Podcasts about thirdly

WOW Jesus Fully Human At Christmas, we celebrate when God became human, in what we call the incarnation. But could God really enter this world as a human? As Christians, we believe that God did indeed enter our messed up world, as a man – the man Jesus Christ. That Jesus was a man is not really disputable. The primary documents about Him, found in the Bible, says that he was born of a woman, which in itself tells us that at least in a prenatal state he was nurtured and formed as any other male baby was and is. His genealogical line is given and He grew into maturity as any young Jewish boy did. His birth was messy, just as any child’s birth was 2000 years ago, let alone all that was going on behind the scenes! With his humanity, and being fully human, Jesus exhibited normal human emotions such as love, happiness, joy, laughter, weeping, sadness, anger and anguish. Jesus ate and drank. Jesus grew tired. Jesus slept, perspired and bled. Jesus died just as all humans do. Religiously, he worshipped as a Jew. Not only these facts, but the 4 ‘biographies’ or gospels written about him acknowledge his humanity. He was human in every way that we are - physically, mentally and emotionally. The only exception to this, is that he was sinless. Yet we must ask, could Jesus have sinned? Yes he was tempted just as we are, but could Jesus really have succumbed to temptation? We must conclude that while he could have sinned, it was certain he would not and did not. For if He had sinned, he would have been in need of a saviour Himself! And that of course, is an untenable position. Why did Jesus need to fully human? Firstly, so Jesus death could appease God’s anger with us. Secondly so that Jesus can empathize and pray for us. Thirdly, Jesus exhibited true and perfect humanity. Fourthly, due to his perfect humanity, Jesus is to be our example to follow. Fifthly, true human nature is good. Lastly, while God is both above and beyond, He is not so far removed from us, that He cannot interact with his creation. Let us now look at some of the major errors or heresies mad ein history concerning the humanity of Jesus. Ebionite - Jewish heresy. Jesus was a man who received divine power at His baptism. Docetist - believed that the material world was evil (Common Greek & Eastern idea). So Jesus could not have had a real body, He only appeared to be human, denying His deity. Arian - 4th Century. Arius taught that Christ was a created being, trying to explain the idea of Christ being the 'firstborn' or 'begotten'. Denied the deity of Christ Apollinarian - taught that Christ had a human body and soul, but that His spirit was divine. Denies the humanity of Christ. Nestorian - 5th Century. Denied the union of the divine and human natures in Christ. Christ became 2 people (man and God) in one body. Eutychian - 5th Century. Mixed divine and human natures to create a third type of person. The human nature was absorbed into the divine. Sadly though, even in some parts of the church today, these errors and heresies are repeated. The Jesus of history was fully human, just as he was also fully God – and that’s what we will look at next time. Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file

In this episode of the Radio ReOrient podcast, Dr. Shehla Khan, Dr. Sher Ali Tareen, and Salman Sayyid discuss the ongoing crisis in Pakistan under Gaza's looming shadow . The latest exacerbation of the crisis comes with the general elections of February 2024, which represent an electoral heist of historically unprecedented proportions followed by the regime's concerted efforts to normalize the results. This conversation ties the current political climate to broader global issues, including the tragic events in Gaza. The discussion navigates through a complex of concepts central to the development of a critically informed understanding of the Islamosphere. Secularism is usually understood as the separation of church and state, religion and politics, or rationality from dogma. This is an overly simplistic reading of the concept, which dates to historically long-running power struggles and wars that accompanied the rise of European nation-states and colonial empires, and fundamentally changed the exercise of political power. Rather than merely marking the disentanglement of political from sacral authority, secularism refers to the process whereby princes and monarchs (rather than priests) gradually extended their authority over state and society in an uneven, contested, and variable fashion. The process culminated in the establishment of a form of state that based sovereign authority on a set of interrelated functions. Firstly, it assumed the power to legislate the boundaries between the public and private spheres. Secondly, it constructed 'religion' as a category denoting a distinct area of human experience, primarily identified with Christianity. Thirdly, it relegated this area of experience to the private sphere, and in doing so, also proclaimed its neutrality and non-interference in this domain as a means of promoting societal harmony and tolerance. Taken together, these endeavors enabled the rise of secular power and informed its deep anomalies. Far from retreating from the newly instituted realm of 'religion', the newly empowered secular state sought to domesticate its content and purpose, regulate its expression, differentiate 'good' from 'bad' variants, and ultimately co-opt and align with some sects and denominations while suppressing or persecuting others. Lastly, the conversation critiques in passing 'methodological nationalism'—an approach to understanding the world that considers the nation-state and its territorial limits as the naturalized, sole points of reference for explaining and analyzing complex political, social, and economic phenomena that sidelinesthe merits of a relational, transnational approach. These concepts are used in this conversation to illuminate the current crisis in Pakistan as an example of how Muslim political sovereignty, whether in Palestine, Egypt, Eastern Turkestan, or for the Rohingya, continues to be systematically undermined. Further Readings and Listening tps://criticalmuslimstudies.co.uk/project/the-political-struggle-in-pakistan/ https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/pakistan-reframing-the-debate/id1458817693?i=1000619861664 https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-political-struggle-in-pakistan/id1458817693?i=1000614889565

---------------- SHOW NOTES ---------------- Episode Number: 337 Episode Title: Breaking Through The Barriers To Self-Confidence Welcome to a transformative episode of The Everyday Life Balance Show. I'm your host, Pascale Gibon, and in Episode 337, we dive deep into the journey of breaking through the barriers that might be dimming the brilliant light of your self-confidence. Join us as we explore actionable steps and powerful insights to reclaim and enhance your self-belief, drawing inspiration from personal stories of resilience and empowerment. Podcast Highlights: [01:17] Reflecting on Self-Confidence Foundations [02:57] The Impact of Self-Doubt [04:03] Lisa Nichols' Inspirational Journey [06:08] Embracing Courage to Foster Confidence [06:20] Understanding D.M.D. (Desire, Motivation, Determination) [06:50] Implementing Systems for Success with Insights from "Atomic Habits" [07:44] Building Confidence Through Daily Habits [08:18] Morning Routines for Empowerment [11:00] Evening Routines for Reflection [11:44] Conclusion Resources: Resource 1: Interview with Lisa Nichols: The High Price Every Woman Pays! - "It Took Me 55 Years To Learn This Lesson On LOVE Resource 2: "Atomic Habits" by James Clear Resource 3: "The Miracle Morning" by Hal Elrod Resource 4: "The 5 AM Club" by Robin Sharma Connect with Pascale Gibon: Website:  www.pascalegibon.com Email: pascale@pascalegibon.com Breaking Through The Barriers To Self-Confidence This episode is about moving beyond self-imposed limitations. We reflect on how self-confidence or the lack thereof shapes our life experiences and relationships. Drawing from powerful personal stories like Lisa Nichols', we discover the profound impact of self-love and resilience. Table of Contents Recap of Self-Confidence Foundations The Impact of Self-Confidence Personal Stories of Overcoming Adversity Courage and Confidence The 'DMD' Formula Strategy Insights from Renowned Books Establishing Daily Routines Morning Rituals for Success Evening Practices for Well-being Recap of Self-Confidence Foundations We revisit the essential principles that pave the way for true self-confidence, emphasizing the need for faith, trust, and belief in oneself. The Impact of Self-Confidence Discussing how our self-belief, or lack thereof, influences every aspect of our lives, from relationships to career choices. Personal Stories of Overcoming Adversity We take inspiration from the remarkable transformation of individuals like Lisa Nichols, who overcame significant challenges by cultivating self-love. Courage and Confidence Exploring the interconnection between courage and confidence and how they fuel each other in our personal growth journey. The 'DMD' Formula Introducing the Desire, Motivation, and Determination formula as a catalyst for taking action towards your dreams. Strategy Insights from Renowned Books Gleaning wisdom from “Atomic Habits” to boost confidence and effect lasting change. Establishing Daily Routines Discover how establishing consistent morning and evening routines can be instrumental in building and maintaining self-confidence. Morning Rituals for Success Incorporating practices from "The Miracle Morning" to kickstart your day with intention and purpose. Evening Practices for Well-being Implementing evening rituals as suggested by Robin Sharma to ensure restorative sleep and reflection. Conclusion This episode is a call to action. It's about stepping out of the shadows of doubt and into the light of self-assurance. Let's embrace the beauty of becoming, one day at a time, with practical steps that lead us to the full expression of who we are meant to be. Thank you for allowing me to guide you on this path. Let's step forward together with courage, grace, and an unwavering belief in our potential. Sending you off with love and encouragement until we meet again. Remember, you are capable, you are resilient, and you are loved. ………………………. FREE RESOURCES ………………………. Love this? Do you want to live an abundant life? If you answer Yes! Click here to claim your FREE guide:  Yes! To Love Success Habits: 7 Steps To Inner Peace, Joy And Happiness. Watch now the three-part video training: "7 Key Principles To Achieve Your Dreams." In this training, you will learn the principles that govern achieving goals. Click here to get immediate access: Listen to The Everyday Life Balance Show on Apple iTunes: http://bit.ly/id1247430885 Listen to the Everyday Life Balance Show on Google Play: http://bit.ly/ElBSGoogle Listen to The Everyday Life Balance Show on Soundcloud:  https://bit.ly/ELBShowCloud Listen to The Everyday Life Balance Show on Amazon: http://bit.ly/EDLBShow ………………………………….. CONNECT WITH PASCALE ………………………………….. http://www.pascalegibon.com https://facebook.com/pascalegibonfanpage https://www.linkedin.com/in/pascalegibon https://www.instagram.com/pascalegibon https://www.twitter.com/pascalegibon ……………………... ABOUT PASCALE ……………………... Meet Pascale, the Founder of The Everyday Life Balance Show, author and "Freedom Coach," your ultimate guide to achieving your vision and fulfilling your dreams faster than you ever thought possible. With an unwavering dedication to empowering women in life transitions, Pascale possesses an innate ability to catalyze transformative change. Her mission is to guide women on a profound journey of self-discovery, enabling them to unlock their true potential and align their soul's purpose with their everyday lives. Pascale's unique talent lies in helping women embrace their greatness wholeheartedly, paving the way for a happier, healthier, and more fulfilling existence while impacting the world positively. With Pascale as your guiding force, you can expect to surpass your expectations and manifest your aspirations faster than you ever thought possible. Embark on a life-transforming journey with The Freedom Coach and unlock the limitless potential within you. As a visionary and creative, her life's purpose is to guide you to happiness through love and joy in the context of understanding and compassion. Meet Pascale at pascalegibon.com. ……………………………………………………………... ABOUT THE EVERYDAY LIFE BALANCE SHOW ……………………………………………………………... Welcome to the Everyday Life Balance Show, the podcast dedicated to men and women who want to cultivate greater harmony and balance in every aspect of their lives on a mental, physical and spiritual level. Every Monday, you will gain exclusive access to invaluable insights, practical tools and strategies shared by esteemed experts in various fields ranging from wellness and personal development to life fulfilment, happiness and success. And, of course, your trusted host Pascale Gibon, an authority in her own right as a #1 Amazon bestselling author and “Freedom Coach”. Pascale's unwavering mission is to serve and guide you towards happiness, leading you to discover profound joy, inner peace and balance. With every episode, she invites you to embark on a transformative journey, one step at a time, as you weave a tapestry of a life truly well-lived. For more information go to: https://www.pascalegibon.com/ ………………................ SUBSCRIBE + REVIEW! ………………................ Be the first to know when a new episode is released. Leave a review so that more people can access the Everyday Life Balance Show. Subscribe to Pascale's iTunes podcast: http://bit.ly/id1247430885 Subscribe to Pascale's YouTube channel: http://youtube.com/pascalegibon Read Pascale's latest articles and receive inspirational, transformational and motivational content: pascalegibon.com. Many thanks for your support. With love and gratitude. Pascale    --------------------- FULL TRANSCRIPT --------------------- Episode 337: Breaking Through The Barriers To Self-Confidence  Hello, beautiful souls! Welcome to episode 337 of the Everyday Life Balance Show. I am your host, Pascale Gibon. Thank you for tuning in. Today, we will delve into how to break through the barriers that may dim the brilliant light of your self-confidence.  Let us first take a moment to reflect on the three powerful principles I shared in episode 336 - « Cultivating Self-Confidence: Unleashing Your Inner Greatness » Principle #1: Remember that the essence of self-confidence is rooted deeply in the pillars of faith, trust, and belief in oneself. This strength comes from within. Your starting point to reinforce the pillars of faith, trust, and self-belief is understanding that you are a spiritual being endowed with a human experience. Your destiny is the full expression of your soul. Let us reflect on a famous quote from Oprah Winfrey: “What we all want is to be able to live out the truest, highest expression of ourselves as a human being.” Principle #2: Increasing self-confidence can start with reinforcing a positive self-image. By observing your thoughts and quietening the non-supportive critical voices, we appreciate the value in ourselves and others. This appreciation is the path to a fortified self-image and confidence. Principle #3: Building self-confidence also means seeking knowledge. It is about growing through learning to increase your competency and self-awareness. Now let us explore how the shadow of self-doubt can affect your life and what actionable steps you can take to reclaim your self-confidence: We have seen that when you build inner strength, you build self-confidence. However, life can sometimes challenge our confidence, especially when we face setbacks or failures. When a romantic relationship ends, it can shatter your belief in love and yourself if things do not work out as hoped or if your partner does not change. Since you have developed such beliefs, you might hesitate to look for your best match and remain single for a long time. However, it is crucial to face these challenges, understand the beliefs that hold us back and step forward with renewed faith and trust in the possibility of change and growth. Developing a 'Bounce Back' strategy will help you build self-confidence. Let us take inspiration from the extraordinary journey of the bestseller and international motivational speaker Lisa Nichols.  Lisa started her adult life with her partner being sent to prison when their son was only eight months old. She remembers the financial struggle and feeling guilty about putting herself and her son in such a situation, the mistakes and the poor decisions she made.  She got engaged to get married in her thirties when her son was three years old. Five months before the wedding, she knew intuitively that something was off and that something would happen that day. Nothing happened until 3.20 the following morning. She wakes up with her then fiancé wrapping his hands around her neck, shocking her until she passes out. Three days later, he picks her up and throws her three feet across the room. Lisa was so angry with herself because she did not follow her intuition. It took years for her to recover from her ordeal. Despite the adversities she faced, from financial struggles to confronting post-traumatic diagnosis, her story is one of triumph. Lisa bravely says about her love life: “She never wanted her partner to come into her chaos because she believed her partner deserved her to have done more work.” How beautiful! Her healing process, learning to love herself again, loving who she saw in the mirror, trusting in her worth, and her ultimate success in finding true love are testaments to the power of faith, trust, and self-belief. She is now happily married to her Mr Right at 55. To develop confidence, it is essential to first embrace courage. The courage to: Take your first step To reach out To show up for yourself every day. It is this courage that fuels what I call D.M.D. D.M.D is an acronym for Desire, Motivation and Determination. Your desire to pursue your dream must be strong. Your motivation behind your decision must be clear.  Your determination to excel or commit to completion no matter what makes you unstoppable and must be resolute. According to James Clear in the bestseller “Atomic Habits,” it is not goals but systems that shape outcomes. He says: "Forget about goals, focus on systems instead." So let us apply this idea to boost your confidence. Where in your life is a lack of confidence keeping you stuck?  Let us say it is in your career. You wish to launch a new business. You have the idea, yet you have not taken your first step. To boost your confidence, I want you to reflect on your journey and past successes. Think of something you have achieved or helped someone else with. What are the strategies that led you there? Understanding these patterns will show you that success is not a one-time event but a process you can replicate and tailor to new aspirations.  I believe that one can nurture confidence daily through supportive habits. An example is creating a morning or evening routine that keeps you grounded. These rituals act as pillars, maintaining your balance and supporting the growth of your confidence. To nurture your confidence daily, I recommend incorporating practices that resonate with you and reflect your commitment to personal development. Remember that stagnation is a form of resistance. Here are ways you can embrace your personal growth routine to build self-confidence: Devote, let us say, 20 minutes of your time each morning to activities that foster growth, such as reading a personal development book and a spiritual practice that would include prayer, meditation, breathing exercises or stretching.  Your morning routine could be going to the gym at six am. Do something first thing in the morning that makes you feel alive and resonates with you. In addition, I encourage you to include gratitude in your daily practice since it can transform your perspective and elevate your spirit. Here is a gratitude exercise you can do. I got this from my mentor, Bob Proctor:  Name ten things you are grateful for.  Send love to three people you disagree with. Create your affirmation for the day: For example, "I commit to providing a sacred healing space for my clients today," if you are a healer.  Let me give you another example of a morning routine. It is «The Miracle Morning, » as authored by Hal Elrod. Here is a breakdown of "The Miracle Morning" framework: SAVERS S. Silence - allow some quiet time through prayer, meditation or mindfulness. A. Affirmation - First, create your affirmation for the day. Affirm what you commit to in life. Secondly, confirm why it is a must for you. Thirdly, identify the specific actions you will take. For example, I commit to writing my online course to retire my wife. I schedule one miracle hour dedicated to writing with no interruptions.  V. Visualisation - visualise in advance or mentally rehearse the steps you need to move towards your vision. E. Exercise - Hal Herold recommends a 1-minute cardio workout. Maximising your physical energy will help increase your clarity and focus. R. Reading - read a personal development or spiritual book to start the day right. S. scribbling or journaling by putting your thoughts and action steps to paper.  Regarding your evening routine, you can create a pre-sleep routine. Here are some suggestions from the bestselling author of “The 5 AM Club” and top leadership expert, Robin Sharma:  Create a winding down ritual. Your ritual could be a meditation or a warm bath. Listen to relaxing music or your favourite sound. Stay away from the screen three hours before sleep time.  Reflect on the day by asking yourself: what are the three good things that happened to me today? This question allows you to end the day with positivity.  As we close this episode, I invite you to take that first step towards building self-confidence. Remember, the path to self-assertiveness lies in your small, daily actions. Keep moving outside of your comfort zone with a morning routine that works best for you, and let each step be a testament to your growth and resilience.  Thank you for joining me today, and remember, you have the power to break through the barriers to your self-confidence. Keep shining, striving and, most importantly, loving the incredible person you are. I am sending you all my love and light. I look forward to connecting with you on the next episode of The Everyday Life Balance Show.

