Hentenza said:

I explained my thought in my previous post. I think you are misunderstanding what I meant so I clarified stating that it is a matter of law. You are using it in a broader sense than what I said to claim that until a court rules everything is legal but that is not what I said. I am only speaking about this instance in particular and under these circumstances.


I read the article you quoted and agree that there could be legal grounds in question but none have brought to bear. With our non working government am not sure if any will actually be brought to bear. Trump cited article 2 for his reasoning and no court has challenged that yet. When and if it happens then we’ll know.

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Are saying there is some ambiguity in the relevant laws and that it requires a court case to settle the matter?

Ain't Zwinglian said:

Chapter

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Mark 16:16 (NASB95) “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.

Salvation is based on belief, not on baptism, according to this verse.

Also, the thief on the cross.

Always in His Presence said:

Mark 9 in context:

42 “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me [i]to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea. 43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched— 44 where​

​

‘Their worm does not die​

And the fire is not quenched.’​

45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched— 46 where​

​

‘Their worm does not die​

And the fire is not quenched.’​

47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire— 48 where​

​

‘Their worm does not die​

And the fire is not quenched.’​

​

49 “For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. 50 Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another.”​

​

Contextually the verses are quite plainly speaking of hell.

​

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That may be where some get Purgatory, but I think the verse then would've been way over-worked. Cutting off a limb as the price to get into Eternal Life is an hypothetical, and a literary form used to discourage anybody from actually cutting off their limb, which nobody in their right mind would do.

Yes, people sacrifice their lives as martyrs to hold to the faith, as a means of obtaining Eternal Life. But that's not Jesus' purpose here. He is not recommending self-martyrdom, but rather, discouraging the pursuit of anything that deviates from Eternal Life. We are not to do anything with our bodies and limbs if what we do is not done in partnership with the Lord and for His glory.

Nothing to do with Purgatory at all.

Neogaia777 said:

Im an Independent, first of all, and try to give a 100% neutral, obejective opinion always about these things, and am going to try to give you my prediction right now about this specific subject/thing, etc.

The government shutdown and keeping the government open, or re-opening it, etc. My prediction now.

While it might have been to the Democrats advantage at first politically to not cooperate with the Republicans to keep the government open, I now predict that is now going to change, and very, very soon here, or really, really soon actually, it's no longer going to be their political advantage anymore, and they are actually going to start to lose points now politically, and are going to start to get blamed.

And that's it, or is all I have to say right now really, etc. And so it will now be to their political advantage now to start cooperating with Republicans on re-opening the government now, or keeping the government open now actually, etc.

Guess we'll have to see if my prediction holds true or not actually, etc.

Opinions change when actual Americans start feeling it actually, etc.

God Bless.

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Democrats can issue whatever public statements they like, like about the only reason they were resisting at first, and wanted more funding, was because of people's health insurance, and health insurance premiums, and whatnot, which is still going to be a major problem for the American people if they cooperate with Republicans, but at least it will keep everything else funded/going at minimal levels in the meantime. Because it's not at the levels we Democrats would like, but something is still at least better than nothing. We would have continued to resist, as that would still be our preference, because we feel like we would be doing that for the American people, but it's also going to hurt way too many Americans also if we don't cooperate with Republicans right now to re-open the government, or to keep the government at least somewhat open right now, even if it's not at the levels we would like, etc. And even though people's health insurance coverage, and their premiums, is still going to be majorly affected due to lack of government funding, etc.

God Bless.

Thriller

Historical drama or documentary?

BPPLEE said:

You would believe a health report on Biden but don't believe the same on Trump?

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You guys don't even HAVE one for Biden. So I'm not worried about answering that question.

Show me the medival report or this autopen scandal is a poop in a brown paper bag.

These guys are going to be so annoyed.

He's probly watching the Gaza peace come apart and and thinking screw it.

I do think he tried. For a minute.

FredVB said:

Where is the scripture passage that you can show me it is God's heart that is distinct from what God chooses, as basis for understanding that? I use what I know. God is not willing that any perish. I am not universalist, I understand there are plenty who are not getting saved. But it is not God to be blamed with that. Any must come to repentance. All are being given some opportunity, though how much has to do with what we who already are believers do about others knowing to come to God. So God choosing had basis in what God knows, with the opportunities we are given, that our responses are involved with.

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One of the things one must do when reading scripture and coming upon what appear to be conflicting messages is try to understand why they seem conflicting. We have loads of scriptures telling us that narrow is the way that leads to God and broad is the road that leads to destruction, as well as loads of scriptures that make it clear that only those with ears to hear will hear and be saved, AND loads of scriptures like John 6 that makes it clear that there is a chosen people and rules that dictate who will be saved and who won’t be. And then we have a couple scriptures that seem to indicate that God wishes for all to be saved. And what we need to do is marry all those scriptures together to come up with a coherent theology that recognizes the truth and value of ALL of those scriptures without tossing the unwanted ones aside.

That is called interpreting scripture with scripture. It is what you need to do to understand how to bring the ones you cling to into harmony with the ones you reject so you have a theology that isn’t based on the rejection of a major part of the Bible.

I can’t do it for you.

What you are doing is drawing conclusions not in evidence in the Bible. Nobody is blaming God, and there is nothing in the Bible to suggest that God chooses whom He will save based on any characteristic we own. He doesn’t look down the timeline and sees who is most faithful, that would make salvation a reward, then, instead of a gift.

It also seems you are misunderstanding common grace. All are not being given a chance. There is nothing chance. There is only those who are saved (and they will not be lost by Christ) and those who are unregenerate. God chose before the foundation of the world. Christ agree to save those that God chose before the foundation of the world.

