so here we go. Why do we say things like “I promise”, or “I give you my word” or “I swear it’s the truth”? do we commonly speak untruths? and then when we really mean it have to add the caveat of “I promise” when we say we will or wont do something is there some established pattern where the other person assumes we don’t mean it unless we swear?

I really find it ironic when a person promises not to lie anymore.

I personally take issue with the whole marriage contract and swearing to love “till death do us part”. However symbolic the ceremony and the “contract/License” is, it is empty w/o truth behind it. With the divorce rate at over %50 (even among “Christians”) I’m pretty sure even promises made before God an witnesses don’t really hold much water. Or when we testify in court we swear to tell the truth, but how many perjure themselves?

Then in parenting I’ve learned to never promise anything. Whether reward or punishment it is established in my house, I will do what I say to the best of my ability. This makes setting of standards and discipline pretty easy. There are established outcomes for certain behaviors. I never say “I promise if you do that one more time I will punish you”. My children know this about me. they also know if I say I will take them somewhere, or do something, or play a game. I will do everything in my power to keep my word.

So in closing, Do you find yourself saying “I promise” a lot? or “I swear”? or is everything you speak considered to be truth as far as you can control it?

If we focus on speaking truth, acting in truth, people will know the instances of us being wrong is not lying but simply err, or circumstances.

Matt 5:36-37 do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’;

who’s your favorite sports star, what can you tell me about him, how much do you know about him how many details?

who’s you favorite sports team?? do you miss any of their games? do you defend them with a passion …ever throw fists over it?

what is your favorite sport?? how well do you know that sport, the rules , the plays, the teams? how much time do you spend keeping up on that sport??

now I ask,

who’s your God? what can you tell me about him, how much do you know about him? how many details?

How well do you know the Gospel? do you miss a chance to learn it? ? do you defend it with a passion …ever lose friends over it?

How Much do you love the Bible? How well do you know the stories, the characters, How much time do you spend being in it? living what it teaches?

I’m as guilty as the next,. in fact maybe as of just recently i can tell you more about the bible than I can about Star Trek. I might be able to tell you more about the characters in the bible than the characters on Lost.

just saying maybe we need to refocus on what we worship

Is Allah the God of the Bible? Do Muslims and Christians Worship the Same God?

Islam has become a major force in the world today. Because they believe in a few of the things Christians and Jews do, especially monotheism (one God), there is question as to whether Allah and the Judeo-Christian God are the same.

Son of God? Who is God?

Let’s start by looking at the God of the Bible. He is called Elohim when the Godhead is emphasized, and Yahweh when referring to His nature as one god.

This means that God shows Himself in three distinct ways, yet He is one God. If a man is married with children, and his father is living, he behaves (or, should behave) in a different manner toward his father than he does toward his wife, and in yet another way toward small children. He is still the same man. Another example is an egg – the yolk, the egg white, and the shell are all part of the egg. And yet, they are distinct. Finally, there is water. The chemical formula for it is H2O. H2O exists as a solid, liquid and gas all at the same time, in different part of the world.

So, we see the Godhead – what some call the Trinity – is very clear. God manifests Himself as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. God is eternally pre-existent in the spirit (non-physical) realm, in all three persons. In other words, God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit were all part of Creation. (Ge. 1:1-2, John 1:1-3, Col. Col. 1:16-17) God the Son appears in the Old Testament – before His miraculous birth via the Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary – a number of times as the Angel of the Lord. This is how He wrestled with Jacob, how He likely made the animal skins for Adam and Eve, and so on.

The Koran/Qur‘an, on the other hand, makes it very clear that Muslims believe Allah has no son. The idea of Allah having a son is “blasphemous” and a “monstrous falsehood” (18:46, 9:30-31) to them. Muslims are told, “[F]ight everyone who rejects Islam, even Christians and Jews, until they pay regular financial tribute with willing submission and feel themselves completely subjected to their Islamic conquerors.” (9:29) While the Koran/Qur’an says to say that they are the same (29:46), elsewhere it considers this a lie, and in fact states that Christians and Jews are the “worst creatures on earth.” (98:6) It says that Allah is “too majestic” to have a son. (4:171-172)

This goes opposite the Bible in a few ways.

First, Jesus commands us to love our enemies, and bless them that despitefully use us. (Mat. 5:44, etc.) We are to be known by our love, and not fight each other. Many places, that great unconditional love is proclaimed. Yes, evil people who refused to follow Jesus have tried to conquer claiming to be doing it for God, any a close reading of the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ commanded His followers to show Godly compassion to others. God is longsuffering toward us; while he is holy and must punish sin, He is also faithful to save the souls of any who call upon Him, and take them to His perfect heaven, even if – like the thief on the cross – they have forfeited their chances in this world. Sin has consequences, but God is love.

