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Thoughts of Truth
Hearing what others have to say about their personal beliefs and sharing one's beliefs with others are two ways that we can learn about God. But I also encourage reading and studying of Scripture on one's own. The gift to think for ourselves and to learn and come to our own conclusions about our personal beliefs is not only American, it is Christian.
Scriptural misinterpretations and misrepresented condemnation of God's Truth have taken place since the beginning of misconception. Therefore, the original teachings of the Word should be sought to correct this and not bleak misinterpretations automatically accepted. Some misinterpretation is perhaps due to certain beliefs that were carried down from generation to generation in history when free thinking and self-opinions were at times discouraged by religions or societies.
 
I do not believe that Biblical commandments were given out of harsh judgment from the Maker but rather out of love for His children. God is not a God Who seeks vengeance to use as power to lord over humanity. God is a God of love and because of it has a humble character and uses judgment in a righteous way for the benefit of humanity who suffer from the abuse of others. 
Because God is a God of love, God will not force His will on us. We choose our own destinies after this life by the choices we make here. As a parent, we teach our children not to do things that can harm them. So also our Father in heaven gives us rules, because He loves us. It is up to us to search Scripture and to find what God wants of us. In doing so and through its process, while seeking a personal relationship with God through prayer, we learn God's immeasurable love and how to show that love to others.
God's immeasurable love is testified in Scripture. So, it is important to read Scripture if we want to learn more about God's love. Search for God's original interpretations of Scripture and try to learn with prayer and understanding as to why they were given. Although studying the Old and New Testaments of the Bible (the Torah, the Prophets, and the Writings, and the teachings of Jesus and of the apostles) is important, comparison of verses and biblical translations and understanding original languages can be extremely beneficial.
 
Only God has all the answers. It is only He who is omnipotent. He has given us His Truth by inspiration through certain of His prophets so that we can know our Maker, serve Him, and share eternity with Him. From these Scripture of Truth we can all continue to learn.
 
Some of my beliefs:
 
The Trinity:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus is the Son.
There is Three, but one God. Echad.
 
I have heard it said: "Men are the ones who wrote the Scriptures down the ages, from and by their own personal opinions, and not anything to do with God's opinion, so why should we teach them as the written Word of God, as if He were the One who wrote them?" Wrong! "For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
 
"What is Truth?"
The answer is the Word Jesus.
 
The Witness of the Truth:
The Torah, the Prophets, and Writings, the teachings of Jesus and of the apostles. The Bible, also called the Word, is the Witness of God's Truth found in the Messiah.
[Note: For distinction on this site, when writing about the Truth, spelled with a capital T, it is in reference to the Word. When writing about truth, spelled with a small t, it is in reference to religion.]
The truth is something that a person searches for yet is still seeking to find. To find the Savior is to find the Truth. There is no need to search anymore.
It becomes time to immerse in the Truth.
 
Religion:
A set of beliefs or personal practices, usually in regard to the reverence of a supernatural power. These beliefs are a part of how a person may live or conduct their life depending on various circumstances.
Christianity:
A Way of Life whereas God, Creator of all, was born in the "Flesh" in the person of Jesus. This Jesus was prophecy fulfilled by teachers sent from God who predicted the coming of an "anointed One" Who would teach true righteousness and God's love and bring humanity salvation.
Christianity is not truly a religion because it is not based on the practices of one's life. Instead it is one's life. And that Life is Jesus. A Christian is bought by Christ's blood shed on the Cross. Because a Christian is bought by Jesus, they learn to walk in the faith of Jesus every day, living to serve Him (not oneself).
Jesus is the "Sun," the center of our universe.
We live to serve Him.
[Note: the word "religion" in describing Christianity will sometimes be used on this site. This is only for reference in understanding of a topic.]
 
Christians first called Christians:
 
The Temple of God:
 
If God lives within us then we live for Him and not ourselves, in actions and in speech, by word and by deed, in the footsteps of our Maker. Because our body is the temple of God, we do not abuse or misuse drugs, legal or illegal, cigarettes, alcohol, or anything we may consume. Use herbs properly, for healing; feed the brain, body, and soul.
 
