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I continue to wonder and am surprised that people still want to pound away on this subject. Why do so many people want to precisely define what is 'sinful' and never what is 'good' in life? Have to wonder, a lot, on what Christianity's focus is.

The more bitter the battle, the sweeter the victory. As the saying goes' "Rome wasn't built in a day". Neither is sanctification achieved in an instant. The only time you lose is when agree with the devil that "you lose". Do you hate what your besetting sins make you do? Did you used to love what your besetting sins make you do? If so, then you have "repented" - you have changed your mind. You are on your way to sanctification. Instead of focusing on your sin, focus on Jesus' grace that gives you power to overcome. Even if you fall, you will fall less often. It's hard to sin a lot when you are focused on the goodness and power of your Redeemer rather than focusing on your inability to overcome sin on your own. Big news - you will still sin. That's why you need a Redeemer. If you were sinless, you wouldn't need Jesus. Jesus always offers us a victory. Sometimes we hesitate to accept it on His terms; or we believe the devil's lie that Jesus won't help us because we are not worthy. If we were worthy enough for Him to give His life for us, we're worthy enough to ask for and receive His help.

Dr Brown has another interesting comment some in here might like, - "I have a question for you. I began my article on the Bible and homosexuality with this paragraph: "One night I was reading the stories of people who had left the church because they thought God hated them simply because they were attracted to the same sex. I was so overcome with emotion that I put the book down, got alone in another room, fell to my knees and wept. The pain of these men and women for whom Jesus died was palpable and heartbreaking." In response, someone wrote on my website that I was lying and that this never happened, a response I've heard numerous times before. So, my question is: Why do people have such a hard time believing that you can be filled with compassion and love and still not affirm their position? (You can read the rest of the article here:http://www.charismamag.com/life/culture/21316-what-the-bible-really-says-about-homosexuality.)"

LHC, There is a solution for your T.V. problem Take your tv to the Salvation Army. They'll exorcise it from bad spirits. Leave it with them and go to your electronic shop. Buy a good flat-screen modern digital receiver tv. Sit back and enjoy!

Salvation totally independent of behavior? Really? What happened to Cain who believed in God enough to bring his offering but of the wrong kind? Saul who believed enough to save the best of the flock to give as an offering but which he was told to destroy? How about Judas? ESV　|　Mt 7:21 "Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. And what does Jesus save us from?

The gifts of the Spirit are given differently to each individual. I don't view it as "partiality". God does not answer all prayers the same. To each He hands out a different measure. All good comes from God. Instead of looking at where we lack .... it would be far better to praise God for the good He has given in our lives. He DOES give us victory to show us His power. And each of us have plenty of that to praise Him for. But He does not make all of us perfect. Instead .... we are all lacking.

"There is one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus." Doesn't say between man and God - says "between God and man". Only ONE mediator. Christ, our Mediator, and the Holy Spirit are constantly interceding in man's behalf, but the Spirit pleads not for us as does Christ who presents His blood, shed from the foundation of the world; the Spirit works upon our hearts, drawing out prayers and penitence, praise and thanksgiving. --Manuscript 50, 1900 (SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 6, on Rom. 8:26, 34). This quote has God (in the person of the Holy Spirit) pleading DIRECTLY with man. And Christ pleading with the Father. 1. This makes the HS the Mediator. 2. If the 3 are of one mind, then why would one part of God, need to plead with another part of God? Doesn't make sense. I believe that the divine powers of omnipresence and omniscience were returned to Christ when He was glorified by His Father, AFTER His ascension. This enabled Him to be "with" His disciples on earth, and to communicate with them. "So also it is written, 'The first man, Adam, became a living soul.' The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. (1Co 15:45 NAS) The "last Adam" - that's Jesus Christ! He became "a life-giving spirit" - the Holy Spirit Comforter. Jesus is my Comforter. Respectfully Rachel Cory Prophecy Viewpoint

I assumed most would understand the difference between a suggestion and a question.If not maybe they could look it up. Out of curiosity since I posed the question I looked for any information I could find.While it is very limited there is a indication that there is more than what has been reported. Is that true? Don't know. Do any of you before you condemn a entire church? There isn't any more reason to believe one over the other. My questions are because of the initial article. I would think to promote medical use would be done in a different manner than she chose. Who was she supporting? Obviously this woman or someone close to her provided the information on being disfellowshipped. Why would you inform the media you had been disfellowshipped? Would this have happened had she supported medical use in a manner more in keeping with the denomination? Your religious affiliation isn't anything to hide but why would you feel the need to say I am a SDA/Catholic or ?? and am endorsing/promoting the use of..... As for all the expert opinions here on the safety/benefits/legalizing I will trust the word of our family DR before any here. We had a couple of casual conversations concerning this. He is not opposed in some situations to medicinal use but he is to the almost manic idea that it takes care of almost everything and the abuse possible by those that self prescribe

Sorry Woody....

