Christian Charity at Christmas

Christmas, being celebrated by 93% of Canadians, is a perfect time of the year to practice the 9 Christian virtues as described in Galations 5:22-23

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."

There are well worn platitudes about all of these.

Does Santa and commercial Christmas necessarily include or mandate that some or all of these Christian virtues will be achieved?

I want to go beyond these platitudes and knee-jerk responses in this Blog posting.

Consider the Parable of the Good Samaratin of Luke 10:25-37.  Unlike the Pharisee and the Levite who passed by a badly injured victim of crime without stopping, the Samaritin doesn't turn a blind eye to the inconvenient victim of robbery, left for dead at the side of the road.  The Samaratin finds, gives immediate First Aid.  Next, the Samaratin carries the Jewish victim to the nearest inn, nurses him through the night.  In the morning, the Samaratin pays the innkeeper a deposit worth 2 danari, asking the innkeeper to continue caring for the victim after the Samaratin goes, and if the innkeeper incurs even more expenses, the Samaratin will reimburse the innkeeper upon his return.

Wow!  The Samaratin treats the Jewish stranger as if he was the most loved member of his family.

Recently, archeologists found a wooden sign for a roadside inn from the time of Jesus, where the going inn rate was 1/32 of a danari for a one night stay.  On this basis, the Samaritin paid for the Jewish crime victim's room and lodging for 64 nights, more than 2 months, then offered even more if required.

For typical hotel today, we'd usually pay about $100.00 per night, plus another $100 for 3 meal per day at the hotel, for a total of $200 per day.  At 64 nights, the total equivalent bill would be $12,800.00 today.

I have never done anything close to this as charity for my fellow human beings.  The best I can offer as evidence of charity is buying lunch for a homeless person, and groceries for another person panhandling on the street (they had an apartment where they could cook).

Many of us have done "small acts of random kindness", perhaps paying for the coffee of the stranger in line behind us at the drive-through window.  I am all in favor of these opportunities of demonstrating humanity in a crazy, sinful world.

We may have felt smug at the time of this charitable act, but how does this small act of random kindness compare to the Good Samaratin?  If we repeated these small acts every waking hour  for the entire year (ie. 12 times per day X 365 days per year) it would be equivalent to the Good Samaratin's actions.  Who does that today?

No me, how about you?

I now see my charitable actions of the past were nothing compared to the Good Samaratin.  The Good Samaratin gave the equivalent of 320 times greater than my greatest charity.  Our annual tithe doesn't even cover what the Good Samaratin willingly paid for his culturally imposed enemy of that day (ie. the Jews).

I am nothing compared to the Good Samaratin.  The greatest charity I have ever done is nothing when compared to the Good Samaratin.

The Good Samaratin was under the Law, and did the required charity and brotherly love for neighbours towards a sworn enemy (ie. a Jew).

Even though I fancy myself a Born Again Christian, I don't meet the standard of the Law, let alone the heightened interpretation of the Law provided by Jesus during His Sermon on the Mount.

Do I ever see myself meeting this high standard?

I don't know.  If any of us were suddenly thrust into a similar situation today, would most of us shrink into the night after dialing 911?  Would we comfort and care for the victim while awaiting the ambulance, even if it meant getting a stranger's blood on our hands &/or clothes?  Would we push through the barriers of patient confidentiality in the formal medical system so as to ensure the system is taking good care of the crime victim we had discovered?  Would we intervene and advocate for the patient if we could identify some shortfall, or crack in the health care system into which the victim had fallen?  Would we fund some optional treatment that was withheld from the victim but that would enhance his recovery if someone authorized it and funded it?

I am afraid I would fail the full challenge.  How about you?

My only hope is to continue my voyage of learning from and following the Bible, and the real life examples modeled by Jesus Christ.

Thank God that I can earn salvation through believing in the blood of Jesus Christ, and removing iniquity from my life.

In the interim, I must rely on my confession, just like the publican did, that I am a sinner, that I fall short of God's standard as described in God's 26 Commandment for Christians, and fall short of the example provided by Jesus' parable of the Good Samaratin.

Putting Christ Back Into Christmas

I wish everybody "Merry Christmas"!

Only 67.3% of Canadians were associated with a Christian religion in 2011.

In spite of that, approximately 93% of people in USA and 92% in Canada celebrate Christmas with their family in 2019.

However, only 73% feel that Christmas is a religious holiday, down from 82% a decade ago.

Smaller still is the number of people who are "Rapture Ready" True Christians, likely less than 5% of N. American population who will make it to Heaven.

I have heard people belly ache (and felt it myself at times past)  about the commercialization of Christmas, and the questionable family traditions adding to that feeding frenzy.

Have you thought about how much of God's family traditions are incorporated into your family traditions?

Have you thought about, or wished you could somehow rewind the tape, and put some more Christ back into your family Christmas celebrations?

Before you shrug your shoulders, say "Oh well!", and flip the channel to something more interesting, here is an opportunity to actually do something about your important thoughts about restoring Christ to Christmas.

During your family gathering, for those who are brave, when there is a lull in the conversations, that is your cue to speak up and say in a loud, confident voice:

 "I have an important question for everybody..."

If you said it loud enough the first time, all heads will turn and silence will soon follow.  If not, repeat it again, more forcefully.

When you have everybody's attention, I suggest as follows:

"I am glad to see everybody who came together as a family for Christmas.  I also think about those who didn't make it to this year's celebration.

While I enjoy our family traditions, I think we need to put more Christ back into our family's Christmas celebrations.

I found this article on the Internet.  I'd like to read it out loud to all of you.  If I say something that causes you to have an important thought, please speak up immediately and share your thoughts with all of us.  As soon as you interrupt me, I will stop reading, and we will all listen to your thoughts.  When we are finished discussing your ideas, I'll continue reading.

Is everybody OK with what I have proposed?"

Here is the document I suggest you read out loud:

God's Love & His 26 Commandments for Christians

Please leave your comments below on what you decided to do, your reasons, and what was the end result.  This will be an interesting experiment.

God's 26 Commandments for Christians

God's 26 Commandments for Christians is a summary of 300+ Bible verses, arranged into 26 commandments (Exodus 20 for Commandments 1-10, plus 16 additional commandments from Jesus' teachings, and other important Bible verses); all of which are essential to Salvation, and being an obedient, True Christian.

This document is intended for those interested in becoming a Christian, luke-warm Christians who want to get serious, deceived Christians who want to take the scales away from their eyes and open their ears, and veteran Christians who want to further renew and strengthen their faith.

