesus, they are assured of their salvation and want others, not only to live for eternity, but to live in hope right here!

Let's consider for instance, the "gay" person. I don't like the term and never use it in conversation because the very word is a slight of hand by Satan.

First off, if you don't believe in Satan, you're in denial, for you can feel him urging you on to sin. Of course only he and his dark angels can only urge, but those who listen to falsehoods allow themselves to be damned.

A better word than "gay" is "reprobate", assuming that the homosexual is "out of the closet" because at that point they are not ashamed of their sin. Reprobation is when one no longer feels guilt for transgressions. That seems to occur when they are proud of their sin, deny their sin or don't care what God or others think about their sin. Of course that applies to other sins, but scripture lists homosexuality as one of them.

Romans 1:25 "Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever... 26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: 27 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, to do those things which are not convenient..."

Being reprobate is of such a rebellious mind that the sinner no longer heeds the rebuke of God through his Holy Spirit. In effect the sinner is so apathetic to the will of God that God ceases to call them to repentance, and hence, they damn themselves to an eternity in hell.

Of course right now those reprobate will say, "There is no hell," or "A loving God would never allow a person to suffer hell." If you think that way, you are delusional. There is divine justice!

I am not comfortable with homosexuals going to hell. Why? Because God loves them and I do too; to the extent that I do not want them to suffer in hell.

It is our job as Christians to tend to God's garden. That is our job assignment given back there as Adam was created. God's garden is his creation; those neighbors we are to love. Whatever we do we are to climb that tree, take that sword and cut the serpent down from his lookout point on that branch of the forbidden tree. Our motto should be "I'd rather offend than condemn," because failing to rebuke is condemnation. Obedience is what God desires, not tolerance!

Some care about sinners in their own church. That's noble and a start, but we're to go out unto the world, as the Great Commission tells us to do. That's really tending the garden! Some rationalize, "That's not my responsibility. They don't go to my church." That's apathetic and prideful!

(Note that "Church" is the invisible universal group of believers and "church" are those who come to the building).

First off, it's not YOUR church. It's God's. It may be the building you visit or the denomination you attend, but it is not the Church. The Church is the kingdom of God and it's anywhere there are believers. In fact I would suggest that your church may be far from the Church, because the true Church obeys the edict to bring the world unto God's kingdom. We are to go out unto the world to fish for men and women to grow the Church.

You worry needlessly! They may be great sinners and you recognize that, but you are to use scripture to admonish, reprove and rebuke. Paul did that. You can too! Tending to God's garden is convincing the world that they need Jesus. They must stand under the Tree of Life. Failure to tell them about Jesus is a sin of omission. We think, "They are too sinful to be saved," and as such damn them so Satan won't have to do his job.

Right now, most of you, even preachers, are content with sharing the word in merely your own church. That's easy because most people there profess Christianity even though they may not live for Christ. True Christians go out into the world and bring sinners to any house of God. Your church isn't important in God's scheme of things, but his Church is!

I'm awake right now because I'm worried about the mission of the church. I see it as making people comfortable being apathetic, not even caring that the world is going to hell and we are eating our pitch-in dinners and laughing about being overweight, while sinners are going to hell because no one cares enough to take the time to tell them about Jesus.

I write this because I'm sharing with the world right now. If you're reading this you may not be aware that I have readers in Russia, China, the Ukraine and far away places. I want you folks to read my commentary because my desire is for you to know the truth about Jesus! I can't sleep because many of you are going to hell and I'm uncomfortable with that!

Come to my church! It's not in Salmons, Kentucky. It's not of brick and mortar. The leader is not my preacher. My Church is wherever Christians of any color or denomination claims Jesus as the only way to salvation, and the only doctrine necessary is Jesus and him crucified for our sins.

A preacher and theologian this week professed on Facebook that he is "gay". By doing that he is proud that he is in rebellion to God. In effect he is thumbing his nose at God, and rather than being "gay" he is "reprobate". Christians cannot serve two masters. Our Master has said that homosexuality is an abomination. False Christians in effect, create their own god. They do what's right on their own eyes.

We are to use scripture in all decision-making. We are not to add to it, even with good intentions. When the Jews wrote the Talmud they included not ten, but 613 commandments. They had good intentions. They wanted to force people to be good. That's not salvation by grace.

Preachers preach against being Pharisee-like, then create their own regulations and add to the word. It may be their own principles, but it isn't God's will unless it is in his word.

