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jim

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    Book Recommendations

    in Literature

    Posted

    I think most people on here would enjoy reading Andrew Peterson's Wingfeather Saga.  It's a series of 4 books.  It's Fantasy Young Adult fiction.  If you combined the Chronicles of Narnia book series with Harry Potter book series...I think you'd end up with something like the Wingfeather Saga.  I've finished the first 3 books and I'm in the middle of book 4.  The book order goes like this:

     

    Book One: On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness

    Book Two: North, or be Eaten!

    Book Three: The Monster in the Hollows

    Book Four: The Warden & the Wolf King

     

    Really fun reading if you like Young Adult fantasy fiction!

     

    P.S.  The first book has a lot of silly names and play on words...I thought it was a little distracting...but there is not as much in books 2 through 4.

    Eight Twenty Eight

    in Religious Resource Forum

    Posted

    Eight Twenty Eight is christianaudio's free book of the month for the month of July.  If you want a free audio copy, you can download it this month for free at www.christianaudio.com.  They only thing the website will ask you for is an email.

    Post Your Favorite Lyric/Chorus of a Song.

    in Music

    Posted · Edited by jim

    I thought this would be a fun topic to start!  Post you're favorite Lyrics of a song.  DON'T POST THE ENTIRE SONG, just you're favorite part of it...your favorite line or verse or chorus.  Then cite the song title, singer, album, and publishing company.

     

    I think that as long as it is done this way, and no one quotes more than about half of a total song...then it's legal to do.  It's just like quoting a passage from a book.  

     

    If I'm wrong, then one of the moderators can feel free to delete this.  I don't want to start anything illegal   :)

     

    I'll start.

     

    “You know the more I think about you

    The more sense it makes

    Cause grease and love both cause heartache

    So I raise my glass and toast

    These things I want the most

    Though I probably never see

    I can't help but believing

    That if French fries were fat free

    And you still love meâ€

     

    From Alan Jackson’s song, “If French Fries were Fat Freeâ€, from the album “What I Do†Sony BGM Music.


    Here's another,

     

    “We are the pirates who don't do anything

    we just stay at home, and lie around

    and if you ask us, to do anything

    we'll just tell you, we don't do anything

     

    I've never plucked a rooster

    and I am not too good at ping-pong

    and I've never thrown my mashed potatoes up against the wall

    and I've never kissed a chipmunk,

    and I've never gotten head lice

    and I have never been to Boston in the fallâ€

     

    “We are the pirates who don’t do anything† From the Album “Very Silly Songsâ€.  Veggietales. Big Idea Productions.  (The band “Relient K†also has a great rock version of this song).

    Harry Potter Fan Cave

    in Harry Potter

    Posted

    I have all of the HP audiobooks.  I purchased all of them except for the last one on ebay as books on cassette.  It only cost about $20 total.  But the Deathly Hallows I bought as new audiobook on CD...and I think it cost me as much as the rest combined!!  I'm in the process of trying to convert them all to MP3s so I don't have to keep up with so much stuff.

     

    Regarding the room, me and Julie put together a 1,000 piece HP puzzle picture of Hedwig...then we used modgepodge (Poster glue) on it, and we had it framed.  I would love to have all of the HP puzzles and put them together in matching frames and line a hallway with them, but it takes a long time to finish those puzzles.  

    I also bought a signed NOAH picture of Emma, but I'm thinking it's probably a fake.  :(  How stupid can I be!!  I did win an official Noah Poster through one of the Twitter contests...but I got Russel Crowe...so I gave it away.

    A lesson from "Perks"

    in Religious Resource Forum

    Posted

    Beauty and the Beast

     

    I’m sure most of us are excited about Emma’s performance in the upcoming Disney musical of Beauty and the Beast!  So, what can we learn from this story?

     

    Of course it's a love story.  So we can learn about love.  But there's more going on than just the simple "Don't judge a book by its cover" message.  It’s interesting.  Now in English, we use the word “love†in many different ways.  We can make statements like,

     

    “I love the movies!â€
    “I love potato chips!â€

    “I love the Pittsburgh Steelers!â€

    “I love my dad!â€

     

    All of these can mean different things, yet we use the same word. 

     

    But most of the New Testament was written in Koine Greek.  In this language, there are a number of different words for love.  In “Beauty and the Beastâ€, we can see at least three different types of love portrayed.

