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Luke 15:11-32 The parable of the father with two sons, the younger of whom squandered his inheritance and returned in humiliation to his father, begging forgiveness and mercy to return as a servant, thereby escaping certain destruction (he was starving.)

First of all, the younger son chose to leave the father; he was not sent or driven away, nor did his father intend him to go. He demanded his portion of the inheritance before his father died; the father did not offer it to him, nor suggest that he could take it and take his leave. Once gone, the son’s “riotous living” was his own choice; nothing compelled him nor did Jesus give any indication that any motivating influence came from the man’s father to cause him to sin...

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The gospel – good news – of salvation is that Christ took your sins upon Himself when He went to the cross. He died the death in your place, effectively serving your sentence for your sins. He rose from death on the 3rd day, as recorded in Old & New Testaments, bringing resurrection and eternal life to all who will believe on Him.

When we stand in judgment at the end of our lives, whether by death or the rapture, we will first be judged according to our response to Jesus Christ. If we trusted Him for our salvation, we wear His righteousness before the throne of judgment; we are freed from the penalty for our wrongs because He served it on our behalf. He is described as our advocate; He both defends us and serves our sentence.

If we have refused Him during our earthly life, we will s...

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LOGICAL FALLACIES

2 main types: fallacies of distraction           fallacies of form

Fallacies of Distraction:

Ipse dixit:        “he said it himself”. Appeal to authority.  – Citing a source or person because they have some aspect of authority (education, position, etc) which has no bearing on their ability to speak to the issue at hand.

Ad populum:      “bandwagon” appeal to popular opinion or practice. Numbers do not make something right or wrong.

Ad baculum:        “to the stick” concede or suffer – Appealing to someone’s fear or vulnerability to influence their position.

Ad hominem:      “to the man” personal attack – Criticize the messenger instead of evaluating the message on its own merits...

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Faith is not based on ‘facts’, but faith is in facts because of our faith in the Person who spoke those facts.

We can have faith before we know ‘all the facts’, but many believe they have facts that refute our faith, accusing us of having faith despite or contrary to the facts. These people need to see that facts support faith. We have not chosen faith over reason, but rather our faith is also reasonable. Reason supports faith:

2 Peter 1:16-18: “For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, ‘This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased...

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1. The nature of God’s word. God directed the writing of a very specific and detailed account of the genealogy of the universe. Why would God direct such precision of input for an analogous story? Either the statements are true, or they are of no value.

2. What could be the purpose of Gen 1:1 – 2:4, which is identified as a “genealogy of the heavens and the earth” when they were created, if it is in fact not an account of how the heavens and earth came into being?

3. Gen 1:3 identifies a separation of light from darkness, and defines both “day” and “night” by them respectively.

4. In Gen 1:3, after defining day and night, it is recorded “evening was and morning was, the first day...

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Jesus says we must worship God in Spirit and in Truth. (John 4:23.24) But what is truth? Again, Jesus says that God’s word is truth. (John 17:17) Both Paul and Timothy identify the Scriptures as God’s word (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21). So if we want to know the truth about God, we must go to God’s word, the Bible, to learn what it is.

In order to worship God in truth, we must do so according to what He says about who He is. We cannot please Him by worshipping a false “God”. This is the most fundamental question to answer: who is God? The second is: what is the true gospel? To know the true gospel, we must know the true God.

The Bible tells us there is one God...

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Every body continues in its state of rest, or of uniform motion in a straight line, unless it is compelled to change that state by forces impressed upon it.
– Newton’s First Law of Motion, translated from the Principia‘s Latin

“A body that is acted on by no net force moves at a constant velocity (which may be zero) and zero acceleration.”   http://physics.about.com/od/classicalmechanics/a/lawsofmotion_2.htm

1.     If the action of any body of matter is static in the absence of the introduction of an outside force, original matter would maintain stasis apart from a new force acting upon it, since only the original forces would also be present to act upon the original mass.

2...

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But the angel said unto him, ‘Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.

And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.

For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.

And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.

And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.'”

Luke 1:13-17

13  ειπεν δε προς αυτον ο αγγελος μη φοβου ζαχαρια διοτι εισηκουσθη η δεησις σου και η γυνη σου ελισαβετ γ...

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Beloved, doing all diligence to be writing to you concerning the common salvation, I have had necessity to write to you entreating to be contending for the faith once being given to the saints." Jude was pressed also, that urging them to “contend earnestly” for that faith was imperative.Read More

Zech 2:1-13:    “…another angel …said unto [the first angel that spoke to Z] run, speak to [Z] saying Jerusalem shall be inhabited as towns without walls…” “For thus says the LORD (YHWH) of hosts, “After the glory has he sent me to the nations who spoiled you, for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye. For behold, I will shake mine hand upon them and they shall be a spoil to their servants, and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me. Sing and rejoice O daughter of Zion, for lo, I come and I will dwell in the midst of you,” says the LORD …and many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people, and I will dwell in the midst of you and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you...

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