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Name: Rich
Email Address: Send request for Rich's email to the Pastor. Due to spam, you must request an email address of a commentor directly from the Pastor
Date: Sunday, April 8, 2007 at 4:22 PM
Comments:
- I liked your paper on the Memra of God. Now when you mention the Targums, are you speaking of the Targum Onkelos or the Targum Neofiti? Because in the Targum Neofiti it reads as such,"In the beginning, with wisdom, the Memra of the Lord created..." However, this is in absence of any presence of man. The theophony doesn't work here.
It is interesting to note that "Wisdom" is refered to as the Torah in Judaism (proverbs). So what we get is that Wisdom and Memra together created the heavens and the earth.
And Wisdom as found in Proverbs is a female.
How can we organize our views to include this line of thinking?
Rich
PASTOR'S REPLY: Rich,
I agree that the creation account is not theophany. Yet there is really no contradiction in using the word Memra in this context. When we think of creation, we think in a man's mind with a man's thought processes. We may see God with the picture of a man in our mind's eye. Thus presenting God in the act of creation as the Memra helps to prevent us from taking His Name in vain. Is that not the reason the Memra was substituted for YHVH in the first place? Of course in the creation account God refers to Himself as Elohim, hence I will note that many Jews will spell the English rendering as G_d in order to not take His Name in vain. Therefore, using the Memra in the place of Elohim in the creation account is not out of step with using the Memra where a theophany occurred. I should have made the distinction in my treatise. I did not, but perhaps I will update it with the information you have pointed out.
There are those that would agree with the above statement--that the Memra is used when God reveals himself to men, even without theophany.
I am not a Hebrew or Aramaic scholar, nor do I pretend to be. I make this plain at my website. I depend on the works of others who are scholars for my information. I quoted Dr. Kaufman in his study of the Targums entitled "The Targumim". I also quoted Karol Joseph, who, though not a biblical language scholar, is a Jew and was raised in a conservative Jewish household. Her Bat Mitzvah was at a conservative synagogue. She knows Jewish thought and she has knowledge of the Targums.
The Proverbs specifically state that Wisdom was with God at creation. The reason I did not mention wisdom in my paper is that it was specifically directed to the use of the Memra, and not wisdom.
Would it not be accurate to point out that the Hebrew word for wisdom is feminine and thus as a feminine antecedent, a feminine pronoun would be used? So, 'she' would refer to the feminine antecedent, wisdom in this case. Wisdom is personified in the proverbs; God possesses wisdom, but wisdom is not God. The Memra is God. So wisdom, a feminine noun, was with God at creation. But that does not mean that a female helped God to create.
How can we organize our views to include this? I do not intend to. Perhaps the study of wisdom will appear in another paper I write at some yet unknown future date.
You may write a paper if you wish. I would be glad to have you post it or a link to it at my site, even if it is critical of my study.
I thoroughly enjoy discussions like this. They are a learning experience for me. Thanks.
END REPLY
Name: Darin Kallen
Email Address: Send request for Rich's email to the Pastor. Due to spam, you must request an email address of a commentor directly from the Pastor
Date: Monday, January 29, 2007 7:25 PM
Comments:
- I'm also interested to find a good commentary set from an author that has a
post-trib perspective. While most I've seen try to be neutral, the slant is
obviously dispensational pre-trib when I look at comments to Matthew 24,
Mark 13, Luke 21, I&II Thess, and other passages.
Thank you,
Darin
PASTOR'S REPLY: Darin,
I do not know of any commentary sets authored from the post-trib perspective. There are several websites dedicated to this subject. I must tell you that I am not a post-tribulation adherent. But let me explain. I do believe the church will endure tribulation prior to the gathering of the saints to Christ. That is the tribulation that the beast and little horn (Antichrist) will wage against the saints (Daniel 7:21 & Rev 13:7). However, the church will not endure the wrath of God, which is the seven bowls of His wrath poured out upon the earth. The church will indeed be with Christ when that occurs. Those seven bowls are the Great Tribulation. After the 7 bowls are poured out then Christ returns with his bride and destroys his enemies. See my chronology of the last trumpet at http://www.bibleword.org/trump.shtml. Note that the harvest (AKA rapture) occurs at item 16 and the seven vials begin at item 17. We know that antichrist appears before the church is gathered back to Christ from 2 Thessalonians 2:3. END REPLY
Name: font
Email Address: senatordelay666@gmail.com
Date: Saturday, May 14, 2005 2:06 AM
Comments:
- your people are so dumb. god will punish the christians beacause you do not love the almighty allah. this will be a showdown of the swords of saddam of righetousness and guns. your so western zionistic tendencies are to be isralie downfall. GOD as ALLAH will destroy your'e temples forevermore.
PASTOR'S REPLY:
I printed this just as I received it with no punctuation or spelling changes. It is too bad that this individual would not identify himself so I could correspond with him. It is a cowardly thing to do. Then again, so is terrorism a cowardly thing. I address my remaining comments directly to the sender, whoever he is.
Allah is NOT the God of the Bible, known as Yehovah. If he is, then he has changed-and yet God Himself says, "For I am Yehovah, I change not".
My God is a patient and long-suffering God Who has provided a Way to come into His presence. He wishes for me to love my enemies and pray for their salvation. Yours is a god of anger and vengeance who only wishes death for your enemies.
My God died for my sins. Your god wants you to die.
The only way one can be saved is by believing in the Only Begotten Son of God, Yeshua the Christ. Following the prophet Muhammad will not get you into heaven.
Yeshua said, "I am the Way the Truth and the Life. No man commeth to the Father but by Me."
I agree that your god wants to punish Christians because he hates them. I also agree that there will be a showdown. It will happen when Christ returns and defeats all His enemies. Those enemies will be those that do not believe in Him.
Zion is the place God chose as the place He loved. Your religion has made it into anathema. God still loves the Mount Zion area. Even some of your temples are located on Zion.
