Podcasts about Gal

Trust    Directed by Carlson Young    Starring Sophie Turner, Billy Campbell, and Katey Sagal   A Hollywood starlet retreats to a remote cabin after a scandal -- but she's not alone. Betrayed by the man she trusted the most, she soon finds herself trapped in a brutal game of survival.   Relay    Directed by David Mackenzie   Starring Riz Ahmed, Lily Collins    A bribe broker facilitates deals between corrupt companies and their threats. He breaks his own rules when a client needs protection, complicating his usual operations.   Honey Don't    Directed by Ethan Coen   Starring Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza, and Chris Evans    Small-town private investigator Honey O'Donahue probes a series of strange deaths that are tied to a mysterious church.   Eden    Directed  by Ron Howard    Starring Sydney Sweeney, Jude Law, Daniel Bruhl, Vanessa Kirby, Ana de Armas    A group of disillusioned Europeans settles on a remote, uninhabited island in the Galápagos. They soon discover that their greatest threat isn't the brutal climate or deadly wildlife, but one another. As tensions spiral and desperation takes hold, a twisted power struggle unfolds, leading to betrayal, violence and death.   Our Classic   Blow Out    Directed by Brian De Palma    Starring John Travolta, Nancy Allen, and John Lithgow    While recording sound effects for a slasher flick, Jack Terri (John Travolta) stumbles upon a real-life horror: a car careening off a bridge and into a river. Jack jumps into the water and fishes out Sally (Nancy Allen) from the car, but the other passenger is already dead -- a governor intending to run for president. As Jack does some investigating of his tapes, and starts a perilous romance with Sally, he enters a tangled web of conspiracy that might leave him dead.  

You Are Free To Go | നിങ്ങൾക്ക് സ്വതന്ത്രമായി പോകാം | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1696 | 28 Aug 2025

Man-Child and Bride Throne (audio) David Eells 8/27/25 Please be patient as I lay a little foundation for anyone who may be new to this. Jesus laid down His physical body, not only to take on glorified body, but also in order to take on a spiritual, corporate body through His Word abiding in the saints. The Man-child is a corporate body within the Church, which will be the firstfruits in whom the full Word is manifested. Like Mary, each believer has the seed of Jesus, the Word of God, growing in him as a baby in the womb of his heart. As in the parable of the Sower, when the seed of the Word is sown in good ground, it will bring forth the fruit of Christ, 30-, 60- and 100-fold. As the inner, spiritual man grows in the image of Jesus, the outer, carnal man is dying. (2Co.4:16) Wherefore we faint not; but though our outward man is decaying, yet our inward man is renewed day by day. The resurrection life of Christ is being manifested in us through death to self (Philippians 3:10-15). As we are united with Christ in His death, we, too, travail over our death to this world. Jesus tells us that this sorrow of travailing in death to self would give way to the joy of bringing forth the life of Jesus: (Joh.16:20) Verily, verily, I say unto you, that ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. (21) A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but when she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for the joy that a man is born into the world. Jesus' disciples were likened to a woman in travail who brings forth the man-child in the image of Jesus in Revelation 12. Verse (22) And ye therefore now have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no one taketh away from you. He will see us again first in the Revelation 12 Man-child body of reformers. Just as Christ was the firstfruits in His time, the end-time Man-child is the firstfruits of those who manifest Christ after a time of apostasy (falling away). Seeing this full manifestation of "Christ in you" as already accomplished at the cross brings power from God to manifest it in the natural, which we do by faith as it says in (2Co.3:18) But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit. Paul tells us that Jesus comes in our mortal flesh, not glorified bodies. (2Co.4:10) Always bearing about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our body. (11) For we who live are always delivered unto death (to self) for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh. (Gal.4:19) My little children, of whom I am again in travail until Christ be formed in you. Through death to self, we no longer live, but Christ lives in us and does His work through us. (Gal.2:20) I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me: and that [life] which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, [the faith] which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me. God is raising up a corporate Man-child of spiritual Davids in these days, and they will lead the Bride; they will be the head of the Bride to bring them to maturity. We know that Jerusalem is the Bride, according to Revelation. The firstfruits of Christ coming to be manifested in His people is the David Man-child ministry. We read in (Luk.1:32) He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David. 33 and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. This is of course, Jesus but it is also Jesus in the Man-child as history repeats on a larger scale. What many do not know is that David's throne was the throne of God that Jesus, and now Jesus in the Man-child, is caught up to. (2Ch.9:8) Blessed be the Lord thy God, who delighted in thee, to set thee on his throne, to be king for the Lord thy God: because thy God loved Israel, to establish them for ever, therefore made he thee king over them, to do justice and righteousness. Notice that the throne of God was for the purpose of ruling over His people on earth, just as David and Jesus did and will do again. This is not a carnal king or a carnal throne. This is not going to be anybody glorifying flesh here; this is going to be the Lord, once again, coming in humble flesh in order to do His work and to be the spiritual leader over His people. He is the one in whom the Son of God lives. That spiritual David will be sitting upon God's throne on earth. He said, He that overcometh, I will give to him to sit down with me in my throne, as I overcame, and sat down with my Father in His throne (Rev.3:21). Jesus overcame and He sat down on the throne of God, which, once again, is an earthly but spiritual place of authority. He is coming in us; He's coming in a firstfruits to rule and to reign, to lead God's people back to the ways of righteousness, to rebuild the tabernacle of David and the kingdom of David. John wrote of this Man-child and throne long after Jesus' ministry. (Rev 4:1)...Come up hither, and I will show thee the things which must come to pass hereafter. So this was not about Jesus physically but about Him in the Man-child body. (Rev.12:5) And she was delivered of a son, a man child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and unto his throne. (6) And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that there they (the Man-child company) may nourish her a thousand two hundred and threescore days. The firstfruits Man-child company will be caught up to the throne of God to minister to the Church in the wilderness for 3 ½ years as Jesus did and history repeats. This throne represents Jesus exercising His authority on earth through the Man-child body filled with His Word and Spirit. He said to His disciples, "As the Father hath sent me so send I you" (Joh.20:21); and "What things soever ye bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and what things soever ye loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Mat.18:18); and "He that receiveth you receiveth Me" (Mat.10:40). Of course, no one will ever sit on the throne but "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col.1:27), for it is always He who rules in the heart and head of His Body that is to be the Word made flesh. The kingdom of David will be restored, as it was in Jesus' day and in our day. At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations (Gentiles) shall be gathered unto it, to the Name of the Lord, to Jerusalem (Jer.3:17). Notice that Jerusalem represents the Name of the Lord. The word for "name" means the "nature, character and authority" of the Lord. So, we see a throne within a throne. We see David's throne in Jerusalem but we see all of Jerusalem as the throne and also the Bride. God is restoring the type of the kingdom of David. He's restoring the Bride and He's restoring the Bridegroom. Yet again ... the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride (Jer.33:10-11) will be heard in spiritual, heavenly Jerusalem. Now I have a few revelations to share that relate to those who will be chosen to this position of the throne of the Man-child and the Bride.   Anointed Ministries Lead in Tribulation M.C. - 04/08/2011 (David's notes in red) The setting seemed to be dusk, but with enough lighting so I could see. (Dusk is that time between day and night, indicating here a transition into darkness.) On the road there were many troop trucks with no canopies filled with UBMers who were standing, waiting to be taken to a major event. (Having no canopies represents the Son shining in. UBM ministry with its people are getting ready, in the light of the Son, and in position for the spiritual battle with the beast, harlot, earthquakes, economic fall, tribulation, persecution, sickness, demons, etc.) I've tried very hard to remember the event, but I haven't been able to remember it yet. (You don't remember it because it will not be revealed beforehand. Nobody except God knows the specifics of what is coming, but everyone will be given specific personal direction when the time comes.) I wasn't yet, or at least I didn't feel, qualified to be in the trucks. (This is reflecting what probably most of us feel like in our present state -- not worthy and not quite ready yet to be marching on as peaceful warriors and anointed saints of God.) Everyone had been waiting for a long time. (We have been waiting for a long time because God is warning, and cleaning out the factious, and getting the elect ready as the time draws near.) All of a sudden, David said, "OK, it's time to go!" (David leading the troops represents the anointed Man-child ministry on a global level, leading the saints, including UBM, into the wilderness tribulation, like Moses and Jesus did.) So we all piled into his open-top army jeep, which was somewhere at the back of the convoy and we sped off past all the troop trucks. (The top open represents the Davids' unhindered communication with the Father. The jeep speeding past all the troops represents the David/Man-child ministries' leadership of the Church becoming stronger, as it was in Jesus' day. Those who were in the jeep but not driving could be the bride and witnesses who will receive the same anointing.) It was a very exciting moment. We roared past the first truck at the front of the convoy and headed into the dark tunnel ahead (which is the tribulation ahead). David waved his hand and called out jovially to the convoy, "The first shall be last and the last shall be first!" (We are seeing here the fulfillment of prophecies and the promises of God coming true. After having been last for so long, the David ministries shall now be first to lead the battle in tribulation). If I remember right, the tunnel was fairly short at the beginning of the trip. I suddenly realized that I was in his jeep but should have been in the last truck, if at all. (This represents all the believers who are "poor in spirit" and don't think highly of themselves and don't believe they deserve this privilege of being in the Man-child or Bride companies. Yet they shall inherit the Kingdom of Heaven and be in the firstfruits.) I was very embarrassed and turned around in my seat, trying to face the convoy, putting my hands together in a gesture, and asking for forgiveness for getting ahead of where I should have been in the lineup and yelled, "Please forgive me!" (Their natural humility shows they did not feel they earned this position. But we are accounted worthy through our faith that it is ours by grace.) Then I turned back around in my seat and just started to cry. (This could be weeping for joy and gratitude for such grace and anointing flowing to us freely from the Lord.) I think we were all very happy to be finally headed toward the destination. The darkness of the tunnel didn't seem to matter. (The first job of the anointed David ministries is to secure Jerusalem, the Bride, from the old man of the land, as it says in 1 Chr.11:3-5 So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and David made a covenant with them in Hebron before Jehovah; and they anointed David king over Israel, according to the word of Jehovah by Samuel. 4 And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem (the same is Jebus); and the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, were there. 5 And the inhabitants of Jebus said to David, Thou shalt not come in hither. Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion; the same is the city of David.)   The Bride's Throne Authority Amos Scaggs - 04/17/2010 (David's notes in red) In a dream, there was a young woman. (Representing the Bride, who will sit in the throne of authority with the King) A man looking up at her was questioning how she got to the control room (God's throne room), which was visible but not easily accessible. (The way is straight and narrow and is visible in the Word but one must be faithful and dedicated in order to access it.) She said there was really nothing to it because she worked outside of the control room and had been there many times. (The dedicated ones have been working under the authority of the throne room of God.) (And this was to permanently attain to be a pillar in the temple of the Philadelphia Bride and to go out no more as in Rev.3:12.) The young woman climbed up a tall and very dangerous set of scaffoldings where the steps and handholds had to be precise to get to the control room. The man (who represents the false, corporate leadership) was invited to follow her but the way appeared too shaky and unstable for him. (It is impossible for the apostate leadership to exercise God's true authority, for they are unstable and double-minded and without the renewed mind. They cannot walk in heavenly places any more than the Pharisees could.) The man went around to the back where he found a set of steps that wasn't as steep as the ladder the woman had climbed. (Joh.10:1 ... He that entereth not by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. They don't come through the door Who is Christ, the Word.) He climbed to the top but couldn't keep up with the woman and lost track of her. On the way he met friendly people working with old equipment (representing inefficient, traditional ways). All the man found were dead-end rooms and people causing him to lose direction and sight of the young woman. ("Babylon" means "confusion". Their authority rests on religious degrees and titles. Jesus, Who is the Word, is the WAY. Only "he that overcometh" will sit with Jesus in His throne.) The man never found the control room where the young woman went. (You will never find the throne room of God's authority using traditional methods. There is a Bride emerging who sees and lives more of God than the old, antiquated and apostate church.)   Death and Resurrection to the Throne Eve Brast - 12/16-17/15 (David's notes in red) Dream snippet I dreamed I was high above the ground, looking at a city neighborhood. Suddenly, everything began to shake. (These quakes are foreshadowed by the ones at Jesus' death and resurrection, which bring the same results to the Man-child reformer ministries, and will shake much of the population.) After the shaking ended, it seemed like everyone (of us) was relieved of some sort of burden. (The quakes will bring the resurrection life and anointing to the Man-child with miracles and a time of grace, safety, and reward to the Bride. Then the Church will enter the wilderness tribulation and deliverance from the burdens that the Israelites bore, slaving for the Egyptians, representing their old man. This would include deliverance from the financial burdens since the Egyptians were plundered of their wealth.) Some time passed as I watched children swinging and everything being peaceful, then I heard in my spirit, "After three days". (When Jesus died as a type of the Man-child's spiritual death, "after three days" came the resurrection and the "great earthquake" which we believe is the New Madrid quakes.) Once this was said, chaos among the people broke out everywhere and they were stealing and killing people and running around in a panic to survive. (This literally happened when the Egyptians lost their DS army at the Red Sea. After the reality of the quakes and financial shaking sets in, like "after three days", there would be great fear and panic, with survival instinct bringing out the worst in the lost. Martial law would bring bondage for those whose faith is in the Beast instead of Jesus. There was a shaking when Jesus died and then after three days, there was another great shaking when He arose. Mat.27:54 Now the centurion, and they that were with him watching Jesus, when they saw the earthquake (at His death), and the things that were done, feared exceedingly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God. And in Mat.28:2 And behold, there was a great earthquake (three days later at His resurrection); for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled away the stone, and sat upon it. Then there would be an empty grave for the Man-child, as we then see in the dream. Then I saw men digging up an old grave site. They were digging in red dirt and when they reached the bottom of the grave, they were amazed that it was empty. There wasn't even a coffin. (Reminiscent of Jesus, the Man-child, not being in the grave when they went to see.) This was a huge revelation to them and they went to look for David. They had many questions about this. (The spiritual resurrection of the Man-child will be a huge revelation. Then the people would be looking for the David/Man-child ministers after their death and resurrection to the throne, anointing would have been completed. Their many questions could be answered then by Jesus manifested in the anointed Man-child ministry.) This is all I remember from this dream. Dream - 12/17/15 I dreamed that David had just raised a man from the dead. (Because the Man-child Jesus resurrected Lazarus, many were coming to the Lord, so the chief priests decided to kill Jesus and Lazarus.) Everyone at UBM was excited and we knew it was time for "the feast". (The feast shortly after Lazarus' resurrection was Passover, which represented that the Man-child was crucified and there would be a Passover of judgment on the believers.) We all gathered on the upper floor of David's house and were setting up a very long rectangular table with a white tablecloth. (This table was for the Last Supper, the Passover: Luk.22:11 And ye shall say unto the master of the house, The Teacher saith unto thee, Where is the guestchamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples? 12 And he will show you a large upper room furnished: there make ready. And three days after the Passover was the resurrection of Jesus and His catching up to the throne, as a type of the beginning of the ministry of the Man-child of Revelation 12.) (Then we see this Passover beginning.) My oldest son, Noah, was nine years old again in this dream and he was demonized, so I brought him to David and he cast the demons out of Noah, who was completely restored. I was so glad to have my son restored to me! And I was just praising the Lord. (The people of God who dwell in the ark of Christ have a Passover covenant right to deliverance of every sort. When Jesus started His ministry, He began to deliver the people of God, as He said in Mat.15:24 But he answered and said, I was not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.) After the Passover feast, I was walking with my sons out to the parking lot. (A place of rest from man's works for vehicles of faith, which we are.) This was outside David's house because we were all going to the ocean. (This represents evangelism, the Great Commission, to the peoples, nations and tongues of those Christians under the Harlot: Rev.17:15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the harlot sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.) There was a long RV parked illegally in David's parking lot. (This is a dual prophecy. Those resting in the flesh, as an RV or recreational vehicle, during the harvest are not in the rest of God and should not be in the parking lot that is for vehicles at rest from their own works. Also, we are expecting an RV, a revaluation, which will put us to work in the harvest and should not be resting in the flesh.) As I walked by it, I saw a fierce tiger painted on the RV's side. (I'm reminded of the term "paper tigers.") (Another dual prophecy. The faction fighting against the Man-child is a paper tiger with no authority or power with God. Whereas the Man-child driver of this RV is described like a tiger in Isa 11:4 ...shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth; and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.) As I passed by the open door of the RV, a painter who was an enemy of David's was mixing up some paint. (The factious leadership misrepresents the Man-child reformers through character assassination and would like to paint over the tiger. They disregard the authority and power of the tiger to their own undoing.) He turned to me and complained that we (UBM members) were all parking in front of his "NO PARKING" signs that he had placed all over the parking lot. (They think they have the power to bind or forbid the righteous. Like the faction against Jesus where Judas was a thief, so is the faction against the Man-child Davids of our day. They are Judas thieves claiming what is not theirs. Joh.10:10 The thief cometh not, but that he may steal, and kill, and destroy: I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly. And in Joh.12:6 Now this he said, not because he cared for the poor; but because he [Judas] was a thief, and having the bag took away what was put therein. I told him that he was the one illegally parked and that he had no right to be there. He said, "Well, there is my father over there; you need to talk to him!" Jesus told the Pharisees in Joh.8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father it is your will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and standeth not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof. So I went over and started talking to his "father". He started to repeat what his son had told me. But I refuted him at every turn and he became nervous and quickly began to leave the property. (The Bride is therefore subject to God as in Jas.4:7 Be subject therefore unto God; but resist the devil, and he will flee from you. The Bride has the real authority of the Lord due to holiness. Luk.10:19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall in any wise hurt you.) The next thing I remember, I was at the ocean with David and Michael and all the UBM members. We were swimming in the ocean and ministering to the people there. (Obeying the Great Commission by Evangelizing the lost sheep under the Harlot.) There was a dividing wall under the ocean water in the area that we were swimming in and David and Michael were near that underwater wall up to their necks. (The underwater wall represents the sanctification or division between the elect who will come to the Lord and the other side who will not.) I saw Lexi playing with and tossing a ball in the water with David. (Lexi means "protector of mankind.") Everyone was very joyous. (Because the revival had begun.) This is all I remember. Verse given on 12/17/15 and dreams Psa.18:3 I will call upon Jehovah, who is worthy to be praised: So shall I be saved from mine enemies. Please read the whole chapter! It really goes with the dreams. :O) Verse 1 For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David (representing the David/Man-child company of Revelation 12) the servant of Jehovah, who spake unto Jehovah the words of this song in the day that Jehovah delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul (The apostate leadership that died at the hands of their old man of the land as David became king): and he said, I love thee, O Jehovah, my strength. 2 Jehovah is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; My God, my rock, in whom I will take refuge; My shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower. 3 I will call upon Jehovah, who is worthy to be praised: So shall I be saved from mine enemies. (The Dragon of Revelation 12 will fail to devour the Man-child and Woman, by God's grace.) 4 The cords of death compassed me, And the floods of ungodliness made me afraid. 5 The cords of Sheol were round about me; The snares of death came upon me. 6 In my distress I called upon Jehovah, And cried unto my God: He heard my voice out of his temple, And my cry before him came into his ears. 7 Then the earth shook and trembled; The foundations also of the mountains quaked And were shaken (Major earthquakes are coming when the Lord visits in the Man-child company.), because he was wroth. 8 There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, And fire out of his mouth devoured: Coals were kindled by it. 9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down (the visitation of the Lord); And thick darkness was under his feet. 10 And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly; Yea, he soared upon the wings of the wind. 11 He made darkness his hiding-place (a visitation of the Lord, hidden in the Man-child ministry), his pavilion round about him, Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies. 12 At the brightness before him his thick clouds passed, Hailstones and coals of fire. (A judgment through Moses the Man-child to set God's people free from the beast of that day symbolizing our day.. Exo 9:24  So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. 25  And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field.)  13 Jehovah also thundered in the heavens, And the Most High uttered his voice, Hailstones and coals of fire. 14 And he sent out his arrows, and scattered them (As He has told us of the faction, like the Sennacherib scenario and Joel's northern army being scattered.); Yea, lightnings manifold, and discomfited them. 15 Then the channels of waters appeared, And the foundations of the world were laid bare, At thy rebuke, O Jehovah, At the blast of the breath of thy nostrils. (He is coming with the earthquakes when the evil foundations of the beast are becoming known as today.) 16 He sent from on high, he took me (David Man-child is taken to the throne); He drew me out of many waters. 17 He delivered me from my strong enemy, And from them that hated me (The factions against the Man-child, as the Dragon, fails to devour him when he goes to the throne of David in Rev12:4-5. When Jesus went to the throne, He had complete dominion over the Sanhedrin faction and delivered them to the Roman Beast.); For they were too mighty for me. 18 They came upon me in the day of my calamity; But Jehovah was my stay. 19 He brought me forth also into a large place (An hour ago I got by faith at random in 2Sa 22:18-20, which is this same Psalm text. What a confirmation! The large place here is freedom of the Man-child to do his works in the Promised Land); He delivered me, because he delighted in me. 20 Jehovah hath rewarded me according to my righteousness; According to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me. 21 For I have kept the ways of Jehovah, And have not wickedly departed from my God. (The Davids who walk righteously, even in the trials of Saul's persecution, will rule. The Son of God who dwelt in the son of David, the Man-child, said in Mat.21:42 Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, The same was made the head of the corner; This was from the Lord, And it is marvelous in our eyes? 1Pe.2:7 For you therefore that believe is the preciousness: but for such as disbelieve, The stone which the builders rejected, The same was made the head of the corner. Throughout the history of the Bible, the faction has rejected God's ordained leadership, who was given authority to judge them.) 22 For all his ordinances were before me, And I put not away his statutes from me. 23  I was also perfect with him, And I kept myself from mine iniquity. 24 Therefore hath Jehovah recompensed me according to my righteousness, According to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight. 25 With the merciful thou wilt show thyself merciful; With the perfect man thou wilt show thyself perfect; 26 With the pure thou wilt show thyself pure; And with the perverse thou wilt show thyself froward. 27 For thou wilt save the afflicted people; But the haughty eyes thou wilt bring down. 28 For thou wilt light my lamp: Jehovah my God will lighten my darkness. (Jesus manifested in the David Man-child reformers will give him authority over all our enemies and supernatural ability, as we will see.) 29 For by thee I run upon a troop; And by my God do I leap over a wall. 30 As for God, his way is perfect: The word of Jehovah is tried; He is a shield unto all them that take refuge in him. 31 For who is God, save Jehovah? And who is a rock, besides our God, 32 The God that girdeth me with strength, And maketh my way perfect? 33 He maketh my feet like hinds' feet: And setteth me upon my high places. 34 He teacheth my hands to war; So that mine arms do bend a bow of brass. 35 Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation; And thy right hand hath holden me up, And thy gentleness hath made me great. 36 Thou hast enlarged my steps under me, And my feet have not slipped. 37 I will pursue mine enemies, and overtake them; Neither will I turn again till they are consumed. 38 I will smite them through, so that they shall not be able to rise: They shall fall under my feet. 39 For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle: Thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me. 40 Thou hast also made mine enemies turn their backs unto me, That I might cut off them that hate me. 41 They cried, but there was none to save; Even unto Jehovah, but he answered them not. 42 Then did I beat them small as the dust before the wind; I did cast them out as the mire of the streets. 43 Thou hast delivered me from the strivings of the people; Thou hast made me the head of the nations: A people whom I have not known shall serve me. 44 As soon as they hear of me they shall obey me; The foreigners shall submit themselves unto me. 45 The foreigners shall fade away, And shall come trembling out of their close places. 46 Jehovah liveth; And blessed be my rock; And exalted be the God of my salvation, 47 Even the God that executeth vengeance for me, And subdueth peoples under me. 48 He rescueth me from mine enemies; Yea, thou liftest me up above them that rise up against me; Thou deliverest me from the violent man. 49 Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O Jehovah, among the nations, And will sing praises unto thy name. 50 Great deliverance giveth he to his king, And showeth lovingkindness to his anointed, To David and to his seed, for evermore.   Man-child Given Throne Dominion to Minister Cathy D's Vision 1998 (David's notes in Red) Cathy came to us and she was new to our teachings on these things, and reported that she had seen in a vision that some people were being taken from the earth by beams of light that came down and gripped them by their heads and drew them up into Heaven. She said that the Lord spoke and said "that these people had the secret of planting corn, the pure seeds". She said that in her vision, she was standing in the shadow of a building when she saw this. This is about the man-child being caught up to the throne of God, as Revelation 12 says, to receive anointing and dominion to minister on earth what they know of the true seed of God's Word. These, as reformers, are going to replace the apostate ministry in the heart of the true Church like Jesus, Moses, Joseph, etc., did. The building Cathy saw was the traditional Church which she saw spiritually standing in the shadow of at the time. As Jesus was a man-child on the spiritual throne of David to feed the woman, Israel, in her wilderness for 3 ½ years before the great persecution, so the end-time Man-child company in whom Jesus lives will feed spiritual, New Testament Israel, the Church, for 3 ½ years before their persecution. Rev.12:5 And she was delivered of a son, a man child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and unto his throne. 6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that there they may nourish her a thousand two hundred and threescore days (3 ½ years).

