HOW DO YOU KNOW

HOW DO YOU KNOW

HOW DO YOU KNOW

I have listened to, watched on TV, blogged and much more as I have heard the words of people and clergy and various churches from so many different Christian denominations throughout many years over my time in life. I must be a Christian as I decided many years ago that I just could not pin down one group and say to myself “These folks are RIGHT ON”.

HOW DO I KNOW HOW GOD WILL REACT TO ME?

So on 8-04-02 , as the internet developed, I believed in UNORTHODOX CHRISTIANITY and established my own internet theology. It has grown tremendously as the questions developed from all over. Yes, NO, Maybe?

Initially I looked at my website and ran across a few readers until one day my website developed a surprise. Instead of a few readers the number overnight was 45,000 instead of 5 or 6 and the website was frozen. I had to move beyond my original hosting service and the site became a WordPress host. I still owned the original domain as well as a WordPress domain for Unorthodox-Christianity since I moved beyond my original host. In the last 20 plus years the whole discussion on the internet expanded into different versions of Unorthodox Christian whatever as well as what does Unorthodox mean?

As one listens more and more to a great variety of denominations building themselves over the internet the variety that started 20 plus years ago has become a thundering debate about what Christianity is about. I do not have the time or experience to cover the 45,000 denominations that are known about in the entire world. I can guess that there are many doorsteps that question and debate their own beliefs which go on and on to claim themselves THE RIGHT ONE.

THE RIGHT ONE” idea developed immediately apart of the original message of GOD and the legends of the victories or the losers in a single culture over thousands of years. The stories and the debates have not existed in agreement since the beginning of the stories.

I have mentioned before the story of my question to my 2nd grade Methodist teacher in the fifties about how GOD dealt with people. She asked if anyone was questioning how GOD dealt with people. I raised my hand. “What Dennis” she asked.

Why didn’t GOD just make good people?” I asked. It seemed like a logical question to me. History was just too full of war and death and it did not seem to be getting any better as we went on and on with war. As I got older in the 50’s and 60’s no one could answer my question? FREE WILL was the answer I got most of the time.

In the original book that many churches handed out to their children when they graduated from Sunday School (and the still do, throughout the world) the book I received started with Genesis 1 when GOD explained in verse 1 – 26 GOD said: “Let us make man in our own image, in the likeness of ourselves”.

And then in verse 27: “GOD created man in the image of himself, in the image of GOD he created him and female he created them”.

I guess that is what UNORTHODOX may have been meant to mean.

Today there are many versions of Orthodox Christians. Most tell different stories and different legends. And there were wars and there were winners and losers. There are pages of excuses as to why and where “Like us” went away, or “Us” was different than what we know of GOD.

The story of Jesus developed lots of debates in the corners of his conversations. I have come to be very simple about GOD and Jesus. Father, Son, all in ONE, it makes no difference to UNORTHODOX. The message has been simple and strait forward,

LOVE ONE ANOTHER

LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF

DO UNTO OTHERS AS YOU WOULD HAVE THEM DO UNTO YOU.

That is my story of UNORTHODOX in it’s simplicity.  The NEW TESTAMENT can exist with these few words of peace and one more.

FATHER FORGIVE THEM FOR THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO.

AND FROM UNORTHODOX:

HOW DO YOU KNOW HOW GOD WILL TREAT HIS CHILDREN MADE IN HIS OWN IMAGE?

HOW DO YOU KNOW?

DO YOU BELIEVE IN GOD

DO YOU BELIEVE IN GOD

DO YOU BELIEVE IN GOD? 

The Pandemic has changed us a great deal. There have been other pandemics prior to this one. There was one in 1957-1958. It did not happen as a political discussion. It did occur when most households had TV, some nightly news. It did not happen with Facebook, or TIK TOK, or IPHONES, or GOOGLE. It wasn’t broadcast on international television or regulated by the CDC. It closed schools. There was no social media to tell us how to behave, how free we were to make decisions for ourselves or whether Republicans were right or wrong or the Democrats were right or wrong. We were well or sick. The numbers from 1918 had been huge. We knew to respect it.

