Once Saved, Always Saved ~REVISITED

Some of you are probably wondering, will he ever just move on? What is up with this topic? This, quite honestly, is a hot topic for many, not just myself. And as like so many, I want everyone to have as much knowledge and understanding at their fingertips in order to make a truly wise, understandable, knowledgeable, and prayerful decision as to what they truly believe about the subject matter at hand! In the past (August & September of 2015) I wrote a two part blog posting on this very subject (Once Saved, Always Saved? & Once Saved, Always Saved? ~Part 2). The blog postings were cursory and were unassumingly ambiguous, in that, I still was not certain at that time about the subject. However, I desired to get as much of the information out to you so that you could decide for yourselves, despite the fact that I was not 100% sure in either case. Many have the belief that once saved & always saved is a fallacy and a license to sin, because if one cannot lose their salvation then they can do anything without regard to consequences. Remember Father Zosima’s quote, from Dostoevsky’s “Brothers Karamazov“, “If there is no God then all things are permissible.”

This is not what the bible teaches. And if you can lose your salvation then you aren’t truly saved, hmmmmmmm…also, this is not taught within the biblical text. So, this, I hope, is the last of this question and my input on this subject, as I am (as you can see) grasping information from numerous sources. But no promises on this being the last word on this topic of discussion. Also, it is not like I do not have other topics to discuss, as I have in my drafts anywhere up to 40-50+ topics. But as with anything else, your mind is constantly thinking on what NEEDS to be heard and understood by those who follow your blog(s). I hope I keep everyone busy and tantalized by the topics that are posted.

My greatest problem, that which holds me back from this teaching, is the fact that I believe that somehow we (mankind) can subvert our salvation through our God given right to choose (good or bad, right or wrong, righteous or evil, etc.) I understand that the grace of God is how we receive our salvation which is a gift from God. I also understand that many rely on this scripture:

All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. ~John 6:37-38 NASB

My problem with this is that God, Jesus, says, “…the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out…” which leads me to believe that though Jesus will not cast a person out, but if he can chose to be saved by calling on God, can he not also choose to walk away from such a glorious gift, as well? Consider the story of George Wilson, the man who refused a presidential pardon. This is my dilemma, which I hope to solve by the end of this particular blog posting. Therefore, my friends, this will probably be my longest post, or several blog posts, only time and research will tell. Sorry!

So, what is the Doctrine of Free Will? According to Matt Slick of CARM.org he has defined as such:

Free will is the ability to make choices without external coercion.  There are debates as to what extent this free will is to be understood as it relates to people.  There are two main views:  compatibilism and libertarianism…The compatibilist view is the position that a person’s freedom is restricted by his nature as is described in Scripture and that his free will is consistent with God’s foreordination…Libertarian free will says that the person’s will is not restricted by his sinful nature and that he is still able to choose or accept God freely…[see more of this refer to What is free will? ]

Free will and the Christian religion

The problem of free will assumed quite a new character with the advent of the Christian religion. The doctrine that God has created man, has commanded him to obey the moral law, and has promised to reward or punish him for observance or violation of this law, made the reality of moral liberty an issue of transcendent importance. Unless man is really free, he cannot be justly held responsible for his actions, any more than for the date of his birth or the colour of his eyes. All alike are inexorably predetermined for him. Again, the difficulty of the question was augmented still further by the Christian dogma of the fall of man and his redemption by grace. St. Paul, especially in his Epistle to the Romans, is the great source of the Catholic theology of grace. ~Catholic Encyclopedia

This might be a good segue to ask what was the point of the law? What was the purpose of the law? Remember what the Apostle Paul told us, in Romans 7:

…I would not have come to know sin except through the Law… ~Romans 7:7 NASB

So, the law was a means of accomplishing your salvation, that linked with the blood sacrifice of animals could land you into heaven. Of course, you would have to adhere to all of the 613 laws on the books and properly and morally give your blood sacrifices throughout your life. And Jesus taught us that He was “…the way the truth and the light…” by which we could “…come to the Father” and it was only through He that we could do so. Toward the end of Jesus’ ministry He, during the Lord’s supper, stated (according to the Apostle Matthew):

And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.” ~Matthew 26:26-29 NKJV

We are reminded of the “My blood of the new covenant”, which was a foretelling of His own trial and tribulation that the Christ had to endure in order to become the final sacrifice…for us all…once and for all! Yes…do you you get it now? He died for you and me, for all of us and for all those not yet born. Now, with the “New Covenant” through the blood of Jesus we are no longer held accountable to the law. Now we are to live as Jesus lived; Jesus being our premier example of how to live.

So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. ~John 19:30 NKJV

When Jesus said, “It is finished!” He meant that His task was completed for all mankind; i.e., He was that final sacrifice. Upon that moment Jesus gave up His Spirit and His blood was spilled on our behalf, as our final sacrifice. We were freed from the law…although, keep in mind the law is what we use to determine if we are sinning in any particular area of our lives. Of course, this is a no braniner since,  “…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” (for better context refer to Romans 3:21-26 NASB.) This is why we are saved by grace through faith [in the blood of Jesus…the lamb which was slaughtered on our behalf.] Further consider what the Apostle Paul had written:

And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. ~Ephesians 2:1-10 NASB 

Jesus suffered for each and every one of us and He was held accountable for each and every one of our sins. Those nails, the crown of thorns, the cross upon which He bore our sins…it is in our place that he was condemned, it was for our sins He died.This was prophesied by Isaiah, one of the major prophets:

He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. ~Isaiah 53:3 NASB

He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth. ~Isaiah 53:7 NASB

We all think, at some points in time, that we are good people. But what exactly do we use as a basis for our arrogant statement? Why? Because we didn’t kill anyone? Because we aren’t Hitler? Stalin? Mao Tse Tung? Pol Pot? THAT is a bit relativistic, don’t you think? The list could literally go one for quite some time, but for brevity I will leave it there. But, yes, Jesus died for each of them. Yet, they did not accept Jesus…they rejected Him and therefore, Jesus also rejected them. Remember what Jesus taught?

“Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven. “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household.“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it. ~Matthew 10:32-39 NASB 

Now, from a moral standpoint we are not given a license to sin. Because as children of God we are to strive to be better than what we once were. Unfortunately, I know people who take this literally as a license to sin. And if they do sin, there is no admission of such a thing, because it wasn’t them but the evil one who sinned within them…hmmmmmmmm.

So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.~Romans 7:17-20 NASB

This is but one, there may be others because the Apostle Paul generally refers to other things he has written about. However, people take this out of context for their benefit in order to sin and continue to keep on sinning. We are meant to understand that we do wrong because of the sinful nature within us. That being said, we are to use Jesus as our Godly example of how we are to live out our lives. But because that is way too hard to do…we should just let our bodies do what they will do, because our souls are saved. That is ungodly thinking and antithetical to the teachings of the bible. Look at the Apostle Paul who killed Christians his brothers & sisters. You can see in his writings that he is tormented due to the memory of what he once was and what he did, but he knew and held on to the hope that Jesus forgave him and he made great strides to do God’s work and fulfill the purpose for which he was created. Let’s look at King David who was a warrior, an adulterer, he lusted, and he killed in order to hide the truth, but God was there and saw it all. Consider, for a moment, that if we were to live as though we have a license to sin then why didn’t the Apostle Paul continue to torment and torture Christians? If what happens while in our flesh truly didn’t matter, then Paul had a license to continue to do what he was doing. And the same could be said of King David. But they each knew they were wrong due to the sin that was within them and they struggled to be better. If God could save David and Saul (Paul), then that gives us great hope…because God wants to save each and every one of us. He desires all of mankind to be saved and to enter into the heavenly realm.

I love the Matt Slick explained his point of view on this, in his article THE ASSURANCE OF SALVATION:

…Let’s say that we are on a 20 foot boat out in the ocean. We are sailing along when we notice two men in the water. There is no other boat around, so it is obvious these two men are in trouble. We take a life preserver, tie it to a rope, and throw it to them. It lands just a few feet short. We start yelling and yelling for them to grab the life preserver so we can pull them in. “Come on,” we yell. “Grab it! Grab it!” One of the men, exhausted, reaches out his arm for the life preserver but falls short. “Grab it!” we yell again. He reaches again and his arm plops down in the water from fatigue. The waves slap his face, but he tries again. The other man is simply floating face down in the water. He isn’t struggling at all. But, the first man is trying for that life preserver. He is fighting against the ocean, the wind, and the waves, all which are greater than he is. That is when I ask the person, “Which one of the two men in the water is alive?” Always, the response is, “The one reaching for the life preserver.” “Right,” I say. “He is struggling for life. Dead people don’t struggle for life…. and spiritually dead people do not struggle against their sin. Only those who are dead, who have no life in them, do not struggle. The fact that you are struggling against your sin is one very good sign that you are very much alive in Christ. If you were not struggling at all, then it might be true that you weren’t saved. But, since you war against your sins, then it sure sounds like you’re saved to me.” Usually, the eyes brighten at this point. I then keep going…

Well, I think I truly kept my word, this is the longest post I have written…<<whew!>>

Here after the teaching of the Beatitudes while still speaking to the multitudes during the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus promised and forewarned us:

“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. ~Matthew 5:17-20 NASB

All in all, I believe the final belief that can be derived from this post is that we are saved eternally from the aspect that Jesus was that final sacrificial lamb to die for all of our sins. Those who have not yet been born and those who have died. We are told that we will answer for our sins, but unless we lived a life antithetical to God’s word without ever seeking God’s forgiveness, we are saved. Though we sin, we will still answer for them but we are heaven-bound.

Do not forget about the thief on the cross…REMEMBER HIM?

One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.” ~Luke 23:39-43 NASB

You can be on your deathbed, and if you are truly seeking God’s forgiveness, He will give it. You might consider reading the minor prophet’s Book of Jonah. If God was willing to forgive the Ninevites, how much happier do you think God would be that YOU seek His salvation and forgiveness?

First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.~ 1 Timothy 2:1-4 NASB

So now is the time for you to seek God out, pray to Jesus. Find a bible believing church in your area and start associating with the like minded. Search out a bible that you can read and that is good for your soul. I read the NIV, NASB, NKJV, and the KJV. Most of my references are NASB & NKJV. To help you look here:

Also, one of my other blogs I posted What is the Best Bible to Read? Which has numerous references and articles for you to glean through in order to make your decision.

May the Love of God Shine upon each and everyone of you in your life’s journey toward salvation! I pray for each and every one of you that you find your way, if lost; those of you who are already saved…I pray for you to see and understand God’s will and purpose for you in your lives.

Until next we meet, dear brothers and sisters!