God Stoops Down To Lift You Up | നിങ്ങളെ ഉയർത്താൻ ദൈവം കുനിഞ്ഞുനോക്കുന്നു | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1695 | 27 Aug 2025

This morning, we engaged in a discussion focused on peace, God's presence, and the finished work of Christ. Edward and Barbara shared insights on biblical passages, highlighting humility, dependence on God, and spiritual growth through the Holy Spirit. The conversation explored meekness, living in Christ versus living according to the flesh, and the Church's role in executing God's judgment. Reflections concluded with praise, thanksgiving, and the importance of resting in Christ's completed work.Themes:Spiritual reflections on peace (Eph.; Rom.; John)Biblical translation and personal growthChrist's peace as a gift of restSpiritual freedom through grace and submission to the Holy SpiritGod's children and divine purpose (Gal. 3:26; Ps. 149:4; Rev. 19:11-16)Meekness and God's refining processLiving in Christ vs. living according to the flesh (Rom. 8:1)Praise, thanksgiving, and resting in God's provisionScripture References:Ephesians; Romans; John; Galatians 3:26; Psalm 149:4; Revelation 19:11-16; Romans 8:1

Leah finished up courage month talking about a rebel in a swimsuit. In an era where women were expected to be silent and modest, Annette Kellerman dove headfirst into controversy. She used her body as a tool of protest, a canvas for art, and a vehicle for change. She helped create the modern swimsuit by not being ashamed of her body.  Even in 2025, some of us who wear a swimsuit in public are performing an act of courage. A battle between ourselves and culture. A piece of fabric whose history is written with rebellion. Learn about this poetic, noble, land-mermaid on this episode of the Gal's Guide Podcast.

    Slam The Gavel Podcast welcomes Stand With Meg to the show. Meg is a Mother of five and has been trapped in an ongoing family court battle for over 12 years. On January 29th, 2024, all five of her children were taken from her without a trial, Due Process, without cross-examining her accusers and despite Kansas DCF having cleared her of the allegations of emotional abuse, they still used the false allegations against her.    For over 18 months, Meg has lived the devastating reality of forced alienation, with little to no contact with her children. She is able to see her son, but only supervised visits that prove costly, while also paying a GAL to just observe.To Reach Out To Stand With Meg:  TikTok: standwithmegSupportshow(https://www.buymeacoffee.com/maryannpetri)Maryann Petri: dismantlingfamilycourtcorruption.comhttps://www.tiktok.com/@maryannpetriFacebook:  https://www.youtube.com/@slamthegavelpodcasthostmar5536Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/guitarpeace/Pinterest: Slam The Gavel Podcast/@guitarpeaceLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maryann-petri-62a46b1ab/  YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/@slamthegavelpodcasthostmar5536  Twitter https://x.com/PetriMaryannEzlegalsuit.com   https://ko-fi.com/maryannpetrihttps://www.zazzle.com/store/slam_the_gavel/about*DISCLAIMER* The use of this information is at the viewer/user's own risk. Not financial, medical nor legal advice as the content on this podcast does not constitute legal, financial, medical or any other professional advice. Viewer/user's should consult with the relevant professionals. Reproduction, distribution, performing, publicly displaying and making a derivative of the work is explicitly prohibited without permission from content creator. Podcast is protected by owner. The content creator maintains the exclusive right and any unauthorized copyright infringement is subject to legal prosecution.Support the showSupportshow(https://www.buymeacoffee.com/maryannpetri)http://www.dismantlingfamilycourtcorruption.com/

Let's Go Up To Worship God | നമുക്കു ദൈവത്തെ ആരാധിക്കാനായി കയറിച്ചെല്ലാം | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1694 | 26 Aug 2025

In this week's episode, we declare that we're officially entering our selfish era. We're talking about why we're not rushing into kids until we've lived the lives we want first, and why settling for just any man isn't on the table when we genuinely enjoy our own company. From icons like Tracee Ellis Ross and Jennifer Aniston—women who are thriving, hot, and unbothered at 50—we're breaking down how marriage and children aren't the sole markers of a fulfilling life. Instead, we're embracing independence, freedom, and the idea that putting yourself first is not selfish—it's powerful.---Stream Hannah's album, PHASES!Watch Emily's Short Film, All We Were!Emily's TikTok ShopEmily's Substack: third martini thoughts---Emily's Captivation: Gwyneth, The Biography by Amy Odell - Listen on AudibleHannah's Captivation: Haley JoelleShop CLEARSTEM and 15% off with the code GALSGUIDE at checkout---Welcome to The Gal's Guide — a weekly dating and lifestyle podcast created to empower radical self-love and bold relationships. Join us, long-distance best friends Hannah Adams and Emily Aleece Burton, for amusing and vulnerable conversations with insightful guests as we cover topics like love and dating to your own self-love, healing, spirituality, and always remembering the importance of gal pals. Want to request a topic or work with us? Send us an email at hello@thegalsguidepod.com or visit us on our website at thegalsguidepod.com---FOLLOW US!Instagram: @thegalsguidepodSecret Facebook Group: The Gal ScoutsEmily: @emilyaleeceHannah: @hannahadamsmillerAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We've all heard it said that “people don't really change”. Well try telling that to the apostle Paul! What could possibly convince a man who had devoted his life to “persecut[ing] the church of God violently” (Gal 1:13) to then re-dedicate his life to “preaching the faith he once tried to destroy” (1:23)? Only one thing, according to Paul: “a revelation of Jesus Christ” (1:12). If sinners like us have any hope of being changed… redeemed… SAVED… we must be “called by [God's] grace” (1:15). How does God do this? Why does He do it? In this text, Paul unpacks the origin, objective, and outcome of God's calling on our lives.

It's the summer months and everyone is itching to get outside and to the beach for some sun...but with that comes a lot of skin and even more debate as to how people should dress. What is modesty and is it important or is it overemphasized?In today's episode, Pastor Jackie and his wife, Carina, talk through the concept of modesty and how Christians ought to show (or not show) their bodies. They talk through what it means to be a temple of the Holy Spirit, the idea of causing a fellow believer to stumble, and what it looks like to dress modestly as well as the heart behind it. Our hope is that as you listen, you will be encouraged to honor God in all that you do, even as you decide what to wear each morning!The 17:17 podcast is a ministry of Roseville Baptist Church (MN) that seeks to tackle cultural issues and societal questions from a biblical worldview so that listeners discover what the Bible has to say about the key issues they face on a daily basis. The 17:17 podcast seeks to teach the truth of God's Word in a way that is glorifying to God and easy to understand with the hope of furthering God's kingdom in Spirit and in Truth. Scriptures: 1 Cor. 6:19-20; Gal. 2:20; 2 Cor. 5:17; Matt. 5:27-28; Eph. 4:24; Eph. 2:10; Eph. 5:1; 1 Pet. 1:15-16; Rom. 12:1; 1 Tim. 2:9-10; 1 Pet. 3:3-4; Prov. 11:22; Titus 2:3-5; Prov. 7:10; Luke 17:1; Rom. 14:13; Rom. 13:13-14; Prov. 22:6; Eph. 5:15.If you'd like access to our show notes, please visit www.rosevillebaptist.com/1717podcast to see them in Google Drive!Please listen, subscribe, rate, and review the podcast so that we can reach to larger audiences and share the truth of God's Word with them!Write in your own questions to be answered on the show at 1717pod@gmail.com or tweet at us @1717pod on Twitter.  God bless!

On this week's episode of WINE TIME WITH A GAY & A GAL we discuss: 1) Adulting Problems2) Vacation WEIRD or NAH3) OBX Vacation4) Credence by Penelope Douglas5) PERFECT MATCH on NETFLIXTune in with us and have some fun!

The Lifter Of Your Head | നിങ്ങളുടെ തലയെ ഉയർത്തുന്നവൻ | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1693 | 25 Aug 2025

In these dark times, we must fight evil with the most powerful weapons we have.The Rosary is foremost among them.Join the Great Rosary Campaign today at: www.GreatRosaryCampaign.com.The Great Rosary Campaign is a yearlong mission for the conversion of cultural leaders. We will announce a weekly call to pray every Sunday for specific fallen-away Catholics and non-Catholics.THIS WEEK of the Great Rosary Campaign, we will pray for the conversion of former President Bill and his wife, former Senator and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.The SUGGESTED PENANCE this week is a 24 hour water fast, adjusted for your state in life.Countless Saints and Popes have told us that the Rosary is incredibly powerful for three things in particular:1. Keeping the Faith2. Moral renovation3. Conversions of non-CatholicsThe Great Rosary Campaign is also based on several biblical themes and principles.First, PRAY FOR OUR BRETHREN. “Pray for one another…” (Jas. 5:16). “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all men, and especially to those who are of the household of faith" (Gal. 6:10).Second, PRAY FOR OUR ENEMIES. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 5:43-44).Third, PRAY FOR ALL MEN, PARTICULARLY LEADERS AND THOSE IN AUTHORITY. “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men, or kings and all who are in high positions…” (1 Tim. 2:1-2).Fourth, GOING INTO BATTLE WITH THE ARK. When the ancient Israelites came to Jericho, God didn't tell them to besiege the city. Instead, He told them to march around it with the Ark of the Covenant seven times, and on the seventh the walls would fall. We will now "march" in prayer for seven days with the New Ark of the Covenant, Our Lady, through the Rosary. We pray in hope that on the seventh day, a day especially devoted to Our Lady (Saturday), extraordinary graces of conversion will be given to those we are praying for.Fifth, EVANGELISM AND APOLOGETICS = LOVE + ARGUMENTS + PRAYER + PENANCE. Ultimately it is God who reveals Himself to a soul, and empowers them to say "yes" to Him by His grace. He chooses to use us, but He does not have to. We must remember that as we evangelize and defend the Faith, our arguments will be fruitless unless informed by love (charity), and reinforced by prayer and penance.Sixth, RETURNING GOOD FOR EVIL. “Do not return evil for evil, or reviling for reviling; but on the contrary bless, for to this you have been called, that you may obtain a blessing" (1 Pet. 3:9).Sign up to take part in the Great Rosary Campaign today: www.GreatRosaryCampaign.com

When reading through the New Testament, we see that God provides both general and specific directives to Christians. General directives include learning and applying God's Word (Rom 12:1-2; Col 3:16; 2 Tim 2:15; 1 Pet 2:2; Jam 1:22), loving others as Christ has loved us (John 13:34), being filled with and walking by the Spirit (Eph 5:18; Gal 5:16), submitting to governing authorities and paying taxes (Rom 13:1, 6), stimulating one another to love and good deeds (Heb 10:24), and not forsaking our assembling together (Heb 10:25). Believers are also called to live by faith (Heb 10:38; 11:6), seek godly wisdom (Jam 1:5), pursue peace with others (Rom 12:18), forgive one another (Col 3:13), speak graciously (Col 4:6), and show kindness (Eph 4:32; cf. Prov 3:3-4). Additional directives include edifying others (Rom 14:19; 1 Th 5:11), serving in love (Gal 5:13), doing good to all (Gal 6:10), seeking the best interests of others (Phil 2:3-4), rejoicing always, praying without ceasing, and giving thanks in everything (1 Th 5:16-18), and doing all for the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31). Steven R. Cook, D.Min., M.Div.

The Helmet Of Hope | പ്രത്യാശയെന്ന ഹെൽമെറ്റ് | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1692 | 23 Aug 2025

Oscar-winning director, actor, and storyteller Ron Howard joins Gentry Thomas to discuss his latest film Eden, a gripping survival thriller based on true events in the Galápagos Islands. Ron opens up about the incredible real-life tale that inspired the movie—a story of utopian dreams unraveling into betrayal and chaos in the 1920s. In this wide-ranging interview, Ron shares behind-the-scenes insights into the making of Eden, the stellar cast that brought it to life, and how he approached the challenge of telling a layered, morally complex story. He reflects on his legendary career—from the days of The Andy Griffith Show to directing classics like Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, and Cinderella Man. The conversation also dives into Ron’s deep love for basketball and his long-standing fandom for the Lakers, as well as his thoughts on what has changed—and stayed the same—about Hollywood over the decades. This episode blends nostalgia, filmmaking wisdom, and a powerful exploration of human nature. Whether you're a movie buff, a basketball fan, or just someone who loves great stories, this one’s a must-listen. Go See Eden Here --> Eden Movie Tickets 

Manifestacions i protestes a una trentena de localitats de Gal

Federal Chair Jerome Powell takes centre stage at Jackson Hole in the US to deliver his final speech. It comes at a time when tensions are high between him and President Trump. We look ahead to this important speech.Details emerge of a tentative deal between the European Union and the US .Some sectors will see smaller-than-expected tariff hikes. We hear from a representative of the German automotive industryAnd Ecuador is home to the Galápagos Islands, towering volcanoes, and the Amazon rainforest. But how did one of South America's most peaceful countries become one of the most violent? We take a look at how this surge in crime has affected the tourism sector.

The Anchor Of Hope | പ്രത്യാശയെന്ന നങ്കൂരം | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1691 | 22 Aug 2025

Els incendis encara cremen a Extremadura, Castella i Lle

Your Life Is Going To Be Colourful | നിങ്ങളുടെ ജീവിതം വര്‍ണപ്പകിട്ടുള്ളതായി മാറുന്നു | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1690 | 21 Aug 2025

"Eden" is an American survival thriller film directed by Ron Howard and written by Noah Pink from a story by Pink and Howard. It stars Jude Law, Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby, Sydney Sweeney, Daniel Brühl, Felix Kammerer, Toby Wallace, and Richard Roxburgh. It is based on the true story of a few European settlers arriving at Floreana Island, in the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it received mixed positive reviews for its dark story and performances. Howard was kind enough to speak with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which will be released in theaters on August 22nd from Vertical Entertainment. Thank you, and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Prisoners Of Hopelessness | പ്രത്യാശയില്ലായ്മയുടെ തടവുകാർ | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1689 | 20 Aug 2025

Continuen avan

How To Live Boldly | എങ്ങനെ ധൈര്യത്തോടെ ജീവിക്കാം | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1688 | 19 Aug 2025

This week we're deep-diving into all things pop culture—starting with Taylor Swift's brand-new album 'The Life of a Showgirl' and everything it means for her next era. Then we're hitting the millennial nostalgia button hard, reminiscing about the Hannah Montana tour, the Jonas Brothers phenomenon, and the way film reboots keep circling back into our lives. It's a mix of fangirl energy, cultural commentary, and a whole lot of throwback fun.---Stream Hannah's album, PHASES!Watch Emily's Short Film, All We Were!Emily's TikTok ShopEmily's Substack: third martini thoughts---Emily's Captivation: John SummitHannah's Captivation: Ilia Multi-Stick Cream Blush in shade At LastShop CLEARSTEM and 15% off with the code GALSGUIDE at checkout---Welcome to The Gal's Guide — a weekly dating and lifestyle podcast created to empower radical self-love and bold relationships. Join us, long-distance best friends Hannah Adams and Emily Aleece Burton, for amusing and vulnerable conversations with insightful guests as we cover topics like love and dating to your own self-love, healing, spirituality, and always remembering the importance of gal pals. Want to request a topic or work with us? Send us an email at hello@thegalsguidepod.com or visit us on our website at thegalsguidepod.com---FOLLOW US!Instagram: @thegalsguidepodSecret Facebook Group: The Gal ScoutsEmily: @emilyaleeceHannah: @hannahadamsmillerAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Church Life               “Law and Gospel, Pt. 2 - Grace” (Acts 15:6-21)1. The Case for Faith (vv. 6-11)Gal. 3:5-6 5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— 6 just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”? Sola fide.Rev. 7:9-10 9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”Eph. 2:4-5, 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—Eph. 2:8-9 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.2. The Case for Scripture (vv. 12-18)3. The Case for Conscience (vv. 19-21)Ro. 14:1-4b, Ro. 14:5-6, Ro. 14:13-15b, Ro. 14:20-21,23 1 Cor. 10:25, 27-29a  25 Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience... 27 If one of the unbelievers invites you to dinner and you are disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without raising any question on the ground of conscience. 28 But if someone says to you, “This has been offered in sacrifice,” then do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for the sake of conscience— 29 I do not mean your conscience, but his. 1 attachment

Overcome The Fear Of Death | മരണഭയം മറികടക്കുക | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1687 | 18 Aug 2025

In these dark times, we must fight evil with the most powerful weapons we have.The Rosary is foremost among them.Join the Great Rosary Campaign today at: www.GreatRosaryCampaign.com.The Great Rosary Campaign is a yearlong mission for the conversion of cultural leaders. We will announce a weekly call to pray every Sunday for specific fallen-away Catholics and non-Catholics.THIS WEEK of the Great Rosary Campaign, we will pray for the conversion of Andrew and Spencer Klavan, a father and son political commentator duo.The SUGGESTED PENANCE this week is a 24 hour water fast, adjusted for your state in life.Countless Saints and Popes have told us that the Rosary is incredibly powerful for three things in particular:Keeping the FaithMoral renovationConversions of non-CatholicsThe Great Rosary Campaign is also based on several biblical themes and principles.First, PRAY FOR OUR BRETHREN. “Pray for one another…” (Jas. 5:16). “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all men, and especially to those who are of the household of faith" (Gal. 6:10).Second, PRAY FOR OUR ENEMIES. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 5:43-44).Third, PRAY FOR ALL MEN, PARTICULARLY LEADERS AND THOSE IN AUTHORITY. “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men, or kings and all who are in high positions…” (1 Tim. 2:1-2).Fourth, GOING INTO BATTLE WITH THE ARK. When the ancient Israelites came to Jericho, God didn't tell them to besiege the city. Instead, He told them to march around it with the Ark of the Covenant seven times, and on the seventh the walls would fall. We will now "march" in prayer for seven days with the New Ark of the Covenant, Our Lady, through the Rosary. We pray in hope that on the seventh day, a day especially devoted to Our Lady (Saturday), extraordinary graces of conversion will be given to those we are praying for.Fifth, EVANGELISM AND APOLOGETICS = LOVE + ARGUMENTS + PRAYER + PENANCE. Ultimately it is God who reveals Himself to a soul, and empowers them to say "yes" to Him by His grace. He chooses to use us, but He does not have to. We must remember that as we evangelize and defend the Faith, our arguments will be fruitless unless informed by love (charity), and reinforced by prayer and penance.Sixth, RETURNING GOOD FOR EVIL. “Do not return evil for evil, or reviling for reviling; but on the contrary bless, for to this you have been called, that you may obtain a blessing" (1 Pet. 3:9).Sign up to take part in the Great Rosary Campaign today: www.GreatRosaryCampaign.com

Do I need to mention that Paul does not try to hide his frustration with the Galatians?To our ears, his language--"foolish" and "Who has bewitched you?" sounds offensive- later on he will say, if they've truly taken this wrong path,“You are severed from Christ . . . you have fallen away from grace” (Gal. 5:4)• he doesn't mince words, because he's terrified for their sake◦ he wants to make the strongest possible impression on them• and this is just the beginning- we're going to spend some time in verse 1• first, because the truth in it is so rich and enlightening• second, because here Paul constructs a foundation for everything else

