Blog #0110, 05/29/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "FORGIVE"

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          In mid-February on the cable TV channel, "Animal Planet," I watched the true story of a retired rodeo cowboy who bought a ranch and a large herd of bison (often called buffalo). He lost an eye later and had no choice but to sell the herd—except for a newborn bull calf whose mother had rejected it. That pulled at his heartstrings, so he kept it. Very quickly, the aging cowboy learned that his new pet was determined not to be anybody's pet. That bison calf was unlike any other animal the cowboy had ever encountered. It was wilder than any bronco and meaner than any bull he had ever ridden. The only behavior that little animal knew was misbehaving. Put him into a round pen and he'd bend the steel panels!

          Having successfully broken and trained a few wild horses in his day, the cowboy tried every method and every technique that had worked for him before. He even tried some things he'd heard about but had never used. That stubborn little bison wouldn't have any of it. He roughed up that leathery cowboy every single time they were together in the round pen...acted like he wanted to kill him! Injured him pretty badly a few times, too. But cowboys "cowboy-up," you know.

          After mending for a few days from one of those injuries, he told his wife this: "I'm gonna go back out there with 'Wild Thing' again tomorrow and I don't care what he does to me or how bad it hurts, I'm gonna act like nothin' happened." That's what he did. And it hurt. It hurt a lot. That little bison wouldn't let up, either! But after a couple of hours, he was noticeably confused, maybe even frustrated. He had tried every method and every technique that had been programmed into his evil DNA. He even tried some things he had dreamed about but hadn't used yet! The old cowboy and the young bull calf stood at opposite sides of that round pen and stared each other down for several hours. Finally, the cowboy opened the gate and made his way to the house. His wife had been watching...some of the time. She helped him bathe and then carefully dressed his wounds. The two of them didn't speak.

          Next morning at daybreak, the cowboy entered the round pen. Wild Thing stood at the opposite side, staring. Whenever the cowboy would move left or right, Wild Thing would move in the opposite direction. Both were poker-faced. Neither moved forward. That became their routine every day for almost a month. Wild Thing never stopped tearing up everything in sight (like steel round pen panels and such), but he never again charged the cowboy.

          The rest of that story is just as colorful, but you can picture the unfolding of it in your own mind after I share this: Those rough and tough guys became friends! Among the parting camera sequences was one of the full grown bison tiptoeing as gently as a puppy through the cowboy's house, never using the bathroom or tipping over a vase on a table. Still today, though, he bends the steel panels of round pens and stuff like that. So why the story?

          You may be among the readers who've already connected it to what God's word teaches about forgiving others, even as He forgiven us. But Wild Thing and his lifelong cowboy friend also taught me a lesson about how those "others" may very well respond when we behave as if we have forgiven their wrongs—after having turned the other cheek.

          You’re likely familiar with some of the scriptures. Hope you’ll read them in your own Bible. This short list is far from complete, but it should prompt your memory of others:

          > "Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until 

             seven times: but, Until seventy times seven." —Matthew 18:21,22

          > "And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, 

             neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses." —Jesus, at Mark 11:25,26

          > "Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also [do] ye." —Paul, at Colossians 3:13

          While you're contemplating all this, please be aware that no scripture instructs us to TELL another person, "I forgive you." The process of forgiving and then behaving as if one has forgiven benefits the forgiver. Unless they have specifically requested forgiveness, when others hear "I forgive you," they typically think it's a clear indication of judgmental self righteousness. Too often their assessment is accurate.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0109, 05/22/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "HOUSE CHURCH, Good or Bad?"

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          Is the "house church" phenomenon a good thing or a bad thing? It can be a good thing, but most house church experiments fail. The burning question is why do they typically fail? I mean, after all, the 1st-Century Christians met in private homes, didn't they? So, with hoards of long-time churchgoers now abandoning the visible church, shouldn't someone start finding out how to make the small Bible study group thing work? House church can be a great alternative to the visible institutional church—so long as instruction, correction and reproof are interactive and truly reciprocal.

          Although, at any given point, some will be more advanced in their accumulation of knowledge and understanding than others, they and the others must work diligently to avoid any perception that they're somehow "special." Without such diligence, human nature (i.e.: the sin nature) will quickly cause the group to default to the unfortunate characteristics of the visible institutional church. For long-term success, everyone in the group must work to keep the playing field level.

          My wife and I are part of a small Bible study group. Although we typically meet in our home, my conclusions are frequently challenged and that's the way I want it. Why? Because that's the way I get to learn, too! I have possibly learned more over the last nine years from people who have disagreed with me than from those who have agreed. They're the ones who force me to keep studying and re-studying. (Iron sharpens iron, you know.) Our mutual challenge, then, is to always respond in the style of the Bereans at Acts 17:11.

          Got a small Bible study group? Wanting to start one? The critical guidelines at http://dypk.org/how-to-study can become the worthy foundation for a highly productive series of organizational studies for you – to substantially increase the likelihood of your long-term success.

          Finally, follow this link to learn what one really smart guy has concluded about WHY record numbers of people are choosing to leave the visible institutional church: http://www.churchleaders.com/outreach-missions/outreach-missions-articles/244545-dear-church-heres-people-really-leaving.html?print. Although I can't agree with all of his observations and conclusions, I honestly couldn't have written a better article. (I think you'll find his writing style refreshing, too.)

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0108, 05/15/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "APPLE TREE at EDEN?"

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          Yes, there were trees in that garden—possibly even an apple tree or two. But let's explore a few of the pertinent scriptures to find out what kind of tree it might've been whose fruit Eve got so excited about that she could hardly wait for Adam to try it, too. And why did God forbid it? Here's a good place for us to start:

          > "And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the 

             tree of knowledge of good and evil." —Genesis 2:9

          God uses things with which we're familiar in the natural world to help us understand concepts that would otherwise be difficult to comprehend. Here, he made a clear distinction between the trees that grow out of the ground and the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But what were the differences? Ezekiel knew. He recorded this about the tree of knowledge of good and evil in that garden:

          > "The cedars in the garden of God could not hide him: the fir trees were not like his boughs, and the chesnut trees were not like his branches; nor any tree in the garden 

             of God was like unto him in his beauty. I have made him fair by the multitude of his branches: so that all the trees of Eden, that [were] in the garden of God, envied 

             him... To whom art thou thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? Yet shalt thou be brought down with the trees of Eden unto the nether parts of the 

             earth..." —Ezekiel 31:8,9,18

          Now that you understand that the tree of knowledge of good and evil wasn't a literal tree, let's continue with God's instructions to Adam:

          > "And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not 

             eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." —Genesis 2:16,17

You'll find it interesting to note that The Online Interlinear Bible (a literal Hebrew-to-English translation) renders that verse like this: "and from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil not you shall eat from HIM that in day of to eat of you from HIM to die you shall die." —www.scripture4all.org/OnlineInterlinear/Hebrew_Index.htm

          There is this about Adam and Eve before eating of that fruit:

          > "And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed." —Genesis 2:25

...and this about them after they ate of that fruit:

          > "And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they [were] naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons." —Genesis 3:7

          The burning question, then, is why were Adam and Eve suddenly excited about – and simultaneously embarrassed by – their fully exposed differences? Could an apple have caused that? If so, the apple must surely be without equal among aphrodisiacs. Of such is the knowledge of good and evil, you know. Forbidden fruit.

          Both the Old and New Testaments use the word, "beguiled," to describe those episodes in the shadows of the Garden of Eden:

          > "And the LORD God said unto the woman, What [is] this [that] thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled[H-5377] me, and I did eat." —Genesis 3:13

          > "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled[G-1818] Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ." —Paul, 

             at 2 Corinthians 11:3

These are the entries from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible:

          [H-5377] at Genesis 3:13

          —nâsha', "to lead astray: i.e.: (mentally) to delude, or (morally) to seduce:—beguile, deceive, X greatly, X utterly." < to totally/greatly/utterly/morally seduce

          [G-1818] at 2 Corinthians 11:3

          —ěxapataō, "to seduce wholly: —beguile, deceive." < to wholly seduce

          For those who'll remain objective as they continue to study, it will become more and more apparent that Eden's tree of life was Jesus and that the tree of knowledge of good and evil (and that Serpent) was Satan. So what was the fruit that Eve was so anxious for Adam to experience, too?

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0107, 05/08/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "BROTHERHOOD of MAN"

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          "We're ALL members of the universal brotherhood of man; right?" While that cliché sounds really religious and although it makes people feel the warm fuzzies when they say it, the answer is an unequivocal "No." The Bible is clear: The human race is NOT a brotherhood, but a neighborhood. Here's just one of many scriptures that support that informed conclusion:

          > "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do 

             good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you...And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more [than others]? do 

             not even the publicans so? —Jesus, at Matthew 5:43-47

          If you are an active follower of Christ, you're a member of the worldwide brotherhood of Christians. Those who do not follow Christ are your neighbors. As a follower of Christ, you're either a natural part of (or you've been grafted into) the lineage of Abraham. Either would make you a bona fide Hebrew. You have become one of God's chosen people; "the elect"—and, thence, a part of the bride of Christ. Follow this link for some additional extremely valuable insight: http://dypk.org/documents/Appendix%205.pdf.

God created a race of male AND female humans, adm – the generic Hebrew word for human beings. on Day 6:

          > "So GOD CREATED MAN (i.e.: adm) in his [own] image, in the image of God created he him; MALE AND FEMALE created he them (plural)." —Genesis 1:27

          That was on Day 6 of Creation. Those people were hunter-gatherers. Their assignment was to subdue and manage the planet and its inhabitants.

          > "...from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female." —Jesus, at Mark 10:6

          Later, God observed that there was no man among those He had created on Day 6 to till the ground:

          > "...and [THERE WAS] NOT A MAN TO TILL THE GROUND." —Genesis 2:5

             So He created the single male human being: ath-e·adm – the Hebrew word specific to THE man God created at some unknown point after His Day-7 Sabbath:

          > "And the LORD God formed man (i.e.: ath-e·adm) [of] the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the 

             LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put THE man (ath-e·adm) whom he had formed." —Genesis 2:7,8

THE man, Adam, was a farmer. His initial assignment was to take care of a single, specific garden.

          It was from ath-e·adm that Noah and his offspring – and ultimately Jesus, the Christ – would genetically descend.

          Later – possibly much later – God was unable to find a woman from His Day-6 creation with suitable genetic makeup or suitable character (No one knows which.) to be the wife for THE man, Adam—ath-e·adm:

          > "...but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him." —Genesis 2:20

So he created Eve:

          > "And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof" —Genesis 2:20

             Was that a literal rib of bone or might it have been an angular rib of Adam's DNA...? No one knows for sure.

          > "And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This [is] now bone of my bones, and flesh 

             of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man (specifically ath-e·adm)."—Genesis 2:22,23

          Still later, Eve's son, Cain, was to find his wife among the hunter-gathers of God's Day-6 creation. The tribe he joined had settled in the land of Nod.

          There's a lot more to this critical story that you will likely not get "in church." But, without understanding the truth about the book of Genesis, much of the rest of God’s written word just won't make sense—the "dots" just won't "connect!" It is said that some Bible scholars (including more than a few preachers) have abandoned the faith after discovering that.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0106, 05/01/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "END of the EARTH"

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          The Old Testament term, "the end of the earth," is said to refer to what we call The British Isles, today. New Testament's term for that same area is "the uttermost part of the earth." Here are two important examples:

          >  "Sing unto the LORD a new song, [and] his praise from the end [singular] of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants 

              thereof." —Isaiah 42:10 (See, also, Isaiah 49:6.)

          >  "... ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part [singular] of the earth." —Jesus, at Acts 1:8

          Why is it important for you to know that? For one thing, knowing who you are and why you are where you are can have a substantial impact on how you approach your assigned role as a follower of Christ. Someone asked, "But aren't we all members of the universal brotherhood of man?" While that cliché sounds almost religious and although it makes people feel the warm fuzzies when they say it, the answer is "No." (That's an unequivocal "No.") The Bible is clear on that point: The human race is not a brotherhood, but a neighborhood. Here's just one of many scriptures that support that observation:

          >  "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do 

              good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you...And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more [than others]? do 

              not even the publicans so? —Jesus, at Matthew 5:43-47

          If you are an active FOLLOWER of Christ, you are a member of the worldwide brotherhood of Christians. Non-Christians are your neighbors. As a follower of Christ, you are either a natural part of – or you have been grafted into – the lineage of Abraham. Either would make you a bona fide Hebrew. You have become one of God's chosen people; "the elect," and, thence, a part of the bride of Christ. (Yes, I know you probably haven't learned about all this in church, so please feel free to submit your questions if you have them.)

          This revelation may come as a complete surprise to you: Some Hebrews are Jews, but most are not. Follow this link for some extremely valuable insight: http://dypk.org/documents/Appendix%205.pdf. Meanwhile, please know that the sceptre was not unconditionally given to national Judah, but to the seed of the man, Judah. Only his genetic descendants are "Jews." (I think you'll want to read Revelation 2:9 and 3:9 to comprehend the critical importance of that.)

