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=<FONT color="#aaooo" size="">'''GOD BLESS ISRAEL AND THE IDF'''</font>=
 
=<FONT color="#aaooo" size="">'''GOD BLESS ISRAEL AND THE IDF'''</font>=
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=<FONT color="#aaooo" size="">'''BREAKING: Massive Fires RAGE Near Jerusalem; Evacuations Underway | TBN Israel'''</font>=
 
====https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NOFf2i2T1Q====
 
 
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=<FONT color="#aaooo" size="">''' [[Israel News 8]]'''</font>=
 
=<FONT color="#aaooo" size="">''' [[Israel News 8]]'''</font>=
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     <h3 class="panel-title">[[File:Page.png]] '''May''' featured article</h3>
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     <h3 class="panel-title">[[File:Page.png]] '''July''' featured article</h3>
 
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=<FONT color="#aaooo" size="">'''Did Jesus advocate the use of a sword for self-defence purposes''</font>=
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=<FONT color="#aaooo" size="">'''Faith''</font>=
 
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==== (Luke 22:36-38)====
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Jesus is well known for His continued emphasis on love, forgiveness, and "turning the other cheek." It is therefore surprising to find Jesus advising the disciples to buy a sword in Luke 22:36: "But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one." Did Jesus in this verse advocate the use of a sword for self-defence purposes?
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This is an issue over which Christians have vehemently disagreed for many centuries. Following is a summary of the two basic views of how Christians have interpreted Jesus on this issue.
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====THE PATH OF NON-RESISTANCE.====
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Christian pacifists believe it is always wrong to injure other humans, no matter what the circumstances. And the same principles supporting pacifism carry over to non-resistance--the belief that any form of self-defence is wrong. This view is usually based on the exemplary life and teachings of Jesus Christ.
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According to Christian pacifist John Yoder, Jesus rejected the existing political state of affairs and taught a form of radical nonviolence. Central to Christ's teaching, Yoder says, is His biblical mandate to "turn the other cheek" when encountering violence (Matthew 5:38-48).
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In Yoder's view, the way to victorious living is to refrain from the game of socio-political control. Jesus exposed the futility of the violence engrafted in the present world system by resisting its inclinations even to the point of death. Hence, Christians are to refuse the world's violent methods and follow their Saviour to the cross (Matthew 26:47-52). When Jesus told the disciples to buy a sword (Luke 22:36), pacifists suggest He was only speaking figuratively.
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===="TURN THE OTHER CHEEK" ALWAYS?====
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It is true that Jesus said to turn the other cheek in Matthew 5:38-42. However, many scholars do not believe pacifism (or non-resistance) is the essential point of His teaching in this passage. These scholars do not believe Jesus was teaching to "turn the other cheek" in virtually all circumstances. Even Christ did not literally turn the other cheek when smitten by a member of the Sanhedrin (see John 18:22-23).
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The backdrop to this teaching is that the Jews considered it an insult to be hit in the face, much in the same way that we would interpret someone spitting in our face. Bible scholar R. C. Sproul comments: "What's interesting in the expression is that Jesus specifically mentions the right side of the face [Matthew 5:39]....If I hit you on your right cheek, the most normal way would be if I did it with the back of my right hand....To the best of our knowledge of the Hebrew language, that expression is a Jewish idiom that describes an insult, similar to the way challenges to duels in the days of King Arthur were made by a backhand slap to the right cheek of your opponent."
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The principle taught in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:38-42 would thus seem to be that Christians should not retaliate when insulted or slandered (see also Romans 12:17-21). Such insults do not threaten a Christian's personal safety. The question of rendering insult for insult, however, is a far cry from defending oneself against a mugger or a rapist.
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In terms of following Christ's example, one must remember that His personal non-resistance at the cross was intertwined with His unique calling. He did not evade His arrest because it was God's will for Him to fulfil His prophetic role as the redemptive Lamb of God (Matthew 26:52-56). During His ministry, however, He refused to be arrested because God's timing for His death had not yet come (John 8:59). Thus, Christ's unique non-resistance during the Passion does not mandate against self-protection.
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====THE BIBLICAL CASE FOR SELF-DEFENCE.====
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'''Faith is the Predominate Condition of Our Justification'''
It is noteworthy that the Bible records many accounts of fighting and warfare. The providence of God in war is exemplified by His name YHWH Sabaoth ("The LORD of hosts"--Exodus 12:41). God is portrayed as the omnipotent Warrior-Leader of the Israelites. God, the LORD of hosts, raised up warriors among the Israelites called the shophetim (saviour-deliverers). Samson, Deborah, Gideon, and others were anointed by the Spirit of God to conduct war. The New Testament commends Old Testament warriors for their military acts of faith (Hebrews 11:30-40).
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Moreover, it is significant that although given the opportunity to do so, none of the New Testament saints--nor even Jesus--are ever seen informing a military convert that he needed to resign from his line of work (Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 3:14).
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Faith Saves, Only Because Jesus Saves. Even in the days of the Old Covenant, our God has gone on record as offering Himself as a Saviour for "all the ends of the Earth". "There is no God else beside Me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside Me. Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the Earth: for I am God, and there is none else" (Isaiah 45:21-22). The New Testament records the initial reaction of the Believing Jews to the advent of Jesus as their Messiah was that the Saviour had appeared for Israel-- with no thought of the Gentiles. "68 Blessed be the LORD God of Israel; for He hath visited and redeemed His people, 69 And hath raised up an horn of Salvation for us in the house of His servant David; 70 As He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets, which have been since the world began: 71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us" (Luke 1:68-71). But, the greater light of the New Covenant showed that Jesus came to save the world, not just the Jews. Hallelujah! "For the grace of God that bringeth Salvation hath appeared to all men" (Titus 2:11).
  