Rewards of Giving and Receiving (audio) David Eells – 8/17/25 Father, we thank you so much for being in our midst. We are so privileged, Lord. The overwhelming majority of the world doesn't know You and we'd certainly like to be Your vessels through whom You reveal Yourself to them, and we pray toward that end earnestly. Lord, forgive us of our sins and our foolishness. Give us Your grace. Please rise up in us and do Your wonderful work in these days. Please anoint us and give us wisdom. Lord, we want to return to what You gave the early church and even go beyond that. We want You to teach us, Lord; show us how to walk in Your steps. We just ask for Your mercy and grace today. We see old world crumbling around us and we need Your wisdom now. We want to come out of this world and totally into Your kingdom. We want to know the difference and know Your principles. Lord, we've been reading them and studying them, and we ask You to help us put them into effect in our lives and in our midst. We just need You, Lord. We need You now more than ever. Come, Lord Jesus. Amen. So we're hidden in Christ. Most people never think to pray about those kinds of things, to be hidden from the Beast and take our name out of their system. There is a new Beast in town that is much more favorable to Christians. I believe the Lord is getting ready to prepare us to separate somewhat from this new system soon because it's rising only to fall again as history repeats. There's no use in us continuing to hemorrhage Kingdom supplies to the Beast. As I've said, we're headed back to the Book of Acts. We know we're going there, and you need to be prepared. Failure doesn't have to happen for us because we live in a different Kingdom, and we need to be living according to that Kingdom and according to the Word of God. We have a precedent in the scriptures to follow, and we know from the scriptures that it's important for us to work. I had a lady ask me years ago, “Was I supposed to be working in a secular job?” I said, “Well, why don't you go ask the Lord that?” And so she did. And she came back and said, “No, the Lord told me you were doing exactly what He told you to do”. And I said, “Well, that's right”. But it wasn't always that way with me. I worked for a long time, enjoyed it, and I had a very fruitful ministry when I was doing what the world calls a part-time ministry. But it really wasn't part-time ministry because I got to minister to a lot of people I never would have touched otherwise. Toward the end of that kind of a ministry, I was working for Exxon, and we had gatherings every day of men and women from across the plant. It was a very large plant, which took up a good portion of downtown Baton Rouge on the river. When Christians around the place heard that we were having Bible studies, they would flock from every corner of that plant and join in. We started having two meetings like that -- one in the field and one in the central mechanical building, and we had a large church assembled out there, and lots of miracles were happening. Multitudes of religious people were finding out that God was bigger than they originally thought. They were coming out of their structured churches and fellowshipping with other Christians and learning that there was more to Christianity than what they thought in their little sheltered clique that they were in. I believe the same thing is going to happen soon. I really believe that there are many people for us to reach, and that's going to happen. I think one way it's going to happen is that we will have something in common with them, with other Christians, and that is, we're coming into tribulation soon. Even before The Tribulation, we're coming into tribulation, and that kind of draws people together. It causes them to drop their sectarianism for the sake of survival. I'm not worried about survival. I don't know about you, but I'm not doing this because of survival; I'm doing it because it's scriptural. I believe that if we seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, all these other things will be added unto us. We won't have to worry about a thing. But if we're seeking God and His righteousness, let's face it, we're going to be doing some things that those first disciples did. If we get what they got, we'll do what they did, as I've said so often. And if we do what they did, we'll get what they got. And so we have a precedent here in the scriptures. The apostle Paul worked for many years in a fruitful ministry, tent making, which led him from city to city with other people in the same business. He didn't like relying on people; he didn't like being a burden on people; he said so. And I felt the same way. I mean, I didn't get out of my ministry at Exxon, and having Bible studies. I didn't get out of that and start into what they call the full-time ministry because I wanted to wait on the Lord and this was bearing fruit. I just told the Lord, 'Hey, Lord, I need more time to study; I'd like to have more time to share,' but I waited. And I waited for a few years until the Lord told me, Okay, it's time. I didn't choose that for myself; the Lord is the one Who has to open the doors. As many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. We have to be led of the Lord. We shouldn't be making steps on our own. Now we know from Paul's testimony that he did this, and we know it's scriptural. We'd all like to just live by our faith and sit out there and meditate on God and let Him drop manna out of heaven, and there's no doubt we'll get into situations where He's going to do just exactly that. But the Lord has multiplied food for me and even put it in my stomach when it wasn't there, so I know God's a mighty God. And Jesus multiplied the fishes and the loaves, and we're going to do the exact same thing. But where did the fishes and the loaves come from? Have you ever thought about that? Well, somebody had those fishes and loaves before Jesus multiplied them. So, I believe that it's scriptural for us to be effectively working, according to the scriptures. I'll just share a few with you. (1Th.4:11) And that you study to be quiet and to do your own business and to work with your hands even as we charged you... You think there's any difference today? I don't think so. Now, we know that we're in the process of easing ourselves out of this worldly business and into the King's business all the time, and that's good. Ultimately, that's all we're going to be doing because soon the world is not going to accept us doing any business with them anymore, and so God's going to use that to put us totally in the wilderness. But there's no reason not to be walking out a little into that wilderness right now because we're going to need to prepare for what's coming. I believe it's good and right and proper for people who have good-paying jobs to continue to work because, if we're successful in doing what they did, a lot more of our finances are going to stay with us and a lot less of it is going to go out into the world. And for people who have jobs, there is still a need for money to pay monthly bills, etc.. I mean, be useful where you are until God moves you. I found a very useful, very fruitful ministry while working at Exxon and I was enjoying that, and when I went into what they call the full-time ministry and God moved me to Florida. I was there a little while when I said, 'Lord, I think I was bearing more fruit there doing that than I am now.' But I was studying the Word and digging in the Word, and I asked, “Lord, do You want me to go out and knock on doors?” He said, “No, I want you to do just what you're doing now, except a lot more of it”. I said, Okay. There is a very fruitful ministry out there among the people who won't come into a church; they won't listen to a preacher. You know, you can talk to them where you are. So I'm not talking about departing from that yet, but I am saying this: Some of us have some time on our hands that we could fulfill some other things that we see in the scriptures. (1Th.4:12) ... that you may walk becomingly towards them that are without and may have need of nothing. So he says to work with your hands so you won't have any needs. Well, we can pray it all down out of heaven, can't we? Yes, but it's scriptural. You still have to obey these principles. And certainly, when we get into a spot, and we will get into spots where we need a miracle, a creative miracle, praise the Lord, these creative miracles are going to convert a lot of people. I received many of them in my wilderness before the Lord moved us to TN. I believed we could have good association with the people around this area too. There are a lot of Christians here and there are some innocent people here. Some of them might be ignorant, but that doesn't make them evil because, if you're walking where you know to walk and you're walking as close to the Lord as you understand, you are innocent and the Lord looks upon them that way and we should look upon them that way, too. We're supposed to be making friends by means of the mammon of unrighteousness so that they can receive us into eternal tabernacles, right? (Luk.16:9) So we're supposed to use everything around us, to have associations with these people, not to go into the corrupt lifestyles that some Christians are in or into the apostasy that they're in, but we still have to love them, and we still have to share with them graciously. We're going to be close together in the end times and I believe that when we start living the way we see in the scriptures, we'll be able to associate with them and they will see some things in us and they will want some things we have.  We'll be able to share, not just how to bake bread with them or how to raise chickens with them, but more about the Gospel. You'll have something in common. We all have a need, right? So I think what he says right here is very plain: “So we can walk becomingly towards them that are without and have need of nothing.” (Eph.4:27) Neither give place to the devil. But let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labor, working with his hands the thing that is good, that he may have whereof to give to him that hath need. So, one reason we work is not just for ourselves, but to give to people who have needs, which I did for many years. There are a lot of people who won't know where we're going right now, and they're going to have needs because they haven't been prepared, and that's going to put them at the mercy of God and, in some cases, at our mercy. So we work in order to be prepared to give to those who have need. There will be many Christians and many neighbors who have needs. We are about to have great abundance and we can give. This world is going to persecute Christians and do what they have done in the past; they're going to separate them, and they're going to plunder them. The further we separate from the dependency upon this system, the better. We don't need to be dependent upon this system; we need to be dependent upon God. That's what the wilderness was about. Now, we've been studying faith and that is good; you'll need that all the way through the Tribulation, but there are some things I believe we can do to be more like the early church and less dependent upon this world. You know how often you need to go to the grocery store, right? You know how often you need what they have. Well, I believe we ought to come to the place where we need a whole lot less of what they have and not be dependent upon them because the powers that be are using that dependency to bring you under their thumb. There are a lot of ignorant people out there who are walking with God where they are, who are going to take the mark of the Beast because they don't know God supplies. They don't know that they don't have to because they haven't been taught the Truth of the Gospel. They don't know that God supplies. They don't know how a Christian community works because they go to church, as a spectator, they get up, and they go home. They don't know that God still does these things because they've been lied to. So, when we rub elbows with them, we share with them the Good News that Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. So, he says, “Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labor, working with his hands the thing that is good, that he may have whereof to give to him that hath need.” (2Th.3:6) Now we commend you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly... I might say, there are some people who judge saying, “they just have to have faith”; I've run into them. It's not an evil in them, necessarily. Many don't see examples of people who live by faith in their churches. They want to serve Jesus, and all true Christians want to serve Jesus. But they're imbalanced. They need some help; they need some wisdom from those who are older in the Lord, because we can serve Jesus anywhere. Anywhere we are, we ought to be serving Jesus. We work as unto the Lord. As the Bible says, we are to work like we work for the Lord. We're not here to be men pleasers, right? We're here to work for the Lord, in whatever ways we can serve His Kingdom. We either work in ministry or at a secular job while we minister. (6) ...Withdraw yourselves from every brother that walks disorderly and not after the tradition which they received of us. (7) For yourselves know how you ought to imitate us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you; (8) neither did we eat bread for nought at any man's hand, but in labor and travail, working night and day, that we might not burden any of you. (9) Not because we have not the right, but to make ourselves an example unto you that you should imitate us. (10) For even when we were with you this we commanded you: If any will not work, neither let him eat. Some tough love there, isn't it? And, of course, sometimes people don't have jobs and they don't think they can work, but I really believe that can change. And I think some ideas are going to come from each of us that are going to show us a way to do this. (11) For we hear of some that walk among you disorderly, that work not at all, but are busy-bodies. (12) Now, them that are such we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work and eat their own bread. (13) But ye, brethren, be not weary in well-doing. (14) And if any man obeyeth not our word by this epistle, note that man that you have no company with him, to the end that he may be ashamed. You know, there is something almost anybody can do to serve in the Kingdom and to be able to meet the needs of other people. I believe we're about to see a lot of needs presented before us very soon. The dollar is dying very fast. It's going to crumble. The whole system they have is going to crumble. They know it, they're forcing it, they're doing it on purpose. They want a New World Order. They have set up the NESARA and QFS plan, and soon there will be the new world currency and then total digital. All will have to work who can work to receive their income. They know that if we are totally dependent upon them, we'll be at their mercy. But we're not totally dependent upon them and we need to get prepared to live in the Kingdom like a body would. We know that the world doesn't know anything about this. But a body meets its own needs. We are all built for some service in God. Praise be to God! Our ministry is even now supporting missionaries on other continents and we are about to be able to do much more. I can see  that God's going to bring all we need into this ministry in order to meet people's needs so the Gospel can be sent to the World. He showed us that very plainly. We're waiting for that to come and it's on the way now; but at the same time, we still have to obey the scriptures and every one of us ought to be giving and receiving. You know, there is no reward in the scriptures for buying and selling whatsoever. The reward in the scriptures is for giving and we can be doing that weekly or daily. Some will work at secular jobs and others will have their hands free to bring the Gospel to the world and some will do both. He's promised a great reward multiplied many times over in the Kingdom forever, so He wants us to do it. Let's do it. Giving brings an eternal reward. Some people could supply milk, some could raise beef. We will inherit cows for meat and milk and fields. We will have Tesla free energy. Some could supply feed, some could supply corn and some other vegetables. Some could supply chickens and eggs. Some could be butchers and some could be mechanics. Some could be cooks. Some would say, “Thank you for your milk.”  Another would say, “I have something to give you.” Or “I'll meet your needs in some other way.”  We're going to get equipment to plow those fields. We're going to get equipment to plant and harvest those fields. I think all of this is coming, but again, we are learning how to live differently. We're learning how to fellowship with one another about this work and to have more in common with one another than we do just coming to what people call ‘church'. Some people know how to make bread; they're very good at it. They can teach others. There are some people who have poultry, eggs, turkeys, chickens, rabbits and so on and so forth. Just some ideas here. If anyone feels led to go in any direction, that's what I'm asking. What do you feel led to do? Everything you do, you need to be led of the Lord. I'm just putting these ideas out there to share so you can think about it, because the Lord spoke it to me a few nights ago in the middle of the night, and I don't want Him to talk to me again about this in the middle of the night, so I'm going to share it with you. I like talking to the Lord in the middle of the night, but not having to repeat the same things. Some people are good at vegetable growing. I was telling somebody the other day that the house I moved into several weeks before my family moved here, I found one tomato plant on my property that somebody had forgotten about. It was behind a wood pile, and nobody had ever staked up the plant; it was just lying up on the ground, growing this way and that way. And I got to walking around behind this wood pile, and I saw there were tomatoes all over the place down there, so I had been eating tomatoes every day ever since then. That's just one tomato vine. Then the frost got them one night. I decided that I had better go out and gather what tomatoes were still there. So I got them; however, the frost had gotten a few of them, but I was able to gather a few tomatoes from it. I just placed them on the windowsill. But I sure enjoyed being able to eat plenty of tomatoes from one vine that somebody forgot about. The landlord was telling me, “Hey, you can eat the fruit off that tree over there”, and I said, “Hey, I've been eating your tomatoes ever since you left here”. I was watching some brethren make some soap the other day. That was pretty neat. I said, “Hey, you need a machine to grind that”. They were hand-grinding. I believe some people can make soap in order to have soap for their neighbors. You've been paying way too much for soap, and it doesn't work nearly as well as these folks' soap would. And some people would be good at distributing the products to the people. There are people good at doing taxes; there are people good at law. They can offer their services to the brethren and vice versa. Carpentry, mechanics and electricians, handymen, techies, etc. You can think of a lot of things, all kinds of services you can give to others, and they can give to you. And this giving and sharing is just part of being a Christian. In some cases we will hire the world to be laborers while we will be priests and ministers of the Lord. Isa 61:5  And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and foreigners shall be your plowmen and your vine-dressers. 6  But ye shall be named the priests of Jehovah; men shall call you the ministers of our God: ye shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.  These are all part time jobs. No one is going to have to slave to stay alive for God has given abundantly and the ministry will make sure all needs are met as it was in Acts. Our main job will be to put the word and gifts of the Spirit in our hearts so we can give this to others. The world is buying and selling. God kept complaining about the buying and selling and the marrying and giving in marriage, and we see that that's the way of the world. Suretyship is the way of the world. Borrowing and mortgaging and guaranteeing to pay back -- that's the way of the world. The Bible teaches against “suretyship.” (Pro.11:15) He that is surety for a stranger shall smart for it; But he that hateth suretyship is secure. The Hebrew word there actually means “to be a guarantor of an agreement; to give or to be security”; in other words, “to mortgage.” It's making a guarantee to pay back what has been borrowed, but we can't even guarantee that we'll be here tomorrow. The Bible also warns us against making promises, pledges, or guarantees of any sort. I think the Amish have something to teach us there. They all gathered together and built the house. Okay, we'll build you the house, and you won't be going into debt either. We can gather together and build a few chicken coops and rabbit coops, and whatever. We can do these things. The ministry can help some of you get started in what some people have called a cottage industry. We can give you something that will, for example, get you a grinder that will grind soap all by itself. Just some ideas. We already have Telsa free energy here waiting to be turned on. we've received several prophecies about a virus that's going to shut down the Internet and the grid but that may be out in the world. The worldly church has no way to know this is going to happen because they're not led by the Spirit, and they're not aware of these warnings in dreams and prophesies. We don't have to stop; we've been warned. We can listen to God and ask, “Hey, God, what do you want me to do about this?” Well, He's giving us some ideas. But we know the Lord is going to supply all our needs according to His riches in glory. That's what He said, right? But we just need to believe and obey Him to receive all needs. We also know there's small earthquakes coming through here to separate the land from the mainland. The Lord showed us that. That's going to run people off and make this a peninsula. But we know it's going to happen and we just need to be ready. Even bartering is taxable, so giving freely and receiving freely is the best policy and has heavenly rewards. We're headed toward the mark. Some people are going to take the mark because they don't know that they have a choice. And we can show them not only some supernatural choices, but we can also show them some natural choices because we live the way we're supposed to live toward one another scripturally by meeting one another's needs and working to make sure everybody's needs are met, making sure that there is equality. And the Lord spoke in 2 Corinthians about equality. He wants equality in His church. He wants all of His people to have their needs met. And the way of the world is, I'm in a race with my neighbor: I gotta have the biggest car, the biggest house, swimming pool, etc.; but that's not us. We're here to serve and to lift up our neighbors and to be a community, a body, in order to make sure that everybody's needs are met through giving and receiving, right? The idea of gaining from your neighbor is less important to us than making sure our neighbors' needs are met and our needs are met. It's a control thing with the DS. They think that if they bring down the economy, we will be under their control. And it's true; for an awful lot of Christians, it's true. We can give them a choice here. I believe that if we do a little bit of specializing and less duplicating, we can get this thing up and going pretty fast. Everybody does not need a lawnmower. Some are already set up to do this. Our trips to the store will be for almost no staples and pay their exorbitant prices, and that money will go to feed the Beast; we don't care about that. Whatever we make, we would like it to totally serve the Kingdom. That's the way. I'm not talking about names and storefronts and things like that. These are things we have to avoid. We want to have a low profile where we're going. We want to avoid open rebellion against the system because they'll come to get you. They'll figure out a way to do it. We know we're protected by God and hidden in Christ, but we don't want to dare them, right? And we can do a lot of things just the way we normally do them, just naturally. The way of the world, of opening a big storefront, saying, 'We're not buying and selling, we're bartering'; they'll tax you and figure a way to shut you down. They want control and they don't want anybody to be independent. We can be very independent if we give and receive individually, and we can bring in a lot of Christians who don't know what's coming. We'll enjoy fellowshipping with them too, and not just around these things, but around the Word of God. So we can share with others this way. In Acts 6:1-4, there were some people complaining about their system not working very well, so they chose and ordained some deacons to make sure that the widows weren't missing out. We have lots of deacons in our ministry. “Deacon” just means “servant” in the Word of God. We have servants who do all kinds of things in our ministry. People have many different gifts and talents with backgrounds and training in several areas. This is one we need to move toward, too: People whose whole concern is to make sure that everybody's needs are met, that the system is working, it's not breaking down somewhere. So we'll be thinking about this, and you be thinking about this, too, because it's definitely going to be needed. As the apostle said, they did it at that time so that they could continue in prayer, be able to study in the Word of God and teaching, and these ordained brothers can handle this. Many Man-child families are coming here. Man-child reformers will teach and minister in our bible schools that the Lord has given us. Other specialty teachers will be here too. Let me also say this: Because you're a deacon does not negate you from being an elder or being one of the two-witnesses or being in the Man-child. It doesn't negate that at all. Remember, Jesus was called a deacon, too. In the scriptures, in every way people served others, the word diakonos was used; it just wasn't always translated that way. So, if we translated it the same way every time, we would find out that Jesus was a deacon, all of His disciples were deacons, and everybody was a servant in one form or another. But deacons do not have to be elders. And our ministry has lots of servants. Many people are coming together here to serve the Word of God to people and to make sure it's prepared properly. I'm not bringing this up for any other reason than I feel like the Lord brought it up to me, and I'm not bringing it up in desperation because I'm worried about what's coming. I'm not in the slightest bit worried about what's coming. I am eager to get the Gospel out to the world and we shall. We can be giving and receiving. We can receive the benefits of the eternal kingdom. God's already taken care of all of this. I'm doing this because we can offer blessings to the people by just learning to give to them and making sure their spiritual and physical needs are met. And as we read in the Scriptures, they worked for more than just me, my, and mine; it was for the purpose of giving to other people who were in need. We're going to see multitudes in need. God's giving us property, schools, meeting places and houses here. There are going to be many people, refugees from all over this country and from other countries coming here, and we want to be hospitable. We want to be able to take care of them and help them to move into something that, even if they don't have a secular job, the ministry can meet their needs and meet the needs of people around them. Now, we're not trying to build what the world would call a commune here. You won't see anybody in our ministry running around giving orders. It's a little different than a lot of ministries you've been involved in, or heard about, I'm sure. Most of the people in this ministry who are deacons in this ministry, they have that because it was in their heart to do it, and they came to us and said, 'Hey, I'd like to do this', or ‘I can do this', and so praise God. We want people to be free to do these things from the heart. If you give from your heart, that's a good sacrifice before the Lord, according to 2 Corinthians. From the very beginning of our ministry, we've never charged for anything; we just give it. If people want to give back, that's fine; if they don't, they still receive what they ask for, so we can't really call it bartering when you're not demanding anything in return. We're not talking about hoarding either; we're just talking about meeting needs. Well, we can do some workshops here, people showing other people how to do things, and people gathering together to get these things started in a really good way. And, as I said, I felt the Lord told me that the ministry could also contribute money toward things that people need to get started in this way. Everyone does not belong here for God has not called them to a refuge but tribulation. We can take a lesson from the Amish. They gather together and do something in a group that they could never do individually, or at least, it would take a lot longer time. We don't have a long time. We are not needing to build houses or many buildings that are already provided. I know that we have people to fill every specialty and we can get up and going quickly. And of course, this is all voluntary, whatever a person feels their gift is or the Lord is guiding them to do. The funny thing is, I'm visiting people's houses, and the house I'm living in now, and they are all electric and we have free electricity. One of the Bible colleges has natural gas. There is a rich deposit of gas right here, and that's free energy. We had a brother whose family came down and visited us, who was just north of us, and he has a gas well in his backyard, and I'm thinking, why aren't more people punching holes in the ground around here? That's free heat; that's energy. Well, if you have a community of people who aren't far apart, or if you want to, use it to pressurize it and run vehicles. When I was young, we used gas tractors, gas trucks, and we had the old International Harvester trucks that were converted to run on gas because it was readily available, so you can do the same thing today. People are talking about all different kinds of ways to keep your car running when gasoline becomes hard to find, which it will. Not necessarily here, but it will. But certainly, if you have the availability of a gas well you can buy the converter kits for tractors. We will have electric cars. Birds are hand-to-mouth, aren't they? They don't worry about storing it up; they just eat it. Well, I think you got the idea, so really just pray and ask the Lord if He wants you to do something and, if so, what, and just be ready and willing for Him to use you. You can train people in what you know, and you can be trained by others, and we can all come together with what we each know the Lord is leading us to do. And the ministry would be glad to contribute to anybody who wants to get a start, so you all think about it and pray about it, and we'll see where it takes us. But only consider coming if God says so. Lord, we just ask you, Father, in the name of Jesus, to give us all wisdom. You know what's coming down the road. You see the end from the beginning. We see nothing, Lord; we just trust in You. We want to be led by Your Spirit. We are the sons of God by faith, and we're asking You to lead us and guide us into something that will be very useful, not only to us, but to the people around us and to get the Gospel out. Lord, we thank You for Your mercy toward us, and we know that we have nothing to worry about; we just put all of our faith in You. We know that You are an absolute miracle-working God and You will multiply the fishes and the loaves. And You will bring us manna out of heaven, and You'll do everything that's necessary to provide for Your people. So we just trust in You and we just want to be useful to serve. And we thank You for it, Lord, in Jesus' name. Amen.   Greed and the Tithe (by David Eells) Paul gave Timothy a revelation of the false prophets and those who follow them in the “last days”. (2Ti.3:1) But know this, that in the last days grievous times shall come. (2) For men shall be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, haughty, railers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, (3) without natural affection, implacable, slanderers, without self-control, fierce, no lovers of good, (4) traitors, headstrong, puffed up, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God; (5) holding a form of godliness, but having denied the power thereof: from these also turn away. These men, who are identified by their egotistical appetite for money, prestige, pleasure, and position, love their religious “form of godliness”. Among these are the false prophets who lead captive the like-minded apostate religious sects. (6) For of these are they that creep into houses (of worship), and take captive silly women (sects of God's people - Isa.4:1, 32:9) laden with sins, led away by divers lusts, (7) ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Those who love to justify their own sinful ways respect these “impostors” and their “form of godliness”. (13) But evil men and impostors shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. These false prophets are identified as “lovers of money”. These are the merchants of religious Babylon (Rev.18). They make “Father's house a house of merchandise” (Joh.2:16). Since God will not support their personal kingdom-building, they peddle books, tapes, trinkets, chicken dinners, tours, etc. This is the way of the world, and for those who have an impoverished God. Why would anyone who was sent by God and believed the promises of our provision through Christ do this? Our examples in the early leadership of the Church certainly did not. (Joh.2:13) ...Jesus went up to Jerusalem. (14) And he found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: (15) and he made a scourge of cords, and cast all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the changers' money, and overthrew their tables; (16) and to them that sold the doves he said, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house a house of merchandise. They peddle the promises of God's provision to those who give to their ministry. They make “merchandise of the word of God” (2Co.2:17 [in Greek]). They peddle the Word for salaries like hirelings. When a person is not sent by God, he does not have faith that “God shall supply every need” (Php.4:19). Where God sends, He supplies. Without God's supernatural supply, people have to resort to other tactics to support “their” ministry. The Lord has not changed His mind, “the righteous shall live by faith”, not salaries. He commanded His ministers, “Freely ye received, Freely give. Get you no gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses”. A man who lives by faith has to walk with God because “if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness toward God; and whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight” (1Jn.3:21,22). God's command that His leaders walk by faith ensures righteous leadership. The early Church leadership was not in the habit of taking up collections, but when they did, it was not for themselves but for the saints in persecution and had needs, as it was with Jerusalem. (1Co.16:1) Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I gave order to the churches of Galatia, so also do ye. (2) Upon the first day of the week let each one of you lay by him in store, as he may prosper, that no collections be made when I come. (3) And when I arrive, whomsoever ye shall approve, them will I send with letters to carry your bounty unto Jerusalem. Notice that Paul didn't handle the money, but approved brethren did. He preferred to not even be present when the collection for the saints was received, so that there would be no extortion involved, as it was with the Macedonian collection. He also didn't use the Macedonians' presence to shame and extort the Corinthians. (2Co.9:3) But I have sent the brethren, that our glorying on your behalf may not be made void in this respect; that, even as I said, ye may be prepared: (4) lest by any means, if there come with me any of Macedonia and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be put to shame in this confidence. (5) I thought it necessary therefore to entreat the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your aforepromised bounty, that the same might be ready as a matter of bounty, and not of extortion. Ministers received free will offerings and did not demand their rights through condemnation or legalism. (1Co.9:11) If we sowed unto you spiritual things, is it a great matter if we shall reap your carnal things? (12) If others partake of [this] right over you, do not we yet more? Nevertheless we did not use this right; but we bear all things, that we may cause no hindrance to the gospel of Christ. (13) Know ye not that they that minister about sacred things eat [of] the things of the temple, [and] they that wait upon the altar have their portion with the altar? (14) Even so did the Lord ordain that they that proclaim the gospel should live of the gospel. (15) But I have used none of these things: and I write not these things that it may be so done in my case; for [it were] good for me rather to die, than that any man should make my glorifying void. Paul said, “we did not use this right...that we may cause no hindrance to the gospel”. Even the world sees through the “gimmee gospel” and its con men, and they disrespect the true Gospel because of it. In obeying the command “freely ye received, freely give” we leave no room for suspicion. (2Pe.2:1) But there arose false prophets also among the people, as among you also there shall be false teachers, who shall privily bring in destructive heresies.... (3) And in covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you. One way they “make merchandise of you” is to put God's people under the Law to support them when the Scripture clearly states that our giving is “not of necessity” (2Co.9:7). “[Let] each man [do] according as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly, or of necessity (this is not according to the law of tithing): for God loveth a cheerful giver”. In the New Covenant, God wants an offering from the heart from those born of His Spirit. God made the Old Covenant with natural Israel and refused the Gentiles. (Psa.147:19) He showeth his word unto Jacob, His statutes and his ordinances unto Israel. (20) He hath not dealt so with any nation; And as for his ordinances, they have not known them. Now the New Covenant is made only with the Church and is refused to those under the Law. If a doctrine like tithing is not in the New Covenant, then it was never made with you! It will only separate you from Christ and grace. (Gal.5:4) Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace. Jesus rebuked the false prophets of His day saying, “Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye tithe mint and anise and cummin (even their seasoning), and have left undone the weightier matters of the law, justice, and mercy, and faith: but these you ought to have done (this is past tense in all ancient manuscripts, Numerics, and the Received Text), and not to have left the other undone” (Mat 23:23). Jesus clearly said here that tithing was both in the past and under the Law. Some say tithing was before the Law. Yes, circumcision and animal sacrifice were before the Law, too, but they were included in the law and we are not under Law to do them anymore either. Paul also said tithing was of the Law in Hebrews 7:5-11. There is no New Covenant command or request to tithe because we are no longer stewards of ten percent. Jesus taught that we have to renounce ownership of the other ninety percent, or we cannot be His disciples. (Luk.14:33) So therefore whosoever he be of you that renounceth not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. “All” here means all possessions, rights, and will. Those who claim possession of the other ninety percent are thieves. The Holy Spirit and the New Covenant commands were given to establish where, how much, and to whom we give. We are merely stewards of what He has put in our hands. The church's system of tithing is extortion and graft. It is not even righteous when compared to the Old Covenant tithe. Under the type and shadow of the tithe, ten percent was taken from eleven tribes and given to one tribe, the Levites ([ministers] Num.18:24). Then the Levites gave one ten percent (tithe) to the high priest (25-28). This left the Levites with ten percent from ten tribes. That is an average of what the other eleven tribes had to live on. Even when Israel's economy grew, they still lived on an average income. Today, with a larger percentage of the people doing the supporting, coupled with the fact that the pastors have usurped the authority of the rest of the five-fold ministry (Eph.4:11), ministers have become fat and filthy rich. This is a great stumbling block to both the world that sees through this and to the ministers. This also makes the people of God bad stewards. We have made God's house a “den of robbers” (Mat.21:13). (Eze.34:2) Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, even to the shepherds, Thus saith the Lord: Woe unto the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the sheep? (3) Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill the fatlings; but ye feed not the sheep. These men make it plain that we are not under the Law except when there is a profit involved and then we are told to “bring ye the whole tithe into the storehouse”, which is a command of the Old Covenant. Of course, they falsely claim to be the storehouse. In Old Covenant type and shadow, tithes were cast into the treasury, which was in the midst of the temple (1Ki.7:51; Mar.12:41). In the New Covenant, the temple is God's people, and Jesus said that we would be judged by whether we meet the needs of His people (Mat.25:31-46; 1Jn.3:16,17). This is how we store up treasure in heaven (Luk.12:33,34). We are taught to not store up our treasures on earth (Mat.6:19-21) but to meet the needs of the brethren so “that there may be equality” (2Co.8:14). Those who will not renounce ownership and become stewards of one hundred percent are not being disciples for “we were bought with a price”. We are now bondservants of Christ. The Holy Spirit now tells the disciples of Christ how much, to whom, where, and when to give. Amen. Now, the Bible specifically says you get a reward for giving, and the interest is much better. The interest is “good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over.” I've tried God on this and it works. He is faithful — consistently faithful. He is our surety. I learned that you just give and meet the needs of the brethren around you, and not worry about what you have left because God is never going to fail you. Never. From the time the Lord showed me about faith and how He forbade debt to His people, I haven't stored up or borrowed any money, and the Lord has never failed to make sure we had a good car, a good house, and all our needs met. The world says that you have to store up the money until you have enough, or even more commonly, borrow it from the bank, which is debt. But you don't need to go the way of the world, because God can bring it in a lump sum. He did it for us many times. Men serve insurance companies, H.M.O.s, banks and store up their treasures on earth for the security they think it gives them. But we are told in (Mat.6:19) Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal. Y2K revealed the paranoia and lack of trust in those who stored up their treasures on earth contrary to our Lord's command. Quite a few people that I showed these principles to went home to give their store away and found it full of bugs, just as Jesus said, “thieves break through and steal.” Jesus told of a man who found peace in the insurance of storing up his goods in greater barns (Luk.12:18). He said to himself, (Luk.12:19)… Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, be merry. (His misplaced trust brought judgment.) (20) But God said unto him, Thou foolish one, this night is thy soul required (Greek: “they require thy soul”) of thee; and the things which thou hast prepared, whose shall they be? (21) So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. Notice that it was his stored-up treasures that required his soul. Jesus promised the unfailing kingdom provisions to those who would store up their treasures in heaven by giving. (32) Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom (33) Sell that which ye have, and give alms; make for yourselves purses which wax not old (That means you're not storing it up or keeping it for a long time.), a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief draweth near, neither moth destroyeth. Give alms. Meet the needs of people around you. That's what He calls “a treasure in the heavens that faileth not.” Any treasure you store up on earth is going to fail. The world is going to plunder you, folks, and, if not the world, the devil is going to plunder you by the curse, but you're going to be plundered. Let me tell you how not to get plundered: Give! Meet the needs of the brethren around you. Give and then it will be coming the other way because it says in (Luk.6:38) Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, shall they give into your bosom. For with what measure ye mete it shall be measured to you again. That's how it works. You can make a living by giving. It works. (Luk.12:34) For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Some people tell me, “It's okay to have it. Just don't set your heart on it.” That's not what Jesus said. He said, “If you have it, your heart will be on it.” “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” If you're thinking, “Well, David, doesn't it say that Joseph stored up for the years of plenty so that he could give it back in the years of famine?” Yes, but let me point out to you who Joseph very clearly represents in type and shadow. Joseph was among the elders of Israel, but his own brethren sold him into bondage to the Gentiles for silver, just like Jesus. Joseph was lied about by the harlot, Potiphar's wife, just like Jesus. Joseph was persecuted by them and he was cast into prison, just like Jesus. Jesus went and preached to the souls in prison after He was crucified and what did Jesus do to the souls in prison? He decided who went to Abraham's Bosom and who went to Hades; in other words, He judged between the good souls and bad souls. The same thing happened to Joseph when he was cast into prison. He decided between the butler, who came out of prison and went up to serve Pharaoh, and the baker, who lost his head. When Joseph came out of prison, he was ruler over all of the earth, second only to Pharaoh, who was worshipped as a god. And when Jesus came out of prison, He was ruler over all of creation, second only to God. The types and shadows are all there to show that Joseph represented Jesus. If you store up on this earth, you are disobeying Jesus. It's only good for spending, and then you learn to walk by faith. (Jas.2:5) Hearken, my beloved brethren; did not God choose them that are poor as to the world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he promised to them that love him? God chose those who are poor of the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom. A person who is rich in faith will never go without. God always provides for them. So how do you store up under the hand of “Joseph”? How do you store up your treasures in Heaven under Jesus? You do that by giving alms, by making yourselves purses that wax not old, by meeting the needs of the brethren. You give and it will be given unto you. When you get out in that wilderness, don't you want to have something stored up in the Bank of Heaven? He said, “A treasure in the heavens that faileth not.” If you pack food out there into that wilderness, it will fail you. If you pack gold out into that wilderness, the world will plunder you. But if you store it up by giving, God said He will give unto you. Now I'm not asking for anything; I'm just telling you how to get prepared for what's coming because a lot of you have been hearing a bunch of baloney from apostate preachers. That is not how you get prepared for the wilderness. If you want to be prepared, you store up your treasures under the hand of Jesus in the Kingdom of Heaven, and then you can get it back when you need it. “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, shall they give into your bosom.” The way to make money in the world is not to store up, it's not to bring people under the Law, it's not to tell everybody your needs. Those are the methods of Egypt, but God wants you to stay in the wilderness. The Israelites cried out to go back to Egypt. They didn't like the trials of their faith and they wanted to go back to the ways of the world. The way of God is to give what you have and then God will multiply it back. It's happened to me many, many times that when I did not have enough money to take care of my needs, I would just go and give it. And you know what? God has never failed me, not once. I walked by faith and raised five children, and God always met our needs. Now, one time we were forced into a fast as a trial of our faith, and that's the only time we were ever put in that position, but we got in a position many times where God literally multiplied food, multiplied money and even multiplied gas in our tank. We got to see wondrous miracles from God and we're still seeing them! God sees to it that His Word is fulfilled. (Jer.1:12) Then said the Lord unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I watch over my word to perform it. He stands behind His Word, and He will never fail you. He cannot fail. One thing I've learned about God is that He can do everything but fail. He will supply your every need according to His riches in glory. Our brother, Curt Bryan, had always given sacrificially to our ministry. He had given testimony several times where he had written checks to pay his own bills without the money in the bank to cover them, believing God to have the money there in time. In his business, many of his customers were walk-ins, so income was hard to predict. Whenever he had stepped out by faith in this way, God would always come through. A sudden rush of customers would come in, or a generous tip would be given to him. (2Co.9:6)… He that soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. An opportunity to give can also be an opportunity to sit on, or eat the seed. We can only reap to the extent we sow. God multiplies it back, not to make us rich but to make us channels of His blessing to the needy. He multiplies our seed for sowing, not hoarding. (10) And he that supplieth seed to the sower and bread for food, shall supply and multiply your seed for sowing, and increase the fruits of your righteousness. God's promise to those who are faithful in giving is here. (8) And God is able to make all grace abound unto you; that ye having always all sufficiency in everything, may abound unto every good work. This is one of the most powerful, all-encompassing promises of provision in all of the Scriptures. Here are a few other testimonies from our site of how the Lord miraculously provided financially when people acted in faith.   Give and It Will Be Given Gideon Smith - 03/08/2012 My wife and I had a medical bill we couldn't afford to pay, so we told them we couldn't afford it. We then gave some money to a ministry that helps our brothers and sisters who are persecuted. The next day, my wife was contacted by the medical people and was told that the bill was cleared, and we owed them nothing. God blessed us five times the amount that we gave by taking care of that debt. When my wife told me this, I was amazed and said, “Wow! Since we had some of that money set aside to pay the bill from our income tax, we should give again.” So right at the table tonight, l prayed, “Lord, if You want us to give again, You will send someone to us in need. Well, I went to the grocery store and had to get some stuff, but I forgot to get everything, so I had to go back. When I went back, I first began to murmur, but instead I praised God. When I left the store, a man approached me with an empty gas container, asking if I could help him. I said, “Sorry, I don't have any cash.” But then I remembered the prayer I prayed. At this point, I said, “Give me the tank. I will fill it up for you. I filled the container up and went to the ATM to get him some cash. When I got back to him, I told him about my prayer and let him know that it was Christ Who just showed him and me this miracle. I am so in awe of God's direction and all His works. Praise the Lord, in Jesus name! You want proof of Christ, there you go. Hallelujah!   Trusting God for Finances Anna Higareda - 04/28/2010 Hello, Brother Eells. This is the first time I have written you. The Lord has put it on my heart to send you a great THANK YOU, as I am sitting here listening to your teaching, Wilderness Living Now. My husband, Jon, has written an email to you once before regarding a dream he had, and you actually spoke about it in one of your teachings. My husband and I have been listening and learning from your teachings and reading your books now for about two years, and we have recently been brought to a point of weakness and have been forced to live in the “wilderness”, as you speak of in your teachings. I wanted to send you a great THANK YOU; it is because of the good Lord and your teachings that we have learned to live by pure faith, and we have also been able to teach our kids to look to God and thank HIM every day. Your stories of faith and your life experiences have really inspired us and given us all the more faith to trust in the Lord for everything we need. As a matter of fact, besides your ministry, my husband received word to be faithful to one other ministry here in Campbell, CA. He was helping at that ministry last Thursday evening (he helps set up and take down all the technical stuff) and when they were taking down and putting things away, one of the elders told him, “I just had a vision, out of nowhere, that you were putting on your coat and it was made of money”. So my husband said, “Hmm, wow, that's pretty neat!” Then he continued on with putting things away, and the elder said to him, “Jon, well ...?!” So my husband looked dumbfounded, and the elder motioned for him to feel his pockets. So he put his hands back in his coat, and he felt paper; it was a $100 bill in his coat pocket! My husband was shocked and in disbelief because it wasn't too long before that, he had had his hands in his pockets and his pockets were empty. My brother-in-law was also there that night, and my husband asked him, “Did you do this?” He said, “No way. I couldn't have done that. I only brought $4 with me tonight”. Then my husband asked the elder the same question, and the response was, “I didn't do that; I guarantee!” This was truly amazing, Brother Eells, because no one knew we had been going through any type of financial struggle. We kept it all to ourselves and that morning I got my paycheck, and my entire check went towards the bills. What was left over after paying bills was $266 and I thought to myself, “That's funny. I thought we would have $366 left over yesterday after bills. There is no way we could make it with this amount until the next time I get paid”. I ended up with $100 less than I thought I would have after bills. Then I talked to God at my work desk and told him, “Lord, I know you have provided many times before and I have faith you will provide again for my family, so I am not going to worry; it's in your hands!” I thanked God and moved forward with my day, and then that night, the Lord put that extra $100 in my husband's pocket at the ministry. I saw my brother-in-law two days later, and he asked, “Did Jon tell you about what happened at the ministry with his jacket?!” I replied, “Yes, isn't that amazing!” Then he said, “I know! Jon asked if one of us had put it in his pocket, but I am telling you, Anna, there is no possible way that anyone put that money in his pocket that night”. I then told him and his wife about the rest of the testimony, and they said, “Thank you, Jesus!” :) God is amazing! So I want to say thank you so very much for all the hard work you do for HIS kingdom; it is truly inspiring! My family and I have been abundantly blessed to have come across your ministry two years ago! Thank you and I wish you and your family all the best! So, Saints, don't fear the wilderness. God designed this wilderness. He's ordained this wilderness. He's even ordained the Beast that's going to cause this wilderness. He's ordained Pharaoh's army to get behind God's people and force them out there into that wilderness. God is not going to fail you. Learn to walk by faith because the wilderness will be nothing for the people who walk by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7). But for those who are fearful and murmur and complain and walk by sight (Numbers 11:1; 1 Corinthians 10:10; Jude 16; Revelation 21:8; etc.), they are not going to make it through. Why is God doing this? He's doing this because He's raising up believers. (Heb.10:38) But my righteous one shall live by faith: And if he shrink back, my soul hath no pleasure in him.