MK Murphy, PhD, DD

REFERENCES:

The Bible (BibleGateway NKJV & NASB)

The Assurance of Salvation by Matt Slick (CARM.org)

1 John 5:16-17, The sin leading to death

What is once saved always saved? by Matt Slick

What is the Eternal Security of the Believer? by Matt Slick

What is the difference between eternal security, once saved always saved, and perseverance of the saints? by Matt Slick

If eternal security is true, why did the Holy Spirit depart from Saul? by Luke Wayne

Can the Christian believer lose his salvation? by Matt Slick

What is free will? by Matt Slick

Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine by Wayne Grudem

Eternal Security / Once Saved, Always Saved (Text Messages From Jesus Book 6) Kindle Edition by Buddy Valentine

One Hundred Reasons Born Again Christians Cannot Lose Their Salvation: Why Once Saved Always Saved Kindle Edition by James H. Warden Jr.

 

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Desperation Leads To Deliverance

In Mark 5 we learn of several people: the man from the tombs who is possessed, Jairus and his dying daughter, and the woman with the bleeding disorder. Jesus, throughout His life made a great many “Bold Statements” to the people He taught, instructed, healed, befriended, etc. While the title of this post is not a bold statement which Jesus made…it is, however, a bold statement made due to plain observation of His many encounters with those who were desperate.

Each of these people had desperate problems, desperate needs, and (most had) faith in Jesus to heal.

Everyone had the notion in their heads, at one point in time, who is this Jesus? Who is He that He can heal? Only God can heal, only the healers and men of God can heal…who is this Jesus?

Jesus, the Son of God, who has authority over sicknesses, ailments, death, hunger, the disposition & health of one’s soul, etc. YEAH, that Jesus. It is hard to believe that when one makes their way through the biblical accounts of Jesus, His travels, His trials & turmoil, His teachings & sermons, His healing of the sick and disenfranchised…hard to believe that anyone could ask such a thing. Considering the fact that even after His crucifixion & death, in the area of Jerusalem that His teachings were continued by His Apostles and followers. If that which was taught about or by Him was wrong why was there no outcry against it? If He were not crucified to death, buried, and rose again…why then did not those who said, “this did not happen!” Why did they not produce His body? There were many assertions and theories on this, but then they go beyond the scope of this blog post. However, it should be in the back of one’s mind when listening or reading of the great things accomplished by Jesus and His followers.

Getting back on track…

First, we encounter the possessed man from the tombs. He who was possessed by Legion. Jesus commanded Legion, “Come out of the man, unclean spirit!” (verse 8) And, of course, Legion asked to be cast into the herd of pigs. And Jesus allowed it; then the pigs were sent running off the cliff. Now, you or I…today, would see this as a travesty that so much bacon would be wasted. But, as it was brought to my attention, that this was a great economic problem for the owners of the pigs. Why? You might ask…because the pigs were used in many of the pagan rituals and therefore, Jesus just deprived them of great money making possibilities.

And of course, the man who was possessed desperately desired to go and follow Jesus in verses 18-20. Why? because he had firsthand knowledge and experience of such power and healing that Jesus could perform [my interpretation and understanding]. The gratefulness and the gratitude that he had toward Jesus…could have been second to none! But each of us has a voice to be heard by certain people, apparently the recently healed man of possession needed to have his voice heard by his people…God’s will be done!

Second, we come in contact with one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus whose daughter was dying. Now this is something. a ruler of the synagogue sought out Jesus to heal? But when it comes to one who is near and dear to us, we will not concern ourselves with such a matter, despite what our fellow synagogue leaders think of such a man as Jesus. But family is family…to many, family is everything. Jairus even showed such courage and faith by saying, “My little daughter lies at the point of death. Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live.” (verse 23)

While on the way to heal Jairus’ daughter we come in contact with the third person of faith and desperation, the woman with the flow of blood issue.She who used up all her money to be healed. She could neither work nor be around people because she was labeled, “unclean.” So, by the mere touching of the hem of His clothes, she truly had faith that she would be healed…now that is faith, a truly strong faith! But such would not go unnoticed with Jesus.

As with the woman, do we not (in our youth) fail to ask for permission and find it more useful to wait (if caught) to seek forgiveness? But she knew that she was wrong in what she did, as she was “…fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.” And once again, God was glorified! And Jesus responded, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”

So, now back to the second person he ran into…Jairus. His faith was what was to heal his daughter. Those who came from the synagogue ruler’s house said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?” This raises a question, or two, but those go beyond the scope of this post. One that comes to mind is: If this synagogue ruler was such a man of faith, why didn’t his whole household know of Jesus? Perhaps, I would speculate, that he didn’t want to be unfaithful to his brethren of the synagogue and Jesus was the last person he thought of in this time of trouble. As many of use might do. 

But Jesus in classic form said, “Do not be afraid; only believe.” Which was assurance to His caller, the synagogue ruler, and perhaps his entire family. Then Jesus followed on with this, “Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but sleeping.” To which many around just laughed and ridiculed Jesus, considering such a thing just idiocy. After all, this crowd of people, many of which I speculate had seen the body of the girl and suspected or knew the girl to, in fact, be dead. But are we not called to believe despite what we have seen, or believe without seeing?