NxNW said:

[hope your heart wasn't set on a house]

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I got mine, sucks to be you.

Indigo.

Landon Caeli said:

I hate to repeat this, as it's kind of depressing, but I've always believed that we're quickly accelerating in the direction of socialism, with no way to change course.

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I'd say we're verging closer to a novel form of feudalism, rather than a socialist government. The crony capitalism facilitated with the revolving door of corporate lobbyists to government positions is quickly creating a situation where we have a landed caste and a growing peasantry who are being stretched thin just to get by. I am guessing its just a matter of time before we go from an unofficial neo-feudalism to it becoming an official designation.

Oompa Loompa said:

What rights?

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There was this guy called Miranda once. Heard of him? Maybe not. Or maybe you have but don't consider the legal requirements to read the rights to a suspected criminal worth having.

It's that ol' matter of due process. Yeah, I know. Lefty, liberal, tree hugging socialist nonsense. But the thing is my friend, it's what you deserve. It's what you would demand. It's part of what makes each of us glad that we live in civilised societies where those in power have to treat us all equally.

Do you get that last part? I'm not sure that you do. Because as strongly as you would demand those rights for you and yours, you are equally adamant that they can be ignored for others.

It doesn't work that way. There ain't one rule for you and different rules for others. Capice?

SavedByGrace3 said:

I was reading a poll today that stated 8% blame Trump (who does not even vote in the Senate), 9% blame the Republicans, and 83% blame the Democrats. Rightly so. A continuing resolution is not the time to add legislation and spending. Pass the CR and then negotiate the other things. Democrats shut down the government and are holding America Hostage. They seem to think they won the election.

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Right, because republicans always act in good faith and will of course negotiate after they get everything they want.



-- A2SG, good grief.....

About an hour before the meeting was set to start, Trump posted on his social media platform, touting U.S. nuclear capacity and saying he had ordered the Pentagon to resume nuclear testing on an "equal basis" to other countries' testing programs, which will begin "immediately."

The U.S. has "observed a voluntary moratorium on nuclear explosive testing since 1992," according to the Congressional Research Service, though it has maintained the ability to resume the tests.

Take that, Nevada and Utah! Or maybe we can branch out and find some sparsely inhabited part of Minnesota or Delaware to blow up.

Hentenza said:

No. We don’t agree.

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I'm certain that others will notice the reticence. There's still a resistance to actually saying the bad things out loud. It needs quite a few posts to tease out a reply that's anywhere in the neighbourhood of a direct answer.

And this is as close as we're going to get.

You are admitting that if Trump tells you that a person deserves to be killed, then that's simply good enough. Extra judicial executions are now the norm. No evidence is needed. No warning required. No due process to be considered.

This is what was common in Argentina under the junta. It was normal in Franco's Spain. It's what happens now in Russia. But even in those examples, and so many more, those ordering the killings made excuses. They hide the truth. They pretended that someone who had disappeared was nothing to do with them. And people in these failed states pretended to believe them.

But now in the good old US of A? The guy in charge boasts about it. And the chilling fact about this? The terrible outcome of this? It's that you literally don't care.

You are no longer on the path to a failed state. You're there already.

SabbathBlessings said:

I think you have the wrong idea about God’s Sabbath. The Sabbath is about spending time with God on the day God set aside as holy time for us to do so. It’s not about earning anything, it’s about wanting to spend time with God because we love Him, instead of using that holy and sanctified time doing secular things when God asked us not to Isa58:13 Exo20:8-11. The Sabbath is part of the gospel message and has always been. Heb4:1-10, Rev 14:6-12. Worship the Creator who made the heavens and earth and everything in them Rev14:7 Exo20:11 Resting in Him from sin, obeying Him through faith and love.

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One day in 7? Why not everyday all day long?

ViaCrucis said:

For what it's worth, there is a small update. During a small exchange I was asked if I was a Christian, which I affirmed. When asked what sort of church I attended I answered honestly, Lutheran.

I do believe she means well, so for those whose focus was on the details of my story (though I want to emphasize that my intent, originally, was not to focus on the details of my anecdote, but address a larger picture). Though there was some discomfort when she was trying to push a book from her church's tradition (Apostolic) about spiritual warfare. I didn't believe it appropriate, while on the clock, to engage in theological debate; so it was largely an uncomfortable situation. But, I do want to be clear: I do believe her intent is sincere. Though I also believe that if I offered my own frank opinion, she would be offended--which I did not share.

In the same way that my original intent was not to hyper-focus my personal experience; but rather discuss a more general subject. I also don't want this to become a theological quibble. I am more than happy to engage in debates and conversations on the subject of "spiritual warfare" on more appropriate boards here on CF.

But, for whatever it's worth, I want to bring closure to the fact that I do think she means well.

-CryptoLutheran

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I don't think sincerity alone mediates the more problematic issues that come with the hyper-focus on evangelism that so often passes for being missional. It is far too common for well-meaning people to engage in dehumanizing high pressure sales tactics in the name of evangelism, and there's a lot floating around there that rarely gets discussed or reflected upon. You raise an important topic, which ultimately boils down to whether or not we'd want to be subjected to sales tactics that focus more on getting to "yes" than on natural relationship building and following the Spirit's lead on when and where to make a proclamation of the gospel message.

I say this not to denigrate street evangelism, because God works through it all, but to point out that we must look and act like Christ if we are to be effective witnesses. We must pay attention not only to the pathos and logos of our message, but also to the ethos.

Yarddog said:

Other than other world leaders having talked about this before.

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No it was Sgt. Mustard in the kitchen with a candlestick

Novel ... from one of the people who love to make fun of Trump's verbal gaffs.