Biblical Contradictions- Why should I have to ask for forgiveness?!

"I as a mere human am capable of forgiveness without being asked for it, if an omniscient being can see that I realize I was wrong, take accountability for my actions and work towards remedying the situation why is it he needs me to ask him for forgiveness?"

Technically we aren't called to ask for forgiveness, it's more a matter of accepting it as it's already there for us. The key is to trust and believe in Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and savior. This means obedience, and acceptance. If anyone wants scriptural references for this just hit me up, there are so many that I don't want to put them all here right now.

Now let's address the issue of 'taking accountability and working toward remedying the situation.' 

Let's start with a few questions for you, the reader.

    1. Have you ever told a lie, even small?
    2. Have you ever used the Lord's name in vain?

    3. Have you ever stolen something, even small?

    4. Have you ever lusted in your heart toward another?

90% of people will answer yes to all of these, and so would I. Let's presume you answered all of these questions with a yes. This means that by your own admittance you are a lying, thieving, blasphemer, and adulterer at heart. This is just 4 of the big 10 of the Law.

Knowing you have broken the Law given by God, on the day of Judgment, will the Judge find you innocent or guilty? Heaven or Hell? 

Most say, well God is all forgiving, so Heaven, despite being guilty. This is not scriptural at all though! If I stole a car and got caught, went to a judge, and said "Well, yea I did steal it, but you are a great guy, forgiving, and holy, so I'll just do better next time. See ya later?" 

The judge would respond with a laugh then " Yea, your right that I am forgiving and a great guy, but your still guilty and must be charged." He would then levy a large fine and possibly jail time. For this example lets say he said pay 50,000,000 or spend 30 years in prison (it was a really nice car). I couldn't pay this fine obviously, so I'm damned to the hell of prison.

This is exactly what will happen if nobody pays our debts that our sin has racked up over our life. The good news is Jesus Christ did exactly this. That was the grand plan for His coming to earth. Without accepting Christ as your Lord and accepting his Gracious offer to clear your debt, then you are damned to Hell for all of eternity. 

I am scared for you if you haven't yet accepted or come to Him. I said it's not technically necessary to ask for forgiveness from Him to receive salvation, however once your heart is convicted by the Law, and your mind accepts that yes He is really Lord of Lords, King of Kings, then the natural response is to fall to your face in tears begging for His Love, Mercy, and Forgiveness. 

Romans 10:13 says "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Make this a priority in your life TODAY. You don't know how long you will be here, or if you will get another chance to come to Him.

I love you all, and my heart aches for those that haven't come into his Grace. I can't even come close to a proper description of how He has filled my life with joy, love, blessing, and forgiveness. If any of you need help coming to Him, or have more questions please do not hesitate to ask. Day or Night I'll do whatever I can to help a fellow brother or sister come into the Body of Christ.

Praise the Lord Jesus Christ! 

Biblical Contradictions - Children and the Ignorant?

A good friend recently posed a question about the fate of the soul's of children and the ignorant. This is a big question to those that don't dig into the word. Hopefully the scriptures and explanations I give will help clear this up for anyone. God doesn't let anyone live and die without ample opportunity to turn to Him and away from this world and away from love of sin.

A great illustration of how God feels about children can be found in Deuteronomy 1:39

Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it.

In context you can see that 'it' is the promised land of Israel, however the prescience has been set by the Judge. Children that do not know good from evil will still be blessed. Stillborn, miscarried, SID, childhood cancer, accidents, or murder are just some of the atrocities that befall children before an age of accountability. 

Unfortunately we are a fallen race and we are susceptible to the evils of this world as well as the ailments. However there is hope for anyone who have experience this sort of tragic loss first hand! The lost children are basking in the Eternal Glory of our Creator! Praise Him for his Mercy and understanding!

One other verse that shows how much God loves children can be found in John 2

¹² I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.

¹³ I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him [that is] from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.

So here we again see the little children being forgiven of sin in the Name of Jesus Christ.The Father stitched these little ones together in the womb and sustains life with his breath! It's not logical to think these poor little innocent souls would be held accountable until they are of sound mind and understand they are transgressing against God. This is one reason I'm not in favor of baptism until a child is of sound enough mind to understand the weight of what is happening.

Now let's speak to the issue of ignorance of Christ. This is another great question that many who haven't studied the Word ask. According to the Book of Romans 1:20 

For since the creation of the world eHis invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and 7Godhead, so that they are without excuse

We can see here that God answers this question clearly. No man is able to use the excuse of not knowing the Lord. Our hearts convict us using His Law. If someone on a remote island turns away from his or her sin and puts trust in the Creator, then he shall be saved as well. Sure he or she might not have heard the Gospel, but our hearts are known by God.

This is one big reason for the Great Commission of Matthew 28:16-20

16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.