     

    One type of love is called EROS (I can’t use a greek font, so I have to transliterate, but you get the idea).  Eros is the Greek word for a type of love that’s a sensual love.  We get the word erotic from this type of love.  It’s a physical attraction.  In “Beauty and the Beastâ€, this can be seen in the love that the village girls have for Gaston, as seen below.

     

     

    There’s nothing wrong with this type of love…it’s really physical attraction.  But it is somewhat superficial, and it can come and go.

     

     

    Another type of love is called PHILEO.  This is the love that we have for a friend.  In Romans 12:10, when the Bible exhorts believers to love each other, this is the word that is used.  An example from the movie would be the teapot, or the candlestick welcoming Belle, as seen below:

     

     

    This type of love is a true concern for the welfare of another.  You could really call it friendship.  In some ways it can be deeper than EROS, and in others there isn’t as much attraction.

     

     

    But then there’s a third type of love.  The word AGAPE is used in Greek to describe the highest level of love…a sacrificial love that gives all for another.  Where do we really see this in the movie?  It actually occurs right near the very beginning!  When Belle’s father was imprisoned by the Beast and she came and offered to be the Beast’s prisoner in his place…that’s Agape love, the willinging to sacrifice oneself.   A picture from the scene is below,

     

     

     

     

    We can clearly see all three of these loves expressed in the movie.  Of course, as Christians, the love that God has for us is AGAPE…He was willing to send His Son to die in our place.  That’s sacrificial love.

     

     

    Oh, and by the way, here’s one more interesting image from the movie.

     

     

    In this scene, we see that Beauty and the Beast is yet another movie where you can see an example of the atonement.  I don’t think it was intentional…but I think that God has placed this truth in our hearts, and that’s why we see it portrayed in art, again and again.  

     

    We see the atonement as follows: In the beginning of the movie, the Beast “sins†by not welcoming the lady with the flower.  Because of his sin, he is forced to be the beast.  It’s true love that breaks the spell…but before the spell is broken, the Beast has to die (he was stabbed by Gaston) and be reborn (true love makes him comes back into his original form as a human).  It’s really a reverse incarnation.  Truly, that is the “Tale that’s Old as Timeâ€.    :)

    Emma to star in Disney's 'Beauty and the Beast'

    in Emma's Movie Roles

    Posted

    I just bought the animated version from Disney to hold me over until then!

     

    Also, If "Beauty and the Beast" were performed by cats, Gaston would probably be a Siameze. According to a quick google search I did, the Siameze breed of cat has an especially large esophagus, which makes it produce more saliva...which would mean it would be "especially good at expectorating"! :)

    Emma Watson's "recommendations"

    in Emma General Chat

    Posted

    I saw Pacific Rim really recently, and i was quite disapointed.

    As my sister said : sometimes if feels like a great movie with great material (the robots are amazing!), and sometimes it feels like watching a low budget TV drama. 

    I thought the same thing about Pacific Rim.  The effects were amazing...but the plot...the monsters mostly came out one at a time and the people knew when it would happen.  

     

    The How it Should Have Ended people on youtube did a funny parody on Pacific Rim.  (I posted their parody of Harry Potter in another link).  The one for Pacific Rim can be found here:

     

    What Did You Dream About Last Night?

    in General Chat

    Posted

    I dreamt that me and my wife were living in this apartment complex and that I was throwing an (american) football around outside with some of the neighbors parents and their kids.  This huge black guy threw the ball towards me like a bullet and I missed it and it broke the back window of this red convertible car that happened to be mine in the dream (In real life I do not own a red convertible car, nor do I wish to).  Anyway, I went over and looked at it, and I said to the guy that threw it, "You know, since it's a convertible, this is really just clear plastic...I think we can fix this ourselves".  So, the big black guy hopped into the care with me and we drove to a fabric store and bought some clear plastic...and we used the "broken" window as a pattern, and I cut it with an exacto knife to make it the same shape.  

     

    When we got back, his wife said she knew how to sew...so I let her sew the plastic to the convertible top...after about 10 minutes she finished sewing it, and I said, "See, we fixed it ourselves, and we didn't even have to call the insurance company.  It looks good to me."  The couple shook their heads in agreement.  Then I woke up.  

     

    Seriously.  How weird is that.  I fix things in my dreams.

    end times

    in Religious Resource Forum

    Posted

    OK.  Time for the last one!  At this point, we have looked at Amillennialism, Postmillennialism, and Historical Premillennialism.

