TheNewMan

THat's fine, but this is supported by from where? To what portion of the Universe do you think the Heavenly Jerusalem will come? What is all the bible-speke concerning a New Heaven and a New Earth? That's what I'd like to know. I want to see the passages that talk about a new Heaven and a new Earth. I know they exist, but I'd like you to present them.

I don't believe that the earth will be remade. Once this earth is over, it will be burned up.

Striving for crowns is scriptual as seen in 1 Cor 9:25 so yes I certainly would love many crowns which I could lay at the feet of The Lord Jesus one day. We know we cannot earn our place in heaven but we sure can strive for those crowns for the Savior...I would not to appear before Him with nothing to lay at His feet. If the article which I felt was pretty good gave you the feeling that you were being yelled at then just maybe the Holy spirit would have you examine your heart..which having read the article I feel we all could do....we all need to take stock of our lives from time to time. 2 Cor 3:15 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates? Blessings I don't think we really get crowns on this earth though. Christ crowns us with eternal life, and that's about it, but that's all we could ever need or want, and so much more.

I don't understand why people ask what we will get in Heaven. They obviously don't understand the nature of Heaven itself. Heaven is rest from this world, the presence of the glory of God, and His love for eternity. What else do we need EXCEPT Heaven, after this life? Being in Heaven with God is the greatest reward possible.

As whiny as her songs are, I have to say that for the most part, she does a good job at avoiding sexuality. Except that her outfits are sometimes too revealing.

The reward for EVERYONE who is faithful unto death is a crown of life (Revelation 2:10), which is Heaven. HEAVEN is every saint's reward.

Created and "raised up" are different concepts. God allowed Pharaoh to come into a position of power. God created the world, and created a chain of events that lay the foundation for the rest of the outcomes of the entire world. Therefore, it is because of God (the creator of all things) that this particular Pharaoh inherited an empire like Egypt. Because he inherited this empire, he inherited the mentality that all Pharaoh's had, that he was a god. Because Pharaoh considered himself a god, he was far less likely to have the humility to listen to God's commands. God obviously knew this, so He decided that Joseph and his brothers should go down to Egypt, should live there, and should populate the area, knowing that there would arise a Pharaoh who would enslave them. God didn't cause the Pharaoh to make slaves of Israel. However, God DID present to Pharaoh a very clear proposition: let My people go, or be punished. Because of everything that had happened in Pharaoh's life, and even before his life (the things which had caused him to be born into a society in which he was considered a god), Pharaoh was disposed to rebel against God. God did not force him to, and the reason this is an irrefutable statement is because of 2 Peter 3:9, which I will deal with later. Nope. You're twisting that verse. It does not say that. It says "anyone" and "all." Don't twist the words of the Bible to fit your theology. Also read Romans 2:6-11. 6 "who (God, see v.5) will render to each one according to his deeds": 7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8 but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness--indignation and wrath, 9 tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; 10 but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 11 For there is no partiality with God. So EVERYONE will be judged according to HIS DEEDS, because GOD HAS NO PARTIALITY. Very important principles to understand. It doesn't say He has to, but 2 Peter 1:3 says that He DOES. And no, the Lord would NOT have to reveal us the names of all those who will be saved. That is a complete non sequitur, and is completely illogical and irrelevant. The verse still stands as saying that God has provided US all things that pertain to OUR life and godliness You're basically saying the same thing: that God created Pharaoh to be forced to sin. This is saying God forces him to sin, which is the same as God causing sin, which is against the principle taught in James 1:13. No, like I said before, God, through the fact the He created the world, and told men like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph to do certain things, therefore changing the course of history, allowed Pharaoh to be born into a family and society that would be very prideful and indisposed to obey the word of the Lord. God did NOT force him to sin. An analogy would be this: imagine that you set a stick of butter, and a ball of clay next to each other on the pavement on a very sunny, hot day. The butter melts, but the clay hardens. The sun represents God telling us what to do. The butter represents the heart that is soft and humble and ready to do God's will. It melts, because it's nature is to be melted. The clay represents the proud heart that is hardened because it will not obey. Does God act differently toward the two? No, just like the sunlight that hits the butter isn't different from the sunlight that hits the clay. It's the butter and the clay, the humble and proud hearts, that themselves make the difference of how the sun is received.

