Leaderboard

Interesting thought. I definitely believe it was Christ in the burning bush speaking to Moses. But am not so inclined to believe that it was Him speaking to Joseph. I suspect the term "angel of the Lord" has more than one application. However, I would not want to dismiss the possibility of that it could have been Christ speaking to Joseph. I don't think we completely understand the inter-workings of the Holy Trinity. Good discussion.

I do not have any problem with those who say that SDAs are wrong in saying that Michael the archangel is Christ, as long as they acknowledge that such a SDA statement is not saying that Christ was a created being.

The name "Michael" means "like unto God." What created "angel" would take that name? None, I'm thinking. In many passages the "Angel of the LORD" speaks as Yehovah (as God). To Moses from the burning bush: Exodus 3:2-6 “And the Angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of the burning bush:”(v.4). “God [‘elohiym] called to him out of the midst of the bush,”(v.5). “Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.”(v.6). “I am the God of your father--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” The Angel of the LORD spoke to Abraham as Yehovah. To Abraham: Genesis 22:11 “But the Angel of the LORD [Yehovah] called to him from heaven and said, ‘Abraham, Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ And He said, ‘Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son your only son, from Me.’” Wrestled with Jacob: Hosea 12:3 Writing of Jacob and the Angel, Hosea says of Jacob, “He struggled with God.” Hosea 12:4 “He [Jacob] had power over the Angel and prevailed.” Genesis 31:10-13 Jacob said, “The Angel of God spoke to me in a dream saying, ‘I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me.’” Genesis 48:16 Jacob speaking: “the Angel which redeemed me from all evil bless the lads:” At the Exodus: Judges 2:1-2 [The Lord spoke to Israel through Phinehas, the High Priest] “And the Angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I swore unto Your fathers, and I said, I will never break My covenant with you.” .” . . but you have not obeyed My voice” (v.2). Isaiah 63:9 “In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the Angel of His presence saved them.” In the New Testament, the call of the Archangel raises the dead at the Glorious Return. 1 Thessalonians 4:16 “For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the Archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first;” RSV John 5:25 Yeshua said, “The dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God.” Put these two verses together. The “voice is the Son of God” IS the “Archangel’s call.” He IS the Archangel - the Chief Messenger - the Commander of angels. Certainly no one thinks that a created angel can raise the dead. Yeshua was/is the Father's Chief Messenger. Archangel just means Chief Messenger. There's LOTS, LOTS, LOTS more. I have absolutely no problem believing that Michael was the name of the Father's pre-incarnate Son.

Paul spoke both Hebrew and Greek. He spoke Hebrew to a large crowd gathered in the temple. When the people heard him speaking Hebrew, they paid closer attention to what he was saying. Hebrew was not dead to this large crowd of Asian Jews gathered in Jerusalem. While you say the LXX was in the language of the common person, the captain in Acts 22 was surprised that Paul, who he mistook for a rebel leader, could speak Greek.

Tobit is not a Biblical book. Mrs. White's writings are not Biblical books. They at best can be used for an application to make a point, but as Mrs. White says, her writings are not to be used for exegesis (in phrases such as "My writings are not to be used to answer questions such as 'what is the meaning of the daily'" refusing to answer questions addressed to her for matters of exegesis, or answering those questions with it being their job to study the Bible to learn the answers, it is not her job to answer those types of questions. I have not read Tobit to see how Tobit applies Raphael. It may or may not be a valid message, just in Mrs. White's quotes she is applying the term "archangel" as a way to emphasize correctly that Lucifer was the highest of all the [created] angels. That is the context of her quotes. We need to remember that we need to interpret what she says from her context, and even though she sometimes is surprising when compared to studying the exegesis; that she still does not want us using her for exegesis, but for application only. Thus, when you go to the Bible alone, there is only ONE exegetical, Biblical, archangel, and that is Michael.

I hear there was a rally in Waco, Texas yesterday. That is in my neck of the woods but yesterday was the Sabbath. I decided to skip going to the political rally. I went to church instead. Then my family stayed for potluck. A group of us went to a children's hospital in the afternoon. Then in the evening our church had a meeting that is part of a mental health series we are doing. My daughter sang special music for it. I feel good about my decision to choose the church activities instead of the political. I think the guy speaking at the political rally was an old has-been anyway. Probably not much to learn from that anyway.

