If we can undo, as humans, what God did He is not God.
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GRACE plus nothing is not easy, even when someone gives me a gift, I feel the overwhelming NEED to reciprocate , instead of just saying thank you. Started over 50 years ago as SDA (if you want to talk works) The journey from there, to Grace alone, was a long hard journey for me. As a SDA I would have sat here days arguing how you can lose salvation. Luckily Paul’s remark about, there only being one gospel,stuck in my head, my quest became to find that one, which was already under assault thousands of years ago.
Works is sometimes more comfortable even today, till I realize there just dirty rags in His eyes, and diminish His sacrifice [gift], His Son Jesus.
When someone can’t see it today, doesn’t mean their eyes won’t be opened to it tomorrow. Sometimes arriving at grace is a journey, like me, sometimes an event, like some others.
Doc
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@mcberthelot That’s interesting I generally don’t follow the channel. Is it in the advertisements between programs, or is it in the messages?
Amen to that! At this late hour, it’s all about getting Jesus to people and people to Jesus.
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Its just like Jesus. Either you are all in, or you are not.
Or should it be the new normal is crazy.
2 Timothy 3:1-5
Speaking of the worldly
1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.
2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,
4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—
5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.
The new normal
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They’ve been advocating for the vax for a while now. I still check their site for news on Israel, but that’s about it. Disappointing!
Hi Julie,
A loner no more. You have arrived amongst many friends on the forum.
I will be your friend too.
Agape,
Ken
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Yosemite, thankyou for your friendship, and thankyou for teaching me a new word, Agape, I thought, why is he agape, thinking it meant wide open… “her mouth was agape” …how mistaken I was and what a wonderful word I find out it is , the transcendent agape love is the highest form of love, the love of God for humans and as well as reciprocal human love for God. I love words, I wish I had a higher command of them. Another thing I learned on here was about a certain heart wrenching prayer, where no words would form, just an emotional guttural, series ofl sounds, that God understands perfectly well and words aren’t necessary. I will be your friend also 
shalom
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Thanks Ed for your reply. I understand your use of voluntary. I have spent over 20 years of my life in the reformation church that does not believe you can lose your salvation. The problem is that I spent 20 years orienting myself constantly to be sure I was saved to begin with. Although we are to examine our selves to see if we are in the faith, living a gospel of doubt is not healthy. And if a person spends most of their life exercising to see if they are saved its a tricky little nuance like saying: “I know I can trust your word God, except when it comes to me.” And it seems humble. And there is an heir of humility to it.
But how humble is it that if God has given us a new creation to constantly doubt that or question Him regarding? I know you are stating an opposite position. But the inverse of what you are saying I believe gives license for these kinds of theologies or ministry philosophy approaches.
If God has created us a new creation, can we walk away from His having created that? Can a man be unborn once he is reborn?
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Very good article doc. Thanks 
Ironically the over encouragement to get sin out of a life in order to be “right with God” seems to be the message of our day. I like the emphasis this passage has on how hard it is to believe the really good news for some. Blessings.
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The sun waking back up, even if Solar Cycle 25 turns out to be “weaker”, will likely be more of a threat because Earth’s magnetic field is far weaker than it has been in recorded history. An exponential downturn began in the mid-1800s. A few Class II flares and moderate CME impacts over the past 6 weeks had the planet reeling.
Perilous times.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!!!
My son as well…Isaya, at age 18, thinks he is invincible. Point Loma Nazarene University is “strongly encouraging” students to get the shot. Those who don’t will be subject to biweekly testing and, if testing positive, subject to 10-day isolation. In other words, if he doesn’t get the shot, he will automatically be the object of punitive scrutiny. Being in prison would be better from a human rights point of view.
I tried telling him about the dangers of the “vaccines” and he looked at me as if I was crazy (he may be on to something after all).
It’s madness, just plain insanity, what’s overtaking the world.
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I honestly know what you are saying. Brother, one thing that has really bothered me over the years is the tendency for how I have seen the church (at least those I had been exposed to) posture themselves into their roles rather than just (and trading in) just being authentic and genuine. One of the biggest results of this has tended into the “schoolmaster” role of the church. And our ideas have often followed. I have seen schoolmasterdom even enter deep theology at OSAS churches…where they would read Galatians 4 as “Until you have enough faith to realize your sonship in Christ, we will hold you accountable to being under the law.” As strange as that might sound to you (and i hope it does), I understand this as historical. When Christ changed, the reality and ability changed not giving the church a right to misappropriate theology to help them master their role of schoolmaster.
