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Chesterton · 2025-11-23T14:30:50-0600

Someone should write a song called "2025". It's been a great year so far.

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Desk trauma · 2025-11-23T14:29:38-0600

BCP1928 said:
Has no one considered the possibility that she realized, as a Christian, what she was doing and repents of it?

The Least likely explanation.

Her resignation is scheduled for a day after she qualifies for retirement benefits. Off into the sunset to enjoy her insider trading windfall.

Chesterton · 2025-11-23T14:27:03-0600

GoldenBoy89 said:
Good thing they’re not going to Magic Mountain then.

I don't even wanna know what that might mean.

Hentenza · 2025-11-23T14:22:51-0600

jonojim1337 said:
What are you, a Jew?

Whatever makes you think that?

BCP1928 · 2025-11-23T14:22:11-0600

stevevw said:
I am very self aware. You underestimate me. How do you think say a scientist can also be a Christian or believe in some transcedent reality. Cannot they reconcile them both.

Belief in transcendent reality is not at issue in this discussion or even in this forum. There is no need for a Christian or a scientist to reconcile such beliefs with science.

Yarddog · 2025-11-23T14:17:49-0600

Always in His Presence said:
That someone being a convicted pedophile?

And? Are courts not allowed to talk to a pedophile for some reason?

sovereigngrace · 2025-11-23T14:17:33-0600

eleos1954 said:
The "rapture" is the first resurrection .... there is no "secrete rapture" ... personally I don't like or use the term. There are two resurrections.

You seem incapable of addressing all rebuttals to your theological theories above. Why is that?

CoreyD · 2025-11-23T14:17:05-0600

childeye 2 said:
Yeah, I don't believe in that. I believe were either serving righteousness or unrighteousness.

Okay. Thank you.
What you don't believe is what is.

The Bible says, at Hosea 14:4, in part...

I will freely love them / I will love them freely

The Hebrew expression nedabah (נְדָבָה) is rendered freewill offering, freely, plentiful, voluntary, offering, willingly, offering.

This Hebrew word comes from the Hebrew word nadab, of which Topical Lexicon says...

The verb נָדַב consistently underlines a movement of the heart that is neither coerced nor merely dutiful. It describes people stirred from within to give, serve, or step forward because they have first been moved by God. Throughout Scripture this spirit of readiness is linked to worship, stewardship, civic responsibility, and warfare, revealing a multifaceted biblical theology of voluntary devotion.

At 1 Corinthians 9:16-18, verse 17 says,

For if I do this willingly, I have a reward; but if unwillingly, I am entrusted with a stewardship.

Paul uses the Greek word hekón: Willing, Voluntary. Which means of one's own free will.

According to Thayer's Greek Lexicon...

STRONGS NT 1635: ἑκών

ἑκών, ἑκοῦσα, ἑκον, unforced, voluntary, willing, of one's own will, of one's own accord: Romans 8:20; 1 Corinthians 9:17. (From Homer down.)

At Philemon 1:14, Paul says...

But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that your goodness will not be out of compulsion, but by your own free will (Berean Standard Bible; NASB; Amplified Bible; Christian Standard Bible; Holman Christian Standard Bible; American Standard Version; English Revised Version; New Heart English Bible; Majority Standard Bible; World English Bible; Smith's Literal Translation; Anderson New Testament; Godbey New Testament) / according to willingness / willingly / voluntary / not something forced.

The Greek word hekousios - meaning free will, is the neuter of a derivative from hekon; voluntariness -- willingly, which is (an adjective, a primitive term) – properly, willing; "unforced, of one's own will, voluntary" (J. Thayer), i.e. acting on one's own accord. The root (hek-) emphasizes intentional, deliberate action (choice), i.e. "of free-will" (J. Thayer).

voluntary

adjective

Done or undertaken of one's own free will.

a voluntary decision to leave the job.

Acting or done willingly and without constraint or expectation of reward.

a voluntary hostage; voluntary community work.

Normally controlled by or subject to individual volition.

volition

The act of willing or choosing; the act of forming a purpose; the exercise of the will.

The result of an act or exercise of choosing or willing; a state of choice.