Today’s pandemic has affected millions. An enormous number of people have died from it and we have debated if it was real or not. When I got the Asian Flu in 1957, I slept for a week. I knew it was real. I was real sick. I survived that time. For the current pandemic I took the vaccination in it’s due course this year and have survived. I wore a mask everyday. I still do at work. Other things can make me sick now. It is called older age, Arthritis, High Blood Pressure, Cancer. There have been more debates about reality or fake news than ever before.

A question comes to mind.

If I write and tell you to Believe in GOD because GOD knows what is right or wrong what should I say to you? What will you say to me? Will you say I believe in GOD. Will I take GOD’s side when people ask me if I believe in GOD? Is your question “Is there such a thing as GOD? Is GOD fake news?
These are real questions.

Do you believe in GOD in much the same way as I believed in Santa Claus?

I used to get Christmas presents from Santa Claus, I did not attribute any Christmas gifts as coming from GOD. I new the story about Jesus and Mary, and I knew that I would get some gifts from Santa Claus. I didn’t get a card from GOD. Come to think about it I haven’t gotten a birthday card from GOD. Or did I. Maybe, just maybe, GOD had to send it via a friend, or neighbor or relative. Maybe the gifts I got from my Aunt Vera came via GOD. A world of books to read and study. Maybe Aunt Vera was an angel.

What is GOD to you? GOD never called me “Buddy”. My daughter calls me “Buddy”. I call my daughter “Budette”. I never told MOM that I got beat up by a Bully when I got off the school bus one day with a classmate in fifth grade who proceeded to beat me up because I was a skinny kid and consequently easier to beat up and then brag about it. Did I question where GOD was? Did I ask GOD for help? The book department at the local pharmacy was having a sale on self defense books the day I wandered into the department in 1962. Front and Center. My dad bought me a couple of books I asked for. GOD taught me how to defend myself. GOD encouraged me to be diligent and practice. I studied and I learned and I practiced over the next 40 some years. I’m the Sunday School kid who asked the teacher “Why doesn’t GOD just make good people”?

Do I believe in GOD? I have been told and have heard preachers say that GOD will remand me to hell if I don’t do what GOD tells me to do. If GOD told you to drive the speed limit would you drive the speed limit? If GOD told you to Love one Another would you Love One Another? Why should I believe in a GOD who threatens me like the BULLY threatened me?

GOD, through Jesus, tells me that “A Father had two sons…” and the youngest left home and squandered a fortune yet was welcome back home by his father. (Luke 15: 11-32 The Prodigal Son). I believe in that GOD.

Do you question politics? What is right and what is wrong? Do you question justice and fairness? Do you debate GOD about just what does Love One Another mean? Who does one another consist of? Do you question GOD? Do you believe in GOD? Do you want to believe in GOD? Have you talked to GOD about it? What has GOD done for you?

GOD utilizes people to implement your future. GOD spreads the messages of life throughout your life. The difficult part is recognizing them. And admitting that you recognize and appreciate them. That we all make mistakes is not news. It is what and how GOD talks to us that counts. Look over your life and see just how GOD has been there. See how GOD plans your future when you haven’t even told GOD you could use a bit of help. You have no idea what GOD has planned for you and your future so always give GOD a chance. Our present day society is questioning all things. We are debating the discussions of social media and what is real and what is fake. At some point the question will come to you.

Do you believe in GOD? Why is it important? Is GOD more like Santa Claus or does GOD have a purpose? Does GOD have a purpose for you? Just who sent my Christmas card for what purpose? Santa Claus? OR mom? Or Aunt Vera?

Ask GOD. You will discover a conversationalist beyond compare.

COINCIDENCE

COINCIDENCE

GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING ALL

What an appropriate Word for today. Prayers can be singled out for all of us for different reasons today and we can help each other with a simple enough prayer to remind us that GOD watches out for each one of us. Even when our prayer concerns overlap each other our prayers are each addressed individually. It may be a response from within our spirits. It may be a call from a co-worker, or a neighbor, or a relative or friend. It may come from a stranger we do not know with the right thing to say, and I am sure each of us has had that day when a TV show causes us to say “I sure did need that message today”. Coincidence is GOD’s norm. That said, enjoy today, the gifts it offers, and the opportunities it represents.

Our CARES and PRAYERS.