The title of my sermon is a play on words. The beginning of this chapter we are told that what comes out of our mouths by way of teaching will incur a stricter judgment; therefore, anything we teach concerning God or His word must fall into the category of sound doctrine. On the other hand, the noise we make with our speech is evidence of what is really in our heart. Words matter. I will take it one step furtherwords matter to God. Proverbs 18:21 puts it this way: Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit. Words matter. The Bible and Creation begins with words! The first words in our Bible are about the first words responsible for everything beautiful and living: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was a formless and desolate emptiness, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, Let there be light; and there was light (Gen. 1:1-3). I love these verses in Genesis! In the beginning there was nothing but God... until He had something to say about it! His words brought life. Then what follows in Genesis 1 is a series of phrases like: God said... God called... What made all that exists a reality were WORDS! Not just any words from any old mouth, the Words that came from God made everything and all of it was good. On the sixth day, God spoke more words: Let Us make mankind in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the livestock and over all the earth, and over every crawling thing that crawls on the earth. So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Gen. 1:26-27). Then, God used Words to bless the first couple by telling them: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth. Listen to me... WORDS MATTER. Three chapters later, after God used His words to speak beauty and life into existence out of nothing, we are introduced to a serpent. In an effort to tempt Eve to sin against God, he got her to doubt the words of God spoken to Adam: But the Lord God warned him, You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the gardenexcept the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die (Gen 2:16-17; NLT). Listen carefully to what the serpent said to Eve and her husband: Did God really say...? and then proceeded to get Eve to doubt the word of God and His goodness towards her (see Gen. 3:1-5). Not only does God value His words, but He is concerned about the words of people too. Jesus even said, I tell you that for every careless word that people speak, they will give an account of it on the day of judgement. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned (Matt. 12:36-37). Our Words Matter Concerning What We Say About God Chapter 3 begins with these sobering words: Do not become teachers in large numbers, my brothers, since you know that we who are teachers will incur a stricter judgment. Here is how the ESV translates this verse: Not many of you should become teachers..., which is the way most of the major English translations translate this verse. What is the point? The point is that what we say about God is serious and God takes what we say about Him seriously. James is warning us not to take on the mantle of teacher in the Church recklessly, for those who speak on Gods behalf will be held to a stricter judgment. Many rightfully apply this verse to the serious call of pastors who are entrusted with preaching the word of God such as myself. The passage Dr. Ed Hardesty selected to deliver at my ordination charge was from 2 Timothy 4:1-2, I solemnly exhort you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and exhort, with great patience and instruction. In 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul instructed a young pastor and son in the faith with these words: Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. The Bible reserves some of the harshest words for those who use the word of God to lead others from the truth of His word. In the Old Testament, we are told that if anyone claiming to be a prophet speaks claiming to speak on Gods behalf prophetically that God did not command him to speak, was to be put to death (See Deut. 18:20-22). Similar language is used in 2 Peter regarding false prophets who claim to speak for God when they do not: But false prophets also appeared among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their indecent behavior, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. (2 Pet. 2:1-3) There is a stricter judgment that is coming upon those who teach and claim to speak on behalf of God. It doesnt matter what people think or what they want, the mandate is the same: Preach the word. Not just sometimes, not just when it is convenient, not even when you feel ready. Those who have been called to equip the church are to, preach the word and to, be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and exhort, with great patience and instruction. Why? Because the authority is not with the one preaching, but the word he has been called to preach! This is why, in my opinion, whatever church you find yourself in, ought to be a church where the regular diet of preaching is expository instead of topical preaching. Permit me to give you three reasons why: Topical preaching is the kind of preaching where the one preaching chooses a subject and builds a sermon around that subject with verses he believes to support that subject. Expository preaching is the kind of preaching where the one preaching choses a scripture passage and builds a sermon around that particular passage, so that the point of the scripture passage becomes the point of the sermon. The difference between topical and expository preaching is that with topical preaching, the one preaching determines the point of the sermon; with expository preaching, the scripture passage determines the point of the sermon. The one who regularly preaches topical sermons will never preach more than what he already knows. The one who regularly preaches expository sermons will have to study a particular passage to understand it in order to preach/teach it, forcing the one preaching to grow beyond what he already knows. Mark Dever, in his book, Nine Marks of a Healthy Church, wrote the following helpful observation regarding the strengths of expository preaching: In being committed to preach a passage of Scripture in context, expositionallythat is, taking as the point of the message the point of the passagewe should hear from God things that we didnt intend to hear when we set out to study the passage.... And from your repentance and conversion to the latest thing the Holy Spirit has been teaching you, isnt that what it means to be a Christian? Dont you again and again find God challenging you and convicting you of some things you would never have thought about a year ago, as he brings to unearth the truth of your heart and the truth of his Word? What Dever says next, is so insightful: To charge someone with the spiritual oversight of a church who doesnt in practice show a commitment to hear and to teach Gods word is to hamper the growth of the church, in essence allowing it to grow only to the level of the pastor. The church will slowly be conformed to the pastors mind rather than to Gods mind. And what we want, what as Christians we crave, are Gods words. We want to hear and know in our souls what he has said.[1] James 3:1 is to warn those who wish to or do teach, to do so faithfully to the word of God because this is the best way to serve His people and to protect the church from the wolves who would seek to harm Gods people. However, that warning is not only for pastors and teachers and we know this because of the following verses. Our Words Matter Concerning What We Say to Others James 3:1 is not just for pastors, but for anyone who claims to speak on behalf of God. Think about what we know; the heart of Jesus great commission includes the responsibility every Christian has for teaching: Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations... teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matt. 28:19-20). The apostle Peter wrote in epistle, ...always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, but with gentleness and respect (1 Pet. 3:15). And what is it that we are to be ready to testify with words? In the words of the apostle Paul: We proclaim Him, admonishing every person and teaching every person with all wisdom... (Col 1:28). Christ has gifted His church with pastors, teachers, and evangelists to help His people to speak what they have been called to say with clarity and in accordance with what God has actually said (see Eph. 4:11-13). And when we get it wrong, Christ also called men who are able to teach the word of God, to serve as elders whose responsibility includes: holding firmly the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict it (Titus 1:9). What we say about God matters, and for those like myself, who have been entrusted with teaching the word of God, we will be held to account for the words we have spoken in His name, so we dare not be reckless with our words. But it is not just what we say about God that matters to Him, it is also what we say to others in general that matters to God. What we say can do so much good for our neighbors, but our words can bring so much harm as well. Verses 2-12 is for all who have been redeemed by Jesus and therefore born again. James continues in verse 2, For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to rein in the whole body as well. It is true that if you are a Christian that you have been born again, however, that does not mean we still do not have a nature that gravitates towards sin. Perfection is coming for the Christian, but not until after death or a resurrection when our sin nature is finally and categorically put to death. It is true that when you placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ as savior and Lord over your life, you were born again.When you were born again, you received what was promised in Ezekiel 36:26, in that God, gave you a new heart and put a new spirit within you... and replaced your heart of stone with a spiritual heart of fleshyou received a new nature. However, we still must contend with that part of us that is tethered to our old nature of sin. We still stumble in many ways and because we do, we still say stupid stuff! We can still use our tongues to speak great harm. What Jesus said about the heart is still true of the Christian: The good person out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart (Luke 6:45). James gives us three illustrations that convey just how powerful the tongue is and why we must exercise great caution over what comes out of our mouths: The tongue is like the bit in a horses mouth. A bit weights about 2 pounds while the average weight of a horse is about 1000 pounds. A bit is used to communicate with the horse, but if used by an unskilled and undisciplined rider, a bit can become the source of stress and anxiety for the horse. An unskilled rider can use the horses bit to injure the horse. An unskilled rider can use the horses bit to cause the horse to become confused. An unskilled rider can use that little 2-pound bit to harm his 1,000-pound horse. The tongue is like the rudder on a large ship. A rudder controls the direction of a ship, it is used to avoid harmful obstacles, it contributes to fuel efficiency by minimizing drag and optimizing water flow, a rudder helps provide stability, and it is critical for the captain of the ship to maintain the right course. However, without a skilled captain maintaining control of the rudder, it can be catastrophic to the rest of the ship. The tongue is like a fire. Instead of using oxygen for life, fire consumes oxygen as fuel. In enclosed spaces, a fire depletes the available oxygen so that it can continue to kill and destroy. The effects of a fire are also harmful, for it irritates the respiratory system, it can exacerbate heart conditions, and it can even cause certain cancers over time. Think about the damage a persons tongue can cause. James points out that we are able to tame wild animals, but no one among mankind can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil, full of deadly poison (vv. 7-8). The reason why we cannot tame the tongue is because our problems are deeper than what comes out of our mouths. The irony is that there is good that can come out of our mouths, but we will spend a lifetime needing to keep what comes out of our mouths in check.We can train and tame veracious and giant creatures, but not our tongues! James continues: With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing (vv. 9-10a). How can we sing songs of worship about our great and awesome God and at the same time use destructive words against another person who is made in the image of the God we claim to love? In reaction to this, James concludes: My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way (v. 10b). So what do we do? How do we address the problem within for those of us who have been born again? How can we make sure our words are life-giving instead of destructive? How can we have the fruit of our words flow out of our new heart instead of our old nature? Well the good news is that as a Christian, you have been sealed and are empowered by the Holy Spirit to live and speak in a way that is pleasing to the God who redeemed you (Eph. 1:13-14; Acts 1:8). Permit me to leave you with five things to remember and practice that will help : Remember that you are now a child of God. As a child of God, you have been sealed by His Holy Spirit and empowered to life, His way over your ways; you have been given power through the Holy Spirit to live the life God has called you into (Eph. 1:3-14; Acts 1:8). Saturate your heart with Gods word. You cannot know how to live for God if you do not know what God has said about living for Him. We are told, Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh (Gal 5:16). Whatever you are putting into your mind, you are filling your heart with, and whatever you are filling your heart with, will come out through your speech. So, read your Bible. Listen to songs about the things that please God. Consume more of what lines up with the things of God than what dishonors Him. Be quick to listen and slow to speak. You will be less reckless with your words, if you carefully consider your words before you say them (Jas. 1:19) Ask God to guide your speech by asking Him to give you wisdom in what you say (Jas. 1:5-8). When you honestly seek God for wisdom to guide your speech, besides the fact that God honors such prayers, your prayer alone will give you the kind of awareness that assists in being less reckless with your words. Remember the image of God. Remember that you bear the image of the living God not to make much of yourself, but much of God. Be mindful that regardless of a persons performance, that person was carefully created by God to bear the image of God too, so do not curse those who were created in the image of God. [1] Mark Dever, Nine Marks of a Healthy Church (Weaton, IL: Crossway; 2021), 47.