The final and ultimate source is the Bible.  This document follows the Bible, and is believed to be fully compliant with all Bible teachings.

This is Version 36, a new update as of 2024-3-17, re-written with the helpful suggestions of many that were received over the last few months.

I have also added some new words to the intro, so that people don't stop reading in the first sentence; hopefully considering the whole document.

The document is stored in this Blog's Document section (see "Documents" tab at the top of this Blog ), so it is easy to find later on when this introductory posting is buried someplace in ancient memories.

Please provide me your comments & feedback so I can continue the improvement process.

This Blog posting can also be accessed by the simple shortcut:   https://bit.ly/GodLaw

Crucifixion & Resurrection Timeline

At our Sabbath Bible study, we tried to make sense of the timeline for the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  This has been debated and studied for almost 2,000 years.  Have we got it figured out yet?

In the Biblical sequence under analysis in this Blog posting, there are  5 main steps:

• Crucifixion
• Death
• Burial
• Resurrection
• Jesus' conversation on the Road to Emmaus

I think we made excellent progress during the Bible study, and will add some new datapoints and viewpoints through this Blog posting.  However  you will have to judge for yourself.

A Roman Catholic friend sent me two links for the RC viewpoint on this matter.  I have never understood how they figured that Jesus was crucified on Friday and resurrected on Sunday, yet claim He was in the heart of the Earth for 3 days and 3 nights.

There are a number of Bible verses we must consider (searched Bible for "third day" and "three days", then selected those that prophesied about Jesus, &/or His crucifixion &/or His resurrection, producing the following 22 references:

[Jon 1:17 KJV] 17 Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. 

[Mat 12:40 KJV] 40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 

[Mat 16:21 KJV] 21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. 

[Mat 17:23 KJV] 23 And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry. 

[Mat 20:19 KJV] 19 And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify [him]: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Mat 26:61 KJV] 61 And said, This [fellow] said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days. 

[Mat 27:40 KJV] 40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest [it] in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. 

[Mat 27:63-64 KJV] 63 Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. 64 Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first. 

[Mar 8:31 KJV] 31 And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and [of] the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

[Mar 9:31 KJV] 31 For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. 

[Mar 10:34 KJV] 34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Mar 14:58 KJV] 58 We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands. 

[Mar 15:29 KJV] 29 And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest [it] in three days, 

[Luk 9:22 KJV] 22 Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day. 

[Luk 13:32 KJV] 32 And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third [day] I shall be perfected. 

[Luk 18:33 KJV] 33 And they shall scourge [him], and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Luk 24:7 KJV] 7 Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. 

[Luk 24:21 KJV] 21 But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done. 

[Luk 24:46 KJV] 46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: 

[Jhn 2:19-20 KJV] 19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? 

[Act 10:40 KJV] 40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; 

[1Co 15:4 KJV] 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Categorizing all the 22 verses above, we have:

• 13 verses of "... the third day..."
   
• 4 verses of "... in three days..." 

• 2 verses of "... three days and three nights ..."
  
• 2 verses of "... after three days..."
   
• 1 verse of "... until the third day..."
   
• 1 verse of "... within three days ..."

Counting of days between two events has been an age-old problem.  Should you count the day on which the first event occurred, or start counting the day after the first event?  Similarly, should you count the day on which the 2nd event occurred, or just the full days BETWEEN the two events, and EXCLUDING the days of both the first and second events?

Growing tired of these endless arguments, most courts and contracts clearly specify how the counting of days is to be done.  Usually the day of the first event is not counted, and the day of the second event is not counted, so we generally count exclusive of the beginning and exclusive of the end.

God and His Bible has not specifically stated, as far as I can find.

What was Jewish custom at the time of writing the Bible?  I don't think that is important.  Would God allow the misguided and sinful viewpoints of the Pharisees to be referenced and used in the Bible?  God's Bible is God breathed, so is God's Word, and truth.  Therefore I am not impressed, nor guided by what the contemporary pagan customs might have been at that time.  If a Pharisee told me I should zig, then likely zagging is the correct answer.

If we were reading Flavius Josephus, or a Greek or Roman historian, then yes, local context and customs would be important so as to correctly understand the text.

In the 2 verses that say "...after three days...", we should remember that the next day, as well as "100 days after" are both "after" the first event.

Some of these verses do not directly relate to Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection.  Removing false testimony and secondary issues, keeping only the prophecies and eye witness accounts about Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection, we have the following verses:

[Mat 12:40 KJV] 40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 

[Mat 16:21 KJV] 21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. 

[Mat 17:23 KJV] 23 And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry. 

[Mat 20:19 KJV] 19 And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify [him]: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Mar 8:31 KJV] 31 And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and [of] the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

[Mar 9:31 KJV] 31 For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. 

[Mar 10:34 KJV] 34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Luk 9:22 KJV] 22 Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day. 

[Luk 18:33 KJV] 33 And they shall scourge [him], and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Luk 24:7 KJV] 7 Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. 

[Luk 24:46 KJV] 46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: 

[Jhn 2:19-20 KJV] 19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? 

[Act 10:40 KJV] 40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; 

[1Co 15:4 KJV] 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Now when we categorize and count the frequency for these relevant verses, we have:

• 11 verses of "... the third day..."
   
• 1 verses of "... in three days..." 

• 1 verses of "... three days and three nights ..."
  
• 1 verses of "... after three days..."

Mark 8:31 is the verse where we find "... after three days ...".  Is it just an anomaly in the KJV and/or English translations?  The KJV Greek uses G3326 meta which means next, after, or following, so the English seems correct.  What do other Biblical versions say?

Courtesy of Bible Hub we have the 28 most common versions of the Bible for Mark 8:31 as follows:

New International Version
He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. 

New Living Translation
Then Jesus began to tell them that the Son of Man must suffer many terrible things and be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but three days later he would rise from the dead. 

English Standard Version
And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Berean Study Bible
Then He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and that He must be killed and after three days rise again. 

Berean Literal Bible
And He began to teach them that it is necessary for the Son of Man to suffer many things, and to be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and to be killed, and after three days to rise again. 

New American Standard Bible
And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

New King James Version
And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

King James Bible
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Christian Standard Bible
Then he began to teach them that it was necessary for the Son of Man to suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and rise after three days. 

Contemporary English Version
Jesus began telling his disciples what would happen to him. He said, "The nation's leaders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law of Moses will make the Son of Man suffer terribly. He will be rejected and killed, but three days later he will rise to life." 

Good News Translation
Then Jesus began to teach his disciples: "The Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. He will be put to death, but three days later he will rise to life." 

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Then He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, be killed, and rise after three days. 