The goal of us all, and all Christians are of the Royal Priesthood, is to convince sinners to be Christians. In order to do that we must all go to them wherever they are. As a general rule sinners don't come to a place where they are uncomfortable, so the rest of us need to get out of our place of comfort and go to them! We must go to them!

Test your faith this week. Show that you are doing your job this week. Go out into the world and tell others about Jesus. Whatever the inconvenience, whatever the cost, it's worth saving fellow human beings from eternal damnation. Knock down those brick walls of your church and go to Church in the world. That building and that creed won't be on the walls in Paradise, but love and compassion will be!

Love is Compassion on Display

It's easy to teach about love; much easier than actually loving! I have a problem - you do too! None of us love enough. 

Love is the universal emotional language. Ultimate love is the love God has for his creation. We can never love that much. The difference between God's great love and our own ability to love is the range we call "hate". Much of our hate is directed toward others because they interfere with self-worship; or our own stance of being divinely correct.

Love is operationalized by the Ten Commandments. They actually measure the degree of hate that we have for God and others. If one steals from another they are showing a degree of hatred for that person by taking what is theirs. If they fail to honor the Sabbath, they are loathing God because he says to honor it.

By taking care not to offend people is showing compassion, which is the Golden Rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."  Nobody wants stolen property. Nobody wants hurt feelings. Everyone wants fair treatment. Nobody wants to die! The opposing ameliorating actions are compassion.

Compassion is being aware of others distress, feeling badly for them and willing to help remove their agony.

I get disappointed in others. If it's because they have wronged me, it's being selfish, and self-pity isn't compassion. When others feelings are scarred and I want to alleviate their pain, that is compassion.

First off, if I offend anyone, I am to reconcile. That's compassion in action.

If someone else offends another they are to be rebuked. Our own personalities are never a good reason to slight another person.

The greatest slight possible is jeopardizing their salvation. The second greatest slight is robbing them of their joy.  As such we carry a huge responsibility to think before we act, and then act toward the surest positive outcome. That outcome is to do everything in our power to ensure that another person is led to the Lord and instructed in righteousness!

What if we were the ones seeking truth and those who teach it failed to? It's obvious that teaching truth to those seeking it is paramount to anything. Failure to teach truth to another who is seeking it, is an omission, essentially hateful, remembering that hate is the mere absence of love.

For instance if one fails to teach others about Jesus and the way to salvation, then the one who fails his duty is killing the seeker... forever! It's condemning them to a second death which is eternal and torturous! In this case the sin of omission is worse than murder because scripture says that hate, which is the absence of love, is murder.

Have you murdered anyone recently? If you have failed to tell them about the blood of Jesus as an antidote to death, you have killed them. They will surely die unless another does for them what you should have done.

It is sinful to neglect another soul. That's not compassionate. What if no one had ever told you about Jesus? Where would your hope lie? The most profound act of compassion is sharing the gospel with those who seek it, and admonish those who even are not!

An Atmosphere of Love

Right now the air we breath is primarily O2 blended with other gases. Although we can't see it, air is contaminated with the by-products of life such as CO2. The plants need that, but we don't. However, they have it because they depend on us for their own livelihood. There are other things in the air which are inert, and even other gases which kill, mainly CO (carbon monoxide).

When the CO2 is great, as we all exhale, it can suffocate because the O2 is diluted. Plants would grow extremely well in the air of a crowded room.  If a fire was burned in a crowded room without proper ventilation, the carbon monoxide would kill everybody therein.

All these components in the air are classified as matter. Matter are things which take up space and has mass. Matter is what fills space. As you see our space is filled with good things (oxygen) and things which can insidiously harm (carbon dioxide). Then there are killers unseen and without odor, namely carbon monoxide. These are the things of the world.

All is well as long as humans breath pure clean air even though they contaminate it with their own breathing as they convert oxygen into carbon dioxide. It's when fuel is burned without enough air that the killer carbon monoxide is produced.

Now, let an analogy be made.

Without others we can breath pure air and produce only small amounts of carbon dioxide. Humans contaminate all that they come into contact. Without mankind the air is akin to love because it's good.

Psalm 33:5 "He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord."

Without mankind all was right and without need for judgement. As such the earth was full of goodness of the Lord. In the beginning the earth was all about love. Even the love which we breathed was good for the plants because mankind tended to the garden as they were assigned to do. As Adam walked alone he was breathing God's love and producing love for the plants as carbon dioxide was expelled.  In essence he was sharing a little love with his garden.