The wisdom of God verses the wisdom of the world:
Stay within Scripture, not without Scripture.
 
This wisdom of God a preordained mystery:
 
The Kingdom of God:
Within us when we hear the Word and believe and become baptized in the Spirit of God.
Thus the term "believers":
Those who are His followers, also called "born again."
In Him we have already found our peace:
He is our rest from the world, this is our Salvation.
Salvation acquired for this time is not to be confused with the Millennium Sabbath and the end of the age when Jesus returns and gathers His chosen. 
[Note: Matthew 24:3 translated is "end of the age".]
 
The words "holier than thou" cannot truly be used with the word Christianity. The whole point of Christianity is that we know we are all sinners and that only God is perfect. We do, however, when we become Christian learn to walk in Jesus' footsteps (although at times we may falter and learn the value of continued repentance). We always try to walk in God's perfection through the grace of Jesus (and not that of our own).
 
Definition of sin:
Sin comes from within not without.
 
We do not take vengeance on others for wrongs.
We forgive and allow civil law to act with justice when required.
 
Unity is to cooperation as segregation is to competition. If we are the body of Christ, then why do we separate ourselves with little differences when we have so much in common in the more important matters? Is not the desire of the Christian to serve our Lord in the gifts He has given us? And can we not do this better with unity?
As Christian, we do not compete against each other. We work together to serve the Lord.
"And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand."
"For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?...For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building."
[The competition referred to here is not the kind such as when teammates compete against other teams in an honest way and abide by the rules of the game or where businesses compete against each other to give their consumers the best products. These types are beneficial to society. The competition referred to is the kind where people on the same team compete against each other or when people use competition to deceitfully harm and demoralize each other.] 
Members of Christ are on the same team and are more productive for Christ when working together.
Our enemy is not each other.
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."
 
Confidence and humbleness are weapons of Truth used against our enemy;* arrogance and low self-esteem are weapons our enemy uses against all humanity. In confidence, we trust our Maker, have faith, try our best to do what is right (although we know this is not always easy, so we count on His strength to help us), and know that "all things come together for good to those who love God..."**But, in arrogance, we believe we can do all by our own capabilities. This, in turn, can breed cruelty, selfishness, and self idol-worship, leading again to belittlement and the exercise of control over others, and the attainment of power.***
In humbleness, we think of the feelings and welfare of others. We walk in the path of unselfishness and seek to serve our Maker by showing the same kindness to others as He has shown us. But in low self-esteem, we degrade others or ourselves out of our own lack of self worth and turn our backs on the love that Jesus endowed on us, not realizing how important we are to Him.
In Christianity, we have a God who loves us so much that He withheld nothing to prove this, even to His very own Life. We must be very important to Him that He would do this for us. How can we not hope for others to know this love of God rather than to be eternally lost from it. This is the heart of the missionary.
[*This is not always as is because although some who are deemed worldly carry the "attributes" of Christ others who claim to be Christian may not.** ]
[*** Throughout this website, when the word power is used, it will mean the definition of using force, or attaining control, over others. This is not to be confused with the same definition as Paul used for the word "power" when meaning to have "confidence" in our Lord as a Christian, or in the "strength" of a God who will ensure justice in righteousness, in 2 Timothy 1:-7-8. It is always a good idea to read the entire verses in accordance with the word or words given to understand the meaning of a word.]
 
I have heard it said "Money is the root of all evil". False! "For the love of money is the root of all evil..."
Money is nothing more than a piece of paper or some piece of metal. It is what we choose to do or not to do with it that is important. Where is our heart? Is it with God and does it think of others or is it all about the things of this world and what we can gain for ourselves. We all know that there are some things we need such as basic necessities, taking care of our family, and no one begrudges a little entertainment, but do we put our hearts into what we can get out of this life and all the things we can acquire or into serving Him and what we can do to help others? It seems to me that no matter how much we can materialistically obtain from this world, we are here for only a short time. It is at the crossroads of eternity that is important because at these crossroads we all have to stand accountable to God for how we have lived our lives during this time on earth.
While life here can be good, life with God is far better, here and for eternity. And one of the ways that we can teach others about that life and who our Lord is is by what we do for others, with a generous heart of selflessness. In other words, we use money to serve God, not ourselves and not the other way around.
 