Pilate's soul hangs in the balance as he puts Jesus Christ on trial and declares the innocent one guilty. The question lingers... are you doing the same? - SERMON TRANSCRIPT - This morning I had the privilege to sit again in the “Discovering Christ” class, which is a class we have every week to study the person and work of Christ based on the Gospel of Mark. I was struck again as we began the cycle. We're looking at infinite majesty of the person of Christ. That's the purpose of the Gospel of Mark. It depicts Jesus in His remarkable person, His authority, declared to be the son of God at His baptism by a voice that came from heaven when heaven was torn apart and a dove came down and a voice said, "This is My Son whom I love; with Him, I'm well pleased." Then Jesus begins his ministry, teaching in a way that no one had ever heard before with authority, the ability to speak the truth of God in a powerful way, authoritative way- “You have heard that it was said, but I say to you.” Then as a demon possessed young man is there, to be able to instantly drive out the demon with a word. The demons were terrified of Jesus. He had no fear of them; He absolute authority over demons. Then there was every disease and sickness known to man. There was no disease or sickness He could not cure effortlessly, instantaneously, personally, effectively, every disease and sickness. We see His ability to control the wind and the waves when He was in the boat. A raging storm came down and the boat was filling with water. Jesus was asleep, then got up and stretched His hand over the wind and the waves and said, "Peace, be still." Instantly they obeyed His voice. “What kind of man is this? Even the wind in the waves obey him.” He revealed power over death as He raised Jairus's daughter from the dead. He said, "Talitha Cumi, little girl, I say to you, get up,” and her spirit returned to her and she got up. For Him, death and sleep were no different. It's just the same as waking a girl up from sleep. That's how powerful Jesus is over death, but even more, His authority over sin, His ability to declare to a sinner, your sins are forgiven and they are. This man that we've been learning about now in fourteen chapters now going into the fifteenth chapter of the Gospel of Mark is on trial before Pontius Pilate, on trial for His life, the only perfectly good man that's ever been. On trial for what? What did He do except love God with all of His heart, soul, mind and strength and love His neighbor perfectly as Himself and didn't break any of God's laws or man's laws ever. He's on trial before Pontius Pilate. Things are not, however, as they appear. If we had been transported back in time and we were there, we'd see this prisoner arrested on trial before the Roman procurator, on trial for his life. But the reality is much different. It was determined in the mind of God that Jesus should die for the sins of the world and that that would be the process whereby it would happen. It was a foregone conclusion. What's really going on in this account of Jesus before Pilot is that Pilot's on trial, actually. Pilot's on trial. In order to make that case and to make it then relevant to us, I'm going to... often I just stick with the words of Mark. But this morning I'm going to be reaching out to all four Gospels. I would say especially John 18:28-19:16 which probably puts the trial of Pilot himself more clearly than any of the other gospels. I'll be leaning on that, but also some things from Matthew. Whereas Pilot thought that he was evaluating and judging Jesus, the reality was that he was on trial and through him, all of us are, we all have a decision to make about Jesus because the Bible reveals that someday we're going to stand before his Judgment Seat. The only way we're going to survive that is if in this world, in this time now we have, come to personal faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord. Only that way will we survive judgment day, only that way. So here's Pilot judging, the only perfectly innocent man that has ever lived and by condemning Jesus to death, a man Pilot again and again asserts publicly that He is innocent. A man he may well have believed was supernatural and incarnation of sorts. We'll talk about that. He was actually destroying his conscience and condemning his own soul, he did it, we're told in the text, to please the crowd. Behind that we can say, he was trying to save his life and his job. But Jesus put it so plainly in Mark 8:36, "What would it profit a man if he should gain the whole world and lose his soul?" I don't know if Pilate ever did repent of his sins and trust in Jesus as his Lord and Savior, I have no idea. But if he didn't, he'll spend all eternity wishing for this moment back. The real question in front of all of us, what about us? What about you? Not just that personal moment of repentance and faith in Jesus, but understanding really what this passage teaches us. There's so many lessons here. We're going to see how God orchestrated in providence the condemnation of Jesus before the Roman procurator, before any of these things came to be, that God moved providential wheels to give the Jews, the chief priests, the Sanhedrin power over Pilate, so he would do what they wanted him to do, though he didn't want to do it. We're going to walk through that and learn providence. Now overall, the purpose of this account, like any account in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John is summed up in John's purpose statement in John 20:31, "These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and believing may have life in His name." So that's the purpose today. 1. The Charge Against the Silent Jesus: “King of the Jews” Let's walk through the trial. Let's see what happens in Mark's account, but then looking at the others as well. In the charge against Jesus... Jesus is arraigned before Pilate, the religious phase of the trial is over. The Jewish leaders had come to their decision. Look at verse 1, “Very early in the morning the chief priests with the elders, the teacher of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, reached a decision. They bound Jesus, led Him away and delivered Him over to Pilate.” They have condemned Jesus to death, but they can't kill him, as much as they would like to. The Romans took away the power of that local body to execute people. The Romans retain that right, so they needed Pilate's involvement. They deeply wanted to put Jesus to death. They wanted him killed. Now we notice in John's account the hypocrisy of these Jewish religious leaders. In John 18:28, "Then the Jews led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness, the Jews did not enter the palace because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover.” This is disgusting, religious hypocrisy. They maintained an outward appearance of spirituality and legality, but their whole purpose that morning was to murder an innocent man and not just any innocent man but to kill the glorious Son of God. But they're maintaining a certain pattern of religiosity so they can go through their rituals. Pilate asks Him this question, verse 2, "Are you the King of the Jews?" That's how it begins. This was the charge the Jews had figured would work with the Roman governor. They had tried to get him, as we know earlier in Mark's Gospel, on tax evasion, saying you don't need to pay taxes to Caesar, but Jesus openly asserted that they did. "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God, the things that are God's." So that didn't work out, but this “King of the Jews” charge was weighty because it implied a threat to Roman interest in the area. In Luke's Gospel, Jesus’ enemies took another approach. In Luke 23:5, they insisted, "He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here." That basically is a charge that He's a rabble rouser, He's an insurrectionist. Ironically, Barabbas, the very one they chose instead of Jesus, was openly an insurrectionist. So are you for or against insurrectionists? In Luke 23:19, "Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city and for murder." Pilate zeroes in on this question, this charge, "Are you the King of the Jews?" Jesus gives a very interesting answer. In verse 2, "You have said it," or, "Yes, it is as you say," there are different translations. In Matthew 27:11, "You have said it." What does that mean? It’s somewhat mysterious. Perhaps Jesus meant the words like this, “Yes, it is as you say, but it's not what you mean or not how you mean. Or, you have said it but you really don't understand it.” In John 18, he goes into it in more detail. In John 18:36-38, "'My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews, but now my kingdom is from another place.' 'You are a king then,' said Pilate. Jesus answered, 'You are right in saying that I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born and for this I came into the world to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.' 'What is truth?' Pilate asked." That's a more in-depth conversation on Jesus's kingship. Jesus's kingdom is infinitely more powerful and more complex, more spiritual than Pilate could possibly imagine, but it's an entirely different thing than he was thinking when he asked, "Are you the King of the Jews?" So was He? Was Jesus King of the Jews? Answer: Absolutely, yes. As a matter of fact, that's the purpose of the beginning of the Gospel of Matthew, the record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. The first thing taught in the New Testament about Jesus is that He is the son of David, meaning King of the Jews. That's true, yes, He was King of the Jews, but not the way anyone thought, not the way His disciples thought, not the way anybody on earth thought. Yes, He's King of the Jews, but certainly not the way Pilate thought. Actually, Jesus is more than just King of the Jews. In Zechariah 9:10 it says, "He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the river to the ends of the earth." So not just King of the Jews, but yes, King of the Jews. Was Jesus a threat? Was Jesus a threat to Pilate? Was Jesus a threat to Caesar? Was Jesus a threat to Rome? Answer: yes and no. Let's say no and yes. Jesus is no threat to lead an immediate political insurrection against Pontius Pilate and Judea or Caesar and the Roman Empire. But Jesus threatened Pilate and Caesar with eternal damnation. Jesus' kingdom is vastly more powerful than any earthly ruler could ever imagine. When Christ returns, He will set up a kingdom that will destroy all other kingdoms and will itself never be destroyed. This is the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Daniel 2, it says, "In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but will itself endure forever.” This is the meaning of the vision of a rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands. The rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold to pieces. Those represent empires. All empires come to an end at the Second Coming of Christ, and Jesus's kingdom established will reign forever and ever. The account is given in Revelation 19 of the Second Coming, "Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. He will rule him with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty and on his robe and on his thigh, he has this name written: King of Kings and Lord of Lords." "Jesus is no threat to lead an immediate political insurrection against Pontius Pilate and Judea or Caesar and the Roman Empire. But Jesus threatened Pilate and Caesar with eternal damnation." Is Jesus a threat? Absolutely. Just not the way the Pilate was thinking. Jesus responds in silence, in direct fulfillment of prophecy. Look at verses 3-5, the chief priests accused Him of many things. Again, Pilate asked him, "Aren't you going to answer? See how many things they're accusing you of." But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed. This is in direct fulfillment of course, of Isaiah 53:7, "He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth." Why not? Why was Jesus silent? There's a horizontal and a vertical aspect of Jesus' silence. Horizontally, He's silent because the trial is completely corrupt and unjust, and there's nothing He can say that will change it, and He's very aware of that. There's no point in Him saying anything. As He says in Luke 22:67-68, "'If you are the Christ,' they said, 'tell us.' Jesus answered, 'If I tell you, you will not believe me, and if I asked you a question, you would not answer.'" So He's openly saying, "What's the point?” Horizontally, there's no point in Him answering. Vertically, He must be silent because He's our sin bearer and there's nothing we can say in response to defend ourselves. We are guilty. We have broken God's laws and He has taken our sins on Himself and cannot reply to Almighty God, and so He must be silent, vertically. Pilate was amazed at the silence. He had never seen any prisoner behave like this man. As procurator with the power of life, death, he was used to seeing prisoners in many different states. Some might beg and plead for their lives, groveling on the ground. Some might be terrified, unable to speak because of terror, paralyzed. Some might be sullen or defiant or louder defiant. But Jesus had a supernatural calm to Him and a peace to Him. In the Gospel account, especially in John, there's a sense that He's in charge of the whole process. He has no fear at all. “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.” Pilot's never seen a man like this before. Never. Proverbs 16:32, "Better a patient man than a warrior. A man who controls his temper than one who takes a city." Jesus was in absolute control of Himself, of His emotions, of His reactions at every moment. He was infinitely strong. 2. Pontius Pilate on Trial It really is Pontius Pilate on trial. Look at verses 6-15, “That was the custom at the feast to release a prisoner whom the people requested. A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising. The crowd came up and asked Pilot to do for them what he usually did. ‘Do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews,’ asked Pilot, knowing it was out of envy that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilot release Barabbas instead. ‘What shall I do then with the one you call King of the Jews,’ Pilot asked them. ‘Crucify him,’ they answered. ‘Why? What crime has he committed,’ asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, ‘Crucify him!’ Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilot released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged and handed him over to be crucified.” Pilot's on trial here, though he doesn't know it. As we look at John's account, we can see that Pilot again and again and again tries to release Jesus. It's his top priority it seems, below self-interest. He wants to release Jesus, he wants to set him free. Pilot knows that Jesus is innocent. In our text he says he knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him. Pilot has undoubtedly heard about Jesus's miracles and the power that surrounded His ministry. Thirdly, Greeks and Romans frequently believed that the gods and goddesses took on human bodies and mucked around in human life and did human things and got into human affairs, and they believed this. There's biblical support of this conception. In the book of Acts, in Acts 14:11-12 when Paul and Barnabas were ministering in Lystra and did a healing miracle, it says, "When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in Lyconian language, 'The Gods have come down to us in human form.'" That's it right there. Barnabas, they called Zeus, and Paul, they called Hermes. They tried to offer sacrifices to them. This idea of gods taking on human bodies was well established in Greek and Roman culture. Fourthly, we have Pilate's wife who had a dream about Jesus and sends him a message during the trial about the dream, and we'll get back to that in a moment. John's Gospel, therefore, makes it plain that Pontius Pilate was afraid of Jesus. Most of the depictions of the trial do not show this aspect of Pilate, but he was afraid of Jesus. In John 19:7-9, “The Jews insisted, ‘We have a law, and according to that law, he must die because he claimed to be the Son of God.’ When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid and he went back inside the palace. ‘Where do you come from,’ he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him no answer.” What do you think was in his mind when he asked him that question? Are you a God? That's what he's asking. But however afraid he was of Jesus, he was even more afraid of what the Jews would do to him if he didn't do what they wanted. Now to get this background, we have to turn to a Jewish historian named Josephus, who tells us what the early stages of Pontius Pilate's rule was like in Judea. It was bad. Josephus was a Jewish historian who lived shortly after Jesus, and he gives us insights. Pilate ruled the Roman province of Judea from 26-36 AD. Once he was established in his position, he quickly offended the Jews multiple times by his high-handed and arrogant treatment of the Jewish people. Right away he marches into Jerusalem and sets up the Roman Eagles in the temple itself. The Roman Eagles were looked on by the Romans and therefore by the Jews as idols, representatives of Caesar's power. For him to put them physically in the temple was incredibly offensive to the Jews. They assembled and demanded that he remove the Eagles. Pilate refused and threatened the Jewish mob with slaughter if they didn't disperse. Undaunted, the Jews bared their necks and said, "Go ahead and kill us. We're not leaving." So Pilate backed down, losing face and authority with them. Soon after that, he offended the Jews again with his handling of a public aqueduct conflict. Again, the Jews assembled a protest. Pilot had the crowd infiltrated with plain clothes Romans, bearing swords. When the Jews refused to disperse again, Pilot gave the signal and the soldiers slaughtered many of the Jews. Jesus talks about this, how Pilot had mingled their blood with their sacrifices. He killed a lot of Jews that day. But the Emperor Tiberius was so angry at Pilot for his mismanagement because if he's stirring up trouble, Caesar will have to send more troops to the region. This is key. He was under orders to keep things quiet and orderly and get along with the Jews. These two things happened before Jesus's trial. Do you not see the hand of God in all this? He's giving to the Jewish Sanhedrin, the high priests, the chief priests, power over Pilot and they traded it in, in John's Gospel. No doubt about it. It says in John 19:12, "From then on Pilot tried to set Jesus free." You see that statement? He wants to set Jesus free, but the Jews kept shouting, "If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar's. Anyone who claims to be a king, opposes Caesar." They're clearly threatening to go to Tiberius, to go over his head. There's no doubt about it. Now, as I said, Pilot's conviction is that Jesus was completely innocent. He knew it was out of envy that the chief priest had handed Jesus over to him. Three times in John's Gospel, he declares publicly that Jesus was innocent of any charge at all. John 18:38, "I find no fault in him." John 19:4, "Look, I'm bringing you out to let you know I find no fault in him." And then verse 6, "You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against." That's three times a public assertion of Jesus's innocence. Set him free, you’re in charge. Set him free if he's innocent. This whole conviction is even more greatly strengthened by his wife's dream. Matthew 27:19, "While Pilot was sitting on the judge's seat, his wife sent him this message. 'Don't have anything to do with that innocent man.'" Innocent man. "For I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him." What effect do you think that message would've had on Pilot in the middle of this? In John's account, he goes out to the Jews and back to Jesus. He goes out. He's going back and forth. He doesn't know what to do. He's like a trapped animal. All of this was orchestrated by God. Why? Because He wanted to give His only-begotten son, in your place, as an atonement for your sins to bring you to heaven. That's why, and Jesus was equally determined to die for you and me. That's why all this was happening. Now he tries the clever attempt. One of the things he tries is, "Oh wait, yeah, it's the feast. I can release a prisoner. I got an idea. Let's do that.” It was the custom at the feast to release a prisoner whom the people had requested. A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists, who had committed murder in the uprising. The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did. Pilate brings it up in John's Gospel. They both remember this custom. "Do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews," asked Pilate, knowing it was out of envy the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. However, this clever attempt to get out of this whole thing was thwarted by the Jewish leaders. In verse 11, the chief priest stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead. I don't know how they did that, but they were running the show here. They had infiltrated the crowd. They had whispered, they'd called in IOUs, maybe bribed some people, got some people to shout things out for Barabbas and then shout, "Crucify!" for Jesus. They manipulate the crowd into a maniacal frenzy. "What shall I do then with the one you call King of the Jews," Pilate asked them. "Crucify him!" they shouted. "Why? What crime has he committed? He's innocent." But they shouted all the louder, "Crucify him!” In Matthew's account, "Pilate saw he was getting nowhere, but instead an uproar was starting." It's a frenzy. Satan must've been stirring this whole thing on as well. It was Satan that was in Judas Iscariot to orchestrate this whole thing. Satan's fanning this whole thing into a flame because he was a murderer and he hates the Son of God and wants him killed. The sinlessness of Jesus is clearly established. The roots of the chief priests and elders, their wicked hatred for Jesus was envy, greed, and power. The crowd vacillating just a week before shouting, "Hosanna, Hosanna!" Now they're yelling, "Crucify, crucify!" This is the culmination of Jesus's rejection by His own people. He's been officially rejected by the chief priests and the Sanhedrin. He's officially condemned to death, but now the people are shouting for His death. "He came to his own and his own did not receive him." [John 1:11]. In Matthew 27, this stunning statement is made, "When Pilot saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. 'I'm innocent of this man's blood,' he said. 'It's your responsibility.' And all the people answered, 'Let his blood be on us and on our children.’" 3. Jesus’ Blood on the Jewish Nation (Matthew’s Gospel) Wow, what a statement. What does that mean? “Let his blood be on us,” mean we'll take responsibility. It's a common Jewish expression. Like in Leviticus 20:9, "If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father and mother and his blood will be on his own head." In other words, he's responsible for what's coming to him. That's their way of saying, "We will take responsibility, let his blood be on us and on our children." This is the very thing that Jesus said would happen in Matthew 23, after the seven-fold woes. "Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees." After all that He says, "'Therefore, I'm sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you'll kill and crucify. Others, you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town and so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. I tell you the truth, all this will come down on this generation.’" They are going to be responsible for it all. They're willing to take responsibility for the death of Jesus. Later they try to shirk this responsibility. In Acts 5, they said to the apostles, "You filled Jerusalem with your teaching and to determine to make us guilty of this man's blood." Well, you are, you are. So that's the first sense, that's the darkest sense. But there's another sense of “Let his blood be on us and on our children,” a much better sense. Because it is only by the blood of Jesus shed on the cross that our sins are forgiven, that our sins are forgiven. At present through unbelief, the blood of Jesus is upon them and their children for condemnation and for guilt, but if any individual Jewish person repents of his or her sins and trusts in Christ, His blood will be on them to cleanse them from all their sins, just as it's on us for salvation and cleansing. For God delivered Jesus over as a propitiation, a sacrifice of atonement through faith in His blood. It is by the blood of Jesus, by the shedding of blood. Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins. I believe that at the end of history, there'll be a massive turning of ethnic Jews physically descended from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to faith in Jesus, and His blood will be on Abraham's children for salvation. As it says in Romans 11, "And so all Israel be saved, as it is written. The deliverer will come from Zion; he'll turn godlessness away from Jacob. And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.” "For God delivered Jesus over as a propitiation, a sacrifice of atonement through faith in His blood. It is by the blood of Jesus, by the shedding of blood. Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins." IV. The Final Verdict The final verdict is given by Pilot. In verse 15, "Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilot released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged and handed them over to be crucified." Pilot could not evade responsibility. He washes his hands, but he's responsible for what he did. He rendered a verdict, guilty, death on a cross, but it violated his conscience. He knew he wasn't guilty. Was it really Pilot who handed Jesus over to be crucified? It was at the human level, but as I've already said, Romans 8:32, "He who did not spare His own son but delivered Him up for us all. How will He not also along with Him, graciously give us all things?" Interesting, at the moment that He was delivered over to be crucified, Barabbas was set free. That's marvelous, isn't it? It's an interesting picture. The guilty set free, the innocent dies. This is a picture of substitutionary atonement. As 1 Peter 3:18 says, "For Christ died for sins once for all the righteous, for the unrighteous to bring you to God." Barabbas represents a disgusting, vile murderous sinner who's set free from condemnation death by Jesus. I'm not saying Barabbas is in heaven. I hope so. Wouldn't it be great to meet him and say, "Generations have been talking about you, now here you are." But we don't know. We have no knowledge, but I'm just saying he's a picture of a guilty person set free and not having to pay the penalty that we deserve. Concerning the flogging, it was a hideous punishment. Picture a rod of wood and long leather straps with bits of bone and metal at the end, like a whip, only enhanced. The straps would wrap around the victim's body and then rip flesh off that victim's back. It was a hideous torture. If done enough, it would be lethal. It was done to weaken the victim before the crucifixion, so he ordered that it be done. Why? He was innocent. In John's Gospel, it was used as one of the steps that he tried to appease the people, but it didn't work. Here it is written at the end. It's beautiful because in Isaiah 53:5 it says, "He was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our inequities. The punishment that brought us peace was upon him. And by his wounds, sometimes translated stripes, we are healed.” As 1 Peter 2:24 says, "He himself bore our sins in His body on the tree that we might die to sin and live for righteousness; by His wounds you have been healed.” V. Applications First of all, the judgment theme. You've heard the evidence, you have the information. You're sitting, in some sense, in judgment on Jesus. You're deciding about Jesus. God gives you that time to do that. Make a right judgment. Evaluate Him properly. Look at the evidence. I began the sermon with the marvels of the person of Jesus as depicted in the Gospel of Mark. Make a right judgment about Jesus and trust in Him for the forgiveness of your sins and the salvation of your soul. Don't do what Pilate did. Make a right judgment about Jesus. Secondly, understand what's going on here. I've said it two or three times, I'll say it one final time. This account is evidence of God's sovereign control over human history, His orchestration of events, His maneuvering of people and positioning of people because He's sovereign over everything that happens on earth. What He was doing was giving the Jews power over Pontius Pilate so that he would condemn an innocent man to death. What God's intention was to give Jesus as a Savior for your sin. Again here, Romans 8:32, "He who did not spare His own Son but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also along with Him graciously give us all things?" What is the “all things”? I've been thinking about different pastoral circumstances that I'm walking through right now with different people in the church. It could be medical, it could be relational, it could be a sin problem, it could be financial. There's all kinds of things going on all the time in the life of the church. I don't know what's happening in all your lives.The things that you're yearning for are significant, they’re important. Romans 8:32 doesn't minimize. It's just saying, "With God already having given his only-begotten Son, everything else in the universe is lesser than that to Him. He would not withhold from you anything that would further His purpose in your life, which is to save your soul, use you in this world, and then take you to heaven.” Understand that's what's going on in this trial here. Thirdly, rejoice in God's sovereignty over wicked, unjust human governments. As we go through a political process in this nation, and we wonder who's going to get elected president or lesser roles, and not just our country, but around the world, we can see evidence of this kind of selfishness and weakness and caving into the crowd and injustice. Isn't it wonderful to know that God is sovereign over that whole thing and rules actively over it for His own purposes, for His own glory, and for the good of His people? Fourth, look at the fickleness of the crowd here. "Hosanna," one week, a week later, “Crucify," and distrust your own loyalty to Jesus. Say, "Prone to wander. Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart, Lord. Take and seal it. Seal it for thy courts above. Help me not to be fickle and weak and vacillating in my love for Jesus." Finally, it's time now to get our hearts ready for the Lord's Supper. I'm going to close the sermon time and prayer ,and we're going to transition to the Lord's Supper. Father, we thank you for the word of God. We thank you for its power. We thank you for this account of the trial of Jesus before Pontius Pilate. Now as we give our attention to the Lord's Supper, we pray that you would be with us in this time. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Transforming Perspectives |  After Jesus's death, resurrection and ascension unto heaven, an angel appeared before several disciples who were standing gazing up at the sky and asked, “Why are you still standing gazing up?”During any period of uncertainty or distress many are stilled in silence.  The event of Jesus's ascension marked three significant changes in the chronology of the age. The first,  defeating death having risen into the glory of the father so that every believer would have life everlasting.Secondly, the voice of the angel proclaiming in the like manner of Jesus's ascension, all inhabitants of the earth will witness his return, called the Lord's 2nd Coming.The gospel witness of Matthew shares Jesus's instructions to all believers to go throughout the world and teach the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Thirdly, upon the end of  the earth having heard the truths of God's Grace, salvation by faith alone in his Son Jesus Christ, reveals the times for the end of this age. The good news of the Lord's return, is a time for rejoicing but of  perseverance, as well.  Which Matthew explains the series of events metaphorically compared to harvest time and willowing of wheat, descriptive of economic, atmospheric instability and suffering identifying the time of the Tribulation. Biblical Principle | Remain in faith continuing in the works of the Lord.Matthew 13:30 - Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.Scripture References | Time for Reaping  - Matthew Chapter 13:24-30.Become the Lord's Witnesses - Acts Chapter 1:1-11.Gathering of Believers -  1st Thessalonians Chapter 4 :12-18. ___________________________________LINKS, PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES: AUDIO EPISODES available - Podcast, Music and Radio Stations. Transforming Perspectives WEBPAGE |www.youlifeandgodpodcast.buzzsprout.comYouTube | Video Media - You, Life and God Podcast Episode's Previews.YouTube | Weekly Prayers- You, Life and God - Let's Pray! Channel. Family's Prayers together with their children.Twitter | - You, Life and God Podcast #SideNotes Episode's Conversations of Deeper Insights - Vicki L. Thompson, host of You, Life and God Podcast Bible Resources - TheBible.org, 2024 all rights reserved worldwide. Connect Facebook and LinkedIn

