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Religious Employment: Aubry McMahon applied for a position at World Vision in Customer Service, and was accepted. World Vision withdrew the offer after it discovered that she was in a same-sex marriage. She then filed a lawsuit, claiming that she had been discriminated against. World Vision defended itself, claiming that as a religious organization it could require all employees to abide by its set of doctrinal beliefs and lifestyle. The courts have rejected the position of World Vision. The following ink, Dated December 1, 2024, comments on the decision of the courts and informs of the next hearing that will determine the financial payments that must be made to her. https://wng.org/roundups/world-vision-loses-third-round-in-lgbtq-hiring-case-1701473095

(N) Micah 4:4 But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the Lord of hosts hath spoken it.

December 11, 2024 Ministry of the Holy Spirit “God...hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.” (1 Thessalonians 4:8) Every believer has some awareness of the presence of the Holy Spirit. Indeed, if there is no such awareness, then there is absolutely no relationship with God (Romans 8:9). Just what, then, is the ministry of God’s Holy Spirit in our lives? All who have come to God by faith have felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit prior to salvation. From the world’s perspective, that constitutes His ministry. The Holy Spirit is commissioned by Jesus Christ to “reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment” (John 16:8). Acting as God the Father’s operative agent, the Holy Spirit draws us into a personal consciousness of our sin, Christ’s righteousness, and the absolute certainty of judgment to come. This reproof has but two goals: to bring about regeneration (Titus 3:5) and give us witness that we are the children of God (Romans 8:16). What is born from above (John 3:3) is nothing less than a “new creature” by the triune Godhead (2 Corinthians 5:17), created like God in “righteousness and true holiness” (Ephesians 4:24). The Holy Spirit energizes our “dead” spirit and causes us to “live” (1 Peter 4:6). And that is just the beginning! Once regenerated, the Holy Spirit sees to it, as the “Spirit of truth” (John 16:13), that we are led (Romans 8:14) into truth—because the Holy Spirit will not invent information but will take truth directly from the mind and heart of God. With that leading, we are sanctified (both positionally and progressively), having been chosen to salvation (2 Thessalonians 2:13). With the Holy Spirit’s power (Acts 1:8), we can exhibit His fruit (Galatians 5:22-23) and come under His filling (Ephesians 5:18). May the glorious ministry of the Holy Spirit be yours both as promised and in practice. HMM III

The Ten Lost Tribes “So Israel was exiled from their own land to Assyria until this day.” This is how the Book of 2 Kings summarizes the Assyrian conquest of Israel (17:23). In what was a culmination of more than a century-long confrontation between Israel and Assyria, King Sargon II captured the capital city of Samaria in 721 BCE and exiled thousands of Israelites to Assyria. A later biblical tradition recorded in 2 Kings 17 then established the myth of the “ten lost tribes” of Israel: “None was left but the tribe of Judah alone” (18). https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/ten-lost-tribes/? Ancient Synagogues in Israel and the Diaspora A synagogue is a place dedicated to Jewish worship and instruction. These buildings became the primary place of Jewish worship after the Temple was destroyed in 70 C.E. But were there ancient synagogues in Israel—and in the diaspora—while the Temple still stood in Jerusalem? https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/daily-life-and-practice/ancient-synagogues-in-israel-and-the-diaspora/? The Origins of “The Cherry Tree Carol” Ever since I first discovered it in college, the “Cherry Tree Carol” has been one of my favorites. Its surprisingly risqué story line shines an unexpected light on the familiar Christmas Journey to Bethlehem from Luke 2:4–5: Joseph walking alongside the donkey and Mary, very pregnant, perched on its back. Creatively building on gospel narrative, the song fills in the gaps of the brief Nativity stories in Matthew and Luke. How endearing and wholly human, that Joseph might have had trouble fully coming to terms with his wife’s mysterious pregnancy despite the angel’s reassurances (“…do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit”) in Matthew 1:20! Mary and Joseph in the cherry orchard recalls, of course, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. There, trouble with fruit led to big trouble for humanity, trouble that the baby in Mary’s womb will set right. In this somewhat feminist counter-story, a man is put in his place by a woman—with God’s full cooperation! https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/post-biblical-period/the-origins-of-the-cherry-tree-carol/?

GM recalling big pickups and SUVs because the rear wheels can lock up, increasing risk of a crash DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is recalling nearly 462,000 pickup trucks and big SUVs with diesel engines because the rear wheels can lock up, increasing the risk of a crash. https://apnews.com/article/silverado-sierra-recall-rear-wheels-lock-up-9d1067efee1c2713ae8633b1965bf9c9?

Update on SDA School Shooting In an update surrounding the Feather River Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) School shooting last Wednesday, the shooter, who killed himself after he opened fire in the school, injuring a 6-year-old and a 5-year-old, has been identified as Glenn Litton. The 56-year-old has, according to one news outlet, a lengthy criminal record, including theft and identity theft, and a history of mental illness. Litton had attended the SDA school in Paradise as a child and might have had a relative who attended Feather River. The shooter wrote about taking “countermeasures” against Feather River as resistance against America’s involvement in the Middle East in the name of the “International Alliance,” an organization that does not seem to exist, yet places Litten as a “Lieutenant” in his writings. https://atoday.org/update-on-sda-school-shooting/