John 8

John 8

Face it. We all could be in danger of ending up murdering or perjuring without a Christ to keep those of us from it who believe and follow Him. I take Jesus’ word for it that if you do those things you are a slave to them. Whereas Jesus sets free from that slavery. Sorry to say I needed that setting free. This life is a reality you are stuck with. Unfortunately for me it started quickly down a wrong path. I tend to think I’m not the only one. He set me free from compulsive lying and exaggerating, out of youthful desires to be thought of highly. Now I hope His way is leading me to even greater freedom. You only need to start lying, hating, cheating a few years from now, if you haven’t already, and they will stick. Dying like that is not easy to avoid. Perhaps impossible to avoid except Jesus’ way. Road rage. Jealousy over a partner. Culpability in actions of associates. These things aren’t always avoidable. Having forever a helper in the highest echelons of power to intercede with the Top guy. That is what it takes to have hope.

Watch a few movies. Read some court cases. We never have total control of ourselves. Look at lockdown. Not being able to visit a dying parent. Getting cut off from loved ones. Things are out of our control. Just note scenarios as they become apparent. What if... It really is not difficult. An alluring prostitute when you are depressed coercing you into association with organised crime gangs. A clever con man or a kidnapper forcing you to kill to save a relative. A riot happening around you or brewing war. All scenarios where violence and the backlash against violence of hatred seem inevitable. Illness can exacerbate it. Horror movies like Stephen King’s portray all this quite well. Intercession is what we need to get to the end of this life intact. Many seem to get there but their truth just hasn’t yet got out.  You might think you haven’t got a weakness, vulnerability: you just haven’t come across it yet. But your enemy might have come across it first. For me it only takes the students in the flat upstairs to play music till 4am and I’m seething with hatred outside my control.

Remember too, Jesus’ plan carries on forever. This kind of insurance plan is eternal by necessity. God does not have temporary sons.

The sacrifice

 The sacrifice of Christ created the covenant in which I enjoy fellowship with God and fellowship with Jesus and His followers. A covenant which saves me. So I am grateful for it and together we followers celebrate and commemorate it in communion of bread for His body broken and wine for His blood poured out. He died for you too.

New mutation of COVID19 virus

 With this new mutation found in India and now in UK too, how long till the authorities and the airport businesses find ways to limit further travel between UK and India? Must economic and profit considerations always come above public safety and sensible governing?

Finding Jesus

 When people speak of ‘finding Jesus’ there is a ring of reality to it. We might distrust an incarcerated convicted repeat offender telling an early release board that they found Jesus and will reform, yet the fact they say it in those circumstances shows there is weight given to this phenomenon of Jesus.

Belief

 Belief is a matter of degree. Most belief is nothing to do with religion. Like belief a vaccine is actually what the injection is that they are putting into your arm (although belief in science is not my forte). I tend to believe weather forecasts too much and get in trouble for it. Insurers might believe last year was a lot worse for hurricanes than this year will be. Gamblers might believe a certain tipster is always right. A lover might believe everything you say about your love for them being unfailing. Atheists might believe that unbelief is the sanest way to handle life. Be careful what you believe but do not despise good faith. 

Guns

 GUNS: Think about it. If a man has a gun and an unarmed man tries to wrestle it from him, the man with the gun would likely shoot the unarmed man. So you suddenly get an armed man shooting an unarmed man. Sad to have to die with something like that on your conscience, unless of course you find Jesus or something. 

How does the Son of Man help the righteous to remain always righteous?

 How does the Son of Man help the righteous to remain always righteous? It is all about first believing that the Son of Man exists in all historic timeframes, including ours now and forever, and then holding to His teachings, so He frees us from sins, enabling a saintly life which is ongoing and eternal.

A denial stance

An acquaintance of mine thinks Jesus doesn’t exist. So until he changes his mind, he must think he is on his own. His only hope is that Jesus convinces him to change his mind - or someone else convinces him. That might be possible, even with his denial stance: Like a Damascus Road experience. I had a word with Jesus for him. We’ll see if he gets convinced that Jesus exists; that he’s not on his own; that there is hope for him forever. I am reminded that Jesus died for him. Maybe Jesus will convince him that He exists. Even the apostle of Christ who started Christianity in India initially thought Jesus was dead, until Jesus changed Thomas’ mind. This chap is a lot further behind than Thomas but hey, that just makes it more fun when he finds out Jesus is. There are a lot of churchgoers who are in the same position as him. In my case He showed me convincingly He exists. Plus that the gospels got it right. Then over the following years I got to piece it together that He was crucified and rose to live forever. I was rather slow on the uptake getting my head around things. It is a personal growth thing.

The power of Science

 What would divide us if there were no religion? Science. If you regard Science as not a religion. Science can do most of what a religion can do. It can persuade people that black holes exist, even though people have no accessible way to verify that. It can order people to wear masks and wash hands. It can run countries and overrule rulers. It can amaze the world with wonders. With its vaccines it can divide countries and regions.

Will you repel it?