The power of willing or determining; will.

These works are not beliefs. There are facts - works of academia.
The definition of the words here, are not subject to change based on one's belief.
They describe free will, voluntary, willful, deliberate, and intentional action.
You cannot accept them... so you claim, but at the same time do not believe them.

I cannot continue this conversation with you, as it would be similar to talking with someone who says they don't believe seas and oceans exist, simply because of their beliefs., and opening works of academia and showing that person that what they are denting is actually proven knowledge makes no difference to them.

So, thank you for the discussion, and you do have an enjoyable day sir.
Good day.

Strong in Him · 2025-11-23T14:16:00-0600

Hentenza said:
With frosting around the edges.

Yeah, that would be Antarctica.

BCP1928 · 2025-11-23T13:57:58-0600

Lybrah said:
Believe it or not, there are teachers who do not want to teach this to children, and “they should just quit” in not an acceptable response.

Believe it or not, there are teachers who want to teach that the world is 6000 years old. Maybe they should just quit, too.

jonojim1337 · 2025-11-23T13:54:16-0600

Well I hope it’s better than this:

jonojim1337 · 2025-11-23T13:51:40-0600

jonojim1337 · 2025-11-23T13:38:53-0600

Desk trauma said:
Obfuscation for its own sake.

Who are the Spartans according to 1 Maccabees 12:20, and who are their brothers?

Hentenza · 2025-11-23T13:34:39-0600

Dan1988 said:
I don't know who the "elohim" are that you're referring to. If you mean the "Angels who sinned" then just refer to them as Demons or fallen Angels.

Elohim is the name of God in the Hebrew Bible.

Belonging to Abba · 2025-11-23T13:28:24-0600

Thank you, Mark, for your helpful and encouraging reply. As an update, I decided to remove the time limits for texting, not wanting to be in a situation again where I am glued to my phone feeling severely restricted in what I can do. The result is that the only reliable strategy I have to try to control my smartphone use is to turn the phone’s power off when/before I get home. One of the inconveniences is two step verification where I have to get a code texted to my phone for certain websites/accounts I have to use. In the future I am thinking of getting an authenticator app or password manager on another device for this purpose, but for now, if I have to receive the 2FA code, I could power my phone on only for a few seconds and power it off immediately after inputting the code. However, needing to have the phone for 2FA makes the next phase of my plan a hassle. In the future, I want to obtain a special time lock safe (or use a safe with the combination saved in the timelock online lockbox) to lock myself out from the phone for certain periods of time. One of the timelock safes I researched is bypassable by removing the batteries I think, so it might not be an option.

So because I disabled the time limits for texting in the Lock Me Out app, and I may not consistently turn my smartphone’s power off, I am back in the situation where I could waste entire evenings after work spending time on my phone, which seems like a problem to me, but I do not want to be on a smartphone where I am severely restricted. If the phone is powered off, and not locked up in a safe, if I really want to text, I can just get the phone and power it back on.

I also struggle with the inconvenience of powering my smartphone off. It is really convenient to listen to the relaxing music stations on my phone with my bluetooth earphones to block out outside sound in the apartment I live in. With turning off my phone, if I wanted to listen to music with my wireless earphones, I would have more of a hassle of having to turn my laptop on to stream the music, and I think if I run the laptop all the time when I am at home that it wears on the battery so that the laptop gets more worn down sooner in time. I may want to get an iPad or alternate device locked down with restrictions in the future where I can stream music. And there is also an inconvenience where if the laptop connects to the bluetooth earphones, it will always take precedence over connection to the phone, meaning I will have to remove the earphones in settings on the computer if I want to connect them to the phone.

Another inconvenience with powering off the phone is I cannot easily look up phone numbers and make calls, so if I want to call with my landline, I have to use the laptop to look up phone numbers. This inconvenience has sometimes resulted in me deciding to keep the smartphone turned on when I get home to make the call.