Then Eve was created. At first they both breathed pure love! They were of the same world and that world was full of goodness. Their atmosphere was pure love, the love of each combining with the love of God for harmony. In that initial atmosphere was philia love and agape love combined with storge love.

Agape love was the base atmosphere supplied by God. Love is all about him! In the beginning as now, all God ever wanted, because he loved mankind so much, is that we love him back. That is the Greatest Commandment! The atmosphere in the garden was full of agape. It was breathed and was life.

Then God created Adam. He and God were alone with each other and the animals. God loved Adam and Adam loved God, but an additional type of love was a by-product of breathing this pure love. As Adam bonded with the animals storge love was added. That's the kinship between family members and even the animals. As dogs are now man's best friend, with Adam all the animals were his friends, and each had affection for the other! You dog lovers know that kind of love! Adam didn't have one of his kind as the animals did, but God, out of agape, created a woman for Adam.

When Adam looked upon the woman, agape love was still there. He still loved God, but also loved this woman. He loved God as his own self, and Eve in the same degree. The atmosphere was still pure and full of love.

Eve was Adam's sister! They were both made from the same matter and God was their Father. Don't think of that as incestuous because eros love was not part of the atmosphere. Eros is sexual love. God immediately told them to multiply, but it was for reproduction, not enjoyment, so it was not erotic in nature.

As sister and brother their type of love was philia. They had not lost their first love, God, nor their godly love for each other (agape), nor their love of the fellow beings (storge), but gained philia or brotherly love. Philia and storge were both by-products of agape. So far they breathed and exhaled love! All the air is love and the atmosphere is righteous.

Then a third entity entered the picture. Angels can take on any form. Lucifer appeared as a serpent. If anyone has walked through the woods they know that some poisonous snakes have a stench about them. As long as it's over there, wherever there is, the stench is insignificant because love abounds. However, the serpent presented his tree and the stench went undetected because of the beauty and pleasure it offered. Eve breathed it first! The appearance of the good fruit was attractive, but it was without aroma.

However, this fruit was carbon monoxide in this previously pure atmosphere. The world of Adam and Eve right there in the garden collided with supra-natural worlds. Whereas the air they breathed had been one of love, now dirty fatal gases were released into the air. Rebellion was the valve and pride was it's gauge. With one bite of the fruit, hate filled the air and it became contaminated. Adam and Eve, once immortal, began to die right at that moment because hate was released.

We think of hate as being mean-spirited, but hate is merely failure to love with agape.  No longer did godly love temper storge, and philia love, the three in one. Another type of love filled the air. It was eros. Thereafter, rather than multiplication being all about storge, it was now erotica. This is revealed by the covering of the flesh with fig leaves.

Worlds collided that day. The putrid stench from the realm of darkness invaded paradise. Erotica filled the air and all manner of things came about. Pride and licentiousness came on Adam and Eve as their spiritual flesh decayed. The aroma of hate that comes from rebellion filled the air. Ludus love came on their children. Even infants played erotically since has all humankind thereafter. As each came into contact, their interests became more selfish. Rather than Eve pleasing Adam by being his help-mate, now pleasure was all about her! Philautia, or self love, came on each of them. Now love was off God and on each other, but more about self. Each of us have that type of ungodly love from birth. Love of self is hate of God because it's failure for God to have his rightful and due love.

Philautia love displaced agape love, and then philia and storge love were poisoned. Eros and ludus came to be all about self. It was then that Adam and Eve became other gods before God and their flesh became their idol. Pure love was replaced by self-love and hate contaminated the pure air.

Men and women still have colliding worlds with Satan, but he does it with stealth. The world of one person collides with the world of another, both seeking philautia. It's not without odor now as carbon dioxide is, but has the foul odor of sulfur dioxide, the aroma of hate manifested. As each person clings to their love of self, corrosion occurs and the putrid air of two self-worlds intermingle and explode. Pride ignites the toxic gases and anger is the explosion.

People don't get along because love is not in the air. We say that we love God, but then allow our world's to collide. Jesus said to love thy neighbor. Doing that is philia love, but can be done only through agape love. With love of others, air become pure because God changes discord to accord! Love is breathed again, overpowering the stench of the oxide of hate.