If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.” ~John 10:37-38 NKJV 

 Jesus said to him, “Thomas,^[a] because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” ~John 20:29 NKJV

…God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did; ¹⁸ who, contrary to hope, in hope believed… ~Romans 4:16-21 NKJV

Face it, we are all raised to be skeptical of those things we do not see. We are also taught that if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably isn’t. Sadly, we live in a skeptical world and this is one of the things we must overcome as we grow older and seek out God in our own way. There are a great number of things that preclude the possibility of knowing God, as we are taught to believe in the theory of evolution and other very smart and educated people who do not count God as a potential, or possible, First Cause for our existence. While some, and yes even some Christian sects discount the classic First Cause argument. But, let us return to our original posting…

Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, “Talitha, cumi,” which is translated, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” This had to be a grand spectacle for all to see! Immediately the girl arose and walked… which, of course was not told to us until the writing of this Gospel.

These three instances spoke volumes to us all, that Desperation Leads To Deliverance. While my message is slightly different from the sermon presented by my Pastor (Scott Beckenhauer) the essence of it remains the same. We each follow a path in our lives, good and bad, but eventually we begin to ask the bigger questions which eventually lead us to God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.

Desperation can lead us down a very dark and bleak road in our lives, or we can see a glimmer of light and hope at the end of the tunnel which takes us on the trail that leads to hope, faith, love and charity. God awaits all of us to arrive at the finish line, but not all will get there. We are all invited, but not all will accept His generous offer of Grace.

What about you? What is your heart seeking? Where do you desire to go?

Got God? Got Jesus? Got Holy Spirit?

Until next we meet, dear brothers and sisters!

MK Murphy, PhD, DD

Power of the Church Over Man

 

History of the Church and it waging war to gain power over it’s members. Taking God out of the equation, either by inference or overtly. Man does not need faith alone but mother church in order to be saved in the eyes of many. There are those who teach the Health and Wealth doctrines, pleading their cause that God wants you and I to be rich and wealthy. And truly the only way once can become so wealthy is by giving your meager amounts to the Church (thereby making it rich and wealthy and all those who work for it as corporate officers.) You on the other hand, will end up giving your money away to the church and her officers and you will still be waiting for God to perform the miracle that was hollowly and blazzonly promised you. Work that you know in your heart should have been done by your.

In the book ANATOMY OF THE STATE by Murray Rothbard we are slapped in our faces with the essential purpose of a governmental entity, which is (slightly paraphrased) to grow and to survive even at the stripping away of the rights of those who placed her in control over them. Mr. Rothbard reminds us with this tid-bit of information – “How can an organization of this type sustain itself? It must engage in propaganda to induce popular support for its policies.” And why is this? Because the state or government does not produce anything and therefore must steal from the resources of those that created her. While this is but a little off the beaten path the church is, as a matter of fact, a corporation, which by nature is a figment of the imagination and creation of the state.

I have always accepted the statement by Jesus, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20 NKJV) To be much of the basis of the church foundation, ministry, as well as our camaraderie among our fellow Christians. Aligning ourselves together as one with the message of Christ.

The church which is spoken of in the confines of the bible is, are both seen and unseen, as it is referenced by Matt Slick in his article What is the church? He points out,

The members of the invisible church are the actual body of believers. They are the ones who are truly regenerate and have trusted, by faith, in the true Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The true Christian is indwelt by the Lord Jesus (John 14:23) through the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the Christian church is figuratively said to be the body of Christ.

Sadly, though, there are many wolves in sheep’s clothing. Seeking out those who would easily be swayed to their way of thinking. In so doing, they lure these easily swayed people to join their ranks and before they know it, they are quickly running down the wide path to hell with all the joy in their hear because God wants them to be this way and follow this path, and fulfill these tasks…because he is glorifying God with these actions and tasks that are being completed! While in reality, God gave us each a brain to think with, a mind to reason with, and instincts to wrench our guts with. This is how we are able to love God ‘…with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ (Matthew 22:37-40 NKJV)

While I truly believe there has been a slowing of the “mass exodus” of those leaving the church (as a whole) it is one of those things that comes in goes in waves. It is precisely because of the vast numbers of churches that spew not the word of God from the Bible, but rather they feed their flock precisely what they wish to hear. They show their flock that because they accept homosexuality, transgenderism, pansexualism, beastiality, pedophilia, etc., by assigning a person of such moral standard to a post within the confines of the church.

• God wants you to be rich, wealthy and healthy
• God will accept everyone into heaven
• God does not want you to suffer but rather to proffer
• God seek for you to be in a castle not a shack
• and in reality, this list can easily be lengthened by leaps and bounds

The church has been Incorporated to, in theory, separate church from the state. However, if you really look at this it becomes quite the conundrum. Why you ask? Because you are asking the state to create you into a corporation, granting you certain legal protections. And as a church, you are eligible to become a 501(c)3 organization:

A 501(c) organization is a nonprofit organization in the federal law of the United States according to 26 U.S.C. § 501 and is one of 29 types of nonprofit organizations which are exempt from some federal income taxes. Sections 503 through 505 set out the requirements for attaining such exemptions. Many states refer to Section 501(c) for definitions of organizations exempt from state taxation as well. 501(c) organizations can receive unlimited contributions from individuals, corporations, and unions.

For example, a nonprofit organization may be tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) if its primary activities are charitable, religious, educational, scientific, literary, testing for public safety, fostering amateur sports competition, preventing cruelty to children, or preventing cruelty to animals.
(ref: 501(c) organization, wikipedia)

I recall reading a book by Charles Giuliani, CHURCH, INC., which I found very enlightening and aided me in my understanding of the church as a whole. A corporation is neither good nor bad…but it is but an outward appearance of those placed into positions of power in order to run that corporation. It is the people that make it ethical or unethical, good or bad, wise or wicked.