International Standard Version
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man would have to suffer a great deal and be rejected by the elders, the high priests, and the scribes. Then he would be killed, but after three days he would rise again.
NET Bible 

Then Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

New Heart English Bible
He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And he began to teach them: “The Son of Man is going to suffer many things and to be rejected by the Elders and by the Chief Priests and by the Scribes and he shall be killed, and in three days he shall rise.” 

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man would have to suffer a lot. He taught them that he would be rejected by the leaders, the chief priests, and the scribes. He would be killed, but after three days he would come back to life. 

New American Standard 1977
And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Jubilee Bible 2000
And he began to teach them that it was convenient that the Son of man must suffer many things and be rejected of the elders and of the princes of the priests and of the scribes, and be killed and after three days rise again. 

King James 2000 Bible
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

American King James Version
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.
American Standard Version
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Douay-Rheims Bible
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the ancients and by the high priests, and the scribes, and be killed: and after three days rise again. 

Darby Bible Translation
And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and of the chief priests and of the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise [again]. 

English Revised Version
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Webster's Bible Translation
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Weymouth New Testament
And now for the first time He told them, "The Son of Man must endure much suffering, and be rejected by the Elders and the High Priests and the Scribes, and be put to death, and after two days rise to life." 

World English Bible
He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Young's Literal Translation
and began to teach them, that it behoveth the Son of Man to suffer many things, and to be rejected by the elders, and chief priests, and scribes, and to be killed, and after three days to rise again;

Doing a frequency analysis, we summarize these 28 Bibles as follows:

• 23 Bible say "... after three days..."
   
• 3 Bibles say "...three days later..."
   
• 1 Bible says "... in three days..."
   
• 1 Bible says "... after  2 days ..." (yes, after 2 days, that's not a typo by me, it's Weymouth New Testament, see above, strange, I'll admit.)

So it appears that it isn't just the KJV, it's most English Bibles.  It also appears in the Greek.

I therefore conclude that the best translation of Mark 8:31 likely includes "...after 3 days...".

On the Road to Emmaus

Luke 24:21 gives the sole Biblical account of Jesus speaking to a group of men on their way to Emmaus shortly after Jesus rose from the dead.  It is clearly stated that today is the third day since Jesus' crucifixion, death, and burial.

Jesus rose on or slightly before sunrise on Sunday morning.  This conversation with Jesus was likely sometime Sunday morning, shortly after Jesus had risen.

In other words, today (Sunday) is the 3rd. day since, yesterday (Saturday) was the 2nd day since, day before yesterday (Friday) was the 1st day since, and Thursday was the day of the events (crucifixion, death, & burial).

Therefore the crucifixion, death, & burial of Jesus Christ must have occurred on Thursday.

Three Days & Three Nights in the Heart of the Earth

If you handled a dead body, Jews were ceremonially unclean (according to Numbers 9:6-12, and 19:1-22) for at least 7 days, thereby preventing you from celebrating Passover and the High Sabbath for Unleavened Bread.  However, you could celebrate the 2nd Passover on the 14th day of the 2nd. Month (ie. 1 month later).

All of those involved in the burial would become unclean.  I suggest they were expected to finish all work before sundown, the starting point of Passover, if at all possible.  That gave them no more than 4 hrs. from when Jesus died at 3:00 PM Thursday.

Did they make it, or did they have to go into mandatory overtime?  Nobody alive today knows.  We'll have to wait till we get to Heaven for that answer.

How do we cram in three days and three nights in the heart of the earth between His death at 3:00 PM Thursday and 6:30 AM Sunday ( approximate time of sunrise in Jerusalem at that time of year, on or about April 2nd).  Sundown is on or about 7:00 PM.

Sundown Thursday to sunrise Friday is Night #1.  Friday sunrise to Friday sundown is Day #1.  Friday sundown to Saturday sunrise is Night #2.  Saturday sunrise to Saturday sundown is Day #2.  Saturday sundown to Sunday sunrise is Night #3.  That is when Jesus rose from the grave.

So as to have three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, Jesus must have been buried prior to sundown on Thursday.  He would only have a few minutes to a few hours for that Thursday day before sundown.  There is no possible way to get a full three days and three nights due to the overlapping of Luke 24:21, Matthew 28:1, 

Assuming that Jesus was buried just before 7:00 pm Thursday, that means His 3 days and 3 nights would be completed as of 6:30 AM Sunday, just as the Marys were arriving.

A picture is worth 10,000 words, so here is a diagram showing these time sequences.  Note that the top time bar assumes God's day begins at sunrise.  The bottom time bar assumes the day begins as sundown (as present day Jews count the days).

Figure 1: Timeline for Jesus' crucifixion & resurrection.
Click on image to see full size

Biblical Congruence (Update #1)

Is the Bible consistent inside itself (ie. doesn't contradict itself, is congruent)?

While working on another Bible study for another purpose (more on that later), I had a need to compare the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John for the period around Passover and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

When I saw the following, I stopped a minute, thought about it, and had a private smile between God and me.

Here is what made me smile in appreciation of Bible accuracy, comprehensive detail, and congruency:

Jesus died at 3:00 pm on Preparation Day, then was buried.  At Jerusalem on 14th day of 1st month, sunset is at 7:00 pm.  After sundown is Passover and High Sabbath of Unleavened Bread upon which no work can be done.  Passover must be all cleaned up & over with before next sunrise.

In Mat 12:40 Jesus said:

"For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."

 Therefore Jesus said He would be "in the heart of the earth" for 3 days & 3 nights.


Matthew 28:1 says:

In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.

Mark 16:2 says:

And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.

Luke 24:1 says:

Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.

John 20:1 says:

The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.

Bible Analysis

Mat 28:1, Mark 16:2, Luke 24:1, and John 20:1 all agree that Mary & other women came in the dark, early in the morning of the first day of the week (Sunday) at sunrise, discovering that Jesus was gone, He had risen.

While they all agree, they are not all the same.  All give the same information, but some give additional information.  By this we can be reasonably assured there is no plagerism, nor collusion.  None of them conflict with the others.

The results of this analysis is generally true throughout the 4 Gospels.  Similar analysis is generally true in all other books of the Bible.

Detailed Analysis:  What Day was Jesus Crucified?

Sunrise in Jerusalem at that time of year is 6:26 AM.

We don't know how much earlier Jesus rose from the dead before Sunday sunrise, & before the women arrived; it could have been as short as a few minutes, or as long as many hours.

