Bible talk

Hi friends!
My name is Ayuba PAM and I'm 52 from Nigeria. I'm indeed delighted to join this group hoping to have shared experiences on our faith as believers. I am also a journalist by training and currently a program producer:PoliticalDemocracy on Armed FORCESS Radio 107.7fm, Mogadishu cantonment, Asokoro, Abuja. I shall be glad to se myself welcomed here! Thank you.

SOME OF MY STRONGEST BELIEFS AFTER A SERIOUS WAKE-UP CALL
I am an 86 year old semi-retired Psychiatrist who passed out in the early morning some months ago. I was hospitalized, with the usual exam and tests during that first day, but later in the evening, I passed out with much vomiting and a massive blood loss. A gastro-digestive surgeon (Dr. Schmitz) was on call that evening and diagnosed an esophageal ulcer. He quickly repaired the rapidly bleeding ulcer.
When the surgery was completed, the surgeon told my family that if I had not already been in the hospital when the massive bleeding ocurred, I would likely have died.
When they told me about the serious wake-up call I was impressed that God had more work for me to do.

I believe Franklin Graham was right when he said something to the effect that God in His sovreignty made it possible for Donald Trump to win the election. Dr. Michael Brown, of the "Line of Fire" radio program, had preached that in the Old Testament God hated those who shed innocent blood. Dr. Brown said also that even though he had a number of misgivings about Trump, he could NEVER vote for Hillary who advocated abortions [even late in pregnancy]and gay marriages, trying to nullify God's definition of marriage as the joining of a man and a woman.

In our day there are many people who say, "If you believe that Jesus is the Son of God and accept Him as your personal Savior, you are saved, and nothing you can do will cause you to lose that salvation.” But our Savior made it abundantly clear that His expectations were quite high for His TRUE DISCIPLES.
See the words of Jesus in Matt. 10:[37] He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Jesus also said in Luke 14:[33] So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. And in Luke 17:[10] So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do. Then He said in John 14:[15] If ye love me, keep my commandments. See also Matt.10:[22] And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: BUT HE THAT ENDURETH TO THE END shall be saved.
We read about the words of the thief on the cross in Luke 23:[42] He said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. [43] And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

We read in Eph. 2:[8] For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: [9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.
[We cannot boast of our natural good works, since Isaiah said in Isa. 64:[6] All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.]
Jesus said in Luke 11:13] If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit TO THEM THAT ASK HIM? [If we have truly repented and received the gift of the Holy Spirit, then that Spirit will bring forth fruits of righteousness.]
I believe that God would be greatly pleased if everyone on the face of the earth would be saved. See 2 Peter 3:[9] The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any of them should perish.
To become a disciple of Christ, we must realize that EVERY PERSON over the age of accountability, who has not truly repented,IS A SINNER. Paul wrote in Galatians 5:19] Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, [20] Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, [21] Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
[22] But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, [23] Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. [24] And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. [25] If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
I understand that the scribes and pharasees in the days of Jesus had over 600 individual laws that they claimed to be following, but Jesus said in Matt. 22:37-40 that the law of righteousness was encompassed in the two GREAT COMMANDMENTS; to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves.
The Apostle Paul summarized this in Rom. 7:[6] But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.
If we TRULY REPENT of our past sins and believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God we will inherit everlasting life. [But we must receive the Holy Spirit, which Jesus said our heavenly Father would surely give to every one who asks Him for it.]
See also Matt. 7:[21] Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Subject: THIS I BELIEVE


Many people in our day are convinced that, “If you believe that Jesus is the Son of God and accept Him as your personal Savior, you are saved, and that there is nothing you can do to cause you to lose that salvation.” But our Savior made it abundantly clear that His expectations were quite high for His true disciples. In Matt chapter 10 He said [37] He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. [38] And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
We read in Eph. 2:[8] For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: [9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.
We cannot boast of our good works, since Isaiah said in Isa. 64:[6] But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.
Jesus said in Luke 1:13] If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? If we have truly repented, as Jesus said above that if we have asked for our heavenly Father to give us that Holy Spirit, He will surely give it to us and that Spirit will make it possible to bring forth some of the fruits of the Spirit - see Gal. 5:[22] But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, [23] Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. [24] And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. [25] If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Jesus said in Luke 17:[10] So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
If we have truly repented and received the gift of the Holy Spirit, then that Spirir will bring forth fruits of righteousness.
I understand that the scribes and pharasees in the lifetime of Jesus had over 600 individual laws that they claimed to be following, but Jesus said in Matt. 22;37-40:that the law of righteousness is encompassed in the two commandments to love the Lord our God with all our heart,soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves.
The Apostle Paul summarized it all in Rom. 7:[6] But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.
Best wishes as we seek to know and DO the will o our heavenly Father,
Bob Prince