    This last post is about Dispensational Premillennialism.

     

    Dispensational Premillennialism is the most different from all of these three other views of the endtimes.  Unlike all of the others, most Dispensational Premillennialists believe that Christ will come back for his church BEFORE the time of tribulation.   (Some dispensational premillennialists believe that the church will go through some tribulation and then be taken back).

     

    Also, unlike all of the other three views, Dispensational Premillennialists call this coming back of Christ to get the church the rapture…and then after the 7 year period of tribulation, Jesus returns with His church in the Second Coming.

    IN OTHER WORDS, Dispensational Premillennialists are the only group of people that believe that the rapture and the second coming of Jesus are TWO SEPARATE EVENTS.

     

    Therefore, one criticism that is often brought up against Dispensational Premillennialism is to say that these people believe in Two Second comings…and this is not taught in scripture.

     

    Well…a Dispensational Premillennialist would respond and say something like,

     

    “No we don’t believe in two second comings…What we’re saying is that the rapture really isn’t a second coming because Jesus Christ appears and we meet him in the air…In other words, during the rapture Christ doesn’t come back the whole way down to Earth and actually touch the ground…Then the 7 years of tribulation occur…then Christ comes back with us at the end of the tribulation, and this is the true Second Coming…and we reign with Him during the millennium.â€

     

    Another complaint that will be brought against Dispensational Premillennialists is that nowhere in the Bible do you actually find the word rapture.

     

    But a Dispensational Premillennialist will show you different scriptures…and they will say something like,

     

    “Look, just like you won’t find the word Trinity in the Bible…that doesn’t mean the concept isn’t present.  Furthermore, they will say, it certainly seems like there are scriptures that suggest a rapture, and there are also scriptures that suggest that the rapture and second coming are two separate events.â€

     

    Let’s begin by looking at some scriptures that seem to suggest a rapture.

     

    I Thessalonians 4:13-5:11.

    13 And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope.14 For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died.15 We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves.17 Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever.18 So encourage each other with these words.
    Chapter 5

    1 Now concerning how and when all this will happen, dear brothers and sisters, we don’t really need to write you.2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night.3 When people are saying, “Everything is peaceful and secure,†then disaster will fall on them as suddenly as a pregnant woman’s labor pains begin. And there will be no escape.4 But you aren’t in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won’t be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief. 5 For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night.6 So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded.7 Night is the time when people sleep and drinkers get drunk.8 But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.9 For God chose to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us.10 Christ died for us so that, whether we are dead or alive when he returns, we can live with him forever.11 So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.  1 Thess 4:13 - 5:11 (NLT)

     

    What is going on here?  Well, Paul is generally thought to be the author of 1 & 2 Thessalonians.  These were letters to the church at Thessalonica.  Elsewhere in the Bible, Acts 17 tells us about Paul coming to Thessalonica…but he couldn’t stay long because there was a riot that forced him to leave…so soon Paul sent Timothy to be with these people.

     

    The church seemed to do pretty well…but then false teachers started to tell them that Jesus had already come back…therefore the believers in this area were worried that they missed it…and they were also worried about their loved ones that died…that they would somehow miss the second coming.

     

    So Paul writes to them in our scripture from 1 Thessalonians above …and what does he say really happens when Christ appears again?  (LOOK AT VERSES 16-17).  Pall says that those who are Christians who have died will be raised first…and then those that are living will rise and meet him in the air.  So in this instance…it appears that the believers (the true church), both dead and alive, are being taken up to Heaven with Christ.

     

    This is what Dispensational Premillennialists will call “The Raptureâ€.

     

    This, they will say, is different from the second coming…Look at Revelation 19:11-16,

     

    11 Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war.12 His eyes were like flames of fire, and on his head were many crowns. A name was written on him that no one understood except himself.13 He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his title was the Word of God.14 The armies of heaven, dressed in the finest of pure white linen, followed him on white horses.15 From his mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will release the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a winepress.16 On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.   Rev 19:11-16 (NLT)

     

    Most people believe that this passage here describes the second coming…it says the King of Kings and Lord of Lords comes back riding on this white horse.

     

    Now who is with him according to verse 14?