          This may surprise you, too: The formerly "lost" 10 tribes of Israel are now known to have migrated North into "the end of the earth" and other parts of Europe. They became the dominant races in those lands—Anglo Saxon [That "Saxons" name > "Isaac's sons"]. They were also known as Caucasians, because they traversed the Caucasian Pass between the Black and Caspian seas on their prophesied journeys. In some notable cases, they became the ruling families of those lands. There were also multiple migrations of Jews (i.e.: genetic descendants of the man, Judah) to the same area. Historians often refer to them as "Jutes." The northern part of today's Denmark [> DANmark] is the Jutland Peninsula.

          Those who initially became monarchs in the British Isles were directly descended from Judah and Tamar's other twin son, Zarah—born with a (literal and prophetic) Scarlet Thread tied to his hand. Zarah’s twin brother was Pharez. You'll find that story to be uncommonly fascinating. Read it at Genesis 38. Research the story a bit further to learn that the name, Zarah, means "the seed" and Pharez means "a breach."

          >  "One thing is made quite clear in the Bible, concerning the sons of Zarah, and that is, that they were famous for their intelligence and wisdom, for it was only the great God-given wisdom of Solomon which is declared to have risen above theirs …(1 Kings 4:29,31)" —J. H. Allen in Part Second, Chapter VI, of Joseph’s Birthright and Judah’s Sceptre [1902]

          The sceptre remained with the Judah/Pharez line (i.e.: "the breach") until the demise of Zedekiah. Traditional teaching would have you believe that Zedekiah was the last Judean king. If that were true, then God clearly lied to David through the prophet, Nathan, at 2 Samuel 7:12,16. The fact is there was NO break in the royal line of Judah. That's because the genetic descendants of Judah's Zarah line began ruling in The British Isles – a.k.a. "the end of the earth" – even before Zedekiah's death.

          Those who ascribe the designation "Jews" to all the descendants of Israel will never be able to connect the Scriptural "dots" for making sense of the rest of God's written word – especially the Old Testament. Studying the scriptures without that knowledge can yield only confusion: I was personally astonished to learn that some Bible scholars have abandoned the faith for that reason. The "dots" just won’t "connect" when the foundational premise is flawed. So, if not in church, where should a person learn about such really important stuff...? "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." —Hosea 4:6

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0105, 04/24/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "Why MARRY?"

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          You've probably heard that the divorce rate among those who're aligned with the visible church is at least as high as for those who claim no religious affiliation. You may also suspect that's true. Why, then, should ANY couple marry? Isn't "marriage" just a piece of paper?

          The marriage ceremony is a Rite of Passage. That's a ritual event that marks a person's transition from one status to another. Rites of Passage explore and describe various notable milestones in an individual's life for any marked transitional stage when one's social status is altered. Often, they are rituals marking the transitional phase between childhood and full inclusion into a tribe or social group. Life's milestones include personal transitions from such things as puberty, high school, college, marriage and death. For people of faith, ceremonies like baptism, confirmation and Bar Mitzvah are important rites. For anthropologists, Rites of Passage reveal what social hierarchies, values and beliefs are important in specific cultures.

          Rites of Passage have been practiced on our planet ever since God's Day-6 creation of the first male/female human couple. [See Genesis 1:27 to confirm that he created a couple on Day 6; not just a man, as is commonly thought.] Cultures throughout history have recognized, for example, that it takes a lot more than physical growth for boys to move from their dependency mindsets of boyhood to the productivity mindsets of manhood. The resulting rites were designed to appropriately shift the male psyche for the ultimate benefit of a community. While certain aspects of such rites have remained consistent throughout time and culture they have evolved in most societies. On at least one south Pacific island, though, the traditional rites may have remained static for eons:

          Tribesmen of Pentecost Island are renowned for a death defying Rite of Passage. It's called land diving: The young men of each village invest up to seven weeks to build their own respective 90-foot-tall wooden platforms on steep hillsides during early Summer. They climb to the top of those towers and jump! For "safety," they attach vines to their ankles. The vines must be long enough to make sure the hair of the young man jumping will actually touch the ground! Sorry; no bungee cords allowed! (I'd want to grow some really, really long hair! You?) And there's no "on-a-curve" grading, either! Older men determine whether a given dive is "pass" or "fail." A "pass" yields all the benefits and responsibilities of manhood within the island culture. Those who "pass" feel pretty good about themselves afterward. Whew!

          But marking the transition to manhood is far from the only Rite of Passage that is somewhat common among global cultures. There are Rites of Passage that commemorate a sailor's first crossing of the Equator, too. Sailors who've crossed the Equator are nicknamed "Shellbacks." Sailors who haven't crossed the Equator are nicknamed "Slimy Pollywogs." Sea captains know that the Shellbacks have proven their ability to handle some of the roughest seas that exist on Earth. Better to recruit more Shellbacks, then, and fewer Slimy Pollywogs for a potentially difficult voyage.

          Many Rites of Passage are documented on paper. That includes certificates of marriage, school diplomas and other elaborate documents to confirm that a person has earned an advanced degree. Some certificates document the fact that a person has been inducted into a given hall of fame, etc. Scouting organizations commemorate various levels of achievement with merit badges and such.

          I once read of an interview with a high rise steelworker. The interviewer asked, "What do you like about your job?" The steelworker replied, "At the end of every day, I can look up and actually see what I've accomplished and feel proud."

          That's pretty much what Rites of Passage are all about...being able to see and reflect on the circumstances, times and places of "special" events and accomplishments. During Old Testament times, God often instructed the Hebrew people to stack ROCKS to make altars. Why? Beyond sacrifice and worship there were at least two other reasons:

          A.  So they'd remember it:

                Every time those who had benefited from a given miracle would walk near that stack of rocks, they would be reminded, again, that God had done what only God 

                could have done and that they had been the very fortunate beneficiaries of it.

          B.  To make sure others would hear about God's trustworthiness: 

                Decades later when someone would ask, "Why is that stack of rocks over there?" they would inevitably hear the story of God's awesome compassion, power and 

                faithfulness.

          God knows human nature (i.e.: the Sin nature) well. He knows that memories of bad times linger forever in our minds and that the memories of good times fade quickly…unless there are visible "stacks of rocks" to make certain we don't forget. Will that work today?

          I visualize Rites of Passage as wooden stakes driven into the ground. The effect of the pomp and circumstance of each truly special occasion has the effect of indelibly imprinting the memory of it on the hearts and minds of the participants and of the observers. In the case of marriage, God is also an observer. Those who embark on a marriage expecting it to thrive acknowledge that and remind themselves of it often—especially during the inevitable trying times.

          The marriage ceremony and the vows that accompany it comprise a critically important ritual event that marks the definitive transition of a couple from respective "me" mindsets to a collective "we" mindset and commitment. Together, that couple drives a figurative wooden stake into the ground which neither of them will EVER forget.

          So who benefits? Each person in that marriage benefits. That married couple benefits collectively. Any children born to that couple benefit. The local community benefits. Society benefits. How? Well founded marriages yield strong family units. Strong family units encourage the aspiration to strong family units in less fortunate observers. As local communities gradually become characterized by strong family units, those communities become stronger and more effective in their function. When more and more communities become stronger and more effective, the greater society can begin to show a healthy growth toward a solid foundation of responsible personal and collective functional integrity.

          Perhaps you have observed what happens when a society loses the benefit of strong marriages, strong family units and strong communities. Can the U.S.A. recover what it has clearly lost? Not this year or next year, but we can recover. You can be an effective catalyst for that recovery...whenever you are faced with the choice of establishing a strong marriage or shacking up.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0104, 04/17/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "What's Your 'CALLING'?"

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          Like millions of the naive faithful, I waited and prayed for decades that the Lord would reveal His calling on my life. Meanwhile, I pursued things I enjoyed and was pretty good at doing. Those were secular pursuits for the most part. They yielded a good living and I had a ball! Still, though, I often thought God just didn't have a plan for me, except maybe to be a good adult Sunday School teacher and spokesman for my denomination's "what 'we' believe" franchise.

          Much later, I learned that He had been preparing me for TODAY. So, what was "my calling" during all the previous decades? It was to pursue things I enjoyed and was pretty good at doing! Might that be God's current plan for you, too?

          Among the confusing messages of the visible church is that each of us should anticipate a "special" calling, much like the one Samuel experienced. The disturbing result? Many of the naive faithful come to believe that their preachers are "called" and the rest of us are "NOT 'called'." The vast majority of the professional clergy come to think that, too—at least subliminally. So, the presumed "NOT 'called'" regularly pack the bleachers to watch and cheer as paid professional Christians compete in "get'em 'saved'" games on well-lit playing fields.

          One of several problems with that is this: Jesus, in The Great Commission [Matthew 28:19,20], didn't command the Church to "get'em 'saved'." He commanded us (ALL of us) to MAKE DISCIPLES of'em AFTER they've heard and believed the Gospel message. Given that, whose "calling" is more important? And which "calling" has the potential to be more effective and more efficient? (God is not the author of confusion.)

          A valued correspondent wrote this on January 21st: "When a naive believer fails to receive this 'special' calling, the door is left wide open for a preacher's voice to become 'the voice of God'—especially in churches where there is preacher worship and the church dictates 'standards and convictions' for everybody."

This is how I responded—

          Typically, it's a preacher or a parent or another zealous relative who fills that unfortunate perceived vacuum to become "the voice of God." As an example, my mom tried her best to make me into a preacher. Her motives were purely subliminal, thank goodness:

          A.  To be able to bask in the admiration of her would-be-preacher-mommas peer group

          B.  To qualify her for special preacher-momma blessings in Heaven. The fact that her dad was a very well-known "super-preacher" may've played a big role in that. She kept telling me I could become the next Oral Roberts. Hmmm...  [Read 2 Corinthians 11:5 in several Bible versions to understand the term, "super-preacher."]

          Aside from yielding to such carnal motives, my mom was a godly woman who would stop to actually get onto her knees and pray for me several times every day. Her prayers were worthy and appropriately effective. They may've been responsible for my acquisition of discernment. Along with that and a touch of wisdom, I have learned to lean more to my God-given intellect than to my feelings in matters of importance: "The heart [is] deceitful above all [things], and desperately wicked: who can know it?" —Jeremiah 17:9

          And there's this: "MY PEOPLE ARE DESTROYED FOR LACK OF  [righteousnes?]   [sincerity?]   [worship?]   [prayer?]   [hyperspirituality?]   [holiness?]   [regular church attendance?]   [believing "what 'we' believe"?]   [faith?]   [getting "truly 'saved'?"]   [becoming full time Paid Professional Christians?]   KNOWLEDGE." —Hosea 4:6

          Want to gain knowledge? In "church," people learn what to study...to confirm denominational DOCTRINES. To begin learning how to study God’s written word...to gain the knowledge of TRUTH...visit www.DYPK.org often. The "HOW TO STUDY" tab is one of several that can prove helpful to you. (To see weekly updates, just "LIKE" our Facebook page!)

          Here's my take on all this: The janitors, grass-cutters and nursery workers in the visible church will receive much greater rewards in Heaven than ANY of our Paid Professional Christians, who – with their glorious titles of "reverence" and pompous attire and follower's accolades (and followers' dollars) – have already received their reward.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0103, 04/10/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "NAPOLEAN re: JESUS "

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—excerpts from Napoleon's testimony to Christ at St. Helena

          "I know men, and I tell you that Jesus Christ is not a man. Superficial minds see a resemblance between Christ and the founders of empires and the gods of other religions. That resemblance does not exist. There is between Christianity and every other religion the distance of infinity...

          "We can say to the authors of every other religion, You are neither gods nor the agents of Deity. You are but missionaries of falsehood, moulded from the same clay with the rest of mortals...

          "Paganism was never accepted as truth by the wise men of Greece, neither by Socrates, Pythagoras, Plato, Anaxagoras nor Pericles. But on the other side the loftiest intellects since the advent of Christianity have had faith, a living faith, a practical faith, in the mysteries and the doctrines of the gospel...

          "Paganism is the work of man...What do these gods, so boastful, know more than other mortals?...They have made a perfect chaos of morals. There is not one among them all who has said anything new in reference to our future destiny, to the soul, to the essence of God, to the creation. Enter the sanctuaries of paganism—you there find perfect chaos, a thousand contradictions, the immobility of sculpture, the division and the rending of unity, the parcelling out of the divine attributes, mutilated or denied in their essence, the sophisms of ignorance and presumption, polluted fêtes, impurity and abomination adored, all sorts of corruption festering in the thick shades, with the rotten wood, the idol and his priest...Are these religions and these gods to be compared with Christianity?

          "As for me, I say no...I judge the gods, but am far from prostrating myself before their vain images...I see nothing there which reveals divinity...I recognise the gods and these great men as being like myself. They have performed a lofty part in their times, as I have done. Nothing announces them divine. On the contrary there are numerous resemblances between them and myself, foibles and errors which ally them to me and to humanity...

          "It is not so with Christ. Every thing in Him astonishes me. His Spirit overawes me, and His will confounds me. Between Him and everyone else in the world there is no possible term of comparison. He is truly a being by Himself. His ideas and His sentiments, the truths which He announces, His manner of convincing, are not explained either by human organization or by the nature of things. His birth, and the history of His life; the profundity of His doctrines which grapples the mightiest difficulties, and which is, of those difficulties, the most admirable solution; His gospel, His apparition, His empire, His march across the ages and the realms, everything is to me a prodigy, a mystery insoluble, which plunges me into a reverie from which I cannot escape, a mystery which is there before my eyes, a mystery which I can neither deny nor explain. Here I see nothing human.