@Fortoggie concerning the owner's manual. I understand what you mean but please consider that the LORD sent prophets performing miracles and yet people did not believe. Many signs and wonders; yet very few believed. Then the Savior come and people did not believe him. We have the Oracles of the LORD and such is not read. In fact, even to this day, many followers of the Messiah do not read the Oracles that we have already. We have the Commandments and yet many followers can not even keep the top 10. The Oracles of Elohim (Torah, Tanah, Old Testament) is mostly incorrectly translated as "the law" but it is more than that. The Law refers to ritualistic behavior such as animal sacrifices; but mostly the Oracles/Torah can be interpreted as the Instruction. We would not believe any type of map/owner's manual written in plain text. It is not that the LORD withholds information, it is that we seek and/or ask not. Therefore, the information is presented in parables because our hearts are hardened (waxed gross). Elohim (God) appeared to punish those that seek knowledge with the wrong intent. As for the Red Sea (actually Reed Sea), there was disobedience and that was the reason that Moses (pronounced Moe-shay) had to take the scenic route; the army chasing them, mountains on the sides of their routes and water ahead... it is said "they were entangled in the land". We will not understand everything written in the Bible, and if we did, what type of God would He be? I recommend that followers read their Bibles completely at least twice a year. In fact, on the 1st of the year, start at Genesis and when you finish before six months; keep reading the New Testament over and over until the second half of the year and then start over. The Scriptures will start to speak to you after about two or three times. Excellent question... actually makes me think. Please forgive me if my account of the Scriptures were not verbatim.

Hello Bible Talk and to my friends Mr. Prince, the city and southward bound. I hope all is doing well. I've decided to check up with you as this is the sixth year I've been here, as of this month. Much has changed in our country recently and I'm hopeful that it's for the better. We need to remember that we should focus on the grace of our Lord and his provision in our lives. The fact that Thanksgiving is next week and Christmas is little more than one month away, we should remain thankful that our Lord and Savior has paid the price for our sin so that we may have eternal life. So stay thankful and continue to strive for righteousness that we may one day join our Savior in paradise. With that I pray God's grace come upon you all and have a happy Thanksgiving. Shalom, OSB

I believe God is real but is there only one God? If so why does he have more then one name such as God, Jehovah, Allay etc?

Hi I haven't been on here in a while. I hope all are doing well.

The following is a note posted by a devout Mormon. Katherine is one I have corresponded with for several years and I have told her that I believe that Mormons who preach that we need to follow the commandments of Christ are closer to entering the kingdom of heaven than Protestant "Christians" who teach that we do not need to keep the sayings of our Lord and Savior when He distinctly said "If ye love me, keep my commandments" John 14:15.

This is her response to my post "A SOLEMN WAKE-UP CALL" (which she gave me permission to share with the Bible Talk group:

[Katzpur;44846129]Bob, I'm glad to hear that you survived these traumatic events. I can certainly understand why you would refer to the experience as a "wake-up call.")

I agree wholeheartedly with everything you have said. As far as I'm concerned, it's impossible to "have faith in Christ" unless we are also "faithful to Christ." It has always seemed to me that the focus on experiencing a spirit-filled moment of belief followed by a lifetime of complacency implied a pretty poor understanding of the scriptures. Maybe it's just me, but I am not so concerned with doing good in order that my salvation be ensured, as I am with doing good solely out of love for my Heavenly Father and my Savior, Jesus Christ. As a matter of fact, I belong to a church where our aim in life is not just to avoid eternal torment, but to become better individuals. Life for me is all about self-improvement, continually repenting and setting new goals, and trying to be a better person each day than I was the day before.

You know, when I post on this forum, I seldom quote from any of the scriptures I, as a Mormon, believe (except for the Bible, which I do frequently reference in my posts). I'm going to make an exception to my general rule of thumb in this response, though, because I believe that even if no one else can appreciate this sentiment, you will be able to.

In a volume of scripture we call The Doctrine and Covenants, we read: "For verily I say unto you, [the gifts of God] are given for the benefit of those who love me and keep all my commandments, and [for them] that seeketh so to do."

That's a very big "and."

Think back to the Beatitudes, which were part of Christ's Sermon on the Mount. If you can remember Him saying, "Blessed are the righteous for they shall be filled," you've got an even worse memory than you thought. He never said that. That sounds like something He might have said, but can anyone remember what He actually did say? He said, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled."(Emphasis mine)

This really is a remarkable teaching. God gives us commandments for our own good, not only so that we can realize our true potential in the next life, but so that He can both bless us in the here and now when we merely try to obey Him.

