Who is Eliakim son of Hilkiah? According to Isaiah 22:19-21, it sounds like this is a person who would be the immediate successor to Shebna, who had displeased God. However verses 22-25 seem to cross reference Revelation 3:7-13 which describes the missionary church, Philidelphia, where Jesus says he will open doors and no one will be able to shut them. Is Eliakim Jesus or is Jesus in the line of Hilkiah? Why would the wording of Revelation 3:7 match the wording of Isaiah 22:22 except for us to draw a connection between the two.
Confession vs. Repentence – To many, the terms are used interchangably, but there is actually a remarkable difference between the meanings of these two words. Confession is admitting you’ve done something wrong, repentence is turning away from wrong doing (aka U-Turn).
A person will often confess their sins to God when they repent, but confession without repentence is not that big of a deal. For example, an irritating phrase that has been around for a while, “Oh, my fault.” Basically, “Oops, I did something that hurt you; it was my fault, but I’m not sorry and I may do it again.” We are supposed to confess our sins to each other so that we can be accountable and receive support. The goal here is to stop sinning and start doing what is right. God is more interested in our walk than our intentions. If we merely confess our sins and do not make a change in our life, it’s like saying to God, “oh, my fault!”
“For it is impossible to restore to repentance those who were once enlightened – those who have … shared in the Holy Spirit … and who then turn away from God.” Hebrews 6:4-6
I love the beginning of Hebrews; I’ve read and re-read Hebrews 1-5 but each time I come to chapter 6 and stop. This passage seems so contradictory to what I’ve learned. If a person has “shared in the Holy Spirit” and repented (the passage says “restore to repentance”) doesn’t that mean that they were saved? Or are these people who merely played the game of repentance and acted holy but never truly surrendered their life to God? Of course, this could lead to the debate of God’s elect, and can we surrender ourselves, but I don’t think this is what is being discussed here. The word “enlightened” seems to be an operative word. It occurs in the KJV, NIV, NLT and NASB (I didn’t check others) so I trust the translation. Also, KJV refers to these as “partakers of the Holy Ghost,” meaning people who have the spirit of God in them, and as people who have “tasted of the heavenly gift.” What is being discussed here? Who are people who have “fallen away” and now cannot be restored to repentance? Is the analogy of a field being burned indicative that these people will go to Hell or merely that they are now useless to the Kingdom of God?
Knowledge is Power? Not Necessarily! – Modern mind control tactics employed by the mass media have been effective and making many half-truths ubiquitous, among them the catchy and sincere sounding phrase, “Knowledge is Power.” However, this statement is not true as knowledge is completely different from power and I can give an example of two things that are more powerful than knowledge.
First, wisdom is more powerful than knowledge. Wisdom comes from God and is attained through a combination of knowledge and experience. No amount of intellectual pursuit will make you more wise unless you also put your knowledge to use.
More powerful than wisdom is truth. Imagine all of the accumulated knowledge contained in an encyclopedia – if 10% of its information was in error, it would still contain a vast amount of knowledge but it’s value would be useless. Who would you ask first, the person who has an answer to every question but is sometimes wrong, or the person who does not always answer, but is always right when they do?
This is not to say that knowledge is worthless; ignorance is far worse. But the mindless absorption of knowledge without critical review and careful investigation will not give you true power. We laugh at the statement, “It’s on TV so it must be true,” but the fact is, we blindly accept TV, radio, newspaper, textbooks and teachers (including preachers) with little concern about their accuracy.
The Law of the Yukon — Robert Service: “Send not your foolish and feeble; send me your strong and your sane”
From Shadow of the Almighty – Jim Elliot: “Remember that the shadow a thing casts often far exceeds the size of the thing itself (especially if the light be low on the horizon) and though some future fear may strut brave darkness as you approach, the thing itself will be but a speck when seen from beyond.”
“2 Timothy 2:4 is impossible in the United States”
“Oh God, so many turns, so many ways, so many pits! Help me to do Thy will without consideration of any man.”
From the Heart of the Pastor: “You are of the opinion that God can only bring glory to His name if He employs your methods” Not only this but we often believe that the methods we are used to are the only way God can work. In our current society, which is filled with “devisiveness and confusion,” it is time to seek new ways of communicating God’s Word.
I think it is going to be necessary for a new wave of missionary pastors/churches to form in the USA ignoring the customs and traditions that have formed in the last few hundred years and focus on effective techniques of spreading the Word of God to the people. Please understand that I’m not in any way suggesting that the message change, but it is my belief that we (the church) have added much to the Gospel Message in a similar manner that pharisees added much to the law.
Exactly what part of worship as we do it today is scriptural and what part is merely tradition? And is there something Christ taught that we do not observe today? Have we incorporated things into our traditions that would be displeasing to God?
About two years ago, someone told me that we needed a new reformation. I thought he was insane. But more and more I find that our churches are concerned with tradition, appearance and making people happy or comfortable when they should be focusing on the message and example of Christ and the scriptures that have been given to us. Maybe it’s time for another reformation. Reverto Scriptura! (p.s. I don’t know latin so maybe it should be redeo Scriptura!)
The Question of God . Why Freud & Lewis? | PBS: Whether we realize it or not, all of us possess a worldview
John Kerry’s Stalinist Campaign Slogan “People are known for the company they keep. George W. Bush often quotes the Word of God. John Kerry seems remarkably comfortable in the company of Langston Hughes, Joe Cannon and, through them, with Stalin. Are these the kind of presidential companions we want to see in the Oval Office?”
Wow, what a piece of investigative reporting! So the question remains, does Kerry know he’s associating himself with socialism? It’s been no doubt in my mind that for some time the democratic party has been leaning towards socialism but this is more overt that I’d expected.
I for one will be voting for G.W. this year (but of course, I’d already decided that).