Your definition of Zionism is much different than mine. For you it is a national and racial issue. God says that he wishes all to be saved. That includes Zionists and Muslims as well.We agree that western tendencies of this age will be our downfall. Yehovah God has told all of His true people, that is, true Christians, not to be unequally yoked with the world. We also agree that Yehovah God will destroy all of our temples. Those temples include all who do not believe in the Christ. Yehovah God is jealous and wants us to worship Him only.
Mark Oaks
END REPLY
Name: Ben Settle
Date: Monday, May 2, 2005
Comments:
Hi there Pastor Oaks,
I have been studying of late about who the antichrist is. Everything I've read points to it being satan. Everything except 2 Thessalonians 2:8,9 - which sounds (at least in the King James) as if the antichrist and Satan are two different entities.
Do you have an article on this scripture...or could you give me your take on this subject when you get a chance? I'd really like to hear what your studies have led to on this subject.
Sincerely,
Ben
PASTOR'S REPLY: Ben, Here is the way I see it. I do listen to the opinions of others, but I always give scripture top billing. Here is what I have published about Antichrist. You will find the entire article at www.bibleword.org/manofsin.shtml.
Mark Oaks
END REPLY
- First Station: Jesus is Condemned to Die.
- Second Station: Jesus Carries His Cross.
- Third Station: Jesus Falls the First Time.
- Fourth Station: Jesus Meets His Mother.
- Fifth Station: Simon Helps Jesus Carry His Cross.
- Sixth Station: Veronica Wipes Jesus' Face.
- Seventh Station: Jesus Falls the Second Time.
- Eighth Station: Jesus Meets the Women of Jerusalem.
- Ninth Station: Jesus Falls the Third Time.
- Tenth Station: Jesus is Stripped.
- Eleventh Station: Jesus is Nailed to the Cross.
- Twelfth Station: Jesus Dies on the Cross.
- Thirteenth Station: Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross.
- Fourteenth Station: Jesus is Laid in the Tomb.
Name: Allan Svensson
Date: Wednesday, March 2, 2005
Homepage: http://www.algonet.se/~allan-sv/INDEX.HTM
Location: Sweden
Comments:
I found your nice Web Site by Google, and I wish you the best you can get, the peace of God through Jesus Christ. Welcome to visit my Site.
Please, pray to God for a powerful revival!
A revival appears when God's Spirit reveals a "forgotten" Biblical truth so that it becomes preached anew.
Is it any "new" truth in the Bible that has not become preached, and that can bring forth a radical revival? There are at least THREE such truths in the Bible that have not been preached. It is the truth about the Assembly of God, and this truth also includes the truth of the baptism in the Holy Spirit. This truth has only partly been understood and preached. The third truth is that God's people must come out from the great Babylon before Jesus comes.
These three biblical truths hear closely together. The truth of the Assembly of God, the truth of the baptism in the Holy Spirit, and the exodus of God's people from the great Babylon.
We cannot understand one of these truths, without understanding also the two others. A deficient knowledge of the baptism in the Holy Spirit gives a deficient and incorrect assembly view. The Assembly of God is only those that have received Jesus as their personal Saviour. They do not need membership in any church or denomination.
The Pentecostal preachers have during 90 years preached an incorrect doctrine about the Assembly of God, and an incorrect doctrine about the baptism with the Holy Spirit.
The common comprehension they have in the free-churches is that people can be members in the Assembly of God without the baptism in the Holy Spirit, and that all Christians that are baptized in the Holy Spirit can speak in tongues. This is contrary to the Bible's word. In 1 Cor. 12:12-13 we see that in the Assembly of God, the Body of Christ, we are all baptized by one Spirit. And in verse 30 we see that not all are speaking in tongues.
In the Pentecostal Movement, and other free-churches, they are preaching that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is only for them that are born again. We must become born again before we can become baptized in the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless, on the day of Pentecost Peter promised unsaved people that they would get the Holy Spirit as a gift when they did repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Consider, that Peter promised the Holy Spirit to people who had not been born again! And when they received the Holy Spirit, what happened then? Then they got the new life in Christ and were born again!
Nevertheless, using the word "church" in the English Bible causes a big problem for English-speaking people. The Body of Christ is no church, and the churches are not any assemblies of God. It is an essential difference between an organized church system and a living organism.
In the reality, the word "church" occurs not at all in the Bible. I have five (5) Bible translations in Swedish, (the oldest from 1703). Nowhere in these Bibles does the word "church" (kyrka) occur. I have also a reference book where the New Testament is translated word by word from Greek to Swedish. Everywhere they translate the Greek word "ekklesia" to församling (assembly).
Please, read more here on my Website.
http://www.algonet.se/~allan-sv/PAGE86.HTM
Allan Svensson, Sweden
PASTOR'S REPLY: Thank you for your comments. I agree with most of your statements. I disagree with what you say about the word, 'church'.
Here are some English dictionary definitions of the English word, 'church': a body of worshipers, a religious society or organization, a society, a school, an assembly. There is nothing wrong with using the English word, 'church' to render the Greek word, εκκλησια (ekklesia), which is " a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place, an assembly" (Thayer). This is exactly what a church does. It gathers or assembles together in a public place. Therefore, it is an assembly.
It is not edifying to the church if we split hairs such as this one. This is like insisting that we use 'Yeshua' instead of 'Jesus', or 'G_d' instead of 'God', or 'L_ _d' instead of Lord'. Not one of those things is important. A church is an assembly of believers. In the first century, the word 'εκκλησια (ekklesia)' came to mean an assembly of believers.