You're all going to laugh at me, but that's okay, cuz I'm I'm the one laughing hardest! I had planned an easy-peasy episode for yesterday, one which focused on two great 20th century bass-baritones who were both valued recitalists as well as composers! I'm talking about the faboo basses, Finnish Kim Borg, and Dutch Robert Holl, who also happened to be fantastic recitalists. I had the recordings on my collection; I just had to put them into an episode. But of course I began meditating on the question of the classical music version of the Singer-Songwriter and suddenly the episode had gone down a very different (and much more complicated) path. I came up with some fascinating examples beyond Borg and Holl (both of whom are still heard performing their songs on the episode!), all the way back to the Renaissance era and through to an incredibly impressive array of modern-day avant garde composer/performers. For starters: Barbara Strozzi and Pauline Viardot from days long past, but also figures like the great French baritone Jean-Baptiste Faure (anyone remember “The Palms”?), and those three intrepid tenors Tito Schipa, Richard Tauber, and Jean-Paul Jeannotte, and along the way not forgetting gay icons Jules Bledsoe and Harry Partch. Moving into the present-day, we encounter astonishing women composer/performers including pathbreakers Cathy Berberian, Joan La Barbara, Diamánda Galás, Laurie Anderson, and Meredith Monk, but also those intrepid women who have both taken inspiration from their models while carving out their own paths: Gilda Lyons, Martha Sullivan, Lisa Bielawa, and Caroline Shaw, among others. I'm thrilled that many of the singers, composers, or composer/performers are also friends of mine. Among those not mentioned above, stellar singers Sarah Pillow (singing Strozzi), and Anna Tonna (singing Viardot). Don't tell anyone, but you might even hear me singing something! Exciting news about this episode: There are more women composers heard here than male! Hope you didn't mind waiting for this one a little longer than usual! Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel's lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and author yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody's core is the celebration of great singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. By clicking on the following link (https://linktr.ee/CountermelodyPodcast) you can find the dedicated Countermelody website which contains additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. The link will also take you to Countermelody's Patreon page, where you can pledge your monthly or yearly support at whatever level you can afford.  

What Is Your Hope? | എന്താണ് നിങ്ങളുടെ പ്രത്യാശ? | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1686 | 16 Aug 2025

"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. (Gal. 2:20)Read more here.Support the show

La lucha libre es más que máscara contra cabellera. Es –a más de tres caídas y sin límite de tiempo– historia y tradición, negocio y atractivo turístico, deporte y rito, arte e inventiva, técnica y rudeza, habilidad y resistencia, personajes que son leyendas, símbolos del bien y mal, dolor y alegría. Y hablando de lucha libre, la vida cotidiana de los tapatíos no sería lo mismo sin la Arena Coliseo de Occidente. Los Martes de Glamour se han posicionado en un punto de reunión de familiares y amigos para disfrutar de un ambiente con La Mejor Lucha Libre, y por supuesto la mejor música como la de Lucha Kumbia, un combo de Luchadores cumbieros, que desde la Arena Coliseo nos traen Cumbia libre y puro sabor aquí, en vivo en Radio Universidad… en El Expresso de las 10. Gracias por su visita a ElExpressoDeLas10 a Lucha Kumbia ellos son Chencho Ali Dad en la Voz, Pancracio Sabor en el Trombón, Pancho T. en la Trompeta, Panfilo Flow en el Bombo, Macario Tambo en la Batería, Galán Durán toca el Acordeón y Lucho Kadencia en la Tuba; Gracias también a Juan Carlos Ávalos Parte del equipo de prensa de la Arena Coliseo

Your King Comes To Deliver You | നിങ്ങളുടെ രാജാവ് നിങ്ങളെ വിടുവിക്കാൻ വരുന്നു | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1685 | 15 Aug 2025

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God Will Rebuild Your Life | ദൈവം നിങ്ങളുടെ ജീവിതം വീണ്ടും പണിതുയർത്തും | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1684 | 14 Aug 2025

Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Today's shout-out goes to Jim Kuhn from Sun City West, AZ. Thank you for your generosity and partnership in Project 23. This one's for you. Our text today is Mark 15:21–32: And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. And they brought him to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull). And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. And it was the third hour when they crucified him. And the inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.” And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself, and come down from the cross!” So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him. — Mark 15:21–32 Jesus is weak beneath the weight of the cross. He stumbles. The soldiers seize a bystander, Simon of Cyrene, and thrust the heavy wood onto his back. Simon carries a burden not his own—step by step—toward Golgotha. This is more than a historical detail. It's a vivid picture: God himself, bowed under sin's weight, and a stranger pressed into service to share that load. Then the mockery continues: The crowd taunts, “Save yourself!” The religious leaders scoff, “He can't even save himself.” The criminals beside him jeer in scorn. And yet, Simon, an unwilling participant, bears the cross so that Jesus can advance toward Calvary, where every sin would be nailed away. Simon's forced compassion begs a question for us: Whose burden should we willingly bear? The lonely neighbor? The struggling friend? The newcomer in church? The oppressed, the overlooked, the rejected? We're not called to carry Christ's cross—that's done. We're called to carry one another's burdens as he carried ours (Gal. 6:2). When you see someone bowed under life's weight, don't pass by. Step in. Accept the unexpected call. Shoulder their load—if only for a moment. Because in that act, you reflect the One who bore the world's sin. So, who will it be today? #CarryBurdens, #Mark15, #CompassionInAction ASK THIS: Why do you think Simon was compelled rather than volunteered? What keeps us from stepping in to share another's burden? Who in your life needs you to “carry their cross” today? How does bearing burdens reflect Christ's love? DO THIS: Reach out today to someone under pressure—send a text, make a call, offer a meal, or simply say, “I see your burden. How can I help carry it?” PRAY THIS: Jesus, you carried the cross for me. Show me who around me needs someone to bear their burden. Give me willing hands and a compassionate heart. Amen. PLAY THIS: "Burdens."