*** Begin Update #1, 2019-12-10 ***
The following conclusion only considered the Bible verses shown above.  When Luke 24:21 (Jesus on the road to Emmaus) is considered, we are forced to interpret the verses as "days or parts thereof", causing Jesus' crucifixion, death, & burial to have occurred on Thursday, not Wednesday.  For further info on this, see the following Blog posting Crucifixion & Resurrection Timeline   All of the other data and conclusions stand as stated here.
*** End Update #1, 2019-12-10 ***

Counting backwards from Sunday sunrise for 3 days & 3 nights, we get Thursday sunrise.  Therefore Jesus had to be buried some time before Thursday sunrise to meet the 3 day 3 night prophecy. [Update #1 adds "Luke 24:21 however forces us to move away from the interpretation of Mat 12:40 as "full 3 full days and 3 full nights".  Instead we are forced to interpret Mat 12:40 as "3 days (or part thereof) and 3 nights (or part thereof)"]

Roman Catholics (and many other popular cults and sects) erroneously insist that Jesus was crucified on Good Friday and rose on Easter Sunday, yet claim He was dead and buried for 3 days and 3 nights.  They must be using New Math to calculate.  No matter how I count it, there is 39.5 hrs (Friday 3:00 pm to Sunday 6:30 am), more or less, which is 1.65 days duration.  I couldn't make 1.65 days into 3 full days, no matter how hard I tried. [Update #1 adds "It doesn't meet the minimal criteria of 3 part days (unless you assume Jesus rose sometime after sunrise on Sunday, contrary to Mat 28:1), but cannot get 3 nights (or part thereof) in any possible way.]

Therefore Jesus had to have died 3:00 pm Wednesday [Update #1, see above, changes this to Thursday] (not Friday as others assume incorrectly), then the preliminary burial was done Wednesday [Update #1 changes this to Thursday] afternoon & night, but completed before Thursday sunrise [Update #1 changes this to "just before sundown on Thursday"].

If you handled a dead body, Jews were ceremonially unclean according to Numbers 9:6-12, and 19:1-22 for at least 7 days, thereby preventing you from celebrating Passover. However, you could celebrate the 2nd Passover on the 14th day of the 2nd. Month (ie. 1 month later).

All of them were expected to finish all work before sundown, the starting point of Passover.  That gave them no more than 4 hrs. from when Jesus died.

Did they make it, or did they have to go into mandatory overtime?  Nobody alive today knows.  We'll have to wait till we get to Heaven for that answer. [Update #1 forces Jesus' burial team to have Jesus "in the heart of the earth" prior to sundown on Thursday so as to achieve a part day in accordance with Jesus' prophecy of "three days and three nights in the heart of the earth"].

Assuming that Jesus was buried at 7:00 pm Wednesday [Update #1 changes this to "before the 7:00 PM sundown on Thursday"], that means His 3 days and 3 nights would be completed as of 7:00 pm Saturday [Update #1 changes this to "before 6:30 AM sunrise on Sunday"].  That is why Jesus was already gone when the women arrived at 6:30 am Sunday morning.

Accurate and consistent.

Guided by the Holy Spirit, God ensured His Holy Word was accurate, sufficient, and preserved through the years.

Psalm 83 War Coming?

Psalm 83 war in the Middle East is now on the immediate horizon.

In March 2018, Turkey, supposedly a NATO ally, has called for the formation of an 5.2 million man Islamic army for the immediate attack and destruction of Israel.

However, there is growing friction between Arab Muslims( Saudi & other Gulf States) and non-Arab Muslims (Turkey, Syria, Iran, etc.).

Israel is a new ally of Saudi Arabia, and maybe other nations who feel threatened by Iran.

All these secondary issues have limited by whom and how fast that call to arms by Turkey will proceed.

Let's look at Bible prophecy to see what it says will occur, so that we can judge how close we are to the start of this huge, decisive war.

Verses 6-8 of Psalm 83 tells us who will be involved in the attack on Israel:

The tabernacles of Edom, and the Ishmaelites; of Moab, and the Hagarenes;
7 Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre;
8 Assur also is joined with them: they have holpen the children of Lot.

Joel's Trumpet has decoded Psalm 83 attackers as follows in present day countries:

Turkey and Jordon have a long, close relationship.

Turkey has been a long time, loud supporter of Hamas, Lebanon, PLO, Palastinian Authority, Gaza, and Hezbollah.  Any significant incident by Israel against any of these could be the fuse which ignites immediate retallation by Turkey and Psalm 83 allies.

Turkey and Iran have a long standing mutually beneficial relationship for many decades.  Recently, Turkey was forced to stop significant purchases of Iranian oil due to US sanctions over the failed nuclear deal with Iran.

Turkey and Iraq have a long relationship that frequently churns, boils, and changes.  They are culturally, religiously, geographically, and economically bound to each other.  Psalm 83 War will likely be another source of simultaneous binding, and/or  strife.

There is some likelihood that the Isaiah 17:1 prophecy of the complete & total destruction of Damascus Syria (described in the Bible with symptoms of melting stone, similar to what happens in nuclear war, or a large meteorite strike) may be related to the Psalm 83 War; possibly the instigation of that war, or is possibly related to the Battle of Armageddon in Revelation 16:12-16.

The supposed involvement of Saudi Arabia attacking Israel (Ishmaelites) is somewhat a surprize based on the recent cozy relationship between them, and that Saudi and Iran are sworn enemies.  Perhaps that will all suddenly change over Damascus, or some other unifying Islamic issue.

Whenever Psalm 83 occurs, God is called upon to rescue Israel.  Will God answer, or will Israel and USA save Israel?  The Bible, our best info source, is silent.

In Ezekiel 38-39 (Rev. 1:  most likely Battle of Armageddon) God intercedes on behalf of Israel, leaving only 1/6 of the attacking troops to escape (83% of attackers killed).

### Rev. 1:  There are many who dismiss Ps. 83 as merely fanciful poetry, or an allegory that has a hidden, unknown meaning, or a battle long forgotten in history, or the Arab-Israeli Wars from May 1948 to present.  

In response,  I say the Bible is 100% truth, the Holy Spirit wouldn't have included it if it wasn't important and had a specific purpose for Christians & Jews to know and understand.  Note that all the named countries are Shia Muslim majority countries, and its them who hate Israel the most, and want to wipe Israel off the face of the planet.  However, Egypt is conspicuously absent from the evil plotting, yet Egypt is a Shia Muslim majority country, and Hamas was spawned from Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, and Egypt was a key player and instigator in all the early Arab-Israeli battles, until they signed a peace treaty with Israel.  Pharaoh eventually learned not to tangle with Moses and God, and so did modern Egypt.  The absense of Egypt is proof positive Ps. 83 is not May 1948 prophecy fulfillment.  The only other legitimate option in 2023 Muslim-Israeli War) ### End Rev. 1

I'm still awaiting additional puzzle pieces to be disclosed by God, or better interpretation of the current puzzle pieces we already have.