Repentance is another wonderful gift. We can completely mess up time and time again, and yet to God, it's like we've only messed up once. In both the Bible and in The Doctrine and Covenants, we read of God's promise that He will not only forgive our sins, but will remember them no more. In Jeremiah, we read, "I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." In The Doctrine and Covenants, it says, "He who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more.” I've often wondered about the use of the word "remember" in those passages. What if the last half of the verse from The Doctrine and Covenants were missing, and the verse just said, "He who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven"? That's a pretty great promise, but isn't His promise that He will remember them no more an even greater one? A few of us here are at a point in our lives when we really value being able to remember things. But, have you ever considered the possibility that having the ability to consciously forget can actually be a good thing? Would you rather have your sins be forgiven but still remembered or forgotten entirely?

I believe that God wants to bless us for our obedience, but that He also wants to bless us for our sincere desire to be obedient. I'm convinced that He sees that desire in you, Bob.

Hello Bible Talk and to you Mr. Prince and the city. Ever since I signed up onto Bible talk in 2010 I've agreed with Mr. Prince on the OSAS doctrine in that you can't profess Jesus and his goodness and willingly fall back into sin. I however feel if a believer that has accepted Jesus and has not kept their lamps full (which is symbolic of a believer keeping in the Spirit and striving for Righteousness daily. As well as seeking to show the fruits of the Spirit in their daily walk) will not go to hell (hell is the price for rejecting Jesus) but as the scripture states they will be cast out into utter darkness with weeping and gnashing of teeth. You see it's much worse for a believer which is why Scripture has said "let your yes be yes and your no be no". In the parable of the bridesmaids the virgins that had no extra oil were locked out of the feast and the Groom said I don't know you. Clearly the bridesmaids were believers but were not diligent in keeping themselves diligent and taking extra oil so as a result they were not prepared for the Groom's coming. In the Bible it has explained God removes his Spirit from those that have failed to be diligent, which has according to Scripture driven them mad. King Saul, Judas and when God took his Spirit from Jesus as he was upon the cross, Jesus said "My God, my God why have you forsaken me?" I feel to live without the Spirit of God is far worse than burning in hell and as the Bible has told....it is. Just imagine the emptiness you felt when your love is gone or when you've lost everything and are destitute and sitting in the ashes of your comfortable life. If you've not lost anything or experienced heartbreaking sorrow you may never have a glimpse into the kind of sorrow as to losing the Holy Spirit. So my friends it'll cost you nothing to study and prove the words spoken are truth but you may have gained the world by doing so, Shalom - OSB

A SERIOUS WAKE-UP CALL
I am an 85 year old semi-retired psychiatrist who generally had relatively good health. On Easter Sunday (3/27/16) I had a sudden passing out episode while in church. and was hospitalized, culminating in an operation to place a stent in my neck in the right carotid artery. On 4./12 I was hospitalized again after another sudden fainting spell. That same night my wake-up call occurred, with me going unconscious and starting to vomit profusely due to rapid bleeding in my esophagus. A digestive surgeon was called to perform an emergency operation. He told my family after the surgery that I probably would not have survived if I had not been in the hospital when the rapid bleeding occurred in my esophagus.

After the wake-up call, I had some serious thoughts about my ability to stand justified before my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. . As a boy, I had believed in the Baptist doctrine of Once Saved, Always Saved (OSAS).
As an adult I began to doubt the OSAS doctrine, considering the words of our Master in Matt. 10:[22] And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. See also John 15: [4] Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.[5] I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. [6] If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
I believe that when Jesus taught the parable of the five wise virgins and the five foolish virgins, He was implying that the five foolish ones were excluded from the great wedding supper because they did not have the Holy Spirit (oil) in their vessels. (See also Luke 11:[11] If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? [12] Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? [13] If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him.
See also Phil. 1: [11] Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God. And Gal 5: [22] But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, [23] Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

If we do not bring forth fruits of righteousness, we may not have truly repented of our sins.
Jesus said in John 14:15] If ye love Me, keep my commandments.
He said in the Great Commission: Matt. 28:[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.
Are we living lives of obedience? Remember the words of Heb. 10: [26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth [if we have truly received the gift of the Holy Ghost] there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins.
If we have not sinned willfully, John tells us in 1 John 1: [9] If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
When I was in medical school, I resigned from the Baptist church and have been a member of the nondenominational Shiloh Truelight Church of Christ for over fifty years.