Els

Jesus Delivers Us (10) (audio) David Eells -8/13/25 Saints, I'm going to continue our teaching how Jesus delivers us and our authority over the demons. I'm going to go over the last dream by SG I shared with you and give more of the interpretation. Let me make a point first. I was warned in a dream about a plot of the factious enemy. When the Lord told us that we would be able to cast it down, He made sure I found the dream that we shared last time, called “Getting Ready for the Storm.” It was given to me months prior on a piece of paper. I had shoved it in my Bible, and I became so busy that I forgot about it until the right time, when the Lord reminded me of it. He led me directly to it. You see, I had taken my Bible out of its holder, and I was fixing the loose binder. I had glued it and I was waiting for it to dry. I had many papers stuffed inside my Bible, not helping the binding, and I wanted to study because I had some things on my mind. I wanted to see what the Lord would say about them, but instead the Lord told me, “No, go through those papers and get them out of your Bible. Get the ones you don't need out.” As I was doing that, I ran across this revelation. It would have been lost forever if the Lord hadn't stopped me at just the right time to look at it. As soon as I started reading, I realized what I had. Let's examine it line by line to understand what God is revealing to us.   Getting Ready for the Storm by SG (David's notes in red) A few of us were outside a big house that was more than one-story high. (This represents God's house.) We were trying to get a platform or something apart before the storm was to come. (Before I found this dream, the Lord had given me a dream or vision in the middle of the night concerning my children, symbolizing UBM, who were with me. In this warning from the Lord, the wind started picking up. I looked around to see where the wind was coming from and noticed a great big tornado coming towards us. I told all the children to get in my car. This represents a place of safety, or the Man-child's way of rest and peace. With cars, you just start them up, push on the pedal, and they go. You don't have to pedal them. It's not man's works. So, all of them got in the car, except for one person. That person took off running towards the tornado. I realized that this represented the faction movement. This person was behaving like Judas did when he ran to the faction of the Sanhedrin to turn Jesus over to them. This revelation given to S.G. months before mine was all about getting ready for the storm. Also, the Lord showed S.G. that this rebellion was happening outside of the house. As I read her dream, Adonijah's faction rebellion to usurp David's throne came to me (1 Kings Chapters 1-2). This is where Adonijah was seeking a platform that was outside the house of God, and according to her dream, it needed to be taken down. This step comes before the storm of my dream arrives; otherwise, there will be trouble.) We needed to unscrew some bolts or something like that. (This represents taking down their strength through spiritual warfare. Bolts are the strength of holding things together.) We started to see wolves and dogs (symbolizing demons) trying to come against us. It was dark outside. There was thunder, lightning and blowing wind. All these represent the spiritual storm. We went inside the house. (Inside the house is a place of provision and safety, and it represents abiding in Jesus Christ, abiding in the temple of God, abiding in the house of the Lord. This usurpation was taking place outside the house of the Lord. The Church is going to go through a crucifixion at the hands of factious people. Factious people all believe that they are in the house of the Lord, but they're not, because they are in hatred, criticism, and rebellion.) We went inside the house. Many others from local UBM were in different rooms praying. Some were kneeling down, while some were standing and commanding the wolves and the dogs to go! It was all happening so fast. It was as if we were in the midst of a storm on a ship out to sea. Things were coming from all directions. We were just commanding those things to cease and go. (In this, we see that God is preparing us for tribulation. The Church will learn to do spiritual warfare. Isn't it wonderful that you can go through so much and yet be at peace? This is because you know from experience that you have authority over all the power of the enemy, and so the enemy has to obey your command. When Jesus sent out His disciples, they came back rejoicing because they had received the revelation that the demons were subject to them (Luke 10:17-20). Jesus said that He beheld Satan fallen from heaven (Luke 10:18). We see “Satan fallen from heaven” is a revelation that will be given to the “woman,” the Church, in the wilderness (Revelation 12:9), although this revelation is being given to the Bride and the Man-child now.) Things were coming from all directions. We were just commanding those things to cease and go. (This represents spiritual warfare training for the coming Passover and tribulation. We have a Passover coming, but we must not be in unforgiveness, criticism, anger, or judgment when that Passover comes. There's no sacrifice for willful disobedience (Hebrews 10:26) and you are going to reap what you sow if that happens (Galatians 6:7). During the Passover in Egypt, the Lord was in full control of the Destroyer. (Exo.12:23) For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side-posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. The Passover was performed for those who had eaten all of the lamb. (Exo.12:10) And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; but that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire. God's people were delivered, even while Egypt was not. The world went under the curse, and the worldly do go under the curse, but God's people who had the blood on their doorposts were delivered.) At one point, it settled down a little. But then I was going outside and touching a gate that was open. It seemed like it shocked me. Then I couldn't speak, as if the enemy were trying to silence me. (Any open “door” will let the enemy in to hinder and sabotage God's work. If the saints are silenced, the enemy will win. We have to take authority over the enemy by the spoken word.) I was able to say, “No! In the Name of Jesus!” I said this as loudly as I could, and started to fight in the spirit. It started to get windy and rough again. (This is training and conditioning. We have to be conditioned like the military does with its people. We have to be conditioned to face the enemy fearlessly, having confidence that (Gal.2:20) … it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me… and being practiced in using our weapons (2 Corinthians 10:4; Ephesians 6:10-17).) I saw David and Michael, and other brothers and sisters praying and taking care of the little ones. (These “little ones” are those who are not yet practiced in spiritual warfare. They are not confident in their weapons. Even David didn't want to put on Saul's armor (1 Samuel 17:39). He said that he hadn't proven or tested it. He wasn't used to Saul's armor, but he was used to his sling, and it was all he needed to take out Goliath (1 Samuel 17:49).) It was so chaotic and noisy! But everyone was doing their part in the warfare. A few of us would go up and down stairs, helping each other to fight. (This represents helping people at different levels of maturity.) We were strong and didn't give up. No one was frightened. (That's how you get when you enter into the rest. You just know that God has heard your prayers, that you have authority over the enemy, and so on.) But we were more determined when we saw the enemy come against us. As far as I could tell, there were no casualties. (That's important because when there is faction, somebody is taken out. In my dream, it was the guy who was running towards the tornado. So we sought the Lord because we didn't want anybody to be taken out, and we also asked the Lord to have mercy and to spare anybody whom the devil planned to use in this regard. Father heard our prayers. He showed us that we had authority to cast down this faction attack, yet I didn't know this confirmation of not losing anyone to faction, “no casualties,” had been hidden in my Bible all along. Glory be to God!) And before I woke up, I heard myself say two or three times, “I have to wake up and write this down.” (And then I woke up. God has a sense of humor, doesn't He?) S.G.'s Notes: I sensed we had the victory, even though I had left the whole scene (without seeing the end) when I woke up. I felt good about the dream, sensing that we were all working together. Even though the enemy was trying to bring chaos, the fight was done with order. We all knew what we were to do, and we did it. (This expertise in warfare has come through years of practice in dealing with the factious. The Lord's Man-child and Bride are being put through this training in order to go forth and bring wisdom to God's people, just as when Jesus and His Bride were first anointed. You, who are hearing and reading this now, are also gaining this knowledge and wisdom.) I asked the Lord for a Word to correspond to this dream. My finger went down on “our captain.” (2Ch.13:12KJV) And, behold, God himself is with us for our captain, and his priests with sounding trumpets to cry alarm against you. O children of Israel, fight ye not against the Lord God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper. This is the story of Jeroboam's faction against Israel. What were the chances of randomly landing on a faction verse? Jeroboam led Israel away in a faction from the house of David (2Ch.11:15) and he appointed him priests for the high places, and for the hegoats, and for the calves which he had made. He set up the false “Jesus” of the golden calves and, following the failed ambush he set up against Judah, he ultimately lost his kingdom and life to Abijah, the son of David. These misled people were all trusting in their golden calves, making priests who were not ordained of God, and following a leader who was a wicked, factious person, yet here they came to attack a people who still serve and sacrifice to the real, true God. The factious group attack a people who have the temple of God in their midst like Jerusalem and who are serving God. What is the chance of them winning? Zero! (2Ch.13:13) But Jeroboam caused an ambushment to come about behind them: so they were before Judah, and the ambushment was behind them. (The factious army was before Judah, and the ambushment was behind them.) (14) And when Judah looked back, behold, the battle was before and behind them; and they cried unto the Lord, and the priests sounded with the trumpets. (15) Then the men of Judah gave a shout: and as the men of Judah shouted, it came to pass, that God smote Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah (He was a son of David.) and Judah (was the house of David) (16) And the children of Israel (the faction) fled before Judah; and God delivered them into their hand. (17) And Abijah and his people slew them with a great slaughter: so there fell down slain of Israel five hundred thousand chosen men. (In our literal war with the factious they are spiritually dead and many are physically dead.)(18) Thus the children of Israel were brought under at that time, and the children of Judah prevailed, because they relied upon the Lord, the God of their fathers. (19) And Abijah pursued after Jeroboam (the factious leadership), and took cities from him, Beth-el (“house of God.”) with the towns thereof, and Jeshanah with the towns thereof, and Ephron with the towns thereof. (20) Neither did Jeroboam recover strength again in the days of Abijah (The faction was over.): and the Lord smote him, and he died. S.G.'s Notes: Then, the Lord gave me the word “tumult” from H1993 “Strong's Concordance” which means “to make a loud sound, to be in great commotion, roar, be in an uproar, to rage, war, clamor.” I looked up a few verses with the word “tumult” in them. One of the Scriptures, Psalm 83:2, I received twice in twenty-four hours: (Psa.83:2) For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: And they that hate thee have lifted up the head. (What were the chances of her randomly landing on a paragraph the next morning containing the word “tumult”? Praise God for His divine direction! Amazingly, Psalm 83 details the total victory God's people experienced when all their enemies came together to ambush Judah. This event is like the Sennacherib scenario (2 Kings 19) or the northern army that was conquered by the visitation of the Lord when He brought revival and the latter rain (Joel 2). How wonderfully God puts things together!) Psalm 83 is about a faction against God's people. It is called “A Song, a Psalm of Asaph.” Let's read it in its entirety. (Psa.83:1) O God, keep not thou silence: Hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God. (2) For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult; And they that hate thee have lifted up the head. (3) They take crafty counsel against thy people, And consult together against thy hidden ones. (4) They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; That the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. (5) For they have consulted together with one consent; Against thee do they make a covenant (All the enemy came against them to take them out. Has that ever happened to natural Israel? Yes, and natural Israel is a parable for the Church.): (6) The tents of Edom (They were the sons of Abraham but they made themselves enemies to the chosen people of Israel. The Edomites persecuted their own brothers.) and the Ishmaelites (They did the same thing.); Moab, and the Hagarenes; (7) Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre: (8) Assyria also is joined with them; They have helped the children of Lot. (All these people fought against Israel. They made themselves the enemy of Israel, and all of them paid for it because they were all conquered.) Selah. (9) Do thou unto them as unto Midian, as to Sisera, as to Jabin, at the river Kishon (Give these enemies total defeat, including the loss of their head.); (10) Who perished at Endor, Who became as dung for the earth. (11) Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb; Yea, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna; (12) Who said, Let us take to ourselves in possession The habitations of God. (There was no chance of this happening; their failed plan to usurp the House of God was completely cast down.) (13) O my God, make them like the whirling dust; As stubble before the wind. (14) As the fire that burneth the forest, And as the flame that setteth the mountains on fire, (15) So pursue them with thy tempest, And terrify them with thy storm. (16) Fill their faces with confusion, That they may seek thy name, O Lord. (17) Let them be put to shame and dismayed for ever… This is what the Lord is doing with the factious. They are meeting with failure because of their evil schemes, and they don't even know that they've been taken by the devil. They don't know they are a captive of his will. If they get the revelation of what they have done, as people do who are delivered from demons, they are going to be shamed. This is good because it will make them very strong, as it did the Apostle Paul. He was shamed and wanted to make up for his attacks against his chosen brethren in every way possible (Acts 8:3,9:21; Galatians 1:13,23). He was the strongest of all the apostles. (Psa.83:17) Let them be put to shame and dismayed for ever; Yea, let them be confounded and perish; (18) That they may know that thou alone, whose name is the Lord, Art the Most High over all the earth. God is so good! He has a plan, and He can certainly tell you what it is. He is an awesome Savior in all things. Praise be to God! If we're going to make war against demonic entities, we cannot be deceived as to the enemy's identity and how to conquer him. We cannot be “ignorant of his devices”, although there are some laughable things in this next dream I'm going to share with you. It's all about the devil's devices, and it fits together very well. God is so amazing when His gifts, such as dreams, come together through His people to edify them, and God has many of these gifts in reserve that He can release at any time. Well, for quite a while we've been calling these things that take over God's people in the faction “stupid” demons. Sometimes we just look at each other when we hear things the factious say. We shake our heads, thinking, “How is it possible that anybody could believe such a thing?” Factious demons make people so stupid that they don't even realize what they're doing. Factious people don't recognize how idiotic their excuses are for disobeying God's Word, and it's a shameful thing, but they will understand more and more as they come out from under their demon-induced stupor. We praise God for their elects coming release! We've been praying for it. These are our friends whom we love. We know that God will give us all the victory through our warfare. Now let's look at the dream and the interpretation so that we can better understand the warfare that's needed.)   The Invasion of the “Stupid” Demons – Part 1 by S.S. (David's notes in red) I am in a meadow praying for all of UBM. In this dream, I am only praying for what the Lord gives or leads me to pray for them. And I am weeping for them while praying. Then I am standing in a hall with four doorways. As I look at the first doorway, a man comes out and says in carnival talk, “Let me tell you something lady! If you really want to know how to pray and get all the distractions out of your life, this is how you do it.” (“Carnival talk” is “make-believe.” It's talk to satisfy the lusts of the speaker, who wants to get something over on you. They are known for being slick salesmen and luring in the gullible public to their sideshows. Deceiving spirits keep people from knowing the real power of prayer by substituting their silly notions, and by doing that, they also keep God's people from knowing or discovering the demon's power.) In the doorway was a chin-up bar. He begins to hang upside down from it, and he starts swinging by his legs. He says, “You see, this is how you get rid of the demons! They can't hang around because you are upside down.” I reply, “What? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard.” (That's exactly what we're talking about with these “stupid” demons. This is deception. The demons try to foist their power, what they're able to do, upon the people of God. Some people are made useless because they listen to the devil, instead of God, about spiritual warfare.) And then, I look closely at him. He is a cartoon walrus. (This may sound silly on the surface, but a walrus represents one who is full of flesh. Walruses get up to four to five thousand pounds; they're just monstrous. Also, it's interesting that their tusks are enlarged canines, which they use to pull their body, their flesh out of the water. In other words, they use their mouth and their teeth to separate themselves from God's Word, the “water,” for the sake of their flesh. That's like this deceptive demon represented by the carnival barker. A carnival is a place where they take advantage of you and make money off of you.) Then I look at the second doorway. There I see one large rat, three medium rats, and one baby rat. (Rats are unclean beasts and bearers of disease. People generally like to get rid of them.) And the biggest one is saying, “Don't be a rat! Don't be a rat!” To “rat” is to tell on somebody, to betray them by revealing incriminating information. The three medium ones are saying, “Don't tell! Don't tell!” And the baby rat is sniffling and trying to hold up his pants at the waist, saying with a very small voice, “Don't tell the truth! Don't tell the truth!” (Jesus promised in (Joh.8:32) and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. You will not be in bondage with the truth. Truth and prayer reveal the works and the power of the enemy; they give you wisdom so that you can destroy the enemy even before he makes his attack. It will be like the Sennacherib scenario, where the enemy is destroyed before they are able to shoot a single arrow into Jerusalem (Isaiah 37:33-36). The enemy is prevented from shooting into the Bride because God is defending her.) In the third doorway, I could see a classroom holding small grade-school desks, the type with a place for books under the seat. And the teacher is showing them how to pray a mantra. There was one little girl who couldn't do it. She could not remember the prayer. (Much of immature Christianity prays like this, trying to call up the power of God without heart and without faith. The only thing that answers mantras is demons. The Lord Jesus told us, (Mat.6:7) And in praying use not vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. This reminds me of when the nuns taught us to pray the Rosary for whatever we needed from God. We were told that if we did enough of these prayers, the “Hail Mary's” and “Our Father's,” we might get an answer, but it was all just praying a repetitive prayer, a mantra. The Lord doesn't want prayers like that; He wants prayers from your heart. He wants to have personal communication with you. (Jas.5:16) … The supplication of a righteous man availeth much in its working. We know and understand what He wants, but some people do not, and their rote prayers are not the kind that God hears. Going on with the dream.) With his fingers, the teacher is thumping the girl's head saying, “You're not trying hard enough! You are not trying hard enough.” (Salvation in all of its forms is not by works of man or works of law, but through repentance and faith in God. (Eph.2:8) For by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, [it is] the gift of God; (9) not of works, that no man should glory. People who tell you that you are not trying hard enough and who don't direct you into faith towards God are just going to frustrate you. When this happens, you will never arrive at your “destination.” So, of course, demons try to get people caught up in this kind of legalism because the demons know their human victims are not going to get any answers that way. They know the people will end up in frustration, losing their faith, and falling away. The demons have been doing this for thousands of years.) Continuing, I had been looking at the girl from the side, but she suddenly turns and looks my way with a sideways, downcast glance as if to say, “Did I show you my true colors?” (Yes, those oppressed under the law are not justified; therefore, their prayers are hindered.) And then she turns into a cartoon wolf. All the rest of the class are wolves, also. (Anybody who is under the law like that will never come to maturity. The law cannot perfect (Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16; Hebrews 7:19; etc.) Those who seek God only for “fire insurance” haven't been changed in heart, and they will be dangerous to the body when their true colors are ultimately seen. They are just tares amongst the wheat (Matthew 13:24-30) and therefore, the true Church is being sanctified from them. There is an ongoing separation of the tares from the wheat. The Lord Jesus said, (Mat.13:30) Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather up first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn. We all may have gone through a time of legalism, but then we learned what was wrong with it, and we didn't stay there. If somebody stays there until the end, they are not justified before God. They are not accounted righteous before God, and they will lose out. It makes no difference if they call themselves a “Christian.” It's dangerous to stay in legalism after we've been redeemed from it. (Gal.4:4) But when the fulness of time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, (5) that he might redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. Demons try to get people caught up in situations where they won't get answers from God. Demons fear our prayers of faith and justification, so they use every trick they have to get us off track one way or another. They're not stupid; they just make people act stupid. All of this is to hinder us from doing spiritual warfare.) Continuing: And I say, “Oh Lord! This dream is dumb! I don't even like cartoons!” Cartoons are not real. (In this case, they're deceptions, figments of imagination that are not from God.) Next, I'm looking at the fourth doorway where a group of people are getting ready to pray. Someone announces loudly, “We're getting ready to pray now. We're getting ready to pray now.” (We are not supposed to cease from praying. The Lord says we are to (1Th.5:17) Pray without ceasing. This even includes prayers coming from our thought life.) The next word spoken is, “Let everyone pray in tongues for a little bit.” And all the people change into cartoon characters. (There's nothing wrong with speaking in tongues; it's very good, but the way some people speak in tongues is not so good. Some are putting on a cartoon show. Also, If a person has not repented and is not walking by faith, what would the Holy Spirit pray through them? Well, since He's praying for their good, He may be speaking judgment to turn them around or turn them from their sins, but many times that's not the thought of some when they're praying. They're thinking that this is the way to peace and prosperity when, instead, the Holy Spirit says, (Isa.26:9) With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee earnestly: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness. It's true that sometimes people don't get honest with God until they go through judgments. A sister, who had suffered for many years under these tormenting spirits of rejection, would get in bad shape, and each time we would pray for her. The Lord was faithful to heal her, but then she would get in bad shape all over again. My thoughts were, “Okay, something's wrong. There's a foundation that we're not discovering.” Many times I brought up the subject of unforgiveness to her, and many times she would tell me, “Oh no, David! I don't have any unforgiveness toward anybody,” but I knew what she really meant was, “No, I don't want to kill them right now!” It was obvious that she was holding on to unforgiveness. Anyway, her husband and I would pray for her and she would keep going through this cycle, until ultimately, she had a stroke and was sagging on one side. I don't know how near death she came, but it was during this time that she was forced into being very honest with God. And sure enough, she discovered that she had unforgiveness towards her ex-husband and some other people. The Lord had turned her over to these tormentors, just as He said He would do in His Word. When she repented of this unforgiveness, her husband and I got her up out of bed and started marching her down the hall, walking by faith, but one side was not cooperating. We marched her around the kitchen island a few times, when, lo and behold, the power of the Lord hit her! He straightened her right up from the effects of the stroke. She was healed, and this breakthrough happened because she finally came to the place of being honest. The Holy Spirit is saying, “Sometimes people won't repent without this trouble.” (Isa.26:10) Let favor be shown to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness; in the land of uprightness will he deal wrongfully, and will not behold the majesty of the Lord. (11) Lord, thy hand is lifted up, yet they see not (The Lord is making war against their enemies, their flesh and the demons therein.): but they shall see [thy] zeal for the people, and be put to shame; yea, fire shall devour thine adversaries. If you really want everything that God has that will make you better, you're willing to go to your cross, and you may even be praying in the Spirit for yourself to go to your cross. A lot of prosperity-minded people think that praying in the Spirit is the fix-all. They think that praying in the Spirit is going to bring peace and prosperity, with their enemies conquered, and so on. Ultimately, this is very true, but only if they have repented and are walking towards the Lord, but many people are like this sister. They don't know what's been holding them back all this time, but the Lord can show them, just as the Holy Spirit did for this sister. And since the Holy Spirit knows that some people need chastening, it's a delusion to think that praying in the Spirit, real or supposed, will always bring peace and prosperity, but demons like to delude. Repentance and faith are the foundation for prayer. The Holy Spirit intercedes for us according to the Will of God, not our carnal will. We know His goodwill comes to those who love Him, and we know to love Him is to keep His commandments (John 14:15). Remember, the Bible says, (Rom.8:26) And in like manner the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity (We have problems sometimes. We don't see the things we need to see. We don't know ourselves as well as we think.): for we know not how to pray as we ought… It is so true! God gives us the gift of speaking in tongues because we don't know what we should pray, but the Spirit does know what to pray. (Rom.8:26) … but the Spirit himself maketh intercession for [us] with groanings which cannot be uttered; (27) and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to [the will of] God. So once again, we gain wisdom concerning the work of the Holy Spirit in us in how to defeat the enemy, which sometimes entails bringing us through chastening. (Rom.8:28) And we know that to them that love God all things work together for good… What about those who don't prove their love for God by their obedience? What if it's more important to them to seek the world, cater to their flesh, and keep the old man alive? In such a case, what comes to them for good would be chastening. (Rom.8:28) … all things work together for good, [even] to them that are called according to [his] purpose. At the beginning of this revelation, S.S. said, “I am only praying for what the Lord gives me to pray, and the way the Lord leads me to pray for them.” That's good! That's very important! Going on with the dream. People began putting their thumbs on their temples and waving their hands like wings, making exaggerated thumb movements. Have you ever heard of people doing such things? (Mat.23:5) But all their works they do to be seen of men: for they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders [of their garments], (6) and love the chief place at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, (7) and the salutations in the marketplaces, and to be called of men, Rabbi.) Continuing: And their tongues were about twelve inches long, and their eyes were as big as saucers. (There are religious spirits that make God's people do silly things to impress the people around them, all the time thinking that they are being spiritual. People can become pretty stupid when they have those spirits.) I said, “Enough is enough! When are people going to behave themselves?” (The prayers some people pray are simply in vain. They're useless because the people haven't repented, yet they think they're going to receive. That's no better than repeating a monotonous mantra. The Holy Spirit, through Paul and Jude, called letting the Holy Spirit pray through us “praying in the Spirit.” (Eph.6:18) With all prayer and supplication praying at all seasons in the Spirit, and watching thereunto in all perseverance and supplication for all the saints. Good things come from praying in the Spirit. (Jud.1:20) But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, (21) keep yourselves in the love of God… Have you prayed to build yourself up in the faith? Praise be to God! It's the act of being a vessel through whom the Spirit of God will pray for God's Will. It's not a blank check for your will. It's necessary for those who are repentant and not afraid for the Will of God to be manifested. (1Co.14:14) For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prayeth (Notice that the Holy Spirit prays through our spirit.), but my understanding is unfruitful. (Your understanding is “unfruitful” because you don't know what you're saying.) (15) What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also… Are you that determined that you should pray in these ways? I hope so; it's very important, but it's also important to do it right and not care about what other people think. It's important to be at rest with the Spirit of God, allowing Him to speak through you. (15) … and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also. I do that and love it. I feel edified when I sing in the spirit. Paul told believers to be (Eph.6:18) With all prayer and supplication praying at all seasons in the Spirit… He also said, (1Co.14:18) I thank God, I speak with tongues more than you all. Praise God! Now, let me say that if we are addressing the assembly in the Spirit, that is, addressing the assembly in tongues, there should also be interpretation. If we're not standing up to address the assembly, it's permitted to speak in tongues in the assembly, and interpretation is not required. Paul said for us to be “With all prayer and supplication praying at all seasons in the Spirit,” but that we should be praying with the understanding, too. If we are simply addressing God in tongues, our understanding is not required; however, if we are speaking to a group, they need to understand it. It will do no good to speak to them in tongues unless there's an interpretation. Speaking in tongues is not necessarily the same as the gift of tongues. The gift of tongues and its companion gift of interpretation are for the purpose of standing up to address the assembly. These gifts are for the Body, and they're on an equal footing with prophecy. Any person who is baptized in the Holy Spirit can speak in tongues, and it's very good to speak in tongues because (1Co.14:4) He that speaketh in a tongue edifieth himself (He “builds” himself up. Some people think that's a negative statement, but it's positive because you're building yourself up in the Holy Spirit.); but he that prophesieth edifieth the church.  

Return To Your Fortress | നിങ്ങളുടെ കോട്ടയിലേക്ക് മടങ്ങുക | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1683 | 13 Aug 2025

90 municipis catalans estan en risc d'incendi molt alt; a Gal

Prisoners Of Hope | പ്രത്യാശയുടെ തടവുകാർ | Malayalam Christian Messages | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory Podcast - 1682 | 12 Aug 2025

In this episode, we're saying goodbye to summer the right way—by reminiscing about the magic (and chaos) of childhood camp days, swapping our funniest and scariest summer horror stories, and declaring once and for all why “Euro summer” is officially over. We're also daydreaming about the perfect girls' getaway, spilling the details on Emily's wild 32nd birthday, and catching up on Hannah's family vacation. Think of it as one last sun-soaked send-off before we dive into fall.---Stream Hannah's album, PHASES!Watch Emily's Short Film, All We Were!Emily's TikTok ShopEmily's Substack: third martini thoughts---Emily's Captivation: Gilmore GirlsHannah's Captivation: Chobani Pumpkin Spice CreamerShop CLEARSTEM and 15% off with the code GALSGUIDE at checkout---Welcome to The Gal's Guide — a weekly dating and lifestyle podcast created to empower radical self-love and bold relationships. Join us, long-distance best friends Hannah Adams and Emily Aleece Burton, for amusing and vulnerable conversations with insightful guests as we cover topics like love and dating to your own self-love, healing, spirituality, and always remembering the importance of gal pals. Want to request a topic or work with us? Send us an email at hello@thegalsguidepod.com or visit us on our website at thegalsguidepod.com---FOLLOW US!Instagram: @thegalsguidepodSecret Facebook Group: The Gal ScoutsEmily: @emilyaleeceHannah: @hannahadamsmillerAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Az előfizetők (de csak a Belső kör és Közösség csomagok tulajdonosai!) már szombat hajnalban hozzájutnak legfrissebb epizódunk teljes verziójához. A hétfőn publikált, ingyen meghallgatható verzió tíz perccel rövidebb. Itt írtunk arról, hogy tudod meghallgatni a teljes adást. Bedét majdnem elüti egy hallgató. Winklert megmenti egy mihazánkos Boszniában. Galícia a galíciaiaké. Mit akarnak Dopemantől? A székesfehérvári Pamplona. A szlovák Tyson. Az év apukája strandra viszi a gyerekeket. Gondolatok a BANÁNról. 01:00 Kisasszony hava van. Szűz Máriával kapcsolatos sorjázás garmadával. Az Alaptörvény szellemének semmibe vétele. 02:00 Bede Márton Borízű-hallgatót észlelt Észak-Tolnában. Kis híján tragédiába torkollott a találkozás. A pontevedrai gallego hallgatókat is köszöntjük! De miért van két Galícia? 05:45 Na, mit tudunk Galíciáról? 08:10 Amancio Ortega, a Zara tulajdonosa, aki mostanában a világ 16. leggazdagabb embere. A gallegók kezdték ez európai kokaincsempészetet is. 12:20 Mit lehet csinálni a csipkés parton? Pontevedra, ahonnan teljesen kitiltották az autókat. Halászat, a galíciai népi sport. 18.30 Kit tekintesz luzofónnak? 20:00 A BANÁN. Bede Márton Instáján. 22:00 II. János Pált agyonbaszta a meteorit. A Lego-Auschwitz. 25:30 Winkler Róbert szekértáborokon áthogyishívjákoló fagyoskodása egy boszniai fennsíkon. „Kalasnyikov Modric” (Winkler Róbert nyelvi leleménye), azaz Marko Perković Thompson, a horvát szélsőjobbos, nemzeti giccsrock császára július 5-én 485 000 ember előtt lépett föl Zágrábban. Az augusztus 4-ei zágrábi ismétlő koncerten 150 000-en voltak. Ljubiša Samardžić mint Surda. 31:00 Lépcsőháziemberkedés: a magyar mesterséges intelligenciáról. 35:20 Zenekarospólós sokszínűség ünnepe Zeke-koncerteken. 37:45 Dopeman… 38:10 Uj Péter semmire nem emlékszik. Ki volt benne az Orbán-puccsban? 42:00 Magyar sportsiker: Tombor András a lovaspolóvilág tetején. Az argentinok a lovaspóló braziljai. 45:00 Az év apukája a budaörsi strandra menet. 46:40 Az orbánista milliárdosok lemaradtak az eredeti Birkin táskáról. Jane Birkin és Serge Gainsbourg. 49:35 Inasba tettek a szlovákok kétszer. A nagyszombati maláta oltalom alatt álló földrajzi jelzést kapott. Hogy képzeljünk el egy húszéves szlovák nehézsúlyú szupertehetséget? Így üt. 54:15 Sydney Sweeney hergel. SS az SNL-ben. A libernyákok libernyálnak. 57:00 A fehérvári Pamplona. Szakszerű rendőri intézkedéssel elfogott bika. 61:30 Lenke néni kontra! 63:00 Nem lesz két adás. Vagy lesz valami? Szeptemberben élő. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Send us a textThink active duty is the only path? Derrick Blake would like a word—preferably during his 3-day weekend. From almost joining the Marines to wrenching on A-10s and recruiting for the 193rd Special Operations Wing, Derrick walks us through how the Air National Guard let him stay home, stack checks, and still deploy to undisclosed sandbox locations. Oh, and did we mention you start getting paid before basic? Yeah. This one's going to ruffle some feathers—and we love it.We talk Guard myths vs. facts, how student flight is the low-key cheat code, and why most people have no damn clue what the Guard even is. If you're trying to join TACP or EOD through the Guard and haven't hit up Derrick yet, what are you even doing?