          "...His [Jesus'] religion is a revelation from an intelligence which certainly is not that of man. There is there a profound originality, which has created a series of words and of maxims before unknown. Jesus borrowed nothing from our sciences. One can absolutely find nowhere, but in Him alone, the imitation or the example of His life...

          "In fact the sciences and philosophy avail nothing for salvation; and Jesus came into the world to reveal the mysteries of heaven and the laws of the Spirit...At His voice everything returns to order, science and philosophy become secondary. The soul has reconquered its sovereignty. All the scholastic scaffolding falls, as an edifice ruined, before one single word—faith!               

          "What a Master, and what a word, which can effect such a revolution! With what authority does He teach men to pray! He imposes His belief, and no one thus far has been able to contradict Him: first, because the gospel contains the purest morality, and also because the doctrine which it contains of obscurity is only the proclamation and the truth of that which exists which no eye can see and no reason penetrate. Who is the insensate who will say 'No' to the intrepid voyager who recounts the marvels of the icy peaks which he alone has had the boldness to visit? Christ is that bold voyager. [Rather irreverent methinks.] One can doubtless remain incredulous; but no one can venture to say it is not so."

         You can always discover something new at www.DYPK.org.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0102, 04/03/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "FANS & FOLLOWERS"

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—a true story, except for the characters' names

          "How about joining us for Bible study on Saturday morning?" Bill asked a corporate colleague.

          "I'd really enjoy that," Jim replied, "but it would encroach on my other religion."

          "Oh? What's that?" probed Bill.

          "Georgia Football. Saturday is a big day for the Dawgs and Jackets rivalry, you know," Jim announced.

          Bill understood. Though he was not personally a fan, most of his friends were passionate about sports. For weeks, though, he was unable to shake Jim's characterization of football as "my other religion." Might Jim have unwittingly disclosed more fact than fantasy? If he did have two religions, how did they compare? Could their comparison reveal strong contrasts? For months Bill reflected frequently on those questions. He perceived the need for some definitions:

          "Fan," "follower" and "enthusiast" were among the terms he analyzed first. He concluded that there are many similarities between "enthusiast" and "fan," depending on one's perspective. Because "fan" is short for "fanatic" it must include the context for "enthusiast." But "follower" is a distant relative of "fan" and "enthusiast;" i.e.: One who "follows" Georgia Football may lack the passion of the "enthusiasts" and the "fans." Bill soon concluded that the real need was for objective analysis and comparison of Jim's two "religions."

          Jim makes no secret of his enthusiasm for Georgia Football or for Christianity in the workplace. Always visible on his corporate management desk is a large Bible. Emblems of Georgia football are also on his desk, credenza and office wall. Even his home mailbox is emblazoned with the slogan, "How 'Bout Them Dawgs?"(R). U of GA symbols are also on his car, along with a bumper sticker that advertises the megachurch he attends. He teaches an also-large adult Bible class on Sunday mornings—has done that for many years.

          At church, at work and at play, Jim is known as a man's man. He has memorized the current Dawgs(R) schedule and can recite critical player-by-player stats for all the current (and several former) Georgia football players. He speaks with confidence about the school's coaches and the relative wisdom of their respective appointments…and of their recent game and season strategy decisions. He really lights up when someone engages him in conversation about his favorite team. To make sure that happens often, even his golf balls and much of his golfing attire are marked with trademarked Georgia Football symbols.

          Jim enjoys going to church. He finds the fellowship rewarding. He is especially attracted to other church members who are also Dawgs(R) fans. His nationally known pastor is one of them. They enjoy golfing and having lunch together often.

          Coworkers sometimes ask Jim about his faith. He typically responds by proclaiming the essence of "what 'we' believe" about the Bible and Christianity. Arguably, like most Christian Believers, he can only speak to his denominational dogma, though. Why? That's because he has learned only WHAT to study in the Bible...to confirm his church's Doctrines. Family and career and hobbies have left him with no perceived time to learn HOW to study the Bible, to discover original truth. What's the problem with that? All seminaries teach "what 'we' believe." Their naïve graduates preach "what 'we' believe." Their sincere faithful buy into "what 'we' believe." Let the buyer beware.

          By contrast, Jim has made time to learn all the critical facts about his "other religion." About Georgia Football, Jim has digested MEAT. About Christianity, he has consumed only MILK. Is it possible that Jim does NOT have two religions? Might he, instead, have a religion and a hobby? If so, which is which? Of which is he a "fan?" Of which is he a "follower?"

          >  "We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to

              teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the

              teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." —Hebrews 5:11-14 [NIV]

          >  "My people are destroyed for lack of   [righteousnes?]   [sincerity?]   [worship?]   [prayer?]   [hyper-spirituality?]   [holiness?]   [regular church attendance?]   [believing

              "what 'we' believe"?]   [faith?]   [getting "truly 'saved'?"]   knowledge —Hosea 4:6 [KJV]

          Bible knowledge is acquired actively, objectively and intellectually. "It is written." Because it is written, we must each be aggressive in our objective searching for it. The burning question is should we each be as aggressive as are the sports fans who do whatever it takes to become fully knowledgeable about their favorite sports and their favorite teams.

          The scriptures call those who fail to engage their minds to gain written Bible truth "babes." "Babes" reason with their hearts; i.e.: their feelings. While acknowledging the leanings of their hearts, mature[ing] Christians reason with their minds, having put on the mind of Christ. Most Christian believers and even their clergy appear never to advance beyond that "babe" stage, though. They reason passively, driven only by their feelings...and by a strong, heart-felt trust in their very human and also stereotypically uninformed and/or misinformed human leaders.

          Because their minds are disengaged, they are hyper-vulnerable to "other" spirits. Lucifer will find it easy to deceive them. If he hasn't deceived them already, then certainly early during Anti-Christ's reign. Meanwhile, you may recall that deceiving spirits can yield the same "warm fuzzies" that most of us associate with The Holy Spirit. That's how they deceive. [Follow this link to more on "The Warm Fuzzies:" http://bibleexplorers.webs.com/BLOG/0063.pdf.]

          >  "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;" —Paul, at 1

              Timothy 4:1

          >  "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world." —1 John 4:1

          Arguably, most Christian believers acquire substantially more knowledge about and understanding of their hobbies than about the Bible and Christianity. [Please stop reading this for just a minute and turn in your Bible to Proverbs 1:22.] Individual Christian believers are at fault, yes. But the visible church has also missed the mark of its high calling: Collectively, it has done a respectable job of making Believers; but who's making Disciples? The Church will rise from the ashes of the visible church. Will you be a part of it?

          >  "…for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of. them that diligently seek him." —Hebrews. 11:6

How does one diligently seek him?

          >  "So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple." —Jesus, at Luke 14:33

          It's true: The word, "fan," is short for "fanatic." It must include the context for "enthusiast." But the word, "follower," is a distant relative of both "fan" and "enthusiast." A person who "follows" Georgia Football typically lacks the passion and the commitment of the "enthusiasts" and the "fans."

          Do you have a hobby? Do you have a religion? Which is which? Are you a "fan" or a "follower" of Christ and Christianity?

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0101, 03/27/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "The BLAME"

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          God has preserved His word in writing for us so that we who seek truth need not be deceived by denominational dogma and delusional fables. Is that Word so nebulous, complex and confusing as to require professional interpreters? Some will be surprised to learn that it is not. Then why are there so many different expert "interpretations" of the critical messages of that Word? With each interpretation isn't there another denomination? Within each denomination don't different interpretations foster further division? Isn't the church supposed to be Christ's Body? How can that body, now divided almost completely against itself, stand? And who's the culprit, for goodness' sake?

          Is it Satan? It would be easy to blame it all on Satan, especially because we know he'll succeed in deceiving millions of sincere Christian believers and their preachers during (and apparently well before) Anti-Christ's reign.

          Are mainstream Christian institutions the culprits? It would be easy to blame it all on the visible church, especially because we know that, for multiple centuries, the clergy were delighted that literacy was the exception among the faithful. [How important might it be for Christians to be up-to-speed on world/church history"]

          What of the rank-and-file members of the mainstream clergy, our local pastors? Is it their fault? It would be easy to blame it on the preachers, because a majority of them (including the seminary graduates) clearly have not done their most critical homework.

          No? Then it must surely be the fault of each individual parishioner. That'd be an easy conclusion, wouldn't it? After all, the stereotypical Christian Believer never advances from passive Believership to productive Discipleship. There's a huge difference, you know.

          Some will be surprised to learn that Human Nature – a.k.a. the Sin nature – is the culprit. That's why the observably pervasive confusion and deception! We're commanded to get rid of it at Romans 12:2. Multiple Old Testament and New Testament scriptures tell us why we must execute human nature. Jeremiah 17:5 even quotes the Lord as saying, "Cursed [be] the man that trusts in man…" Paul addressed the inevitable consequence of failing to execute human nature:

          > "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears. And they shall 

             turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." —2 Timothy 4:3,4

          To the Thessalonians he wrote this:

          > "…because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God. shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 

             That they all might be damned who believed not the truth..." —2 Thessalonians 2:8-12

             That warning is specific to the truth about the relative timing, within the sequence of end-time events, for Christ's return to gather the saints.

             Some will respond, "But Jesus will come like a thief in the night! Nobody knows the day nor the hour!" Paul said this about that:

             > "But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief." —1 Thessalonians 5:4

          Question: Precisely what is it about human nature (the sin nature) that makes it so destructive?

          Answer: It forces its victims to rationalize rather than to be rational. To rationalize is to reason subjectively. To be rational is to reason objectively.

          But aren't we "spiritual" creatures? Isn't it the Holy Spirit that is to lead us into all Truth? Aren't we told that we must worship God in spirit and in truth? At 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul told Timothy to study to show himself approved. Why do you think he didn't instruct Timothy to pray for increased knowledge and understanding and for God's approval? Wouldn't that have been more spiritual?

          It is false religion that thrives on hyperspiritualized mysticism. Although he is spirit, none of God's discernable characteristics are mystical. They'e purely intellectual and pragmatic. He is the original scientist, astronomer, physicist, mathematician, chemist, logistician, physician, sociologist and psychologist. His written word depicts him as logical, sensible, objective, pragmatic and reasonable. That message is consistent throughout the Bible. Spirituality and mysticism are clearly NOT mindsets that can lead believers to the knowledge of God.

          Meanwhile, sensible men acknowledge that God's logic, sensibility, objectivity and reasoning exist on a plane that we can admire but not attain in this life. The Old Testament records his perpetual attempt to teach men logic, sensibility, objectivity and RATIONAL thinking. His message, there, is consistent. It is reasonable. It is logical. It is simple. It is law. This is the essence of His Old Testament message:

          > "These are the boundaries for your behavior. Stay within them and you will enjoy my blessings and my protection. Step one foot outside those boundaries and you're 

             on your own."

             Does that sound even remotely spiritual to you?

          In what ways do God's New Testament messages differ? They don't. At Matthew 5:18, Jesus insisted that not even one jot nor tittle of Old Testament Law was to pass away with the dispensation of grace. Analyze the content of Jesus' Sermon On The Mount. Logical? Sensible? Objective? Reasonable? Is it mystical? Is it spiritual? Not. Dissect all the other recorded teaching and communicating events of Jesus: Are they predominantly mystical/spiritual or are they pragmatic? If you've been objective in your analysis, you have concluded that the essence of His message is practical and characterized by sound reasoning; not mysticism.

          Then, why did most of Jesus' hearers not "get it?" That would be the fault of human nature, too: Like streams of water after a rain, the sin nature defaults to the course of least resistance and the most comfort. The course of least resistance for mankind is subjective, feelings-based reasoning. Passive, it requires no work. Objective reasoning requires work.

          > "Yea, if thou criest out for knowledge, [and] liftest up thy voice for understanding; if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as [for] hid treasures; then shalt 

             thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. —Proverbs 2:3-5

          When you rely on your feelings for reasoning, you become susceptible to many "other spirits" that can cause you to feel almost like The Holy Spirit made you feel when He first drew you to repentance. Therein lie the wages of your human nature—Death. Wouldn't it be, thence, reasonable to conclude with a degree of certainty that thinking and "doing what comes naturally" is suicide?

          > "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils" —1 Timothy 4:1

          > "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world." —1 John 4:1

          > "Let this MIND be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." —Paul, at Philippians 2:5

          > "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your MIND…" —Paul, at Romans 12:2

          > "God's gift of a sound MIND is a terrible thing to waste." —T. C. Newsome

          > "Those Christians who're to discover truth will have adopted the MINDset of those Acts 17:11 Bereans." —T. C. Newsome

          Clearly, we are to join our hearts and MINDS together for the purpose of gaining original truth and then acting on it, to fulfill the mission that Jesus assigned to The Church. Most readers will be surprised to learn that the mission Jesus prescribed is SUBSTANTIALLY DIFFERENT from the mission the visible church currently pursues. Follow this link to learn HOW that mission differs: http://bibleexplorers.webs.com/BLOG/0089.pdf

          Need more sound scriptural substance? Examine Jesus' post-wilderness-experience temptation: With each of his attempts to gain control of Jesus, Satan intelligently appealed, not to his intellect, but to his FEELINGS. With equal brilliance Jesus forced himself to ignore those feelings and to respond using only his MIND. How did he do that?