Praga, or longstanding love comes about with deep understanding of each other. Long married couples exhibit this. Their air becomes pure as their world's cease to collide. Friends can do that too as they begin to understand each other. However, praga can only be in the atmosphere of agape because God is the author of this type of love!

As such mature Christians love without condition because they realize how the devil silently operates. He poisons even holy air and Christians flail about as if fanning away the ripples of hate penetrating the air. As one world collides with the other, only one person smiles; that is Satan. Those with praga love understand what's happening and don't let it happen. World's need not collide. Satan need not have pride in his destruction.

We shall always have hatred and colliding worlds in this atmosphere. It has already been tainted, but as we enter the kingdom of God, as we're born again, the Christian allows God to freshen the air. Meekness is the air freshener which is used and love is its aroma.

Christians, if they allow him, have an invisible shield around their world keeping it from colliding with other worlds. It's a hedge which God provides and is his invisible armor. It contains the hate and allows love to be breathed by all who will breath of it. How do Christians inhale the pure air of love? It's by reconciliation because only through accord can one experience the love of God! Let God take care of the carbon monoxide. All we need to do is breath what's his with a meek spirit.

Ticket to Sin or Freed from Jail

Romans 6:1 "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? 2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? 3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin."

Calvinism is purely sola gratia (by grace alone). This is true in that even our birth, life, nourishment and faith is by the grace of God, but also by grace God gave mankind abilities. In the Garden Adam was given dominion over all the animals and he was to tend the garden, which was essentially to worship God who stood in the center of the Garden. Those were Adam's abilities. God was to take care of everything else, but he left a decision which Adam was free to make. God bestowed on our forbears the ability of free choice when he commanded, "Do not eat of that one tree!"

If that had been anything other than a free choice, eating of it would be out of the question. God could have put the fruit beyond reach or blocked by stones. He didn't. He wanted Eve and Adam to choose for themselves what their desires were!  Free choice is the ability to choose between available options.

Because we are Adam's (mankind) as well, we too have free choice. God doesn't want us to be forced to serve, but seeks it of our own volition. Like all other human attributes free choices are God-given abilities and by it's his grace we have abilities at all!

Because he created us with all that we have and need we must be appreciative. He expects our love in return, contrary to what Dr. David Jeremiah says. That's why we were even created and given a second chance (grace).

So technically everything in life is sola gratia! Even our faith, which is a work, is a gift of God:

1 Thessalonians 1:3 "Remembering without ceasing your work of faith..."

 Ephesians 2:8 "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God..."

Which is it; a gift or work? It is both because God gave us the ability to work and because of that we are to exercise that ability. It is the "tending to the Garden" ability he endowed Adam with in the beginning. So the ability is the gift and the tending is the faith. Tending is the work of faith!

Christians are at liberty to sin. There are consequences of sinning, but God wants us to obey so that we are not imprisoned. It's Satan who enslaves, but God who frees! We can sin all that we want! (Romans 6:1) (Please do not stop reading here.) However, as Christians our "wants" our changed (Romans 6:6). Paul discusses this liberty further in Galatians 5:1.

This is the same liberty which Adam had in tending the Garden. God's desire was  to be attended because he was the focal point of the Garden as the root of the Tree of Life. His desire was that Adam kneel there and eat of the twelve fruits of  the legal tree, but he still gave Adam the liberty to eat of other fruits. That is grace and was a free gift.

Faith must be induced being freely available. Adam listened to the Voice and was guided in what would please God and displease him. With that gift, Adam put his faith in action. He was to work to please God. When the Voice said "Don't eat of the forbidden tree" in essence he was saying "Love me and me alone!" That was his expectation. Love is not an emotion which binds, but a work which frees. In loving God Adam was doing his job assignment, and because love is a command, "the greatest one", then it is a work.

Salvation has always been by grace, but it was always accepted out of faith. The coupling is "the gift results in works"! Paul reinforced that in Romans 6 above. Christians are to present themselves a living sacrifice and bury the sinful life. Our old man, if salvation had efficacy, meant that our flesh was crucified with Christ. What would keep that from happening? Not trusting Jesus enough to make the sacrifice of our selves. That was having faith!

Calvinists are too comfortable in their sola gratia.  Because of grace we were released from the bondage of sin, but because we cut off the flesh and were crucified with Christ, our sins were taken on the back of Jesus (he became sin for us), and our own yoke was removed. Sin is still available and we still sin at times, but we must have steadfast faith to finish the race. When doing right is no longer important to the Christian, they blaspheme God, and like Jesus who cannot be crucified a second time, neither can we!