Second, it goes against the Bible’s insistence that Jesus is totally equal with God. He and the Father are one. (John 10:30) he is God’s only begotten Son (John 3:16, etc.), which means that He is of the same substance – that’s what Son of God means. Yes, there is the relational aspect as humans understand it – but Jesus is never seen, in the Bible, as being inferior. Everywhere, He is shown to be the one and only God. He simply chose to step down from His Heavenly throne to this world, in order to die for our sins, and rose from the death, defeating the devil once and for all.

A few other aspects:

The one above is crucial. There are too many differences to cover here, but a topical study of the Koran/Qur’an would be quite rewarding. For now, let‘s look at just a few short ones, which you may view more yourself:

Personal God of love:

That part about being too majestic comes from their concept that God can‘t be approached. However, the Bible says otherwise. God is very personal, and in fact, wants a personal relationship with each of us. He wants us to take all our cares and worries and burdens to Him. (Mat. 11:28-30, 1 Peter 5:7, etc.). He understands all of what we go through (Heb. 4:15-16), because He lived a sinless life, bearing our sins (1 Peter 2:24) – so He lived, but never sinned, thus He can help us through whatever we’re tempted by.

He is a personal God of love, too – this means He is always moved with compassion and will not only never tempt us beyond what we are able, he will provide a way out for us. He will lovingly guide us according to what is best for each of us.

Sacrifice for our sins:

A great archaeologist named William Ramsey set out to prove the Bible wrong, and wound up finding Luke to be an incredible historian who got all his facts right. One of those facts that Luke and the other Bible writers note is that Jesus willing gave himself for us. Because he was God, He could have come down from the cross – He could have called 10,000 angels. Yes, another man had to carry the cross part of the way, but this was very common – quite a few people never survived the scourging before they were crucified, and Jesus didn’t have the strong, broad shoulders that the thieves who were crucified often had. Jesus clearly died on that cross, then rose from the dead. Indeed, among early believers were likely his two sons – otherwise, it’s not likely they would have been mentioned.

Compassion, not honor:

Among some Muslims, there is a form of law called sharia,. This law boasts no compassion when it comes to the treatment of women. It is all about honor. On the other hand, jesus and His followers insisted that women be honored, and when he came across an adulteress, He pardoned her. Jesus constantly forgave sins.

It can be argued, of course, that this law – like some unorthodox Christian teachings – isn’t in the Koran/Qur’an. What’s important, though, is that believers in Christianity are admonished to loves their wives as Christ loved the church. And, if someone sins against another, the only one at fault is the one who sinned, not the victim. God consistently has compassion on those who suffer. The Bible also clearly says that men should love their wives as Christ loved the church (Eph. 5:25); and He was constantly giving Himself for it.

Indeed, elsewhere, we read that God is no respecter of persons, and that all are equal in Christ Jesus (Gal. 3:28) – there is no disparity between man and woman, except in how men are called to be the spiritual leaders. But, this doesn’t give man the right to walk all over a woman, and when the man won’t or can’t lead a family spiritually, a woman can still become great for doing so. (2 Kings 4:8 onward)

Another excellent article, which contains facts from The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Edition 15, Volumes 22 & 25, discussing how the ecumenical movement has discusses things such as the origin of Islam. There is also much evidence for the truths of the Old Testament, and the people mentioned therein – evidence which is being destroyed.

However, the important thing to remember is this:

The God of the Bible, the Creator and sustainer, loves you. He is not the same as that of Islam. Instead, He is a personal, loving, and caring God, who deliberately came to this world and died on the cross, rising from the dead so we could go to Heaven.

He doesn’t require anything of us but our faith. To get to Heaven, one must: A. Admit your status as a sinner, that you fall short of God’s perfect glory, and that this means you can’t get into His perfect heaven on your own; B. Believe that Jesus Christ, God in flesh, was born of a virgin, took the punishment for your sins when He died on the cross, and then rose victoriously from the dead; and, C. Choose to repent of your sins – that is, agree with god about your sin – and receive him as your Savior by simple faith. For by grace are ye saved by faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God – not of works, lest any man should boast. (Eph. 2:8-9)

God will never just weigh things in a balance the way other religions claim. No sin at all can get into heaven. The Bible is true when it says, “Ye must be born again.” (John 3:3) This concept is not present is Islam. It is the truth that God, in His perfect love, only wants us to come to Him and accept that we need Him to forgive us and save us, and to then receive that forgiveness by faith, letting Him make us new on the inside. Then, we will no longer be slaves to self, but we will be free. And, we can be certain – because, He wants us to be sure, and to know that just by believing – receiving Him by faith (John 20:31, 1 John 5:13) – we can have life forever with Him, now and in Heaven, where nobody suffers, nobody feels pain, nobody dies, and where nobody can imagine the wonders that await us.