Mark Oaks
END REPLY
Allan,
Name: Rick
Date: Wednesday, October 27, 2004 at 14:43:349
Location: Houston, Tx USA
Comments:
Mark,
I felt compelled to write after reading your brief reply on Heb 2:16. What I would like to know is this; If Jesus took on Himself the seed of Abraham wouldn't we refer to Him ethnically as a Hebrew of the Race of Adam rather than as a Jew. His ethnic make-up would not be affected by having been born of a woman of the tribe of Judah as her egg nor the sperm of her husband Joseph used in His conception. It seems that in referring to Jesus as a Jew you would be giving ethnicity to God the Holy Spirit. John ch-1 says that "All things were created by Him" and that would include Adam who was made in His image and Likeness. Thus when He made His Advent into the earth He would assume the Race of Adam, which is definitely not Jewish. I believe that it is consummately wrong to say that Jesus was a Jew by Race, Ethnicity or Religion!
Yahshua's Servant,
Rick
PASTOR'S REPLY: Fair enough. But let us take another step. David was of the house of Judah, through Pharez. Mary was of the house of David. The word "Jew" is used in the Old Testament and the New. Let us take two examples, one from each Testament. The Hebrew word (as used in Esther 2:5) is יהוּד, yehudiy. According to the Westminster Morphology, the word means "men of Judah". Strong concurs. The Greek word (as used in John 4:9) is ιουδαιος, ioudaios, which is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew יהוּד. The meaning is "belonging to the tribe of Judah". Jesus, the Son of God by the seed of God through the Holy Spirit, was also the son of Mary, of the tribe of Judah, a Jewess.
To make calling Jesus a 'Jew' a racial issue is to not accept the true meaning of the word, Jew. The word is solely an appellation of a person born into the tribe of Judah, nothing more, and nothing less. Of course, modern thought is that any Israelite is a Jew. That is the accepted norm, but, it is not correct. Technically, the Son of God was born into the tribe of Judah via His mother, Mary, a member of the tribe of Judah.
Yes, He is a Hebrew, of the Seed of Abraham. He is also a Jew because his mother was a Jew. She was of the house of David, who was, in turn, of the house of Judah.
Having said all this, I would still have to agree with you. We should not refer to Jesus as a Jew for He is the Son of God. But His humanity was of the tribe of Judah.
Mark Oaks
END REPLY
Rick,
Name: Kelly
Date: Saturday, October 2, 2004 at 02:08:49
Comments:
Mark,
Seems like we've had a guest drought or something. I just wanted to let you know that I'm still visiting your website and keep up the good work. I was just wondering what you thought of the President? He is a confessed Christian. How does this fit in with propecy? What about Kerry? God Bless and thanks for posting the Bible studies. Maybe I'll get to meet you someday.
Love in Christ,
Kelly
PASTOR'S REPLY: I am happy that you are still visiting the website. Since Hurricane Ivan, things are a bit slow. We have not yet fully recovered. The insurance appraiser won't even get to us until the middle of October. But our house was not damaged. Only some fences, the chicken coop and the barn were significantly damaged. I should start posting studies again soon. It would be great to meet you. If you are ever here in the Milton area, come visit us at the church or come by the house and meet the family. One of the problems with a guestbook is that malicious spammers use spiders to harvest email addresses off of guestbooks. That may be why less people submit entries. I am in the process of changing the guestbook and removing all email addresses. With the new form, all entries will be emailed to me and not placed on the guestbook. I will then decide whether or not to post the entry. When I do post it, there will be no email addresses shown. To answer your question of Bush/Kerry, it is by their fruit that you will know if they are truly Christians. Both Bush and Kerry (and all other former presidents) claimed to be Christians. Some were truly Christians and some used Christianity simply for political reasons. From the things I have read and heard the President say, I am convinced that he is a Christian. I am not so sure about Senator Kerry. He is a Roman Catholic and there are RC priests who will not give him communion. His own church is not sure of his status. But that is my opinion. You must form your own opinion.
Deciding who to vote for should be based on the things the candidates have done and on what they plan to do. If those things line up with the Bible, then you should vote for that person. For example, if that candidate is in favor of homosexual marriage, that does not line up with the Bible. If he is in favor of marriage consisting of one man and one woman, that lines up with the Bible. I personally do not believe that God honors unlimited abortion. I say that because unlimited abortion has become a method of birth control for promiscuity. Abortion leads to promiscuity and God is opposed to adultery and fornication. Abortion kills a living human being. From 12 weeks on the baby is fully formed and has brainwaves, heartbeat, movement, and abortion dismembers a live baby without anesthesia. I cannot believe God honors that. So, in my opinion, the candidate that supports unlimited abortion will not get my vote. A candidate opposed to unlimited abortion will get my vote. You can apply Biblical standards to all the political issues and then decide which candidate best lines up with the Bible and vote for that candidate. I don't attach particular prophetic significance to the President or this election. But we are always inexorably headed for that end time one world government and one world religion. It does seem that no matter who the President is, he is unable to stop that slow march. Some presidents will advance that march more quickly and others are able to slow it down but not stop it. I cannot say when that time will arrive. The Bible says no one knows. There is a prophecy that does apply to the U.S. It is outlined in Deuteronomy 28. Read the entire chapter. It was a prophecy for Israel, but you can also see parallels with the U.S. there. I think the sitting president has a direct impact on how that prophecy plays out. Mark Oaks
END REPLY
Kelly,
Name: Kelly
Email:
Location: Atlanta, Ga USA
Date: Monday, May 3, 2004 at 16:22:12
Comments:
The website update looks great!
Kelly
PASTOR'S REPLY: Thank you very much. It was time to modernize and use the capabilities of the latest browsers, scripting techniques, and HTML code. I allowed the site to remain simple for so long because many regular visitors had older browsers. Now that the newer browsers are so common, I decided to change the site. The site doesn't work well with older browsers or Web TV. Some of the scripting won't work with Netscape/Mozilla, or at least I haven't figured out how to make the scripting work with them. Older studies use the old template and will do so until I have time to update them. I will continue to tweak the site for several weeks. If you cannot get a page to work, wait a few minutes and the try again; be sure to refresh/reload!