Welcome to the E-Commerce Finance Director Recruitment Podcast, where we dive into the intricacies of finding the right financial leader for your online retail business. I'm your host, Adrian Lawrence FCA, and today, we'll be exploring the essential aspects of hiring a finance director tailored specifically for the dynamic world of e-commerce. E-commerce has revolutionized the way we shop, interact, and conduct business. With the ever-expanding digital marketplace, the role of a finance director in an e-commerce company is more critical than ever before. From managing financial strategies to navigating complex regulatory landscapes, the finance director plays a pivotal role in driving the success of the business. So, what exactly should you look for when recruiting a finance director for your e-commerce venture? Let's break it down. Firstly, adaptability is key. In the fast-paced world of e-commerce, the ability to pivot and respond to market changes is essential. Look for candidates who have a track record of adapting to shifting landscapes and implementing innovative financial solutions to drive growth. Secondly, technological proficiency is a must. E-commerce relies heavily on technology, from managing online transactions to analyzing customer data. Your finance director should be well-versed in financial software, analytics tools, and emerging technologies shaping the e-commerce landscape. Thirdly, strategic thinking is paramount. Beyond managing day-to-day finances, your finance director should be a strategic partner, capable of providing insights and guidance to help steer the company towards long-term success. Look for candidates with a strategic mindset and a proven ability to align financial goals with broader business objectives. Fourthly, regulatory compliance cannot be overlooked. The e-commerce industry is subject to a myriad of regulations and compliance requirements, varying from region to region. Your finance director should have a thorough understanding of these regulations and be adept at ensuring the company remains compliant at all times. Lastly, cultural fit is crucial. E-commerce companies often have unique cultures and work environments. It's essential to find a finance director who not only possesses the necessary skills and experience but also aligns with the company's values and vision. In conclusion, recruiting a finance director for your e-commerce business requires careful consideration of various factors, from adaptability and technological proficiency to strategic thinking and regulatory compliance. By finding the right candidate who embodies these qualities, you can set your e-commerce venture on the path to sustainable growth and success. That's all for today's episode of the E-Commerce Finance Director Recruitment Podcast. Thank you for tuning in. Be sure to subscribe for more insights and tips on navigating the world of e-commerce finance. Until next time, happy recruiting! To learn more about FD Capital visit our website today.

Getting started with the digiKam photo management software. In hpr4071 I talked about my migration from Adobe Photoshop Elements and Lightroom to digiKam. Today I will give you some suggestions to getting started with digiKam, based on my experience and my opinion. You find the digiKam website at https://www.digikam.org/. On the documentation page you find a good and exhaustive documentation. The big user manual can be read online or downloaded as an epub book. I suggest you browse the manual before you install digiKam. My second suggestion is that you go to the Support page on the digiKam site and look at the Mailing List Subscription section. You can browse the mailing list archive online. But I really recommend you to also join the mailing list. It is a very active mailing list where also the main developers participates actively. Many questions are specific and may not be of interest to you. But I have found that I learn a lot about digiKam, its capabilities and other ways of working with photos than I have thought of. Of course I also learn about issues. I have asked some questions myself and also contributed with answers. I highly recommend you to join the mailing list. Thirdly, before you install digiKam, I suggest you copy a couple of your photos into a new sample folder. When you start digiKam for the first time a guide starts to help you to configure initial settings. One configuration is to tell digiKam where your photos are located. I suggest you use this sample folder only. Later on you add your real photo folders and you can also at the same screen delete the sample folder from digiKam. I suggest this because then you can consider settings in more detail first which includes the settings for meta data import to digiKam. Forthly, consider also where you want to store the digiKam databases. Myself, I created a folder for them at the top level of my home catalog. But you can store them wherever you want to. Install digiKam. Go to the digiKam settings. There are a lot of settings. I will focus only on meta data settings. DigiKam stores what you do in its own databases. That is mandatory. In the settings, it is possible to select what should be written to metadata and not. Meta data settings also have settings for associated files, which most of all is about xmp side cars. You can select that digiKam should read from associated files. This is important to decide before your photo collection is imported into digiKam. If you forget, it is possible to read meta data again after you change settings. Then there is an option if digiKam should write to side cars or not. And if yes, if it should write to both side cars and the object, or only if the object is write protected. Next I want to highlight the tick box if Associated files should be compatible with commercial programs. This needs further explanation: Default in digiKam is to have separate xmp side cars for each type of photo file. For example, if you have a photo stored both as jpg and raw, they will have separate side cars. This indeed has its advantages but is in my knowledge not according to xmp side car standard. According to standard, which digiKam refers to as commercial, the jpg and raw share the same sidecar. For example Adobe Lightroom uses the commercial method. Examples to clarify: DigiKam side car file syntax: photo1.jpg.xmp and photo1.raw.xmp. Standard/commercial file syntax: photo1.xmp. I highly recommend you to spend an hour or two to review all settings, not only meta data, before you start to use digiKam for your real photos. If there is something you do not understand, go to the documentation and do not hesitate to consult the digiKam mailing list.

April's astrology begins with the twists and turns of a Mercury retrograde. The cosmic canvas of the month ahead supports you in re-discovering yourself all over again. Defying celestial odds this month brings a shock or surprise which swiftly flips the script, turning conventional life on its head. What might initially seem chaotic or unexpected actually winds up aligning perfectly with the natural order of the cosmos and the greater plan for your life. This episode dives into the 6 truths of this months cosmic composition. And if you missed the Mercury retrograde episode, you can catch up on that here! Listening to your horoscope can offer several benefits but the 4 top advantages include: Guidance: Weekly horoscopes provide guidance and insights into the upcoming week's astrological influences. This can help you prepare mentally and emotionally for potential challenges or opportunities. Self-Awareness: By regularly tuning into your horoscope, you can develop a deeper understanding of your own strengths, weaknesses, and patterns of behavior. This self-awareness can empower you to make more informed decisions and navigate life with greater confidence. Timing: Horoscopes often highlight times for certain activities or caution against impulsive actions. By listening to your weekly horoscope, you can optimize your timing for important tasks or decisions, enhancing your chances of success. Connection with the Universe: Many people find a sense of connection and resonance with the broader universe through astrology. Listening to your weekly horoscope can foster a deeper connection with cosmic energies and help you feel more attuned to the rhythms of the cosmos. This episode is time stamped for your convenience! (00:00:00) Welcome To The Horoscope Vault (00:00:58) The Astrology of April (00:04:20) Topic One: Strategy (00:09:16) Topic Three: Increase and growth (00:11:36) Topic Four: Order (00:12:46) Topic Five: Self-Care (00:17:07) Topic Six: Withdrawal (Hermit mode) Strategy: The benefits of personal strategy are numerous. Firstly, it offers clarity by delineating your goals, priorities, and the necessary steps to achieve them. Secondly, personal strategy ensures alignment between actions and values, fostering a sense of purpose and fulfillment. Thirdly, it enhances efficiency by eliminating distractions and enabling better time and energy management. Shock: Shock, while often associated with fear and uncertainty, can also serve as a conduit for positive surprise. Initially daunting, shock has the power to jolt you out of complacency and ignite transformative change. It challenges your perception, pushing you beyond your comfort zones to explore new possibilities. In this way, shock can catalyze growth. Increase and growth: Increase and growth are fundamental aspects of personal and professional development, offering numerous benefits and embodying the essence of progress. Through increase and growth, you gain new skills, knowledge, and experiences, enhancing your capabilities and broadening your horizons. Order: The benefits of order in personal life are manifold. It reduces stress and anxiety by maintaining structure of daily activities and tasks. Moreover, order fosters a sense of control and empowerment. Self-care: Self-care is important. It promotes overall well-being by addressing physical, mental, and emotional needs. Taking time for self-care allows you to recharge and rejuvenate, and fosters a positive relationship with yourself. Hermit-mode: Hermit mode is a deliberate withdrawal from social interactions to focus on solitude. Letting you understand all the prior topics of the month, as a whole.

17. Jesus the Risen King 1 Corinthians 15:1-8: Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. The four Gospels, Matthew, Mark Luke and John, all tell us that Jesus was crucified, died and was buried in a tomb. What do these four Gospels say about the resurrection and Jesus’ rising from the dead? Let us first look at the sequence of events over the period of time after Jesus death till He ascended. Some of the sequence events have more than one Gospel reporting them, but for brevity, I will only give one reference to Scripture. The tomb is empty Two Marys watch the burial: Matthew27:61, Mark 15:47, Luke23:54-55, Roman soldiers guard the tomb: Matthew 27:62-66, Women prepare spices then rest: Luke 23:56, An angel rolls the stone away: Matthew 28:2-4 Women arrive at dawn with spices: Matthew 28:1, Mark 16:1-4, Luke 24:1-3, John 20:1 Angels appear to women: Matthew 28:5-7, Mark 16:5-7, Luke 24:4-8, Women dart back to tell disciples: Matthew 28:8, Mark 16:8, Luke 24:9-11, John 20:2 Peter and John investigate the empty tomb: Luke 24:12, John 20:3-9 Peter and John go home: Luke 24:12, John 20:10 Mary Magdalene weeps by the tomb: John 20:11 Mary sees two angels: John 20:12-13 Jesus’ appearances Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene: Mark 16:9, John 20:14-17 Jesus appears to the other women: Matthew 28:9-10, Women report to the disciples: Mark 16:10-11, John 20:18 Guards testify to the priests: Matthew 28:11-15, Jesus meets two people on the Emmaus Road: Mark 16:12-13, Luke 24:13-32, Jesus appears to Simon Peter: 1 Corinthians 15:5, Luke 24:34, 2 report to disciples in Jerusalem: Luke 24:33-35, Jesus appears to the Disciples less Thomas: Luke 24:36-43, John 20:19-24 Disciples report to Thomas: John 20:25 Jesus appears to the Disciples and Thomas: Mark 16:14, John 20:26-29 Jesus appears to seven people: John 21:1-14 Jesus questions Peter 3 times: John 21:15-23 Jesus appears to 500 people: 1 Corinthians 15:6 Jesus appears to James: 1 Corinthians 15:7 Evidences for the resurrection These facts remain for the resurrection: The changed attitude of the disciples after seeing the risen Jesus. They changed from defeated, cowardly people to victorious, brave people. Nobody who could have produced the dead body of Jesus, did so. Their silence is as significant as the preaching of the Apostles. The multiple appearances of Jesus to various numbers of individuals and groups of people at various times of the day and in differing circumstances. The survival and inordinate growth and impact of the early church. If there was no bodily resurrection of Jesus’ would people really have risked persecution and death for a knowing lie? Dealing with Doubters Let’s say Jesus didn’t rise from the dead. Surely the authorities would have produced his dead body in order to quench the new movement! But they didn’t. Secondly, would the disciples have really risked death for telling and maintaining a lie about the risen Jesus? They were beaten, confused and defeated men until they saw Jesus truly did rise from the dead. After seeing Him, they were transformed and victorious people. Thirdly, somebody stole the body. Hardly likely, and if that did occur, for what reason? How would they have got past the Roman Guard and moved the stone a great distance from the tomb? Fourthly, Jesus didn’t die but merely fainted and recovered consciousness in the tomb. Even the sceptics disagree with this theory, one of whom said “It is impossible that a being who had stolen half-dead out of the sepulchre, who crept about weak and ill, wanting medical treatment, who required bandaging, strengthening and indulgence, and who still at last yielded to His sufferings, could have given to the disciples the impression that he was a Conqueror over death and the grave, the Prince of Life”. Fifthly, they all went to the wrong tomb. Whilst one person may have gone to a wrong tomb, not everyone would have done. Lastly, Jesus didn’t die on the cross but somebody was substituted for him. This is certainly untenable, given the rigidity and strict record keeping of Roman rule and with the eyes of the Jewish hierarchy watching. Significance of the Resurrection The resurrection of Jesus Christ provided the central theme for the sermons and teaching in the early church (Acts 1:22; Acts 4:33, Acts 17:18). But what significance is there in Jesus’ resurrection? The resurrection proved and vindicated all Jesus’ teaching and claims as the suffering Servant and attested to his being fully God and the last Judge of all mankind (Isaiah 53:10-12; Acts 2:36; Acts 3:13-15; Romans 1:4). Declared God’s approval of Jesus’ obedient service and the fulfilment of all the Old Testament promises, resulting in forgiveness of sins and salvation being only found in and through Jesus Christ, which was the prime motive for evangelism in the early church (Acts 2:32, Romans 4:24-25) Jesus’ resurrection is a sign of the bodily resurrection for all believers in him, giving a new attitude to death and transforming hopes (1 Corinthians 15:12-58, Romans 8:10, 2 Corinthians 4:14; 1 Peter 1:3 & 21) As the resurrected King, Jesus now intercedes for us and has perfected the redemption of all those who choose to follow him (Romans 5:10; Hebrews 6:20, 1 Peter 1:21). Jesus still meets people today As Jesus is still living, he meets with people at the present time. How does he do this? Jesus walks with us, whereever we go and in particular in the darkest periods of our life. Just as he did with the two people on the road to Emmaus, he walks with those who claim to follow him (Mark 16:12-13, Luke 24:13-32). Jesus speaks whenever the Bible is faithfully preached and read from, just as he opened the eyes of those on the Emmaus road when he explained the Scriptures (Luke 24:27). Jesus meets us in the Communion, with the bread and wine, which symbolise his flesh and blood. For more to think about please do read John 20 & 21. Ask yourself the following questions and see how you respond or react to them. Then why not share your answers with your spouse or a close friend, so that you can pray over any issues together. Q1. How does my faith journey compare to that of Thomas’? Q2. What can I learn from Peter and the responses he gave? Q3. How do I still encounter the risen Lord in my daily walk with him? Tap or click here to save this podcast episode as a mp3

------------------------------- 通勤學英語VIP加值內容與線上課程 ------------------------------- 通勤學英語VIP訂閱方案：https://open.firstory.me/join/15minstoday 社會人核心英語有聲書課程連結：https://15minsengcafe.pse.is/554esm ------------------------------- 15Mins.Today 相關連結 ------------------------------- 歡迎針對這一集留言你的想法： 留言連結 主題投稿/意見回覆 : ask15mins@gmail.com 官方網站：www.15mins.today 加入Clubhouse直播室：https://15minsengcafe.pse.is/46hm8k 訂閱YouTube頻道：https://15minsengcafe.pse.is/3rhuuy 商業合作/贊助來信：15minstoday@gmail.com ------------------------------- 以下是此單集逐字稿 (播放器有不同字數限制，完整文稿可到官網) ------------------------------- Topic: Water-Stressed India Seeks a Tap for Every Home The pipes are laid, the taps installed and the village tank is under construction — all promising signs that, come spring, Girja Ahriwar will get water at her doorstep and finally shed a lifelong burden. 管子鋪好，水龍頭裝好，村子的水槽正在建造。這些充滿希望的跡象顯示，春季來臨時，吉爾嘉．艾里瓦可以在家門口取到水，而且終於解除長期以來的負擔。 “I go out and put the jerrycans in the queue at around 5 a.m. and wait there with the children,” Ahriwar, a mother of three who lives in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, said about her routine of fetching from the village hand pump. “Sometimes it could take five or six hours. I have to stay there because if I leave, someone else moves ahead.” 「我大約在清晨5時出門，把大水桶排進隊伍，然後和孩子們一起等待」，住在印度中部中央邦、三個孩子的媽艾里瓦說，她的例行公事就是從村子的手動泵浦取水，「有時候得花五或六個小時，我必須一直留在這裡，因為如果我離開了，其他人就會搶先往前」。 India, one of the world's most water-stressed countries, is halfway through an ambitious drive to provide clean tap water by 2024 to all of the roughly 192 million households across its 600,000 villages. About 18,000 government engineers are overseeing the $50 billion undertaking, which includes hundreds of thousands of contractors and laborers who are laying more than 2.5 million miles of pipe. 印度是全世界用水最吃緊的國家之一，在2024年之前提供60萬個村落共約1億9200萬戶乾淨自來水，這項宏大的計畫已進行到一半。約1萬8000名政府工程師監督規模500億美元的工程，包括數十萬名包商和工人，鋪設超過250萬哩的水管。 The project has a powerful champion in Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has slashed through India's notorious red tape and pushed aside thorny political divisions to see it through. His success thus far helps explain his dominance over the country's political landscape. 這項計畫有個有力的擁護者：總理莫迪，他打破印度惡名昭彰的官僚作風，把棘手的政治分歧暫放一邊，推動計畫。目前為止他的成功也顯示他在這個國家政治版圖的主導力。 Modi has remained popular despite a weak economy and a bungled initial response to the coronavirus that left hundreds of thousands dead. He has increasingly relied on communal politics, continuing to consolidate a Hindu nationalist base he has worked for decades to rally. 即使經濟疲弱，且一開始對新冠病毒的笨拙反應造成數十萬人死亡，莫迪仍舊廣得人心。他日漸依賴宗教團體式政治，持續鞏固印度教國族主義基本盤，他投注數十年整合這些勢力。 But the mission to deliver water to every household combines two of Modi's political strengths: his grasp of the day-to-day problems of hundreds of millions of India's poor and his penchant for ambitious solutions. Modi, who grew up in a poor village, has spoken emotionally about his own mother's hardship in fetching water. 不過，將水送到所有家戶的任務，結合莫迪的兩個政治力量：他對印度數億貧窮人口日常問題的理解，以及喜好採取極具雄心的解決方案。在貧窮村莊長大的莫迪，曾充滿感情的談到母親以前取水的困難。 About one-sixth of India's households had a clean water tap when the program, called Jal Jeevan Mission, began in 2019. Now, almost half have one. 當這個「水生活任務」2019年開始時，印度家戶有潔淨自來水者約六分之一。現在，幾乎一半。 “You rarely have this drive from the government, the head of state, and it is well funded. Behind the concept, there is budget,” said Nicolas Osbert, who leads the UNICEF water and sanitation unit in India. “All social sectors were impacted by COVID. Not this one. This one was preserved.” 「你很少能從政府或國家領袖獲得這種推動力，而且資金充裕。在這個概念後面，重點是預算」，聯合國兒童基金會印度分部水資源和衛生主管歐斯柏特說，「所有社福單位都遭遇新冠病毒衝擊，但這個沒有，這個計畫保留下來」。 The country's water problem speaks to the mismatch between its global economic ambitions and the dire conditions of much of its 1.4 billion population, two-thirds of whom still live in rural areas. 這個國家的用水問題顯示，其全球經濟野心和14億人口中許多人的悲慘情況，頗不相配。印度人口三分之二住在鄉村地區。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6034821 Next Article Topic: Typhoonless year brings water shortage in fall/winter Most years, Taiwan is hit by typhoons during the summer and fall, but we have yet to see a typhoon this year. This unusual situation has put pressure on water supply levels in reservoirs around Taiwan. 台灣每年夏、秋兩季颱風頻繁，但詭異的是，今年截至目前為止，竟無任何一個颱風登陸台灣，造成水庫缺水問題。 Due to global warming, the typhoons generated in the Pacific Ocean this year have all moved northward, bypassing Taiwan. Although successive fronts and afternoon showers have brought rainfall, it was only fragmented, covering limited areas and did little to replenish reservoirs. As a result, the reservoir storage this year is lower than in previous years. 這是因為全球暖化之影響，今年大平洋生成的颱風往北移，導致沒有任何一個颱風進來台灣，雖然陸續有鋒面及午後陣雨帶來雨量，但下雨範圍多為局部地區，導致水庫蓄水量較往年低。 According to the Water Resource Agency, as of 2pm yesterday, the Shihmen Reservoir's water storage was 44 percent of capacity, the Feicuei Reservoir's was 62.3 percent and the Zengwen Reservoir's was 31.3 percent. Two of the three major water reservoirs have less than 50 percent of their water storage capacity. 水利署資料顯示，截至昨日下午二時為止，石門水庫蓄水量為百分之四十四，翡翠水庫蓄水量百分之六十二點三，曾文水庫蓄水率百分之三十一點三，三大水庫中有兩座儲水量低於五成。 In order to prepare for demand for water next year, the government has decided to implement three measures to control water usage. Firstly, starting from last Wednesday, night water pressure in the Taoyuan, Hsinchu and Miaoli areas was to be lowered from 11pm through to 5am the following day. Secondly, the irrigation of some areas of Taoyuan, Hsinchu and Miaoli was to be suspended, and farmers affected by the measures will receive government compensation. Thirdly, the Ministry of Economic Affairs is setting up a central drought response center to better respond to the crisis and to distribute water resources according to needs. Taiwanese are advised to take water-saving measures. 為審慎因應明年用水需求，政府實施三項因應措施。第一，桃竹苗中自上週三起，每天晚上十一點至隔日清晨五點實施減壓供水；第二，桃竹苗部分地區的農田，將停止供灌，政府也會給予補償，維持農民生活；第三，經濟部將成立抗旱中央應變中心，拉高應變層級，做好調度節水，更請全民配合省水。Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/10/19/2003745390 Next Article Topic: Gel-like ice is the lightest form of waterer ever discovered 迄今發現最輕盈的水形態，凝膠般的冰 The frosty cubes we pull from our freezers are just one of 17 possible types of ice, and an 18th type isn't far from being made real. 我們從冰箱裡拿出來的冰塊，只是17種可能出現的冰類型之一，而第18種冰類型的出現，距離也不遠了。 Hexagonal ice, and the occasional cubic ice in our upper atmosphere, are the only two forms that occur naturally on Earth. Other ices might be found on exoplanets or in the atmospheres of the outer planets. 「六角形晶體結構冰」和偶爾出現的「立方體構冰」存在於我們的上層大氣，是唯二能在地球上自然形成的冰類型。其他類型的冰，則可見於系外行星或外行星的大氣層中。 Under atmospheric pressure or higher, water molecules get squeezed and freeze into a solid denser than normal ice. But when the pressure drops below this, water molecules become a less-dense, lightweight crystal that's more air than molecule – like an icy candy floss. So far, we only know of two kinds of low-density ice: space fullerenes and zeolitic ices. But lighter ice structures hadn't been spotted until now. 在一般大氣壓力或更高壓的情況下，被擠壓的水分子凝固成比正常水冰更密集的固體。不過，當大氣壓力降低，水分子會轉變成輕盈、密度較低的晶體，分子內含有更多空氣，就像是冰的棉花糖。目前，我們只知道兩種低密度的冰：「富勒烯冰」和「沸石冰」。更輕盈的冰結構，迄今仍未被辨識。 Masakazu Matsumoto at Okayama University in Japan and his team played molecular Jenga to find this new type of ice, removing and reconfiguring existing zeolitic ice structures to make them lighter. They found more than 300 different nanoscale structures through computer simulations. 日本岡山理科大學的松本正和研究團隊，透過分子疊疊樂，發現這款新類型的冰；他們移除並重新配置既存的「沸石冰」結構，使其更加輕盈。研究團隊透過電腦模擬，找出超過300種不同的奈米尺度結構。Source article: http://iservice.ltn.com.tw/Service/english/english.php?engno=1161164&day=2017-12-18