Our changed heart means that our flesh still has the liberty to sin, but our spirit protects us from it. As Satan and his dark angels go to and fro, it's our work of faith which is the armor which protects us. If we are not serious (sober) and responsive to the Word, then Satan can deceive even the elect to return to bondage just as some of the saved Jews desired a return to bondage in Egypt.

Why? Because sin is pleasurable and the sinning Christian has kept part of the flesh as a souvenir to look back on, and conjure at will. As sin is repeated conjured, Satan takes his son or daughter back into the fold, never to return again! That's not with a sin or sins, but that's with those reprobate... without God having any significance in their lives.

The doctrine of sola gratia, as applied by Calvinists, is damning in that we never ever get a ticket to sin. Indeed we Christians have a reprieve from temptation with the safety of God's armor, our Jobian hedge, to remove the desire which sin offers.  We never get a ticket to sin, but if we're faithful, we get freed from bondage. Even the Greatest Command "love God" and the one like unto it, "love others" are done in freedom. They are emotions which we must have and do, and are therefore works.

God, just as with Adam, whom he never forced, never forces us to love him or others. It's what we do when the flesh is buried and crucified with Christ. It's our refreshed spirit doing new good things because we tend to the Tree of Life (Jesus) to please him!

I'm Sorry: The Words Less Spoken

It's so simple to say, "I'm sorry," but so difficult to feel! What is it that makes that so hard to say and even harder to feel. Can it be that it can't be said because it's not felt?

Being "sorry" is feeling regret, or in effect "mourning" because of things a person had done.

Feeling is not one of the five senses because those are physical. Feeling is state which only humans can have, but because we are human. It's easier to have pleasurable feelings than those of sorrow. The difference lies in that word "pleasure". It corrupts our humanity and taints our spirituality.

Regret (aka mourning) is not pleasurable. In fact, sometimes it's unbearable! Sorrow is the emotion which leads to repentance. Before one can even feel sorrow, the person must be convicted that what has been done is wrong. That's the most difficult, and  is where the battle is waged!

Being sorry is not said because of pride and the desire for pleasure blots it out.  When the serpent said "You shall not surely die," to Eve, that's what Eve wanted to hear! She wanted pleasure from the tree and an excuse not to feel guilty for having the pleasure.

There seems to be confusion between conviction and guilt. Conviction is the decree from the Holy Spirit that a person is in violation of the will of God. Sometimes it's after the wrong and at other times before. Eve knew that she was about to sin, but did it anyway! It is no different for us!

George Constanza, in the sitcom Seinfeld, had sexual intercourse with the janitor woman on an episode. It was laughable, but so true. When his boss asked him if he did,  his first attempt was deception: "Who told you that?" When the boss said "She did," George moved on to the excuse mode, "Is that wrong? If someone had told me I certainly would have known not to do it!"

Silly as it seems, that's how our own minds work when we sin knowing full well that we're about to sin!

In a movie a farmer and a woman, as they entangled themselves in lust, said "God, forgive us for what we're about to do," and then they proceeded to copulate.

Again, most people do the same! When Eve said "And God said neither shall you touch it," she was making a defense. First off, God didn't tell Eve anything, and secondly she had no business standing under the forbidden tree.

I believe that the Holy Spirit convicted Eve before she disobeyed. She ate knowing full well that she was guilty!   The lure of pleasure superseded the thoughts of dying.  When we sin, there is the same trade-off. We think "This sin will be pleasurable enough that it's worth taking the chance that God will save me from eternal punishment." As such we play games with God's grace and take it for granted.

One sin can certainly kill us depending on the nature of that sin and at what time the sin occurs. Even one sin will make us die eternally providing it's when we, unlike George's claim, understand what sin can do and if not children of God.

Eve was not innocent even before she sinned. She deluded herself for the pleasure of it all. She flirted with sin from afar as she walked toward that tree when the serpent beckoned. That's walking into temptation.

2 Peter 2:9a "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations..."

Temptation is the path to sin. We are not to go there! If we intentionally enter the place of temptation, it's a sin. Eve knew that standing under the other tree was entering into temptation, but she walked there regardless. Like George's excuse "If someone had only told me," but thousands of excuses are not one valid reason! Adam had told her, but for her own pleasure, Eve distorted the command. That makes commands easier to violate.