Mark Oaks
END REPLY
Kelly,
Name: Kelly
Email:
Location: Atlanta, Ga USA
Date: Tuesday, April 13, 2004 at 02:25:00
Comments:
Hey Mark,
Just wondered what you thought about "The Passion?" (if you saw it) Did you find it to be biblically accurate? Thanks for your website. It has truly blessed me.
Thanks,
Kelly
PASTOR'S REPLY: I found it to be mostly Biblically accurate. There are some inaccuracies. The film is based upon the fourteen Roman Catholic Stations of the Cross. They are:
While some of these are truly Biblical, some are not. But those that are not actually from the Bible are certainly possible.
The only one that I cannot accept as possibly true is the 6th station, where Veronica wipes Jesus' face and his image appears on the cloth. That myth comes from the apocryphal "Acts of Pilate". The supposed 'real' cloth or veil (known as the Manoppello cloth) that the real Veronica supposedly used is kept in the Santuario di Volto Santo (Sanctuary of the Sacred Face) in Manoppello, Italy. Or, at least a piece of cloth claimed to be the veil is kept there. It is venerated (worshipped) as a holy relic. In other words, it is another Roman Catholic idol. And that is exactly why I do not believe such a miracle would have happened—because of the human tendency to worship things instead of God. (I apply the same logic to
The film is Biblically accurate where it depicts actual scriptural elements from the Bible, but it is not biblically accurate when it follows all of the Stations of the Cross. The Stations of the Cross are not Biblical, but based upon Roman Catholic tradition and non-biblical writings, some of which are certainly plausible.
The arrest in the Garden, the healing of Malchus, the trial, the beatings, the carrying the cross to the place of crucifixion, Simon carrying the cross, the actual crucifixion, the high priest mocking him, and the malefactor getting saved on the cross are all accurate and Biblical. In fact, I believe the film is very well presented and well worth viewing, but it is not 100% Biblically accurate.
The three falls are plausible, but not Biblical. Jesus meeting Mary on the way to Calvary is plausible, but not Biblical. Meeting the women of Jerusalem is plausible but not Biblical.
The film depicts Mary helping to take Jesus down from the cross. The Bible says that Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathaea did that.
One thing that was offensive to me was Mary kissing the big toe of Christ. That is very Roman Catholic. With the exception of royalty, anyone who had an audience with the Pope was expected to kiss his big toe. This equates Christ with the popes, which is very offensive to me.
On the whole, the film is very good. I recommend it provided you keep the above things in mind.
Mark Oaks
END REPLY
Kelly,
Name: Mandy S
Email: mandymac@cfl.rr.com
Location: Orlando, FL USA
Date: Friday, February 20, 2004 at 20:02:39
Comments:
- Good day to you, Sir. I was wondering if you intend to post the entire Bible in a verse by verse study format? I've been using your notes on Genesis to guide my personal study of this book and would like to continue this type of study throughout the rest of the Bible.
I realize you're probably very busy, but I'm very much enjoying your input and would like to continue to benefit from your guidance. If you have no plans for the rest of the Bible, do you suggest any other site where I might find this same type of study information?
Thanks for your time.
=) Mandy
PASTOR'S REPLY:
I am planning to comment of each book of the Bible. However, it is painstaking work and I cannot guarantee completion. The studies on this site are not my top priority. My family and my ministry at my local church are higher in priority. I will post the study notes used in preparing sermons and lessons for my local church as I write them. These will be my commentary for studies posted at The Bible Church. I used this method for the entire study of Hebrews.
Mark
END REPLY
Name: Patrick
Email: therapturetheory@yahoo.com
URL: http://www.rapturetheory.com
Location: Phoenix, AZ USA
Date: Saturday, February 7, 2004 at 18:32:23
Comments:
- Hello, Nice web site here. I invite you to visit my site at www.rapturetheory.com
God Bless, Patrick
Name: Craig Portwood
Email: craigportwood@lycos.com
URL: http://www.beaconoftruth.com
Location: Jacksonville, Oregon USA
Date: Tuesday, February 3, 2004 at 07:00:32
Comments:
Ramon, you are not being honest with these people, as you are in charge of James Lloyd's newsgroup.
Of course, you do not know James Lloyd on a personal level as I have for over 5 years.
I am sorry to have to bring a little hard truth to this nice site, but the truth is that James Lloyd is a con man and a liar. You can prove it for yourself by going to http://www.beaconoftruth.com/ch23.htm it is part of the public record.
Do not take my word for it, listen to James Lloyd as recorded in 1998 from the radio. You can go to http://www.beaconoftruth.com/ch21.htm and listen for yourselves.
Of course, Lloyd will attack viciously anyone who dares to point out the obvious, that he is a liar, an hypocrite, and a FALSE PROPHET.
Check the facts and then get back to me.
You should be ashamed of yourself Ramon Abad.
You know that James Lloyd made the same false predictions in 2003 that he did in 1998, and all you are doing is a commercial for him.
His occult teachings are a matter of record. Go to http://www.beaconoftruth.com/ch19.
Just a few of his gnostic false predictions are documented at http://www.beaconoftruth.com/ch13.htm
He shows no hint of operating in the power of the Spirit that Jesus Christ manifested.
Of course he will simply attack me because he knows I have the goods on him.
You can all ignore this warning, but you do so at your own peril.
He who has ears to hear, let him hear.
PASTOR'S REPLY:
Craig,
The opinions of Ramon, are his alone, and do not reflect those of me or of The Bible Church. I had never heard of James Lloyd before I read this comment. I am unaware of his teachings and thus have no comment to make on them. Likewise, your opinions are yours alone.
I would caution anyone who reads the content of this site or any other site to check out the teachings of that site with the Bible. That way you may know whether or not those teachings are the truth.
