Free Republic

POPE FRANCIS "I also want to ask you a question." "Who is better: Lutherans or Catholics?" "It is better when they are together.”

October 13, 2016 Thursday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Eph 1:1-10 Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,to the holy ones who are in Ephesusand faithful in Christ Jesus:grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,who has blessed us in Christwith every spiritual blessing in the heavens,as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world,to be holy and without blemish before him.In love he destined us for adoption to himself through...

You are not exempt my children from the harvest just because your priorities collide with My kingdom Rules and regulations(that is The Harvest first) for it is all about Salvation of the lost now for my time has come and soon I shall be with you for a sweeping up of all My sheep. So for those too busy as Martha and have not chosen the best as Mary, Truly your reward shall be diminished from those that have forsaken all to tend my sheep in the pasture of light I have supplied(that is My spirit upon the earth) for...

"Contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3, emphasis added). Scripture contains everything you need to know for godly living. For many years I've watched with deep concern as a significant number of Christians have drifted from a thoughtful, biblical, God- centered theology to one that is increasingly mystical, non- biblical, and man-centered. One of the most disturbing indicators of this trend is the proliferation of extrabiblical revelations that certain people are claiming to receive directly from God. Such claims are alarming because they dilute the uniqueness and centrality of the Bible...

“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?” (Romans 6:3). Believers are united with Christ. A person who believes Christians are free to continue sinning betrays a fundamental lack of understanding of what a Christian is. Christians are not merely guilty sinners declared righteous by God because Christ has satisfied the demands of God’s righteousness on their behalf. That truth, which theologians call justification, is indeed an essential one. But there is much more to salvation than justification. Believers are also placed into union with Jesus Christ....

October 12, 2016 Wednesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gal 5:18-25 Brothers and sisters:If you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.Now the works of the flesh are obvious:immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry,sorcery, hatreds, rivalry, jealousy,outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness,dissensions, factions, occasions of envy,drinking bouts, orgies, and the like.I warn you, as I warned you before,that those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God.In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,patience, kindness, generosity,faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.Against such there is no law.Now those who belong to...

While Kol Nidrei—a prayer wherein we release vows—is certainly traditionally seen as one of the most important prayers of the year, there is little in Jewish literature to support this idea. The question, however, remains: why does Jewish tradition lend so much weight and solemnity to this seemingly technical prayer? There are those who have claimed that the reason goes back to the days of the Spanish Inquisition, when the conversos (Jews who chose to convert to Christianity rather than face expulsion or death, but remained faithful to Judaism at heart, and to some degree in observance too) would gather...

My Position(Plumb line) in your Life is about to take front seat and CENTER you in MY PERFECT WILL, for your hunger and thirst has been noticed by my Holy Angels observing you as a Mighty Warrior pushing through all resistance just to bring a drink of water to your King for I AM your ALL. So watch now as I open the Storehouses of Heaven for you for they can not be contained any longer as My blessings for you have overflowed the doors in such a manner they have burst open as the hinges of my mercies to...

"God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son" (Heb. 1:1-2). Scripture is the storehouse of divine revelation. For decades liberal theologians have misrepresented the Bible as merely a collection of man's religious thoughts and aspirations. But Scripture is much more than that. It is in fact divine revelation—God's self disclosure through His Spirit to the human authors. Man could never know God's identity, attributes, perspectives, or commands if God hadn't revealed them to him. Nor could man know...

“How shall we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:2). In Christ, believers are dead to sin. As a pastor, I frequently encounter people who profess to be believers, yet are living in all kinds of vile sins. The incongruity of people claiming to be believers while living in constant, unrepentant sin was not lost on the apostle Paul. In Romans 6:1 he asked the rhetorical question, “Are we to continue in sin that grace might increase?” In verse 2 he answered his own question by exclaiming “May it never be!”—the strongest, most emphatic negation in the...

“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. But be on guard; I have told you all things beforehand.” - Mark 13:21–23 False prophets and teachers present the greatest threat to the church of Jesus Christ. External enemies who brazenly attack God’s people are easy to identify, and their threat is simpler to discern and resist. Internal enemies, however, are not dealt with so easily. Wolves can go...