          A. He reminded himself (and Satan) that God's word is in writing.

          B. He reminded himself (and us) that it is in writing for a critical primary purpose—so that those who will resolve to cast off denominational dogma and to demand 

               original truth need never be betrayed by FEELINGS.

          C. He forced himself to rely totally on what is written. Jesus' feelings (i.e.: his spirit) bore witness of extreme weakness and hunger and thirst. But he responded 

               rationally, "It is written…"

Satan enticed Jesus to be subjective. Jesus chose objectivity. Satan enticed Jesus to consider his feelings (i.e.: his broken spirit). Jesus chose to use his brain. Satan enticed Jesus to rationalize. Jesus chose to be rational. He chose to reason logically and to be practical, not "spiritual," in responding. Why did he do that? He had but one purpose: To establish a critical precedent for you and me.

          If, with tears flowing fancifully you sing, "To be like Jesus, To be like Jesus. That's all I want: to be like him," consider yourself now fully informed: Jesus never permitted his feelings to interfere with his thinking. Want to be like him? That's how. To be a Disciple one must become like Jesus. To become like Jesus, one must THINK like Jesus thinks. Now you know how Jesus thinks.

          > "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge..."—Hosea 4:6

          One of my favorite quotes is this one from Vince Lombardi: "Gentlemen, this is a football." I have massaged it some, to yield this: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Bible. The critical parts of its message are plainly written. Unlike the U. S. Constitution, they need no expert 'interpreters.' If you are literate, learn to read God's written word objectively, as-if-no-one-had-ever-explained-what-it-means."

          > "The illiterate of the 21st Century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn." —Alvin Toffler, American futurist 

             (former associate editor of Fortune Magazine)

          It is by the drawing of The Spirit that a man comes into relationship with God. It is by the active (as opposed to passive) exercise of that man's intellect that he studies to show himself approved by God, a workman that doesn't need to be ashamed. If that same man were to submit passively to religious mysticism and "spirituality" he would be easily duped into error and damnation by a very real spirit that mimics the "feelings" he experienced at the time of his initial drawing by The Spirit. (You may want to read that long sentence again, more than once, to grasp its critical message.)

          To qualify as "sound," a doctrine must enjoy the clear support of a reasonable collection of objectively comprehended scriptures, each within its rationally perceived context. All else is either pure heresy, pagan mysticism or wishful dreaming.

          I hope to engage your mind and then your heart. God has given you the spirit of a sound mind, too, hasn't He? As you read and discover, please take several short breaks to do what those more-noble Bereans of Acts 17:11 did.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0100, 03/20/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "BOOMER Christians"

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          Boomer Christians are…well, different. "Don't trust anybody over thirty!" Remember it? That was our 1960s era call-to-action slogan. The media and the marketers both targeted our parents, today's senior citizens, then. Like many aging Boomers, I refuse to be a "senior citizen" or to join AARP (Did they or didn't they betray their members in 2010?) – or even a seniors group at church. We're Boomers, already. That's enough. Our slogan reflected our mindset of strong skepticism. It had as much to do with our generation's long term impact on society as most anything else...except maybe sex, drugs and rock-n-roll.

          Then we grew up. We bought Mustangs and motorcycles and such, first, though. Soon, we were over thirty. The marketers began targeting us with ads like, "This is not your father's Oldsmobile."(R) I was among the Boomers who didn't buy in. We bought 'Vettes and Z-cars and RX-7s and faster motorcycles and such, instead. My wife and I owned three of those RX-7s in succession. They hugged those Highway 64 mountain curves, you know. Had a ball. Those smokin' hot rotary engine cars doubled as family cars for us, too. Our son and daughter still reminisce about being stuffed into our hatchback trunks when they were small. Later, even I outgrew (literally) those fun cars.

Today we Boomers are either retired, soon-to-retired or at least thinking about it. Me? I was among the very first group of us to reach retirement age. I retired earlier than that, though. Some say it was only because I could. "Hey, this is my time to play!"

          My wife and I do play, but something started happening to me during the six months or so before I retired: There was this persistent recurring thought: "OK, smart guy; it's time for you to start really growing up." The rebellious Boomer in me retorted, "So define 'growing up' already!" Disclosure on how I resolved that internal conflict will evolve as you continue to read. First, though, here's what prompted it: I had been an Agnostic (i.e.: an Atheist-wannabe) for a dozen years during my early adult life. To make a short story a lot more interesting for you, I'll cut to the chase:

          Later, a typical boomer churchman, I pursued a secular career. Although I had to suppress my innate skepticism in order to enjoy Fortune 50 corporate career success, I never really lost it. Now, before you conclude that skepticism is a bad thing, read Acts 17:11. The Bereans of that scripture are called "more noble" because of how they cultivated and managed their intelligent skepticism. (By that very measure, might Thomas have been among the more noble of Jesus' disciples?)

          While listening to at least three sermons every week, I couldn't help but wonder whether the messages were credible. Had my preachers done their due diligence or were they just regurgitating our denomination's franchised "what 'we' believe" rhetoric? For decades I was a successful Bible teacher...large sanctuary classes, etc. The publishers of my Adult Teacher's Guides, had they done their homework, or were they just writing what they knew our denominational leaders would expect them to write?

"Life happens!" That was my excuse for not emulating the more-noble behavior of the Acts 17:11 Bereans during that time. I rationalized that, because I was a very busy corporate career professional and because I also cherished fun time with my family, I didn't have TIME to study the Bible sufficiently to learn what's true and what's denominational SPIN.

          My late father was an ordained minister. He served, alternately, as a pastor and as an evangelist. Soon after I had worked through my Agnostic struggles I was able to confront him about some of the doctrines and practices of our mainstream denomination. It doesn't matter which denomination: As you'll soon discover, they all spew their own respective "what 'we' believe" rhetoric. Yours, too. Would God really have left us His written instructions in a form that could be "interpreted" so many different ways by so many different career professional Christians and institutions? My dad admitted to me that most of what he had preached during my childhood years had come from other preachers. I recognized the names of some of them he had greatly admired.

          "But, Dad!" I asked, "Didn't you ever see the glaring discrepancies between those doctrines and practices and what is plainly written in the Bible?"

          "My trust has been in Man, son. And that is not a good thing."

          We embraced and wept together and I thanked him for his candor.

          Given that important discovery, I soon realized that I was not equipped to do any better! My entire church experience had taught me only WHAT to study in the Bible...to confirm "what 'we' believe." A craving burned hot within me, to learn HOW to study...to gain original truth. If I could just learn how to do that, then maybe I could help others learn how to do it, too. My existence might even gain some eternal value. Otherwise, I'd be just another flash in the pan, here for a while then gone forever, having invested my entire life in the vanity of accumulated "stuff."

          If you are a fellow Boomer, please accept my challenge to do whatever it takes to learn HOW to study God's written word as-if-no-one-had-ever-explained-what-it-means. Nothing matters but original truth. The "Life happens!" excuse will hold no water once you are retired. We are to be good stewards of our TIME, too, you know.

Jesus demonstrated that for us, brilliantly. With just three years to accomplish his assigned mission, he wasted no time at all. You may recall that he even refused to share important truth with people until after they had clearly gained "ears to hear." (Later in one of The UnSpun Gospel Series(SM) I'll share valuable insight into the "mechanics" and the psychology of some of the amazing techniques Jesus used, consistently, for helping people to gain ears to hear. A prime example of that is to be learned from his encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well.)

          As you invest more and more time in personal Bible Study – with your own handpicked small study group – you'll need some help. That's precisely why we have posted our Seven New Bible Study Tools on the "HOW TO STUDY" page. It will become more and more clear to you that the visible church has missed the mark of its high calling. The Church will arise from its ashes. Reciprocal accountability and compassion will characterize it. Instruction, correction and reproof will also be reciprocal. Will you be a part of that?

          It is our prayer that this platform for rational thinking we seek to facilitate will become an effective catalyst for bringing Christ's Body (i.e.: The Church) together. Want to connect with other Boomers in your area who've made up their minds to acquire the mind and the heart and the knowledge of Christ? Just shoot us an email that contains only the personal info YOU think may be important. When others in your area have done that, too, we'll be happy to facilitate your introduction and subsequent follow-thru: Scribe@DYPK.org.

          "Boomer Christians, unite!" Spread this good news to all the other Boomers you know. Let's make a meaningful difference in our world! We have a lot in common and much to accomplish—and our TIME is short. 11,000 more of us will reach retirement age every single day over the next 16 years. This is our chance to accomplish something really worthwhile. Are you in?

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0099, 03/13/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "INTOXICANTS & Christianity"

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          The battle rages on, but it's clearly senseless. There is a little-known scripture that should send the fighters back to their respective corners of the fight ring. What's with all the hoopla. anyhow? Since the days of the U.S. Prohibition fight, it was all about alcohol. But the issue has grown in complexity. Preachers and parishioners have become quite vocal about this highly controversial topic. The open discussions should be closed...and kept within our Christian ranks. This is why:

          > "...whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God." —Paul, at Romans 14:22 [NIV]

             Read that in several Bible versions. You may want to read the entire chapter. It speaks wisely about the consumption and the non-consumption of certain foods, too. 

          Paul insists that if a believer thinks it's a sin for him to eat red meat, to him, it is a sin. How should other believers respond? Those who're fully convinced that occasionally enjoying medium-rare filets of beef with one or two glasses of wine is not only okay, but scripturally defensible, should keep their rationale completely to themselves. Those believers who've lost loved ones to drunk drivers will have a really hard time doing that. But they must restrict the discussion to the evils of driving while intoxicated. But what about members of those families who've been traumatized by intoxicant-driven domestic violence? For them, the struggle for a scriptural response is considerably more difficult. There are at least four things on which they might productively focus their discussions:

          A. Getting professional help for the offenders.

          B. Getting professional help for the victims.

          C. Condemning the film industry and the news media who insist on glamorizing the use and abuse of intoxicants.

          D. Condemning clergymen and other Christians who aggressively insist that the scriptures prescribe nothing at all to support total abstinence.

          If you're among those who perceive absolutely no harm in the consumption of alcohol or another intoxicant you should consume it, always, in private...and keep the rationale for that mindset to yourself. Why? Non-private consumption can easily cause others to perceive a license. Some of those others, for example, will have a genetic propensity to alcoholism or addiction to another substance. The wise mindset is to let others work out their OWN salvation with fear and trembling:

          > "But if thy brother be grieved with [thy] meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died. Let not then your good be evil 

              spoken of. For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. For he that in these things serveth Christ [is] 

              acceptable to God, and approved of men. Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another. For meat destroy 

              not the work of God. All things indeed [are] pure; but [it is] evil for that man who eateth with offence. [It is] good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor [any thing] 

              whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak. Hast thou faith? have [it] to thyself before God. Happy [is] he that condemneth not himself in that 

              thing which he alloweth. And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because [he eateth] not of faith: for whatsoever [is] not of faith is sin." —Paul, at Romans 14:15-23

          So, what should your clergyman preach about such things? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Nothing.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0098, 03/06/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "OBJECTIVITY"

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Why are the Bereans of Acts 17:11 called "more noble?" What's the valuable take-home message?"

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Blog #0097, 02/27/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "FALSE PROPHETS"

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          Jesus described two (2) groups of false prophets that Christians – and even those who sympathize with the Christian faith – must be aware of, if they're to safely endure the time of Anti-Christ and his legions: He described the first group as "wolves in sheep's clothing." They were active during New Testament times and they are with us, in abundance, today. Jesus characterized the second group as "wolves in shepherd's clothing." They're to appear later—a little known Bible fact. Like faithful and true prophets, "wolves in sheep's clothing" carry the "Jesus is Lord!" banner. Each "wolf in shepherd's clothing will proclaim himself to be Christ.

          This is what Jesus said about false prophets, a.k.a. wolves in SHEEP'S clothing. (The italicized-bracketed text, within all quotes in the series, is mine):

          >  "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves." ―Matthew 7:15 (Context: Know them by their fruits.)

          >  "And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, [that] I [Jesus] am Christ; and shall deceive

              many." —Matthew 24:4,5 (Context: When will Christ return?)

          >  "And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any [man] deceive you: For many shall come in my name, saying, I [Jesus] am [Christ]; and shall deceive

              many." —Mark 13:5,6 (Context: When will Christ return?)

          >  "And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I [Jesus] am [Christ]; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after

              them." —Luke 21:8 (Context: When will Christ return?)

          This is what Jesus said about the false Christs, a.k.a. wolves in SHEPHERD'S clothing. Their signs and wonders will be very real/genuine, so as to effectively deceive uninformed and misinformed Christian believers...and their clergy:

          >  "Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here [is] Christ, or there, believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and

               wonders; insomuch that, if it [were] possible, they shall deceive the very elect. —Matthew 24:23,24 (Context: When will Christ return?)

          >  "And then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here [is] Christ; or lo, [he] is there; believe [him] not: For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs

              and wonders, to seduce, if [it were] possible, even the elect." —Mark 13:21,22 (Context: When will Christ return?)