Mark
END REPLY
Name: Ramon
Email: abad4nr@netscape.net
Location: VA USA
Date: Friday, January 9, 2004 at 18:16:26
Comments:Great site! It is difficult to find among those professing to be Christians those who insist on studying the Bible chapter by chapter, verse by verse. Then among those it is much more difficult to find those who do not adhere to the pre-trib rapture delusion. And still among these, one would be hard-pressed to find more than a handful who are not incorporated (501c3). You have much to teach Sir and I thank the Lord I stumbled upon your website, doing a totally unrelated search (it seems to be how He usually works).
Most of my life, since my teens, have been spent as a Christian basher. I had my Damascus by way of my father in law who was dying of cancer 10 years ago. About a couple of years after that I was yanked out of the rapture cult by Pastor Murray, who I respect very much but after a couple of years moved on.
I tell you, it is hard to stay a Christian in the mainstream churches if one strives for the truth. But with God all things are possible, praise the Lord!
Thank you in particular for your teaching on finding a church. It was very instructive and timely for me, as I have quit trying for many years now, but since I have moved, I will get off my behind and start looking.
I have been focusing on prophecy since 9/11 and I must say that there is only one teaching of Daniel 7's beasts that makes sense to me. In the interest of seeking the truth I would like to present it here very briefly with your permission, since this is your website. If it is not posted I understand, but again I appeal to your own love for the truth, and consider this as my private e-mail to you.
Lion w/ eagle's wings = Great Britain/America (Colonialism/"democracy"/Neo-Colonialism)
Bear = Russia (communism)
Leopard (panther -see any dictionary) = Nazi Germany
4th Beast (diverse from all the beasts) = New World Order (UN? - see Pope's New Year's Speech)
This interpretation, as I said makes by far the most sense in everything I have studied concerning prophecy. It is taught by James Lloyd (quite a contoversial figure) of the Christian Media Network, whom I do not wholeheartedly endorse, as I am not in agreement with all that he says, or his methodologies, or his focus. However his basic teachings on endtime prophecy are definitiely worth perusal by anyone truly led to study the end times.
One last thing - the only disappointment I felt when looking at your new items page is the Christmas message. As you probably already know, Dec. 25 was a pagan holiday incorporated by the Roman church (spaking of a little leaven!)into Christianity. It is not Jesus' birthday. Perhaps that is the root of why so many Christians, as you say in your essay, feel the blues during this season. I suggest to all to do further study of the origins of Christ Mass (including what Mass means). Warning though, once your family knows that you do not celebrate Christmas, it could be very difficlt. But your tips on dealing with being in rapture churches work.
Additionally, the two mentions of celebrating birthdays in the Bible that I know of were by Belshazzar and Herod - we know what else happened that day; a third that I know of is of Job's children, and a study of those verses implies some support to a disfavorable outlook on celebrating birthdays.
I am not here to sow discord. And I truly appreciate your work, your insight, and your dedication. But we His children, all see though a veil, and are here to love each in truth and in mercy. And I thought it would be selfish of me not to impart something that you may regard as wisdom, and would help you in your own continuing search for the Truth.
May God continually bless you as He sees.
your humble servant in God's only begotten Son,
Ramon
PASTOR'S REPLY:
Ramon, I am aware that Christmas is not the true day of Christ's birth. I believe He was possibly born in September. But I do not have an objection to celebrating Christ at Christmas.
As for your teachings on the beasts of Daniel, I have a different opinion. As I wrote in the study of Daniel, I follow the orthodox teaching that they are the main empires of the entire history of the earth, beginning with Babylon and ending with Christ's Kingdom.
I will take this opportunity to state that the more I preach and teach the Bible chapter-by-chapter and verse-by-verse, the more orthodox I become. That is because the church has mostly adhered the teachings of the Bible to throughout the church age. God has always preserved a remnant, and the remnant has kept the scriptures. Therefore, orthodoxy is and has been a fairly consistent and accurate reading of the scriptures. I am now much less inclined to reject orthodoxy straight out. I have found the much of orthodoxy has accurately interpreted the scriptures so I approach the Bible with an orthodox understanding. If the Bible changes that understanding, I am unorthodox at that point. Nevertheless, I am mostly orthodox.
Mark
END REPLY
Name: Kelly
Email: purpleperfect10@hotmail.com
Location: Atlanta, Ga The best ONE
Date: Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 00:37:20
Comments:Pastor Mark, I would just like to say that I think it is wonderful that there is another pastor that teaches agains't the rapture. God Bless You! And to students such as myself that feel the need to bash ministries...let us not forget that no two teachers agree on everything. As a student, be wise enough to discern TRUTH with God's help. I do not agree with everything Pastor Mark says nor do I agree with everything from another ministry I study with which has been verbally bashed on this website. The fact is, I need to be fed and Pastors like Mark are not on every corner. Christ says, "Feed my sheep"(John 21;16). Be fed by God's word, there are not alot of churches that are teaching chapter by chapter and verse by verse these days. Take advantage! We all have doubts about who is right on this and who is right on that. Don't worry, men are not perfect you will have questions and disagree with them! Learn as much as you can while you have the chance, God is still and always will be in control! Christ says himself, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have PEACE. In the world ! ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have OVERcome the world." Ley us not for get that OUR SaVioR has overcome the world we live in. Love in Christ, KellyPASTOR'S REPLY: Thank you, Kelly, for your input. I don't actually teach against the Rapture, I teach against the pre-tribulation Rapture, which I cannot square with the Scriptures.
Your remarks about men not being perfect are right on the mark.