I have lived in a country where the bathrooms often were coed. Get used to it. Bathrooms are not erotic.

At least half of the people who come to the Adventist Church where I attend are not members. This church leads the conference in Baptisms. On the Sabbath issue, it is of interest that some of the mega-churches have multiple services to accommodate the numbers they are reaching, including services on Saturday. Willow Creek for example, in the Chicago area has services on Saturday and Sunday. While I haven't attempted to verify it with certainty, I once did a rough estimate comparing their attendance numbers and concluded that Willow Creek likely had more in attendance at their Saturday services than we have Adventist members in the Chicago area.

Woody: You are almost 100 % correct in what you write. Policy does provide the right of appeal to the Conference. The Conference can advise the local congregation. If that congregation refuses to follow Conference advice, the Conference has the ability to facilitate membership in another congregation to include the Conference Church.

Here is a list of words of Yiddish origin …… bagel: a ring-shaped bread roll made by boiling, then baking, the dough (from beygl) blintz: a sweet cheese-filled crepe (Yiddish blintse from Russian bliny) bris: the circumcision of a male child. (from Hebrew brith 'covenant') boychik: boy, young man. (English boy + Eastern Yiddish chik) bupkis: emphatically nothing, as in He isn't worth bupkis, or either 'beans' or 'goat droppings'. chutzpah: nerve, guts, daring, audacity, effrontery (Yiddish khutspe, from Hebrew) Chochmah - a joke, originally a piece of wisdom, from Hebrew chacham - a wise man daven: to recite Jewish liturgical prayers (Yiddish davnen) dybbuk: the malevolent spirit of a dead person that enters and controls a living body until exorcised (from Hebrew dibbuk, 'a latching-onto') fleishig: made with meat (Yiddish fleyshik 'meaty', from fleysh 'meat', from German fleischig 'meaty') ganef or gonif: thief, scoundrel, rascal (Yiddish from Hebrew gannav) gelt: money; chocolate coins eaten on Hanukkah (Yiddish gelt 'money', from German Geld) glitch: a minor malfunction (Yiddish from glitshn 'slide', from German glitschen 'slither') golem: a man-made humanoid; an android, Frankenstein monster (from Hebrew gōlem, but pronunciation by Yiddish goylem) goy: a Gentile, term for someone not of the Jewish faith or people (Yiddish plural goyim; from Hebrew goyim meaning 'nations [usually other than Israel]' haimish: home-like, friendly, folksy (Yiddish‫ heymish, from German heimisch) handel: to bargain ("If you handel long enough, you'll get a good price."); from German handeln huck: to bother incessantly, or nag; kasha: porridge (from Hebrew. Yiddish "kash" which is derived from a Slavic word meaning porridge) khazeray: food that is awful; junk, trash; anything disgusting, even loathsome (Yiddish from Heb. "khazir," pig) kibitz: to offer unwanted advice, e.g. to someone playing cards; to converse idly, hence a kibitzer, gossip (Yiddish kibetsn)

Pray for my son Steven.He is only 49 and today exhibited all the symptoms of a stroke. He was to meet boss at Caribou coffee and go onto a appointment. He suddenly became totally confused,didn't know where he was and why he was there. He was trying to call someone and accidently hit speed dial for his oldest daughter.She immediately knew something was horribly wrong but could not find out from Steven exactly where he was. Finally between his wife and daughter they got his location. He remembers nothing of today until after 3:00 and he is still foggy on details. He is having a MRI now so should have some answers soon. All of it mirrors my husband's history of strokes beginning at a young age. Can only hope and pray there is a less serious answer to this

The Sabbath is not flawed, only we that don't know how to observe it are flawed.

God does not hand out victories for gay people very often. Nor does he hand out victories for other addictive handicaps very often. No one is questioning if He has the power. God can do anything He chooses. But for some reason .... we don't get much. And the task before us is to accept what He gives and love the sinner. We as a church should not be preaching that the gay person needs to obtain victory .... any more than we preach to the obese person.

Do you? From This......Bodle said fellow church members at Beaumont Seventh Day Adventist Church grew concerned after seeing her support the use of marijuana on a report on 12News. 12News first spoke to Bodle at the arraignment of Jeremy Bourque who is facing trial on marijuana charges. Bodle was there showing her support for the legalization and medicinal use of cannabis. Tell me, was she advocating for the medicinal use or for legalizing general use. What was Jeremy Bourque facing trial for? Medicinal use?