I am certified in sexual therapy by the National Christian Counselors Association and one of my children is transgender. I have written a workbook for those experiencing this that is available on Amazon.com. There is a lot we don't know. I think acknowledging that is the place to start. Then we should distinguish between gender dysphoria and transgender. Gender dysphoria is the psychological condition that causes a person to identify as the opposite gender than their birth sex. Transgender is a person that has taken steps to live, at least part of the time, as the opposite gender from their birth sex. About 50% of individuals seeking professional help for gender dysphoria drop out of therapy. What does that mean? We don't know what that means other than that they no longer continue in therapy. If they had started taking hormones, that stops. They never transition surgically. Some may commit suicide. Others may crossdress or use other noninvasive coping measures. Others may just live with it and not take any steps to transition. A big misconception is that transgenders are gay. My son is not gay. He is sexually attracted to women and identifies as one. He calls himself a lesbian. Caitlyn Jenner, one of the most famous transgenders, is the same way. He (or she) is attracted to women and has completely transitioned to one. Before 2016, most gender dysphoria cases were diagnosed among prepubescent children. Most of them would grow out of it but of those that did grow out of it, most would become gay as teenagers. Most were also boys identifying as girls. Since 2016 we have seen a spike in late-onset gender dysphoria (as is the case with my son). Now, most cases are late-onset and it is more common among females identifying as males. What causes it? We are too early in studying it to know for certain. How should we treat it? We are trying to figure that out too. Unfortunately, most studies that have been done have had an agenda and have not been scientifically sound. The Obama Administration wanted Medicare to cover gender affirmation surgery but a government review of the studies that had been done concluded it lacked evidence to determine if the surgery is helpful. The studies that have been done do not have a control group. They follow up shortly after surgery and are not long-term studies. What we have seen in Europe is making it more difficult to transition there. The suicide rate after surgery is still very high. I do support laws that prevent minors from transitioning but question how effective they are. Most of the kids that want to transition will not change their mind before they are 18. If we could prevent them from transitioning until 25, that would more than likely make an impact. However, these people need help. They need a lot of help. Psychologically, they need far more help than someone who is gay. Homosexuality isn't even classified as a disorder. Most gay individuals that need psychological help simply need help with depression or anxiety. Transgenders need that and more. We certainly do not want to restrict psychological services for those experiencing gender dysphoria regardless of their age. The church has a role to play too. There are three lenses used to view gender dysphoria. 1. The Integrity Lens, 2. The Disability Lens, 3. The Diversity Lens. Sadly, many Christian view gender dysphoria through the Integrity Lens. They consider it sinful. Their proposed solution is "suck it up buttercup.". That view is not helpful. It isolates people from the church and increases their risk of suicide. The Adventist church views gender dysphoria through the Disability Lens. We see the person as broken and the condition as part of the fall. We understand why they will use coping mechanisms to deal with it. The only major concern is that the person not engage in prohibited sexual relationships such as gay or premarrital sex. The LGBTQ+ community views gender dysphoria through the Diversity Lens. For them it falls within the range of the normal variety of human development. It is no different than having blue eyes or being left handed. There is nothing abnormal about it. The church (embracing the Disability Lens) should love these people just as we love those with cancer. We may not agree with their treatment but view it as such - it is treatment. If they are crossdressing, taking hormones or whatever. They have an illness and they are treating it. That is not sin. Prohibited sexual relationships are sin. Cross-dressing or gender affirming surgery are not sin. We need to love them and abstain from giving them advice unless they ask for it. And if they do ask for it, don't pretend to be an expert in something that no one is an expert in. We really don't know enough about this condition to tell other people what to do.

And I missed it!!!

I've been drinking Silk Almond for many years. It took a few days to get use to the taste. I remember reading somewhere that any change of diet takes about 20 days, so I always tell people that if they really want to change their lifestyle they need to do one or two things at a time, especially when they start complaining about the taste of certain food, it just takes time so bare with it!! I also have found that if you've changed a few things it gets easier to change other eating habits too!!

Hermanos Vasquez is a circus that comes here every year. It is quite a show. Tickets are expensive but it is one act after another. There is not a boring moment for sure. They became animaless too. I did take the kids during the years when they had animals. I have a picture of them riding the elephant when they were about 3 and 5 years old.

