Carole Walker Weeks

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

30 Reasons the Book of Enoch is Complete Nonsense.

1. Angels leave heaven because they lust after women.

2. Two hundred angels make a secret oath on a mountain.

3. Angels marry human women.

4. Women give birth to giants.

5. The giants are described as impossibly huge.

6. The giants eat all the food people have.

7. After the food is gone, the giants start eating people.

8. The giants drink blood.

9. Angels teach women makeup and jewelry as if this ruined the world.

10. Angels teach men how to make weapons.

11. Angels teach people astrology.

12. Angels teach people magic.

13. Angels teach people root-cutting and enchantments.

14. Enoch becomes a messenger for fallen angels.

15. Fallen angels ask Enoch to plead with God for them.

16. Enoch travels through heaven and sees secret places.

17. Enoch sees storehouses for wind.

18. Enoch sees storehouses for snow.

19. Enoch sees storehouses for hail.

20. Enoch sees stars kept in prison.

21. Some stars are treated like guilty beings.

22. The sun moves through heavenly gates.

23. The moon moves by a strange gate system too.

24. The book gives long angel names not found in Scripture.

25. It builds a whole angel world the Bible never teaches.

26. It gives details about heaven that God never gave through Moses, the prophets, Jesus, or the apostles.

27. It speaks as if secret knowledge is needed.

28. It adds a large story to Genesis 6 that Genesis itself does not give.

29. It was never part of the Hebrew Bible Jesus used.

30. Jesus never told His followers to receive Enoch as Scripture.

That is why many Bible believers reject it. It reads more like religious folklore than the clean, steady voice of God’s Word.

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

I keep reading and pondering and coming back to Jesus' Sermon on the Mount and His warnings about deception.

What amazes me is that we live in the most educated, connected, and informed age in human history, yet people seem more willing than ever to believe almost anything. Common sense is disappearing. Truth is treated like a suggestion. Obvious falsehoods are defended with passion.

The closer we get to the end, the more I understand why Jesus warned repeatedly, "Do not be deceived."

Knowledge is increasing, but wisdom is for sure not keeping pace. We have more information at our fingertips than any generation before us, yet many seem easier to mislead than ever. Jesus saw it coming. That's why deception was one of His greatest warnings.

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

I have been studying Revelation 13 very deeply and it suddenly dawned on me that Revelation 13 is a courtroom exhibit showing Satan trying to rebuild his rebellion on earth through religion, politics, miracles, pressure, and fear. Revelation 14 is God’s answer, the everlasting gospel, true worship, the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

John 20:23

In John 20:23, Jesus had just risen from the dead. The disciples were gathered together, afraid and confused. Then Jesus appeared to them alive.

He said:

“As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you” [John 20:21].

Then He breathed on them and gave them the Holy Spirit.

Breathing on them does not mean, Jesus took a deep breath and exhaled in their faces. “Breathed” here is the same breathe used back to Genesis.

In Genesis 2:7, God breathed into Adam’s nostrils the breath of life, and Adam became a living soul.

When Jesus breathed on the disciples, He was now giving spiritual empowerment for the ministry He had commissed them to carry out.

After He breathe on them, Jesus said:

“Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them” [John 20:23].

In this statement, Jesus was not giving human beings the power to forgive sins. This is why we must look at the whole Bible, not one verse by itself.

First Principle. Only God Can Forgive Sin.

The Bible teaches over and over that forgiveness ultimately comes from God.

When Jesus forgave sins in Mark 2, the scribes said:

“Who can forgive sins but God only?” [Mark 2:7].

They were correct about that one thing and that is that only God can remove sin from the soul.

Jesus could forgive sins because Jesus is divine. Human beings do not have that power in themselves. Human beings are not divine.

Second Principle: Christians Must Forgive Each Other.

The Bible also teaches forgiveness between people.

For example:

If someone hurts you and later repents, Jesus says forgive them, seventy times seven, meaning all the time [Luke 17:3–4].

Paul says:

“Forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you” [Ephesians 4:32].

This kind of forgiveness means:

“I will not hold this wrong against you anymore.”

It is about restoring relationships between people.

That is different from removing a person’s guilt over committing sin, before God.

For example:

If I lie to you and later apologize, you can forgive me personally.

But you cannot erase my sin from heaven’s record.

Only God can do that.