When those who are in authority of government, a corporation, etc., are in power to do good – God can do very powerful work through such an entity. However, when those who are placed into such seats of power in order to serve themselves and enrich themselves, much evil and wickedness can come of such things.

For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. ~1 Corinthians 6:20 NKJV

We have been reminded to Glorify God with our entire being BECAUSE we were bought at a price! That price was the cost of our very souls which were purchased from our sinfulness, through which we repented because we believed in the word of God, it’s promises and our belief that Jesus died for our sins and was raise to sit on God’s throne.

We were warned that all man potentially would be left to himself and his own hedonistic pleasures because he chose not to believe in God and the salvational gift offered to him through His Son, Jesus. The Apostle Paul reminded us that:

For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. ~Romans 1:26 NKJV

It is this type of man who refuses to believe. It is this type of man who see and does not accept. It is this type of man who witnesses miracles and, yet, refuses to believe the miracle that occurred. God will not necessarily override one’s Free Will, but He will give one numerous chances…even up to one’s last breath, in order to change one’s heart. That is because God

Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. ~1 Timothy 2:1-4 NKJV

The church, overall, has a tremendous power over the lives and souls of men. And more importantly it has a mission in God’s overall plan. But it is up to God’s people to keep the church on the right track! Godly Men! Those seeking God’s will through prayer. It is up to us to test the words spoken to us by our pastors, preachers, reverends, and priests. And if those words do not conform to God’s word, it is up to us to challenge our leadership’s message. In love. In earnest. In God’s Spirit.

Seek His will and His strength and He will use you in a most powerful way!

May God Richly Bless You, My Beloved!

MK Murphy, PhD, DD

 

 

The Argument of Sufficiency of Scripture

See chapter 8 Systematic Theology

God has granted us sufficiency of His word throughout history. Man has enough in God’s word in order to learn and understand what God desires of us and we have enough information how to live the Christ following life we need. Furthermore, there is sufficient information for each of us to hear the word of God, understand we are sinners, to confess our sins before God, and be saved unto Christ! What is the legitimate definition of  “The Sufficiency of Scripture”?

What is the purpose of scripture? Well, in the second letter to the Apostle Timothy by the Apostle Paul it was stated:

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.~2 Timothy 3:16-17 NIV

Hence the purpose of scripture is to teach those who already believe and have accepted Jesus as the Son of God, who rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. Now, can it be used by those who do not believe? Yes, yet we do not even need the bible, or scripture, to prove the existence of God.

We can find everything that God has spoken on, ultimately, any given topic; either directly or indirectly or inferred. For example, in the sixth commandment “You shall not murder.” (Deuteronomy 5:17 NIV) Blatantly states that we are not to murder anyone. But what is murder?

There are many definitions of murder include murder committed with malice aforethought, characterized by deliberation or premeditation or occurring during the commission of another serious crime, as robbery or arson and murder by intent but without deliberation or premeditation. However, the nuts and bolts of murder is unlawful killing of another, whereas killing is an act by which someone dies due to an accident without forethought or malice as part of the equation.

But by way of inference we can deduce that we are not to harm another in any physical way. Jesus spoke on this, in fact, Jesus stated emphatically that we are subject to judgement if we are angry with our brother. Furthermore, we are subject to the fire of hell if we even say, “You fool!” to our brother. (ref: Matthew 5:20-22 NIV) This is but one example of inferring from scripture and all we can learn from the same.

The sufficiency of scripture also promises us that the amount of scripture given to us at each stage in our history is and was sufficient for us to learn what was being taught to us and that it is proper and sufficient for our redemption through Christ. We learned in the Mosaic teachings this basic understanding:

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law. ~Deuteronomy 29:29 NIV

God has this tendency to reveal to some people more than the rest of us. Just look throughout history and this will be an understood fact. You may be one of those who believe that the bible, while being canonized was a severe censure of the word of God, but in reality, if you believe God is all powerful, all knowing and all present…then He has the ability to protect His message to all the world from the likes of those who believe they must control the thoughts of men. And in so doing, those same men will change the contents of the books of sacred scripture, but God will get His message through to all His children.

God gave each of us the same brain, but it is up to each of us to love God with all of our minds. And how do we do such? Great question…and here is an answer! We must take charge of our mind and subject our thoughts to godly things, subject our eyes to godly things, and subject our bodies to godly things. We must bask in God’s word by learning all we can, we must also subject our minds to understand the godly words and understanding all that is good. Reading good books, wholesome and truthful. We must subject ourselves to those who have studied God’s word before us and learn what they have had to say in order to understand. Of course, that does not mean that we must agree with their assessments but it will help us to be of one mind and heart!

There is the problem of those who are health and wealth preachers who tend to preach heretical teachings. They tend to obfuscate the true word of God through smoke and mirrors allowing you to misunderstand the true nature of God through the all deceptive pattern of wealth…that always catches a person’s attention. Because if they believe that God truly wants us to be rich and wealthy…they are hooked and are in for the long haul.

Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the Lord your God that I give you.~Deuteronomy 4:2 NIV

See that you do all I command you; do not add to it or take away from it.~Deuteronomy 12:32 NIV

Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar. ~Proverbs 30:5-6 NIV

Does God desire us to be rich? Yes, but He wants our wealth to be in His kingdom. We were warned by Jesus not to be so attached to wealth and riches on this earthly plane. Jesus was very clear on this. God does want us to be rich and many who do great things are rewarded in earthly riches. But we all need to remember that:

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.~Matthew 5:44-45 NIV

We are equal in God’s eyes, in that, not one of us is righteous.  But getting back to the point is we are not to add to scripture, nor take anything away from it. By doing so you clearly intend to mislead those you are teaching and you will be held accountable for such teachings. The prophet Ezekiel warned us:

When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, they will die for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.~Ezekiel 3:18-19 NIV

We are reminded throughout, that we are not commanded to believe in anything outside of the scriptures about God Himself or His redemptive works. Everything is within the confines of the 66 books of the bible. We are also taught that there is nothing sinful that is not forbidden by the scriptures. As written by the Apostle Paul, on the Believer’s Freedoms:

“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. No one should seek their own good, but the good of others. ~1 Corinthians 10:23-24 NIV

We can do all things, but is it wise to do all that we desire to do? As children of God we should be desires and have a passion for those around us. Helping and aiding all those near us…our neighbors! Our brothers and sisters in Christ!

We are also reminded that God does not command any of us to do anything that is not explicitly in the biblical text, or implied by the same! Because God is all good, He will not command us to do what is evil. He will not guide us to lie. Because the seed of God is truly righteous.

We are taught, implored to do really, that we should emphasize what the scriptures tell us and to be content with what God has told and taught us within the scriptures. We are to touch the lives of those around us with God’s word, because God desires all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. And more often than not, we are the only connection that others will have to God. Trust me, God will open those opportunities to you to touch the life of another.

Until We Meet Again, Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ!

MK Murphy, PhD, DD

Are our bodies really our own to do with as we please?

Are our bodies really our own to do with as we please? This is a great question to be asked of all people, men and women alike! You have people saying their bodies are their own property to do with as they please. Whether it be augmentation, gender reassignment, abortion, to choose the lifestyle of same sex relations, pedophilia, and the list can go on and on. Those of us who are followers of Jesus and the ways of the Christian beliefs hold the following to be true:

The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. ~Psalm 24:1 NKJV

IF this is truly the case, then, our bodies are, in fact, not our own, but God’s property! If that is the case, then we cannot do as we please but are obligated to do what glorifies God, Himself! Having the above procedures done only seems to indicate that God made a mistake with us and therefore we can do what we must in order to correct that mistake. Now, I am not talking about the correction of a deviated septum, repairing a broken finger, aiding a person who has problems breathing due to allergies. I am speaking on the absoluteness of changing oneself to another gender, changing oneself to where they are no longer pregnant, etc. We must also keep in mind the following from the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Corinthian Church where he stated:

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. ~1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NKJV

Paul stated emphatically, that our bodies are not our own, but temples in which the Holy Spirit of God dwells within each of us. If this be the case, how can we truly glorify God by taking such actions as removing our ability to have children, give birth, or produce what it takes to create a pregnancy? How do we glorify God, our Creator, to terminate that embryo growing (a child in the long term) inside  the womb? This was the great task of the liberal mind in order to make it seem alright to terminate a pregnancy by reclassifying a child to be an embryo or a fetus…that makes it so much more impersonal so it will be fine to kill it off.

My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them. ~Psalm 139:15-16 NKJV

&

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you… ~Jeremiah 1:5 NKJV

From the beginning of time, back in the Garden of Eden, we as the species of man were given the right to choose either good or bad, right or wrong. This inalienable right had been given to us in the Garden of Eden.

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” ~Genesis 2:16-17 NKJV

Man, in the garden, was given one mandate to uphold. One commandment to follow and he could not even do that…DO NOT EAT THE FRUIT OF THIS TREE! Man, throughout history, has proven time and again that he cannot follow the simplest of tasks. And later when God was speaking with Cain, prior to the first murder, He did say – or warn:

“If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.” ~Genesis 4:7 NKJV

WE, as the species of man, MUST rule over our carnal needs and base desires. This was the warning promoted and spoken by God Himself! Sadly, we are so far from the basest of times where we did truly love God and seek to follow Him, always, that we have become a modern day Sodom & Gomorrah. We are in such a huff to get what we want, when we want it…RIGHT NOW! If not 5-10 minutes ago.

But getting back to our original discussion…

Reason and logic should rule in these matters. God gave us reason and logic to aid us, He also gave us science to help us to understand, and He gave us philosophy and theology to aid us to explain.

…man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. ~Genesis 2:24 NKJV

This is where the first marriage took place. While there was no other woman for man to seek out to wed, God presented Adam with a gift…woman. But this is what was referred to by Jesus as the intention of God for man and woman to wed. God intended man to be with woman in order to procreate, be fruitful and multiply, to increase society, to be in commune with another and not be lonely. Men cannot procreate with other men, nor can a woman procreate with another woman. They can commune and not be lonely, but their was never an intention on God’s part for a same sex union other than to have an intellectual meeting of the minds.

Consider the act of masturbation. In one manner of speaking “spilling your seed”, in other words placing your seed where it is certain to not be used as it was intended. While it was a different story for Ohnan, it was not the act of masturbation but the act of “spilling his seed” on the ground as it was his familial duty to carry on his brother’s lineage and he refused to do so. While you may not be killed by God in judgement for the “spilling of your seed” but there are other judgements that God can place upon you. Blindness…lol, yes, we were all taught that as young boys! But on a more serious side, consider this: If you show disdain, or have no value attached to your seed God could make you inactive in order to have any children. This can be done either through you, yourself, or as a couple. Will it happen? I cannot answer that as that is in God’s hands. These are just possibilities, especially consider the power of God and if you truly revere it – as well as, God Himself!

