ProdigalSoul

Recently reformed | LCMC | Desert Creature | Tinkerer | Army vet | Hope springs eternal

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

The Lord bless thee, and keep thee.

The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:

The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@tyromper @rdsanchezjr Taken just yesterday.

These people are disturbed.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@Protestia Divine justice goes along with divine mercy

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@ethan_ruffing It does

[War Doll @thewardoll]

Reading the account of the brutal murder of Saint Stephen and it always weighs heavy on my heart.

"Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute?"

Right away Stephen sets the precedent here that it is your Christian duty to call out evil when you see it.

He continues, "They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One.

And now you have betrayed and murdered him— you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”

When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him.

But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him.

While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.

That last line haunts me.

As his enemies hurl stones at him to kill him, he spends his last moments entreating the Lord to forgive them.

As his bones are shattered and he dies from horrific trauma, his last words are, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them."

The same selflessness is shown by Moses 1,300 years prior, when the Lord in his righteous anger seeks to destroy all of Israel.

"But now, please forgive their sin—but if not, then blot me out of the book you have written.”

Spare them and punish me instead, Moses tells the Lord.

Paul the Apostle, writing in Romans says, "For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race,"

We have to ask ourselves how these men separated across thousands of years could possibly hold the same, counter-intuitive to human nature ideal of self sacrifice for an unworthy people.

The answer to that question was displayed on the hill of Calvary 2,000 years ago, when from upon an old wooden cross these words were spoken.

Then said Jesus, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."

Stephen in his death throes, Moses on Mount Sinai and Paul in his letter to the Romans display a simple principle of those who walk with Christ.

They begin to act like Him.

They imitated the unchanging mercy and grace that was in God's eternal character for all time, and which was displayed on the cross for the entire world to see.

Peter 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."

The nails in his hands and feet, the crown of thorns on his head, the torn flesh on his back from the whip, the spear in his side and the wrath of God poured out on Jesus, all for us - all for you and for me.

Self sacrifice for an undeserving people.

Listen, I want you to know that it's okay to call out evil when you see it, as Stephen did.

It's your responsibility to do what is within your means to stop evil from being perpetrated against your fellow man, and to rebuke those who do evil.

I do not believe Christ is calling us to weak pacifism where we allow evil to prevail in our culture and our society.

I believe it is biblical to have a hatred for the things God himself hates.

But I also know that if we are to hold ourselves to the standard of Christ, then we must have no hatred in our hearts for any man, especially our enemies.

We must love them.

Of all the tough pills to swallow, the most difficult is the Lord's command to not only "Love your enemies" but to "do good to them which hate you."

If you don't struggle immensely with this passage, as I myself do, then you have not fully understood the command.

Those who would rob and murder you if given the opportunity, are to be treated my respect and kindness.

Those who's purpose is to defraud and tarnish your reputation, are to be treated fairly and with noble actions.

Don't hyper-spiritualize the concept being given here - you are not commanded to be weak or to allow your enemies to harm or defraud you. The truth of the matter though, is that these things will inevitably happen and when they do, you must go beyond the discipline it requires to not respond in kind.

You must actually do the complete opposite and do good to your enemies.

Which begs the question, why? Why would you possibly by called to repay evil with good? Why would you treat someone deserving of the harshest of punishment, instead with love?

Because that's what Jesus did for you.

Romans 5:10 (KJV) says "For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.."

Now you, Christian, understand why you must love your enemies.

Because when you were an enemy to God, he still loved you.

While you were yet hostile in rebellion to Him, He sacrificed His life for you, that you may be reconciled to Him and saved.

Justice will come.
Vengeance for all wrongs will be poured out by the only one righteous enough to punish in anger.

But you and I, being followers of Christ, are called to become more like Him and do for others as He did for us.

"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; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

Jesus the Christ, Matthew 5:44-48

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@thewardoll Dude, this spoke to me

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@SGTWipper1Each Country Captain Chicken.

Tastes okay and has good extras but gives you gas for days.

[Skeletor 🧼🧽🫧 @TheMuppetPastor]

“Why are you hateful Christians against pride month? Why can’t you just let people love one another?”

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 ESV

Each sin listed here, including homosexuality, is a grave sin and if we practice it unrepentantly, we will not see heaven. Homosexuality is far from the only sin; greed and theft are likewise damnable; but we live in a culture which celebrates homosexuality, not knowing or caring about Paul’s dire warning.

But remember; the message doesn’t end there.

“And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
1 Corinthians 6:11 ESV

Early Christians used to practice homosexuality, too! The sin is not new, and it was prevalent in Greece. But thanks to the salvation of Jesus Christ, former gays were able to overcome this sin.