If I tell you that Jesus warns that many of you will die a liar or a murderer, perhaps not judged as such by other liars and murderers, but still, die as one and have it on your record. That Jesus wants you to not die like that and wants you to believe He exists in all times, including yours now and future, to help you avert it. That these problems along with similar ones like ending up an adulterer with that on your name, or other such tarnishings of your name on your death bed, are the purpose of Jesus having come, to provide a way out. It is religious so will you repel it? It is vital to learn the actual teachings of Jesus and hold to those. Jesus taught that the real God is the Father and that Jesus is the Son. Don’t let Roman theological philosophy confuse you. Reading John’s gospel might help. Over time, holding to the teachings of Jesus, Jesus gives knowledge of what He and the Father are like and first hand experience of the Holy Spirit. No need to worry about the Roman Hellenistic theology philosophy. Getting to know God is possible. I’ve had a share of it so I could tell others. God is the one who is just pure spirit, rather austere, very understanding and kind, in mind-bogglingly great authority, even over Jesus. Then Jesus is human Son who is the overcomer. That is why we call Jesus, Lord. His overcoming of temptations and worldly powers and even death gives Him Lord status, given by God whose power raised Jesus. He overcomes and He wants disciples who overcome like He did. He is the same now as when those first disciples met Him after His resurrection. Then the believers have the Holy Spirit among them, in them, producing wondrous signs and teaching with a continuation of Jesus’ teachings. Scripture assures we are on the right track and gets us on to that right track in the first place. Useful to have the testimony of pioneers who went that way before and whose veracity was proven over time. Think of the villagers who heard the Samaritan woman testify that Jesus had told her everything she had done. They went and got direct experience of Jesus then said to her “We believed because of what you said about Him but now we have heard in for ourselves and believe.” 

To overcome

 Jesus, the Lord, the Christ, has overcome temptations, powers of empire and even death and He wants disciples to overcome as He overcame.

Genesis

 Genesis says Abraham (Abram) was a citizen of Ur. It says he travelled to Harran. His name style is born out by texts extant from Ebla’s ancient library. It calls the seventh from Adam, Enoch. That matches the extant name, shortened from Enmenduranki, seventh patriarchal king of Sumer, grandfather of the man who survived the Flood. It describes the Flood in a series of steps exactly matching the series of stages described in the Epic of Gilgamesh for which there are near extant copies. It describes the first patriarch as a man with no human parents, then a succession of nine or ten generation patriarchs down to the one who survived the Flood. This matches the extant Sumerian King Lists.

“Let all God’s angels worship Him”

“The sons of God must work together with the Son of Man to achieve the will of God in Creation” (and subsequently).

Called to stop sinning

 “Stop sinning” says Jesus. Treat it as a calling. You probably can’t stop but you are called to stop and Jesus can help. 

Let’s be fair

These days people are so often characterised by their sins and failures, which is so unfair. Saintly ancients in the Bible are not characterised by one-off sins. Not all are. Some such us Judas are. But there are others such as King David. He is hardly characterised by his affair with Bathsheba, except in the song by Len Cohen of course. Normally we remember King David living a holy life, though a violent one. Always true to God and obedient to God. Society could do with recalibrating how it allows celebrity culture and jealousy to drive the characterisation of people by the scandals they get into, somehow forgetting the deeds which made them celebrities. Then all of us should relearn how to be fair and how to resist those social abuses in our summing up of our associates and colleagues, family members and friends, as well as enemies too. God might then be more happy to listen to our prayers.

What, Jesus a Unitarian?!

I’m pretty sure Jesus is a unitarian of sorts: He said it so often that the Father is both His God and the disciples’ God , and that even He, the Son, must worship God and serve Him only.  I say He seems to be unitarian ‘of sorts’ because Jesus knew with certainty that in spirit He existed before Abraham was born. Because His existence is real at any time in history, He assuredly said of Himself “I am”.  The truth of His statement “I am” is true in any historical concept, which is the significance of His use of that tense. He is now. He is yesterday. Last century. A thousand years ago, He is. Five thousand years ago. Next year. A thousand years from now. Aeons from now. He is. The Spirit of Christ interacted directly with the ancient prophets and even people such as Enoch and Abraham in the most ancient Sumerian times. And with disciples such as the Apostle Paul after Jesus rose from the dead and with disciples still today and years from now.

Normal Sabbath

NORMAL SABBATH

Seventh day of week - for twenty four hours

No strenuous work or strenuous physical activity

No business

No use of money other than charitable giving

No causing others to have to work

No fasting - enjoy nice food

Light activities are alright

Social interaction is alright

Doing good with low level effort, such as entertaining is alright

Giving to the poor is alright

No accident the cross

No accident that Jesus died on a cross. First the prophets for centuries had foretold a coming, suffering One anointed by God, chosen by God, given by God to relieve the guilt of Mankind towards God and help those who seek to get right and live right. Secondly, the preaching of John the Baptist echoed this message and pointed at Jesus as this One, and that God sent Jesus, the Christ, as a Lamb to be sacrificed. Third the miracles done by Jesus speak volumes and provide God’s witness statement about His Son, this Christ. Fourth, this very emblem of a cross is the ancient cuneiform symbol + which meant a sacrifice for settling a debt, sometimes to make way for both atonement and an oracle. Fifthly, the resurrection shows the sacrifice provided by Jesus’ crucifixion is accepted by God and makes Jesus exalted as Lord in the eyes of all. The Lord, in that Jesus overcame all, Rome’s imperial power, Israel’s power, sin’s power, even overcoming death itself, by God’s power. Now ever living and there to lead those who believe it. In all this, God made way for the provision of the Holy Spirit to all who believe and seek to get right and do right by God.