"Oh, it was unclear. I thought you didn't want me to touch it," neglecting that God said that it was not to be eaten! "If I had only known what you meant, God!"

Confusing the issue is a barrier to sorrow. As long as their is a defense, sorrow is not forthcoming. Truly the first step toward sorrow is admitting guilt.

Conviction is when the Holy Spirit successfully tears down Satan's excuses.

Genesis 3:11 "And he (God)  said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?"

Note that Adam and Eve had already been convicted and were ashamed when God asked this. Note that it was not the serpent who made them feel guilt. Unsaid, is that the Holy Spirit convinced them that they disappointed God. Conviction is the cause which emotes the effect and affect of guilt.

Ask, "Why did Adam and Eve cover their nakedness with fig leaves?"

Answer: Because they were ashamed!

Why were they ashamed?

Answer: Because they knew they had sinned.

How did they know they sinned?

Answer: The Holy Spirit led them to that admission. That's when they were convicted.

Do you see the process? Conviction is the step that allowed them to feel guilt. Inside they mourned because they disappointed God.

Did Adam or Eve ever say "I'm sorry"? Never. They blamed, one the serpent and the other his mate!

Did they feel sorry? Yes, they did because they were ashamed as indicated by their guilt.

The fig leaves were symbolic of saying "I'm sorry God for disobeying you," and their hiding in the garden was an indication of their guilt. The serpent never gave them that guilt. God made them feel guilty. Guilt is from God so as to allow the sinner to be shamed into seeking forgiveness.

Even as they made excuses they knew they were without excuse. Just as George just relented and took his punishment for the office sex, Adam and Eve got their punishment. They never cursed God because they knew they deserved the consequences of sin.

The process so far had been: 1) temptation, 2) allowing oneself to enter into temptation, 3) sinning, 4) pleasure, 5) conviction, 6) guilt and then 7) sorrow.  Afterward  comes 8) confession, 9) repentance and then 10) forgiveness!

Adam and Eve repented when they did something about their guilt. They hid and covered their nakedness. Their fig leaves were their repentance. They tried to cover their own sins, but didn't do it so well!

Physically, the foliage was still able to reveal their genitals even with care. It was impossible to ever ensure that their flesh was always covered. Without going into detail, just think on that impossibility. But with the skin of an innocent animal which lost it's life, God covered their guiltiness! The skin was uniform and was able to totally hide their nakedness. God saved them from their shame by his grace. They tried to do that themselves, but failed with the veil with which their shame was only disguised. God was able to cover their shame entirely!

Right then as they hid themselves in the garden they knew that there was no way that they could save themselves from the penalty of death, and accepted the sacrifice of an innocent death as they admitted, "Only God  can save me!" That moment of enlightenment was when Adam and Eve were ever truly born! Unlike them we can be "born again" with the same enlightenment!

Redemption was when Adam and Eve accepted God's grace. His grace was when he provided the animal for the sacrifice, just as he did for Abraham and he did with Jesus. In fact it was Jesus who provided the sacrifice in all cases because he was there! He was the one speaking to Adam and Eve for he is the Word!

Did Adam and Eve ever feel sorry? They truly did. That was revealed when they hid themselves from God. Did they ever say that they are sorry? Yes, but not in words. It was their way of saying "I'm sorry, God" was when they covered themselves. That wasn't enough to save them, but it was enough of an apology for God to save them!

Unlike George Constanza who was kicked out of the office and was forgotten, Adam and Eve suffered the consequences, but were never forgotten! Grace continued until their death and grace continues for their seed. Grace is free, and it's always there! However, to get it you must say those hard words, "I'm sorry, God!"

That's only the last step though. Before God accepts our apology we are to apologize to others. Adam and Eve should have apologized to each other for they brought each other to shame. I believe that concealing their flesh from each other was their apology. That's the only recourse they had to make things right with each other.

Our first step in showing love for God is showing love for others. As such reconciliation is necessary as a result of guilt. We must say "I'm sorry," to those we offend. Before we are reconciled with God we are told to reconcile with each other or our offering will be rejected. Adam and Eve must have done that because that's the rule! (Matthew 18:15-17).

Love is having to say that you're sorry, both to others and to God! Who keeps you from that? Satan. By failing to say "I'm sorry," it is Satan to whom you obey. Saying "I'm sorry" are the words less spoken. Speak them more and mean it. Saying it is a reflection from feeling the guilt which you must feel.