I know that some homophobes condemn gays no matter what, and they are likewise guilty of swindling (by lying about the bible). If they refuse to repent of this, they will likewise perish for their hatred and deception of gays.

But the bible is NOT a homophobic text.

The message is that God LOVES gays, even in their sin, and wants them to repent and return to Him. Jesus died on the cross to forgive the sins of all, homosexuality included, because gay people can become whole again in Christ.

It because we LOVE gays that we share this message. I want to see heaven full of the faithful, washed of their former sins. There is hope in Jesus Christ for all, and gays are not an exception.

It’s because I love gays that I want them to know both the severity of their sin but also the hope in Christ to overcome it. I refuse to lie and tell them that this sin is acceptable, but I don’t hate them, because I was just as lost. Read that list again; heterosexual sin is just as damning. Gays aren’t the only people who need to change and return to Jesus.

But I would tell any homosexual that today is the day of your salvation. You have hope in Christ, hope we don’t even deserve, just because He loved you. He is proud of you, of the saint you can be, and you matter.

I am sorry that some professing Christians treated you horribly. It was wrong. If they can’t love you they can’t understand your struggle. I can’t relate to homosexuality, but I can relate to sin, and I’ve done plenty enough to say I am no better than you.

All I know is that exit ramp. And I pray that you may one day find peace in Jesus.

That’s something to really be proud of.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@LaLaLisaCooper "By what we have done and by what we have left undone"

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@WatchesWinWars Don't be a Major dickhead

[Chad Bird @birdchadlouis]

To read the Gospels through Hebrew eyes is to see the life, ministry, and teaching of Jesus in light of the Old Testament. When we do that, familiar passages open up in deeper and richer ways.

Take Matthew 18, which we read today in Bible in One Year. Peter asks Jesus, “How often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?”

Jesus replies, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.” The Greek can be translated either “seventy-seven” or “seventy times seven.”

“Seventy-seven” fits best because it directly echoes and contrasts with Lamech's boast of vengeance: “If Cain’s revenge is sevenfold, then Lamech’s is seventy-sevenfold” (Gen. 4:24). The same Greek phrase, ἑβδομηκοντάκις ἑπτά, is used in Matthew 18:22 and in the Greek translation of Genesis 4:24. Some English translations (NIV, CSB, NASB, and NET) preserve “seventy-seven” in both the OT and NT passages, making the echo clear.

So what is Jesus doing? What is the message he communicates by deliberately echoing Lamech? He takes that same number and turns it on its head. Instead of the limitless revenge of Lamech, Jesus commands limitless forgiveness.

So Jesus is not giving a math problem. He is reshaping the heart. His disciples are not to live in the escalating cycle of vengeance that began in Genesis, but in the overflowing mercy of God.

We forgive without keeping score because we have been forgiven without measure. In Christ, God does not count our sins and then cut us off. He pours out mercy again and again.

That is the life Jesus calls us into. Not the way of Lamech, but the way of the kingdom: a life marked by forgiveness, mercy, and grace.

Heavenly Father, forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@pnwguerrilla In the U.S.? Probably not.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@9mmsmg Less gold than expected.

I think this because fraud is rampant in our society, and even if people didn't loot it, accounting systems in government are pathetic.

[Thomas Lu'ay 🦬🏵️✝️ @thomas_luay]

"Hey, whatcha reading?"
"Oh, just a book about what the Lutherans believe."
"That's neat. Which book? Is it one of the confessions?"
"Yeah, in a sense."
"What do you mean 'in a sense'? What book is it?"
"St. Paul's letter to the Galatians."

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

This will happen soon.

Since colleges watered down their programs and let grades inflate, a degree is often not a good indicator of future success.

Smart is smart, stupid is stupid.

[Eli @elkelk]

If IQ is so useful why dont employers just give an IQ test for the interview and hire the highest scorers ?

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@DanielvsBabylon Amen. First commandment is almost always the first to be broken before the others.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

I don't know why it's so complicated for some to understand this.

[Lizzie Marbach @LizzieMarbach]

Faith —> Justification —> Works

NOT

Faith+Works—> Justification

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@GBNT1952 Yes, and you will be.

Judgement can sleep, but never dies.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@redeemed_zoomer The reason for splitting becomes important.

If it's splitting further away from God, then it's a work of Satan.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@GigaBasedDad Yes.

Learning and trying, though my sin is ever before me.

[ProdigalSoul @dessertrat33]

@ScottRoberts Good song too

https://t.co/dIH1JnoClT