We tend to focus on our loved ones here on earth when Valentine’s Day comes around. What about our Heavenly Father? He should be at the top of our list of Valentines.
My Father, Son, and Holy Spirit gave His love to us before anyone did. He brought us to life, touched our hearts, and gave us the power of choice. We should choose, without having to consider, that He receive our love first. Our Valentine Lord looks upon us with the utmost of love and compassion. He shares with us when we are too selfish or greedy to put Him first. He touches us when we whine and complain, when we pray for forgiveness, and when we feel there is no love left for us from anyone. He offers a love that is everlasting.
Yes, today should be an easy day for us indeed. A day to humble ourselves and gracefully bow before our first Valentine of all. Lift up your hearts, pour out your thankfulness, and open your arms to receive the Almighty Love.
It’s all well and good to give gifts and cards to our loved ones. We should be grateful and should show them that we care. For us, seeing is believing. Everyone wants to be accepted and hugged, kissed and shown love. It’s not a bad thing to want to lift the spirits of the people in our lives. We were given these priceless gifts by God. Of course He wants us to show our appreciation to them as well as to Him. Read 1John 4:8 “He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”

Other scriptures that remind us of God’s love and how He wants us to love (yes, loving God also means loving the way He wants us to love others) are:
1John 4:10, 1John 4:20, Leviticus 19:18, Luke 6:27 There are more scriptures, of course, just look in your concordance in your Bible under the word “love”.
Although it is usually John 3:16 that is the focus of how God loves us, He also shows us His love in many other ways. Sometimes these ways are subtle and seem more like punishment than love. Have you ever been late to work only to realize that if you hadn’t been late you could’ve been in a wreck? Have you ever prayed for something you didn’t get only to realize later why it was better that you didn’t get it? Have you ever been hurt by someone who told you a blatant truth you didn’t want to hear only to realize later that the person was right and your life has improved because of it? Sometimes when we think God must hate us, we need to remember that we are seeing our present selfish desires, not the long-reaching wisdom and love of our Lord.
Human love can be blind. God’s love is never blind. He knows us better than we know ourselves. So, today I say, “Happy Valentine’s Day, God! Thank you for knowing me best.”

A recent finding by archaeologists shows the Bible to be older than many liberal scholars thought. These scholars base their views on man’s thinking. However, the thinking of imperfect man has been proven wrong time and again. Meanwhile, the Bible – which is the Word of God – is perfect and timeless.

The recent finding – written Hebrew containing some of the Law – is among many that sink myths made popular by people who do not want to accept God’s authority in their lives. The desire to see people as all-important is not a new one. In fact, it is as old as time itself. However, it’s important to understand that we are imperfect. And, imperfect people can never create a perfect theory, system, or anything, without relying totally on God to do it.

One of the main theories this finding debunks is that written Hebrew came later. This is based on peoples’ prejudices. People came up with this theory because they wanted to feel superior. If they could say a people group had writing later than them, it might make them feel better.

However, the claim itself of Hebrew being a more recent language is based on the fact that it hadn’t been found to be any earlier. This is like saying, “Because I can’t see across the ocean, there is nothing there.” First, the lack of evidence for something doesn’t prove that it doesn’t exist. All it shows is there isn’t any evidence right now. Second, you have proof each time you meet someone from across the sea. Someone might say, “They could be lying,” but if they bear evidence – such as souvenirs from faraway countires – you would know they are telling the truth.

The Bible has always had that evidence. Joshua and the Israelites brought the written Penteteuch (the first five books of the Bible) into the Promised Land when they settled it. The written Word of God is referred to numerous times in Scripture by people who wrote centuries before Christ. the law was brought out by Josiah, King of Israel, and read before the people decades before the fall of Jerusalem.

The witness of the writers of Scripture shows that the written Word of God was around for centuries before some people like to say it was. This is because God inspired the people to write it. This means that the Holy Spirit moved the writers to write what God wanted them to write, while still allowing them to keep their own individual personalities and styles.

There will always be people who try to scoff. but, this not only shows Hebrew to have been written earlier than liberal scholars thought, it is among a number of findings lately that have proved the existence of King David. Other famous archaeological digs have shown other evidence of the existence of people and groups who existed in Biblical times.

The Bible is clearly very old. The liberal scholars have been wrong consistently when trying to date it. The same holds true with their idea of New Testament dates. The books of the New Testament were all written within the first decades after Jesus’ death, the last being around 90-95 A.D.. In fact, some scholars believe that one of the Dead Sea Scrollsmay contain a small portion of the Gospel of Mark.

Even if it doesn’t, it’s imprortant to realize that the Bible can be relied upon as the absolute Word of God. It should not be torn apart by textual critics. It should be accepted for what it is – the inspired, inerrant Wordof God which was written by the contemporaries of those alive at the time events took place, be they Old or New Testament. the witness of the Bible is true in every area. Especially in that of needing to trust in Jesus Christ, God in flesh, as the sinless substitute for our sins. he suffered, bled, and died for our sins, and rose from the dead, because mankkind is imperfect; and has been since the beginning, when sin was brought intot he world, and death by sin.

However, thankfully, while man is imperfect, God is perfect, and has given us His Word.