Prior to His crucifixion, Jesus revealed to His disciples the future hostility they would face and encouraged them to sell their outer garments in order to buy a sword (Luke 22:36-38; cf. 2 Corinthians 11:26-27). Here the "sword" (Greek: maxairan) is a dagger or short sword that belonged to the Jewish traveller's equipment as protection against robbers and wild animals. A plain reading of the passage indicates that Jesus approved of self-defence.
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Justification by Faith Goes Back to the Beginning. God has always justified man by faith. "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh" (Hebrews 11:4). The Apostle Paul's monumental epistle to the Romans attests to the Doctrine of Justification by Faith. "For what saith the Scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness" (Romans 4:3). Self-righteous works are in opposition to the Works of Faith. "For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God" (4:2). The obedience of the LORD Jesus Christ does not take away our need to obey God; and so, in that regard, Christ's obedience is not imputed to us-- not taking away our necessity for obedience. "For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the Gospel of God?" (1Peter 4:17).
  
Self-defence may actually result in one of the greatest examples of human love. Christ Himself said, "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:14). When protecting one's family or neighbour, a Christian is unselfishly risking his or her life for the sake of others.
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Our View of Man Affects Our Understanding of Justification by Faith. If man does not possess the free will agency to repent and believe the Gospel, then man would be condemned without the opportunity of choice. "What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid" (Romans 9:14). Regrettably, we usually underestimate the goodness and kindness of God toward us in describing His actions toward us. "7 That in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is The Gift of God" (Ephesians 2:7-8).
  
Theologians J. P. Moreland and Norman Geisler say that "to permit murder when one could have prevented it is morally wrong. To allow a rape when one could have hindered it is an evil. To watch an act of cruelty to children without trying to intervene is morally inexcusable. In brief, not resisting evil is an evil of omission, and an evil of omission can be just as evil as an evil of commission. Any man who refuses to protect his wife and children against a violent intruder fails them morally."
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"This doctrine [of a sinful nature] is a stumbling-block both to the church and the world, infinitely dishonourable to God, and an abomination alike to God and the human intellect, and should be banished from every pulpit, and from every formula of doctrine, and from the world. It is a relic of heathen philosophy, and was foisted in among the doctrines of Christianity by Augustine, as every one may know who will take the trouble to examine for himself. This view of moral depravity that I am opposing, has long been the stronghold of universalism. From it, the universalists inveighed with resistless force against the idea that sinners would be sent to an eternal hell. Assuming the long-defended doctrine of original or constitutional sinfulness, they proceed to show, that it would be infinitely unreasonable and unjust in God to send them to hell. What! create them with a sinful nature, from which proceed, by a law of necessity, actual transgressions, and then send them to an eternal hell for having this nature, and for transgressions that are unavoidable? Impossible! they say; and the human intellect responds, Amen" (from Lecture 40 "Moral Depravity" of Finney's "Systematic Theology").
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"But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing" (Galatians 4:18).