17 And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.

18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

This is why so many Christians go out and speak the Gospel to complete strangers. This is why there are Christian missionaries spreading the word in countries they could be killed for doing so. This is why I will never stop proclaiming the Good News to every chance I get!

God is Great! Your sin can be forgiven, your debt's paid and nailed to the cross. Call up to him in your heart. He will answer if you are sincere, once he does expect your heart to shatter over and over again when he touches it. 

Biblical Contradictions - Exodus 20:5 & Ezekiel 18:20

Exodus 20:4-6King James Version (KJV)

4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Ezekiel 18:19-21King James Version (KJV)

19 Yet say ye, Why? doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all my statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live.

20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

21 But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.

So here is another 'contradiction' that is simply a case of not reading context at all. We see that in Ex 20:5 God says he will essentially curse 4 generations if a father worships another idol, but notice it says "of them that hate me." Right after this he says he will still show mercy unto "thousands of them that love me.."

In Ezekiel we see that a curse won't be upon the son's of a sinner. Without context it seems contradictory, but it's saying the law abiding son won't be held to a curse. This is simply a message of Hope to those who repent, not a contradiction at all. Nice try though! :) 

Biblical Contradictions - Rape

Here is the next challenge brought forth. The exact claim was : "Thou shalt not commit adultery, but if the city is pissed of at you, you must give up your wife and daughters to be raped ask night long." While the first part, "Thou shalt not commit adultery" is biblical, the rest is not.

I can see where the confusion is coming from however. In Judges 19 we see a story that is close to this. What is happening in this story is a man is traveling home some distance and needed a place to stay. An old man in a foreign city invited him and his concubine to stay. Nobody in this city (Gibeah) wanted this stranger and his concubine to stay, so they surrounded the old man's house. When they called the stranger out, the old man came out instead. He said, don't do wickedness to this stranger. To appease the mob he (the old man) sent his own daughter, as well as the strangers concubine. He hoped that the crowd would humble the women and do whatever they (the mob) saw as good.

This mob ended up raping and killing the concubine, which was one of the strangers in the land. You will see that God never commanded this, in fact he poured out wrath on this city for the actions of the mob. You can read more about this war commanded by God himself in Judges 20 and 21.

I hope this clears this misconception up, usually reading the Bible before refuting it is a good thing. I understand everyone is busy though, so no worries, I'll keep doing it for you! :) God bless.

Biblical Contradictions - Murder

I have recently put forth a challenge via social media. I told my followers and friends to show me just one Biblical contradiction and I will stop following the Bible. The first one I received is referencing one of the 10 Commandments, Thou Shalt Not Kill (Exodus 20:13).
This seems very contradictory since God himself commands killing of certain peoples. However after a brief look into a concordance it becomes clear what is being said.
The Hebrew word for "Kill", or in some translations "Murder", in Exodus is 'ratsach.' This word has multiple meanings dependent on the context. If you are interested in studying this more in depth check this out.
Some of the meanings of this word are, slay or kill premeditated, accidental, as an avenger, as well as to murder, and assassinate.  The best way to to explain this in English, at least for me, is to say that murder is unjustified and killing is justified.
The Bible justifies killing in many places for various reasons.  For one example we can look at Exodus 22:2 "1If the athief is 2caught while breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there will be no bloodguiltiness on his account." This is clearly saying that if you happen to kill someone in defense of your self or property then it's justified. Another great example of this is Exodus 21:22-23 "If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follows, then you shall give life for life..." This word mischief can be understood as the death of the unborn child. Some translations clarify it as such.

I hope this clears up any confusion to this apparent contradiction and if you have any questions feel free to comment! 

I'd have no guilt in my heart for killing someone who struck my wife and caused her to loose our unborn child. I know most wouldn't either, as in our heart this is a justified action. God allows this, and many other justified killings. Murder out of hate, rage, envy, or any other emotion is strictly forbidden though.

So in all the accounts where God has commanded someone kill, or where someone does kill in self-defense or defense of their family, it's justified and acceptable under the Law. 

God Bless!!

The Religion of Science

Iv'e recently been engaged in debates in regards to evolution vs creation vs intelligent design. One very astute and pestering passer-by had disregarded a section of information I shared due to the reference being Discovery Institute. The claim was backed up by a highly referenced Wiki that was billing Discovery Institute as untrustworthy for many reasons. Upon placing just the slightest pressure on the arguments made I was able to find many issues with the claims and ideas presented in the wiki and by the references. This led me to a little more research on the topic of the scientific consensus of evolution. I quickly became startled at the amount of zealotry apparent in all aspects of evolution acceptance. This has been the driving force for putting this post together.

I'll use this wiki and some of it's references, as well as some external poll results to show how the topic of evolution has itself become religious and almost deified in our culture and media.