    The scripture says that the armies of heaven, dressed in finest pure white are with him.  Many premillennial dispensationalists will say,

     

    “See, these armies of heaven…this is really the believers, those that were already raptured up, and now they are coming back with Christ as their leader in the second coming.â€

     

    Furthermore…look back at 1 Thessalonians 5:2.  What does this verse tell us about the timing of the Rapture, when does it happen…when do believers get to meet Christ in the air?

    It says the day of the Lord’s return will be unexpectedly…like a thief in the night.  We don’t know the timing!

     

    On the other hand, look at Matthew 24:15-22,

     

    15 â€œThe day is coming when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about—the sacrilegious object that causes desecration standing in the Holy Place.†(Reader, pay attention!)16 â€œThen those in Judea must flee to the hills.17 A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack.18 A person out in the field must not return even to get a coat.19 How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for nursing mothers in those days.20 And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath.21 For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again.22 In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.   Matt 24:15-22 (NLT)

     

    Here, it appears as if Jesus is talking about a time of tribulation…then look at verses 29-30 from Matthew 24….

     

    29 â€œImmediately after the anguish of those days,
    the sun will be darkened, the moon will give no light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
    30 And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  Matt 24:29-30 (NLT)

     

    Here, After Jesus finishes talking about the tribulation…he says immediately after the anguish of those days…the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens…and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

     

    Do you see what we’re getting at here?  Scripture seems to suggest that there’s one event in which believers will be caught up to meet Jesus in the air…and of this event no one will know the timing of it…they call this the rapture. 

     

    And then there is this second event that seems to be implied by the other scriptures…one in which Christ returns with His church to the Earth…and we’re told that this clearly happens at the end of the period of tribulation.  Dispensational Premillennialists will call this “The Second Comingâ€.

     

    Now, beyond believing that the church is raptured up before the tribulation, and believing that the rapture and second coming are two distinct events and separate events, there is also another belief that separates Dispensational Premillennialism from all of the other views.  And this is the dispensational belief that God still has work to do and promises to fulfill with Israel.

     

    Remember in the last post…we said that HISTORICAL PREMILLENNIALISM teaches that God has always only had one people.  Historical Premillennialism says that in the OT people were saved by looking forward to a coming Messiah…and that as New Testament believers, we are saved by looking back.

     

    Dispensational Premillennialism is different.  Dispensational Premillennialists say that God has worked through time with different purposes and different groups of people.

     

    So a Dispensationalist will say that God worked with Promises to the Patriarchs…these were people like Abraham, Moses, and Noah…he made promise to these people.  Remember some of these promises…Abraham was promised descendants…Noah was promised that God would never again to destroy the earth with Water…Moses was promised that the Lord would redeem His people.  God also promised David that the Messiah would come from his line.  In other words, God works in different ways at different times through promises he makes to his people.

     

    The New International Dictionary of the Bible puts it this way, it says that a dispensation may be defined as a covenantal period during which faith in Christ is manifested by a distinct form of ceremonial obedience…

     

    So in the Old Testament how did the people of Israel showed their commitment to God?  They showed it through circumcision and obedience to the Levitical law.

     

    Now regardless of how many dispensations the different groups believe in…the bottom line is that Dispensational Premillennialists will say that God still has promises to fulfill to the patriarchs…and Israel.

    For example, Genesis 15:18 says,

     

    18 So the Lord made a covenant with Abram that day and said, “I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River—19 the land now occupied by the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites,20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.†Gen 15:18-21 (NLT)

     

    What Dispenational Premillennialists will say is that even Israel in it’s heyday under Solomon…it never had this much territory…and so there must be a time in the future in which God keeps this promise to Israel.  They will say…look it began in 1948 when Israel was re-established…and eventually Israel will expand.

     

    Furthermore, what Dispensational Premillennialists will says is that part of the purpose of the Rapture is going to be getting the church up and out of the way…(they might not put it that way…but that’s the idea)…so that God can complete his work with Israel, literally fulfilling all of these promises during the time of tribulation.

     

    Dispensational Premillennialism is the most popular view of the endtimes among Christians today.  However, this view is also the newest view…having begun only about 200 years ago.  In addition, out of all the four views of the endtimes, it’s the Dispensational Premillennialists that get most worked up over current events.  Many see things happening, and they try and tie them in with the end times. 

     

    So that’s Dispensational Premillennialism in a nutshell.

     

    That’s all of the major views.

    end times

    in Religious Resource Forum

    Posted

    Historical Premillennialism

     

    And now we come to Historical Premillennialism.  To understand HP (see what I did there!) …let’s think about some movies…in the following movies, who was the main character and what did they have to go through to triumph in the end?

