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Showing posts from December, 2022

God Our Avenger

  When we read about persecution and how it will be the norm, we tend to fixate on the suffering & consolation of Christ; but part of our Lord’s consolation is that He will avenge us. Those who crush Christians, and smite the Saints shall be burned with fire, “And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution [vengeance] to those who do not know God, and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.” (2 Thessalonians 1:7-8). Those who do not know God and refuse to obey our Lord Jesus’ Gospel shall be consumed in fire of judgement. Every persecution, tribulation, and abuse from the unbelievers will be recompensed by God’s Wrath! He will avenge us and strike them down as chaff! Yes He also told us to love our enemies (Matthew 5:43-48), which I believe is preach the gospel of Jesus to them so they may believe (obey) and be spared this

What Jesus Preached At Christmas

  Our Lord and God Jesus preached perhaps the most important message at Christmastime. During The Feast of Dedication or Hanukkah which overlaps with Christmas, the celebration of Christmas didn’t start till Pope Juilus I (337-352 A.D.) made December 25th the Official day to Remember Christ’s Birth, our Lord Jesus Christ gave a promise to us his sheep (disciples): “ [22] At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter , [23] and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. [24] So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” [25] Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, [26] but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. [27] My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. [28] I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them

Laud Tu, Laudate Jesum

  A Devotional Poem by Jeffrey Pendragon One and All Praise Jesus,  He that was slain for us,  One and All Praise Jesus,  He that was raised for us One and All Praise Jesus,  He that reconciles us,  One and All Praise Jesus,  He that sanctifies us,  One and All Praise Jesus,  He has made A Way for us One and All Praise Jesus,  He who has saved us One and All Praise Jesus,  He who sustains us, One and All Praise Jesus, He who prays for us One and All Praise Jesus,  One and All Praise Jesus Amen. 

My Top Five Contemporary Christmas Songs

  I. Noel, Christ Tomerlin feat. Lauren Diagle, 2015 There are many renditions of Noel, but Lauren Diagle singing it is like an angel from the heavens, I love the second chorus, “Son of God and Son of Man, There Before the World Began. Born to suffer, Born to Save, Born to Raise Us From The Grave, Christ the Everlasting Lord, He shall reign Forevermore.” The song feels otherworldly, it truly contains the Parousia, mentioning Christ’s first and second coming. Lauren conveys a transcendence that makes you feel you are in the New Jerusalem and New Heaven.  II. Gloria, Michael W Smith A classic. I love the sound and beat. Michael W. Smith really captures the spirit of worshipping Jesus, the chorus, “Gloria Eclesio Deo,” is so good! It is one of the few Latin sentences I adore, and connects us to Christians from the Middle Ages who sang in latin!   III. This is Christmas, Kutless, 2011 Kutless has been a consistently brilliant Christian band throughout the years. This song is very unique be

Christmas is Jesus

  I am so frustrated how Christmas has become about Santa Claus and his magical elves and reindeer. I bet Gen Zers even think that Chris-tmas comes from Chris Kringle! Not knowing it comes from a combination of Christ and Mass; the mass that ushers in Christmas at midnight.  This is the first year I have seen hardly or no Nativities for sale at stores. I use to count on the snow globe Nativity and the small sets. Now nothing.. oddly enough it was a bookstore this year that had Nativities in all types from painted hearts to porcelain and beyond. But that was the only place I found any decorations to celebrate Christ’s birth. All the main department stores had no Nativities, not even major name department stores. It is becoming increasingly evident that the true meaning of the holiday is being abandoned by the retail market, and now all that remains is the folklore and ‘magic.’ Christmas is suppose to be about Jesus, not a jolly fat man in wool jumpsuit. Its about “Away in a Manger” not

Another Way to Celebrate Christmas

  It is important that we remember That Silent Night and that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. The emphasis on the Baby Jesus and The Nativity is a good thing! To remember God became a human being the same way we all do, as a baby is profound and deserves attention. That said, Christmas is also Jesus’ birthday, and we celebrate a person’s birthday at the age they are on that birthday, ergo we don’t have to only depict and celebrate Jesus’ Birth one way, there is room for the Baby in the Manger and to encounter Christ now, as an adult and worship Him and spend time with him in a party with our Risen Lord and Adult Savior!  Jesus is celebrating his 2027th Birthday! Most scholars agree He was born between 6 and 4 B.C. which counts down to 0 B.C. And then starts 1 A.D. and counting upward to our current year of 2022 A.D.  Our God and Savior deserves to be engaged, communed with, and to celebrate with us in The Spirit for his birthday! Yes we should share his first birthday highlights, but also