In the heart of every Christian should be the hope to hear these words from our Messiah:
"Well done, thou good and faithful servant."
 
There are two kinds of servants: 
Those of heaven, the sons of God,
and those born on earth.
Both were created by Jesus as is all that exists "that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible."
Only Jesus is "begotten" of the Father.
 
Although it can be said of the Son that He was "begotten" of the Father, yet it cannot be said that He was created. Creation is a concept of time and it was He who created time.
The Trinity is coexistent. Jesus said, "I am."
Because it is Jesus who is Creator, as the Father did all by and through Him,
it is Jesus who is the beginning of all that is: 
Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
As Creator, Jesus is our beginning. As Judge of all the earth He is our ending, deciding our fate for all eternity.
 
Since time began in all its creation, God has shown Himself and can be understood through that which is created, both visible and invisible. Through God's act of creation, it is understood that the physical is symbolic of that which is spiritual.
Through God's creation, we also understand Jesus as the Light of the world. Jesus gives the world sight to see so that they can understand that although Jesus is the only begotten of the Father, He is the first begotten of the resurrection and through it the firstfruit of all life destined to its eternal state.
He is the first of the resurrection. Without Him first, nothing else would come to be.
 
True meaning of the Law and the Prophets:
Love as we should also love and carry this love in to acts of compassion.
 
Jesus knew the Torah and all prophecy:
John 5:37-40; Luke 24:4-46 (note particularly verse 27)
 
As a Christian, we do not change the Law. We do our best to keep it. This did both Jesus and the early Christians, which would include the writers of the gospel.
If Jesus would not have kept the Law, then by what would He have been judged to prove His righteousness and perfection? The Father established the Law with the foundational laws of all creation. By keeping the Law, Jesus proved His complete loyalty and love to His Father.
If Jesus lived by the Law which proved His perfection, are we above the Law to "destroy" it, Jew or gentile.?
"Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law."
But just as the Law proved His perfection, the Law also proved us to be sinners. Therefore, we are justified by faith in Him.
Some of the Law has become prophecy fulfilled after Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection.
Sacrificial laws are prophetically fulfilled and kept in the acceptance of Jesus as the sacrificial Lamb of God given once for all time in place of original animal sacrifice.
Circumcision teaches us of our bondage to "the whole Law" and because of our own sin, our guiltiness until our sacrificial Lamb Jesus our Savior set us free.
Circumcision is kept inwardly ("of the heart") rather than outwardly, by necessity...
...because the Commandments of God should be "written" in our hearts and not just read on paper.
Holy days can be a way of remembering and thanking Jesus our Messiah for what He has done and will do for us. These days may be cherished with family such as the day of firstfruits (Easter) and Shavu'ot (Pentecost).
Health benefits can be obtained by keeping food Laws. The Sacred Commandments and other laws of humanity teach us how to love both God and man.
 
Christianity is not a license to do whatever we please:
"only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh."
Because the Law is "established," we continue to work every day to strive for perfection through His glory by trying to keep the Law.
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
When Jesus said such things as:"Ye have heard that it was said,... but I say unto you...," He was not making changes to the Law. He was correcting misinterpretations made to begin with or teaching how to live as a soldier of Truth (moral law) beyond abiding by the law of a country (civil law).
 