If God is All Powerful and your truly believe this, He can do anything. Think about that…HE CAN DO ANYTHING, because of your wrongful act(s). To not believe so, is to limit God and His Power and Abilities.

As mentioned above, in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NKJV, that our bodies are temples for the Holy Spirit to dwell in. If that is the truth and the case, HOW can anyone truly glorify God, our Creator and Maker of heaven and earth, through an abortion? …through a gender reassignment surgery?…through the same sex unions? …through the act of materbation?How can any of these deeds bring glory to God Almighty?

Man is destined to do great things, sometimes these great things are accomplished by those who are avidly evil. But we are reminded where Jesus spoke:

that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. ~Matthew 5:45 NKJV

Because, like it or not, those who are alive whether they follow Jesus, or not, are God’s children as well. They have the same opportunities as you to come to the knowledge of the truth and be saved! And it is up to us to bring the message to the lost, this is the purpose of the Great Commission! But if you think that you can bypass all of the lost souls because they are so evil, think again, as written in the Book of Ezekiel:

When I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life, that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. ~Ezekiel 3:18 NKJV

We are responsible for those around us, both the righteous and the unrighteous!

Until we meet again, dear brothers and sisters!

MK Murphy, PhD, DD

 

I am no better, or no worse, than any other man…

I am no better or no worse than any other man…righteous or evil, good or bad, spiteful or loving, knowledgeable or ignorant!

We each have the right to choose either the left or the right path at the fork in the road, the narrow or the broad path. Only you can choose for yourself and inform others. But they, too, must make that choice themselves at the time it is presented to them!

Time and again I have touted that the God given, inalienable, right to choose is man’s greatest blessing and greatest curse. We have a life filled with choices and unfortunately we also have a life full of wrong turns, misguided steps, and bad decisions. But on a more positive note, we also have that same life filled with wonderful right turns in our time here on this earth. Good memories, fondness of loving moments, and an abundance of blessings that many other will never experience. We all, in the words of Clarence the wayward Angel (“IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE”), “have a wonderful life,” despite all of our misgivings, bad choices, wrong turns, and abundance of problems that we incur.

We are not promised a long lustrous life, nor one of pure heartache; a life of wealth and ease and comfort, nor of utter disdain and poverty; we are not promised a life of joviality and partying, nor one of utter boredom and doledrums. We are promised one human life…ONE. We are each handed a gift of life and sadly we tend to through it away by wasting our time on silly activities, when we could be increasing ourselves and our self worth; which would increasingly glorify God, you know YOUR MAKER? We tend to make terrible decisions because we would prefer to have received the winning POWERBALL NUMBERS! Face it, as it may very well be true. I know my life would be easier and in someways better if I had received such wealth. BUT in reality of it all, I would not have learned many lessons that I need to learn in order to become the best ME that I could possibly be. In my opinion, based upon my reading the Bible a time or two over the last (nearing) thirty years: God has a great plan for each and every one of us! (Both those who believe and those who do not.)

No one has a greater plan for you, or I, outside of God. If we each will allow ourselves to be touched and indwelt by the Spirit of God, He will infuse in us all manners of workmanship as we need to carry out His plan. But this truly means that we each must unlearn much of the garbage we have picked up over the years! Unlearn old bad habits and re-learn good and new habits. (Yeah, it will be tough, but worth it in the long run!)

God could just give us things, wealth, and other forms of greatness, BUT how would THAT show us that it was God who did it??? It would not! How would we learn the lessons that we so desperately need? We would not learn them! If we are to truly glorify God, our Creator, THEN we need to do those things that will aid us to learn all those necessary traits that will enable each of us to to do God’s will and live the example that Christ displayed for us. The only way we can do these things is to learn the hard lessons and truths that will, eventually, lead us to that epiphany…that AH-HAH moment!

But God, as any earth bound father or mother, will not grant the request of each and every childish whim. Not because He is spiteful, but because we need to learn…many of us the hard way <<sigh!>>. Our parents, together, are the closest we have to understanding God. Our parents purpose is to teach us about God and prepare us for life. Sadly, many parents do not do a very good job of this, they tend to, now-a-days, be their children’s friend or they assert an aristocratic authoritarian command over their children as though they are teaching and instructing them. Instead you have a bratty friend, or end up with a child-like serf with a revolutionary mind set in order to over throw the parents, or they leave the household never to return. (Yeah, just a bit over the top, but I believe you get and see the point(s).)

We can become better people through education and (YES!) through faith and guidance by God. Now when I speak of education, I am not necessarily leaning toward schooling, nor am I discounting it; however, we must learn and understand when we are being indoctrinated and MUST stand against such teachings! I have sat through many courses where the teachers/instructors were indoctrinating me with an agenda in mind. As Ben Shapiro mentioned in some of his writings, you do not want to commit academic suicide by standing against the teacher because he/she is god with respect to your grade. Have you ever seen the movie “GOD’S NOT DEAD“? There are professors (portrayed by Kevin Sorbo) out there just like that, but many are far worse. However, it was a good depiction of some of the travesties of students in today’s colleges and universities. Keep in mind, though, that there are many far worse problems going on these days on college campuses where students are in desperate need of safe spaces because they cannot handle a word or presentation that some guest speakers have for them to hear. University of Chicago responded to such a thing in the proper manner. There was another university in it’s response where it suggested that if the student(s) needed a safe space, they should return home because they were not yet mature enough for the university atmosphere! But, I have digressed from my original premise.