          What is the reasonable likelihood that any maverick false prophet could deceive many, today? Is it all possible in your mind that those who've gained leadership positions with or, at least, are credentialed by today's mainstream Christian denominations are uniquely positioned to deceive many? If there were to emerge a strong maverick prophet – false or faithful and true – wouldn't today's mainstream religious establishment promptly crush him? Doing that would require substantial power. Someone recently defined the word "cult" as a religious group that has not gained political power. (By that new definition, neither Atheism nor Secular Humanism can be credibly given the "cult" label. Those groups, especially the Atheists, are behaving more and more like traditional organized religion.)

          Whether it observably wields it or not, how does today's visible church gain and maintain such power? This is what I think:

           (1)  They teach the uninformed faithful only what to study in God's word...to confirm "what 'we' believe." By contrast, faithful and true prophets seek to help the faithful

                  learn how to study the Bible...to discover the truth that can make a man free.

           (2)  They systematically reinforce the notion that laymen – the presumed subordinate class – must "come under the authority of" their institutions and appointed clergy.

                  Any layman who dares quote pertinent scriptures in rebuttal, is quickly labeled "insubordinate." Here's what Jesus said about that mindset:

                  >  "...Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so among 

                      you:...whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant." —Jesus, at Matthew 20:25-27

                  >  "...he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased..." —Jesus, at Matthew 23:11,12

                  >  "If any man desire to be first, [the same] shall be last of all, and servant of all." —Jesus, at Mark 9:35

                  >  "Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. But so shall it

                      not be among you:...And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all." —Jesus, at Mark 10:42-44

           (3)  They build strong financial empires. To build and to maintain those empires they enslave their uninformed faithful, financially, by teaching them they should "give 'til 

                  it hurts" or "give sacrificially." Many local pastors have even taken to the clever con of some Christian TV superstars, who successfully teach their uninformed

                  viewers the concept of "seedtime and harvest"—scriptural, but laughably impertinent. They entice poor people to send in their hard-earned "seed faith" money, with

                  the promise of multiple-fold returns. Do they ignore the pertinent scriptures subconsciously or consciously?

                  >  Paul earned his living as a tentmaker. —Acts 18:3

                  >  "Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me. —Paul, at Acts 20:34

                  >  "Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit... —Paul, at 2 Corinthians 2:17

                  >  "...children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. —Paul, at 2 Corinthians 12:14 (See, also, verses 11-18.)

                  >  "For you...know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone's food without paying for it. On the 

                      contrary,

                      we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you...For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man

                      will not work, he shall not eat."...Such people [should] settle down and earn the bread they eat...If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter...Do not

                      associate with him..." —2 Thessalonians 3:6-12 [NIV] (Except where otherwise noted all scripture quotes throughout the series are from the KJV.)

                      —Paul was clearly referring, not the rank-and-file church people at Thessalonica, but to their preachers and teachers!

                    >  "For the love of money is the root of all evil...But thou, O man of God, flee these things…" —Paul, at 1 Timothy 6:10,11

                    >  "Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight [thereof], not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind." —1 Peter 5:2

                        Hmmm... Might Paul have been suggesting that the establishment of a professional clergy would inevitably corrupt the visible church? Given Jesus' "The Great

                        Commission," at Matthew 28:19-20, is "the ministry" a legitimate professional career path?

          What strong maverick false prophet could possibly succeed in deceiving many in the face of such formidable opposition? What maverick faithful and true prophet could possibly succeed in bringing God 's original message of truth to many in the face of such formidable opposition? When mobsters "corner" a market, they stereotypically crush all vulnerable competition. That's how they stay in power. (For younger readers who may not know, a strong synonym for "maverick" is "lone wolf." Both terms refer to people who act alone—without the sanctions or credentials of any established organization or institution.)

          It is my respectful conclusion that this phenomenon, alone, explains how the following can be true:

          >  "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap unto themselves teachers, having itching ears. And they

              shall turn away [their] ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." —Paul, at 2 Timothy 4:3,4

          That time is now. Have you embraced your denomination's "what 'we' believe" platform? Have you learned WHAT to study in the Bible...to confirm "what 'we' believe?" That's how religious institutions effectively control the fearful and the uninformed. Will you break free to endure sound doctrine? If so, we will gladly help you learn HOW to study the Bible...to discover the truth that can make you eternally free. We'll even give you a collection of tools for doing that effectively. You may never have heard of some of those tools. Become a frequent visitor of the www.DYPK.org site to learn all you can about that.

          >  "There are two kinds of light—the glow that illuminates, and the glare that obscures." —James Thurber

          >  "The truth that makes men free is the truth that men don't want to hear." —unknown

          Given this collection of scriptural and observational evidence who do YOU now think are the "wolves in sheep's clothing" that Jesus warned us about? While pondering that, please remember that Jesus said those false prophets will succeed in deceiving MANY—even the elect, if that were possible.

          Reflect, too, on the question we started with: "What is the reasonable likelihood that any maverick false prophet could deceive many, today?" Consider what you've read here, of course. But then trace the logic for yourself. Study to connect the pertinent scriptural "dots" to confirm that two and two always add up to four. You may also confirm Grabel's Law: "Two is not equal to three, not even for large values of two."

          >  "God's gift of a sound mind is a terrible thing to waste." —T. C. Newsome

          Atheism and Secular Humanism are, in fact, religion; but can they deceive many?

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0096, 02/20/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "On the PREMISES"

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          Google(R) "pew potato" and you'll find some really interesting stuff. As an example there's a fascinating Foxworthy-styled "You might be a pew potato if…" piece. And there's a tongue-in-cheek "pew potato" hymn—"Sitting On The Premises," to the tune of "Standing On The Promises."

          Most of what you'll find, though, is quite serious. It's written by clergymen. Each of them is either promoting a method for transforming pew potatoes into "sweet potatoes" [my term] or searching for ways to do that. Best I can figure, their treasured sweet potatoes are pew potatoes, still, but involved in church programs and activities. Hmmm...

          Therein lies those clergymen's implied "pew potato" definition: "A believer who may or may not attend church regularly, who avoids involvement in church programs and activities." You may soon agree that definition falls far short of its potential.

          Bill and Blanche Fry [San Antonio, Texas] wrote, "Couch potatoes may be the kings and queens of the sofa, but some…reign as sovereigns of the pew. Couch potatoes may expend more energy with TV remote controls than pew potatoes do with Bibles or hymnals. The pew potato is a Christian who has become inactive or has retired because of what she perceives to be sufficient years of service." —http://www.churchofchristusa.com/Archives/old%20bulletin%20articles/Pew%20Potatoes.htm

          Is it the purpose of the church to get people "saved" and then to get them Involved? Or, might it be to get people involved and then get them "saved?" Which do you think?

          On second thought, neither my opinion nor yours may be appropriate, here. Perhaps we should consult God's written word for the answer. Is it the mission of the church to get people "saved?" Or, did Jesus prescribe a very different mission for us?

          >  "Therefore go and MAKE DISCIPLES of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey 

              everything I have commanded you… —Jesus, at Matthew 28:19,20 [NIV]

              "Believers" and "Disciples:" Are there differences? To learn the answer focus, first, on what Jesus did NOT tell us to do:

          >  "Go, therefore, and get people 'saved'."         

          >  "Go, therefore, and get people 'saved' and then get them involved in church attendance and active Christian fellowship, activities and programs."

          >  "Go, therefore, and get people involved in church attendance and active Christian fellowship, activities and programs and then get them 'saved'."

          >  "Go, therefore, and persuade people to believe in me so they can get 'saved'."

What he did tell us to do was to (a) Preach/Share the good news, (b) MAKE DISCIPLES of those who believe, (c) Baptize them and (d) Teach them…to obey His teachings. That's the mission of The Church. Take it to the bank.

          The visible church has done a respectable job of making BELIEVERS. Can't argue that. But, Believers are passive. They are non-productive, in the Matthew 28:19,20 sense. The visible church values Believers highly: Many of them give offerings. Some of them tithe. But are they Disciples? Are they even "Saved?"

          >  "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which, while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But

              thou, O man of God, flee these things..." —Paul, at 1 Timothy 6:10,11  (Not a warning to rank-and-file Believers, but to members of the professional clergy.)

          Disciples are active. They're fruitful. They make other Disciples. They OBEY the commandments of our Lord. (Whenever they don't, they promptly request forgiveness and repent.) They, alone, are The Church. Believers are…well, SPECTATORS; they keep the bleachers warm while others keep them entertained.

          >  "So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. —Jesus, at Luke 14:3

Those are Jesus' words; not mine. Fact: It is not the mission of The Church to get people "saved." Sorry. That's the job of the Holy Spirit:

          >  "...And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." —Acts 2:47

          When the visible church beckons Believers and Participants, it promises them programs and activities and a perpetual series of fully choreographed dog-n-pony shows. The opening acts are often professional musicians and singers. The headliners are motivational speakers. Today, with the newest crop of mega-churches, there is the promise of a better life via Positive Thinking and Prosperity. When Jesus beckoned his disciples, he promised them NOTHING. Worthy of meditation?

          George Barna's research appears to yield a strong and clear snapshot of today's thinking Christians: They're leaving!* They're finding entertainment and meaningful social interaction elsewhere. Thank God, some of them are discovering grassroots networks of Disciples who're working to revive The Church…one that at least resembles what Jesus described at Matthew 28:19,20. Must all Christian thinkers eventually follow suit? [*See Revolution, and multiple other publications by George Barna and the Barna Group.]

          Perhaps you now perceive a more apt definition for the term, "pew potato." Consider this one:

          >  "'Pew Potato,' noun: 'a sincere, but passive Christian BELIEVER who is not and will probably never become a mature and fruitful Christian DISCIPLE'."

          Today's church leaders, with their programs and activities, are, themselves, responsible for the current bumper crop of pew potatoes. But are those programs and activities, alone, the culprits? The preaching and teaching of the visible church are also remarkably programmed for yielding Arrested Christian Development:

          No matter how strong their pulpit skills, preachers CANNOT make Disciples from the pulpit. That may be at least one of the reasons why so many Sunday morning sermons are characterized as "salvation" messages: Pew potatoes love to say (or think) "Amen!" when messages are directed to others. (The "Amen!" response, today, means "You tell'em, Brother!")

          Those clergymen who presume to "teach" Discipleship via pulpit sermons presume an impossible task. The fact is that Discipleship cannot be "taught;" it must be "coached." Only personal coaches can do that, one-on-one. Doubt that? Stand behind a podium and try "teaching" a group of children how to ride a bike.

          So, what is the value of pulpit sermons? Pew potatoes love motivational speeches that are creative and skillfully and sometimes humorously delivered. If a preacher can consistently keep them awake, they'll tell their friends, "You've just got to come and hear our wonderful preacher just once, at least!" and the church will grow. Include a pomposity of fully choreographed musical entertainment and, in many cases, FREE tickets to Heaven that can't be revoked, lost, given away or trashed to build a mega church...and accumulate lots of followers' dollars.

          Are size and growth legitimate measures of success for an institution whose clear mission is to make Disciples? What eternal value might there be in a church building packed full of blissful Pew Potatoes, even if most of them were of the sweet potato variety? Anticipate some fascinating additional insight in our "Must We AGREE?" article.

          >  "We started out in the right direction during those first few centuries: loving, serving, healing, restoring, forgiving, sharing, praying – every one either learning to be a

              disciple, being a disciple or training others to be disciples. But somewhere along the way, we turned into serious slackers, slugs even. We benched ourselves and

              appointed a 'chosen few' to do what Jesus and the Father called us all to do, and we sat down to watch. We opted for diso-bedience and convenience. Why did we do

              that? We, as the people of God, chose inertia over 'doing the stuff.' We ignored God's command to 'take dominion over the earth and subdue it'…for the pleasures of

              more mundane, less challenging 'kingdoms' and a permanent pew cushion. Folks, we've messed this job up big time…" —a "Reflections" post, at

              http://wordpress.com/2007/08/10/disciple-or-pew-potato

          Where scriptural challenges of a "what 'we' believe" franchise are discouraged, there can be no healthy forum for making Disciples. Such a church is programmed only to manufacture and maintain a congregation of naïve Believers, a.k.a. pew potatoes. Consciously or subconsciously, that's what the collective leadership of the visible church wants and that's what it gets. Will God be mocked?

          Meaningful DIALOG is critical to the making of Disciples. Lecturing has been shown to be of very little value for real learning of any sort. An effective Disciple-making forum is characterized by on-going, reciprocal correction, instruction and reproof.

          >  "All scripture…is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all

              good works." —2 Timothy 3:16,17

Note: The phrase, "man of God," here, includes non-clergy Disciples. Perhaps you've heard something different.

          >  "…reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine... —2 Timothy 4:2-4

          So why is lecturing the "teaching" tool of choice? It is because, "That's how we do church, here!" Preferring to "teach" and "preach," today's church leaders continue to turn deaf ears to proven learning-based methods. (If you are a clergyman, anticipate three upcoming for-preachers-only articles: "Heads Up!," "I Was Once A Bible Teacher" and "The Problem With Small Groups—And How To Fix It." There, you will find some amazing tools and mindsets that can measurably enhance your effectiveness. Several clergymen have already lauded those articles – published in a different forum – as worthy for your continuing ministry education.

          >  "If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail." —Abraham Maslow

          Among the just under 11,000 Baby Boomers who'll reach retirement age every day for the next 17 years are a respectable number of capable and experienced thinkers. Thinking Boomers have sat quietly in church pews for decades, wondering whether their preachers have really done their homework. Skepticism and curiosity continue to gnaw at them, especially when they're in church. When they retire, many of them will make the time to do their own scriptural homework. It won't take them long to discover that their quiet doubting has been fully justified.