ME, Mack and Jake

IT TAKES MORE THAN LIP SERVICE

IT TAKES MORE THAN LIP SERVICE

IT TAKES MORE THAN LIP SERVICE

Matthew 10: 12 Jesus speaking to His Apostles:

Whatever town or village you go into, ask for someone trustworthy and stay with him before you leave. As you enter his house salute it, and if the house deserves it, let your peace descend upon it; if it does not, let your peace come back to you. And if anyone does not welcome or listen to what you have to say, as you walk out of the house or town, shake the dust from your feet. I tell you solemnly, on the day of Judgment it will not go as hard with the land of Sodom and Gomorrah as with that town. Remember, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; so be cunning as serpents and yet as harmless as doves.

Beware of men: they will hand you over to the Sanhedrins and scourge you in their synagogues. You will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and pagans. But when they hand you over, do not worry about how to speak or what to say: what you are to say will be given to you when the time comes; because it is not you who will be speaking; the Spirit of your father will be speaking in you.

Brother will betray brother to death, and father his child; children will rise against their parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name; but the man who stands firm to the end will be saved. If they persecute you in one town, take refuge in the next; and if they persecute you in that, take refuge in another. I tell you solemnly, you will not have gone the round of the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

America has reached an apex over the last week. Our beliefs and our behaviors have been challenged as a people unlike ever before.

I have mentioned before in my writings, that you may be the only Jesus that many will ever meet.

The passage, above, that I have attached to this writing was not necessarily written for yesterday. It was written for today. It was not written as much solely for America as it was written for the whole world of today. The challenges of today are no different than the above message was written for the world of 2,000 years ago. The religious leaders of those days were frightened of Jesus’ one message.

The primary message of Jesus, to LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

LOVE ONE ANOTHER means to love the people next to us, the people around us, the family we share with, the people that mean the most to us. Love the neighbor as yourself. The text from Matthew is about the challenge of the message to all of us. The message of Jesus when He spoke to His apostles dealt with how difficult the message was to be absorbed by others.

Make no mistake, Jesus set in motion a new standard that was accepted by so many that it threatened so many of those whose power was based on a whole different standard than loving and caring for one another.

Many segments of the world are still afraid of losing power to LOVE ONE ANOTHER. Many segments of the world have learned over the years that those unlike them are people to be afraid of. LOVE ONE ANOTHER threatened their own security.

In our country our democracy is based on our forefathers and their declaration of Independence and their Constitution.

All Men are created equal”.

With Liberty and Justice for ALL”.

The years have shown that “All men are created equal” and “Liberty and Justice for All” seems to be more of Lip Service than reality. The events of this last year have proven that the sacrifices of many to LOVE ONE ANOTHER, over many years, have been challenged again. Our country has proven that a majority of America believes in the message of Jesus. Everywhere one turns the first responders, the doctors and nurses and care givers and food providers have risked their lives for one another.

But there have also been those for whom “Shake the dust from your feet” is applicable to those afraid of LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

It takes more than LIP SERVICE to be the hands of JESUS. Whether we approach Jesus as the son of GOD, or as a very wise man spreading a message of hope from a Cross.

Jesus encapsulated a personal message from the Cross. “Forgive them Father for they know not what they do”. Much of what has occurred this last year has brought the Jesus challenge to the forefront and a great many of the people embrace it. 2,000 years ago Jesus said it would not be easy. Jesus lived the challenge of His ministry 2,000 years ago, and today that challenge remains waiting for you to be the hands of Jesus, the mouthpiece of LOVE ONE ANOTHER and a home that Jesus shares time with.

LOVE ONE ANOTHER takes more than LIP SERVICE. Hundreds of thousand’s of people can attest that LOVER ONE ANOTHER does not belong to one church, or one nation or one race or one anything. Get to know that Jesus, not as a historical figure, but as your friend.

AMEN

AS WE FORGIVE THOSE 1-6-2021

AS WE FORGIVE THOSE 1-6-2021

AS WE FORGIVE.. 1- 6 – 2021

Yesterday in America was a day we shall never forget. I remember on 9-11-2001 I was leaving a bit late to work, so I called the office to let them know I would be a few minutes late. The secretary replied, obviously upset, “Turn on your TV NOW”. I did so just in time to see an airplane fly into Tower 2 of the World Trade Center.

Yesterday I received a call to turn on my TV right now. I saw AMERICA attacked again, not by some unknown entity but by Americans, at the behest of The President of The United States to be strong.