It is through our constant and never ending growth in knowledge and wisdom that we can become better people; however, there is one more concern…we must stop measuring ourselves against one another. Stop comparing ourselves to our neighbors, our classmates from high school or college, our peers at work, etc. The best we can do is compare ourselves to the example in Christ!

Don’t get me wrong, competition can be a healthy thing for us but our competitive spirit can be a bad thing, as well. If our competitiveness brings us to the point of pridefulness and greed, that is when it becomes a bad and sinful thing in our life…and we must rid ourselves of it!

I am no better, or no worse, than any other man…I am just like everyone else in this world, but I can be a beacon of hope to others if I would just live and learn from the example Jesus left me!

Until next we meet, dear brothers and sisters!

MK Murphy, PhD, DD

 

…the way, the truth, and the life…

There is but one way to enter in to heaven, and that is through Jesus the Christ!

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” ~John 14:6 NKJV

In the words of Dr. Michael Licona, or some variation as I recall, “If there is a true religion, then I owe it my allegiance. If there is the one true God, then I owe Him my true allegiance.”

Now, there are great reasons to believe that Jesus is the true Son of the Living God. The historical aspect, archaeological aspect, textual reliance and other witness accounts, perhaps the witness accounts of those who are extra-biblical and non-Christians. Perhaps, in comparing the numerous different religions is enough for you and the claims. What of the numerous documentaries comparing Christ to those perceived and asserted other gods, which were supposedly risen from the dead in the same exact way and so on. Unfortunately, if you do the homework and make the comparisons yourself you will find that those assertions are false.

• If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then why did not the Sanhedrin show His dead and mutilated body to the people?
• If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then why did the Apostles preach the resurrection message to the people in Jerusalem? (Where the punishment was certain death by stoning.)
• If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then why did the Apostles die cruel and inhumane deaths without denying their Lord and Savior?
• There are those who believe in the “Swoon Theory,” but there is too much to discredit such a belief.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.~Romans 1:16 NKJV

So, what is salvation? According to Matt Slick, CARM.org, “Salvation is being saved from the righteous judgment of God upon the sinner…All who have sinned against God are under the judgment of God.  This judgment is known as damnation where God condemns to eternal hell all those who have offended Him by breaking His Law.” One allegorical representation of the weight of sin upon our soul is:

A Chinese evangelist was once preaching on salvation and the weight of sin. A heckler did what hecklers do best, attempt to shame or embarrass  the evangelist. The response was epic: “If you have a corpse lying in his coffin, will he feel a hundred pound weight on his chest any more than a fifty pound weight?” ~ROMANS, vol. 1, pg. 170, David Grey Barnhouse, (1989)

We are warned by the Apostle Paul for the benefit of our souls that, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 NKJV) And at the same time we are promised eternal life being the gift of God, His gift of Salvation through His grace! All we have to do is ask for it and freely receive it. It is that simple, but people do not trust free or simple things. By considering the previously mentioned allegorical representation of sin upon our souls, this statement by the Apostle Paul should help solidify the matter. Our hearts should be weighted down AND we should be looking for the EXIT sign to get out of the cage/prison which we have cornered ourselves into, through every means of deceit, trickery, lying, deciding, etc. YES, we decided our way into a corner and must decide our way out of that very same corner. The decision should be easy and the solution is even easier! Accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, believing He is the Son of the Living God, that He died on the cross for our sins, that He rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven.

It is easy to accept, but rather hard to believe, isn’t it? That is why we must seek for ourselves…researching and studying the word of God. Because we were mandated to:

‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ~Matthew 22:37-40 NKJV

Which means we are to love God all our essence and being and by loving Him with all our mind, we are to love Him NOT with blind faith but rather with well informed, studied and researched faith. Loving Him with all our logic and reason! Many people, not just Atheists, believe that to believe in God we give up our reason and logic for blind faith upon the word of the bible alone. That is just not true at all!

God destined us to determine for ourselves through free will to guide our own paths. That includes turning off the primrose path by making mistakes and sinning, because God desired us all to love and honor Him with all of our heart by our free will choice. We will never be perfect, until God makes us so. But we must keep living the life as though we can be perfect by modeling the life of Jesus the Christ. By ascribing ourselves to the word of God and by living our lives accordingly. Not by the law, as presented in the Old Testament, but according to the simple teachings of Christ as presented by His Apostles & Disciples. Those words in the New Testament give a great representation of who Christ was and how He lived. If we use Jesus as the model, how could we go wrong?

Two final caveats:

1. If the Apostle Paul was changed so dramatically on the road to Damascus from a Christian hating and torturing Jew to become one of Jesus’ greatest Evangelists and Apologists…how can we doubt such a change? How can we doubt such a drastic and dramatic change?
2. The deaths of the Apostles were gruesome and heinous, to say the least. But no one recanted their faith or belief that Jesus was, in fact, the One True Son of the Living God, the Messiah, whom the Jews had been awaiting. That is another factoid which we must keep in mind. (Consider when the Watergate Scandal was plaguing the Nixon Administration each each of the major players involved made a plea deal and received felony indictments. Each turned on their master.) It defies logic and reason to discount their sincerity!

May God Richly Bless You, My Beloved!

MK Murphy, PhD, DD

 

Some other things you may enjoy from great teachers:

Is Jesus the Only Way? Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

Is Jesus the only way to be saved? (CARM)