We see Jesus saying “Call no man leader, for one is your leader.” And I understand we willingly submit as scripture tells us to to our church leaders. But look at how the government is trying to be our super parent. Making totalitarianisms palatable and what is best for its kids. Well, i have seen this manipulation (as opposed to being genuine and real rather than “role” oriented) at some points in some to many churches. And with that super glossy superimposed role ideology…we tend the think in like terms like that about theological issues such as we are discussing. Like people can’t just get away with this or that, therefore theology has to be this or that. And i think that is the exact wrong way to do theology. Although I know your heart is in the right place and means well.
What I like so much about the article doc shared is the emphasis it puts on how hard it is to believe that the gift is as good as it is. If we knew, if we really knew, it would lead us to repentance. Not the schoolteacher. Are you saying Romans 2:4 is not true?
I know you do believe it is true. But what I am saying is repentance in Western 21st psyche is slick and spiritual brow beating often. Which brings no one to Christ. No matter how slick. And believe me brother…i’ve seen the slickest. Not that you are trying to be. I know you are just seeing as you do. But the reality is not how to scold each other into just going with the Jesus thing because you don’t have a license to sin buddy. Rather, like Hebrews (another problematic book) even says, “Reject SO GREAT a salvation?” Not reject a so so salvation that you ought to feel really bad about who you are because after all coming to that conclusion will bring more truth to the situation than that whole salvation thing.
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Yes indeed you have it right!
Only add the love we have for one another in the brethren, that only the Holy Spirit can provide to us, when we are indwelt by Holy Spirit.
That completes the true meaning, and why I use it often to bring attention to the fact that we are loved beyond our wildest imagination by God, and that then allows us to love others.
THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV®
Here is that love in action.
1 Corinthians 13:1- 13
1 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[fn] but do not have love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.
11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.
12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
It will come in time as you read the Word of God.
Rom 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.
Agape,
Ken
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Thanks for your reply Ed. To me OSAS saying whatever does not matter. I came out of Calvinism and see Arminianism as the flip side of the same coin problem (Arminius was a Calvinist). So OSAS can say whatever. I don’t go by dogma. I see enough support in scripture for eternal security. Aren’t we glad that Peter did not decide to remain away from Christ after his denial?
What do you make of this person?
1 Cor 3:12-15
So how is this possible? Where was his free will maintaining his side of the street? Seems like he did not have a side of the street?
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Love this verse and Chapter 22 of Revelation! Thank you for posting this Ken. It is so encouraging to Learn of the Hope that is to be very soon. 
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Having no reward and building on nothing to do with his first love implies that he did not build on his first love. This demonstrates a person who knows Christ but does not operate out of first love. Where in this verse do you get that wood, hay, and stubble are acts of first love?
1 Cor 11:29-32
For the one who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not properly recognize the [p]body. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number [q]are asleep. 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.
Where is the first love of someone who pigs all the food and gets drunk at the Lord’s table?
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Brother I love you. But this sounds like Catholicism. If you believe that we get a building permit because of the life we live for Him, how is this not Catholic? John Macarthur states that the great exchange is everything we are for everything He is. That is the pop reformation protestant view. But that is not reality. The great exchange is He lived the life we get upon believing on Him. He died the death we deserve. We get His righteousness we do not deserve. Not the righteousness as a reward of a life well lived. Right? He gets our bankruptcy. We can only receive the free gift humbly. It is not our humility that saves us. But the condition He requires to receive His give of salvation. It is not by our life that we are redeemed. It is by His: Romans 5:10c we shall be saved [f]by His life. We shall be saved by His life, not our life. Because John 4:10
10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
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I don’t have intensions for that Ed. To me its not a word game. I don’t mean anything by that. I apologize dear brother if it came across this way. If you might just answer though, I think this is where we are not connecting. In the 1 Cor 3 passage, how can wood, hey, and stubble, be first love? Blessings.
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More lock downs and tyranny soon:
Iran hardliner new President:
https://www.debka.com/presidential-frontrunner-ebrahim-rais-would-bolster-irans-anti-west-hard-line/
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