How should we understand the words, “in him all things were created” in Col 1.16? Although commonly taken to mean Christ created the universe, this view has contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. In what follows I’ll name six problems with old-creation readings before laying out why a new creation approach makes sense. I presented this talk at the 2025 Unitarian Christian Alliance (UCA) conference in Uxbridge, England. Scroll down to see the full-length paper. For those listening to the audio, here’s a quick reference to Colossians 1.15-20 Strophe 1 (Col 1.15-18a) 15a      who is (the) image of the invisible God, 15b      firstborn of all creation 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 17a      and he is before all things 17b      and all things hold together in him 18a      and he is the head of the body of the Church,[12] Strophe 2 (Col 1.18b-20) 18b      who is (the) beginning, 18c      firstborn from the dead, 18d                  in order that he may be first in all things, 19        for in him was pleased all the fulness to dwell 20a      and through him to reconcile all things in him, 20b      making peace through the blood of his cross 20c                  whether the things upon the earth 20d                  or the things in the heavens Here’s Randy Leedy’s New Testament Diagram Here are the slides in the original PowerPoint format Download [13.82 MB] Here are the slides converted to PDF Loading... Taking too long? Reload document | Open in new tab Download [3.16 MB] To read the paper, simply scroll down or read it on Academia.edu.   Listen on Spotify   Listen on Apple Podcasts —— Links —— Check out these other papers by Sean Finnegan Support Restitutio by donating here Join our Restitutio Facebook Group and follow Finnegan on X @RestitutioSF Leave a voice message via SpeakPipe with questions or comments and we may play it out on the air Who is Sean Finnegan?  Read his bio here Get Finnegan’s book, Kingdom Journey to learn about God’s kingdom coming on earth as well as the story of how Christianity lost this pearl of great price. Get the transcript of this episode Intro music: Good Vibes by MBB Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) Free Download / Stream: Music promoted by Audio Library. Below is the paper presented on July 25, 2025 in Uxbridge, England at the 2nd annual UCA UK Conference. Access this paper on Academia.edu to get the pdf. Full text is below, including bibliography and end notes. Colossians 1.16: Old Creation or New Creation? by Sean P. Finnegan Abstract  How should we understand the words, “in him all things were created” in Col 1.16? Although commonly taken to mean Christ created the universe, this view has contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. In what follows, I will explain the difficulties with the various old creation readings of Col 1.16 along with five reasons for a new creation approach. Then I'll provide a new creation reading of Col 1.16 before summarizing my findings in the conclusion. Introduction  Colossians 1.15-20 is a fascinating text of great importance for Christology. Commonly understood to be a hymn, it is fascinating in its cosmic scope and elevated Christology. Although many commentators interpret Paul[1] to say that Christ created the universe in his pre-existent state in Col 1.16, not all scholars see it that way. For example, Edward Schillebeeckx writes, “There is no mention in this text of pre-existence in the Trinitarian sense.”[2] Rather he sees “an eschatological pre-existence, characteristic of wisdom and apocalyptic.”[3] G. B. Caird agreed that Paul's focus in Col. 1.15-20 was not pre-existence (contra Lightfoot), rather, “The main thread of Paul's thought, then, is the manhood of Christ.”[4] In other words, “All that has been said in vv. 15-18 can be said of the historical Jesus.”[5] James Dunn also denied that Paul saw Christ as God's agent in creation in Col 1.15-20, claiming that such an interpretation was “to read imaginative metaphor in a pedantically literal way.”[6] James McGrath argued that “Jesus is the one through whom God's new creation takes place.” [7] Andrew Perriman likewise noted, “There is no reference to the creation of heaven and earth, light and darkness, sea and dry land, lights in the heavens, vegetation, or living creatures,”[8] also preferring a new creation approach.[9] To understand why such a broad range of scholars diverge from the old creation interpretation of Col 1.16, we will examine several contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. While explaining these, I'll also put forward four reasons to interpret Col 1.16 as new creation. Then I'll provide a fifth before giving a new creation reading of Col 1.15-20. But before going any further, let's familiarize ourselves with the text and structure. The Form of Col 1.15-20  To get our bearings, let me begin by providing a translation,[10] carefully structured to show the two strophes.[11] Strophe 1 (Col 1.15-18a) 15a      who is (the) image of the invisible God, 15b      firstborn of all creation 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 17a      and he is before all things 17b      and all things hold together in him 18a      and he is the head of the body of the Church,[12] Strophe 2 (Col 1.18b-20) 18b      who is (the) beginning, 18c      firstborn from the dead, 18d                  in order that he may be first in all things, 19        for in him was pleased all the fulness to dwell 20a      and through him to reconcile all things in him, 20b      making peace through the blood of his cross 20c                  whether the things upon the earth 20d                  or the things in the heavens Here I've followed the two-strophe structure (1.15-18a and 18b-20) noted more than a century ago by the classical philologist Eduard Norden[13] and repeated by James Robinson,[14] Edward Lohse,[15] Edward Schweizer,[16] James Dunn,[17] Ben Witherington III,[18] and William Lane[19] among others. By lining up the parallel lines of the two strophes, we can clearly see the poetic form. Strophe 1 15a who is (the) image… 15b firstborn of all creation 16a for in him were created all things… 16e  all things have been created through him… Strophe 2 18b who is (the) beginning, 18c firstborn from the dead … 19 for in him was pleased all… 20a and through him to reconcile all things in him… Such striking repeated language between the two strophes means that we should be careful to maintain the parallels between them and not take a grammatical or exegetical position on a word or phrase that would disconnect it from the parallel line in the other strophe. Some scholars, including F. F. Bruce,[20] Michael Bird,[21] David Pao,[22] among others proposed vv. 17-18a as an independent transitional link between the two strophes. Lohse explained the motivation for this unlikely innovation as follows. Above all, it is curious that at the end of the first, cosmologically oriented strophe, Christ is suddenly referred to as the “head of the body, the church” (1:18a κεφαλή τοῦ σώματος τῆς ἐκκλησίας). Considering its content, this statement would have to be connected with the second strophe which is characterized by soteriological statements. The structure of the hymn, however, places it in the first strophe.[23] For interpreters who prefer to think of the first strophe as cosmogony and the second as soteriology, a line about Christ's headship over the church doesn't fit very well. They restructure the form based on their interpretation of the content. Such a policy reverses the order of operations. One should determine the form and then interpret the content in light of structure. Lohse was right to reject the addition of a new transitional bridge between the two strophes. He called it “out of the question” since vv. 17-18a underscore “all things” and “serve as a summary that brings the first strophe to a conclusion.”[24] Now that we've oriented ourselves to some degree, let's consider old creation readings of Col 1.16 and the problems that arise when reading it that way. Old Creation Readings  Within the old creation paradigm for Col 1.16 we can discern three groups: those who see (A) Christ as the agent by whom God created, (B) Wisdom as the agent, and (C) Christ as the purpose of creation. Although space won't allow me to interact with each of these in detail, I will offer a brief critique of these three approaches. As a reminder, here is our text in both Greek and English. Colossians 1.16 16a      ὅτι ἐν αὐτῷ ἐκτίσθη τὰ πάντα 16b                  ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, 16c                  τὰ ὁρατὰ καὶ τὰ ἀόρατα, 16d                  εἴτε θρόνοι εἴτε κυριότητες εἴτε ἀρχαὶ εἴτε ἐξουσίαι· 16e      τὰ πάντα δι' αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰς αὐτὸν ἔκτισται· 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 1. Christ as the Agent of Creation Scot McKnight is representative in his claim that “The emphasis of the first stanza is Christ as the agent of creation … and the second is Christ as the agent of redemption.”[25] This view sees the phrase “in him were created all things” as Christ creating the universe in the beginning. However, this position has six problems with it. Firstly, the context of the poem—both before (vv. 13-14) and after (vv. 21-22)—is clearly soteriological not cosmogonical.[26] By inserting vv. 15-20 into the text after vv. 13-14, Paul connected the two together.[27] V. 15 begins with ὅς ἐστιν (who is), which makes it grammatically dependent on vv. 13-14. “It is widely accepted,” wrote Dunn, “that this passage is a pre-Pauline hymn interpolated and interpreted to greater or less extent by Paul.”[28] By placing the poem into a redemptive frame, Paul indicated how he interpreted it. The fact that God “rescued us from the authority of darkness and transferred (us) into the kingdom of his beloved son” is the controlling context (v. 13).[29] As I will show below, I believe vv. 15-20 are ecclesiology not protology, since ecclesiology naturally flows from soteriology. Rather than remaining in the old domain of darkness, vulnerable to malevolent spiritual powers of this age, Colossian Christians are transferred into the new domain of Christ. The context makes it more natural to interpret the creation language of vv. 15-16 in light of Christ's redemptive work—as references to new creation rather than old creation. Doing so retains the contextual frame rather than jumping back to the beginning of time. A second problem arises when we consider the phrase “image of the invisible God” in v. 15. Although some see a Stoic or Wisdom reference here, I agree with F. F. Bruce who said, “No reader conversant with the OT scriptures, on reading these words of Paul, could fail to be reminded of the statement in Gen. 1:26f., that man was created by God ‘in his own image.'”[30] Immediately after making humanity in his own image, God blessed us with dominion over the earth. Philo also connected humanity's image of God with “the rulership over the earthly realms.”[31] But if the Christ of v. 15 is the pre-existent son prior to his incarnation, as the old creation model posits, “How can he be the ‘image of God,'” asked Eduard Schweizer, since “the one who is thus described here is not the earthly Jesus?”[32] It is precisely by virtue of his humanity that Jesus is the image of God not his pre-existence.[33] Thus, image-of-God language points us to the creation of a new humanity. A third problem is that “firstborn of all creation” prima facia implies that Christ is a member of creation (a partitive genitive). This is how Paul thought about Christ as firstborn in Rom 8.29 when he called Christ “firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Clearly he saw Christ as a member of the “ἀδελφοῖς” (brothers and sisters). Furthermore, “πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως” (firstborn of all creation) in v. 15 parallels “πρωτότοκος ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν” (firstborn from the dead) v. 18. Although the former (v. 15) can be taken as a genitive of subordination (firstborn over creation) or as a partitive genitive (firstborn of creation), the latter (v. 18) is unambiguously partitive. Because v. 18 includes the word ἐκ (from/out of), instead of a multivalent genitive, it must mean that Jesus was himself a member of the dead prior to his resurrection. Likewise, he was the firstborn member of creation. To take v. 15 as a genitive of subordination and v. 18 in a partitive sense allows theology to drive exegesis over against the clear structural link between v. 15b and v. 18c. In fact, as the BDAG noted, Christ is “the firstborn of a new humanity.”[34] He is chronologically born first and, by virtue of that, also preeminent.[35] Fourthly, the phrase, “ἐν αὐτῷ” (in him), implies soteriology not protology as it does throughout the Pauline corpus. The prepositional phrases “in Christ,” “in the Lord,” “in him,” and others that are similar occur more than a hundred times in Paul's epistles. McKnight elucidated the sense nicely: “This expression, then, is the inaugurated eschatological reality into which the Christian has been placed, and it also evokes the new-creation realities that a person discovers.”[36] Creation in Christ is not likely to refer to Genesis creation. In fact, apart from Col 1.16, there is no text within Paul or the rest of the Bible that speaks of the origin of the universe as something created “in Christ.”[37] Sadly translators routinely obscure this fact by translating “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “by him.”[38] Amazingly, the NASB and ESV render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” in every other usage apart from Col 1.16![39] For the sake of consistency, it makes better sense to render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” and let the reader decide how to interpret it. Fifthly, the line, “and he is the head of the body, the Church” (v. 18a) clearly roots the first strophe in redemptive history not creation. Our English translations follow Robert Estienne's verse divisions, which confusingly combine the last line of the first strophe (v. 18a) and the first line of the second (v. 18b), obscuring the native poetic structure. As I made the case above, the structure of the text breaks into two strophes with v. 18a included in the first one. As I mentioned earlier, vv. 15-20 are a pre-existing poem that Paul has modified and incorporated into the text of Colossians. Ralph Martin pointed out that the poem contains “no less than five hapax legomena” and “about ten non-Pauline expressions.”[40] Additionally, there appear to be awkward additions that disrupt the symmetry. These additions are the most explicitly Christian material. It is likely that the original said, “and he is the head of the body” to which Paul appended “the church.” Edward Schillebeeckx commented on this. In Hellenistic terms this must primarily mean that he gives life and existence to the cosmos. Here, however, Colossians drastically corrects the ideas … The correction made by Colossians is to understand ‘body' as a reference to the church, and not the cosmos. This alters the whole perspective of the cultural and religious setting … The cosmic background is reinterpreted in terms of salvation history and ecclesiology. In fact Christ is already exercising his lordship over the world now … however, he is doing this only as the head of the church, his body, to which he gives life and strength. Thus Colossians claims that the church alone, rather than the cosmos, is the body of Christ.[41] If this is true, it shows Paul's careful concern to disallow a strictly old creation or protological reading of the first strophe. For by inserting “of the church,” he has limited the context of the first strophe to the Christ event. “The addition of ‘the church,'” wrote Dunn, “indicates that for Paul at any rate the two strophes were not dealing with two clearly distinct subjects (cosmology and soteriology).”[42] Karl-Joseph Kuschel wrote, “The answer would seem to be he wanted to ‘disturb' a possible cosmological-protological fancy in the confession of Christ … to prevent Christ from becoming a purely mythical heavenly being.”[43] Thus Paul's addition shows us he interpreted the creation of v16 as new creation. Lastly, theological concerns arise when taking Col 1.16 as old creation. The most obvious is that given the partitive genitive of v. 15, we are left affirming the so-called Arian position that God created Christ as the firstborn who, in turn, created everything else. Another thorn in the side of this view is God's insistence elsewhere to be the solo creator (Isa 44.24; cf. 45.18). On the strength of this fact, modalism comes forward to save the day while leaving new problems in its wake. However, recognizing Col 1.15-20 as new creation avoids such theological conundrums. 2. Wisdom as the Agent of Creation Dustin Smith noted, “The christological hymn contains no less than nine characteristics of the wisdom of God (e.g., “image,” “firstborn,” agent of creation, preceding all things, holding all things together) that are reapplied to the figure of Jesus.”[44] Some suggest that Col 1.15-20 is actually a hymn to Wisdom that Paul Christianized.[45] The idea is that God created the universe through his divine Wisdom, which is now embodied or incarnate in Christ. Dunn explained it as follows. If then Christ is what God's power/wisdom came to be recognized as, of Christ it can be said what was said first of wisdom—that ‘in him (the divine wisdom now embodied in Christ) were created all things.' In other words the language may be used here to indicate the continuity between God's creative power and Christ without the implication being intended that Christ himself was active in creation.[46] Before pointing out some problems, I must admit much of this perspective is quite noncontroversial. That Jewish literature identified Wisdom as God's creative agent, that there are linguistic parallels between Col 1.15-20 and Wisdom, and that the historical Jesus uniquely embodied Wisdom to an unprecedented degree are not up for debate. Did Paul expect his readers to pick up on the linguistic parallels? Afterall, he could have just said “in her were created all things” in v. 16, clearly making the connection with the grammatically feminine σοφία (Wisdom). Better yet, he could have said, “in Wisdom were created all things.” Even if the poem was originally to Wisdom, Paul has thoroughly Christianized it, applying to Christ what had been said of Wisdom. However, the most significant defeater for this view is that applying Wisdom vocabulary to Christ only works one way. Wisdom has found her home in Christ. This doesn't mean we can attribute to Christ what Wisdom did before she indwelt him any more than we can attribute to the living descendants of Nazis the horrific deeds of their ancestors. Perriman's critique is correct: “The point is not that the act of creation was Christlike, rather the reverse: recent events have been creation-like. The death and resurrection of Jesus are represented as the profoundly creative event in which the wisdom of God is again dynamically engaged, by which a new world order has come about.”[47] Once again a new creation approach makes better sense of the text. 3. Christ as the Purpose of Creation Another approach is to take ἐν αὐτῷ (in him) in a telic sense. Martha King, a linguist with SIL, said the phrase can mean “in association with Christ everything was created” or “in connection with Christ all things were created.”[48] Lexicographer, Joseph Thayer, sharpened the sense with the translation, “[I]n him resides the cause why all things were originally created.”[49] William MacDonald's translation brought this out even more with the phrase, “because for him everything … was created.”[50] The idea is that God's act of creation in the beginning was with Christ in view. As Eric Chang noted, “Christ is the reason God created all things.”[51] G. B. Caird said, “He is the embodiment of that purpose of God which underlies the whole creation.”[52] The idea is one of predestination not agency.[53] Christ was the goal for which God created all things. A weakness of this view is that purpose is better expressed using εἰς or δία with an accusative than ἐν. Secondly, the parallel line in the second strophe (v. 19) employs “ἐν αὐτῷ” in a clearly locative sense: “in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell.” So even though “ἐν αὐτῷ” could imply purpose, in this context it much more likely refers to location. Lastly, Paul mentioned the sense of purpose at the end of v. 16 with “εἰς αὐτὸν ἔκτισται” (for him has been created), so it would be repetitive to take “ἐν αὐτῷ” that way as well. To sum up, the three positions that see Col 1.16 as a reference to old creation all have significant problems. With these in mind, let us turn our attention to consider a fourth possibility: that Paul has in mind new creation. Reasons for a New Creation Reading I've already provided four reasons why Col 1.15-20 refers to new creation: (1) calling Christ the image of God points to the new humanity begun in Christ as the last Adam;[54] (2) since the firstborn of the old creation was Adam (or, perhaps, Seth), Jesus must be the firstborn of the new creation; (3) saying Jesus is the head of the church, limits the focus for the first strophe to the time following the Christ event; (4) the context of the poem, both before (vv. 13-14) and after (vv. 21-22) is soteriological, making an old creation paradigm awkward, while a new creation view fits perfectly. The Catholic priest and professor, Franz Zeilinger, summarized the situation nicely: “Christ is (through his resurrection from the realm of death) Lord over the possession granted to him, of which he is the ἀρχή (beginning) and archetype, … and head and beginning of the eschatological new creation!”[55] Additionally, a new creation paradigm fits best with Paul's elaboration of what visible and invisible things in heaven and on earth he has in mind. Once again, here's our text. 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him By specifying thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities, we discern Paul's train of thought. Form critics are quick to point out that v. 16d is Paul's addition to the poem. Without it, the reader may have thought of sky, land, and animals—old creation. However, with v. 16d present, we direct our attention to political realities not God's creative power or engineering genius. Martha King noted the two possible meanings for εἴτε: (1) specifying the “invisible things” or (2) giving examples of “all things.” Taking the second view, we read “in him were created all things, including thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities.”[56] Randy Leedy also presented this position in his sentence diagrams, identifying v. 16d as equivalent to v. 16c and v. 16b, all of which modify τὰ πάντα (all things) at the end of v. 16a. (See Appendix for Leedy's diagram.) Perriman pressed home the point when he wrote: The fact is that any interpretation that takes verse 16 to be a reference to the original creation has to account for the narrow range of created things explicitly listed. … The Colossians verse mentions only the creation of political entities—thrones, lordships, rulers and authorities, visible and invisible—either in the already existing heaven or on the already existing and, presumably, populated earth. What this speaks of is a new governmental order consisting of both invisible-heavenly and visibly-earthly entities.”[57] Understanding v. 16d as equivalent to “all things” in v. 16a nicely coheres with a new-creation paradigm. However, taken the other way—as an elaboration of only the invisible created realities—v. 16d introduces an asymmetrical and clumsy appendix. A New Creation Reading of Col 1.16 Now that we've considered some problems with old creation views and some reasons to read Col 1.16 from a new creation perspective, let's consider how a new creation reading works. New creation is all about the new breaking into the old, the future into the present. G. F. Wessels said, “Paul made clear that there is a present realized aspect of salvation, as well as a future, still outstanding aspect, which will only be realized at the eschaton.”[58] New creation, likewise, has future and present realities. Exiting Old Creation Before becoming part of the new creation, one must exit the old creation. “Our old humanity was co-crucified“ (Rom 6.6). “With Christ you died to the elemental principles of the world” (Col 2.20). “As many as were baptized into Christ Jesus, were baptized into his death” (Rom 6.3). We were “co-buried with him through baptism into the death … having been united with the likeness of his death” (Rom 6.4-5). Our death with him through baptism kills our allegiance and submission to the old powers and the old way of life “in which you formerly walked according to the zeitgeist of this world, according to the rule of the authority of the air, the spirit which now works in the children of disobedience” (Eph 2.2). Entering New Creation As death is the only way out of the old creation, so resurrection is the only way into the new creation. “You have been co-raised with Christ” (Col 3.1). God “co-made-alive us together with him” (Col 2.13).[59] By virtue of our union with Christ, we ourselves are already “co-raised and co-seated us in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus” (Eph 2.6). The result of this is that “we also may walk in newness of life” (Rom 6.4). For those who are “in Christ, (there is) a new creation; the old has passed away, behold (the) new has come into existence” (2 Cor 5.17). “They have been ‘transported,'” wrote Schillebeeckx, “they already dwell above in Christ's heavenly sphere of influence (Col 1.13)—the soma Christou … that is the church!”[60] Community For the people of God, “neither circumcision is anything nor uncircumcision but a new creation” is what matters (Gal 6.15). Those who “are clothed with the new” are “being renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created, where there is no Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, (or) free, but Christ (is) all and in all” (Col 3.10-11). Through Christ God has nullified the law “in order that he might create the two into one new humanity in him” (Eph 2.14-15). Thus, within new creation, ethnic identity still exists, but it is relativized, our identity in Christ taking priority ahead of other affiliations and duties. Lifestyle When the lost become saved through faith, they become his creation (ποίημα), “created in Christ Jesus for good works” (Eph 2.10). This means we are to “lay aside the former way of life, the old humanity corrupted according to deceitful desires” and instead be clothed with “the new humanity created according to God in righteousness and holiness of the truth” (Eph 4.22-24). Rather than lying to one another, we must “strip off the old humanity with its way of acting” and “be clothed with the new (humanity), renewed in knowledge according to the image of the one who created it” (Col 3.9-10). “The ones who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the passions and the lusts” and instead “walk by the spirit” (Gal 5.24-25). Ultimately, All Creation Although new creation is currently limited to those who voluntarily recognize Jesus as Lord, all “creation is waiting with eager expectation for the unveiling of the children of God” (Rom 8.19). Because of the Christ event, the created order eagerly awaits the day when it will escape “the enslavement of corruption” and gain “the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (v. 21). Like a bone out of joint, creation does not function properly. Once Christ sets it right, it will return to its proper order and operation under humanity's wise and capable rulership in the eschaton. Eschatology God predetermined that those who believe will be “conformed to the image of his son, that he be firstborn among many brothers and sisters” (Rom 8.29). Thus, the resurrected Christ is the prototype, “the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor 15.20). Whereas “in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive” (v. 22). We await Christ's return to “transform the body of our humble station (that it be) shaped to his glorious body according to the energy which makes him able to also to subject all things to himself.” (Phil 3.21). This is the end goal of new creation: resurrected subjects of God's kingdom joyfully living in a renewed world without mourning, crying, and pain forevermore (Isa 65.17-25; Rev 21-22). The Powers Taking Col 1.16 as a new creation text adds key information about the present governing powers to this richly textured picture. In Christ God created thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities. He made these through Christ and for Christ with the result that Christ himself is before all things, and in Christ all things hold together (Col 1.17). He is the head of the body, the Church (Col 1.18). We find very similar language repeated in Ephesians in the context of Christ's exaltation.