PLAGUES 1. Nile turned to blood. Affected everyone. (Exodus 7:14-25) 2. Frogs come from the Nile. Affected everyone. (Exodus 8:1-15) "Covered the land of Egypt" 3. Gnats. Affected everyone. (Exodus 8:16-19) 4. Flies. Did not affect the Israelites. "I will set apart the land of Goshen, in which My people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there..." (Exodus 8:22) 5. Plague on livestock. Did not affect the Israelites. "And the Lord will make a difference between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt. So nothing shall die of all that belongs to the children of Israel." (Exodus 9:4) 6. Boils. Affected everyone. (Exodus 9:8-12) 7. Hail. Did not affect the Israelites. "Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail." (Exodus 9:26) 8. Locusts. Affected everyone. (Exodus 10:1-20) 9. Darkness. Did not affect the Israelites. "But all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings." (Exodus 10:23) 10. Death of Firstborn. Did not affect the Israelites who observed the Passover. (Exodus 11:1-12:36)

So we're talking about Star Wars now?

So clearly Lucifer is not Satan.

Exactly! I want someone like her to show me God's miracles. No one has yet, though. Aww, you're cute Stacy. I think you missed the part in the Bible where miracles were done for the purpose of making people believe. Nice try though. When the masses asked Jesus to do signs and wonders, I guess He said "No, you have to believe me on my words alone!" I believe in God with my whole heart. I'm not condemned for not believing in man's so-called miracles, dearest. The MOST hilarious thing about it, though, is that as much as you say "No, no, no, WE'RE right, because there are more of us," you still haven't provided a sound Scriptural position. I'm not saying you're all wrong, I'm just saying you've failed. You've failed to make a case from the Bible. Correct me if I'm wrong! Please do! By saying I think I'm right, you're doing nothing but laughing at me for having presented a sound case that you have yet to respond to sufficiently. So keep laughing, it doesn't bother me. It makes me a little disappointed in the Bible readers of today. Kind of pathetic, but it's not like I'M the one putting forth all the bogus interpretations. If my interpretation is so wrong, it should be obvious to point out such from the Scriptures. Also, don't make the mistake of thinking I'm the only Christian in the world who believes in miracles. Haha, nooo. Not by a long shot. Will anyone make a case from the Bible? I'm tired of man's "wisdom."

Except that you don't tend to live very long when they burst open in the middle and their entrails gush out. There were two apostles named Judas.

The problem is, none of those things are miraculous. Every day, doctors give diagnoses to people saying they have no chance, and then those people come through, and always with a scientific explanation. Just because the doctor wasn't knowledgeable enough to realize that it was medically possible for your daughter to succeed in life, despite being deaf and blind, doesn't mean it was a miracle. It's very naturally possible for nerve and muscle cells to regenerate after being severed. That's not a miracle. It's humanly possible. Hearing voices in your head is not a miracle. Coincidences like calling your mother when she had a stroke (it's weird that she answered the phone in the first place when she was having a stroke, or else it wasn't a very bad stroke) are not miracles. Defying the odds is not miraculous, it's naturally possible. Like I said, I USED to believe in miracles. So unbelief did not keep me from seeing miracles. When my friend introduced to me the idea that miracles might not be possible, I still believed in miracles, but he encouraged me to ask to see signs from God, and no one was able to see signs. If I'm unbelieving, then God won't show me miracles. So why ask? I might as well ask someone believing, should I not? That's not unreasonable. So I continue to do so. I always keep my mind open to the possibility that the person I ask to perform a miracle might actually do so. I had my mind changed once, it can change again. It just takes evidence. Faith in God is not blind faith. We have evidence for our faith. God never expected us to believe in Him blindly and for no reason. Neither should I believe in miracles unless I have evidence.