Do you know where the idea of stars in the crown came from? I read it came from an old Methodist preacher. That would explain how it has worked its way into Adventist doctrine. If it is true, do you think multiple people could have a start in their crown for one believer that came to Christ? I do. It is like the seed that is planted, grows and later is harvested. Someone plants the seed. Perhaps many people plant the seed. Others water it it. Then someone comes and harvests it. I think there are scores of people whose witness for the Lord brings just one soul to Christ.

Gavin made some Christian movies before he died. The Secret of Johnathan Speer is a tear jerker. I have given used copies of the DVD to friends in addiction recovery that don't attend church and it moves them.

I hadn't heard of Cindy Williams' death. I used to watch the reruns of Laverne & Shirley everyday after school when I was a kid. It was a big deal when they moved from Milwaukee to Hollywood.

A true story, but the name has been changed to protect the privacy of the individual: Roland is a person with some strict food preferences. He will not eat any dish that he knows contains Garbanzo beans. He has a strong dislike of their taste. However a favorite food which he often eats, is Hummus, which he just loves. I kid you not. The above is true.

My wife makes fantastic hummus. It is very good with pita bread. I am not a big fan of garbanzo beans but when prepared as hummus I really enjoy it.

I'm in 100% agreement with you on the good not so good part! I had a family member who was screwed over by their employer (lied about in terrible way) and the union essentially did NOTHING for them or the horde of other similarly situated people - 7 years after that employment action the Union took the matter to arbitration and won in a most decisive way. Pastor Gregory was a huge help to me in navigating through that mess which thanks to God turned out the way it should have (it didn't for around 30 other people). So, on one hand the Union ended up giving us justice, but they defecated on many other people who were absolutely innocent. My view is that initially Unions were a much needed entity but after time they became more of a self-serving entity that doubled as a P.A.C. I'm thankful for the outcome I'm speaking about but feel very badly for all the folks who were totally innocent and got knifed in the back and thrown overboard for the sharks. [I had forgotten about that. Now I remember. Glad that I was able to give you good advice. But, the bottom line was your extensive efforts over a period of years. You never gave up and finally you got justice--GM.]

Italian Jewish leader assails Israeli policies in speech attended by Netanyahu The head of an umbrella group for Italian Jews spoke out sharply Thursday against the Israeli government’s planned judicial overhaul, settler violence and societal disunity during a speech attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Rome. https://www.timesofisrael.com/italian-jewish-leader-assails-israeli-policies-in-speech-attended-by-netanyahu/

I had to take the site down for a few moments to do a fix.. all is well now. I think.

(N) Psalm 138:8 The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.

I apologize for a long period of silence on this blog. I have been involved in so many fresh writing and speaking project I just haven’t been able to dedicate time to one more thing that doesn’t have a deadline attached to it. With this blog today, I will share a summary of the revolutionary […] The post Israel, Jesus and the Church appeared first on Jon Paulien's Blog. View the full article

NOTE: On a personal basis, I find value in the Great Controversy book. However, I strongly object to its planned use in a mass distribution for evangelism.

Ellen White is a prophet. Prophets don't offer false counsel. Some folks just don't believe or recognize truth. Christ, like Adam, like ALL beings in the universe of God, has free choice. Jesus, as God or man, could in fact dismiss the will of God, decided for Himself what He would, or wouldn't do. In the same way Satan, humanity, and ALL of the angels. "Free will" is God's highest law. Those who choose to ignore the counsel of God, including His Son, at some point will cease to exist. Jesus has free will, there is no question He could have sinned, but did not.

SDAs in China: David Trim, currently a department director in the General Conference has written a book on the Seventh-day Adventist Church in China. The following link takes you to a review of that book. As is characteristic of Dr. Trim, he shares information that is generally not known to the general SDA public. Those who are interested in SDA history will want to read this review of that book. https://spectrummagazine.org/arts-essays/2023/global-and-local-forces-behind-adventism-china

If we take this literally we could assume it was only Adam working in the garden and Eve was.... It looks like quite often Adam, as in singular, is used it often means in the sense that God used it. Genesis 5:1 In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him; 2Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.