Mark
END REPLY
Name: Tyler Trugillo
Email: ttrugillo@msn.com
Location: Wis. US
Date: Saturday, March 15, 2003 at 13:20:52
Comments:Pastor Mark: Your article on the rapture theory was interesting. I noticed a comment on the Greek text that was inaccurate. You stated that the Greek preposition EK is always in the Genative case. The opposite is true. It is always taken in the Ablative case if you subscribe to your Southern Baptist roots and follow A.T.Robertsons leading as well as Dana & Mantey. Both adhere to an eight case system and place EK in the Ablative case meaning "out from" or "from within." This may or may not soften your argument somewhat concerning the preposition. Tyler Trugillo
Name: David Olsick
Email: dkolsick@ejourney.com
Location: West Branch, MI United States
Date: Tuesday, February 25, 2003 at 18:08:53
Comments:I am very happy to have been lead to your site. The Holy Spirit has been showing me the truth and placing it upon my heart. The true Christians are being awakened. Thank you. Dave.
Name: Pam
Email: ka9uoz@webtv.net
Location: Evansville, IN USA
Date: Thursday, January 23, 2003 at 23:54:47
Comments:What a blessing I have received this evening from the articles on your website. I was disappointed that I couldn't get the one on Sabbath. I will check back again to see if it is up. I am "without a church" at present but study with a small home group weekly. We are all former SDA's. We are looking for the truth and I know I have found that here. May the Lord continue to bless through your efforts.
Name: Dean Flanders
Email: jac@jacglobal.net
Location: Crossville, TN USA
Date: Saturday, November 30, 2002 at 01:02:40
Comments:I just read the article on "FOOD" on this site, and of course, I must agree. But I will extend the same principles to alcohol, tobacco and drugs - one law of the New Covenant for all these considerations. THIS has proven to be a most controversial subject. Our formal address to this matter is in chapter 5 of THE GREAT DREAM (a book), which can be read on line at our URL provided above. See especially chapter 5 part 2. Thank you for listening. Dean
Name: Tammy
Email: tdhut2@bellsouth.net
Location: Midlands, SC U.S.A
Date: Friday, November 8, 2002 at 11:48:17
Comments:I read your study page on food.It helped so much.I have been watching Pastor Arnold Murray for about a year now and everytime I ate pork I would feel guilty. The bible can be interpreted so many different ways by different pastors until it leaves the student so confused! I will look to God to give me the answers. Also thank you for the study on "How to find a Church".The church I attend beleives in the rapture but if I don't attend how will I plant seeds and document their is no pretrib-rapture if the subject would arise. I'm happy I found your site.
Name: Rick
Email: ricjonah@hal-pc.org
Location: Houston, Tx USA of mexico
Date: Monday, November 4, 2002 at 21:32:33
Comments:Just to say hello Mark and catch up on some of your newer additions. Can't get thru to you on email anymore, must have changed it and left me drifting in the wind. Well I sure can't be sending you anything here as there is not enough room
Name: Cathering Pierce
Email: catheringpierce@yahoo.com
------TBC NOTE------The following entry was provided by Cathering Pierce. She addressed a letter to Arnold Murray and posted it at this site. She posted this letter to The Bible Church hoping to get it forwarded to Arnold Murray. I have told her that we have no connection with him. She understands. I must say, though, that I agree with most of what she says here.
LET ME SAY UNEQUIVOCABLY RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW, that The Bible Church has no connection whatsoever with the Shepherd's Chapel or Arnold Murray. This is not an Arnold Murray or Shepherd's Chapel clone site (there are many, but this is not one).
I disagree with many, if not most, of Arnold Murray's teachings. I do not believe in the serpent seed teaching. I do not believe in a local flood. I do not believe that the Kenites are the blood sons of Cain, or are Jews. I am not a dispensationalist. I do not believe that Israel is forever separate from the church. All Christians are a part of Israel by adoption. The true Israel is God's chosen people, who are Christians. The church did not replace Israel but is a part of Israel. That is what the Bible teaches. I do not like to take the original languages back to their "prime" to make the Bible say what it does not. For example, the Hebrew word, naga' means to touch, and not to lie with another except in the most extreme and rare cases. In Genesis, it means do not touch the fruit-it does not mean to lie with the serpent and have marital relations with him, as Arnold Murray teaches. Arnold Murray does a lot of that type of twisting to make the point he wants. There are many more disagreements I have with Arnold Murray but these are enough to make my point.
The Bible Church is NOT the Shepherd's Chapel, nor does it wish to be.
Please note that this entry is has not been altered (except for correcting a couple of typos). The entry is addressed to Shepherd's Chapel and not to The Bible Church so please take that into consideration when reading this entry. Here is the entirety of Cathering Pierce's entry:To: Shepherds Chapel
It is true that we, Christians, are not to be anxious (AS unbelievers are anxious), but we should not be foolish either and believe that the American military will be protected from our enemies (regardless of our military might)
without the protection of God
Our country has permitted the murder of millions of preborn babies. We have actually legally protected sexual perversions (even taught this "right" to millions of young people in our schools):
Rom 1:28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer,
God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper,-----God
giving people over to a depraved mind, surely implies He no longer provides His protection to those who do such things (and we who remain among them risk receiving the same consequences of their behavior as they receive --- Lot, as an example, was told to leave the area just before God finally and actually judged them).----- Thus, there is a real reason for Christians (within such a world) to accept that God may judge this nation (through taking away His protection) because of this human depravity that is now accepted and protected.
Continued...
Please click here to read the remainder of Cathering's entry.
Name: John
Email: johnanderson@bushinternet.com
Location: Stoke, N/A The UK
Date: Thursday, September 12, 2002 at 16:23:35
Comments:
Hello Mark, and greetings from a very wet UK. You've a very interesting and thought provoking site, and whilst I don't agree with a lot of your beliefs, I can appreciate the time and trouble you've taken to express them. One question though, why not show both sets of the Ten Commandments? Most people are familiar with the version in Exodus 20 "which Moses didst break" but either don't know about, or ignore the other version in Exodus 34 ~ "the words that were on the first". John.PASTOR'S REPLY: Because I do not agree that those rules God told Moses in Exodus 34 are the Ten Commandments. That theory is a favorite of those who wish to disprove the Bible. However it is disingenuous to state that those are the things God wrote upon the second set of stone tablets. Moses himself told the people that God wrote those Ten Commandments recorded in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 on the two stone tablets; not those rules recorded in Exodus 34 (see Deut.5:22). And in Exodus 34, God said, "I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest." Simply put, God wrote the original Ten Commandments of Deuteronomy 5:6-21, which are essentially identical to the ones in Exodus 20:2-17, on the second set of tablets just as He did on the first. In Exodus 34:27, God told Moses to write those rules recorded in Exodus 34. But God Himself wrote the true Ten Commandments from Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 on the stone tablets, again, as attested to by Moses in Deuteronomy 5:22 "These words the LORD spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice: and he added no more. And he wrote them in two tables of stone, and delivered them unto me."