          They'll soon discover that all seminaries teach "what 'we' believe," that seminary graduates teach "what 'we' believe" and that the Believers who warm their pews believe "what 'we' believe." Those Boomers have not been naïve, but patient. As soon as their retirement tsunami gains critical mass, they're likely to spring some major surprises on the visible church. Clergymen beware:

          >  "Make full proof of thy ministry." —2 Timothy 4:5

          Spoken or unspoken, the primary objective of the visible church is to build and maintain congregations of BELIEVERS. To attract those Believers, they use various methods for making Christianity appear attractive. How attractive can that be to God? How attractive is it to you? How does it compare to the method Jesus used?

          Essentially, though, this article is for laymen. If you're a Christian layman, please examine your priorities: Will you be a perpetual spectator who keeps the bleacher seats warm or an active participant on-the-playing-field, with the mission JESUS prescribed for The Church?

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0094, 02/06/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "Must We AGREE?"

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          "We've never had a cross word between us in sixty years of marriage." Ever heard anything like that? Did you believe it? Did you wonder silently,  "Well, bless your old hearts, then how do you communicate?" In Christian fellowship, as in marriage, occasional disagreement is a very normal (and important) part of healthy interaction. If a relationship is to grow, occasional disagreement will be necessary. I know, that doesn't sound especially religious, but read on for the Scriptural rationale...

          So how should we respond when we find ourselves in disagreement with a fellow Christian concerning a matter as important as interpretation of Scripture? The

key to productive management of our inevitable disagreements may be to understand that it is not necessary that we agree on the interpretation of every scripture to enjoy mutually productive Christian labor and fellowship.

Confrontation Phobia—                                                                              

          Christians stereotypically avoid confrontation like the plague, but we (especially we who presume to feed Christ's lambs) are not permitted that luxury:

          >  "Sound doctrine can reside only with those Christian leaders who will choose to endure regular and reciprocal confrontation and challenge. Iron sharpens iron, you

              know (Proverbs 27:17). In governmental environments those are called checks and balances." —T. C. Newsome

          We must accept, by faith, only that Jesus is God, born of the virgin Mary, that he arose from the dead and sits at the right hand of the Father, ever making intercession for us, etc. No amount of  "interpreting" can change that. No one else's opinion about it can change it. For most everything else in God's written word, though, we must join together and study to learn HOW to rightly divide the scriptures and show ourselves approved as workmen who have no need for shame. The skin thickens, with time. [See Matthew 15:12-14, 23:13-15 and. Luke 6:39.]  Set before every presumed feeder of Christ's lambs, today, are blessings and a curses. [See Deuteronomy 11:26 and 27:18. For laymen, there is Jeremiah 17:5-8.]

          If you are not a preacher it would be easy for you to think I intend the above for preachers. Actually, though, it is for you: In someone's eyes, you are a role model/leader. We laymen can no longer languish in the luxury and comfort of the pew and permit our preachers to do our critical thinking and growing for us; they won't. We must get onto the playing field ourselves. Spectators stay dry and clean...and in the bleachers.  Players get sweaty and dirty. Players practice, practice, practice—hoping for a chance to get off the bench to play against a real opponent. Practicing is characterized as managed confrontation with other players on the same team. Once off the bench, they are more likely to have gained sufficient competence and confidence to perform effectively in confrontations against well-rehearsed enemy teams:

          >  "…be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not

              against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

              Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." —Paul, at Ephesians 6:10-13

          Paul instructed the non-preacher believers at Ephesus and Thessalonica to put on the whole armor of God. This is the essence of his message to the believers in those two churches:

          Put on...

          a.Œ  the Belt of Truth

          b.  the Breastplate of Righteousness

          Žc.  the Shoes of PRACTICE unto Readiness

          d.  the Shield of Faith

          e.  the Helmet of The Hope of Salvation —1 Thessalonians 5:8

           ‘f.  the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God

           g.’ the Wisdom of Alertness

That prompts some really important questions. Here are three of them:

          1.  Recall the story of David and Goliath? David refused King Saul's battle armor because it was heavy...and really awkward, too. That was because David hadn't

               practiced fighting while wearing it, as had Saul. Battle armor (even God's whole armor) would be too awkward and heavy for anyone who hadn't, first, become

               intimately familiar and comfortable with its collective weight and feel in PRACTICE.

          2.  How effective might one be in real conflict if one's SHOES of PRACTICE Unto Readiness were clean, having never been worn in rigorous Practice? Have you ever

               worn shoes that hadn't been broken-in?

          3.  How effective might one be with a SWORD if one has never used it in regular and strenuous combat Practice exercises? How might one even effectively practice with

               it if one's knowledge of it is both passive and limited to what someone else has told one about it?

          Unfortunately, it is not  "practice" that makes perfect. Only "perfect practice" makes perfect. Roleplays in your church's "what 'we' believe" seminars and workshops are justly characterized as imperfect practice. For perfect practice you will want to align with a few other believers who will resolve to separate denominational dogma from original truth. Then and only then can you enjoy "perfect practice." Your Shoes of Practice Unto Readiness will get broken-in and really dirty, too – with regular exercises of managed conflict. within your very special group. You will each grow in skill, spiritual muscle for bearing the weight of God's combat armor and in stamina—for enduring to the end.

          If you've put on Christ's yoke, you must push against it, too. Without teamwork there is no work. Not only must we each be receptive to reciprocal instruction, correction and reproof (even occasional rebuke), but  we must actively cultivate such environments and relationships. Otherwise we can gain no skill. Without skill there can be no perfect practice. Without perfect practice there can be no readiness. Without readiness soldiers in the army of the Lord grow lethargic and weak: The weight of God's armor causes weak soldiers to collapse even before any real combat begins. Even if those soldiers make it into combat, if their armor still feels awkward from lack of perfect Practice, they'll be quickly and easily defeated. It's easy to sing about being in the army of the Lord, but who will practice to learn how to fight effectively in the ranks of the real army of the Lord? You?

          >  "So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple." —Jesus, at Luke 14:33

          We soldiers in God's army cannot afford to avoid conflict like the plague. If, like the proverbial old couple that claims to have never argued, we were to always avoid confrontation, none of us would be able to fulfill the mission of the church. Now, you may currently think that the assignment Jesus gave to the church was to get as many people "saved" as possible. That mindset is enormously popular, I know, but it couldn't be further from the truth. The Great Commission of Matthew 28:19,20 is about making DISCIPLES:

           (1)  Preach.

           (2)  Make Disciples of those who Believe.

           (3)  Teach/Encourage each new Disciple to do the same.

          There are BIG differences between Believers and Disciples. Believers can't fulfill The Great Commission. Disciples can. The visible church has made millions of Believers, but who's making Disciples? Can that be done from a pulpit? No one can "teach" a young child how to ride a bike. Kids learn how to ride bikes from patient COACHES. Shepherds can't produce sheep. Sheep produce sheep. Nobody can "make Disciples" from a pulpit. The making of Disciples is a "coaching" assignment to us all. Disciples are made one-at-a-time, by other Disciples, and that takes time. But where are the Coaches? You? If not, then you may want to gather a group of friends for regular Discipleship PRACTICE. Sound like a formidable assignment? There's help: Visit www.DYPK.org and then click on the "HOW TO STUDY" tab. Share that info with a few of your friends as a preface to organizing for regular Discipleship skills practice. I did that. It worked. Still working!

          It is unfortunate, at least, that most churchgoers think they're Disciples because they Believe and are faithful in church attendance. Their pastors typically think they're fulfilling The Great Commission because they've filled their pews with Believers. But even devils believe (James 2:17-26). To become a Disciple a Believer must fulfill "The Great Commission." That means to become a Student of, an Adherent to and a Teacher of the doctrines of Christ.

          Instruction, correction, reproof and occasional rebuke in The Church are reciprocal. Instruction, correction, reproof and occasional rebuke in the visible church are, observably, the exclusive domain of the clergy. In The Church, participants are actively involved in the process; not passively. The playing field is level. Each participant, aspiring to gain more knowledge and understanding and greater spiritual maturity recognizes and respects those others who may have advanced further than himself in the acquisition of either of those things. Their reciprocal interaction enables each one to…be thoroughly furnished unto all good works (2 Timothy 3:17) and to…make full proof of…his…ministry (2 Timothy 4:5).

          Preachers, please pay close attention: Neither can you advance in any of those critical disciplines unless you also submit yourself to reciprocal instruction, correction and reproof. Restricting that kind of collaborative interaction to your professional peer group and to organizationally superior clerics will stunt your growth…and theirs. That may sound like an unreasonable requisite for membership in The Church, I know. It will, in fact, be an impossible task for you…unless you will come to understand, first, that we laymen are not your subordinates. Many of us would readily interact with you as peers, to our mutual benefit, if you would be proactive in cultivating the collaborative environments and the relationships that encourage it. Or, you can choose to leave the driving to us…

          Yes, there are some core doctrines and principles and some critical truths on which we must agree in order to enjoy effective Christian labor and fellowship. Beyond those, though, I personally hope the Bible Explorers Club, LLC, will never develop a "what 'we' believe" mindset. Why? Because my beliefs need to be challenged regularly. Yours do, too. Collectively, our spiritual growth would otherwise be stunted and we would become like the visible church—masters of marionettes.

          "Must we agree?" We must not always agree—but there are qualifiers.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0093, 01/30/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "FAITH EQUITY(SM)"

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          "Jesus is Lord!" Righteous people proclaim that. Unfortunately, though, today's deceivers proclaim it, too! How else might they deceive so many sincere Christians? If you trust your denomination for truth, you must know that most (Some think all.) religious institutions have interpreted critical portions of God's word incorrectly. Otherwise, would they not agree? God says he isn't the author of the confusion, so who'd that be? And for what purpose?

          Think you cannot be deceived? Even the elect wouldn't be saved if "that time" were not to be shortened; remember? Given that, might you be deceived? No one can deceive you without your permission, though. How does one grant that permission? Passively, by investing one's Faith Equity(SM) in any other human. No matter how spiritual or charismatic or compassionate or competent or pious or religious they may appear to be, human beings are not to be trusted for truth. Doubt that? God, himself, declared it:

          >  "Thus sayeth the Lord; Cursed [be] the man that trusteth in man…" —Jeremiah 17:5

          "But I pray every day that the Holy Spirit will lead me into all truth and keep me from being deceived." While praying for truth sounds really spiritual and feels good, it is also in direct conflict with what God's written word says each Believer must do: Until the 20th Century, literacy was the exception. It is the norm today. Because you are literate you are required to study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that doesn't need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the written word of truth. Remember that? It's at 2 Timothy 2:15.

          Some of the people who read this series will continue to "pray and have faith"...that their preachers will lead them to truth. With itching ears, instead of studying to discover truth, they will heap unto themselves teachers; a.k.a. preachers. Not willing to endure SOUND doctrine, they will turn away from truth and be turned to fables. Fables are among the most observable characteristics of POPULAR doctrines.

          >  "...the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap unto themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall

              turn away [their] ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." —Paul, at 2 Timothy 4:3,4

          To qualify as "sound" a doctrine must enjoy the clear support of a reasonable collection of objectively comprehended scriptures, each within its rationally perceived context. All else is either heresy or mysticism. Fables sound good. Fables feel good. Fables often sound and feel more religious than truth. To be saved one must acquire a love of truth. Instead, believers typically acquire a love for their preachers…and for the warm fuzzies [See http://bibleexplorers.webs.com/BLOG/0063.pdf]. God, himself, will send them strong delusion to help them believe a lie. The believers who won't study to discover Truth will be damned. "That doesn't sound right: A loving God wouldn't do that!"

          >  "…because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they might believe a lie: that

              they might all be damned who believed not the truth..." —Paul, at 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12

          >  "IF ye continue in my word, [then] are ye my disciples...and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free..." —Jesus, at John 8:31

          "But I just feel in my spirit that 'what we believe' is true!" Seminaries of every denomination teach "what 'we' believe." Seminary graduates preach "what 'we' believe." Those who warm their pews believe "what 'we' believe." Every denomination owns a different "what 'we' believe" franchise. And, besides, those who rely on feelings for confirmation of truth are deceived already. If they persist in that God will continue to strengthen their delusions. Take it to the bank.

          A pastor recently exclaimed, "You will never convince me to discount all the things the Holy Spirit has revealed to me to be true." That was near the end of a marathon of email exchanges, during which he was unable to cite even one sensibly interpreted scripture to support any of those things that had been "revealed" to him. During that exchange, I had cited volumes of objectively divided, clearly pertinent scriptures that are, jointly and severally, a clear indictment of those "revealed" things. Still, he sincerely believes those revelations to him have been by the Holy Spirit and not by one of many "other" spirits that seduce naïve people. [See 1 Timothy 4:1 and 1 John 4:1.]

          Beloved by his parishioners, that pastor is a compassionate man. I think that some of those who follow his lead would give him their last dime. A few of them may even give their lives for him. My compassion for them grew as my email dialog with their beloved pastor gained momentum. I know that pastor personally. I am also acquainted with several of his flock. He is, in fact, a good-hearted man. His very large mainstream denomination has certified his ministry: he is ordained. Unfortunately, though, "compassionate" and "good-hearted" and "ordained" do not necessarily equate to "fully competent" or even reasonably "informed."