October 11, 2016 Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gal 5:1-6 Brothers and sisters:For freedom Christ set us free;so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. It is I, Paul, who am telling youthat if you have yourselves circumcised,Christ will be of no benefit to you.Once again I declare to every man who has himself circumcisedthat he is bound to observe the entire law.You are separated from Christ,you who are trying to be justified by law;you have fallen from grace.For through the Spirit, by faith, we await the hope of...

I have a lot of friends and readers who are baffled by what they consider to be the misguided “evangelical Christian support” for Donald Trump in America.It doesn’t make sense, especially in the light of the recent appalling locker room comments , revealed by Trump’s enemies(and by God, for there is nothing hidden that won’t be brought to light and nothing secret that won’t be shouted from the housetops!) . It just doesn’t make sense that although Trump is so manifestly immoral, Evangelicals would stick by him, even when the ‘brave’ leadership of the Republican party runs for the tall...

October 10, 2016 Monday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gal 4:22-24, 26-27, 31–5:1 Brothers and sisters:It is written that Abraham had two sons,one by the slave woman and the other by the freeborn woman.The son of the slave woman was born naturally,the son of the freeborn through a promise.Now this is an allegory.These women represent two covenants.One was from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery;this is Hagar.But the Jerusalem above is freeborn, and she is our mother.For it is written:Rejoice, you barren one who bore no children;break forth and shout, you who were not in...

A “flop.” That’s how Australian web site TheMusic.com.au disparaged “Let Hope Rise,” the concert documentary featuring Hillsong United, which debuted three weeks ago here in the United States. As of this past Friday, the film has earned $2.3 million. That’s little more than a tenth the sum earned over the same span by, say, “Blair Witch,” as Hillsong’s detractors would no doubt point out. But the success of “Let Hope Rise” cannot be measured by the standards of Mammon, the god worshiped by the secular world, but by the Great Commission the risen Christ issued to his followers: “Go into...

Behold, I am against thee, saith the LORD of hosts; and I will discover thy skirts upon thy face, and I will shew the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame.And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as a gazing stock.(Nahum 3:5-6)Can this obscene parody of an election sink any lower? ( I am afraid to ask…). Could it be that America is undergoing the judgment spoken of in Nahum? Our politicians, the “Elite class” who have selfishly constructed a system for themselves, (through unbelievably reckless levels of immigration),and to...

October 9, 2016 Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time Reading 1 2 Kgs 5:14-17 Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven timesat the word of Elisha, the man of God. His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child,and he was clean of his leprosy. Naaman returned with his whole retinue to the man of God. On his arrival he stood before Elisha and said,“Now I know that there is no God in all the earth,except in Israel.Please accept a gift from your servant.” Elisha replied, “As the LORD lives whom I serve, I will not...

"How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Thy word. . . . Thy word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against Thee" (Ps. 119:9, 11). Scripture is the source of spiritual victory. Many Christians struggle with spiritual defeat or recurring sins because they haven't learned to apply biblical principles to specific situations. Perhaps they don't know God's will because they haven't matured in the Word. Or maybe they know what He expects of them but disregard His counsel. In either case, the result is the same. Jesus Himself...

“Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin” (Psalm 51:2). True confession involves a proper understanding of sin. King David was a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 13:14). He was far from perfect, however. He was not an effective father (1 Kings 1:5-6), nor did he always trust God (1 Sam. 21:10—22:1). But by far his greatest failings were his horrible sins of adultery with Bathsheba and the subsequent murder of her husband (2 Sam. 11—12). After Nathan the prophet confronted him with his sin, David poured out his heart in confession to God....

October 8, 2016 Saturday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gal 3:22-29 Brothers and sisters:Scripture confined all things under the power of sin,that through faith in Jesus Christthe promise might be given to those who believe. Before faith came, we were held in custody under law,confined for the faith that was to be revealed.Consequently, the law was our disciplinarian for Christ,that we might be justified by faith.But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a disciplinarian.For through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus.For all of you who were baptized...