Third Principle: The Church Has Responsibility.

Jesus also gave responsibility to the church.

In Matthew 16:19 and Matthew 18:18, Jesus spoke about binding and loosing.

The church was supposed to follow God’s truth, not make its own rules. These words were used for making decisions about right and wrong, discipline, repentance, and church membership.

For example:

If someone openly refuses to repent from serious sin, the church may separate that person from membership.

If someone truly repents, the church can welcome them back.

But at all times, the authority starts in heaven first.

Jesus says:

“Whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven” [Matthew 16:19].

Jesus was not saying that the church tells heaven what to do. The church follows what heaven has already decided.

God remains the highest authority.

Fourth Principle: What Was Jesus Really Giving the Disciples?

Now we come back to John 20:23.

Right before saying those words, Jesus told the disciples:

“As the Father sent Me, I send you” [John 20:21].

Jesus was ordaining them for ministry. He was sending them out as missionaries to continue the work. In other words, Jesus was sending them into the world to preach the gospel.

Luke explains the same mission. Luke said:

“Repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations” [Luke 24:47].

Pay close attention to the words used:

The disciples were told to preach forgiveness. They were not told to manufacture forgiveness, or create forgiveness, or to become replacements for God.

Their mission was to announce what God would do for repentant sinners through Christ.

Suppose a man hears the gospel. He repents. He believes in Jesus. The disciples could on all confidence tell him that their sins are forgiven through Christ.

The reason they could do that is because God promised forgiveness to those who repent and believe.

Now suppose another person rejects Christ completely. The disciples could honestly warn then that they remained living in sin, or that something they were doing was not right on the eyes of God.

But again, they are not controlling forgiveness. They are declaring what God’s Word already says.

For example, a mail carrier delivering a letter. The mail carrier did not write the message. He only delivers it.

The church delivers God’s message of forgiveness. God Himself is the One who forgives.

When you cross-reference the text, you find that John explains this himself later.

Years later, the apostle John said: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” [1 John 1:9].

John sent sinners directly to God. He did not send them to priests, and to confession booths or to any human mediators. Because forgiveness comes from God through Jesus Christ.

Therefore, John 20:23 is not teaching that men become little gods with power to erase sin.

Jesus was giving His followers authority to preach the gospel to the world. The church announces forgiveness through Christ. God is the One who actually grants it.

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

Christ alone is our High Priest.

Hebrews tells us that Jesus is our true High Priest. “We have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God” [Hebrews 4:14]. No earthly priest, pastor, or church leader can step into His place.

His priesthood is perfect because He never sinned. He was “tempted as we are, yet without sin” [Hebrews 4:15]. He understands our weakness, yet He alone lived the spotless life and offered Himself for our sins.

That is why believers can go straight to God through Christ. “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace” [Hebrews 4:16]. We do not need an earthly mediator blocking the way. Jesus already opened the door.

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

Only Christ can forgive sin, because only Christ died for sin. As simple as this is, grown men and woman are having difficulty understanding such a clear statement.

Sin is breaking God’s law [1 John 3:4], which means sin has to be brought to God first. David said: “Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight” [Psalm 51:4]. Our sins can hurt people, yes, but at the root, sin is against God.

The Bible says God is the one who forgives. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” [1 John 1:9]. Paul said forgiveness comes through Christ, by faith in Him [Ephesians 1:7; Acts 10:43].

Yes, we should confess wrongs done to people when we have hurt them. That brings healing, prayer, and reconciliation [James 5:16]. Still, no human being becomes the source of divine forgiveness. The only one who has the authority to forgive sin is Jesus Christ, for He alone paid the penalty through His sacrifice on the cross.

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

The Bible does not say, and I am not teaching this as doctrine, but I think that Stephen felt no pain. When I review the scene, in the Bible, it strongly suggests to me that God wrapped Stephen in something greater than the stones.

I read that Stephen was not looking at the mob, surrounding him. Stephen was looking into heaven. The Bible narrated it this way:

“But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God” [Acts 7:55].

When heaven opens before a faithful dying man, earth and everything in it, loses its grip. The stones were real, but so was the glory, Stephen saw. The violence was real, as well, but so was the presence of Christ.

As he looked up and saw Jesus standing on the right hand of God, Stephen said:

“Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” [Acts 7:59].