The first portion of the wiki that caught my attention was the bold and presumptuous statement following:
"The theory of evolution is accepted by overwhelming scientific consensus.^[3] Intelligent design has been rejected, both by the vast majority of scientists and by court findings, as being a religious view and not science."

The reference points to a small obscure reference  that says "While 99.9% of scientists accept evolution". This is not a fact from any data I see. If it was a fact when the article was published (2006) then this would indicate science is falling away from evolution. A 2009 poll from Pew gave much lower numbers.

I would also like to point out that it's impossible to get the view from all scientists. This poll was a cross section more than likely which is not a scientific approach that can hold water. Yet these numbers are used as 'proof' of evolution.

This is a dangerous and contradictory path and stance. Any time the media comes out saying x% of scientists or experts agree on something it's likely for an agenda. If there is even 1 dissenting voice in science, the data MUST be reviewed in order to adhere to the whole foundation of science.

In the US we are supposed to empower the minority, no matter how small. We do the exact opposite in this case though. The scientists that oppose evolution are not heard from on media outlets, and when someone challenges the status quo of evolution there is a HUGE uproar.

This is,  in my opinion, a direct cause of our societies denial of God. Acknowledgment for the data that presents an impossibility for evolution is thrown out as religion for the most part. This isn't science and doesn't yield anything except ignorance.

Richard Dawkins, one of the most outspoken atheists has been recorded saying

"Religion is capable of driving people to such dangerous folly that faith seems to me to qualify as a kind of mental illness."

Yet we see the scientific community holding onto their faith of the big bang and evolution as fact despite any contradictory findings. The finely tuned universe is a statistical impossibility unless there are an infinite amount of universes. This of course can not be tested, seen, verified, or peer reviewed. Yet these views are being held firm. This is the same argument used against Biblical Creationists. "It can't be seen, tested, or verified by science so don't even take heed in it." This statement applies to Genesis as much as the Big Bang and the necessity of infinite universes.

So 8% of scientists still think there is a creator according to the poll above. This is a HUGE amount of very smart men and women who follow the data. So many agnostic or atheist scientist have been forced to come to this conclusion based upon the data, yet once they do they are disregarded from most  all main stream publications.

Pointing to a group of experts that agree on ideas is not proof of anything. If that could be used as proof then I'll prove to you that God created the heavens and earth.

This position of the public, media, and scientific community is dangerous. Let's take the religion out of science unless the data shows overwhelmingly that we can not. 8% of tens of thousands of experts that analyze data is enough for me. Denying God is one thing science, but denying data is self defeating.

I could continue to break the above article down and show more assumption and religion, but I won't. The above is enough to make the point.  The Discovery Institute is a PR campaign, I'll attest to that. However it pales in the comparison to the PR campaign run for evolution. The wiki above did not do anything but solidify my beliefs further and then slap science in the face. Where are all the 'open-minds' that atheists have?

Broken Foundations- An Examination of Mormonism.