Sunday is sacred in honor of the resurrection of Christ,
and of His baptism,
and of being reborn in the Spirit.
It is also significant because it shows we put Him first as did Abel,
and as God, through Moses, taught the Israelites to do.
Its importance is found in the Savior, the firstfruit or firstborn Who
gave Himself as a "sacrifice" for our sins. In remembering this, we give Him the first of ourselves.
Sabbath is sacred in honor of the Salvation of Christ because He is our "rest" from lives of sin. In Christ is our salvation.
It is also sacred because of creation.
In remembering this, we give Him the last of ourselves.
The Messiah is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
So we give Him the first and the last of ourselves and everything in between.
Read Scripture and pray every day. And walk in His steps.
As Sunday is the first day of the week, the resurrection which followed the Sabbath is the last day of the week, making the Sunday following this special Sabbath the eighth day. As the first day is the beginning, the eighth day is the new beginning that is never ending.
In His resurrection, Jesus gave us this new beginning for all eternity.
 
When we celebrate a certain day, we give honor to it for a certain occasion. For example, the celebration of a birthday is in honor of a birth. The Sabbath, likewise, is given in honor of rest after the birth of all creation and the salvation found in Jesus' rest.
The name given on the English calendar for Sabbath has a meaning similar to that of false worship in
This definition should be given research if there is a question in the remembrance of God's Commandments.
"Give to God what belongs to God" and not to His enemy.
We are to be careful not to set rules on others as to how Sabbath should be remembered
and to always keep in mind that it is there to benefit us;
and to honor Him.
Scripture in reference to Sabbath:
[Psalm, Peter, and Revelation is in reference to the Millennium, "seventh day."]
 
Family is a sacred unity in which the truth of God's selflessness is overflowing. The family is the very heart of God's love and in the family unity we reenact God's love for us. The husband thinks first of his wife and children before himself with the talents God gave him as Christ would and did for His bride the Church (this being the unity of all of His children).
The wife thinks first of her husband and children in the talents God gave to her.
And both equally belong to each other in the Lord.
The children are taught this love through what the parents teach them and how the parents treat each other and them, and also others. Children are as a slate and the parent's teaching as a pen. What we as parents "write" on them with our own actions and words imprints in their hearts and minds how to do to others, how they turn out as a person, and their whole idea of the family unity and what it represents. Applying a little common sense, through family we understand the unselfishness and giving of what the original meaning of the word love is.
The art of unselfishness starts at home.
 
A physical relationship is a gift of God, as are many other things in this life and is a good thing. But it is also something that pertains to this world. There is another way, and that way is to walk in the way of the spirit and not to be caught up in the things of this world.
For the things we now know are only temporary, but that which we cannot see will last forever.
 
Jesus gave women equal recognition in society in a way that was not accepted before. We see in a speech to Mary and Martha, for instance, that the role of family only no longer pertained to women.
Christ taught that women can not only have a role in the ministry, but that it should come first. Paul reiterates it.
When women are forced to have a role of wife and mother only, they are given only a role that is of the world and not one which allows them to work in the ministry, and because of it not a spiritual role. When women are viewed as sexual "objects," they are deemed as objects having only a worldly role in life. No validity to their soul is given. How then can they possibly use the talents God gave them as a person to serve Him? This is one reason why it is important to clarify the true relationship that Mary Magdalene had with Jesus. To say that it was anything personal puts women in a role where they are viewed as physical "objects" by our society merely for the "worldly purpose" of another, rather than as a person called in some way to serve Him as we all are, male and female, neither male nor female as one in the Lord.
Mary Magdalene was the first minister of the gospel.
Other Scriptural verses on the role of women in the first Church are:
deacon: Romans 16:1-2; apostle: Romans 16: 7; prophet: Acts 21:9; teacher: Acts 18:26; missionary: Philippians: 4:2-3.
 
Jesus' role while on this earth was One that was ultimately and only spiritual.
The Messiah Jesus is "the anointed One,"
the sacrificial Passover Lamb of God who took on our sins according to the sacrificial laws of Moses.
He was without fault.
Walking in total obedience to the Father, He upheld the Law better than an Orthodox Jew.
He taught us to walk in the way of the Spirit which is in opposition to the ways of the flesh.
Walking in the role of servitude, His whole mission was to serve others.
He gave His life in ministry for the Church, His spiritual "bride."
Jesus did not have an improper thought toward women.
He did not have a relationship that was worldly or of this world.
 