All is Calm

  There is a serene quietness to snow. Even the sound of steps in the fresh powder is soothing. The winter wonder land truly is work of our Prince of Peace to quiet the chaos of our world. I understand blizzards and black ice are not calm, but just as the Sea can be serene or turn into a tempest, so does the sheets of ice that fall from the heavens.    When the snowflakes descend in the open plain between evergreen trees, you can almost sense heaven coming to Earth.  Nowadays so many of us are plugged into devices and even when we walk or ski or board in the white wonderland, we can be distracted, missing the beauty, and calming effect of a White Christmas. Which is a shame, because the rate people suffer from anxiety, depression, and other mental illness, calm is just what the doctor ordered.  Snow is a great symbol. It blankets everything in white, as if a reminder that we are washed white, “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make

The Decoration Deception

  It is genius, really worthy of Rockefeller how stores get people to buy Christmas decorations. The masses will spend upwards of 150 USD or more for a tree they will use once a year. Then there is the little things, 3-12 USD for a single ornament, new lights because your old ones won’t work, and everything that dazzles the eye with its grandeur, only to lose the luster on Dec 25th after all the presents are unwrapped.   The whole scheme reminds me of the Apostle John’s warning, “For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world.” (1 John 2:16). I love this translation, “the desires of the eyes” also called “lust of the eyes” which is what the holiday decor is all about, to entice you to buy the tinsel gold and then realize you just spent all this money for stuff you have to store all year and haul out once a year, by then its luster or allure, its golden shine has faded.  Christmas trinkets a

O Star of Bethlehem

  There are many symbols that compete for supremacy at Christmas: The Nativity, The Evergreen Tree, Santa Cap, and more. Perhaps one of the more overlooked Xmas symbols is The Star of Bethlehem, the star that led three Magi to find Jesus:  “ When they saw the star , they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:9-11) The star directed    The Magi  to exactly where Jesus, Mary, and Joseph where. The the star was foretold in the Old Testament, “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near:  a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; it shall crush the forehead of Moab  and break down all the sons of Sheth.” (Numbers 24:17).  It is interesting one of Jesus titles is morning star, “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the chu

Christmas: Love and Truth

  Christmas, “its practically here!” (The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, 2000). Every year the holiday comes as marker, a never changing reminder in a world full of whirlwinds of change. Lots of slogans get thrown around like “Keep Christ in Christmas,” and “Jesus is the Reason For The Season.” All of these are noble and worthy. But I must contend with those who try to destroy Christmas, claiming evergreen trees are Celtic and pagan, when they used oaks, and the evergreen tree was involved in a miracle with St. Columba. Yes the Pagan Saturnalia and High Solstice happens around Christmas, but that is the point, the holiday was made to be a healthy spiritual option for Christians. Those claiming you shouldn’t celebrate Christmas because of pagan roots are simply Scroogies. The holiday marks the celebration of our Lord’s Birth. That is a good thing! And it encourages people to be cheerful and bless one another. Again all good things!  I have written extensively about what to avoid during Xma

Heretical Bibles and Notes

  The Passion Translation is one of the many newer translations of the Bible. I picked up a copy to read at a book store and read the study notes in The Masterpiece Edition (see pic above); It claimed the Seven-Fold Spirit in Revelation 1:1-4, is and I quote, “just as God is a Trinity, the Holy Spirit becomes seven, splitting into seven.” This is heresy! The Holy Spirit does not split into seven spirits! The Godhead is a Trinity of Father, Son (Jesus Christ) and The Holy Spirit! (Matthew 28:19). He does not fracture into more gods! The Seven Fold Spirit or seven spirits of God in Revelation is actually the attributes of God in the Book of Isaiah:  “The Spirit of the LORD [1] will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom [2] and of understanding [3], the Spirit of counsel [4] and of power [5], the Spirit of knowledge [6] and of the fear of the LORD [7].” (Isaiah 11:2).  I am astounded how heretical teaching is now contained in Bibles at bookstores. I find even the new translations of John 3:16

“When I Return, Will I find Faith?”

  The world is changing. The obscene, the pluralistic, and demonic is growing. What jave neen norms like male and female are challenged as antiquated, while radical procedures to transform children’s genders is used despite the warnings that supression of estrogen or testosterone have unforeseen    health consequences.  Babelyon is here. Everything pagan, demonic, luscivious, and antichrist is touted, while the church recedes into the backgroynd after centuries of steeples that rose over towns, decades of stores that sold Bibles, and what once was chapels only for Christians is now for all faiths with all embelms of the faith removed.  I stepped into a chapel in a hospital recently and its stain glass was landscape and basins in fromt for rocks of prayer for all faiths. Only half a decade ago, when I entered a chapel it had an altar cross and Bibles.    In the UK and US Christianity is in decline, with pagan religions becoming popular or Noneism (no affiliation).  The reality is that J