Brothers and Sister of the Mormon faith,
       I hope that you will read this post with an open heart and open mind. I am writing these things because of the love I have for you all. I know many followers of the LDS church and they are all wonderful people. The Love and help that is given out from the Mormon people is astonishing and remarkable. Your works are wonderful. However I don't think that you understand the level of deception that you are all involved in. I hope to debunk this deception in this and subsequent postings. Please read this entire article as it was written with the best of intentions.
     Even your own apostle, Orson Pratt said " Convince us our errors of doctrine, if we have any, by reason, logical argument, or by the Word of God, and we will be ever grateful  for the information."  I intend to do just this and show how you have been deceived by the teachings of Joseph Smith and the LDS Church.
    The first inconsistency between the Bible and LDS teachings I wish to point out is from the Mormon Gospel of Principles. In this book it states that everyone on earth is spirit brother and sister, and Jesus was the first spirit brother.  The LDS church also believes that Jesus had to achieve Godhood and was not always a God, but once a mere man.
     Gordon B Hinkley, one of the Presidents of the LDS Church stated "No I don't believe in the traditional Christ of whom they speak. For the Christ of whom I speak has been revealed in this the Dispensation of the Fullness of Times." This is a shocking statement from such a prominent church member. Every Mormon I speak to says that they believe in the same Christ that I do, but this is not the case.
     In Col 1:16 it states "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him." The Bible here states that Jesus Christ, the true Creator and God, created everything! Again in John 1 we see "Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made." Again another inconsistency between the teachings of Joseph Smith and the teachings of the Bible.
     The Doctrine and Covenants 130:22 states "The Father has a bbody of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us." This is a huge inconsistency with the Bible yet again! John 4:24 "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
     How can a supposed prophet of God teach these things that go directly against the Bible, and yet still claim the authority of the Bible? "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God." God is eternal and always will be! He was not a man in a past life, he did come to earth through Jesus Christ, but he was never a mere human!
     Joesph Smith stated in The Teachings of Joseph Smith, page 345, "I'm going to tell you how God came to be God. We have imagined and supposed that God was God from all eternity. I will refute that idea and take away the veil so you may see. He was once a man like us; yea. That God himself the Father of all of us, dwelt on an Earth the same as Jesus Christ himself did."
     This quote is so wrong and scripture over and over refutes this. The Bible has held up for countless generations and is the basis for which we must test any supposed prophet or teaching.
     Brigham Young once sided with Lucifer himself. In the Mormon Tabernacle he stated "The devil told the truth, what is the mystery about it? He is doing it today. He is telling one or two truths and mixing them with a thousand errors to get the people to swallow them. I do not blame Mother Eve, I would not have had her miss eating the forbidden fruit for anything in the world.”   If you read Gen 3 its very clear that the serpent did in fact deceive Eve and God subsequently punished him for that!  Why would a Just God punish if it was true! He wouldn't have at all.
           These inconsistencies and deceptions hold huge implications for a Mormon. The true Gospel has been perverted continually by the LDS Church. You will not receive eternal life in any of the three Kingdoms that the Mormon church teaches of either. You are following a teaching that directly goes against God our Lord and you will receive eternity separated from God, the Holy of Holy, in the lake of fire! I wish this upon NOBODY, especially the good people who are deceived by the Mormon faith. Please heed these words and continue to investigate for yourself. Don't take my word for it, just realize your eternal life rests upon the choices you have made. Don't you owe it to yourself to check and double check these teachings against the Bible?
      The Grace of God will be your only salvation, no works will save you. None of the Mormon commandments, none of the things you think you must do are required for salvation! Repent now and turn to the TRUE Lord Jesus Christ.
      Would you follow a boastful and prideful man that puts himself above Jesus Christ? If I stated that I was visited by God and and angel and received the Word of God and then claimed that I'm better than Jesus would you not test me as the Bible has instructed you to?
     Joseph Smith has boasted and claimed to be better than Jesus himself! HOW BLASPHEMOUS!! This is from the  history of the church V6 p308-309. "I have more to boast than that ever any man had. I am the only man that has been able to keep a whole church together since the days of Adam. A large majority of the whole have stood by me. Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever did such work as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him; but the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me yet." I'm not seeing a Biblical profit here, I'm seeing a prideful and boastful man. I would NEVER follow someone who claimed to be better than the Lord Jesus Christ... Why do you continue to!?
      Need more yet? Brigam Young stated in the Journal of Discourse Verse 7 page 289 that "No man or woman will enter the celestial kingdom without consent of Joesph Smith." This is  placing Joseph Smith in the seat as the ultimate authority, the Judge of all Judges. Joesph Smith is not a God, there is only ONE God.
     1 John 13 states " I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." I know that I have eternal life, Joseph Smith has NO say in any of it. Why do Mormons take a man's word over the words of the Bible?
  The Bible has withstood over time and not a single prophecy has been wrong. It has withstood archaeological research, historians, and countless other studies by people much smarter than I. Yet the LDS Faith puts its full trust into works that are only a few hundred years old and have FAILED every archaeological investigation. The LDS Church will not even commit to a map to show where the Book of Mormon took place. I can still go to Biblical cities, can you find any of the Mormon cities?
    Biblical standards for a prophet are 100% accuracy, this means if a single prophecy by Joseph Smith or any of the prophets of the LDS Church do not come true or are proven wrong that these men are not speaking the word of God.
    Joseph Smith stated that a temple will be built in New Jerusalem (Missouri) within a handful of years. You can go to this spot today and see that there is still NO temple. This ONE account proves that Joseph Smith is NOT a man of God.
    Brigham Young once said that the sun was inhabited and Joseph Smith claimed that there are men on the moon dressed as Quakers. Does the Mormon Church still claim these things as true? They are NOT, and here is yet another lie from a supposed man of God. A man who claims to hold the keys to heaven? These things do not add up, no matter how much rationalization you have for it.
   
    I love you all, I hope that the Lord will soften your hearts to his True word. Please I beg of you, Repent and turn to the TRUE Word of God, the Bible. Nothing more is needed. Your eternal salvation rests upon you waking up from this deception that has gone on for far too long.
    I can continue to provide a TON more evidence that will show the fallacies of the LDS Church, but I feel that enough has been stated here to at least make you start to think.
    I understand some of you have been in this Church since birth. This is a very hard thing to realize and admit that you are wrong, but we must be humble and accept that we make mistakes. We have all been deceived, the key is to waking up to it and making the right choices going forward.

     God bless you all, I will be praying these words reach your heart and mind.