By not telling the whole story, and by taking things out of context, there are those who wish to convey that the Bible is not reliable and should be discarded as the words of God. It amazes me when those people assert that there are two sets of commandments (one in Exodus 20 and another in Exodus 34), they conveniently assume that because the tablets are mentioned in Exodus 34:1, that the words God spoke in that chapter are the words God wrote on the tablets. But, considering the words of Moses in Exodus 5:22, that is just not so.
Mark
END REPLY
Name: Anonymous Entry
Date: Friday, August 9, 2002 at 14:38:17
Comments:
------TBC NOTE------
A person with a vendetta against the Shepherd's Chapel made the following anonymous entry to the Guestbook. As pastor and administration of The Bible Church, an online Bible study site, I will take this opportunity to make clear our position on other ministries.
TBC does not endorse the Shepherd's Chapel or any other ministry with the exception of those that have links at the TBC website. Nor does the Shepherd's Chapel endorse this ministry.
This site is not a Shepherd's Chapel site or clone, nor does it imitate Shepherd's Chapel. In fact, I have many serious differences of opinion with Arnold Murray and Shepherd's Chapel. For these reasons, I find it curious that a Shepherd's Chapel antagonist would choose this site's guestbook to vent his anger. Nevertheless, I reprint the person's entry with the expletives removed. I do not necessarily agree with the content of the entry. I have replaced all expletives with "####". The entry was entitled "Former Arnold Murray Cultist".
------HERE IS THE ANONYMOUS ENTRY------
Dear Readers
I was involved with the Shepherds Chapel Cult for many years and it almost made me lose my marbles. I loved Arnold Murray like he was my wife. He is really a ####.
Honestly. He is a #### cultist who will mug your brains for his own glory.
Leave the #### alone while you can. Flee the #### and leave him muttering his garbage for other low brains to worship.
HE IS A ####!!!!
Regards,
Administration
[This was the entrant's identification of himself]------END OF ANONYMOUS ENTRY------
Name: Charlotte H. Rackler
Email: Racklerh@aol.com
Location: Whitwell, TN Marion
Date: Thursday, June 27, 2002 at 22:58:54
Comments:
I found your site by looking up the book of Enoch, Books of the bible. There was a site that said About the book of Enoch. I have been hearing so much about the book of Enoch but I can not find it in my Bible or a book I have called The lost books of the bible, or another bible I have that has some added books that are not in a regular bible. Your site was helpful, thanks.
Name: Jonathan
Email: jnjkoaks@adelphia.net
Location: Boca Raton, FL
Date: Wednesday, June 5, 2002 at 10:14:31
Comments:
I read Tom's comments (May 18, 2002) about the true day of worship. I have come to find that God is not interested in which *day* we choose. Our true day of worship is not Saturday, it's not Sunday. It's the day we spend worshipping God and resting in Him. Jesus said he came to free the captives. We aren't captive to a particular day, but we should be captive to His will.
Name: Tom
Email: tdriver@surewest.net
Date: Saturday, May 18, 2002 at 19:47:17
Comments:
I have read each article on your site and have enjoyed them all, but have one burning question. First let me say I am not a Jew, but do believe that Saturday is the true day of worship. In several of your articles you refer to your reliance on the Bible as your only source of inspiration, but why do you not declare your feelings about the Saturday vs Sunday. I was disapointed at your version of the Ten Commandments because of the truncated versions you gave. There is more to the 4th commandment than just "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." You are doing a great service to the community with this site. Keep it up. TomPASTOR'S REPLY:You are correct, Tom, the Ten Commandments are truncated. I did so to entice the disinterested reader to at least look at a simplified version. I have placed the full text of the commandments on the same page as the truncated version with a link to the full version at the top of the page.
I have a study entitled "The Sabbath". I had it posted on an earlier version of The Bible Church, but removed it because it needed to be updated. I will update it soon and post it to the site. Go To The Ten Commandments. Go To The Sabbath.
Mark
END REPLY
Name: Rick
Email: ricjonah@hal-pc.org
Location: houston, Tx USA
Date: Wednesday, May 8, 2002 at 18:43:35
Comments:
Mark It would behove you and strengthen your work in God's eyes if you would delete the "Dream" speech by the communist MLK from your page. You don't need that and God doesn't either, the last I heard was that dreamers ranked alongside of sorcerers, and such.PASTOR'S REPLY: Rick, as we have discussed before, the Bible does not discriminate against the African race. It says "that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Acts 2:21). It also says, "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9) This (along with many other similar passages) means that all men have the opportunity to be saved, not just a predestined few.
In my mind, the most important part of MLK's speech was this one statement: "[The Declaration of Independence] was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed to the inalienable rights of life liberty and the pursuit of happiness." And a close corollary was his dream that his children "will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by their character."
This follows what the Bible teaches about loving one another. Jesus Himself taught us to love one another, to love our neighbors as ourselves and to love our enemies. We are to treat others fairly and respecting the rights of others is treating them fairly and with love. There is no exemption to these teachings for the black man. We are to love all, not all except Africans.