Latest revision as of 17:07, 1 July 2025

Welcome


GOD BLESS ISRAEL AND THE IDF


Israel News 8


THE DARK TRUTH about tithing that your church never tells you

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWzP8ejgf5I


CAN YOU ANSWER THESE TOUGH QUESTIONS ABOUT THE LIFE OF JESUS? YOU ARE AMAZING!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iv1lNFs3JLU


Netanyahu ➤ THEY DID IT AGAIN (THE END HAS REALLY BEGUN) Prophetic Message for Humanity

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0qyZ7gYocU


URGENT!

See What The Bible Says About Cremation Of The Dead | Jonathan Cahn Sermon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_rX9gbDRb8


Please Watch

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A SPIRIT LEAVES A PERSON'S BODY?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1jKfsoi2JY


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Urgent! See The Bible's Harsh Truths About Cremating the Dead

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0dgQhbOQw4


Signs of the End Times are 'Intensifying' as Anti-Semitism Soars

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iksrmK0I9MQ


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Page.png July featured article


'Faith

Faith is the Predominate Condition of Our Justification

Faith Saves, Only Because Jesus Saves. Even in the days of the Old Covenant, our God has gone on record as offering Himself as a Saviour for "all the ends of the Earth". "There is no God else beside Me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside Me. Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the Earth: for I am God, and there is none else" (Isaiah 45:21-22). The New Testament records the initial reaction of the Believing Jews to the advent of Jesus as their Messiah was that the Saviour had appeared for Israel-- with no thought of the Gentiles. "68 Blessed be the LORD God of Israel; for He hath visited and redeemed His people, 69 And hath raised up an horn of Salvation for us in the house of His servant David; 70 As He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets, which have been since the world began: 71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us" (Luke 1:68-71). But, the greater light of the New Covenant showed that Jesus came to save the world, not just the Jews. Hallelujah! "For the grace of God that bringeth Salvation hath appeared to all men" (Titus 2:11).

Justification by Faith Goes Back to the Beginning. God has always justified man by faith. "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh" (Hebrews 11:4). The Apostle Paul's monumental epistle to the Romans attests to the Doctrine of Justification by Faith. "For what saith the Scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness" (Romans 4:3). Self-righteous works are in opposition to the Works of Faith. "For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God" (4:2). The obedience of the LORD Jesus Christ does not take away our need to obey God; and so, in that regard, Christ's obedience is not imputed to us-- not taking away our necessity for obedience. "For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the Gospel of God?" (1Peter 4:17).

Our View of Man Affects Our Understanding of Justification by Faith. If man does not possess the free will agency to repent and believe the Gospel, then man would be condemned without the opportunity of choice. "What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid" (Romans 9:14). Regrettably, we usually underestimate the goodness and kindness of God toward us in describing His actions toward us. "7 That in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is The Gift of God" (Ephesians 2:7-8).

"This doctrine [of a sinful nature] is a stumbling-block both to the church and the world, infinitely dishonourable to God, and an abomination alike to God and the human intellect, and should be banished from every pulpit, and from every formula of doctrine, and from the world. It is a relic of heathen philosophy, and was foisted in among the doctrines of Christianity by Augustine, as every one may know who will take the trouble to examine for himself. This view of moral depravity that I am opposing, has long been the stronghold of universalism. From it, the universalists inveighed with resistless force against the idea that sinners would be sent to an eternal hell. Assuming the long-defended doctrine of original or constitutional sinfulness, they proceed to show, that it would be infinitely unreasonable and unjust in God to send them to hell. What! create them with a sinful nature, from which proceed, by a law of necessity, actual transgressions, and then send them to an eternal hell for having this nature, and for transgressions that are unavoidable? Impossible! they say; and the human intellect responds, Amen" (from Lecture 40 "Moral Depravity" of Finney's "Systematic Theology").

"But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing" (Galatians 4:18).