Just what do I write? What do I say. Through Unorthodox Christianity what do I say when people will ask why? My friends voted for Donald Trump. My friends families voted for Trump. People said that Trump was a no-brainer to vote into the Presidency.

He was universally accepted as a great Christian and a potentially great leader. Today when asked, what do I say? The following is what I have chosen to write. You have to judge for yourselves where you go from here.

Matthew 24: 5

And Jesus answered them, “Take care that no one deceives you; because many will come using my name and saying, “I am the Christ,”and they will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars; do not be alarmed, for this is something that must happen, but the end will not be yet. For nation will fight against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes here and there. All this is only the beginning of the birth pangs…..

Luke 21: 8

Take care not to be deceived he said, because many will come using my name and saying ‘I am he” and, ‘The time is near at hand.’ Refuse to join them”.

Luke 11: 1-13

The disciples asked of Jesus: “How do we pray?”

Jesus responded “Pray like this:

Our Father (GOD) which art in Heaven, Hallowed be thy name,
Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done
ON EARTH, as it is in HEAVEN.
Give us this day our daily bread
And Forgive us our trespasses
AS WE FORGIVE THOSE who have trespassed against us.
Lead us not into temptation, and deliver us from evil.
For THINE is the KINGDOM and THINE is the POWER
And THINE is the GLORY
FOREVER and FOREVER..

RESTORES MY SOUL

RESTORES MY SOUL

RESTORES MY SOUL 

The Lord is My Shepherd, I shall not want
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures,
He leadeth me beside still waters
He restoreth my soul.
He leadeth me in the paths of right-eousness for His name’s sake.
(Psalms 23 kjv)

Years ago I read the 23rd Psalm over and over again and felt it was talking to me. I just couldn’t seem to relate. For me it was missing a few things for me to relate to. What was it saying to me. The above is just a part of the 23rd Psalm, but it will apply for this discussion.

The Lord is my Saviour and my guide. I shall have all that I require. (Not all that I want, what I require. I will still have more than many do).
(When the fields that I have been tilling have become brown and barren), He bids me to lie down in green pastures.
(When my Faith has been sorely tested and I am ready to give up) He restores my Faith (and my Soul to me).
He leads me along the right paths, (those of your own choosing, that I may serve you there).

At some point in time, every day, I offer this prayer up to GOD (and the rest of Psalm 23) Whoever, whatever, and However GOD happens.

(When my Faith has been sorely tested and I am ready to give up), He restores my Faith (and my Soul to me).

The accumulation of writings called the BIBLE is so much more than a “Religious” writing. The Psalms are in the history of the Jewish faith. For me they are the story of life is. I chose it for today because I have seen much in my life but none that compares to 2020. It is a book that teaches a history lesson of a people struggling, as many do, of what is the purpose of GOD. GOD has been a creator, fighter of wars, a judge, a jury, and you name it. But here in 2020,   WHEN MY FAITH HAS BEEN SORELY TESTED AND I AM READY TO GIVE UP HE RESTORES MY FAITH AND MY SOUL TO ME.

FAITH believes that there is something greater than the times. There is hope. There is LOVE. There is caring. There are thousands around the world who put their lives at risk so that I can have (ALL THAT I REQUIRE). HE RESTORES MY SOUL that my FAITH is on solid ground. GOD does not require a church, GOD does not require follow the leader. Your own choices determine your own locations.

GOD does RESTORE FAITH which RESTORES MY SOUL. It may be In the smile of someone passing by. In the “Can I Help you”, at the store. In that feeling when you yell “GOD” And GOD whispers, “I’ve got your back”. 2020 has made many of us wonder where the world has gone. 2020 instills a risk of pain, loss and change for sure. All of us know someone whose future is changing dramatically. Know one thing from GOD. You ask, and GOD will RESTORE YOUR FAITH and your SOUL. 

AMEN

Scared To Death

Scared To Death

I had occasion to be traversing the roads of ruralish Iowa. On this particular day there was an inordinate number of deer lying by the side of the road.

I have seen this often as a road warrior salesman covering a rural territory on back roads. Many deer; lying by the side of the road with no discernible wound. When one hunts and shoots at a deer it is the most common thing for the deer to take off running. If hit it can take time until is succumbs. When hit by a car the carnage is often visible, but at least detectable, and usually the carcass is a ways off the roadway, the animal’s momentum carrying it a certain distance from the point of impact.