Then Scripture says:

“He fell asleep” [Acts 7:60].

There is no indication that Stephen died screaming, hollaring, writhing in agony, or cursing his killers. Instead, he prayed, forgave, and fell asleep.

To me, that sounds like a man whose soul had already been lifted above the pain. I believe King Jesus stood up for His servant, opened heaven before him, and carried him through that moment with holy anesthesia. The rocks touched his body, but they could not touch his peace.

Stephen did not die defeated, he fell asleep looking at Jesus. When persecution starts and we are faced with whatever penalty is given, even death, may God bring to mind the example set by Stephen, and may we too count it an honor to bear reproach for the name of Christ, knowing that the same Savior who stood for Stephen will stand for His faithful people in the final hour.

[Christi Collins @christibcollins]

Happy Sabbath Everyone!

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

In Vinnytsia, Ukraine, a female stork was widowed when her mate died. She is incubating her eggs and is unable to feed herself.

Local residents have started feeding her.

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

I have noticed that when it comes to Scripture, most people don’t want the truth. They only want what makes them feel comfortable, even if it leaves them blind.

But I have also noticed, from a lifetime of studying Scripture, that God is not asking for permission to be right or to do what he says he will do.

What He said will happen, will happen. Believe it or not. Like it or not. Ready or not. As soon as the willfully blind and the contrarians realize that, the better for them.

[GN @IAmdoubleGN]

Four times Jesus Christ says that the resurrection of those in Him happens at THE LAST DAY.

John 6:39-40,44,54
[39]And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should RAISE IT UP AT THE LAST DAY.
[40]And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I WILL RAISE HIM UP AT THE LAST DAY.
[44]No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I WILL RAISE HIM UP AT THE LAST DAY.
[54]Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I WILL RAISE HIM UP AT THE LAST DAY.

This is the resurrection of life He speaks of in

John 5:28-29
[28]Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
[29]And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

The resurrection of life does not happen before the Mark of the beast is enforced as many are being taught and teach, but after it is enforcement as Revelation clearly shows in

Revelation 14:13-15
[13]And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.
[14]And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.
[15]And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.

THE LAST DAY of this age will be THE FIRST DAY of the Millenium according to
Revelation 20:6
[6]Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

The resurrection mentioned above is the same one Jesus Christ calls the resurrection of life and those who do not participate in it will be lost forever.

The idea that life carries on as usual on earth after the resurrection of Life is a cunningly devised fable leading to the perdition of many who claim the name of Christ.

[Christi Collins @christibcollins]

Happy Sabbath!

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

As the judgment scene unfolds and God’s people are gathered from every race, kindred, tongue, and people, the third angel gives the final warning. The whole world must decide whether to worship God according to His Word or follow man-made religion, whether to obey the Creator or bow to tradition. Then God points to His faithful people and says:

“Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus” [Revelation 14:12].

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

Where does the Bible tell believers to pray to dead saints?

Book. Chapter. Verse.

Jesus taught us to pray, “Our Father” [Matthew 6:9]. Then why are people being told to send prayer requests to departed saints?

Scripture says there is “one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” [1 Timothy 2:5]. So why add another layer?

Saul was condemned for trying to contact the dead [1 Samuel 28]. God also calls communication with the dead an abomination [Deuteronomy 18:10 to 12]. So how did the same thing become “Christian” when Rome renamed it?

Where did the apostles ever pray to Mary, Peter, Stephen, or any dead believer?

Where in Acts do we see Christians asking departed saints to intercede?

If dead saints can hear millions of prayers at once, in every language, from all over the world, then what exactly separates them from divine beings?

Ecclesiastes says “the dead know not any thing” [Ecclesiastes 9:5]. Jesus called death sleep [John 11:11 to 14]. So how are sleeping dead people receiving prayer requests?

If this doctrine is so biblical, why does Scripture never teach it?

[Christi Collins @christibcollins]

Happy Sabbath Everyone!

[AMASEEDSOWER @DrShayPhD]

Psalm 31:17-19

Do not let me be ashamed, O Lord, for I have called upon You; Let the wicked be ashamed; Let them be silent in the grave. 18 Let the lying lips be put to silence, Which speak insolent things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous. 19 Oh, how great is Your goodness,
Which You have laid up for those who fear You, Which You have prepared for those who trust in You In the presence of the sons of men!