Welcome back to the Hot Topics podcast from NB Medical with host Dr Neal Tucker. In this episode, we start by thinking about the news. Firstly, the overwhelming consensus from GPs in England to not support the imposed contract. Secondly, the ongoing discussion around physician associates in general practice, where we touch on an interesting report from South Mississippi around the costs and other outcomes of non-doctor-led primary care. Thirdly, NHS patient satisfaction - is important to take note but why does staff satisfaction never hit the headlines?In research, we look at two papers. First, the rate of familial hypercholesterolaemia coded in practices - how far are we away from what we should expect? And in those with a diagnosis, how good are we at optimally treating them? Second, a paper on which interventions might help people maintain their independence. After an estimated £1.15 billion pounds of research in this area, what does this new systematic review and network meta-analysis tell us?ReferencesAMA Report on PA/NA from South MississippiNHS Staff Survery ResultsBJGP Familial Hypercholesterolaemia rates in GPNICE Guideline FHSimon Broome Diagnostic Criteria for FHBMJ Community Interventions to Maintain Independencewww.nbmedical.com/podcast

14. Jesus’ Last Teaching Right mouse click or tap here to save this podcast episode as a mp3 “But now I am going back to the Father who sent me, and none of you asks me where I am going. You are very sad from hearing all of this. But I tell you that I am going to do what is best for you. That is why I am going away. The Holy Spirit cannot come to help you until I leave. But after I am gone, I will send the Spirit to you.” (John 16:5-7) In these last few chapters before He is crucified, Jesus is saying goodbye to His disciples and giving them some final teaching before He departs. Several times He has told them He is going away (John 13:33; John 14:3-4, 19, 28). Today we are going to go quickly through John 15-16 Disciples must bear fruit for the kingdom! (John 15:1-16) "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John 15:1-2) As usual Jesus uses Old Testament language, for in the Old Testament, the nation of Israel is often seen as a vine (Jeremiah 2:21; Psalm 80). However as a vine, Israel had not produced fruit that God had expected as explained in Isaiah 5:1-2 “I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit.” With Jesus describing himself as the true Vine, the implication is clear that the nation of Israel was but an imperfect precursor to his perfect self. With Jesus as the vine, all believers are the branches, and all believers draw spiritual nourishment from him. As part of this nourishment, sometimes pruning is required (John 15:2). Cleansing is also required in order that fruit be borne from the Christian Disciple. This cleansing is through regular confession of sin and partaking of Holy Communion as explained in the foot-washing scene of John 13. To prove to others they are his followers and his disciples, Jesus tells them they are to continue loving him and also to sacrificially love others joyfully (John 15:12-14). By doing these things, which is now their mission statement, they will bear much good fruit for God’s greater glory (John 15:8). The same is true of us today, if we are Christian Disciples. Disciples will suffer for the kingdom (John 15:18-27) John 15:18: "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.” Having spoken of love and bearing fruit, Jesus now declares a warning and the context into which he is sending them. We learn from this passage that opposition to Jesus’ message is unavoidable. The first opposition is that of the old nature attacking the new nature. Christian Disciples, Jesus said, were called out from the world (John 15:19). Christian Disciples upon conversion belong to a different place and are heading for a different place . Secondly, opposition is to be expected simply because of who Jesus is (John 15:21). Christian Disciples share in the life of Jesus and the way the world treats Jesus is the way the world treats all His disciples (John 15:20-21). Thirdly, opposition comes through revealing evil. Jesus, as the Light of the World, exposed evil and sin through His words (John 15:22) and works (John 15:24). At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus commanded all those who follow Him, to also be “lights of the world” (Matthew 5:14-16). This is done by consistently ensuring that our works and words match our lifestyle and that no hypocrisy will be found. Opposition brings persecution, and regularly throughout history, Christian believers have been persecuted for their faith in Jesus. In our own time, perhaps the most persecuted century of all, being a Christian is not an easy decision, but it is worth it. It is also endurable because of three things: God still remains Lord God despite all; we share in Jesus’ own sufferings and therefore have fellowship with him (Philippians 3:10) and by being persecuted, it shows we belong to him (John 15:19). The main reason all opposition can be endured is because the Christian Disciple is not alone. God the Holy Spirit witnesses with the Christian Disciple (John 15:26). Not as a supplementary person filling a perfunctory role, but rather as the pioneer going out to testify about Jesus ahead (John 15:26) of the Christian Disciple (John 15:27). Disciples will have resources in the Kingdom (John 16) The first resource that Christian Disciples have is, as we have already seen, the Holy Spirit. After all, he is the real evangelist. In conjunction with him, the Christian Disciple has three resources to use: proclaiming, counselling and discipling. Proclaiming (John 16:1-7): this is the proclaiming and elucidating work about Jesus that the Spirit performs. The Holy Spirit testifies about Jesus’ death on the cross and subsequent resurrection (John 16:14). If Jesus did not go back to glory, and the Holy Spirit was not sent, then the pioneering work of the Holy Spirit would be missing from evangelism and mission. Not only does the Holy Spirit direct people to Jesus, but he takes them to him. Counselling (John 16:8-11): As well as proclaiming about Jesus, the Holy Spirit speaks to people’s hearts, personally – one to one. He convinces people hearing God’s Word of three things: their own sin (John 16:8); their separation from a righteous God (John 16:10) and also in regards to the judgement of Satan and all who follow him (John 16:11). In these three things, a person is led to the Cross in order to confess their sin and need of Jesus Christ and the salvation only He can give. Discipling (John 16:12-16): Once brought to faith, the Holy Spirit performs several tasks for the Twelve Disciples: He will guide them into all truth and develop what is coming in the future (John 16:13). The New Testament is the product of this work, and that through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. For the Christian Disciple today, the Holy Spirit helps them to apply the Bible to their life in order that Jesus Christ be glorified (John 16:14). The second resource available to the Christian Disciple is Jesus himself! (John 16:16-33) His presence! The twelve disciples will experience sorrow and loss when Jesus is crucified. But after the resurrection, their sorrow will turn to great joy – similar to the exceeding joy after the pains of childbirth! Christian Disciples today also have Jesus’ presence with them, particularly when engaged in doing the work of an evangelist! His provision! Through answered prayer, joy abounds (John 16:24)! Prayer is gong to be of prime importance for the twelve disciples as it is a way to ensure unabated joy! His position! Jesus has overcome the world (John 16:33) and nothing can prevail against him! For more to think about please do read John 15-16 and ask yourself the following questions and see how you respond or react to them. Then why not share your answers with your spouse or a close friend, so that you can pray over any issues together. Q1. As a Christian Disciple, what fruit am I producing? Q2. Why do I suffer and endure persecution for being a Christian Disciple? Q3. How does knowing that the Holy Spirit testifies about Jesus before me, help me in my evangelism? Q4. When was the last time I showed exceeding joy for the reasons Jesus gives in John 16?

Welcome back to another episode of "London Finance Talks." I'm your host Adrian Lawrence FCA, and today we're delving into a topic that's increasingly gaining traction in the financial world: Part-Time Finance Directors in London. To start off, let's clarify what exactly a Part-Time Finance Director (FD) is. Traditionally, Finance Directors have been seen as full-time positions within companies, responsible for overseeing financial strategies, budgets, and reporting. However, with the changing landscape of business and the rise of the gig economy, the concept of part-time or fractional FDs has emerged. These professionals bring their expertise to multiple companies on a part-time basis, offering strategic financial guidance without the commitment of a full-time hire. So why are Part-Time FDs gaining popularity in London? To shed some light on this, let's explore a few key reasons: Firstly, flexibility. Many businesses, particularly startups and SMEs, may not have the resources to afford a full-time Finance Director. By hiring a Part-Time FD, they gain access to high-level financial expertise on a flexible basis, tailoring the arrangement to suit their needs and budget. Secondly, specialized expertise. London is a hub for diverse industries, from fintech to creative agencies. Each sector has its unique financial challenges and requirements. Part-Time FDs often bring niche expertise in specific industries, allowing companies to benefit from targeted insights and strategies tailored to their sector. Thirdly, cost-effectiveness. Hiring a full-time Finance Director can be expensive, especially for smaller businesses. Part-Time FDs offer a more cost-effective solution, providing access to top-tier financial talent without the hefty salary and benefits associated with a full-time hire. Can you share some insights into the role of a Part-Time Finance Director and how it differs from a full-time position? Absolutely. A Part-Time FD typically works with multiple clients, dedicating a portion of their time to each. This allows us to bring a fresh perspective and varied experience to each engagement. We focus on strategic financial planning, helping companies navigate challenges, capitalize on opportunities, and drive growth, all while ensuring financial stability and compliance. Fascinating insights, Now, let's address a common concern: the potential lack of commitment from a Part-Time FD. How do you ensure dedication and continuity in your role? That's a valid concern. However, many Part-Time FDs, including myself, are deeply committed to the success of our clients. We prioritize clear communication, establish robust systems and processes, and maintain strong relationships built on trust and transparency. While we may not be physically present in the office every day, we're always accessible and fully engaged in driving our clients' financial objectives forward. Thank you for addressing that. It's clear that Part-Time FDs offer valuable expertise and flexibility to businesses in London. Before we wrap up, do you have any final thoughts or advice for companies considering this approach? Absolutely, For companies exploring the idea of hiring a Part-Time FD, I'd encourage them to carefully consider their needs, objectives, and expectations. Look for someone with relevant industry experience, strong communication skills, and a track record of delivering results. And remember, the right Part-Time FD can be a valuable asset, driving financial success and strategic growth for your business. Wise words indeed. Thank you That wraps up today's episode of "London Finance Talks." We hope you found this discussion on Part-Time Finance Directors insightful and informative. Be sure to tune in next time for more discussions on finance trends and topics impacting London businesses. To learn more about FD Capital reach out to us via our website.

In this week's study, I continue in Chapter 18 with verses 4&5. Before I get into the study, I discuss some news events about the global elite. I discuss the so-called terror attack in Moscow Russia. I read numerous quotes pertaining to liars. I talk about the so-called conservative ministers backing Donald Trump. I also quote from the book ‘Pawns in the Game.'4.   another = al'-los A primary word; “else”, that is, different Come = Come forth. My People. = See Jerm. 50:4-9, and compare Isa. 10:20, 24. Jer 50:4  In those days, and in that time, saith Yahweh, the children of Israel (spiritual)  shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go, and seek (in the Hebrew manuscripts we see the word ETH placed here) Yahweh their Elohim. They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to Yahweh in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten.  My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace. All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against Yahweh, the habitation of justice, even Yahweh, the hope of their fathers. Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he goats before the flocks. For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country: and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain. sins.  = Here the Greek word is used as a noun. ‘hamartia' = This word can be used in 3 different ways1. a failing to hit the mark; 2. hamartema = ‘ham-ar-tee'-ah' the actual sin. 3. paraptoma  = ‘par-ap'-to-mah'a falling aside, when one should have stood upright. Plagues = play-gay' From ‘place-so'; a stroke; by implication a wound; figuratively a calamity;Babylon's evil deeds reach heaven (Revelation 18:5) 5.   her = Babylon/spiritual confusion reached = The texts read "joined" or "built together".  The idea is of a great heap firmly fastened, and towering, like another Babel, as far as heaven.  The idea is more than that of the cry of sin reaching heaven, as in the case of Sodom ); the sins themselves, many and majestic, have touched the face of heaven. Yahweh has remembered her.  Iniquities = ad-eek'-ay-mah; a wrong doneThis is a Hebraism. The length of time during which Babylon's sins have been accumulating is implied in this "remembrance." Compare chapter 16:19, "and great Babylon came into remembrance before Yahweh." This "remembrance" implies a former rebellion: a rebellion which was repressed by dispersion but is at the time of the end to find in re-union, another opportunity for outbreak. Thirdly, we notice her deeds.  In this verse we have the reasoning for this impending judgment.  "For her sins have reached/piled up as high as heaven, and Yahweh has remembered her iniquities."It is interesting, "reach-piled up."  It could be translated even "joined." It is from a Greek word kollao (kol-lah'-o) and it literally means to glue together. And the idea here is that the sins of Babylon have been glued together layer upon layer upon layer creating a final structure of wickedness that has reached all the way up to heaven.Have any questions? Feel free to email me at keitner@netzero.net

The Advanced Lessons have arrived! In this podcast, I give a basic introduction to the Advanced Lessons, what they will be about and a roadmap to how they will help you develop your reading, speaking, listening and writing skills. 1️⃣Firstly, we would give you advanced grammar lessons. 2️⃣Secondly, we would give you advanced vocabulary lessons. 3️⃣Thirdly, we would give you personal experiences and tricks. 4️⃣Fourthly, we are going to bring in English specialists or guest speakers to share with you valuable insights. ✅ After all these features we are going to enter into the realm of ENTREPRENEURSHIP, MARKETING & DIGITAL MARKETING. So get READY !

I'm excited to begin our core classes for the Zodiac Energy Empowerment Series™!! Our tenth In Person (only) class for Aries ♈️ will be learning to take inspired action through a Game Competition Night for this class w/ Chris Flanders & Katriel. Here is more about Chris Flanders: Chris Flanders is an intuitive empath and indigo child. He is clairsentient and has a knowing of truth. He has studied ancient religions such as Buddhism, wicca, and druidry. As well as having a B.A in psychology. Along his journey he has also developed his musical abilities. Chris is an improvisational guitarist who enjoys enigmatic/empowering tones. Drawing from metal, folk, rock, and his own style. Chris owns a metaphysical store and kava lounge called All 5 Elements. The shop is located in Largo, Fl. It offers a variety of services. From spiritual healing, crystal therapy, tarot readings, and events. All5Elements.net  *What to Bring to Class ~Self, dress up as your favorite super hero or a Viking/Warrior *Admission will include 1 drink up to $12 + The Feast + eligible to win prizes + admission to the Dutch Blitz Tournament  (Scholarship upon request) Scope of Today's Class : In this class, we will have a night of fun harnessing the many different aspects of Aries ♈️ energy.  Firstly, you are encouraged to dress in costume such as your favorite superhero or as a Viking or Warrior.  This allows us to connect with our inner child through the outlet of role playing & fun. Secondly, we will have a feast prepared for all of the warriors participating in the different game competitions.  This will include one free drink ticket for a drink (valued at $12). Thirdly, we will have a meet and greet with some ice breaker games that you can win prizes, a game or two of Werewolf with more prizes, and then a Dutch Blitz Tournament for a Grand Prize, 2nd place, & 3rd place. The Bigger Picture: As we tune into the intention for both the class & the series we can see how much growth there has been in this process.  Aries ♈️ class will allow us to see that even in the midst of challenges there are always opportunities to take inspired action and empower ourself to move forward & have fun while doing so.  We can see how attitude plays a large role in this process & how stepping into the vibration of the pureness of a child can change everything.   This series is to give you the sacred space to explore each zodiac energy individually through an activity and on your own time integrate your experience to go deeper on your journey. We are experiencing this series over 12 weeks (the 12 core classes) with also several intro classes and the last celebration class/ festival. Through these 12 classes its important to set an intention and watch your intention grow into your manifestation as you nurture your intention through each class.   There is a Zodiac Energy Empowerment Series™ Journal available to track your journey. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CRKHGD8S?ref_=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_dp_HXB6GHNAFFS6G9X9YY10 Location: All 5 Elements Kava Bar   Date: Tuesday, March 26, 2024   Time EST: 7:00pm - 10:00pm Amount: $30 Get your ticket today through this link for Tuesday, March  26 @ 7:00pm - 10:00pm EST: https://www.energyspeaksbykatriel.com/event-details-registration/game-competition-night-aries-class-w-chris-flanders-katriel *Email: katriel@energyspeaksbykatriel.com with any questions!

-The eye of the conscience is now redirected. It doesn't focus on my sins and on my guilt and on my inward pollution. Where does it go, when I'm under the blood and my conscience is free and it's all liberated-- Then where's my heart going-- Well, it's going to the glories in Revelation four and five. And I'm thinking of Christ high and lifted up. And I'm thinking of all of his perfections and his blood and his glories, and the unsearchable riches of Christ and all of it. The deliverance by that blood, and the wonders of his righteousness of Christ sitting on that throne.... and because of the blood, none of these things can be laid to my account anymore. They're not accusing me anymore. And so I'm free.- - Tim Conway--0-00 Hebrews 9 and 10- A Theology of Sin, Part 2.-2-16 -Put yourselves in this verse... 'It is appointed for ME...'.--8-47 Why Are We There on Judgment Day---13-38 Believe in Christ and You Won't Come into Judgment.-20-11 Beware of Your Calvinism.-21-16 My Main Question- How Do I Know My Sin Has Truly Been Dealt With---26-23 Sin and Conscience...-28-10 What Does -Cannot Perfect the Conscience- Mean in Hebrews---37-28 -God Cleanses the Conscience from Three Things.--45-05 Secondly, A Conscience Cleansed from a Consciousness of Sin.-49-08 Thirdly, A Conscience Cleansed from Dead Works.-56-39 Find That Your Life Is in Christ--1-01-41 One Word from the Lord Speaking Peace to Your Conscience.-1-04-23 Don't Settle for a Christianity That Leaves Us at a Distance from God.-1-06-22 What Does Your Conscience Indicate---1-08-48 Closing Prayer.