In every case this day it was as though the animal died immediately upon seeing the car. It was as though it were “scared to death”.

It is an interesting phrase “scared to death”. When I mention to people that I sing in public or in churches, playing my own accompaniment on my guitar a reply that I often hear is “That would scare me to death”.

When I was a salesman, making innumerable cold calls, the phrase often came up, “That would scare me to death.” It really doesn’t necessarily scare them to die, but like the deer, perhaps it truly does in their mind’s eye. Have the challenges of life that you are afraid of, scared you to death? Have you felt a message to move in a new direction that you feel is a call to you from Jesus? Or from a similar source? Have you been afraid to test the waters of Jesus’ challenge to love one another because you have been afraid of being hurt again, or rejected or refused? Has this fear incapacitated you as much as the deer lying beside the road? Have you been so afraid that you have been a carcass on the roadside listening in a stupor as the relationships of other people’s lives pass by you on the roadway?

How many dreams do we fail to follow because we are afraid they won’t turn out the way we wish until one day we found we have ‘died’ to the life that the dream originally represented?

I know that I have been scared to death before. I have found myself feeling dead to living and patiently waiting for whatever day of my death appears to receive my earthly reward. Then one day I discovered that I had squandered the gift of the blessing of living this life out of fear of the unknown that comes with it.

The Robert Frost poem “The Road Less Taken” is about choices. Two roads diverged in a wood, one was well traveled, and one was less traveled. At the end the statement, for the poet, how much better it has been for him in taking the road less traveled. “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I — I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference”.

I think which road one takes depends on the person. The well-traveled road is well traveled because it works well for most. It satisfies and fulfills. Sometimes it does not. The dreamer is driven and beckoned by the road less traveled. Whatever it is down that road, it is a road the dreamer eventually chooses. That is the essence of the challenge of “Scared to Death”. One had missed the opportunities that lied along the road less traveled.

Jesus, a carpenter’s son, at a time when father and son forged the same future quite often, Jesus chose a road that very easily could Scare Him To Death. All the prophesies that had garnered His attention had a future that would have deterred the choices of others. Death on a Cross in a fight for social justice and a change in the thinking of most. At the final stage of the prophesy Jesus prayed.

“My Father” Jesus began, “if it is possible, let this cup pass me by. Nevertheless, let it as you, not I, would have it”. Jesus’s Faith believed that GOD, under whatever name, is a GOD that prepares the way. Faith is knowing that the gift of this life is as rewarding and fantastic in its living as the reward we seek after its tenure. And that “Do not let your hearts be troubled, Trust in GOD, still, And trust in me.” Many times in your life you may find yourself “Scared to Death”.

So here I my be, chugging along the road less traveled. How much different would life have been had I chosen this road at the outset, instead of the comfortable and familiar. I believe I have always been moving on the right path. It actually doesn’t make much difference, for this life is a book of travels. And, for now, this journey is on the road less traveled. Trust in GOD, still, And trust in Jesus”.

Matt: 26: 39-40
John: 14: 1

RESPONSIBILITIES

RESPONSIBILITIES

Responsibilities

(Updated from the Original Site in 1-29-2005)

With ministry in whatever form comes responsibility. Whether one is to prostrate oneself before the city gates and scream “REPENT”, or merely comment on the doctrine of the soothsayers and ‘Pharisees’. Whether Church Leaders, Ministers, Popes, or Prophets, it is not to be taken lightly. With thousands of references already on the “net” to unorthodox and Christian, there is but one unorthodoxchristianity.com.

It is humbling. For the seeker who finds themselves seeking through a www, you’ve stumbled upon this site. It is almost as though I have been granted some authority to present a ‘what it is’, I have not. I have no great expertise. I am a simple man. To me, the message of Love One Another is plenty succinct enough. This site is about love one another, and some of my views on what the ‘Pharisees’ say and interpret as truth. Doctrine must be weighed against the gauge of Love One Another. If doctrine doesn’t support that view, I find it hard to reconcile it as coming from GOD.