### Rev. 1 added 2023-10-13   ###

Personal Responsibility

Are you personally responsible for your actions and inactions?

Do you also carry the burden of all sins by your ancestors, all the way back to Noah, then all the way back to Adam & Eve?

Romans 5:12-21, 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 shows us that Adam & Eve's sins led to a limited life (ie. Loss of eternal life) for them and all subsequent humans.

Psalm 51:5 goes even further, saying that there is guilt of sin at the moment of conception.

This Psalm is said to have been written on or about 990 - 931 BC by King David, so that he could repent his great sins concerning Bathsheba.

The concept of ancestral sin is found in Exodus 20:5 , 34:6-7, and Deut. 5:9.

Jer. 31:29-30 subsequently prophesized around 600 BC that the day would come when the son would no longer suffer the iniquities of the father.

Finally, around 582 BC, Ezekiel 18 declares God's commandment that every person was from that day forth, solely responsible for their own sins.

Romans 5:12-21 says Adam brought sin into the world, and subsequently, everybody became sinners. Many misinterprit these verses in Romans by failing to consider Jer. 31:29-30 and Ezekiel 18.

Augustine (354-430 AD) subsequently went on to coin the phrase "originating sin", but was somewhat misled with his self-confessed mediocrity of understanding Koine Greek.

God made mankind upright (ie. good, without sin) according to Eccles. 7:29, so sin wasn't present at Creation.

Adam & Eve suffered the loss of eternal life due to their sins, as did all other humans.

Adam & Eve were also evicted from the Garden of Eden.  When a landlord evicts the current generation, the next generation of the evicted has no right to reclaim the Garden; it belongs to the Owner.

God was under no known obligation to provide neither eternal life nor the Garden to His creation.  Therefore both of these were God's gifts through grace to Adam & Eve.  Their simultaneous eviction from the Garden and loss of eternal life was God's judgement for their sins.  Once they lost both of these, neither of these prior gifts of grace remain as rightful property or assets that are still in the estates of Adam or Eve.  Neither of these asset (ie. Occupancy of Garden, and Eternal Life) are available to be passed on to subsequent generations as a legecy of Adam & Eve.

This is suggested as an alternative explanation which is more simple than Original Sin, and yet fully meets and describes all parts of the Bible.

If you feel I have failed to adequately describe or explain 1 or more Bible verses by this proposal, please let me know in the Comments below.

Eastern Orthodox Christians saw this fall of Adam & Eve as an infection with the "disease of death".

Augustine and subsequent Western theologins however saw it as Original Sin.

It appears Augustine decided to ignore Jer. 31:29-30 and Ezekiel 18.  Original sin becomes a moot point, even if it existed, as God said in Ezekiel that He would blot out and forgive all prior sins that are repented.  That obviously would include Original Sin.  Secondly, God expressly commands that vicarious or ancestral sin or Original Sin is no longer in effect as of 582 BC (or there abouts).

Besides Augustine (and my new theory presented above), there are three other theories that try to explain Original Sin (see http://www.the-highway.com/fall_Sproul.html ).  To me, all of them are far fetched, spurious, doubtful, poorly supported by the Bible, or not necessary.

This Original Sin idea subsequently got expanded into "Total Depravity" under Calvin's TULIP doctrine.

My analysis, if fully supported by the Bible, seems to deflate Augustine and Calvinism, while somewhat supporting Arminianism.

These are complicated theologies, and I don't begin to know how to spell them, let alone all the nuances of each of them.

Perhaps it's best to regard all of this as a Satanic distraction away from the most important issues:

• Jesus Christ and His Teachings
• God's Word in the Bible
• Removing sin and iniquity from our lives
• Loving God with all of our mind, body, soul, & strength
• Understanding the Gospel
• World-wide testimony and spreading the Gospel.

My Psalm

King David wrote many psalms, so maybe I should too.

This week on Manitoulin Island is kind of a National Holiday on a local basis.  While participating in this holiday event, you have 2 hours every morning and another 2 hrs. every evening to sit quietly in the forest all alone; just you and your private thoughts.

In the past, I have used that time to write letters to family members, writing one thought, then meditating and fully thinking about that before writing the next thought.

A month ago, I had written letters to all my immediate family members, so I needed something else to occupy me. That is how I came to write a psalm.

It isn't perfect.  It needs some more work.  However I am courageous enough to share my unfinished work with you in the hope that it brings some value to you.  Maybe you will decide to write your own psalm, or perhaps you'll suggest how to improve what I wrote.

My Psalm

O God, my God, glory be,

All my evil that You see,

Comes from my will wildly flexed,

Stains this short life and my next.

Sin on sin, Your patience tried,

My sin grows iniquity,

My life wasted, gray goes black

Help me God, please bring me back.

Seven churches, most are lost,

Their foul doctrine must be tossed,

No one local that I know

Help Your Word in me to sow.

Wilderness voice that I hear

Calls to me so I come near

He is also a lost sheep

We're a new flock God can reap.

Book and verse we struggle long

To consume Your Word so strong

We are confused, me the most

Thanks for sending Holy Ghost.

Your pure Word lifts Satan's fog,

Sobering us from sinful grog,

Prayer and worship we enjoy,

With our hymns we sing in joy.

Please forgive our deadly sins,

Stop our losses, let us win,

Your salvation that we seek.

Brash is gone, so now we're meek.

Holy Father, time is short,

Second Coming soon report,

Your Commandments we now know,

Iniquity we do not sow.

Signs in stars, so we look up,

Patience! Wait to fill His cup,

Watch each day for blessed hope

Satan's dark world, can we cope?

Till You come, we have our flock,

Persecution, us they mock,

Loving this world do not keep,

Climb the narrow way, it's steep.

2019-11-18

Love Vs. Iniquity

This Blog Posting is Part 2, an expansion of Part 1: Exactly How Do You Love Jesus?

The Bible tells us that Apostle John loved Jesus in the "agapao" way.

"Agapao" is the Greek word (Strong's G25) for a Holy kind of eternal, all consuming type of love.

 Luke 10:27, Mark 12:30, John 13:34, and Mat 22:37 tells us to love God in an "agapao" way.

 In John 14:15, John records Jesus saying "If ye love me, keep my commandments". This again is the "agapao" type of love.

