Apostolic succession by Mark Copeland

http://executableoutlines.com/top/aposucc.htm

Is authority important?  What kind?  Read and see... Gary

The Apostacy and Restoration by Mark Copeland

http://executableoutlines.com/top/apostasy.htm

interesting topic... Gary

Understanding "Change"

Today, two pictures caught my eye.  They seemed to go together with a common theme. Change is the topic and understanding it is paramount to living in the 21st century.  Check out the list in the first picture and compare it to what your life was like before you discovered the opposite sex.  If its radically different, then you are probably a "baby boomer", if not, maybe "Generation X".  If you have no difficulty in deciphering the binary calendar, then just classify yourself as a geek and deal with it. there are times when not being able to recognize something is a very good thing and the chapter from Revelation is a good example...

World English Bible: Revelation of John Chapter 12
[1] A great sign was seen in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. [2] She was with child. She cried out in pain, laboring to give birth. [3] Another sign was seen in heaven. Behold, a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven crowns. [4] His tail drew one third of the stars of the sky, and threw them to the earth. The dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child. [5] She gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron. Her child was caught up to God, and to his throne. [6] The woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that there they may nourish her one thousand two hundred sixty days.

[7] There was war in the sky. Michael and his angels made war on the dragon. The dragon and his angels made war. [8] They didn’t prevail, neither was a place found for him any more in heaven. [9] The great dragon was thrown down, the old serpent, he who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. [10] I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, the power, and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ has come; for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them before our God day and night. [11] They overcame him because of the Lamb’s blood, and because of the word of their testimony. They didn’t love their life, even to death. [12] Therefore rejoice, heavens, and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and to the sea, because the devil has gone down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has but a short time.”

[13] When the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. [14] Two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, so that she might be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. [15] The serpent spewed water out of his mouth after the woman like a river, that he might cause her to be carried away by the stream. [16] The earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the river which the dragon spewed out of his mouth. [17] The dragon grew angry with the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed, who keep God’s commandments and hold Jesus’ testimony.

One of my favorite blogs is "right truth" and last week they had a most provocative post about how government is controlling more and more of our lives and will approach Tyrannical status in the near future.  From where I sit, its already there, with the EPA, IRS, INS and ATF exerting excessive control in most of our lives. As bad as these agencies are, they are nothing compared with the power the early Christians faced with the authoritarian government of the Roman Empire.  Its no wonder that Revelation is couched in the prophetic symbolism of the Hebrew Prophets.  If the Romans understood what was really being said, they would have radically increased their efforts to exterminate every last Christian.  Its hard for those of us from the 21st century to understand Revelation, because to really get it, you have to adjust your thinking from literal to figurative, but once you do, bingo.  Rome loses, Christians win.  Its just that simple!!!  I may never truly understand the 21st century, with all its new ideas, but I get that Christians win.  Just don't ask me to convert it to binary and put it into a timetable calendar!!!

Angry Words! O let them never by Mark Copeland

http://executableoutlines.com/top/angwords.htm

I wish all Christians would read this one... Gary

Put your best face forward; a picture of a traitor.

Two faced!!!  I have known people who are like that, but until now had never seen a picture of one!!!  The cleverness of the photographer is amazing!!!  Real life is another matter; people can deceive you.  You think you have a friend and when you discover their true nature, the pain is incredible!!!!  When you find out, the natural question that comes to mind is: How could they do that?  I wish I knew the answer to such things, but, alas, it has always been a mystery to me.  In the Bible, the preeminent traitor is Judas Iscariot and here is his unveiling...

WEB: Matthew Chapter 26
[14] Then one of the twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests, [15] and said, “What are you willing to give me, that I should deliver him to you?” They weighed out for him thirty pieces of silver. [16] From that time he sought opportunity to betray him.

[17] Now on the first day of unleavened bread, the disciples came to Jesus, saying to him, “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?”

[18] He said, "“Go into the city to a certain person, and tell him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.”’”"

[19] The disciples did as Jesus commanded them, and they prepared the Passover. [20] Now when evening had come, he was reclining at the table with the twelve disciples. [21] As they were eating, he said, "“Most certainly I tell you that one of you will betray me.”"

[22] They were exceedingly sorrowful, and each began to ask him, “It isn’t me, is it, Lord?”

[23] He answered, "“He who dipped his hand with me in the dish, the same will betray me. [24] The Son of Man goes, even as it is written of him, but woe to that man through whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would be better for that man if he had not been born.”"

[25] Judas, who betrayed him, answered, “It isn’t me, is it, Rabbi?”

He said to him, "“You said it.”"

Why did Judas betray Jesus?  What could possibly be going through his mind to do such a thing?  Its not that he just met him, for he was with him about three years of itinerant preaching.  It could have been the money, because the scriptures say that he would steal from the general funds the group possessed.  Perhaps it was a combination of a desire to force Jesus' hand to greatness (as Judas says in his "gospel") along with his Judas' own greed, who knows???  Whatever the motive, he should have guessed that his betrayal method was incompatible with Jesus' lifestyle and teachings!  But, Judas did what he had to do and ultimately mankind was blessed by it!!!!  Judas' own blessing was his suicide and somehow it seems appropriate, considering what he did.  Sorry, but I just don't get this man and probably never will!!!  He should have faced up to his actions, repented and moved on, but that's the trouble with two faces (wills), you just never know which face is the correct one to put forward? 

The anatomy of a backslider by Mark Copeland

http://executableoutlines.com/top/backslid.htm

Why do people fall away?  ... Gary

The center of the world

I have never seen this place and have no idea of where it is, but that it is "farm country" is obvious.  By the convergence of roads, I would say that it is DEEP in farm country.  And just seeing this picture brings a flood of memories from my childhood in upstate New York.  Somehow Melrose, New York seemed to be the center of the universe for me then and in May it was a wonderful place to live!!!  Both it and myself have changed over the past 50 years, but the memory of that pastoral beauty still remains.  No matter where I live, where I grew up will always be "home" and yet somehow different, but still HOME.  As you grow up, your world expands and for me that involved living in several states, in all kinds of communities, with a family of my own.  Time went by and each one of those new places feel like a "second home", so "home" has a much wider meaning now, but nothing can replace where I started, because it is my "first" home.  We all have starting places, somewhere we begin and for me, it was not just a place it was a person.  Living is more than just existing in space, it is conceptualizing life and no one has taught me more about living than Jesus.  The apostle Paul puts it this way...

 

WEB: Hebrews Chapter 1
[1] God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, [2] has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds. [3] His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself made purification for our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

As I grew up, I began to understand right from wrong.  Good and bad became more than praise or punishment; they became concepts and I was their interpreter!!!  It was only when I began to know Jesus that I really started to understand these things.  He showed me truth by both concept and example and that was something I had never seen before.  After awhile, I realized that everything really did revolve around him and that is just as God intended it.  It took literally thousands of years to work out the details, but God has made himself known through Jesus in a way that I can understand.  Its like I lived in my little center of the world (the home in the picture) and saw someone standing at the four corners of everything, who knew everything.  All I had to do was go out and meet him and life would change.  I have; it did!!!  Perhaps, if you look closely at the picture, you might see someone too... and imagine the possibilities!!!