That's why I want to hear someone else's interpretation that isn't flawed. I haven't heard one yet. So far the only interpretation that I have found to fit with the Bible is this one. I didn't always to have doubts in modern miracles or prophecy. In fact I used to go with friends and visit churches in which the belief in miracles was held, and sometimes were "performed." Then someone helped me realize what 1 Corinthians 13 actually says. I didn't believe him at first. In fact, I closed my mind to his evaluations of the Scriptures because, after all, I had seen miracles had I not? But as I opened my mind, I realized that what he said coincided with what the Bible taught, and yet I was still held back by my experience of what I had considered miracles. My friend (the guy who taught me the truth) came with me to some of these churches. He went to the "healers" and asked them to make him walk again. They couldn't. They claimed it was because of his lack of faith. Of course, lack of faith in the receiver of the miracle is irrelevant, considering all the dead people Christ raised. They obviously didn't have faith in God, because they were dead. A lifeless corpse cannot have faith. And so he brought his child, who was born deaf, and asked that the child be healed. None of the healers were able to, even though a couple tried. He asked for some miraculous sign of any kind, so that he could believe. They weren't able to do anything more significant than claim to speak in tongues, which anyone can do. No fire from heaven. No drinking poison and not being harmed. No casting out of demons. Nothing. So I started to have my doubts. I began to realize that people could fool themselves, like I had. My friend brought me to some of the healing sessions that have in religious conferences, where so-called healers would take healing requests on stage. Despite the fact all the maladies that the healed people had were invisible, we found out that several of the same people were following the healers and claiming each and every time to have to same invisible disease that they had been healed of in the last session. That's what really put me off to modern miracles. Since then I have asked people to show me miracles. After all, miracles were performed so that men might believe, correct? So they cannot claim that my disbelief affects their ability to do miracles. But no one ever showed me anything supernatural. All I've ever seen is claims to have healed invisible diseases or tumors, or claims to be speaking with understanding in a language they have never learned. So it's not that I've closed my mind to the possibility. In fact I was raised in a church that had faith in miracles. I used to believe in them. But since I've never seen a real miracle, believing or unbelieving, so I cannot believe, considering that I understand the Bible to teach differently. My mind is still wide open. I still ask people to show me miracles. That isn't an unreasonable request. I'm also open to different interpretations of the passage in 1 Corinthians 13. However, I've never heard one that wasn't disappointingly easy to explain away accurately. I still want to hear one, though.

At least ten times, I have told you that God speaks to us through His word. Such is obvious. Do we need anything more than "all things that pertain to life and godliness?" (2 Peter 1:3 Of course not. The Bible instructs us perfectly throughout life. It is the perfect law of liberty (James 1:25). It puzzles me that you claim that we somehow need something else. And what surprises me more is that you would take your own testimony over the word of God. That is why I want to discuss the Bible, because if someone can show me from the Bible that I am incorrect, I will gladly listen. However, none of you have done that. You have all presented the same argument about 6 times, and I have provided the same answer as many times. If you have insufficient backing from the Scripture to support what you believe, very well. It is useless to persuade someone with Scripture if they disregard Scripture to begin with. I had to chuckle a little when you said you will not encourage me to hear God, when I clearly have read the Bible. Romans 1:16 says that the GOSPEL is the power unto salvation for everyone who believes. It doesn't say "performing miracles is the power unto salvation." It doesn't say "Having God speak to you with a miraculous voice so that you hear a voice in your mind that doesn't belong to you is the power unto salvation." Please explain to me how I need anything other than the Bible, which is the knowledge of ALL THINGS that pertain to life and godliness. The fact is, you can't explain that to me. I am by NO MEANS denying God. I am simply following His written will.

That's an interesting take on the passage, because 1 Corinthians 13:10 says "But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part (knowledge and prophecy - vs 9) will be done away." That means that the thing which is perfect will replace the imperfection. How is it unrelated to that which is in part if it will replace that which is in part? Unless there is no Biblical evidence for any other interpretation. Let's not forget that it's possible for people to THINK they are doing miracles when in fact they are not. I believe half of Revelation talks about the judgment on Jerusalem, and half talks about the judgment on mankind. Please don't make the mistake of inserting the word "God" into 1 Corinthians 13:12. There is no mention of seeing God face to face. That is inferred, not factual, and there is more evidence to the contrary. How do we see God in a mirror? God is not a reflection of ourselves. However, the word of God is likened to a mirror in James 1:22-25.