Many point out Old Testament texts, The New Testament Gospels are about the GOOD NEWS of a new teacher and a radical itinerant Rabbi. The leaders of His time did not exactly embrace his teaching and neither do very many of ours. Do not let anyone make you feel guilty for loving. Do not let anyone condemn you for caring, whether popular or not. And most of all, pay no attention to them when they attempt to judge the measure of your love, that is between you and your GOD. GOD will not condemn any who love, irregardless of their banner. Jesus said that any who love are with us, and can not be against us. Only those who profess to believe in love and who do not demonstrate it need be fearful of the results of their actions. GOD need not condemn for life itself is the greatest of equalizers.

And so I hope and pray that I present what GOD would wish. Unorthodox Christianity is about Loving One Another.

Enjoy.

Dennis Wheeler

The Circle of Existence

The Circle of Existence

The Circle of Existence

From the way-back machine in Unorthodox Christianity. Before there was WordPress there was the internet. In those earlier years was the original Unorthodox Christianity.com The theology was more than a blog. Much of it was much as the following content. I am setting up the reissue of that original .com that will be in the core of this site. One of the many early pages.

From 7-29-2007

The question of the nature of existence has been at the forefront of philosophical thought forever. From long before mankind could record thoughts on papyrus, and prior even to the cultures of hand me down legends of heroes in the past, where do we come from and where are we going has been the basis of theology and the world’s religions.

I have been reading a brief synopsis of the major theological movements over the past few days and have been intrigued by the growth of theological thought. The term cyclical comes to mind as theology and religious history follow an ebb and flow from strict dogma, to flexible reform and back into a strict religious morality when reform results in what the majority considers to be a rise in the incidence of `immoral’ behavior.

I have also noticed that there seems to be great periods of frenetic religious activity, followed by lulls of mere history, followed by eruptions of dogmatic supremacy, followed by periods of romantic flexibility and a return to dogmatic stigmatism.

From the most primitive forms of mythology that established multiple gods throughout the developing world, in Rome, Egypt, Mexico, Peru and others, man has constantly attempted to explain who he is and why is he here. Hinduism seems to predate and to begin establishing the modern era of a monotheistic theology. Hindusim seems to be followed by a dramatic influx of thought developed by Confucius and then expanded through Lao Tzu. Buddhism grows out of this and then on the western front shades of Mosaic law. Then the segue into Jesus and Christianity and then Mohammed and Islam expanding Christian concepts into cultural conformity. This continues to this day through Bahai and some of the more liberal new age inclusive conceptuals that try and appeal to a broader mixed cultural group.

Even within the buracracy of fundamentalist thought, each major religious turn includes its reformists and its liberalists, whatever name is coined for them, or about them or from them.

I am also amazed that each successive religion takes what it wishes from its predecessors and edits to suit a new crowd of followers or a new crop of leaders. I believe that this accounts for the ebb and flow from dogmatism to flexibility as it benefits the practitioners and their `chosen caste’.

As I read with a skepticism born of historical study, I am drawn always to the Christian writings of my cultural upbringing, the Judaistic drama of history, and the history of Hinduism, the more ancient beginning of current group belief. I see a lot of the writings of Jesus being an interpretation of the writings of Lao Tzu or Confucius or Mencius to a crowd that wasn’t familiar with or had disavowed these ancient writings in favor of “their own” Mosaic dogma and Pharasitic interpretations.

I see where the tribe develops its own school of thought for its own culture and then takes ownership of its relevance and correctness. Jesus, as a great teacher, embraces the whole world of theological thought at the time and proclaims that “I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE”. The Way, being the Lao Tzu world of Confucianisms, The Truth, being the world of Mosaic Law, and the LIFE, being the reverent respect for all living things of Buddhism and many of its interpreters. This he conjoins all at once in one convenient itinerant package we came to call Christianity.

Centered amidst the confluence of many trade routes, Jesus was no doubt exposed to much theological thought in his day. I do not believe that one such as Jesus would have been content to merely accept the Mosiac dogma in light of the Eastern beliefs.

The question that seems to gnaw at me is just how much inclusion Jesus incorporates into his world of thought which is buried in his words, thoughts and deeds. In addition, I see how much of our interpretation of Jesus is being contained in a vessel of religious dogma that appears narrow minded and `self’ contained. By this I mean that we interpret Jesus’ sayings in light of what our modern culture wishes for us to believe and not enough of our belief looks at what the world in Jesus time was believing. Because our theological bureaucrats find some beliefs to be `profitable’ we are missing the hidden code of history. Dan Brown only scratches the surface of the code in a haunting mystery novel about political religious history. The real drama lies in the clues to our existence that Jesus came to reveal to us through the disciples and the scribes within his entourage and their families’ oral traditions.