In  1 John 2:15-17 we are told not to love the world nor the things therein with an "agapao" type of love. The world is temporary, full of pride and lust.  Even though God created the world, the world is not God, for God is permanent.  We must love the Creator and our fellow humans, not the rest of creation.  Agapao love of the rest of the created world is idolatry.

In the OT, Deut 6:4-5 and Levit 19:17-18 tells us to love God and neighbours in a Hebrew "ahab", Strong's H157 manner, similar to Strong's G25 "agapao" type of love.

Apostle Peter could never bring himself to "agapao" type of love for Jesus, as Peter was stuck at the "fileo" level of friendship, not deep abiding love that Jesus gave, and wanted in return (see John 21:7-18). No wonder Peter denied Jesus 3 times a short time later.

"Agapao" type of love is what the Bible says and means when "a man knows a woman" and they become one flesh. God's love for us is "agapao" love.

 For more understanding of "agapao" love, see C.S. Lewis' The Four Loves (Agapao) https://youtu.be/gaVaGGpeQKM

Is there a danger or consequence to a shallow love of Jesus, just the friendship level, the "fileo" level?

 In Mat 7:21-23 the people cried 'Lord, Lord', and claimed to have prophesized, cast out devils, & done many wonderful works. But Jesus said "I never knew you: depart from me, you workers of iniquity".

"Depart from me" means these workers of iniquity must leave Heaven, and get thrown into Hell.

 In Mat 13:41-42, at the 2nd Coming of Jesus, Jesus sends His angels to gather up all those doing iniquity, casting them into a furnace of fire, to their wailing and nashing of teeth.

 Iniquity is deadly.

For all those misleading Pastors who teach a simple A-B-C, magical prayer as being 100% sufficient for salvation, they need to reform their incorrect teachings, and tell everybody that they have previously misled.

 When "agapao" love is missing, iniquity reigns.

Iniquity is defined as pre-planned, purposeful sin. KJV uses 6 different words for iniquity: H205, H5766, H5771, H5999 G93, and G458.

Mat 25:12 tells us the parable of the Five Foolish Virgins, not adequately prepared, not watching, arriving after the door was shut, saying "Lord, Lord, open to us". The Master said "I know you not".

Again, a shallow relationship (ie. anything but deep "agapao" type of love, so the groom doesn't know the foolish virgins in a deep "agapao" kind of way). 

I suggest that a half-baked kind of love leads to a half-baked type of preparations for the groom's arrival.

Today  the church is Jesus' bride, who must watch and prepare herself and be continuously ready for His arrival.

What should a wedding groom think & feel when his bride has 1,001 priorities which are wrongly judged more important than getting ready for the wedding ceremony?

 The logical corollary to John 14:15 is that those who fail to follow Jesus' commandments (10 in OT, 16 more in NT, 26 commandments in total, see "God's 26 Commandments for Christians", pdf document here: https://et-manitoulin.blogspot.com/p/documents.html ) are hypocrites; they pretend to deeply love Jesus, but fall short of true, deep, "agapao" type of love of Christ.

They pretend, but truly only love Jesus half heartedly, merely for show, or virtue signaling, or political correctness, or to extract maximum benefit with minimal effort, or to manipulate others, or band wagon jumping, or to avoid personal shame.

 Is this similar to the Pharisees that upset Jesus so much, with their "holier than thou" attitude, and their lack of "agapao" love for both man and God?

 In Luke 6:46, Jesus complained "And why call ye me, 'Lord, Lord', and do not the things which I say?" Those "things which I say" are Jesus' teachings, mainly His commandments.

 There is a huge difference between iniquity (ie. pre-meditated, purposeful sin &/or living in chronic ongoing sin) vs. accidental sin.

 Accidental sin will likely continue as long as you have a flesh body.

 Iniquity however, can be eliminated if you are truly saved, are Born Again, have the help of the Holy Spirit, and have a deep "agapao" type of love for Jesus Christ.

 False conversions (ie. those who pretend but are not True Christians), will continue with both iniquity and accidental sins in their lives. They may think they are destined for Heaven, but they will be thrown into Hell to be tormented and burned forever when their shallow, half hearted love and their ongoing iniquity is exposed. They will likely be the weepers in Hell.

 Here are some more verses that warn against iniquity: Ex. 20:5, 34:7; Job 4:8, 13:26, 34:32; Psalm 5:5, 6:8, 25:11, 32:2, 36:2, 51:5, 103:3; Prov. 22:8; Is. 53:5; Hab. 1:13; Ez. 3:18, 18:26; Mat 7:21-23, 13:41-42, 24:12, 25:1-13, 25:31-45; Luke 6:46, 13:25-27; John 14:15; Acts 1:18, 8:23; 2 Tim 2:19; Rom 6:19; 2 Thes 2:7; James 3:6; and Rev 14:9-20.

 Hosea 4:6 describes how Israel was destroyed by chronic sin. In Romans 1:21-28 people knew God but vanity and arrogance caused them not to worship God, but worship themselves, so they continued to sin, and God allowed them to continue in their sins & reprobate minds.

 Sin, especially chronic sin (ie. Iniquity) brings sickness. See: Ezek 4:17; Ps. 38:3, 107:17; Hosea 7:1; Zeph. 1:17; John 9:2; Micah 6:13; James 5:14-15; and 1Corith. 11:27-30.

If anybody doubts the deadliness of iniquity, or believes God's Commandments are "soooo Old Testament", and not applicable to those claiming salvation under Jesus Christ; that mere belief in Jesus is enough for Heavenly salvation,  then these deceived (&/or Deceivers) should be able to fully explain away all of these troublesome verses shown here.

Urgent Warning

*** Begin Update #1   2019-11-14   ***

The 6 reinforcing and overlapping prophecies listed here have not yet occured at the earliest expected date.

These prophecies either didn't have a specific date attached, or were precursors to what comes next.

Jonah may have faced a similar problem, for he prophecized the destruction of Nineva in 40 days, but the King and all subjects repented their evil ways.  Therefore God spared them from destructoon.  God's sparing of Nineva seems to have made Jonah into a false prophet about Nineva's destruction in 40 days.  However, you must know the whole story.

Nineva was eventually destroyed by God, for their repentance was only temporary.

Similarly, for the following prophecies, it is suggested that they are all still valid, but may be delayed for some unknown duration or reason.

It's God's End Times plan.  God is in charge.  We all struggle to watch and understand.  Don't give up.  Keep watching.  We are still obviously in God's End Times process.