          When a presumed feeder of Christ's lambs consistently exhibits more faith in mysticism, fables, old wives' tales and "what 'we' believe" than in the clearly written words of God, how safe are Christ's lambs that faithfully follow his lead? Christian flocks everywhere are observably much like that pastor's flock, in that they have invested almost all of their Faith Equity(SM) in their preachers. Those who have learned that "human nature is the sin nature" know why preachers' egos grow in direct proportion to the numbers of Christ's lambs who trust them completely. The caveat? It is this: When those lambs inevitably learn that their loss is enormously greater than the losses of any of Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme victims, who will they blame? If, hypothetically, you were to be required to trade places either with one of those lambs or with one of their preachers on Judgment Day, which would you choose?

          If you trust your preacher for truth, please know that the overwhelming majority of clergymen can be shown not to have completed their basic due diligence—even the seminary graduates. If you were Lucifer and as smart as we know him to be, who would you choose to carry out the massive end-times deception Jesus warned us about?

          Given an abundance of such readily observable evidence, it becomes very clear that the deceivers Jesus warned us about are members of the Christian clergy (even large numbers of them that are sincere but demonstrably misinformed) along with the institutions to whom they have pledged their allegiance. Unfair?  This is not intended as an indictment but as a wake-up call. If you are a preacher, please heed the call. Our time is short. If you will keep reading you will discover invaluable help...and eternal rewards. Promise.

          >  "Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?" —Paul, at Galatians 4:16

          The essence of something I saw in Reader's Digest(R) several years ago is forever imprinted in my memory. This is how I remember it: "Pessimists complain when the wind blows. Optimists anticipate the inevitable calm. Realists change the set of their sails." Also indelibly fixed and resurfacing regularly in my mind are these clearly pertinent words of caution:

          >  "Not every one that sayeth unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in

              that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works? And then I will profess

              unto them, I never knew you: depart from me ye that work iniquity." —Jesus, at Matthew 7: 21-23

              A warning to other preachers and other denominations...?

          Again, imagine yourself Lucifer: Who would be your easiest prey? Who but those who are already deceived? Who are they? All those who have gained comfort in believing "what 'we' believe" will be among them. If I were Lucifer, and as smart as we know him to be, I'd capture the minds and hearts of clergymen, first. Why? For one thing, their parishioners have observably invested almost all of their Faith Equity(SM) in them. Arguably, most parishioners follow their preachers blindly.

          Yes, objectivity is rare in the human experience. Evidence of that is abundant, especially within the contexts of religion and politics. It is evidenced in the 2 Timothy 2:3,4-styled "heaping unto themselves teachers." It is evidenced in the rise of superstar preachers, some of whom have fallen. Might the rest of them be kept from falling for the specific purpose of leading the uninformed and misinformed faithful into Lucifer's synagogues?

          In the 1950's and 1960's, there were the divine healing superstars. From them came the prosperity and "seed faith" superstars of the 1970's, 1980's and 1990's. The 21st Century heralds the meteoric rise and popularity of end-time prophecy superstars. Itching ears. popular doctrines. sugar-coating the plan of salvation...to build large churches. The attractive "packaging" of Christianity. Hyper-spiritualizing the Gospel. Financial empires.

          >  Christianity started as a fellowship. At Greece it became a philosophy. The Italians made it into an institution. In Europe it was to become a culture. Worldwide, today,

              it's an enterprise. —from a Dr. David Ryser quote

          Informed laymen are beginning to ask, "Why would any member of today's clergy align himself with objectively comprehended original truth when in doing so he would risk losing his employment and income security?" Upton Sinclair once expressed that phenomenon like this: "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his job depends on not understanding it."

          >  "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which, while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But

              thou, O man of God, flee these things..." —Paul, at 1 Timothy 6:10,11

Not a warning to rank-and-file Believers, but to members of the professional clergy.

          >  "Those who are willing to challenge the logic – and even the credibility – of our conclusions from time-to-time are of uncommon value. Without them, how might we

              ever hope to gain original truth? Those who search for truth in a vacuum search in vain. Those who hope to gain truth passively, and in environments that discourage

              reciprocal challenge and scrutiny, cannot succeed." —T. C. Newsome

          Preachers, we informed laymen are concerned. Some of us are interceding for you in prayer...that you will begin to confront the dictates of human nature (the sin nature) and "make full proof of thy ministry." —Paul, at 2 Timothy 4:5

          Preacher or parishioner, why not wisely re-invest your Faith Equity(SM) where Jesus is invested, as he so brilliantly demonstrated for us in his post-wilderness-temptation experience? —"It is written..."

          >  "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the word was God." —John 1:1

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0092, 01/23/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "SEALED?"

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          Early on Sunday morning, November 2nd, my wife and I watched an enormously popular Atlanta pastor on TV. His sermon was about the eternal value of adopting "kindness" as a mindset and a lifestyle. Good sermon, but something grabbed my attention...his comment about a scripture he had quoted:

          >  "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." —Paul, at Ephesians 4:30

He continued with verses 31 and 32:                                                       

          >  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted,

              forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."

          It was his follow-up commentary on verse 30, though, that set off the sirens in my head. It went something like this: "If you are unkind or if you allow corrupt communication to proceed out of your mouth [v. 29] you will grieve the Holy Spirit, by whom you are forever sealed." Except that I'm doing my homework (studying to show myself approved unto God, a workman that doesn't need to be ashamed) that pastor's "forever sealed" phrase would not have gotten my attention.

          I recalled the extensive scholarly research and analysis of the Salvation scriptures by our Link1(TM) Bible Research Team. If you are a teacher of or a believer in the gospel according to John Calvin, and also sincere in your desire to know the truth, I think you'll want to study that document: http://bibleexplorers.webs.com/apps/webstore/products/show/4031347. (If clicking on that link doesn't work, just copy-n-paste it into your web browser window.)

          There are three (3) New Testament Greek words that the KJV translators rendered "seal," "seals" or "sealed." Just ONE of them is defined by Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible as...

          1.  to cover with a seal

          2.  to close up

          3.  close with a seal.

          That Greek word, katasphragizō, is Strong’s G-2696. It appears just ONCE in the original New Testament text, at Revelation 5:1. The Greek word that the KJV scholars translated, "sealed," at Ephesians 4:30, 2 Corinthians 1:22 and Ephesians 1:3-14 is G-4972, sphragizō, is a verb. Strong's defines it simply as "to mark with a seal." Strong's defines a closely related Greek word for "sealed" (G-4973, sphragis, a noun) like this:

          1.  the seal placed upon books

          2.  a signet ring

          3.   the inscription or impression made by a seal

          4.  the name of God and Christ stamped upon the foreheads of the elect...[for identification only] – as at Rev. 7:2,3

          5.  that by which anything is confirmed, proved, authenticated, as by a seal: a token or proof.

          When a person accepts Christ as Lord and Master of his life (and his lifestyle) he receives a SEAL OF IDENTIFICATION with Christ. Is that person, then, "saved" for all eternity? To learn the answer to that question, revisit Ephesians 4:30:

          >  "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed [i.e.: 'identified'] unto the day of redemption [i.e.: the day of 'salvation']."

The day of redemption, a.k.a. the day of "salvation," is the day when all people will face the judgment seat of Christ. No one will be declared "saved" or "not saved" until then. I know that's a hard pill to swallow. It was really hard for me, too: I grew up singing, "I'm Saved and I Know That I Am!"—even in children's church.

          >  "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things DONE in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or

              bad." —Paul, at 2 Corinthians 5:10

If you're wondering about those people (righteous and unrighteous) who will have already experienced death when that time comes, that's when they'll be judged, too.

          >  "...for now [is] our salvation nearer than when we believed." —Paul, at Romans 13:11

          >  "...for in doing this, thou shalt both save thyself and them that hear thee…" —Paul, at 1 Timothy 4:16

              You've heard that young Timothy was already "saved?"

          Hence, the identifying "seal" for those who are to uphold their ongoing commitment to actually FOLLOW Christ is the Holy Spirit. That "seal" [i.e.: that mark of identification with Christ and Christ-likeness] is our down payment or token or first installment [KJV: "earnest"] on that promised future inheritance of "salvation." It is NOT a binding seal of "closure." If it were, then the Greek word from which it was translated would have been katasphragizō, Strong’s G-2696.

          >  "Discernment is telling the difference between right and almost right!" —C. H. Spurgeon

          Follow this link to some truly fascinating – and scripturally sound – insight into the eternal importance of choosing a LIFESTYLE of righteousness: http://bibleexplorers.webs.com/BLOG/0086.pdf.

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0091, 01/16/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "Doubting THOMAS?"

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          Are you a doubting Thomas? If not, have you ever been accused of it? If you are or have ever been a churchgoer, have you ever heard something or observed something in church that didn't sound or feel quite right? If so, have you kept those thoughts and feelings to yourself? Have you also felt guilty about entertaining those thoughts and feelings? If you have, then we have something in common. That something may well be our mutual key to learning what's true and what's new. God's Written Word is Truth. Original Truth, alone, matters. That, as you are to soon learn or confirm, is not reasonably debatable.

          For decades before my 2006 retirement from a secular career, I was also an adult Bible teacher. By the measure that is currently acceptable within familiar Christian circles I was a very successful Bible teacher—large Sunday morning sanctuary classes. As with other Bible teachers and preachers, my primary study curriculum was prescribed, printed and distributed by our denomination.

          The denominational literature always directed me to the Bible passages that would yield competence to deliver each prescribed message. I was faithful to study those passages diligently and prayerfully in preparation for each Sunday morning lecture. I became an effective spokesman for our denomination's "what 'we' believe" franchise. (Every denomination has one of those.) Fully literate and reasonably intelligent, I never learned the pleasure of limiting my study to God's written word…until later. Frankly, I wouldn't have known HOW to do that. After all, our denominational leaders had done and were doing that for me, weren't they? Who was I, a mere layman, to question the superior knowledge and insight of God's anointed ones, the professional clergy?

          Annually, our churches praise those who've read the entire Bible, cover to cover. To understand the folly of that practice, ask any of the honorees to explain what they learned from their 12-month experience. You may already know that "reading" and "studying" aren't even first cousins. But are you and I any better, by comparison? I say no. There are several important reasons for it that I dare not mention at this early point in our learning relationship. But you can discover each of those reasons for yourself by becoming a regular visitor of our www.DYPK.org site. For now, though, I'll share three of the more obvious reasons why I think you and I are probably not much better off than those who dutifully read the entire Bible through each year:

          I.   "Life happens." Arguably, it is almost impossible to find or even make TIME for a serious and reasonably productive study of God's Written Word while working a job,

               pursuing a career or even being a stay-at-home parent. There is no reason to feel guilty about that; it's just the way things are. We should agree on a definition of "a

               serious and reasonably productive study of God's Written Word," though. Here's my working definition:

               A.  A fully organized, on-going series of topic-specific personal Bible research projects that include comparisons of multiple English translations of the Bible [Note:

                    Several of the Bible "translations" are just paraphrases (i.e.: commentaries), instead, and several other "translations" are of questionable Greek and/or Hebrew

                    manuscripts.]

               B.  Enhanced by regular reference to Abbingdon's Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (for the original meanings of ancient Hebrew and Greek words and

                     phrases) and one or two of the "Interlinear" Hebrew/Greek-to-English literal translations

               C.  Further enhanced by the intermittent study of World History and Church History. I am continually delighted to discover that the two are inseparable! Together,

                     they’re "His Story." Follow this link to our 1-page chart, "Modern HisStory:" http://bibleexplorers.webs.com/documents/Appendix%2011.pdf

               D.  Reading, studying and analyzing each scripture, always, as-if-no-one-had-ever-explained-what-it-means.

          II.  For reasons you are to soon comprehend, our churches do not teach us HOW to study God's word. What they teach us is WHAT to study. The diligent faithful become

               fully versed in "what 'we' believe."

          III. Consistently, our preachers work to gain and maintain our trust. For the most part, though that trust is misplaced. See Jeremiah 17:5 to confirm that.

               A.  Prior to the 20th Century, literacy was the exception. Parishioners had no choice but to trust their preachers to dispense truth. Amazingly, the literate continue to

                    trust their professional clergymen for truth.

               B.  Based on the strong warning at Jeremiah 17:5, should you trust any member of the Bible Explorers Club, LLC, for truth? No! Our primary objective is to expose the

                     stark contrasts in Bible truth and the fables that have cunningly infiltrated the mainstream of Christian teaching. We pray that, when you comprehend each of

                     those contrasts, you will use YOUR OWN MIND to begin the long, but rewarding, process of discovering what's true and what's new. Here are two T. C. Newsome

                     quotes that we hope you will find worth remembering:

                  >  "Much of what masquerades, today, as 'old time religion' is actually quite new."

                  >  "God's gift of a sound mind is a terrible thing to waste."

          I'm convinced that God would not have left us His Written Word in a form that could be "interpreted" in so many different ways by so many different people and organizations. Yet, each denomination claims a monopoly on truth.