CLEEB · 2025-11-23T13:27:06-0600

soldier of light said:
Jesus can teach anyone. That's what my eyes see in scripture

The only teacher is GOD through Jesus Christ the mediator. We are taught of GOD. If anyone learns from the FATHER they must go through Christ. This eliminates deception, GOD cannot lie, neither can Jesus.

sovereigngrace · 2025-11-23T13:22:20-0600

Daniel Martinovich said:
The whole thing is a process that started way before Christ came. The only reason I mention the future is because that is where the process is leading us.
However, I don’t hold to any traditions of a second advent and especially when it involves a physical kingdom on earth.

You do not believe in a literal physical visible future return of Christ?

CLEEB · 2025-11-23T13:20:38-0600

Akita Suggagaki said:
Our responsibility lies in working for the Lord, whether it is in “looking after orphans or widows in distress” (James 1:27), giving to the hungry, the naked, visiting those in prison (Matthew 25:35-36), serving in our workplace (Colossians 3:22), or doing whatever we do (Colossians 3:23). And our motivation is that we have God’s own promise that our work “is not in vain” in the Lord “since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:24).

What you have listed has nothing to do with politics. I do agree with them but I don’t do these things through government, I do them personally when I see a need and am able to help. These works cannot be ours but GODS work of love in us. Ephesians 2:10 Philippians 2:13 We do not earn salvation by any works of our own we are GODS workmanship. GOD planned our works in advance. Just as Jesus said his FATHER did the works, John 10:14 John 5:19,30 Jesus here sets the example for us that we also do no works, the FATHER does them. In this way GOD receives all the glory.

Fervent · 2025-11-23T13:09:00-0600

zoidar said:
I appreciate your respons, but that's a theological conclusion. Dikaiouminoi believes that conclusion can be made from the grammar. It's a bit annoying I can do nothing with his statements. Kind of kills the discussion.

Grammatical arguments like that tend to be fallacious because they treat the text as if it were a technical document when it is not. Your approach of reading further on in the passage is the more appropriate exegetical move, because it deals with the narrative context rather than being deconstructive and creating a foreign context through linguistic games. Language simply doesn't function in the way that is necessary for the technical grammatical arguments to be anything more than puffery.

Hans Blaster · 2025-11-23T12:56:42-0600

Sam266 said:
What do you think NDEs are about if not the afterlife and the survival of the self? I've studied this subject for the past 20 years. It includes reading more than 5000 accounts from around the world.

Failing brains doing weird stuff. Some people recover, most don't. They are also not universal in the "ND" conditions that sometimes induce them.

Yarddog · 2025-11-23T12:54:54-0600

RDKirk said:
Military personnel do not have the authority to interpret the Constitution, however.
No military court is going to rule a presidential order as "unconstitutional."
That's never going to happen.
That is out of their jurisdictional wheelhouse.

Not if those Constitutional amendments had already been explained by SCOTUS.

RDKirk said:
The military kills civilians all the time. What are you talking about?

Then you admit that the US military ignores the Geneva Convention and are guilty of war crimes.

zippy2006 · 2025-11-23T12:51:35-0600

ThatRobGuy said:
Censorship is only politically expedient if one's own house "is in order" regards to to the Overton Window.

But suppose the right's house is not "in order" as regards the Overton Window, and therefore they rely on censorship to remedy that problem. Suppose, for example, the the right successfully censors the far right. Wouldn't that make them appear more moderate? And wouldn't this be expedient even on our premise that their house is not "in order" as regards the Overton Window?

timothyu · 2025-11-23T12:50:15-0600

timf said:
A question arises as to when the "church" begin.

At Caesarea Philippi when Jesus said it was truth from the Father, and not man,

timf said:
Many consider that all of the promises for Israel

This was the entire House of Israel, all 12 tribes, not just the Jews or Judaea. When Jesus said go first to all nations he meant of the House of Israel, reunite the original kingdom under the Kingdom/governance of the Father.

Fervent · 2025-11-23T12:49:01-0600

There is a point where people lose focus of the Lord by becoming obsessed with their sin, but if your relationship with Christ doesn't result in your abhorring your sin and seeking to be free of it then I can only wonder who it is you are having a relationship with.

Desk trauma · 2025-11-23T12:38:46-0600

Nithavela said:
Good news, everyone.

We were always at war with eastasia.

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