I do not know if we are in the end times or when the end of the world is going to be. I have no idea. It could be tomorrow. It could be a 1000 years from now.What I do know and what we have to recognize is that there is a triple iniquity in our time that makes it harder for us to save our souls.Firstly, the crisis in the Church, where churchmen in the highest positions of the Church have betrayed the teaching of Christ, adulterated the liturgy, and given terrible scandal by their actions. Consider how much more difficult it has become to live a true Catholic life today than during the pontificate of Pope Pius XII. Back then, everyone was going to the TLM, there was not radical religious indifferentism all throughout the church, and there were not incessant scandals going on.Secondly, there is the crisis in society. The Christian ideals that used to inform society are now gone. Immorality is fostered; families are attacked; political institutions have become corrupted. We find it hard to imagine a world where birth control, abortion, divorce, homosexuality, adultery, drug use and so on were against the law. It was easier for people to save their souls then because the law was encouraging them to be moral.Thirdly, there is the crisis of a new way of life that has been made possible through technology. Technology is not evil in itself but it can be used for evil. The more powerful technology becomes, the harder it is for us to use it virtuously, for the good. The human race is now living in a very different way from the rest of mankind in the history of the world, through the smartphone, through the Internet, through our rapid transportation. Because it takes more effort on our part to use these things well, we are becoming more selfish, more superficial, more sensual. Charity is growing cold.

This time on PING we have Phil Regnauld from DNS Operations Analysis & Resource Center (DNS-OARC) talking about the three distinct faces OARC presents to the community. Phil came to the OARC presidents role, replacing Keith Mitchell who was the founding president since 2008 through to this year. Phil previously has worked with the Network Startup Resource Centre (NSRC) and with AFNOG, and the Francophone Internet community at large. DNS OARC has at least 3 distinct faces. It is a community of DNS operators and researchers, who maintain an active ongoing dialogue face to face in workshops and online in the OARC Mattermost community hub. Secondly it is a home, repository and ongoing development environment for DNS related tools such as DNSVIZ (written by Casey Deccio) hosting the AS112 project, and development of the DSC systems amongst many other tools. Thirdly it is the organiser and host of the Day In The Life or DITL activity, the periodic collection of 48-72 hours of DNS traffic from the DNS root operators, and other significant sources of DNS traffic. Stretching back over 10 years DITL is a huge resource for DNS research, providing insights in the use of DNS and its behaviour on-the-wire.

Al-Burooj[1] (Arabic: البروج, romanized: al-burūj, "The Great Star") is the eighty-fifth chapter (surah) of the Quran, with 22 ayat or verses.[2] The word "Al-Burooj" in the first verse is usually translated as 'stars', or more specifically, 'great stars'.[3] The word Al-Burooj is the plural of Burj, which means fort or tower; something that can be seen from a distance. Summary 1-7 Cursed were the persecutors of the believers burned with fire 8-9 The believers persecuted for their faith in God 10-12 For the infidels is hell-fire, but for believers Paradise 13-16 God is Creator and Sovereign Ruler of the universe 17-20 Pharaoh and Thamud examples to warn those who reject the Quran 21 The glorious Quran is kept in the Preserved Table [4] The surah opens with an oath by a heaven full of stars: by the sky containing great stars. 4-8 People of the Ditch Main article: People of the Ditch Interpreters give several different versions of the story to be referred to in verses 4–8: persecution of Christians by Dhu Nuwas in Yemen, persecutions by Nebuchadnezzar, and people of the trench. It has been documented that Dun Nuwas burned 20,000 Christians alive in a burning trench because they refused to convert to Judaism.[5] 22 The 'preserved tablet' Quranic exegetes produced different interpretations of the term 'preserved tablet' in verse 22. In this surah the relationship of Quran to the 'Preserved Tablet' is correlated with the relation of the stars 'Al-Buruj' to the heavens 'Al-Sama'. Some of the Mu'tazila argued that revelations were created initially in the preserved tablet. The 'Preserved Tablet' seems to be close to another term, 'Mother of all books' (umm al-kitab), mentioned in Ar-Ra'd 13:39 and Az-Zukhruf 43:4.[6] Theme and subject matter Its theme is to warn the disbelievers of the evil consequences of the persecution and tyranny that they were perpetrating on the converts to Islam, and to console the believers, so as to say: "If you remain firm and steadfast against tyranny and coercion, you will be rewarded richly for it, and Allah will certainly avenge Himself on your persecutors on your behalf." In this connection, the story of the People of the Ditch (ashab al-ukhdud) had been related, who were a group of people who had burnt believers to death by casting them into pits full of fire. By means of this story the believers and the disbelievers have been taught a few lessons. Firstly, that just as the People of the Ditch became worthy of Allah's curse and punishment due to their oppression and tyranny, the chiefs of Makkah are also becoming worthy of it. Secondly, that just as the believers at that time had willingly accepted to sacrifice their lives by being burnt to death in the pits of fire instead of turning away from the faith, so also the believers now should endure every persecution but should never give up their faith. Thirdly, that God's acknowledging Whom displeases the disbelievers and is urged on by the believers, is Dominant and Master of the Kingdom of the earth and heavens; He is self-praiseworthy and is watching what the two groups are striving for. Therefore, it is certain that the disbelievers will be punished in Hell for their oppression, tyranny, and cruelties, unless they have asked for sincere repentance. Likewise, it is also certain that those who believe and do good deeds will go to Paradise, and this indeed is the supreme success. Then the disbelievers have been warned, so as to say: "God's grip is very severe. If you are proud of the strength of your leaders, then you should know that the leaders in the time of the Pharaoh and Thamud were even stronger and more numerous. Therefore, you should learn a lesson from the fate they met. God's power has so encompassed you that you cannot escape His encirclement, and the Qur'an that you are bent upon belying, is unchangeable: it is inscribed in the Preserved Tablet, which cannot be corrupted in any way."

Attorney Todd Marquardt talks about the many significant court cases happening right now on this bonus edition of Talk Law Radio! Today, there are four hidden legal issue blind spots. Firstly, there's uncertainty surrounding whether Texas can enforce Senate Bill 4, which is now part of the Texas Penal Code Chapter 51. Secondly, there's a question about whether states like Colorado have the authority to remove former President Trump from the primary election ballot under the terms of the "insurrection clause" in Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Thirdly, despite a federal district court in Alabama ruling a regulation unconstitutional, there's ambiguity about whether one must report beneficial owner information to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Lastly, the DC circuit court of appeals held that the sentencing of those convicted of crimes based on their actions on January 6 at the Capitol should undergo review and/or reduction. If you are an owner CEO, director, or member of a corporation, LLC, or other type of business entity, call Marquardt Law Firm, P.C. at 210-530-4278 or chat with us at www.MarquardtLawFirm.com to find out if you need to report beneficial information to FinCEN. The mission of Talk Law Radio is to help you discover your legal issue blind spots by listening to me talk about the law on the radio. The state bar of Texas is the state agency that governs attorney law licenses. The State Bar wants attorneys to inform the public about the law but does not want us to attempt to solve your individual legal problems upon the basis of general information. Instead, contact an attorney like Todd A. Marquardt at Marquardt Law Firm, P.C. to discuss your specific facts and circumstances of your unique situation. Like & Subscribe! https://www.youtube.com/@talklawradio3421 Listen here! www.TalkLawRadio.com Join attorney Todd Marquardt every week for exciting law talk on Talk Law Radio!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

May one prepare Tehina on Shabbat from a paste, or does this violate the prohibition of "Lash" – making dough? "Lash" is one of the 39 forbidden tasks forbidden by the Torah on Shabbat. The principal here is the restriction of forming a dough-like substance from a solid and liquid. So it would be forbidden on to add water to flour on Shabbat to make dough, and certainly to knead the batter after adding the water. Now Tehina is prepared by adding water and some other ingredients, such as lemon juice and salt, to a pre-made paste purchased in the grocery store. At first glance, this process does not constitute "Lash" at all, since it transforms a hard substance into a liquid substance. The problem however, lay in the fact that before the mixture becomes a liquid, it first hardens and thickens, which is precisely the prohibition of "Lash." Should we therefore, forbid preparing Tehina because of this interim stage, at which point the paste solidifies and hardens? The work Shemirat Shabbat Ke-hilchata (by Rabbi Yehoshua Neuwirth) indeed forbids preparing Tehina on Shabbat for this very reason. However, Rabbi Moshe Halevi, in his work Menuchat Ahava, rules leniently, and permits preparing Tehina from a paste on Shabbat, provided that one do so just before the Shabbat meal. He arrives at this ruling based on a number of factors. Firstly, the Rashba (Rav Shlomo Ben Avraham Ibn Aderet 1235-1310) maintains that the prohibition of "Lash" does not apply just before a meal, since it is then considered part of the eating process itself. Additionally, the Chazon Ish (Rabbi Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz, 20th century) was of the opinion that "Lash" does not apply to foods upon which "Lash" has already been performed ("Ein Lisha Achar Lisha"). Since the paste in the jar had already been mixed with water, Halacha does not, according to this view, forbid adding water a second time. Thirdly, the process of preparing Tehina ultimately results in a substance of very soft consistency, and the hard form is but a temporary stage. Therefore, the act of "Lash" performed in this case is what is called a "Melacha She'eina Mitkayemet" – an act whose result does not endure, and is thus permissible. Due to all these factors, the Menuhat Ahava rules that one may prepare Tehina on Shabbat, so long as he does so immediately prior to the meal. Additionally, he requires that one prepare the Tehina in a manner different from the standard procedure. Namely, rather than beating it very hard to expedite the process, one should instead mix it gently with a spoon, and in this manner it is permissible, so long as one prepares the Tehina just prior to his meal.

Andrew Huberman, Ph.D., the host of the immensely popular Huberman Lab podcast, has become a household name for his engaging and informative discussions on the latest scientific findings. With 172 episodes under his belt, Huberman has inspired countless listeners to adopt his protocols, from getting morning sunlight to optimize their daily energy to trying AG1 for their daily supplement fix and investing in an Oura ring to track their sleep. When I learned that Huberman would be sharing exclusive insights not available in his podcasts at one of his rare live events, I made sure to secure a spot at the sold-out Chicago Theatre, which seats an impressive 3,600 people. As he took the stage, Huberman exuded a natural charisma, pacing around in his signature all-black ensemble while sharing personal anecdotes and occasionally poking fun at himself. One particularly memorable moment was when Huberman shared a story about a back problem he had faced. He revealed that the single most effective exercise he did to alleviate the issue was to "hump the wall," which involves facing a wall while flexing and extending the lower back. The audience erupted in laughter, and Huberman nearly demonstrated the exercise right then and there. Throughout the evening, I discovered that Huberman, with his conversational style and straightforward, scientific approach, is remarkably relatable. Here are some of the key takeaways from his Chicago presentation: Firstly, Huberman practices what he preaches—well, most of the time. Despite his emphasis on optimizing his schedule for good sleep, he admitted to occasionally staying up past 11 to binge-watch Chimp Empire, potentially disrupting his sleep cycle. This serves as a reminder that even the most dedicated individuals are only human, and it's okay to cut ourselves some slack from time to time. Secondly, Huberman's passion for science is truly contagious. As he shared stories from his life and childhood, including his fascination with cuttlefish and their shapeshifting abilities, his love for biology shone through. His anecdote about discovering the cuttlefish's intelligence after initially doubting their camouflage skills hammered home the incredible nature of other species and his deep appreciation for the quirks of the natural world. Thirdly, Huberman is exploring the concept of stillness as a means to foster creativity. He recounted a conversation with record producer Rick Rubin, who shared that he felt most creative when his body was completely still. Huberman noted that this idea is supported by the example of Albert Einstein, who was known to abruptly stop mid-walk to think. According to Huberman, stillness allows the mind to expand and ideas to find us, much like the vivid dreams experienced during REM sleep. Fourthly, Huberman believes in the importance of delight, particularly the "early moments of delight" experienced during our pre-sexual stage. He suggests that these moments reveal something about our individual neurology and provide us with energy. While neuroplasticity declines after age 25, making it harder to "rewire" the brain, Huberman encourages us to think back to what delighted us as children and to pursue those activities. Lastly, Huberman demonstrated his openness to not knowing everything during the Q&A session. When asked about his spiritual take and whether prayer is manufactured in the brain, he responded, "I'm intrigued by the possibility that there are things not meant to be explored. Our species can allow room for things we can't explain with science. There's great value in allowing space for things greater than us." He emphasized that spirituality isn't about hedging bets but rather about knowing oneself. As the evening drew to a close, Huberman thanked the audience for their interest in science, just as he does at the end of his podcasts. His Chicago presentation not only provided exclusive insights but also showcased his relatability, passion, and openness to the mysteries of the world. It's no wonder that Andrew Huberman has become a trusted source of knowledge and inspiration for so many. Thanks for listening to Quiet Please. Remember to like and share wherever you get your podcasts