[61] Ephesians 1.20-23 20 Which [power] he energized in Christ having raised him from the dead and seated (him) on his right (hand) in the heavenlies 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name named, not only in this age but also in the one to come; 22 and he subjected all things under his feet and gave him (as) head over all things in the Church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in all. The parallels are striking. Both speak of Christ's resurrection, Christ's exalted position of authority over all the powers, Christ's role as head of the church, and both mention the fullness. It's easy to miss the connection between these two passages since most think of Eph 1.20-22 as ascension theology and Col 1.15-20 as creation theology. But, if we adjust our thinking to regard Col 1.16 as new creation, we see how the two fit together. In Ephesians we see Christ's ascension to God's right hand as the reason for a cosmic reordering of authorities with the result that all rule, authority, power, and dominion are subjected to him. (Though we may be accustomed to reading these powers in Eph 1.21 as only malevolent owing to Eph 2.2 and 6.12, the list here must be mixed, since only benevolent powers will survive the final judgement and continue into the age to come.) Instead of exaltation, in Colossians Paul employed the language of creation to describe Christ's relation to the powers. Perhaps lesser terms like reassign, reorder, or establish were just too small to adequately express the magnitude of how the Christ event has changed the world—both in heaven and on earth. The only term big enough to convey the new situation was “creation”—the very same word he routinely used elsewhere with the meaning of new creation.[62] We can gain more insight by considering what the powers of Eph 1.21 and Col 1.16 mean. McKnight saw them “as earthly, systemic manifestations of (perhaps fallen) angelic powers—hence, the systemic worldly, sociopolitical manifestations of cosmic/angelic rebellion against God.”[63] I partially agree with McKnight here. He's right to see the powers as both heavenly and earthly, or better, as the heavenly component of the earthly sociopolitical realities, but he has not made room for the new authority structures created in Christ. John Schoenheit helpfully explained it this way: Not only did Jesus create his Church out of Jew and Gentile, he had to create the structure and positions that would allow it to function, both in the spiritual world (positions for the angels that would minister to the Church—see Rev. 1:1, “his angel”) and in the physical world (positions and ministries here on earth—see Rom. 12:4-8; Eph. 4:7-11).[64] We must never forget that Paul has an apocalyptic worldview—a perspective that seeks to unveil the heavenly reality behind the earthly. He believed in powers of darkness and powers of light. In Christ were created thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities (Col 1.16). He is “the head of all rule and authority” (Col 2.10). These new creation realities make progress against the old powers that still hold sway in the world outside the Church. Although the old powers are still at work, those who are in Christ enjoy his protection. With respect to the Church, he has already “disarmed the rulers and authorities” (Col 2.15). We can don “the armor of God that we be able to stand against the methods of the devil” (Eph 6.11) and “subduing everything, to stand” (v. 13). We find glimpses of this heavenly reality scattered in other places in the Bible. Peter mentioned how Christ “is on the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and power having been subjected to him” (1 Pet 3.22). In John's Revelation, he addressed each of the seven letters to the angels of their respective churches.[65] Although it's hard for us to get details on precisely what happened at Christ's ascension, something major occurred, not just on earth, but also in the spiritual realm. Jesus's last recorded words in Matthew are: “all authority in heaven and upon earth was given to me” (Mat 28.18-20). Presumably such a statement implies that prior to his resurrection Jesus did not have all authority in heaven and earth. It didn't exist until it was created. Similarly, because of his death, resurrection, and ascension, Christ has “become so much better than the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to them” (Heb 1.4). Once again, the text implies that Christ was not already superior to the angels, but “after making purification of the sins, he sat on the right hand of the majesty on high” at which time he became preeminent (Heb 1.3). Perhaps this also explains something about why Christ “proclaimed to the spirits in prison” (1 Pet 3.19). Another possibility is that Christ's ascension (Rev 12.5) triggered a war in heaven (v. 7) with the result that the dragon and his angels suffered defeat (v. 8) and were thrown out of heaven down to the earth (v. 9). Sadly, for most of the history of the church we have missed this Jewish apocalyptic approach that was obvious to Paul, limiting salvation to individual sins and improved morality.[66] Only in the twentieth century did interpreters begin to see the cosmic aspect of new creation. Margaret Thrall wrote the following. The Christ-event is the turning-point of the whole world … This Christ ‘in whom' the believer lives is the last Adam, the inaugurator of the new eschatological humanity. … Paul is saying that if anyone exists ‘in Christ', that person is a newly-created being. … In principle, through the Christ-event and in the person of Christ, the new world and the new age are already objective realities.[67] New creation is, in the words of J. Louis Martyn “categorically cosmic and emphatically apocalyptic.”[68] In fact, “The advent of the Son and of his Spirit is thus the cosmic apocalyptic event.”[69] In Christ is the beginning of a whole new creation, an intersecting community of angelic and human beings spanning heaven and earth. The interlocking of earthly (visible) and heavenly (invisible) authority structures points to Paul's apocalyptic holism. The Church was not on her own to face the ravages of Rome's mad love affair with violence and power. In Christ, people were no longer susceptible to the whims of the gods that have wreaked so much havoc from time immemorial.[70] No, the Church is Christ's body under his direct supervision and protection. As a result, the Church is the eschatological cosmic community. It is not merely a social club; it has prophetic and cosmic dimensions. Prophetically, the Church points to the eschaton when all of humanity will behave then how the Church already strives to live now—by the spirit instead of the flesh (Gal 5.16-25). Cosmically, the Church is not confined to the earth. There is a heavenly dimension with authority structures instantiated under Christ to partner with the earthly assemblies. God's “plan for the fulness of the times” is “to head up all thing in the Christ, the things upon the heavens and the things upon the earth in him” (Eph 1.10). Although this is his eschatological vision, Zeilinger pointed out that it is already happening. [T]he eschatological world given in Christ is realized within the still-existing earthly creation through the inclusion of the human being in Christ, the exalted one, by means of the proclamation of salvation and baptism. The eschaton spreads throughout the world in the kerygma and becomes reality, in that the human being, through baptism, becomes part of Christ—that is, in unity with him, dies to the claim of the στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου (2.20) and is raised with him to receive his eschatological life. The people thus incorporated into the exalted Christ thereby form, in him and with him, the new creation of the eschaton within the old! The body of Christ is thus recognizable as the expanding Church. In it, heavenly and earthly space form, in a certain sense, a unity.[71] The Church is a counter society, and embassy of the future kingdom shining the light of the age to come into the present in the power of the spirit with the protection of Christ and his heavenly powers over against the powers of darkness, who/which are still quite active—especially in the political realities of our present evil age (Gal 1.4). We bend the knee to the cosmic Christ now in anticipation of the day when “every knee may bend: heavenly and earthly and subterranean” (Phil 2.10) and “every tongue may confess that Jesus Christ (is) Lord” (v. 11). Christ's destiny is to fulfil the original Adamic mandate to multiply, fill, and have dominion over the earth (Gen 1.28). He has already received all authority in heaven and earth (Mat 28.18). God has given him “dominion over the works of your hands and put all things under his feet” as the quintessential man (Ps 8.6). Even so, “Now we do not yet see all things subjected to him” (Heb 2.8), but when he comes “he will reign into the ages of the ages” (Rev 11.15). Until then, he calls the Church to recognize his preeminence and give him total allegiance both in word and deed. Conclusion We began by establishing that the structure of the poetic unit in Col 1.15-20 breaks into two strophes (15-18a and 18b-20). We noted that Paul likely incorporated pre-existing material into Colossians, editing it as he saw fit. Then we considered the problems with the three old creation readings: (A) Christ as the agent of creation, (B) Wisdom as the agent of creation, and (C) Christ as the purpose of creation. In the course of critiquing (A), which is by far most popular, we observed several reasons to think Col 1.16 pertained to new creation, including (1) the image of God language in v. 15a, (2) the firstborn of all creation language in v. 15b, (3) the head of the Church language in v. 18a, and (4) the soteriological context (frame) of the poem (vv. 13-14, 21-22). To this I added a fifth syntactical reason that 16d as an elaboration of “τἀ πάντα” (all things) of 16a. Next, we explored the idea of new creation, especially within Paul's epistles, to find a deep and richly textured paradigm for interpreting God's redemptive and expanding sphere of influence (in Christ) breaking into the hostile world. We saw that new Christians die and rise with Christ, ending their association with the old and beginning again as a part of the new—a community where old racial, legal, and status divisions no longer matter, where members put off the old way of living and instead become clothed with the new humanity, where people look forward to and live in light of the ultimate transformation to be brought about at the coming of Christ. Rather than limiting new creation to the salvation of individuals, or even the sanctifying experience of the community, we saw that it also includes spiritual powers both “in the heavens and upon the earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities” (Col 1.16). Reading Col 1.15-20 along with Eph 1.20-23 we connected God's creation of the powers in Christ with his exaltation of Christ to his right hand “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name named, not only in this age but also in the one to come” (Eph 1.21). The point from both texts is clear: as “the head of the body, the Church” (Col 1.18; Eph 1.22), Christ is “before all things” (Col 1.17), “first in all things” (Col 1.18), and “far above all” (Eph 1.21), since God has “subjected all things under his feet” (Eph 1.22). Christ is preeminent as the firstborn of all new creation, “the new Adam … the starting point where new creation took place.”[72] Although the old powers still hold sway in the world, those in the interlocked heaven-and-earth new creation domain where Christ is the head, enjoy his protection if they remain “in the faith established and steadfast and not shifting away from the hope of the gospel” (Col 1.23). This interpretation has several significant advantages. It fits into Paul's apocalyptic way of thinking about Christ's advent and exaltation. It also holds together the first strophe of the poem as a unit. Additionally, it makes better sense of the context. (The ecclesiology of Col 1.15-18a follows logically from the soteriological context of vv. 13-14.) Lastly, it is compatible with a wide range of Christological options. Appendix Here is Col 1.16 from Leedy's sentence diagrams.[73] Of note is how he equates the τὰ πάντα of 16a with 16c and 16d rather than seeing 16d as an elaboration of τά ὁρατά. Bibliography Bauer, Walter, Frederick William  Danker, William F. Arndt, F. Gingrich, Kurt Aland, Barbara Aland, and Viktor Reichmann. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. 3rd ed. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000. Bird, Michael F. Colossians and Philemon. A New Covenant Commentary. Cambridge, England: The Lutterworth Press, 2009. Brown, Anna Shoffner. “Nothing ‘Mere’ About a Man in the Image of God.” Paper presented at the Unitarian Christian Alliance, Springfield, OH, Oct 14, 2022. Bruce, E. K. Simpson and F. F. The Epistles to the Ephesians and the Colossians. The New International Commentary on the New Testament, edited by Ned B. Stonehouse. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1957. Buzzard, Anthony F. Jesus Was Not a Trinitarian. Morrow, GA: Restoration Fellowship, 2007. Caird, G. B. New Testament Theology. Edited by L. D. Hurst. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 2002. Caird, G. B. Paul’s Letters from Prison. New Clarendon Bible, edited by H. F. D. Sparks. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1976. Carden, Robert. One God: The Unfinished Reformation. Revised ed. Naperville, IL: Grace Christian Press, 2016. Chang, Eric H. H. The Only Perfect Man. Edited by Bentley C. F. Chang. 2nd ed. Montreal, QC: Christian Disciples Church Publishers, 2017. Deuble, Jeff. Christ before Creeds. Latham, NY: Living Hope International Ministries, 2021. Dunn, James D. G. Christology in the Making. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996. Dunn, James D. G. The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon. New International Greek Testament Commentary, edited by Gasque Marshall, Hagner. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996. Heiser, Michael S. The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2019. King, Martha. An Exegetical Summary of Colossians. Dallas, TX: SIL International, 1992. Kuschel, Karl-Joseph. Born before All Time? Translated by John Bowden. New York, NY: Crossroad, 1992. Originally published as Beforen vor aller Zeit? Lane, William L. The New Testament Page by Page. Open Your Bible Commentary, edited by Martin Manser. Bath, UK: Creative 4 International, 2013. Leedy, Randy A. The Greek New Testament Sentence Diagrams. Norfolk, VA: Bible Works, 2006. Lohse, Edward. Colossians and Philemon. Hermeneia. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1971. MacDonald, William Graham. The Idiomatic Translation of the New Testament. Norfolk, VA: Bibleworks, 2012. Mark H. Graeser, John A. Lynn, John W. Schoenheit. One God & One Lord. 4th ed. Martinsville, IN: Spirit & Truth Fellowship International, 2010. Martin, Ralph. “An Early Christian Hymn (Col. 1:15-20).” The Evangelical Quarterly 36, no. 4 (1964): 195–205. Martyn, J. Louis. Theological Issues in the Letters of Paul. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1997. McGrath, James F. The Only True God: Early Christian Monotheism in Its Jewish Context. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2009. McKnight, Scot. The Letter to the Colossians. New International Commentary on the New Testament, edited by Joel B. Green. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2018. Norden, Eduard. Agnostos Theos: Untersuchungen Zur Formengeschichte Religiöser Rede. 4th ed. Stuttgart, Germany: B. G. Teubner, 1956. Originally published as 1913. Pao, David. Colossians and Philemon. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament, edited by Clinton E. Arnold. Grand Rapid, MI: Zondervan, 2012. Perriman, Andrew. In the Form of a God. Studies in Early Christology, edited by David Capes Michael Bird, and Scott Harrower. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2022. Philo. The Works of Philo. The Norwegian Philo Concordance Project. Edited by Kåre Fuglseth Peder Borgen, Roald Skarsten. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2005. Robinson, James M. “A Formal Analysis of Colossians 1:15-20.” Journal of Biblical Literature 76, no. 4 (1957): 270–87. Schillebeeckx, Eduard. Christ: The Experience of Jesus as Lord. Translated by John Bowden. New York, NY: The Seabury Press, 1977. Schoberg, Gerry. Perspectives of Jesus in the Writings of Paul. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2013. Schweizer, Eduard. The Letter to the Colossians. Translated by Andrew Chester. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House, 1982. Smith, Dustin R. Wisdom Christology in the Gospel of John. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2024. Snedeker, Donald R. Our Heavenly Father Has No Equals. Bethesda, MD: International Scholars Publications, 1998. Thayer, Joseph Henry. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996. Thrall, Margaret. The Second Epistle to the Corinthians. Vol. 1. The International Critical Commentary, edited by C. E. B. Cranfield J. A. Emerton, G. N. Stanton. Edinburgh, Scotland: T&T Clark, 1994. Wachtel, William M. “Colossians 1:15-20–Preexistence or Preeminence?” Paper presented at the 14th Theological Conference, McDonough, GA, 2005. Wessels, G. F. “The Eschatology of Colossians and Ephesians.” Neotestamentica 21, no. 2 (1987): 183–202. Witherington III, Ben The Letters to Philemon, the Colossians, and the Ephesians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary of the Captivity Epistles. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007. Yates, Roy. The Epistle to the Colossians. London: Epworth Press, 1993. Zeilinger, Franz. Der Erstgeborene Der Schöpfung. Wien, Österreich: Herder, 1974. Footnotes [1] Since the nineteenth century biblical scholars have been divided over whether Paul wrote Colossians. One of the major reasons for thinking Paul didn't write Colossians is his exalted Christology—the very conclusion this paper seeks to undermine. A second major factor to argue against Pauline authorship is the difference in vocabulary, but this is explainable if Paul used a different amanuensis. The theologically more cosmic emphasis (also evident in Ephesians) is likely due to Paul's time in prison to reflect and expand his understanding of the Christ event. Lastly, the proto-Gnostic hints in Colossians do not require dating the epistle outside of Paul's time. Although Gnosticism flourished at the beginning of the second century, it was likely already beginning to incubate in Paul's time. [2] Eduard Schillebeeckx, Christ: The Experience of Jesus as Lord, trans. John Bowden (New York, NY: The Seabury Press, 1977), 185. [3] Schillebeeckx, 185. [4] G. B. Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, New Clarendon Bible, ed. H. F. D. Sparks (Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1976), 177. [5] Caird, 181. [6] James D. G. Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, New International Greek Testament Commentary, ed. Gasque Marshall, Hagner (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996), 91. “[W]hat at first reads as a straightforward assertion of Christ's pre-existenct activity in creation becomes on closer analysis an assertion which is rather more profound—not of Christ as such present with God in the beginning, nor of Christ as identified with a pre-existent hypostasis or divine being (Wisdom) beside God, but of Christ as embodying and expressing (and defining) that power of God which is the manifestation of God in and to his creation.” (Italics in original.) James D. G. Dunn, Christology in the Making, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996), 194. [7] James F. McGrath, The Only True God: Early Christian Monotheism in Its Jewish Context (Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2009), 46. [8] Andrew Perriman, In the Form of a God, Studies in Early Christology, ed. David Capes Michael Bird, and Scott Harrower (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2022), 200. [9] In addition, biblical unitarians routinely interpret Col 1.16 as new creation. See Anthony F. Buzzard, Jesus Was Not a Trinitarian (Morrow, GA: Restoration Fellowship, 2007), 189–90, Robert Carden, One God: The Unfinished Reformation, Revised ed. (Naperville, IL: Grace Christian Press, 2016), 197–200, Eric H. H. Chang, The Only Perfect Man, ed. Bentley C. F. Chang, 2nd ed. (Montreal, QC: Christian Disciples Church Publishers, 2017), 151–52, Jeff Deuble, Christ before Creeds (Latham, NY: Living Hope International Ministries, 2021), 163–66, John A. Lynn Mark H. Graeser, John W. Schoenheit, One God & One Lord, 4th ed. (Martinsville, IN: Spirit & Truth Fellowship International, 2010), 493–94, Donald R. Snedeker, Our Heavenly Father Has No Equals (Bethesda, MD: International Scholars Publications, 1998), 291–92, William M. Wachtel, “Colossians 1:15-20–Preexistence or Preeminence?” (paper presented at the 14th Theological Conference, McDonough, GA, 2005), 4. [10] All translations are my own. [11] Stophes are structural divisions drawn from Greek odes akin to stanzas in poetry or verses in music. [12] Throughout I will capitalize Church since that reflects the idea of all Christians collectively not just those in a particular local assembly. [13] Eduard Norden, Agnostos Theos: Untersuchungen Zur Formengeschichte Religiöser Rede, 4th ed. (Stuttgart, Germany: B. G. Teubner, 1956), 250–54. [14] James M. Robinson, “A Formal Analysis of Colossians 1:15-20,” Journal of Biblical Literature 76, no. 4 (1957): 272–73. [15] Edward Lohse, Colossians and Philemon, Hermeneia (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1971), 44. [16] Eduard Schweizer, The Letter to the Colossians, trans. Andrew Chester (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House, 1982), 57. [17] Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 84. [18] Ben  Witherington III, The Letters to Philemon, the Colossians, and the Ephesians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary of the Captivity Epistles (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007), 129. [19] William L. Lane, The New Testament Page by Page, Open Your Bible Commentary, ed. Martin Manser (Bath, UK: Creative 4 International, 2013), 765. [20] E. K. Simpson and F. F. Bruce, The Epistles to the Ephesians and the Colossians, The New International Commentary on the New Testament, ed. Ned B. Stonehouse (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1957), 65. [21] Michael F. Bird, Colossians and Philemon, A New Covenant Commentary (Cambridge, England: The Lutterworth Press, 2009), 50. [22] David Pao, Colossians and Philemon, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament, ed. Clinton E. Arnold (Grand Rapid, MI: Zondervan, 2012), 87. [23] Lohse, 42. [24] Lohse, 43–44. [25] Scot McKnight, The Letter to the Colossians, New International Commentary on the New Testament, ed. Joel B. Green (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2018), 144. [26] Col 1.13-14: “who rescued us from the authority of darkness and transferred (us) into the kingdom of his beloved son in whom we have the redemption, the forgiveness of the sins.” Col 1.21-22: “And you being formerly alienated and hostile in thought in the evil deeds, but now he reconciled (you) in his body of the flesh through the death to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him.” [27] In fact, we can easily skip from vv. 13-14 to vv. 21-22. [28] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 187–88. [29] Sadly, most translations erroneously insert a paragraph between vv. 14 and 15. This produces the visual effect that v. 15 is a new thought unit. [30] Bruce, 193. [31] Moses 2.65: “τὴν ἡγεμονίαν τῶν περιγείων” in Philo, The Works of Philo, The Norwegian Philo Concordance Project (Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2005). See also Sirach 17.3. [32] Schweizer, 64. [33] For a helpful treatment of how the image of God relates to Christology, see Anna Shoffner Brown, “Nothing ‘Mere’ About a Man in the Image of God” (paper presented at the Unitarian Christian Alliance, Springfield, OH, Oct 14, 2022). [34] Walter Bauer et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000), s.v. “πρωτότοκος,” 2.a. [35] Franz Zeilnger wrote, “Christ is temporally the first of a series that essentially proceeds from him, and at the same time its lord and head.” Franz Zeilinger, Der Erstgeborene Der Schöpfung (Wien, Österreich: Herder, 1974), 182. Original: “als “Wurzel” ist Christus zeitlich der erste einer Reihe, die wesentlich aus ihm hervorgeht, und zugleich ihr Herr und Haupt.” [36] McKnight, 85–86. [37] The closest parallels are 1 Cor 8.6; Heb 1.2; and John 1.3, which employ the preposition δια (through). Upon close examination these three don't teach Christ created the universe either. [38] ESV, CSB, NASB, etc. Notably the NET diverges from the other evangelical translations. Roman Catholic, mainline, and unitarian translations all tend to straightforwardly render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” in Col 1.16; cf. NABRE, NRSVUE, OGFOMMT, etc. [39] Chang, 150. [40] Ralph Martin, “An Early Christian Hymn (Col. 1:15-20),” The Evangelical Quarterly 36, no. 4 (1964): 198. [41] Schillebeeckx, 186. [42] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 191. [43] Karl-Joseph Kuschel, Born before All Time?, trans. John Bowden (New York, NY: Crossroad, 1992), 336. [44] Dustin R. Smith, Wisdom Christology in the Gospel of John (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2024), 5–6. For more on wisdom Christology in Col 1.16 see Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 89, Roy Yates, The Epistle to the Colossians (London: Epworth Press, 1993), 18–19, 23, G. B. Caird, New Testament Theology, ed. L. D. Hurst (Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 2002), 46, McGrath, 44, 46. [45] See Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 89. See also Yates, 18–19, 23. [46] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 190. [47] Perriman, 199. [48] Martha King, An Exegetical Summary of Colossians (Dallas, TX: SIL International, 1992), 53. [49] Joseph Henry Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996), s.v. “ἐν,” 1722. He recognized the cause was both instrumental and final. [50] William Graham MacDonald, The Idiomatic Translation of the New Testament (Norfolk, VA: Bibleworks, 2012). [51] Chang, 147. Similarly James McGrath wrote, “[I]f all things were intended by God to find their fulfillment in Christ, then they must have been created “in him” in the very beginning in some undefined sense, since it was axiomatic that the eschatological climax of history would be a restoration of its perfect, original state.” McGrath, 46. [52] Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 172. [53] “God so designed the universe that it was to achieve its proper meaning and unity only under the authority of man (Gen. 128; Ps. 86). But this purpose was not to be implemented at once; it was ‘to be put into effect when the time was ripe' (Eph. 110), when Christ had lived a human life as God intended it, and had become God's image in a measure which was never true of Adam. Only in unity with ‘the proper man' could the universe be brought to its destined coherence. For one who believes in predestination it is but a small step from this to saying that the universe was created in him.” Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 178. [54] See also Paul's Adam Christology in Rom 5.12-21; 1 Cor 15.21-22, 45-49. [55] “Christus ist (durch seine Auferstehung aus dem Todesbereich) Herr über den ihm verliehenen Besitz, dessen ἀρχή und Urbild er ist, … und Haupt und Anfang der eschatologischen Neuschöpfung!” Zeilinger, 188. [56] King, 54. [57] Perriman, 200. [58] G. F. Wessels, “The Eschatology of Colossians and Ephesians,” Neotestamentica 21, no. 2 (1987): 187. [59] I realize my translation is awkward, but I prioritized closely mirroring the Greek over presenting smooth English. The original reads, “συνεζωοποίησεν ὑμᾶς σὺν αὐτῷ.” [60] Schillebeeckx, 187. [61] Scholars who make this connection include Caird, New Testament Theology, 216, Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 177, McGrath, 44, Perriman, 201. [62] In fact, only two of the texts I cited above explicitly say “new creation” (2 Cor 5.17 and Gal 6.15). In all the others, Paul blithely employed creation language, expecting his readers to understand that he was not talking about the creation of the universe, but the creation of the new humanity in Christ—the Church. [63] McKnight, 152. [64] Mark H. Graeser, 493. [65] Rev 2.1, 8, 12, 18; 3.1, 7, 14. [66] See Gerry Schoberg, Perspectives of Jesus in the Writings of Paul (Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2013), 280–81, 83. [67] Margaret Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, vol. 1, The International Critical Commentary, ed. C. E. B. Cranfield J. A. Emerton, G. N. Stanton (Edinburgh, Scotland: T&T Clark, 1994), 423, 26–28. [68] J. Louis Martyn, Theological Issues in the Letters of Paul (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1997), 122. [69] Martyn, 121. [70] Whether the old gods actually existed or not is a topic beyond the scope of this paper. Interested readers should consult Michael S. Heiser, The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2019). [71] “[D]ie in Christus gegebene echatologische Welt verwirkliche sich innerhalb der weiterhin existenten irdischen Schöpfung durch die Einbeziehung des Menschen in Christus, den Erhöhten, mittles Heilsverkündigung und Taufe. Das Eschaton setzt sic him Kerygma wetweit durch und wird Wirklichkeit, indem der Mensch durch die Taufe Christi Teil wird, d. h. in Einheit mit ihm dem Anspruch der στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου stirbt (2, 20) und mit ihm auferweckt sein eschatologisches Leben erhält. Die so dem erhöhten Christus eingegliederten Menschen bilden somit in ihm und mit ihm die neue Schöpfung der Eschata innerhalb der alten! Der Christusleib ist somit als sich weitende Kirche erkennbar. In ihr bildet himmlischer und irdischer Raum gewissermaßen eine Einheit.” Zeilinger, 179. [72] “Der neue Adam … Ausgangsort, in dem sich Neuschöpfung ereignete,” Zeilinger, 199. [73] Randy A. Leedy, The Greek New Testament Sentence Diagrams (Norfolk, VA: Bible Works, 2006). This is now available in Logos Bible Software.