All of this hyperbole to reach this point: where do we come from, where are we going, what is life?

From The Gospel of Thomas within the Nag Hammadi library:

Lesson 18: The Disciples said to Jesus, “Tell us how our end will be.”

Jesus said, “Have you discovered then, the beginning that you look for the end? For where the beginning is there the end will be. Blessed is He who will take his place at the beginning, he will know the end and not experience death.”

Lesson 19: Jesus said, “Blessed is he who came into being before he came into being. If you become my disciples and listen to my words, these stones will minister to you. For there are five trees in Paradise which minister to you in Paradise, which remain undisturbed summer and winter and whose leaves do not fall. Whoever becomes acquainted with them will not experience death.”

Moses, Confucius, Mencius, Lao Tzu, Buddha: All predate Jesus. They are 5 pillars of religious thought that have founded countless schools of theology and represent a core of thought that one could reasonably call, the ancients. Within each lie the prodigy which expanded and interpreted their ideas. These are cores whose beliefs have not fallen out of favor (among the `enlightened’) although they have always been threatening to those who desire power. The stones are the beliefs, the sayings, the proverbials that have been tested and reviewed and found to be valid through the ages.

The mysteries of Jesus have always been enigmatic to scholars. “Even these stones will minister to you.” There is a proverbial that I like from Ecclesiastes, “a time to cast away stones, a time to gather stones together.” I noticed in my reading, as obvious as it is that I missed it, the order of the saying seems odd. A time to cast away stones, a time to gather stones together. Common sense would seem to support that one gathers stones and then throws them; but not in this sense. The stones of beliefs are often
“ read and then cast away, discarded into the cavern of memory”. Later in life an event occurs that brings that old `stone’ to the surface, gathered together so to speak in light of new knowledge or understanding.

An example are the many events of our lives that are lived and cast out of our conciousness in favor of each new event. Upon the death of a loved one we then sit back and pull these stones to the forefront of our memory that we may derive comfort from the memories once discarded and now retrieved.

The pillars of heaven are also not stone pillars, but the knowledge passed along by these great theologians and their theologies of the time. If you become familiar with their teachings and the meanings of the teachings, you will not experience death because you will recognize the mysteries of life. So what mystery do you discover?

I believe that Jesus told us, straight up.

Lesson 18: The Disciples said to Jesus, “Tell us how our end will be.”

Jesus said, “Have you discovered then, the beginning that you look for the end? For where the beginning is there the end will be. Blessed is He who will take his place at the beginning, he will know the end and not experience death.”

This is a simple and common philosophical question. What line has no beginning and no end? A circle. There is no discernible beginning to a circle and no discernible end unless one establishes an arbitrary beginning, which also becomes its own end.

Is it possible, let alone conceivable, that the circle of life: birth, living, death is reflective of the circle that is existence itself. Can the circle of spring-summer-fall-winter-spring- summer-fall-winter be a reflection of existence. Is time a circle not a line? That would explain prophecy, invention, science fiction, people. Another philosophical question, what came first, the chicken or the egg.

In the beginning was the word and the word was with GOD.

If Jesus was the word, did the circle begin with Jesus, or the beginning with GOD. Was it ‘poof’ all at once,everything?

 Ecclesiastes also says, “everything that is, was, and ever will be, has already been.” To expand on that idea, imagine a globe made up of an infinite number of circles of varying widths that whirl about each other always maintaining the globe as the perfect circle. Which microscopic dot on one of the circle lines are we, now, at this time? We are all at once someone’s future and someone’s past.

Time travel is perhaps just locating a spot on a globe of circles that roll within itself, a huge globe beyond our conception. The other side of  time may, in fact, be an arms length through the globe. Then, what is beyond the globe?

Whooooo,, so deep for a simple guy.

Do not worry about the future, Jesus says, God will take care of the future, the present day has enough concerns of its own.

What a good time to gather that stone together and allow it to minister to me.

Just some thoughts.

dennis

IN HEAVEN AS IT IS ON EARTH?

IN HEAVEN AS IT IS ON EARTH?

IN HEAVEN AS IT IS ON EARTH

Jesus said: When you pray, pray this way:

“Our Father who art in Heaven, Hallowed be thy name

Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done

ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN” …..