     

    *Lion King. 

    Simba was the main character, right?  He had to overcome who?  His uncle Scar and the heinnas…Simba had to do this before he could take his throne.

    *It’s a Wonderful life.

    George Bailey was the main character, right?  He had to overcome who and what?  He had to overcome his assistant losing $5,000 dollars and Mr. Potter before Bailey Buildings and Loans could be successful.

    *Happy Feet.

    Main character is Mumble.  Mumble had to overcome not being able to sing before he could marry the love of his life, right?

     

    In a lot of our life…people have to overcome adversity before ultimate triumph.  This idea is expressed in the endtimes view of Historical Premillenialism.

     

    Now, with Amillennialism, Postmillinialism, and Historical Premillinialism…all of these views have the church going either currently experiencing the tribulation, having experienced the tribulation in the past, or in the case of Historical Premillianialism, going to go through the tribulation in the future…but all of these three views have the church going through some kind of tribulation before the second coming of Christ.

     

    And the argument that these people often make is that suffering often leads to repentance.  As it is stated in Revelation 2:22-23,

     

    22 â€œTherefore, I will throw her on a bed of suffering, and those who commit adultery with her will suffer greatly unless they repent and turn away from her evil deeds.23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am the one who searches out the thoughts and intentions of every person. And I will give to each of you whatever you deserve.   Rev 2:22-23 (NLT)

     

    In this passage, John was writing to the church at Thyatira…and he was saying what…people will suffer greatly unless they repent.  Amillennialism, Postmillennialism, and Historical Premillennialism all hold that the church (believers) will go through the tribulation.

     

    So What’s the difference between these views?

    Amillinialism – basically the millennium is symbolic, and the church experiences the tribulation any time it’s persecuted.

    Postmillenialism – most of these people are preterists…and they believe that most of the events of the tribulation took place around 70ad with the destruction of the temple.

    And Now today…Historical Premillennialism – this group of people believes that the church will go through the rapture sometime IN THE FUTURE, before the second coming of Christ.

     

    Historical Premillennialism is different, however, from Amillennialism and Postmillennialism, because people that accept Historical Premillennialism believe that Christ will return at the end of the tribulation, and He will institute a literal 1,000 year millennium.

     

    So PRE-millenialism…Christ comes back BEFORE the millennium.

     

    Now, the last view that I’ll write a separate post about is Dispensational Premillennialism.  What I want to say here is that there are some differences between these two views.

     

    Historical Premillenialism differs from Dispensational premillennialsm in two major ways.

     

    FIRST OF ALL…most dispensational premillennialists, they believe that believers are raptured out…they are caught up to be with Christ, either before the tribulation, or at the midpoint of the tribulation.

     

    Historical Premillennialists, on the other hand, believe that the church goes through the ENTIRE tribulation.  And then Christ will return and institute the millennium.

     

    There’s also a second way in which they differ as well.

     

    Historical Premillennialists believe that references to Israel in the book of Revelation are symbolic, and refer to the church.

     

    For example,  Romans 9:6-8 says,

     

    6 Well then, has God failed to fulfill his promise to Israel? No, for not all who are born into the nation of Israel are truly members of God’s people!7 Being descendants of Abraham doesn’t make them truly Abraham’s children. For the Scriptures say, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted,†though Abraham had other children, too.8 This means that Abraham’s physical descendants are not necessarily children of God. Only the children of the promise are considered to be Abraham’s children.   Romans 9:6-8 (NLT)

     

    And Matthew 3:7-9 says,

    But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to watch him baptize, he denounced them. “You brood of snakes!†he exclaimed. “Who warned you to flee God’s coming wrath?8 Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God.9 Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones. Matt 3:7-9 (NLT)

     

    Historical Premillennialists will make the argument that God has only really had one set of children…the OT Jews were saved by looking forward to a coming Messiah…Today, Christians are saved by looking back upon the finished work of Christ…

     

    Dispensational Premillennialists view Israel and the Jews and the church as two separate groups.

     

    But the main difference is that Historical Premillennialists make the argument that the saints are on Earth during the tribulation – from passages like Revelation 13:7…while Dispensational Premillennialists will make the argument that the church will be raptured up…from passages like 1 Thessalonians 4:17.

     

    So there you have it.  Historical Premillennialism.

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