That was well said GHansen!

(N) Proverbs 20:29 The glory of young men is their strength: and the beauty of old men is the gray head.

(N) Titus 2:11-12 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

Hi Gustave, Upon what do you base this statement?

(N) Matthew 18:4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

The SDA Church would not exist had not God raised up a prophet, specifically Ellen White, to establish the foundation of its doctrinal positions. "One thing is certain: Those Seventh-day Adventists who take their stand under Satan’s banner will first give up their faith in the warnings and reproofs contained in the Testimonies of God’s Spirit." Selected Messages 3:84 (1903). {LDE 177.4} "The very last deception of Satan will be to make of none effect the testimony of the Spirit of God. “Where there is no vision, the people perish” (Proverbs 29:18). Satan will work ingeniously, in different ways and through different agencies, to unsettle the confidence of God’s remnant people in the true testimony." Selected Messages 1:48 (1890). {LDE 177.5} "My commission embraces the work of a prophet, but it does not end there. It embraces much more than the minds of those who have been sowing the seeds of unbelief can comprehend." (Letter 244, 1906) There is something about Ellen Whites gift of prophecy that goes much deeper than her work as a prophet...

According to traditions there were archangels; but according to the Bible, there was only ONE Archangel.

Neal & Ted Wilson the Father and Son duo will have lead the SDA denomination for 26 of the last 45 years, by the beginning of the next General conference Session. The following article reflects on the leadership of Neal Wilson. A second article reflecting on the leadership of Ted Wilson will follow. https://spectrummagazine.org/views/2023/twenty-six-years-under-wilson-leadership-review-1-2

People shouldn't be ashamed of being Protestant Christians. It doesn't mean rejecting all elements of Roman Catholicism or warring against the people of that faith.

If the rise of homosexuality and transgenderism has to do with exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals, then we should have empathy and compassion for them as physically sick people, rather than simply condemning them as morally deviant. At one time, alcoholism was condemned as a moral failure rather than regarded as a disease.

Ms Marie: What you have stated is not standard practice in the SDA denomination. A question for you: Has that congregation also asked you to show your Income tax returns to prove that you pay a faithful tithe? I ask because I suspect the congregation that you reference is an "outlier" and is not practicing standard SDA policy. If you are living in an area that has a number of other SDA congregations, I will suggest that you may want to consider joining another SDA Congregation. If you are living in the Metro-Sacramento area, I will suggest that you consider joining the Gracepoint congregation in Rocklin.

I'm with Joe, in believing their were/are TWO divine beings. "God" IS our Father, and our Father IS "God". He is the ORIGINAL divine being. "God" beget another divine being, from out of Himself. This second divine being "God" called "My Son". Jesus called Himself "the Beginning", so I believe that His begetting WAS "the Beginning". The Son was exactly like His Father in every way. God the Father created THROUGH His Son. He then communicated with the creation THROUGH His Son. He reconciles us to Himself THROUGH His Son. He also judges THROUGH His Son, and will heal THROUGH His Son. The Father - in fact - does everything, THROUGH His Son. The Son then incarnated (with the help of His Father, Heb. 1:6). He took the form and the nature of a male human being. Before incarnating He "emptied Himself" of all divine powers. During His sojourn on the earth, the only divine power available to "the Son" was the infilling of the Holy Spirit (His Father - Matt 1:18&20). Jesus did say, "The Father who dwells in me, does the works" (John 17:5), and "You Father are in Me" (John 17:21). After completion of His assignment on the earth, the Son returned to His Father in Heaven. The Father then "glorified" His Son, restoring to Him to that glory He once shared with His Father. The Father restored to His Son those divine powers He had given up, to incarnate as a human. The Son then baptized His followers on earth with His spirit presence. This is my belief. I do not believe it is a salvational issue - at least not for those who have not clearly understood it. I have completed my series of studies on "The Trinity Question". Anyone interested can find the series on prophecyviewpoint.com.

Quote: Only in the black community will you find that curious form of bigotry in which one man doesn't actually measure up to the racial scale set by his fellow blacks because of his political views. Quote: I would think that the mess the black community is in men like Ben Carson would be seen as a great inspiration. There we go. Keep posting, You are evidence that Carson has hit his head and will go the way of Sarah Palin.