*** End Update #1 ***


Even if you wrongly assume that the odds are less than 1 in a billion chance that the following prophesy is real, please take note and take action ASAP.

Even if you are a long way from the likely epicentre, the secondary effects will soon be felt world-wide, triggering billions of secondary events & consequences, many of them being life threatening.  

Once you die, there is no further opportunity for repentence.  Dying with unrepented sins or chronic iniquity means a guaranteed trip to Hell.

****   URGENT WARNING   ****

First Prophecy

Atlantic-Caribbean Meteor Strike & Tsunami, Worldwide Earthquake  

 https://iamcallingyounow.blogspot.com/2019/11/atlantic-ocean-tsunami-and-worldwide.html?m=1

This prophecy was received by Julie Whedbee on Nov. 3, 2019, similar to many other prior prophecies by Julie Whedbee and other prophets.

While Julie didn't say any specific timing, I see urgency in her message.  Two other prophecies suggest one or more events on Nov. 9, 2019.  This meteor-tsunami-earthquake vision is obviously one of God's judgments.  Most bible scholors believe Rapture occurs first, then the God's judgments.

It is possible that Rapture for True Christians occurs on or about Nov. 9, 2019 then the meteor-tsunami-earthquake judgement starts immediately (or soon) thereafter.

Jesus said the End Times would be like the days of Lot & Noah.  In the case of Lot at Sodom & Gomorrah, the hail of fire & brimstone started right after sunrise as Lot and his family ran for their lives in great haste.  In the case of Noah, Methuselah died, there were 7 days of mourning while Noah & his family were locked inside the ark patiently waiting, then the rains began.

Therefore judgment of the meteor-tsunami-earthquakes could start immediately on Nov. 9th, or up to 7 days after Nov. 9th (ie. Nov. 9th to 17th).

Second Prophecy

Nov. 9, 2019 is exactly 777 days after the Revelation 12 sign found in the star alignment of Sept. 23, 2017.  See the YouTube https://youtu.be/aDRj3MsNNO0

The number 777 is Biblical, meaning "Perfect Completion, The End, or Judgement".

Nov. 9th could be the dividing point between the Church Age (or Age of Grace), and God's End Times process of 7 years as described in Daniel's prophecies.

Third Prophecy

In the following video https://youtu.be/sAa7ru_rcyk he shows that Jupiter drops below ecliptic, and comes under the foot, or is the footstool of Jesus on Nov. 9, 2019.  Psalm 110:1 says:

"The LORD [God the Father] said unto my Lord [Jesus Christ], 'Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.'  "

Is this the 3nd witness to the Rev. 12 sign and Nov. 9, 2019?

Fourth Prophecy

Two weeks ago, a  world-wide evangelic group A Voice in the Desert, disclosed that many of their members had received dreams and visions of an impending disaster in the USA.  Based on these events (&/or other info), they decided to evacuate all their USA-based members.  See  https://youtu.be/KN_UL6auhzg


Fifth Prophecy

According to Jewish history, Nov. 9th is the anniversary of when Methuselah died in 2105 BC.  Methuselah was the oldest man to ever live, 969 years old.  Methuselah means "when he dies, then the end".  Once Methuselah died, there was mourning for 7 days by Noah and his family, then the Great Flood started.  In Matthew 24:37-39, Jesus tells us that the 2nd Coming of Christ will be like the time of Noah.

But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

It is unclear if a modern day version of Methuselah has died (or will die), or if Nov. 9 2019 is just the anniversary.

6th Prophecy

Daniel 9:25-27 gave a prophecy in or around 539 BC for when to expect End Times and the 2nd Coming of Christ.  This Blog has already covered this prophecy, showing that it predicts on or after Nov. 1, 2019.

Conclusion

I therefore conclude, based on 6 independent prophecies, it is highly likely for this meteor-tsunami event to occur on or about Nov. 9, 2019.

These 6 prophecies, acting together, are likely sufficient evidence to issue an urgent warning.

Prior non-specific prophecies of a meteor strike (see here, here, and here)

Quick Tutorial on Meteor Tsunami Waves

Computer simulations of meteor-created tsunami can generate waves from 100 ft. high to as much as 1,500 ft. high at the epicenter.  Meteor-tsunami waves travel at speeds between 300 km/hr to 3,600 km/hr in all directions.  There will generally be dozens to hundreds of waves produced, one after another, radiating outwards from the epicentre.

Meteor-tsunami waves are huge compared to the mini (yet deadly) tsunamis created by underwater landslides, earthquakes, or volcanoes.

The first wave of a meteor-tsunami can penetrate from 50 to 150 km. inland from the coast, depending on the land configuration (eg. land slope, cliffs, trees, buildings, etc.).

Due to the drag of the coastal shallows and on-shore configuration, the hundreds of tsunami waves produced by the meteor tend to get out of phase with the initial wave, thereby robbing all subsequent waves of their original power.

This often means there is huge inundation onto the land by the first wave, then it quickly peters out as the first wave returning to the sea cancels most of the second wave's power, and so on for all subsequent waves.  While hundreds of tsunami waves will pass over the coast line, the water depth will be between 50 ft. to 1,500 ft. deep at all times.

Also, see Megatsunami

Likely Damage & Effect of a Meteor-Tsunami

I therefore conclude that the thousands of low lying Caribbean islands will be completely gone.

Mexico, Central America, Venezuela, US Gulf Coast will be destroyed (assume Katrina on steroids, all along the coast).

Africa, European Atlantic coast, USA Atlantic coast, and S. American Atlantic coast will be hard hit with 60 ft. high waves traveling at 300 km/hr to 1,500 km/hr.

Post-Tsunami, Subsequent Events

Due to the magnitude of the tsunami wave and its destructive forces, the wide geographical spread of the destruction, lack of warning through official channels, low level of preparedness, and the near-civil war conditions that currently exist, it would be crazy to depend upon your government for effective and timely help.  FEMA will likely be too little, too late, spread way too thin.

Hopefully, neighbours will help neighbours and strangers.

USA has been acting as "World Cop" for quite some time, and as a grand Imperial power for even longer, generating many enemies over the years. When the USA is knocked down & seriously wounded, those passive-agressive enemies are likely to take advantage of the situation, possibly kicking the USA in the head & crotch while it is down.

Be ready for anything.

What Should You Do?

For those willing & able to run for cover, you are delaying the inevitable, for subsequent judgments & disasters will follow you, no matter where you go today.

For those who can't or won't run for cover, there is safety in Jesus Christ no matter where you are located.