If Jesus had a wife, wouldn't' it be strange that Jesus would make sure that His Mother was to be cared for and not His wife?
[This disciple who was told to look after Mother Mary was the apostle John, one of the 12 apostles. It was attested in certain early Christian writings that the apostle John did as he was commanded by the Lord.]
Jesus did care for His wife bride the church when He offered salvation to humanity on the cross.
 
As Christians, we are all part of  Jesus' bride the church. Pure and sacred, this marriage is a prophecy of the spiritual body.
Because we as Christians are spiritually "married" to Christ as part of the Church, we are all to live a life that is both pure and sacred toward one another, as brothers and sisters in the Lord, outside of the physical marriage...
...which means it is a sin for a man not to live a life of purity outside of marriage as much as it is for a woman because it is a matter of purity of the Church,
 
To say we own this earth and we can do whatever we want to the earth and anything on it would be wrong. We are caretakers of the earth ("keepers" of the garden).
The garden belongs to God. For those who believe we own the garden, if you would not mistreat or destroy a gift given by someone you care about, then why would you mistreat a gift from our Father. As caretakers, we look out for everything on this earth: animals, vegetation, even the soil we walk on, and each other in particular.
I am not vegetarian (being vegetarian is an individual decision), but I do not believe in killing an animal for "fun or entertainment." Everything has a right to life. This does not mean we treat animals as human. Even the animals look out for their own kind. Eating meat is a part of the circle of life on this earth as is death because of sin. But God can destroy both and will destroy death.
God will abolish eating "flesh."
I do believe that the spirits of animals go to heaven.
They are not given the knowledge of right or wrong as we are, but react out of instinct (as the Creator had designed them).
 
Intellect is God-given as is the need to understand. It is good to "exercise" the brain. After all, we are created in His image. Did not God create everything through a mathematical concept? Since we are created in the image of our Heavenly Father, this means our Father is not only logically minded but has feelings. This is told in John 3:16. In His feelings, His immense compassion and understanding for us are both shown and proven in the Holy Scriptures. Yet He has been more misunderstood (through misinterpretation of Scripture) by those He has created than anyone of us have been to each other, which has led to harsh and critical passing of judgment of God by many. He has been trying to teach us His love and kindness through His messengers for thousands of years, and finally through His Son. The question is when we can still be cruel or selfish, do we yet understand? If we sew in harshness, we reap the same. If we plant selfishness, it grows like the yeast we use in bread and infects society for generations to come. I wonder if, when we do wrong and cause harm to others and inadvertently in one way or another to God, we wonder how much we have hurt our Creator. Even when we try our best to do what right, we can still do wrong, sometimes unknowingly. We should always when we pray ask for forgiveness in all things in sincerity. This I do, because I know that no matter how hard I try, I am not perfect and am bound to mess up somewhere.
It is also important that we make an effort to mend problems we encounter in our humanity and in an imperfect world, remember to think of others, and do our best at working together. It just may be that we can make this world a little better for our children.
Empathy is learned in particular from our own pain. It is easy enough to pick up a cigarette, drug, or any other device to help calm us into forgetfulness so that we may not feel as much. It is harder to face our pain. But we can learn to be more understanding toward others by what we have learned from our own suffering. When I was young, I knew I wanted to help others. Now that I am older, I understand why is important to help others from my own suffering.
If we see the pain of others, then we remember our own and show compassion. If we are misunderstood, then we learn empathy, for in this we give compassion for suffering we have not yet experienced. As a writer, it is important to understand experienced and inexperienced empathy because it can be much needed in order to write about experiences including those not our own.
To write about ourselves only is limiting our writing. To write about others is to try to see beyond our own world and to think of others and what they might be experiencing. This is inexperienced empathy.
 
There may be things that happen to us in our lives that we do not understand. Hope is in that which we do not understand may happen for a reason, that God may bring something good from it.
 
In the end, misunderstandings will only be a thing of the past.