I was not going to comment on dreamers but I have changed my mind. One of the greatest prophets was Daniel and Daniel was a dreamer: "In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters." (Daniel 7:1 ). Not only was he a dreamer, but he was "a man greatly beloved" according to Daniel 10:11. Daniel was a man greatly beloved of God and yet, he was a dreamer. That did not make Daniel a sorcerer or such.
Now Martin Luther King Jr. was not Daniel, and not a prophet. But he was a man like all of us. He had weaknesses and he sinned. Whether or not he was forgiven for his weaknesses depended upon his relationship with Christ. I do not know what that relationship was. Only God knows that. But despite his weaknesses, he made a great speech that extols the virtues of the American way of life for all, not just a few. I will leave his speech posted at this site."
I love you, Rick, and I appreciate your concern for me. I also appreciate all your correspondence with me and hope it will continue. I disagree with you, however, on this.
Mark
END REPLY
Name: Cristine
Location: Fremont, CA USA
Date: Saturday, March 30, 2002 at 18:00:56
Comments:
I just read How to Find a Church and am so glad I did. I found a church recently that teaches verse by verse but I know they believe in the rapture theory. I had misgivings about continuing to attend their weekly bible studies. After reading your article, I think I will stay. Thanks so much and I know that God brought me to your website to show me this message. God Bless!
Name: Jeremy Wolfe
Email: jjwalrus@hotmail.com
Location: Near Dubuque, Iowa
Date: Thursday, March 28, 2002 at 06:45:54
Comments:
I appreciate the work that you do Pastor Mark. I am in eastern Iowa and looking for fellowship. If you're anywhere near me, shoot me an e-mail!
Name: MariaVictoria C. Gonzalez
Email: Mvictoria54@aol.com
Location: Hiram, GA USA
Date: Sunday, March 3, 2002 at 19:59:58
Comments:
Thank you for your commentary on the Rapture Theory. I do not believe the Rapture is Biblical. It is terrible that so many believers in the Word of God are deceived by these teachings. Continue posting your studies. God Bless You, Shalom.
Name: Sam Gladstone
Location: Raliegh, NC USA
Date: Thursday, February 21, 2002 at 19:34:28
Comments:
I was thinking of leaving my church because they believe in the rapture. I read "How To Find A Church" and decided to remain at my church. Thanks for the help.
Name: Sal
Location: Buffalo, NY
Date: Tuesday, February 19, 2002 at 22:09:46
Comments:
Keep posting studies!
Name: JEFFREY
Location: LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
Date: Monday, February 18, 2002 at 14:04:05
Comments:
I AGREE WITH YOU ABOUT THE RAPTURE.
Name: Steven
Location: Florida
Date: Monday, February 18, 2002 at 09:58:06
Comments:
Great site! I like the set up, especially the layout of the site contents. I also like verse by verse Bible Studies. Keep up the work. Thanks.
Name:Ken
Location: MO
Date: Thursday May 24, 2001 at 5:18:31 AM
Email: youngpup@therightwing.com
Comments:
I enjoyed your page. I too was taught the traditions of men concerning rapture. My Father-In-Law watches Pastor Arnold Murray of Shepherds Chapel and pleaded with me to examine the scripture for myself. I've only been a Christian for a little over a year, so I guess I wasn;'t as stuck in my ways. Anyhow, God spoke to me and revealed the truth concerning the Antichrist and the Rapture of the truth. Continue to preach the word, and God bless you.
Name:James Hartman
Location: IN
Date: Monday May 14, 2001 at 3:14:02 AM
Email: futurescience@yahoo.com
Comments:
I found this web site via a study of the lost tribes of Israel. Your page appears to be indepth much to cover in the future.
Name: Pam
Location: The Light In The Forest
Date: Sunday October 29, 2000 at 10:36:50 PM
Email: pdw@dotstar.net
Comments:
Bro mark, Just wanted you to know I have been reading your Bible Study pages. Keep it up. I am learning a great deal. It is what I truely needed and I feel very blessed to have you as our pastor and friend.
Name: Dara jones
Location:Chicago Heights ,Il
Date: Saturday October 14, 2000 at 4:40:33 PM
Email: word_3@hotmail.com
Comments:
Thank you for truth, I attend church regularly and It seems as if pastors are really deceived or they don't want us to grow spiritually.I have a question I watch a pastor on television who talks about a eighth day creation of the adamic man, I find this hard to believe because the bible says god rested on the sabbath day from all of his work he als...
Name:Paula
Location: The South,
Date: Wednesday September 27, 2000 at 9:56:23 AM
Email: p82753@hotmail.com
Comments:
I love the music! Isn't the TRUTH a wonderful thing?!
Name: Kaye
Location: AR
Date: Monday August 14, 2000 at 9:11:51 PM
Email: KAYESUE H@aol.com
Comments:
i just found your site and although i havent had a chance to examine it completely what i have seen looks great keep up the good work! i am a student of shepherds chapel of six years and am very pleased to see new pastors teaching our Fathers truth. thank you
Name: Chris
Location: CA,
Date: Tuesday June 27, 2000 at 11:42:06 PM
Email: The7thTrump@AOL.com
Comments:
I love this site! It is full of inspired teaching and insight and I pass it along to others every chance I get. Thank you for going to such great lengths to spread the Word! God bless you and yours.
čThis work is undertaken in the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
čCopyright © 1998-2007, The Bible Church. All Rights Reserved. Contents may be distributed but not sold.
čThe Bible Church has the right to present its ideas and opinions in this format. We have NOT made any covenant with the Federal Government, such as a nonprofit agreement or tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3), and according to the
First Amendment
of the Constitution we have the right to free speech, including political speech, and freedom of religion.
čThe content of this study (with the exception of any scripture or quote) is the sole production of Pastor Mark Oaks and is subject to change as the pastor grows and learns.
čNumbers following Greek or Hebrew words are
Strong’s Numbers.
Hebrew numbers are in normal type style (1234) and Greek numbers are in Italic style (1234).