Gethsemane is the greatest display of the perfect humanity of Jesus in the Bible, it also offers opportunities to ponder the excellencies and perfection of his character. - SERMON TRANSCRIPT - One sacred day, God spoke to Moses from the flames of the burning bush. "Take off your shoes, for the ground on which you are standing is holy ground." What does this mean? Since God is everywhere, all at once, holy ground means that God was about to be uniquely revealed, revealed in an extraordinary way, and Moses's knowledge of God was going to be greatly increased by this encounter. "Draw near to listen. Draw near to fall on the ground in fear and wonder in worship and adoration." If that's true at the burning bush, then how much more true is it when we come to Gethsemane? Gethsemane is the greatest display of the perfect humanity of Jesus Christ in the Bible. It contains almost incomprehensible mysteries, but also tremendous opportunities to ponder the excellencies of Christ, His glories, the perfection of His character, His courage, His obedience, His trust in His father, His willingness to suffer for us, His love for us, His reversal of the disobedience of Adam, also His frailty and His weakness, His mortality, His emotions. All of this is on display. We will spend eternity in heaven, I believe, pondering these themes and others that flow through this account. This morning, we're going to spend just a little while on them. My desire, my goals with this sermon is first and foremost to exalt Jesus Christ our Savior, based on the words of this account, that we may worship Him with all of our hearts for what He did for us at the cross. Secondly, that we would understand more accurately the humanity of Jesus, His emotions, His submission, His mortality and frailty, His temptations, and yet His sinlessness. Thirdly, that we would understand the power of prayer in facing temptations, in strengthening us to do the will of our Father. Fourthly, to motivate us to trust in Christ's finished work on the cross, more than ever before. Fifthly, to help us understand the proper use of our own will, that we would learn to imitate Jesus Christ every day in saying, "Not my will, but yours be done," no matter what the cost. And sixth, to feel intensely personally, if you are a Christian, to feel intensely personally Christ's love for you. For you. In Galatians 2:20, Paul gives us permission to do this, to say, "Christ loved me and died for me. He gave Himself for me." It is right for us as Christians to say both Christ loved me and gave Himself for me, and Christ loved us and gave Himself for us, that multitude greater than anyone could count, from every tribe, language, people, and nation.[Revelation 7]. But in Galatians 2:20, “Jesus loved me and He drank my cup for me.” Here we're going to walk through all of these themes, and I don't know what the Holy Spirit's going to do in your heart as we walk through, probably a little different than He'll do in mine. But if those things will be achieved in you, then I will have preached for the glory of God in Christ. Let's walk first through the facts of Gethsemane. I. The Facts of Gethsemane All His life, Jesus lived under the shadow of the cross. B.B. Warfield, the great Presbyterian theologian, said the prospect of His suffering was a perpetual Gethsemane to Him. He said, in Luke 12:50, "I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed” or straitened, like in a straitjacket, "I am until it is completed." There is clear evidence in the Gospel. This is very important for us to understand. Jesus knew exactly what was going to happen to Him. In Mark 9:31, Jesus said, "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill Him, and after three days, He will rise." There's no doubt about this at all. He said it again and again. As Jesus comes to Gethsemane on that faithful night, the time had come for Him to face the cross straight on, and make a final decision about what He was going to do. The Lord's supper is over. They have finished the Passover meal. They have sung a hymn. They've crossed the Kidron Valley into the garden of Gethsemane. Verse 32, "They went to a place called Gethsemane." What is Gethsemane? It was a private garden on the Mount of Olives, probably walled off, owned by some rich friend of Jesus, who allowed Jesus and His disciples to frequent the place. It was outside of Jerusalem, across the Kidron Valley from the city, away from the maddening crowd of millions of pilgrims that had come from all over the settled world for the Passover feast. The word Gethsemane itself means “oil press”, probably included a physical press for making olive oil from the harvest of olives on the mount, and the crushing of those olives produced a reddish, viscous, precious fluid, olive oil, to flow into containers for sale or for use. But this also could stand somewhat of a spiritual metaphor for the crushing pressure, spiritual pressure, that Jesus would experience there, so intense that by the end of the time there, His blood was flowing like sweat, like great drops of blood dropping from His face. Why did Jesus go to Gethsemane? It was a place, a regular place of retirement and prayer, a refuge for Him and His disciples. It was commonly used by Jesus and His disciples. Therefore Judas, who had left by then to betray Him that very night, would know exactly where Jesus was going that night. It was His habit to go there. He made it His habit, because in part He wanted to make it easy for Judas to find Him that night and betray Him. This is evidence, clear evidence of His willingness to lay down His life for us. He was never a victim trapped by external circumstances He didn't foresee or couldn't control. It's not the case. John 10:18, Jesus said, “No one takes my life from me, but I lay it down freely of my own accord." It's vital to understand that. Jesus comes to Gethsemane for all those reasons, and He gives a command to His disciples, and He separates away from them. Look at verse 32-33, "Jesus said to His disciples, 'Sit here while I pray.' Then He took Peter, James, and John along with Him.” Luke tells us that Jesus separated from His disciples by a distance of a stone's throw, maybe 100, 150 feet, but He also took His closest disciples with Him. They were His best friends in the world, His closest friends, and He wanted to be with them at that point, Peter, James, and John. These are the same three, of course, that had viewed Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration. It's amazing that these three saw Him at His most glorious, His most radiantly glorious in the days of His incarnation on Earth, and also would see Him at His most humbled and abased here in the garden of Gethsemane, eyewitnesses of both. He went there, Jesus did, He separated Himself so that He could pray. Jesus' understanding of prayer is infinitely greater than ours, clearly greater than Peter, James, and John's that night. Jesus knew it was only by prayer that He would be able to get through the cross, so He went there to pray. We see the awesome and the overpowering emotional distress that comes upon Jesus. First of all, it's stated in the accounts. Verse 33, “He began to be deeply distressed and troubled.” In Matthew 26:37, “He began to be sorrowful and troubled.” It's not only stated in the accounts, but Jesus says it about Himself. Look at verse 34, "'My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,' He said to them." "Jesus knew it was only by prayer that He would be able to get through the cross, so He went there to pray." These overpowering emotions, there are two words, we're going to save one of the words for later, but He says He's “sorrowful”. The root word has to do with grief, sadness of an overwhelming nature, usually associated with death. Then “troubles”. It refers to a distracted or anxious state of mind or soul, like someone consumed with anxiety about an impending event. His statement says, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow," as though He's surrounded by it. He's walled in by grief. There's no escape from it except by His own death, right there in the garden. "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow, even to the point of death," He says. I don't think this was just a phrase or a metaphor. I think it was literally true. I think He was literally close to dying in the garden of Gethsemane. So the Father has to dispatch an angel to strengthen Him. Luke 22:43, "An angel from Heaven appeared to Him and strengthened Him." What an amazing moment that was. Aa amazing picture of His frailty, the frailty of the Son of God in His humanity. This angel that was dispatched from Heaven, was created by Jesus, and yet at that moment, Jesus is so much weaker than the angel. It says in Luke's account, Luke 22:44, "And being in anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground." This is literally true. We look at that, it's not just an analogy, but it's drops of blood. I would think then that what happened was His blood pressure spiked there in the garden of Gethsemane, the internal pressure so great that it seemed like the capillaries just under the skin burst, they couldn't handle the pressure, and the blood came out of the pores. I mean, not a little, a lot, and it's flowing down His face and dripping to the ground there in the garden of Gethsemane, great drops of blood. It seems quite likely that, had Jesus not been physically strengthened at that moment, He might've died right there in the garden. Then Jesus prays. Look at verse 35-36, "Going a little farther, He fell to the ground, and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from Him. "Abba Father,” He said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me, yet not what I will, but what you will." His physical position, He's on His face, He's prostrate, totally weak, helpless, submissive to God, as low as He can be. As Joseph Hart put in a 1759 hymn, "Come you sinners, poor and needy. View Him groveling in the garden, low your maker prostrate lies." And then the request is, “If it's possible, Abba Father," He said, "Everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me." For any parent of a child, this prayer must be the most heartrending you can possibly imagine. “Abba" means “daddy”. He's reduced to speaking like a little child. I can scarcely imagine what this must have done to His heavenly Father, who's the most perfect, compassionate being there could ever be, whose heart goes out to those that suffer, but especially His Son, whom He loved with a perfect love, with a love so complete that we can't even imagine how great that love would be. How much would Jesus's prayer rip the heart of a loving heavenly Father? "Daddy, you can do anything. If it's possible, take this cup from me." What loving father wouldn't do everything he could to alleviate the suffering, this kind of suffering from a child? But Jesus is also probing the limits of the sovereignty of God within the scope of His plan, “If it's possible.” Later, that same evening in Matthew's account, when Peter draws his sword to rescue Him from the cross, He tells him to put his sword away, and says, "How then would the Scripture be fulfilled that says it must happen in this way?" No, it isn't possible. Once it is written, once it is written, and God has made His commitment and signed it in the blood of millions of sacrificial animals, over centuries of history, and specific careful promises laid out in the prophets, there was no other way. What is this cup? How do we understand the cup? In Scripture, the cup in prophetic language frequently represents the judgments of God, the righteous judgments of God on a sinner or on sinful people or sinful nations. It's a regular pattern, the word “cup”. The most potent example of this word cup is in Revelation 14, "God's wrath and judgment poured out on the damned." Revelation 14:10-11, "He too will drink the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of His wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb, and the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. There is no rest, day or night." That's the cup. That's your cup and my cup set before Jesus there in Gethsemane. It's Hell. It's the wrath of God poured out on sinners. Jesus is staring into the cup of the wrath of God, and understandably in His humanity, shrinking back in horror. The wrath of God is terrifying, God is a consuming fire. The wrath of God is His omnipotence focused like a white-hot laser beam on the destruction of His enemies. Jesus is shrinking back from that, from drinking the cup of God's wrath in our place. We could also imagine He's shrinking back from being our sin bearer. We don't understand the purity of the person of Christ. We're just so used to sin. 2 Corinthians 5:21 said, "God made Him, Jesus, who had no sin, to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God." It's like having tons of raw sewage poured on a perfectly pure being, spiritual sewage. In the atonement, then Jesus, the only perfectly holy man that has ever lived, would become sin for us. He would bear the defiling sins of all of His people from every generation of history, all the filth and corruption, all the lust and murder, all the covetousness and greed, all of that poured onto Jesus as our substitute. Then we see the submission of Jesus. Verse 36, "Yet not what I will, but what you will." This is the centerpiece of this magnificent moment. This is the center of it. "Not what I will, but what you will." This is the greatest act of submission and courage in the history of the human race. More on this in a moment. Then we have the admonishment of the sleeping disciples, verse 37-38, "He returned to His disciples and found them sleeping. 'Simon,' He said to Peter, 'are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray, so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.'" Matthew tells us Jesus said this to all three of them, but Mark focuses specifically on Peter. By contrast with Jesus, we have the weakness and the unbelief, really, of the disciples exposed here. Jesus specifically warns them of falling into temptation, not merely being tempted, but being ensnared and overcome by it. That's what it means to fall into temptation. He tells them that the remedy is to watch and pray. He also marvels at their weakness that they're not able to watch and pray with Him for even one hour. Peter in particular should have been getting ready for the most intense spiritual struggle of his life, but instead he's giving in to the weakness of the flesh. That famous expression, “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” That was Peter. Amazing also, isn't it, the shepherd heart of Jesus, to break off His intense prayer to His father, which He knew better than any of us, how much He needed, breaks that off to go back and check on His disciples, make sure they're praying, make sure they're getting ready for what they're about to face, to reason with them, to pray, and watch and pray. Then in verse 39, we have Jesus' second prayer, "Once more, He went away and prayed the same thing." Matthew gives a little more detail. "My father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done." It's an evolution of the conversation that He's having with His father on this issue of the cup. Then He goes back, and we have the disciples' second failure, verse 40, "When He came back, He again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to Him." Luke tells us in Luke 22:45, "When He rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, He found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow." Then we have Jesus' final prayer. It's assumed in Mark and openly stated in Matthew 26:44, "So He left them and went away once more, and prayed the third time, saying the same thing." Finally the end of the account, verses 41-43, "Returning the third time, He said to them, 'Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough. The hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us go. Here comes my betrayer.' Just as He was speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, appeared. With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priest, the teacher of the law, and the elders." Jesus has effectively faced His final temptation there in the garden and conquered it, and now He rises from His moment of greatest weakness, and goes forth mightily to conquer sin and death with unflinching courage. II. The Mysteries of Gethesemane Those are the facts of Gethsemane. Now let's talk about the mysteries of Gethsemane. A. W. Tozer said, "If you've never faced mystery in your study of God, I doubt whether you've ever heard a single word from God at all." We will not plumb the depths of Gethsemane here. The issue has to do with Jesus' incarnation, the theological mystery of the incarnation. The incarnation of Jesus Christ is perhaps the most profound mystery in the Bible. How can Jesus be both fully God and fully man? Many over the centuries have questioned this, and sought to deny one or the other. Dualistic philosophies and theologies like the Gnostics early on, and the Docetists, deny the humanity of Christ, saying He only seemed to be human. Gethsemane is a powerful antidote to this heresy. Jesus' humanity is on full display here, especially in His weakness, His frailty, His wavering, His fear, shrinking back, and to some mysterious degree, His limited knowledge. The fact that Jesus in His incarnation can learn things. We’ll get to more of that in a moment. Jesus's emotional life is real and full and perfect. He fully displays the reality of His title, Man of Sorrows. How then can Christ be both omnipotent deity and this weak humanity? How do we understand and explain His stunning fear of death? Lots of people face death more courageously, overtly courageously than this. It's not that rare a story. Soldiers that are willing just to die, so that others may live. That actually is not all that rare. Socrates famously took the cup of hemlock, knowing it was his own death in that cup, unflinchingly drank it to the bottom and died. But Jesus seems different, just a quantum level difference. Martin Luther said, "No man ever feared death like this man." How can we understand this? How can the infinite creator of all things visible and invisible need help from an angel? How can He need strengthening? How can He shrink back like this from death? So, clearly the answers to all these questions is a mystery, but it shows clearly the humanity of Christ. We get to verse 33, and here I want to show you something that, unless you have the KJV, you won't see. The King James Version is the only version that translates the Greek word in the simplest way, the most direct way. "Now, when Christ entered Gethsemane, He knew exactly what was going to happen to Him factually." Factually. He knew He would most certainly die on the cross as a ransom for sinners. But apparently, it seems, there was a dimension of knowing that was withheld from Him by His father until this moment. Why do I say that? There's a shocking word in the KJV translation of verse 33, which accurately translates. It's not a mistranslation, it’s a good translation. "And He taketh with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy." Sore amazed. The word “amazed” stops us in our tracks. The word “sore” just means extremely, like overwhelmed with amazement. So in some mysterious way, Jesus was amazed at Gethsemane. The same word is used of a crowd reaction to Jesus's ministry, or to the apostles healing of the lame beggar in Acts 3. It is frequently translated in those places, “astonished.” It implies some sense of wonder or surprise. Something is hitting Jesus here that He didn't see coming, and hence He is sore amazed. How does that apply to Jesus at Gethsemane? I believe that when Jesus began to pray, the Father revealed to Him in an immeasurably more vivid way, to His soul, to His mind and His soul, what it would actually be like to drink the cup of His wrath on the cross as our substitute. Drinking the cup of God's wrath poured full strength on Him. The revelation occurred within Jesus's mind and soul, and knocked Him to the ground. This kind of showing or display language was essential to Jesus' role and His daily ministry, actually. In John 5:20, Jesus said, "The Father loves the Son and shows Him all He does. Yes, to your amazement, He will show Him even greater things than these." More in general in the Scripture, this is a regular pattern, that the prophets were shown spiritual visions and realities in the spiritual realm. They had visions and dimensions like Ezekiel, of wheels within wheels and all that. This is prophetic vision. This is common, actually. But Jesus says He openly got His marching orders from the Father daily. He doesn't say any word except what the Father has told Him to say. He doesn't do anything except what the Father is doing. The Father shows the Son what He's doing. What did He show Him in Gethsemane? He showed Him the cup. "Father, what are we doing next?" "Well, today I'm going to kill you. Kill you for the sins of the world. That's what we're doing next, and this is what it'll be like." It's akin to the difference between seeing an old black and white photo of the Grand Canyon and seeing like an IMAX movie or a virtual reality helicopter tour through the ravine itself. It's just a whole different level of impression made to the mind. As Christ began to pray, God turned up the intensity in Christ's mind of what it would actually be like to drink the cup of His wrath, to absorb the lightning of His indignation, to go through Hell in our place as our substitute, and it knocked Him to the ground, it increased His blood pressure so it spiked, He starts bleeding out of His pores. Why did He do it? Why did the Father do this? I think He did it, I believe, to give Christ the ability to make a more informed choice of whether He would do it or not, whether He would go through with their plan. He refrained from doing it earlier, because look what happened to Him. I mean, the human body can only stand so much strain. It would've been too great for Him to bear. I think, in effect, some infinitely mysterious conversation went on between the Father and the Son. The Father shows the Son the cup, and then the Father says, "Son, this is what the cup of my wrath will be like for you to drink." Jesus answered, "Father, is it possible for me to save my people without drinking that terrifying cup?" The Father. "Son, no. There is no other way. Will you do it anyway?" And now comes what I've called the most heroic moment in human history. "If it is not possible to save my people any other way than drinking that cup, may your will be done." If you ever don't feel loved by God, think about that moment. Think about that. That's your cup He drank, mine too. At that moment, Christ put His own will completely under the will of the Father. At that moment, as I said, He overturned the wretched choice made by the first Adam, that he had made in the Garden of Eden. All the wretched choices that the sons and daughters of Adam have made since by their willful sinning, that's yours and mine, all the bad choices we have made, He overturned all of that. Here, Christ showed the proper use of human will, and that is to do the will of God. So, bow your head and worship all generations of Christians. This is the most perfect act of obedience ever. We also have the mystery of Jesus' prayer. Is His will somehow different than the Father's? Are they at cross-purposes? Some have wondered if the wrestling Jesus displayed in Gethsemane, "If it is possible, take this cup from me," was indicative that His will was somehow against the cross, as though He's battling within Himself, as though He and the Father disagreed about this. In general, we just as Christians have to treat Gethsemane like holy ground, and limit your speculation, and don't go too far. Jesus has said plainly in John 10:30, "I and the Father are one." No doubt about that. He wasn't against the Father's will. He loved the Father's will. Isaiah 53:10 says, "It was the Lord's will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer. And though the Lord makes His life a guilt offering, He will see His offspring and prolong His days. The will of the Lord will prosper in His hand." It's so beautiful. It's like the Father wrote a magnificent concerto, and Jesus the soloist played it to perfection. He made it beautiful. The will of the Lord prospers. No, they're not at cross-purposes, not at all. It just shows that the cost to Jesus, and indeed to the Father, was infinitely high, and the Father was willing to pay it. He did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up to this for us all. III. The Glories of Gethsemane Finally, the glories of Gethsemane. We've said, the free will of Jesus, properly on display. Jesus went to the cross of His own free will. He was not coerced, He was not forced. Therefore, for those that talk often about free will, this is free will. This is what free will looks like. He had no sin nature holding Him back, no corruption. He was free, and He used it perfectly to do the will of God. That's what it's for. That's what free will is for, to do the will of God. Because the Father has a will, too. Our will is patterned after the fact that the Father has a will. Jesus taught us that the best use of human will is to find its joy and its delight and its fruitfulness in the will of God. He taught us that. From this moment in time on, Jesus will only be able to escape the cross by a direct application of His supernatural power, His wonder-working power, to get out of it. Physical forces will come on Him at the end of this account and seize Him, and the only way He'll be able to get out of it is by using His power. And He could do it, but He was not going to do it. This is His last moment of freedom, and He gave it up willingly. Therefore, we need to understand the significance of this choice theologically, Romans 3:26. Some have blasphemously, I don't even want to say these words, but blasphemously called the idea of substitutionary atonement Heavenly child abuse, as the Father's crushing His son in some way. Rather, in Gethsemane we have God the Father revealing to the Son as much as He possibly could do, what it would be like to drink the cup, and asking Jesus to make a choice, and He did. Therefore, it was of His own free will that He did it. "Not my will, but yours be done." This removes any charge of injustice against the Father concerning substitutionary atonement. Romans 3:25, "God put Jesus forward as a propitiation by His blood to be received by faith." Propitiation is the one who removes the wrath of God by drinking the cup. Romans 3:26, "He did it to demonstrate His justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus." It is a perfect display of justice, not injustice. Why? Because in part of this transaction that we've been describing here. The willingness of Jesus to do it removes any charge of injustice. We see also the obedience of Jesus versus the disobedience of Adam. I've mentioned it, but the clear parallel is set up in Romans 5:19, "Just as through the disobedience of the one man, the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man, the many will be made righteous." That's staggering. You know what that means? By Jesus's obedience, He makes you righteous, if you're a Christian. What that means is He makes you obedient, positionally obedient. You are seen by God in Christ at the moment of your conversion to be as obedient as Jesus. How about that? That is our imputed righteousness. It's staggering. This is the righteousness given to you as a gift. God sees you as obedient as Jesus was there in Gethsemane, as a gift. What is that act of obedience? It's His willingness to die on the cross. Philippians 2:8, "Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death, even death on a cross." Then Hebrews 5:8-9, "Although He was a son, He learned obedience." What a staggering phrase that is. "He learned obedience from what He suffered, and once made perfect or qualified, He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him." Wow. Adam used his free will to rebel against God, and we all died in that. The second Adam, Jesus, uses His free will to make a right choice, and we all live and are seen righteous in that. That's our salvation. "Adam used his free will to rebel against God, and we all died in that. The second Adam, Jesus, uses His free will to make a right choice, and we all live and are seen righteous in that. That's our salvation." Finally, we see the perfect love of Jesus, first for God, and then for His people. In Gethsemane, we see Jesus loving God and us sinners more than He loved Himself. It was the revulsion of the thing that caused Him to shrink back, but it was love, first and foremost love for God, and secondly love for us, that caused Him to deny Himself, first vertically, John 14:31, "The world must learn that I love the Father, and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me to do." Think about that. "The world must know and learn that I love my Father, and they'll know that when they see me go to the cross." Secondly, love for us. John 15:13-14, "Greater love has no one than this, that he laid down his life for his friends. You are my friends." We see that courage of Jesus, that love that drives out fear. Many people have willingly laid down their lives to save others. It occasionally happens, very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man, someone might possibly dare to die. So, the Congressional Medal of Honor is given to people that were willing to lay down their lives in the battlefield. It happens. But nothing ever in history has been like this incredible moment of courage. IV. Applications of Gethsemane Come to Christ. Trust in Jesus. There is a cup of wrath, of righteous, just wrath, poured out from God on sinners. Either Jesus will drink that cup in your place, or you'll drink it for all eternity. Those are the choices. There's no other option. You can be in denial that there is such a cup, but there is a cup of God's wrath against sin. Jesus is offering in the gospel to drink yours for you. Trust in Him, repent of sin, turn away from wickedness, and turn to Christ in faith, and let Him save you. If you're already a Christian, worship Christ for what He did for you. Thank Him for what He did for you. I don't know how you're made up. I cry basically at one thing, for the most part. It's always the same. It's Christ's love for me as a sinner. It just melts me. I melt every time, and this melts me. This text probably melts me more than any other text. I almost can't talk about it in everyday life without choking up. I never stop thinking about this, my savior drinking my cup. I want to take and sharpen this and apply it on the matter of Christian contentment. When I was studying Christian contentment, I wrote one statement that people who have read the book that I wrote said is the most convicting in the whole book, and that is this: "Has Christ crucified and resurrected done enough for you to be happy today? Or does He have to be a little more?" Let's take it in the language of Gethsemane. Is it enough for Jesus to drink your cup and that's it, so you don't have to drink it and you'll spend the eternity in Heaven? Or does He have to do some more beyond that? I'm not minimizing the things you would pray for. For the healing of somebody that you love and you want to see them heal. I'm not minimizing that. I'm just asking you to put it in perspective, Him drinking your cup for you is the greatest act of love and gift that could ever be. Keep in mind, Romans 8 said He did not spare His own son. God's not holding anything back because He's stingy. He has given the greatest thing He could ever give, His beloved, His perfect son, shattered on the cross. It should be enough, it should be enough for you to be happy. What about obedience? What about free will? This is how you should use your free will the rest of your lives. What do you say? Just choose to say to God, no matter how difficult it is, "Not my will but yours be done." Close with me in prayer. Father, thank you for this infinitely deep text. We'll never be able to finish it, to plumb the depths of it, to understand it. I pray that you would take its lessons and burn them into our hearts. Help us to be overwhelmed with thankfulness, with gratitude. Help us to be overwhelmed with love for Jesus. Help us to want to imitate Him and to use our wills the way He used His. Help us to understand that, oh Lord. And God, I pray that no-one that's here today would leave this place still under the wrath of God, but they would just simply transfer that, the sin and the wrath, onto Jesus by faith, by simple faith, and trust in Him that they would know the full and perfect forgiveness of God. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Entrepreneurship and international missions pair well together. Katie Wiseman shares how. Entrepreneurs can gain exposure to new markets and customers, which can help them expand their business and increase their revenue. Secondly, they can learn about new technologies, business practices, and cultures, which can help them improve their products and services. Thirdly, they can network with other entrepreneurs and investors, which can help them find new opportunities and sources of funding. Finally, they can gain a better understanding of global trends and challenges, which can help them make more informed decisions and stay ahead of the competition.