With out the publicity and the resulting outrage would the outcome have been the same? How long before the state is successful in steps like this,or do you believe it will never happen. Generally it takes more than one try to pierce the protective barrier in anything. It may seem like a good idea to you but I certainly would not want my young granddaughters in a bathroom with adult men dressed as women column on the issue sparked a bit of national outrage – well – a lot of national outrage. To be honest it was a full-scale hullabaloo. City Hall was deluged with telephone calls, letters, emails – along with hundreds of Bibles and sermons. More than 50,000 supporters signed a petition. Nevertheless, the mayor still seems hell-bent on defending the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance – a piece of legislation that will in part give grown men who identify as women the right to use the restrooms of their choice.

You know, that is really a pervasive political fallacy that Conservative don't want " big government and only so-called liberals do. History has demonstrated rather clearly that whoever is not in power and control seems to forget that very mantra that got them in and proceed to fashion a government to their liking serving their interests as big as they need it to be. Actual government growth in terms of spending increases just as much or more under conservatives as it does under liberals. The only real difference is what the respective political powers want to spends it on.

I have to laugh at the text you quoted, Robert, to try to explain your position that agape is totally without any self love. Jesus said, love your neighbor as you love yourself. He doesn't say, love your neighbor but not yourself. The law requires us to treat others according to the Golden Rule, which Jesus says says in Matthew 7:12 sums up the law and prophets. Jesus once again here doesn't say we are not to love ourselves but to treat others the way we want to be treated. Your position requires you to contradict Jesus Himself. As He wrote the law He knows exactly what it means, and He doesn't agree with your interpretation of things.

No. That sounds like self-hatred. To love someone as yourself does not mean that you give what you need to one who does not need it. Agape love may involve giving what you need to one who also needs it but it does not require you to provide another what they do not need when you do need it. It may not require one to give to another what will not be used to meet their need. E.G. I am not be required to give money to a person who I know intends to purchase a gun which will be used to kill someone.

Relieved but frustrated. This is a line by line repeat of problems my husband has had over the years without diagnosis for a long time. The Dr's would just shake their heads because my husband had all the tests results of an athletic 30 year old male. All my sons tests showed as normal. But a 49 year old in perfect health doesn't loose his ability to know where he is or why he is there .A large portion of his day is a blank. So am happy for the time being that all appears normal and hopeful that another shoe doesn't drop

IMO: We will need a thousand years (after the resurrection) before our defensive and self-preserving thought habits will be healed. We are ALL suffering from post traumatic stress. It's called living - in this world. Every one of us has been slighted, or rejected, or manipulated, or abused in some way - many times by Christians (so called). The healing will take time. I do NOT believe that our minds will be changed in an instant. Only our bodies. God does NOT manipulate minds. He changes them slowly - by presenting evidence, and His truth. If He was going to instantly change our thinking (our minds) then He should have done that in the first place - with Adam and Eve, and skipped this whole mess!! Much of our selfishness comes out because we live in flesh. We get tired. We get hungry. We get cold, or too warm. (We want air-conditioning.) We get headaches, or backaches, or aching feet. We have trouble sleeping, etc. etc. etc. We worry that we will not have those things we feel we "need" in order for our flesh to remain comfortable. We then horde our money (or stuff). Just having immortal flesh that does not feel physical pain, will free us from A LOT. But it will NOT solve everything. When I consider myself only - I know that I am still carnal (selfish). But I cling to the promise that I will one day be "like Him". It is only thru the indwelling - "Christ in me" - that I exhibit ANY "agape". My husband was baptized some 8 years after my conversion experience. I asked him, the day he was baptized, what made him finally come to believe and want to commit. He did not hesitate for a second. "The change in you," he said. "I fell in love with you, but you were really not a very nice person. But you've changed. And that was a miracle." All the glory goes to God our Father, and Christ His Son. Respectfully, Rachel Cory Prophecy Viewpoint

I didn't take the poll because none of the choices relate to my reason for honoring the Sabbath. LHC came the closest when He said we honor it as a memorial to creation. I also honor it a a prophecy of the "rest" from this dark place that we will enter into upon establishment of the Kingdom.

None of the choices represent my reason.

I didn't vote either since none of the choices reflected my reasons. Really it is more complex than a single choice could provide.

I didn't vote Robert, I didn't like any of the choices. The last one was the closest, but no cigar!! For me I don't see it as "demand," but as a reminder for us. It starts out with the word "Remember." Because as it appears, many have forgotten the true meaning of what the Sabbath was created for. I'm in agreement with LHC's post.

To me the point of this all is that we have another Democrat politician wanting to completely destroy our Constitution so she can push her own agenda. I'd say anyone who thinks the Democrats aren't willing to destroy our Constitution for political gain has their head stuck firmly in the sand.

Many things begin with small seemingly insignificent steps