God's 26 Commandments for Christians will help you get under the protection of Jesus Christ ASAP.  This pdf document is available here on this Blog, in our Documents section.  Read the document.  Instructions to save yourself & your family are at the end.  Follow these instructions ASAP. 

 https://www.dropbox.com/s/kkxf2g4soslo5pc/GodsLaws_A13.pdf?dl=0 

Exactly HOW do you love Jesus?

Many people say they love Jesus.  Exactly how much, and in what way do you love Jesus?

Adults learn that talk is cheap.  People say many things, but what they do is sometimes different.  People sometimes say one thing in public, a different thing is said in private among family and close friends, and an even greater difference what is privately thought (shared with nobody), and is different again from what they eventually do.  All this is commonly called virtue signaling, hypocrisy, lying, and similar.

In John 14:15, Jesus says:

If ye love me, keep my commandments.

The Greek word for love used here is Strong's G25, agapeo which has the following meaning:

• of people
• to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly
• of things
• to be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing

There is another similar word (but with a world of difference), which is Strong's G5368 phileo which has the following meaning:

• to love
• to approve of
• to like
• sanction
• to treat affectionately or kindly, to welcome, befriend
   
• to show signs of love
• to kiss
   
• to be fond of doing
• be wont, use to do

To fully understand the difference, consider a young woman who is considering caving in to her boyfriend's sinful, relentless pressure to have sex outside of marriage.  She asks him,

Do you love me?

to which he responds,

"Oh ya, I really like you!

Should the girl consider this a positive response to her question?  Based on his response, has she found her one & only true life-long soul mate, who will deeply love her and cherish her, and have children with her, till death do they part?

To me, it seems that he can't even pretend he has a deep, passionate respect and love for her.  By his prior pressure and his answer, he seems to merely wants sex, and deflects the question when she asks for a show of commitment.

Let's look at how the disciples loved (or liked) Jesus.

In John 21:7-18 Jesus has a cryptic, yet telling conversation with Peter:

7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved,^{G25 agapao} saith unto Peter, "It is the Lord". Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea.8 And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes.9 As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread.10 Jesus saith unto them, "Bring of the fish which ye have now caught."   11 Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken.12 Jesus saith unto them, "Come and dine." And none of the disciples durst ask him, 'Who art thou?' knowing that it was the Lord.13 Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise.14 This is now the third time that Jesus shewed himself to his disciples, after that he was risen from the dead.15 So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of Jonas, lovest^{G25 agapao} thou me more than these?" He saith unto him, "Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love,^{G5368 phileo} thee." He saith unto him, "Feed my lambs."   16 He saith to him again the second time, "Simon, son of Jonas, lovest,^{G25 agapao} thou me?" He saith unto him, "Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love^{G5368 phileo} thee."   He saith unto him, "Feed my sheep."  17 He saith unto him the third time, "Simon, son of Jonas, lovest^{G5368 phileo} thou me?" Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, 'Lovest^{G5368 phileo} thou me?' And he said unto him, "Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love^{G5368 phileo} thee." Jesus saith unto him, "Feed my sheep."

Before I knew how to go to the original Greek, I always found this passage to be strange.  What was Jesus trying to get Peter to say?  Likely, Peter was equally confused and uncomfortable.  Peter kept expanding his answer that he responded with, trying to satisfy Jesus, trying to end the interrogation.  Peter liked living in the gray areas of assumptions and superficiality.

Now, we have excellent online tools (such as Blue Letter Bible ) to help us go to the original Greek and better understand what was really going on.  Strong's Lexicon numbers every Greek ("Gxxxx") and Hebrew ("Hxxxx") word used in the Bible, where it is used, and its definition.  A useful reference text.  Blue Letter Bible makes Strong's Lexicon available to everybody.

In Verse 7 of the Bible passage shown above, the disciple whom Jesus loved (Strong's G25, agapao) was John.

In Verses 15 to 16, Jesus tried 3 times to get Peter to say that Peter loved Jesus in a Strong's G25 agapao way.  Each time, Peter refused Jesus' proposal, lessening Peter's love to just "liking" Jesus in a Strong's G5368 phileo manner.

So as to not force Peter to do something Peter was unwilling to do, eventually Jesus gives up inviting Peter to the deepest form of G25 agapao love.

Trying to accept Peter where he was at, in Verse 17 Jesus reduces his prior proposal of G25 agapao love, settling for the mere G5368 phileo level of friendship.

Peter accepts this modified proposal, and responds in a like manner at the friendship level of G5368 phileo love.

Conclusion

Therefore you need to decide for yourself exactly how & how much you love Jesus.  Is it:

• A fair weather, superficial, "take it while you can easily get it", a Strong's G5368 phileo type of love?
  
  or
• A unique, loyal, deep, all important, whatever it takes, never let it go, live or die for it, eternal, Strong's G25 agapao type of love?

Choose carefully, for you may not get into Heaven with the watered down version. Apostle John loved Jesus in a G25 agapao way.  No half measures for John.

How about you?  How do you want to love Jesus, as a friend G25 fileo way, or like Apostle John, in a 100%, full-on, G5368 agapao manner?

 Remember, in John 14:15, Jesus says:

If ye love^{G25 agapao} me, keep my commandments.

Also remember Jesus' statement in Luke 13:22-28

22 And He [Jesus] went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem.23 Then said one unto Him, "Lord, are there few that be saved?"  And He said unto them,24 "Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able."   25 "When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open unto us'; and He shall answer and say unto you, 'I know you not whence ye are':26 Then shall ye begin to say, 'We have eaten and drunk in Thy presence, and Thou hast taught in our streets.'   27 But He shall say, 'I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from Me, all ye workers of iniquity.'   28 There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out."

If you aren't convinced by the verses above, see the following:

[Mat 7:23 KJV] 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.  

[Mat 25:41 KJV] 41 Then shall He say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

[Psa 6:8 KJV] 8 Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity; for the LORD hath heard the voice of my weeping. 

[Tit 1:16 KJV] 16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny Him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

Being thrust out of the Kingdom of God means you are thrown into the Lake of Fire, to be burned & tormented in Hell for ever & ever.

That is why you need a deep, complete, forever love of Jesus.  You must have an agapao type of love, which drives you to willingly keep God's Commandments, and thereby avoid iniquity (ie. premeditated, purposeful sin on a chronic basis).

For more info on iniquity and its fatal consequences, see my Blog posting here.

The superficial friendship kind of love (G5368 fileo) will likely foster iniquity, and iniquity sends you to Hell.

Please download God's 26 Commandments for Christians (available here), then follow the instructions at the end.  Time is short, do it today, before it's too late.

Part 2:  Agapeo Love Vs. Iniquity