Talk 23  Mark 8:1-21 Feeding the Four Thousand Welcome to Talk 23 in our series on Mark's Gospel. Today we are looking at Mark 8:1-21. This passage includes the story of Jesus feeding the 4,000, which is similar in many ways to the account of the feeding of the 5,000 recorded in Chapter 6. As a result, liberal scholars have suggested that this is just a variant account of the same miracle rather than a totally separate one.   So today we'll begin by looking at the biblical evidence that this was indeed a distinct event which took place at a different time, in a different place, and with a different group of people. We'll then consider what lessons we can learn from the passage with regard to Jesus, his opponents and his disciples. So let's begin by reading Mark 8:1-21.   During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, 2 "I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance." 4 His disciples answered, "But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?" 5 "How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked. "Seven," they replied. 6 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people, and they did so. 7 They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. 8 The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 9 About four thousand men were present. And having sent them away, 10 he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the region of Dalmanutha.   11 The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. 12 He sighed deeply and said, "Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it." 13 Then he left them, got back into the boat and crossed to the other side.   14 The disciples had forgotten to bring bread, except for one loaf they had with them in the boat. 15 "Be careful," Jesus warned them. "Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod." 16 They discussed this with one another and said, "It is because we have no bread." 17 Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: "Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? 18 Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don't you remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" "Twelve," they replied. 20 "And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" They answered, "Seven." 21 He said to them, "Do you still not understand?"   So, to begin with, what's the evidence that this is not a variant account of the same miracle as the feeding of the 5,000 recorded in Chapter 6?     Why this is not a variant account of the feeding of the 5,000 We need not spend much time on this. If you take seriously the authority of the Scriptures, you will quickly see that this is a completely different miracle from the feeding of the 5000. Firstly, both Matthew and Mark record them closely together as two separate accounts of two separate miracles. Secondly, despite the similarities, there are also many differences in the details of the two accounts. Thirdly, the two miracles took place in different places and with different people. The feeding of the 5000 took place in the largely Jewish region of Galilee. The feeding of the four thousand was in the Gentile region of the Decapolis. And finally, and most important of all, Jesus himself refers to them as separate events. In verses 19-20 he says: When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" "Twelve," they replied. 20 "And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" There is no way that Jesus could have said this if the two stories were variant accounts of the same miracle. And if Jesus was able to perform such a miracle once, he was certainly able to do it twice! But that brings us to what we can learn about Jesus in this story, Lessons about Jesus When we looked at the feeding of the 5,000 in Talk 18 we noticed three main characteristics about Jesus: ·      His compassion for the people ·      His concern for his disciples as he seeks to train them to trust him ·      His confidence in his heavenly Father. And we noticed that these qualities are seen over and over again throughout his ministry. So it's not surprising that we see them here as he feeds the 4,000. Again he has compassion on the people because they have nothing to eat (vv.2-3). Again we see his concern for the weakness of his disciples' faith and their lack of understanding (vv.4, 17-18, 21). And again we see his confidence in God as he gives thanks for the few loaves and fishes he has (vv.6-7) and feeds a multitude with them. But perhaps there's just one more thing we can learn about Jesus from this passage. The repetition of such a miracle shows us that if Jesus has done something once, he can do it again. And if he could do it again then, he can do the same kind of thing again today.   Lessons about his opponents The Pharisees are mentioned in verses 11 and 13. In verse 11 they come to test Jesus and ask for a sign from heaven, to which Jesus replies   Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it (v.12).   And in verse 15 Jesus warns his disciples Be careful…Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod. Two questions arise from these verses: 1.     Why does Jesus refuse to give his opponents the sign they are asking for? 2.     Why does he warn his disciples to watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees? Why does Jesus refuse to give his opponents the sign they are asking for? First, it's worth noting the significance of the particular wording Jesus uses here. Although it's not clear in our English translations, his hearers would have understood him as taking an oath. So his refusal to give them a sign was extremely strong. He was determined not to take a course of action that he had already firmly rejected when Satan had tempted him to throw himself down from the highest point of the temple (Matthew 4:5-6). Secondly, please note that his refusal is recorded in all four Gospels. In Matthew 12:39, for example, Jesus also says that a wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign and goes on to say that the only sign that would be given it would be the sign of his resurrection from the dead (cf. Luke 11:29-32). And he knew that even then, despite the clear evidence for his resurrection, they, like many today, would still refuse to believe.  Notice what he says in Luke 16:31 when talking about rich man and Lazarus: If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead. By mentioning Moses and the Prophets Jesus was referring to the Old Testament, the only Bible they had at the time. If people are determined to reject the testimony of Scripture, they will also reject the evidence for the resurrection. God does not work miracles in an attempt to convince those who, in their hearts, really do not want to believe, those who, like the Pharisees, only wanted to test him. He does, however, work miracles to help those whose hearts are open to his word. John's Gospel records seven signs to enable people to believe and in chapter 20 it says that   Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (vv30-31).   It's by believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, that we have eternal life. And miraculous signs are given to help us to believe. So when Jesus sent his disciples into all the world to preach the gospel, he promised them that signs would accompany their preaching (Mark 16:15-20). But, as may become clearer as we answer our second question, he does not work miracles for those who, like the Pharisees, have no intention of believing him.   Why does Jesus warn his disciples to watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees? v. 15 Be careful…Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod. Yeast, or leaven, is what is needed to make bread rise. You only need a small amount and it will soon spread throughout the dough. In the New Testament, with only one exception (Matthew 13:33), yeast is used to symbolize evil. It's an unseen influence that can spread quickly in any society or church. In 1 Corinthians 5:6-8 Paul says: Don't you know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch – as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the Festival not with the old bread leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. Here Paul was referring to the Jewish custom of clearing the house of yeast before Passover. He sees the church as an unleavened batch of dough because Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed for us. We are unleavened. Sin has been cleared out because of what Jesus did for us. So we are told to be what Christ has already made us. In effect he is saying, Christ has made you holy, so BE holy. Live holy unleavened lives. And he uses malice and wickedness as examples of leaven or yeast, and sincerity and truth as examples of unleavened bread. So if yeast represents something bad, what exactly does Jesus mean when he talks about the yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod? The answer surely lies in what we have already seen about their attitude to Jesus. We saw in Talk 17 (Mark 6) how Herod: ·      Hardened his heart to God's word through the preaching of John the Baptist ·      Refused to repent (of his adulterous relationship with Herodias) ·      Insisted on preserving his reputation at all costs ·      Was eventually complicit with Pontius Pilate in the crucifixion of Jesus (Cf. Acts 4:27). And we have repeatedly seen how the Pharisees too persistently hardened their hearts against Jesus, even accusing him of being demon-possessed. Their reputation and social position were more important to them than the truth, and they were already seeking a way to kill him. Their words and their actions against him were expressions of what was already in their hearts. The ‘yeast' of the Pharisees was essentially an attitude of heart that is persistently opposed to Christ. And there are two possible reasons why Jesus warns his disciples to guard against this yeast. He knew that the attitude of the Pharisees and Herod (or Herodians) would eventually spread like yeast to make the entire population rise up against Jesus and he wanted his disciples to be aware of this. But it's more likely in my view that he was warning them of the danger of allowing such an attitude to develop in their own hearts. Paul was later to warn the Corinthians that a little yeast leavens the whole lump. A wrong attitude of heart among Christians can spread very quickly in a local church and we must be careful not to allow our thinking to become like that of the world (Romans 12:2). Lessons about his disciples But that brings us finally to what we can learn about the disciples from this passage. In verse 4 they're still asking the same kind of question as they did before the feeding of the five thousand: But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them? They were still thinking at a purely human level, and even after Jesus has worked a similar miracle again, he has to say to them:   17 Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? 18 Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don't you remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" "Twelve," they replied. 20 "And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" They answered, "Seven." 21 He said to them, "Do you still not understand?"   They had failed to understand. They had failed to see and hear. They had failed to remember. But before we get too critical of these men, we need to examine our own hearts and ask if we are still prone to the same hardness of heart. The disciples had failed understand: ·       Who Jesus really is ·      Why his resources were not limited to the natural ·      Why they themselves need not be limited to their own natural resources. They had eyes to see and ears to hear, but they were blind to what God wanted to show them and deaf to what he wanted to tell them. Are we so very different? I think not.   So what's the cure? The key is in that word remember. We need to remember what God has said to us in his word. We need to remember what we have seen him do already in our own lives. And, most important of all, we need to remember who Jesus is. As we take our eyes off the problems that face us and our limited resources to solve them, and remind ourselves of who Jesus is, and the infinite resources at his disposal, we will learn, as the disciples eventually came to learn, that nothing is impossible to those who believe.

Is creating compositions a challenge for you? I can totally see why. First off, for the simple reason that composition is art. It is subjective and everyone's style is different. So it really leaves a lot of grey area on whether a certain technique works or not.Secondly, because composition is an art, it is tough to learn it technically. Yes, we can understand guides and placement and general rules around composition but really, we all know that creating composition is like composing music. Thirdly, compositions are tough because there are so many choices. Any food can be photographed in infinite no. of ways. And because the choices are so vast, it often becomes a time struggle for us. In addition to the time we spend on creating the composition, theres so much decision making that has to be done to choose a composition style for our subject, ending up in taking up more time.What if there was a way to make that decision faster? What if you could look at a food subject and decide what composition style would suit it best? What if you could save all that time upfront? In this week's episode, we discuss how to know when to create large compositions.We discuss the 3 categories of food that are worth spending the time to create elaborate compositions, how to use that to your advantage in client projects and how to work smartly to create simpler yet powerful compositions. Creating large and elaborate compositions can be really time taking. Oftentimes we spend so much creating a composition for a subject and it doesn't deliver our vision or look the best it could. We are either disappointed or think that we don't have the skills to envision the result upfront or we start over and recreate. None of these situations are preferable.Learn a simple way of identifying which food works best for larger compositions can help save time, develop the skill of envisioning the result upfront and also position us as experts in front of clients. Whether composition-creation is a struggle or not, here's a simple way to work smarter with it. Have a question? Submit it as a voice note to be featured on the My Food Lens PodcastHERE Read more at https://myfoodlens.com Follow Dyutima on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/dyutima_myfoodlens/ Show notes available at https://myfoodlens.com/84-how-to-know-when-to-create-large-compositions/Download free guide and workbook The 5-step guide to visual storytelling - DOWNLOAD HERE The 10-step photoshoot - DOWNLOAD HERE Write that pitch - DOWNLOAD HERE  

In the sermon "REFUEL," Pastor Erik Lindeen draws attention to the urgent need for spiritual refueling - the ongoing replenishment of our spiritual well-being. Drawing on his personal experiences, Erik likens the Christian journey to a car that must frequently be refilled with gas. He points out our tendency to appear spiritually fulfilled when, in fact, we're running on empty. To experience the abundantly fulfilling relationship with God as described in Ephesians 3:17-19, Erik argues that it is crucial to remain linked to our heavenly Father sincerely and authentically, not just employing pretenses of spiritual wellness. Pastor Lindeen goes on to outline four key strategies for spiritual refueling based on biblical teachings. First, he emphasizes the role of the Holy Spirit, the same Spirit that empowered Jesus, as a powerful catalyst for fulfilling God's will in our lives. Secondly, he underscores the significance of regular communal worship, drawing from Jesus's life in Luke 4:16-19. Thirdly, Lindeen articulates the vitality of service to others as an act of spiritual replenishment, with specific reference to Luke 4:38-40 when Jesus heals and tends to the needs of people throughout the day. Lastly, Lindeen encourages solitude and moments of stillness for restful spiritual connection with God, inspired by Jesus's retreat in Luke 4:42. In his conclusion, Erik offers a sobering reminder of the spiritual warfare around us, emphasizing the enemy's intentions to keep us empty and ineffective. Thus, he implores his listeners to commit to spiritual refueling. This sermon serves as a vivid call to action to truly be spiritually fulfilled.

I had the cutest little guy join me on my hike. I was in the country exploring a trail that wound along the creek and at first I just saw this little flash of black and white fur toddling along through the grass not far from me. He was all black, except for a nice white stripe all the way down his back, a big bushy tail, a cute little almost kitten-like face. Yes, it was a skunk! Two problems: one little spray and my wife wouldn't get near me for the next week. Secondly, it was daytime and skunks are nocturnal animals. If they're out in the daytime they can have rabies. So what did I do? I did the only thing any guy with any brains would do. I walked quickly the other direction, and I did not have to bury my clothes that day. I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Four Mistakes That Mess Up Sex." Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4, written by the creator of love and sex. I mean, the Inventor knows best, right? It starts out by saying, "It is God's will that you should be sanctified." That word doesn't mean you're wearing a halo and a white robe. It literally talks about being kept special. Now, He says that it is God's will that you should "avoid sexual immorality." That means any sexual relationship outside the boundaries of your marriage to your lifetime partner. And then He says His will is that "each of you should learn to control his own body." This unique, powerful love gift is too special to ruin. So God, the Inventor, sums up His strategy for staying pure. And you might think of it as the skunk approach. See, I knew there was only one way to keep from getting the skunk's worst; don't play with him, even if he looks like a cute little kitty. And don't try to resist him. You'll lose! Avoid him, man! That's how God says we can protect the beauty of no regrets sex. Avoid immorality. That's His Word! Don't get anywhere near the opportunity or the urge to do it outside of marriage. In practical terms I think it means avoiding four mistakes that can take you farther than you ever intended to go. First, you avoid spending a lot of time alone. If you've got feelings for someone and you're with them for a very long time in a situation where you could get very physical, chances are you will. Secondly, avoid exceeding the speed limit. In other words, don't even get near the point where your body and mind are preparing themselves for sexual intercourse. Because you cannot shift the car into reverse at 70 miles an hour. Thirdly, avoid feeding your fantasies by watching things or listening to things that will just fuel your lust and make it even harder to control. And finally, avoid squandering the innocent expressions of affection. Don't give away little things like holding hands, or a simple hug or a kiss. You need to guard those and make those special too. If I hadn't known any better, that skunk seemed to almost have a sign on him that kind of said, "I'm cuddly! Come play with me." I would not have been the same after that. Don't let sex too soon or adulterous sex lure you to get so close to something or to someone that it will cost you more than you ever intended to pay and take you where you never intended to go, and steal from you what you never meant to lose, and leave scars you never imagined. By the way, you say, "Ron, yeah, great! A little late for me. I already made those mistakes. I wish I could have it back." You can't. But you can be clean and you can be forgiven. That is what Jesus died for. The very nights, the very experiences that you remember with regret and guilt and shame, He died to forgive you of those. The Bible says you are a new creation when you come to Him. If you want that experience of a brand new start, a fresh beginning, come to Jesus and tell Him you're His and you want to be His from now on. Our website is all about this relationship. Check it out - it's ANewStory.com. And if you're facing temptation, if you're feeling the pressure, don't panic! Don't fight it. Do what God, the Inventor, says, "Run from it!"

Gavin offers some more sound advice on whisky investments and refers to a recent Forbes article The article states The current state of the secondary whisky market is characterized by uncertainty, presenting opportunities for discerning investors. To navigate this landscape in 2024, potential investors are advised to heed three key considerations. Firstly, it is crucial to recognize that whisky, like any investment, carries inherent risks with values subject to fluctuations. Prudent investors should only commit funds that they can afford to lose. Secondly, the practice of buying bottles for quick resale, known as flipping, has become increasingly precarious. The market is expected to experience a decline in both volume and value in 2024. Factors contributing to this decline include a surplus of sellers, a diminished pool of buyers due to reduced disposable income, and heightened awareness of tax implications associated with flipped bottles. Thirdly, the recommendation is to adopt a long-term investment approach. While some may experience quick financial gains, sustained success in the whisky investment realm often stems from strategic purchasing and a commitment to holding assets for an extended period.

We begin this episode with a shocking statistic:  80% of hybrid cloud breaches involve credential abuse. During the interview, Jimmy McNary from Semperis unpacks the whole concept of protecting identities in the hybrid cloud. The interview covers a wide range of topics. First, we start by taking a view of how large systems have evolved. Larger systems tend to have two or more identity processes, and Active Directory from Microsoft has a 90% share of that overall market. Secondly, some identity systems can use outdated Identification Access Management systems. Thirdly, we have employees and contractors who enter and leave systems. This can produce confusion in de-provisioning access. Putting all three together produces a perfect storm for malicious actors. They can use tools to scan systems for vulnerabilities in, for example, identification processes, and set up an attack. Semperis uses Active Directory as the starting point to orchestrate identification. They can stop malicious actors before they attack, during the attack, and help post-attack. In a poignant example, Jimmy McNary relates the story that some organizations spend significant amounts of money on backups, including immutable backups. Unfortunately, they forget about backing up Active Directory. We know that it is likely the attack vector included Active Directory, but it is not protected. This is a scenario where the system is restored, and the malicious actor has retained credentials to allow him back into the system. Jimmy McNary provides practical tips to avoid these frustrating situations. = = What's your score? Take the Podcast Appearance Scorecard www.podscorecard.com Want to listen to other technology podcasts? www.Federaltechpodcast.com Connect to John Gilroy on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-gilroy/ Got goin' to Mars on your bucket list? Listen to Constellations Podcast https://www.kratosdefense.com/constellations/podcasts      

Sermon Overview Scripture Passage: Proverbs 22:6 Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way that he should go: and when he is old, he should not depart from it.” There is a difference in teaching a child and training a child. Many of us only teach our children and find that they continue to go their own way. But the dictionary definition of to train is "To prepare for a contest; to form to a proper shape; to discipline for use.” We are to train up our children to be champions for Jesus Christ. If you're going to raise a young champion, it commences with childhood. Start out early. Begin praying fervently over them before they are born. Dedicate them to the Lord while they are still in the womb. Teach them Scripture before they can walk. Secondly, it communicates with creativity. You will never force-feed a child God's Word. Create in them a hunger for it by creatively teaching the Word of God. Find the lesson in everything, as Jesus did with His disciples. Raising children to know Scripture doesn't have to be dull. There can be Christian books, games, music, shows in your home. Surround your child with lessons that are exciting to learn. Thirdly, it corrects with consistency. Every child needs to be given limits. These limits will be tested because there is a predisposition in any child to push back against them. And if that limitation you've set up moves, the child will have no security. There must be consistent correction. Adrian Rogers says, “If you withhold correction from your child, you're making him a candidate for eternal punishment.” Lastly, it consummates with conversion. The ultimate goal is to help your child have something that will last him all of his life: a relationship with Jesus. As soon as your child can comprehend the concept of sin, your child is ready to learn about Jesus Christ. Guide little children that they might come to know Jesus Christ. That is the ultimate goal of raising young champions. Apply it to your life You want a champion for the Lord Jesus Christ? Bring him up with training that commences at childhood, communicates with creativity, corrects with consistency, and consummates in conversion. Pray for guidance from the Lord. Know the Word of God like the back of your hand, so that you might teach it well.

Leaders who inspire us embody practices that not only make us feel seen and heard but also compel us to follow them, as they have a profound ability to bring out the best in us and unite people towards a common goal. Firstly, they model hope and integrity, serving as beacons of trust and optimism in challenging times. Secondly, these leaders have the unique ability to make the impossible seem possible, instilling confidence and ambition in their teams. Thirdly, they are not afraid to challenge the status quo, pushing boundaries to foster innovation and growth. Fourthly, they empower and enable action, providing the tools and support needed for individuals to excel and contribute positively. Lastly, they encourage the heart—inspiring courage and a sense of heroism, helping us feel valued and capable of making a significant impact. Such leaders are not just guiding forces; they are catalysts for change, inspiring individuals to achieve more than they ever thought possible.