I have always been intrigued by this prayer offered up by Jesus. Over all the years I have heard so many threats about what can happen as a result of having been born. As an example: The mysterious ‘they’ mentioned to Jesus that it would be better not to marry than to risk sin and damnation should it not quite pan out the way it was originally intended.

I have heard so many sermons and ‘Bible’ studies of losing favor with GOD and being subjected to ‘HELL’ for being the ‘wrong’ faith persuasion and being subjected to eternal damnation as a result.

There are actually an estimated 2.2 Billion people who proclaim Christianity as their faith.

Major religious groups

  • Christianity (31.2%)
  • Islam (24.1%)
  • Hinduism (15.1%)
  • Buddhism (6.9%)
  • Folk religions (5.7%)
  • Sikhism (0.29%)
  • Judaism (0.18%)

“As of 2010, Christianity was by far the world’s largest religion, with an estimated 2.2 billion adherents, nearly a third (31 percent) of all 6.9 billion people on Earth,” the Pew report says. “Islam was second, with 1.6 billion adherents, or 24 percent of the global population.” Apr 2, 2015

Interestingly enough, Judaism, which is the foundational faith of Jesus, is very much outnumbered by the others. I point out again:

“Thy Kingdom come, Thy will will be done, ON EARTH as it is in HEAVEN.”

Why would there be such an emphasis ON EARTH when many professing Christians live their lives worried about living on EARTH while waiting to enjoy life in HEAVEN. Living ON EARTH as it is in HEAVEN, which was created by GOD for some purpose to be enjoyed at the very beginning. Jesus prayed for EARTH to measure up to HEAVEN. If HEAVEN on EARTH was such a priority to JESUS I would have to ask why it is not a priority for mankind which has 31% of the entire population as adherents?

Earth is certainly a flawed location. WAR is an industry on EARTH. Illness is a part of world history. As of today no one in the world should be ignorant of the suffering of a pandemic, not just now but throughout world history. Politics plays to a select crowd of the wealthy and select voters. The priority of business conglomerates seems to take advantage of as many humans as possible to create income, chasing money, money and more money. Nations rebuild the armies of other nations to fight more wars to make more money. Is this truly our answer to the prayer of Jesus, whom 2.2 billion people profess to follow?

“ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN”. It is pointed out that it will be more difficult for a rich person to enter Heaven then a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. Many of the world’s wealthy profess to be Christian to get elected throughout the world and yet “ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN” is either a mistaken prayer by Jesus for Heaven would not be my cup of tea if they reflect each other.

So let’s take it a step further. One dies. I could take myself. What have I done to make the world a world that reflects Heaven? What have I done to make HEAVEN like a reflection of myself in a mirror?

What are you going to take to Heaven with you when it is your time. When you walk through the pearly gates what do you expect to bring to the table? Will you debate which religion is right? Will you enter Heaven as a Baptist, or a Catholic, or a Methodist, or a Mormon. The entire religion of Jesus was Jewish, will you accept Heaven with a Jewish background? Will you follow your political leader’s leads into Heaven, behaving just like they are here on EARTH? Will you look for the purple robe that you feel you should be given because of all the good that you have done? What sort of a Heaven will you be creating when you get there? Will it be socialist, a democracy, or an anarchy or a Communist?

IN HEAVEN AS IT IS ON EARTH?

There is an answer. Two thieves were crucified with Jesus. One lobbied for Jesus to save himself and both of the thieves. The other said “What we have done was our doing, what He has done was nothing wrong. We deserve what we get, He does not deserve this for what He has done.” What did Jesus reply to the second thief? “Today you will be be with me in Paradise.” No question from Jesus of his faith, if he had any or not, no color, no tribe, no particular affiliation that Jesus was even concerned about. What did that thief do to have the opportunity to be taken to Heaven by an itinerant Rabbi named Jesus? He believed in what Jesus said about how to live your life ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN. It is a difficult door to walk through. You must walk through the door to HEAVEN believing that ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN is the prayer and the purpose. Jesus and this thief were GOD’S examples of how to accomplish the dream.

In your own corner of the world try to make “ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN”. That is the prayer of JESUS and the prayer of GOD.

We need that prayer now more than at any time in the history of the world.

I pray this for all of us.