I could ask you this: Did God say "When Jesus returns" anywhere in that passage? I don't believe so. That which is perfect HAS to be something. And it HAS to relate to knowledge and prophecy in some way. But because of the passage in 1 Corinthians 13, we know that "that which is perfect" cannot be Jesus' coming, because faith, hope, and love will abide after that which is perfect has come (because spiritual gifts will fail after that which is perfect has come, whereas faith, hope, and love abide in comparison to spiritual gifts, meaning that they will abide after that which is perfect has come). So I guess my question is, if it's not the completion of the scriptures (which would explain why knowledge and prophecy in part would be done away with, since we now have the knowledge of all things that pertain to life and godliness - 2 Peter 1:3), and since we know it can't be the coming of Jesus Christ, what is "that which is perfect"? And remember, the word perfect means complete.

Fez: Matthew 7:13-14: "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." The minority is not always wrong. Nebula: I am simply trusting that the Holy Spirit was telling the truth when He said that spiritual gifts would cease when that which is perfect has come.

The rest of the books of the Bible? I don't believe 2 John says anything about the Lord's coming. I don't believe Song of Solomon says anything about the Lord's coming. I don't know why you said that... How can the word make us perfect? .... sigh. Sometimes people make me sad when they ask such questions. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 - "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." That word, complete, is the very same word in the Greek as the word in 1 Corinthians 13:10. The Bible doesn't make us flawless, it makes us complete. And not everyone's interpretation of the Bible is imperfect. We are commanded to understand what the Bible says. Ephesians 5:17 says "Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." It is discouraging that you would think that the word of our Almighty God in heaven could not have the power to make us complete.

No. Repentance is feeling regret and sorrow for what you have done, and ceasing the action that caused the remorse. If your sin is stealing, the way you repent is to stop stealing. - Ephesians 4:28 "Let him who stole, steal no longer..." Obviously, you must ask for forgiveness of your sins, as God is just to forgive us if we confess our sins (1 John 1:9). However, if we ask for forgiveness of our sin of stealing, and then continue to sin afterwards, we have not repented, and are therefore once again condemned. Repentance is very much a physical act, just like obedience is a physical act. God washing away our sins when we are baptized is a spiritual act. It is not something brought about by physical means.

Incorrect. Genesis 3:1-3 Eve obviously knew that she was not supposed to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Okay, Chaz Bono is not actually a male. She is a female pretending to be male. She still has the same DNA, although she might have some added body parts, or subtracted body parts. The way for her to repent of her sin is to stop pretending to be a male, to do her best to look like a girl, and to act like a female should.

You're definitely right. I agree with you.

When Jesus left, He rose up through the clouds. That is to symbolize that God is above us in authority and power and wisdom. Do you honestly think that we could go straight up and eventually reach Heaven? No, Heaven is not physical. There are not stars in Heaven and Heaven is not above the clouds. Here's a better question: why would Satan need to be buried? Could he die? He can't die, because he's a spiritual being. We KNOW he's a spiritual being because in Job chapter 1 he presented himself before the Lord with the sons of God. Satan cannot die, whereas the being that is being talked about in Isaiah 14 CAN die.

Eleanor, I think you need to realize that God cannot lie. By inspiration, He tells us in James 1:13 that He cannot tempt men to sin. By saying that God forced Pharaoh to harden his heart, you are saying that God caused Pharaoh to sin. Therefore, you are saying that God was a liar when He said that He doesn't tempt men to sin. It also causes God to be a liar by saying that God was not being truthful when He said in 2 Peter 3:9 that He doesn't want ANYONE to perish, but that they would have everlasting life. Also, 1 Peter 1:3 tells us that God has given us the knowledge of all things that pertain to life and godliness. If there was a secret will of God that decided who was saved or not saved, and we had no knowledge of this will, this would cause God to be lying when He says that He has given us all knowledge pertaining to life and godliness. We cannot call God a liar.