          >  "All of us approach truth with our fists tightly clinched to our haggard bag of things we want to be true, desperately hope are true and notions we're hell bent on

              pretending are true, regardless of what evidence and authority say otherwise. This reality is as true for middle-aged white men with bad suits and obvious

              comb-overs as it is for tattooed hipster Christians who are heavier on cynicism than orthodoxy." —Pastor Rick Henderson, 03/26/2014

          >  "Millions of believers study to confirm Doctrines. Few study to gain Truth. Per Matthew 7:13,14, God clearly prefers the few." —T. C. Newsome

          Once at the www.DYPK.org site, click on the "How To Study" tab to begin learning HOW to embark on your own productive study of God's written word to gain Truth—as opposed to studying to confirm Doctrine. You will discover that it is much easier to do that than you may think. You may even want to encourage a few close friends and/or family members to study with you. I assembled a small group of people like that even before I retired. Multi-denominational, we quickly learned that we had each been studying to confirm "what 'we' believe." Why? Because that's what our preachers had taught us to do. The more you study for Truth, the more you will learn about how and why your preachers have done that. 'Maliciously? No; they're victims, too. The visible church has missed the mark of its high calling. The Church will arise from its ashes. Will you rise up with it?

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0090, 01/09/2015; Key Word/Phrase: "CHARITY & Constantine"

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          Globally, Americans are said to be the most charitable folk on Earth. Especially during holiday seasons, many of us incline our thoughts to giving. Glorious feelings of warmth reward us when we give. Many are the non-profit organizations that benefit from our generosity. Some of them are truly charitable but many more of them are not. On Facebook during the 2014 holiday season, there was a widely circulated meme that purported to expose some of those non-profits that are not charitable in their intent or in practice. You may have seen it. If not, though, I saved a copy of it and will be happy to email it to you on request.

          The Salvation Army topped the good-guy list. Per the meme, that organization pays its CEO $13,000 annually and 93% of all donations actually go to the needy. Others on that good-guy list were Ronald McDonald Houses, Lions Club International, Veterans of Foreign Wars, St. Jude, World Vision, and Make A Wish Foundation. Notably, though, the CEO salaries paid by those other organizations were substantially higher. St. Jude, Make A Wish and Veterans of Foreign Wars topped that list—with CEO salaries ranging from $824,000 to $238,211. I was personally surprised to learn that the Ronald McDonald House CEO receives no salary, while 90% of all donations go to the needy.

          On the bad-guy list, per that meme, were also some major surprises: Just 8% of all donations to Goodwill Industries and the American Red Cross go to the needy, while the CEOs' annual salaries are $2,300,000 and $1,030,022, respectively. Just 9% of all donations to United Way go to the needy. That organization is said to pay its CEO a $1,026,017 salary. The March of Dimes' CEO salary is said to be $495,000, while just 10% of its donations go to the needy. And then there's UNICEF, whose CEO gets the use of a Rolls Royce and an annual salary of $1,200,000, while a reported 14% of its donated monies get to the needy. So what might the Roman Emperor, Constantine, have to do with any of that?

          Constantine, a life-long sun-worshiper (while claiming Christianity for political gain), observed that the "church" at Rome was haphazardly organized and had gained little to no control over the scattered adherents to Christianity. Through his skillful manipulation of dialog at the Council of Nicea (A.D. 325), Constantine succeeded in convincing pompous would-be "church" leaders that they could benefit enormously from his well known financial and political savvy. He assured them that organizing for control would include the need for their followers to "have some '$kin' in the game." Those churchmen were quickly enticed by the very phenomenon Paul had warned of a full three centuries earlier—"For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things…" [1 Timothy 6:10,11] What followed was this:

          >  "The popes filled the place of the vacant emperors at Rome, inheriting their power, their prestige, and their titles from paganism." —Stanley's History, p. 40

          After the Reformation, Protestant groups quickly adopted (and adapted) the business model the Romans have used ever since that A.D. 325 Council of Nicea. Because "money talks," several of those Protestant organizations soon amassed political power, too. Like the Roman "church," accountable to no one, those Protestant "churches" have become a lot like the proverbial manufacturer of industrial lubricants that uses all (or almost all) of its output to lubricate the machinery with which it continues to manufacture lubricants.

          Complain all you will about all those evil non-charitable "charities," but haven't they simply copied the business model of "the church." Now, tell me, if you were going to start a non-profit organization tomorrow, what business model would YOU be inclined to adopt?

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0089, 12/12/2014; Key Word/Phrase: "The GREAT COMMISSION"

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          There is an enormous amount of misinformation about the nature of The Great Commission—even within mainstream Christianity. So, then, what exactly IS the assigned mission of The Church? Is it to get lots of people "saved?" Is it to KEEP people "saved?"

          A respected clergyman posted this to Facebook on Saturday, October 25th: "Jesus told us over 2000 years ago to 'Go into all nations and preach the gospel' but people still sit in church and just preach to the choir. But when a politician calls a press conference and announces a 'new initiative'...[there is always]...a bunch of preachers standing behind them on camera to participate in prayer walks, marches, and anything else in preparation for the next election."

          There were multiple responses to that post. Some of them focused on getting people "saved" and then "baptized" and then into "an active church life," etc. I viewed and then contributed to that Facebook dialog on Sunday morning, October 26th, to extend and redirect the focus:

          Scribe pro tem: "Hmmm...If I recall correctly The Great Commission is about MAKING DISCIPLES. There are BIG differences between Believers and Disciples. The visible church has made millions of Believers, but who's making Disciples? Can that be done from a pulpit?"

          Clergyman: "The Great Commission consists of three components: Effective Evangelism, Biblical Discipleship and Church Mobilization."

          Scribe pro tem: "Agree. And the street version of that is (1) Preach, (2) Make Disciples of those who Believe and (3) Teach/Encourage the new Disciples to do the same. Believers can't fulfill The Great Commission. Disciples can."

          Clergyman: "I know what you are saying...but I don't want people to get confused. Only believers can become disciples. Immature believers are undiscipled."

Scribe pro tem: "Can't argue with that...but aren't most churchgoers already confused? Don't they think they're Disciples because they Believe and are faithful in church attendance? Don't most pastors think they're fulfilling The Great Commission because they've filled their pews with Believers? Even devils believe (James 2:17-26 ). "So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple." —Luke 14:33

          Clergyman: "Yep...right!"                           

          Scribe pro tem: "Worthy exchange! Thanks! Be blessed, sir!"

          The term "Disciple" is often defined as a person who follows Christ, but that's clearly an oversimplification. It's one thing to become a Believer, but to become a Disciple a Believer must fulfill Jesus' "The Great Commission" (Matthew 28:19, 20). That means to become a Student of, an Adherent to and a Teacher of the doctrines of Christ.

          To become a worthy Student, one must study (2 Timothy 2:15) to gain the knowledge of Christ's doctrines. But that takes time, so how can one become an Adherent to a set of doctrines of which one has little knowledge? By progressively applying what one has learned: "Walk in the light that you have." And how can one become a Teacher of Christ's doctrines? By progressively sharing with others what one has learned: One of the most effective ways to master a subject is to teach it to someone else. And that's in perfect alignment with one of the signature principles of Christianity—Those who freely give from their abundance will receive more, in abundance.

          "But don't people have to be 'called' to ministries like teaching?"

          That Matthew 22:14, "For many are called, but few [are] chosen," scripture is too frequently misinterpreted. Some use it to reinforce a presumption of their own elevated professional status. Jesus' "The Great Commission" is not a command to any "special" group, but to us all. Take that to the bank.

          No one can "teach" a young child how to ride a bike. Kids learn how to ride bikes from patient COACHES. Shepherds can't produce sheep. Only sheep can produce sheep. Nobody can "make Disciples" from a pulpit. The making of Disciples is not a preacher's calling. It's a "coaching" assignment...to us all. Disciples are made one-at-a-time, by other Disciples, and that takes time. But where are the Coaches? You? So, then, what exactly IS the assigned mission of The Church?

          Follow this link to read Jesus' "The Great Commission" in several versions of the Bible: http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Mat&c=28&t=NKJV#s=957019

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0088, 12/05/2014; Key Word/Phrase: "SANTA & Other Fairytales"

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          Take a really short nostalgic trip back to the days of your childhood: Remember how you felt when you first learned that your parents and their adult relatives and friends had lied to you about Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy? Did you begin to question other things they told you, too...especially when they added that you must Just have faith to believe it? That's how I felt decades later, when I discovered that my parents and their relatives and friends and our religious leaders had all misinformed me about the nature and scriptural meaning of faith. Disillusioned. Embarrassed. Angry. Confused.

          Why would they have done that? The short answer is that they didn't intentionally lie. Instead, they were driven by the universal forces that yield abusive behavior in adults who were themselves abused as children. By innocently repeating those lies the people you and I have trusted most have perpetuated one of the most damaging forms of emotional and mental abuse. Compounding that problem is this: Whenever Christians express doubt, their mentors often cite the "just shall live by Faith" scriptures—Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11 and Hebrews 10:38. The message? Even if it makes no sense at all you must have Faith to believe it, anyhow; so don't be 'a doubting Thomas!'

          Given such a strong guilt trip, most Christians stop questioning those who presume religious authority over them. Me? I stopped questioning them openly. Inside me, though, the questions kept gnawing away, and I didn't know how to gain peaceful resolution. Was there something wrong with me? Actually, no. The visible church teaches people what to study—to confirm doctrine. What I hadn't yet learned is how to study, to gain truth. You?

          Just know that you are not likely to learn how to do that in church. Why? The visible church would quickly lose its control over you and all the faithful. Many would even start questioning its credibility and its authority...and their questions would enjoy the full support of Scripture. Is the mindset of the visible Christian church unique? No. Mind control is the primary tool of all organized religion and government.

          >  "In religion and politics, people's beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second hand, and without examination." —Samuel Clemens, a.k.a. Mark

              Twain

          >  "Skeptical scrutiny is the means, in both science and religion, by which deep insights can be winnowed from deep nonsense." —Carl Sagan

          >  "God's gift of a 2 Timothy 1:7 sound mind is a terrible thing to waste." —T. C. Newsome

          Jesus never permitted his feelings to interfere with his thinking. His responses were always rational—never hyperspiritual and rarely emotional. Want to be like him? That's how.

          The apostle, Paul, pronounced high praise of the Bereans of Acts 17:11. Why? Both they and the Thessalonians had initially responded to the Gospel with extreme skepticism. The Thessalonians simply rejected the message. The Bereans went home and studied the scriptures, again, to learn whether the things they had heard just might be true. Paul called the Bereans "more noble" because of a characteristic that prompted them to respond intelligently when things didn't quite make sense. By that measure, might Thomas have been our Lord's more noble disciple? At 2 Timothy 2:15 Paul (also the author of those "The just shall live by faith" scriptures) wrote, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed..."

          As again evidenced by a memorable email exchange with a former pastor, the vast majority of clergymen think themselves "called" and all the rest of us "not called." I reminded him that, though many are called, few are chosen. He was quick to agree, based on the apparently prevailing mindset that preachers are "the chosen ones" and we, the "not called" and "not chosen," are their subordinates. He wrote, "My earnest prayer for you and all those who are taking part in your studies is that you will be sure that you don't trade Faith for Understanding." 

          >  "How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity?…and fools hate knowledge?" —Proverbs 1:22

          >  "...knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth." —Proverbs 14:6

          >  "My people are destroyed for lack of   [sincerity?]   [prayer?]   [worship?]   [church attendance?]   [holiness?]   [faith?]   [righteousness?]  [hyperspirituality?]   [believing

              what ‘we' believe?]   knowledge…" —Hosea 4:6

          >  "...they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge...and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the

              righteousness of God." —Paul, at Romans 10:1,2

          >  "For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as

              have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them

              that are of full age..." —Paul, at Hebrews 5:12-14 (See, also, Jesus' words at Matthew 15:14, re: the blind that presume to lead the blind.)

          >  "If any man desire to be first, [the same] shall be last of all, and servant of all." —Jesus, at Mark 9:35

          Surveys by George Barna and others indicate that surprisingly large and growing percentages of Christian believers perceive that much of God’s written word is fiction. For many, that appears to be a conscious conclusion. For many others, it is apparently subconscious. I think that phenomenon is directly attributable to childhood disillusionment. Who’ll be held accountable for that?

          Feel very free to send us your questions and/or scriptural rebuttals: Click on the "CONTACT" tab. But, please, no arguments from 3rd-party "experts."

—Scribe pro tem, an informed layman

Blog #0087a, 11/27/2014; Key Word/Phrase: "THANKFUL For..."

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I thank you, Heavenly Father, that you Are.

I thank you for Who you are.

I thank you for What you are.

I thank you for Why you are.

I thank you for Where you are.

And I thank you for When you are

...without start or finish...

I thank you for what you have Done.

I thank you for Substantial Observable Evidence

of yourself in things you have created.

I thank you for the extensive, unmistakable 

evidence of YOU throughout the rapidly

vanishing vapor that is my life.

I thank you for Jesus...your word made flesh

and then transformed, as an example of

what I can become.

I thank you that He, too, has become

my personal friend, my elder brother.

I thank you that, through HIM, all that is IS.

He even paid a debt for me that I could not pay.

Thank you for teaching me, through your written word,

that other peoples' experience is more

efficient and a lot less painful.

Thank you, also, that

I can make you very

proud if I behave

as if I am serious

about all the above.

                                ―T.  C. Newsome

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