A God of Salvation Romans 1:16-17 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed-a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith." Romans 3:21-24 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Introduction Paul in this letter is writing to Roman believers a synopsis of his beliefs, and to church leaders in Jerusalem where he would have to make an adequate explanation of himself. The language and concepts shared in these passages are that the Gospel of God is that salvation is for all who believe; righteousness of God; universality of both salvation and judgment; and that salvation and righteousness are available through faith. The adversative "But" in Romans 3:21 heralds the solution, but the text in between these verses highlights humanity's unrighteousness and need of God's righteousness. 1. The Problem "All have sinned" (Romans.3:23). Our inherent sinful nature of unrighteousness comes to all mankind from the first rebellion against God by Adam. To be with God eternally we need to be declared righteous, for unrighteousness cannot enter the holy and righteous presence of God. So for humanity, created in God's image (Genesis.1:26) to re-enter God's presence, each person needs to be declared righteous and thereby justified. Justification is the transformation from a condemned criminal to that of an heir awaiting a majestic legacy. If God doesn't punish unrighteousness, then God would have to destroy not only us, but also Himself. Holiness is an absolute attribute of God, which requires the punishment of any impurity or unrighteousness (that is sin), and if unrighteousness remained unpunished, God would cease to be God and we would cease to be human. Ergo, since the first rebellion God has had a Gospel plan to restore righteousness to man. 2. Initial Questions 2a. What is the Gospel plan? The Gospel is one, which Paul is separated to according to his own words in Romans.1:1. Paul announces it is the power of God for the salvation of all in Romans 1:16. The Gospel is the good news that God has provided the means for rebellious humanity to be rescued from His wrath and judgment. The Gospel is a two-fold message: it is deliverance from the final judgment resulting from God's anger against sin and a crediting of righteousness upon sinful man. Not only will humanity be saved, but has been saved.This Gospel creates faith (Romans.1:16-17); brings life (Romans.1:16) and judgment (Romans.2:16) 2b. What is wrath? When we think of wrath, it is usually of an uncontrollable rage or temper tantrum. God's wrath does not portray the human weaknesses of vindictiveness, or an uncontrolled pique. We can dismiss such ideas, since due to His forbearance, God's anger and judgment has been smouldering since the first rebellion of Adam and Eve. God's wrath invokes justice (Romans.2:5). 2c. What is righteousness? There are three meanings to this key phrase of Paul's: "righteousness of God". Firstly, righteousness is an immutable characteristic of God, in that whether it is a righteousness that judges or a righteousness that saves, it is still God's righteousness. Secondly, that His righteousness demands God actively keeps the promises He has made. Thirdly, that His righteousness makes us righteous. So, who needs this righteousness? 3. God's Judgment When we describe God's judgment, similarly there are three aspects to it, all of which give a total and clear picture. For God's judgment to only have one or two of these characteristics, would mean it was not the judgment of a holy God. God's judgment is inescapable, righteous and impartial. 3a. Inescapable We are inherently self-righteously hypercritical of others. Paul tells us that this makes us hypocritical and we have no right to stand in condemnation over people, as what is common in all humanity is a universal sinfulness or separation from God (Romans.2:1). We set unachievable high standards for others and yet remarkably low standard for ourselves. 3b. Righteous God will judge according to what each person has done (Romans.2:6). While we may be justified and declared righteous by faith, we will be judged based on the works we do, to earn rewards. Our faith is to be supported by good works (Galatians.5:6; James.2:18). Paul here shows two destinies. Eternal life, glory, honour, peace and immortality for those who enduringly desire to perform good works (Romans.2:7,10). Juxtaposed to this are the self-indulgent and disobedient who shall incur God's indignation, wrath and righteous judgment (Romans.2:8-9). 3c. Impartial God shows no favouritism (Romans.2:11), so whether Jew or Gentile, both can be saved and be declared righteous. God is eternally just and righteous. It is a reflection of His mercy, that nobody can claim God is unfair. 4. All have sinned and need God's righteousness 4a. The Gentile is in need Gentiles, non-Jews, require this righteousness of God. Unrighteousness is universally endemic as all humankind has rebelled, "fallen short of God's glory" (Romans.3:23) which has been passed down since the original sin in Genesis. Whilst God has given the Jew the Law, how has God revealed Himself to the Gentile? He has revealed Himself and His invisible attributes, fully to all humanity through their individual conscience (Romans.1:19) and His creation (Romans.1:20). In Christ, God has now revealed Himself fully in visible form (Colossians.1:15-17) so that humanity has even less of an excuse not to worship God, follow Him and be obedient to Him. Whether it is through ignorance they did not glorify Him (Romans.1:21); through foolish wisdom (Romans.1:22) or self-indulgence (Romans.1:25); God allowed man free will and gave them over to their desires (Romans.1:26, 28). This is viewed in non-heterosexual practices (Romans.1:26-27) being viewed as an abasement and denial of God. It is noticeable also through idolatrous attitudes and actions. Humanity began as creations' pinnacle but ended up beneath creation when man started worshipping creation instead of the Creator (Romans.1:23). Gentiles are without excuse (Romans.1:20) and their actions decree their eternal destiny. Having suppressed God, God thereby debased man's mind to all kinds of wickedness (Romans.1:28) so that humankinds temporal pleasure may be appeased, and of which, are still in evidence today. 4b. The Jew is in need Jews had the Law and boasted in it (Romans.2:23). However, possession of the Law was of no consequence to God and Paul claims it is practicing the Law, which matters. Their religion was an external action but not an internal attitude. Jesus' regular denunciation of the Pharisees reflects this. Adultery, robbery and idolatry (Romans.2:21) were perfectly possible for a Jew to commit secretly according to the Sermon on the Mount. Instead of being God's light to the nations, Jews were dishonouring God (Romans.2:24; Isaiah.52:5). Packer in his book "Knowing God" reflects: "The Law cannot save us, for its only effect is to stimulate sin and shows us how far short we fall from God's righteousness." If not the Law, then surely through circumcision a Jew will be declared righteous! After all, the circumcision is the mark of God's covenant with Israel (Genesis.17). Again, Paul says no. Circumcision avails nothing if the Law is not kept (Romans.2:25). An uncircumcised Gentile who keeps the law is more acceptable to God than a circumcised Jew who breaks the Law. A Jew is one who inwardly experiences God, not one who exhibits external worship alone (Romans.2:28-29). Paul continues. All humanity has rebelled against God, both Jew and Gentile. Paul cites Old Testament verses to back his claims that all men are unrighteous before God's wrath (Romans.3:10-18). There are no excuses. Just like the excuses we come up for when caught speeding in our cars. 5. Salvation for all 5a. Revealed for all who believe by faith All people are under God's wrath and are therefore condemned. This wrath, Carson writes is brough forth by universal human wickedness". We are in need both of rescue and to be justified before God. Paul, continuing with the adversative "But now" (Romans.3:21), explains that God has also provided us with a righteousness that is available immediately so that we may be saved from His wrath. The Law as we have seen condemns any who do not keep it. Yet combined with the Prophets, the Law bears witness to this righteousness. How do we achieve this justification? Faith, succinctly described by JI Packer in "Knowing God", reminds us, "is a self-abandoning trust in the person and work of Jesus." By exhibiting faith in Jesus, as it is due to him, we have been declared righteous and have a legal status of being justified, if we choose it. Can we earn it? We have seen how both Gentile and Jew have failed in trying to achieve salvation (Romans.3:23). Nevertheless, we need to believe in order to receive the righteousness we have asked for. This grace (Romans.3:24) declares believers "righteous at the beginning of their course, not at the end of it". This gift, which is free, enables believers to be justified through the act of redemption (Romans.3:24). 5b. God's Wrath Propitiated through Redemption. Redemption implies ransom. It is the purchase of a slave, simply to set that slave free. It involves a ransom payment. God's grace pays God's justice on our behalf so that righteousness can be declared. God's grace is the origin of our justification. This redemption, results from God the Father presenting Jesus Christ as a sacrifice to appease His wrath. Our redemption involved the death of Jesus as our payment. God's righteous wrath now averted and appeased through this act of propitiation, means we are therefore liberated as a demonstration of His righteousness (Romans.3:25-26). All humanity are slaves or prisoners to sin (Romans.3:9), and it is from this slavery the Gospel declares we have been delivered. The full consequences of this redemption will not be experienced until we have overcome and persevered to gain our eternal inheritance (Romans.8:23-25). Conclusion Is there any difference today? People are still blasé and ignorant of God, having suppressed the truth. People still declare that the existance of God cannot be proven by rational science and advanced knowledge. People are still both hypercritical of others and therefore hypocrites. It is to this world, we are to apply our theology. This gospel of salvation, which justifies us in order to declare us righteous, thus sparing us from God's condemnatory wrath, is the one we are to use to spread the good news, that God's righteousness is free by faith, to all who humble themselves, admit their guilt and ‘lost-ness' and ask God for forgiveness. For those who would already call themselves a Christian, you are to tell others about this salvation and you are to serve Him, where ever you are and where ever you go! Jesus is the one you are following and its on His terms alone that you are His disciple. If you view Him as a superhero, somebody who you call upon only when you need something or even as your boyfriend, then beware: Jesus will not be mocked - He wants all aspects of your life to be submitted to Him! Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German pastor who defied Hitler, wrote these words "When Jesus Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die. Discipleship is not an offer that man makes to Jesus Christ, nor is it hero worship, but intimacy with Christ." Want to be intimate with Jesus Christ? Worship him alone and exhibit your faith to all you come into contact with! Too often Christians and churches side with the rights of the powerful and elite, while forgetting the poor, oppressed and marginalised. Too often Christians and churches neglect to feed the hungry, seek justice for the oppressed and help the poor. There are enough Christians and churches in the UK to make significant positive change to their local communities. Too often Christians sit around on their backsides discussing good theology while in that same community people die of loneliness & neglect. You say you have faith in Jesus Christ and are dedicated to Him! Good! Then show it and this community will be transformed to the glory and praise of Jesus Christ! Go tell somebody this good news of Jesus Christ. Won't you go tell somebody this very day, this week, this message of salvation? Salvation, as a free gift and available to all who ask, because nobody can earn it or buy it. The price has already been paid - by Jesus Christ alone on a Roman cross two thousand years ago. If you ever hear people say that I have died, tell them that is false. Tell them I am now more alive than ever before. For those who would not yet call themselves Christian, you need to bow your knee before Almighty God. If you want to turn to God there is no need for delay. He is ready and willing to take you as His own right now. You only have to ask Him to forgive you and to give you help on the journey ahead. It is a partnership between God and yourself. When you place your faith in Jesus, becoming utterly dependent upon Him, you turn to God. You don't need to do or change anything to become a follower of Jesus! However once you have made that decision, you leave behind your spiritual isolation and rebellion against Him. As you live each day, becoming more involved with Jesus day by day, you will find yourself changing. You will stop doing those things that separated you from Him. You will find yourself doing things that please Jesus and develop your relationship with Him. God asks that you accept his guidance and management of your life. His point of view and His strength become your point of view and your source of strength. You turn your mind, will and heart to Him for all you do. If you want to become a Christian there are three simple steps to follow. Firstly, admit that you have done wrong against God and His ways. Secondly, believe and trust in Jesus. Call on Him, receive, trust, obey and worship Him, recognizing Him for who He is and what He has done. Lastly, confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. Once sin has been confessed, and Jesus is believed in and trusted as Saviour, then you are a Christian. Now you are ready as Peter writes in the Bible, "to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." 7 Welcome to the family of God. God has chosen you; Jesus has paid for you and has put His mark within you through His Spirit. Click or tap here to download as a MP3 audio file

Last time we spoke about the invasion of Sakhalin and the Portsmouth Treaty. The Japanese had defeated their enemy upon the land and sea, yet the reality was, both empires were ailing. They were both verging bankruptcy, but Russia held the edge in more troops and deeper allied pockets for loans. The Japanese sought the aid of President Theodore Roosevelt to usher a peace, but more importantly one that favored Japan's war aims. With his advice, Japan seized Sakhalin to improve their poker hand. At the Portsmouth negotiations, the Japanese would be rather shocked to find their American hero somewhat championed the Russian side when it came to war indemnities. In the end Japan signed the Portsmouth Treaty and would face an outraged population back home. The Hibiya riots erupted, and now the Japanese felt betrayed by America. Yet what of China, how was this going to affect her?   #85 Old Ways Meet New Policies    Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. The turn of the 20th century saw the Qing government face an unprecedented national crisis. The Boxer Rebellion did not go well. The Empress Dowager Cixi and the Beijing government literally fled the capital, not a good look. On January 29th of 1901, Empress Dowager Cixi, from her refuge in Xi'an issued an imperial edict in the name of Emperor Guangxu “After we moved out of the capital city, the empress has been constantly busy with state affairs. As emperor, I deeply regret my mistakes. In the past decades, problems have accumulated and been papered over as we mindlessly followed the old ways, leading to the calamity we face today. Now that peace negotiations are underway, we should reform all political affairs so that the country can become strong and prosperous”. To the Qing government she issued this “submit suggestions regarding reform measures within two months. The suggestions should be based on the current situation with reference to both Chinese and Western experience. Reform proposals should cover law, administration, people's livelihood, education, the examination system, military affairs, and public finance. What should be continued and what changed? What should be eliminated and what combined? What should be done to strengthen China, develop human talent, reach fiscal balance, and build a strong army?'. Thus the Qing officials busied themselves looking into the matters and expressed their opinions in countless memorials. The most influential of these opinions would come from three memorials jointly submitted by the Governor General of Jiangnang, Liu Kunyi and the governor general of Hubei-Hunan, Zhang Zhidong.  The first memorial proposed 4 methods for improving education. It advised setting up schools of liberal arts and military academies. To reform the civil examination system, abolish the military examination system and encourage studies abroad. The second memorial proposed 11 measures to reform the administration. They should promote frugality, abandon outdated rules, cease the sale of office, reform official salaries, eliminate clerks and runners, bring more leniency to criminal punishments, change the policies for official selection, find new ways to support the livelihood of Manchu serving in the eight banners, eliminate garrisons, eliminate the Green Standard army and simplify literary formalities. The third memorial proposed 12 reforms based on Western practices. To dispatch intellectuals to tour the world, to adopt foreign military practices, a new military strengthening program, improve agriculture, further industrialize, enact some new laws on mining/transport and commerce, revise the criminal code, introduce silver coins, introduce a stamp tax, create a modern postal service, learn foreign medicine practices and translate more foreign books.  These memorials were approved by Cixi and would become the blueprint for the New Policy Reforms of the late Qing dynasty. On July 20th, Cixi issued another edict to affirm these ideas would be implemented ‘“For the sake of the dynasty and people, the emperor and I have no other choice.” The Zongli Yamen was officially changed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Outdated posts were eliminated, such as the director general of the Yellow River and Grand Canal, governorship over Hubei, Yunnan and Guangdong provinces whom already held governor-generals, the court of sacrificial worship and the court of banqueting, those 2 last ones are something else arent they. For the military, traditional troops were disbanded or retrained as a reserve army or for police forces. The military examination system was abolished, new military academies were created. A military training bureau was created to train the “New Army” and a Ministry of Police took charge of public security instead of the wonky Green Standard system. To further economic development, a Ministry of Commerce was created. New regulations for chambers of commerce were promulgated. Business laws and provisional regulations for corporate registration were both promulgated. An exhibition center to encourage industrialization was set up in Beijing; vocational colleges were created; the Board of Revenue Bank was also created. On September 7th of 1901, the Qing government signed the humiliating Boxer Protocol and on the 6th of October Cixi made her glamorous return to the capital. China began a new approach with the west. On January 28th of 1902, the Qing court invited foreign ministers to the Imperial Palace ““The audience was conducted throughout with more formality and dignity and with greater outward show of respect for the foreign representatives than heretofore; the event was especially noteworthy as being the first occasion on which the empress dowager has openly appeared in an audience, and not behind the screen of gauze”. Qing officials of all ranks followed suit, trying their best to please the foreign representatives. The term walking on eggshells applies, the Boxer Rebellion had greatly pissed off most of the powerful nations. Thus the Qing dynasty was doing its very best to please both the foreign powers and its people, trying desperately to maintain its ailing rule. Yet the damage beginning all the way in the 1830's was too much. The Qing government also did not outright abandon its autocratic ruling system, in many ways it was providing band aid solutions in the form of reform measures. In a rather dramatic fashion, in 1902 during the birthday of Empress Dowager Cixi a poem was read y Gu Hongming, the aide to Zhang Zhidong “Everywhere people sing about loving the state, but nobody sings about loving the people.The emperor enjoys longevity, and the people pay the bill; the emperor lives forever, and the people suffer.”Everyone gasped in shock. Moments like this highlight the reality of the situation. While the Qing government was tossing reforms left and right, they were not far reaching enough. There were also countless provincial and local officials who refused to adopt the reforms. One example was the governor of Guangdong, Shanxi, Henan and governor-general of Guangdong and Guangxi, yes the age old classic of too many titles on a single person, Zhang Renjun. Zhang was a hardcore conservative and thought the reforms would increase government expenditures and thus further aggravate the populace, in his words “The people are already exhausted and catastrophe will come if we keep exploiting them.” He also believed the dynasty would not benefit from the reforms. He was against the organization and training of a modern army, establishing chambers of commerce and sending intellectuals abroad to study. To the last point he believed the Chinese students going abroad would have their minds poisoned and come back ushering in revolution, he would not be too wrong there. Above all else, he had been a Qing official a long time and knew fundamentally most Qing officials were greedy morons. He was basically the Ron Swanson of the Qing Dynasty haha. He was stuck in some ways, but brought up pretty good glaring problems with the reforms.  After 1905 further reforms were established and there was talk of preparing for constitutionalism, perhaps setting up provincial assemblies with a national assembly, introducing local self-government and such. Yet dramatic change required dramatic change, ca-ching, it would be a heavy financial burden. The Qing government assigned the expense for the reforms upon the provinces, whom in turn apportioned costs upon prefectures and counties. Ultimately the money was being extracted from the common people, whom were already paying enormous indemnities for the Boxer Protocol. Alongside this government stipends for their officials were spearing, as the greedy morons, in Zhang's words of course, lived lavishly. As you can imagine, the age old practice of fleecing the populace ran rampant. Qing officials were exploiting the populace for self gain. A German missionary working in China at the time, Richard Wilhelm had this to say “The Manchu aristocracy made use of the new chaotic conditions in order to feather their [sic] own nest. One reform crowded out another. A great deal of money was spent and nothing substantial was achieved. This state of affairs led to far-reaching dissatisfaction throughout the Empire. The officials, who were not given a clear and uniform lead by the authorities, were placed in the most awkward positions as a result of having to find money locally in accordance with the various edicts of reform which followed rapidly one upon another”. There were numerous flaws in the implementation of the reforms. A large reason for this was a lack of comprehensive planning. In terms of public financing, the reforms simply cost too much. For example, the cost for policing of a small province was something like 2 million taels, for larger provinces it was 3 million. A Qing official named Daungfang said of the situation ‘“As China is vast, if there were only two policemen per square kilometer, the annual expenditure for police nationwide would approach half a billion. The annual state revenue is insufficient to afford this expense, not to mention other reforms.” French diplomats aiding Beijing's Police and military reform programs at the time had this to say “At least we can say that the Qing empire lacks wisdom and foresight, as it decided to establish 36 divisions and to regroup the navy in a great hurry, but failed to consider how to finance these large annual expenses.” Alongside the enormous costs of the reforms, there were those trying to profit from them as well. In 1911, the American sociologist Edward Alsworth Ross had this to say “In an educational center far up the Yangtse the authorities kept bringing out American teachers at great expense under a year contract and then at the end of the year replaced them with others no better qualified. Inasmuch as every shift calls for an allowance of $300 for travel money, the knowing ones suspect that some official gets “squeeze” on the travel money and that is the reason for the incessant changing of teachers”.  As reformed institutions were created, many officials seized the opportunities to get their friends and family positions forming cliques. One account had Tang Shaoyi, one of the Chinese who got to go abroad to study, received the appointment of General director over the Shanghai-Nanjing railway, the Beijing-Wuhan Railway and Vice Minister of Communications, it was said of his tenure “Into every vacant place in the Customs or the railways or in the ministry that came to his bestowal he stowed one of his own relatives by blood or marriage or one of his own Cantonese clan. Out of 400 appointments in the Ministry of Communications made during his tenure of office 350 were jobs for which he could be called to account'.  A lot of new taxes were introduced in the name of the “New Policies”, some added by the Qing government directly, some by local officials, hell even local gentry got involved in the fleecing. An imperial edict acknowledged it “In recent years, the people have been exhausted. In addition, provinces have extracted reparations from the people, robbing Peter to pay Paul, so that the people's livelihood is ever more precarious. … Provincial governors have used all means to collect funds to finance local administration and pushed the people to desperation” A lot of schools sprang up all over China, nearly all of them offering studies in the natural sciences. Colleges of liberal arts and law offered Western social sciences, and this in particular opened new avenues to the Chinese. As the students embraced all kinds of new knowledge, they also took a critical eye to their society and current affairs. Many who were sent to study abroad came back and taught at universities, bringing with them revolutionary ideology.  On September 24th of 1905, Empress Dowager Cixi dispatched 5 ministers abroad; Zhen Prince Zaize, Minister of Finance Dai Hongci, Minister of the Military Xu Shichang, Governor of Hunan Duanfang and Prime Minister of the Business Department Shaoying. On November 25th, the Qing government set up a special institution to study constitutional governments of foreign nations, to provide guidance on their own constitutional reform. It was quite similar to what the Japanese did during the Meiji restoration, albeit quite late. Dai Gonci and Duanfang were the first to depart, traveling to the US to meet with President Theodore Roosevelt. Then Zaize led the rest to depart. At the end of 1906 they all submitted a report stating “the only way for the state to be powerful is constitutionalism”. This prompted Cixi to promulgate a decree on September 1st of 1906 announcing the “preparatory imitation of constitution”. By 1907 the preparatory office of the “Zizhengyuan Institute” Ie: parliament was created. Ming Lun and Sun Jiaxuan were appointed presidents of it. After this, constitutional guilds were established in all major cities within China. By 1908 a constitutional outline was published, showcasing civil rights and obligations; essentials of parliament and election law essentials.  Now for the military, in 1905 the Beiyang Army was reorganized into the New Army. Initially the Qing government planned to establish it as 500,000 regular troops over the course of 10 years, but they would only managed to train roughly 190,000 by 1911. By 1909 a Ministry of War was established to control the new army. Now back in 1904 a study was done, looking into what needed to be done for the New Army. The report indicated China should dispatch government officials to the provinces to make sure imperial decrees were being followed, this might seem like an obvious thing to do, but it had not really been enforced previously. There was a lot of huff and puff over who controls New Army units and a concession was made to allow provinces to raise them, but ultimately they took orders from the Qing court. The 8 banners were excluded from the reform. The report argued the need for specialized and educated officers for both the front lines and staff. Officer pay was increased in an attempt to thwart corruption. Officers were given detailed regulations and were expected to lead their men, not their drill instructors, who due to a lack of qualified officers were often employed to instruct the men. Officers therefore were pretty useless in battle and the soldiers had very little faith in their officers. The report called for standardization of weaponry and for the army to be divided into 3 categories as per the norms of western armies: the standing army was to be 1st class reserves; second class reserves for the regulars would serve 3 years, then they would return home and enroll in the first reserve for another 3-4 years. The army would organize into corps with 2 divisions each consisting of 2 brigades of infantry, 1 regiment of cavalry and artillery, 1 battalion of engineers and transport units. It was estimated each corp would cost nearly 3 million taels and divisions about 1.3 million. With an expected 36 divisions this would amount to 50,000,000 taels annually to grow the new army.  Taking a look at the political reforms, on July 28th the governor-general of Zhili province, Yuan Shikai submitted a 10 point memorial. He suggested creating a national assembly, Zizhengyuan, at the central level, while provincial assemblies would be set in provincial capitals and other assembles would be set up in prefectures and counties. For legislatures, he suggested finding qualified members of the provincial assemblies to be promoted to the national assembly. Now he was one of many to make suggests, others like Cen Chunxuan also made proposals. By October of 1907 an imperial decree was made “Provincial governors should promptly set up provincial assemblies in provincial capitals; fair-minded and enlightened officials and gentry should be prudently selected to take charge; and qualified gentry and citizens should select capable persons as members of provincial assemblies. … Local governments should carry out reforms, and the decisions made by assemblymen should be implemented by provincial governors. Provincial governors should report significant events to the provincial assemblies before they take initiatives. In the future, provincial assemblies shall promote some of their members to the National Assembly. If the National Assembly conducts inquiries, it shall send official documents to provincial governors to ask them to pass on the information, and also directly ask the provincial assemblies for response. If provincial assemblies have some issues, they shall inform the provincial governors and report directly to the national assembly for investigation”. In the end the Qing court favored Yuan Shikai's ideas. Though they endorsed the ideas, the Qing court also had no plan to implement them. Because of this the provincial governors had no idea what to do. Lackluster and inconsistency resulted, prompting the Qing court to issue a Charter for the Provincial assemblies and election of provincial assemblymen on July 22nd of 1908. The Qing court basically gave the provinces a year to set up the assemblies. Now elections had never before occurred in China, officials and peoples had no experience with them. The process of preparing provincial assemblies, verifying the qualifications of voters, first, second round elections, organizing the sessions all required a lot of people and a lot of money. There was no way they were going to pull it off in a year. The Qing court began harassing the provincial officials and the first session of the provincial assemblies would convene on October 14th of 1909. There would be two regular sessions held prior to 1911. After pulling off the first session, provincial governors were under a lot of pressure to produce action. Ultimately most were too afraid to act on specific issues, corrupt or incompetent and this led to a large dissatisfaction. When the second annual session of provincial assemblies occurred there was a large amount of conflict. Issues like finally banning opium were hotly debated, many argued its poisoning effect on their society, while others argued the government would lose too much revenue from opium taxes. We haven't talked about opium in quite some time eh? It honestly was a large problem until Mao Zedong's reign. The provincial assembly system had a lot of problems. The governor of Zhejiang province, Zengyun described much of them in a report he made in 1910 “One year after it was established, the provincial assembly has still accomplished little. … Assemblymen can point out problems, but few can articulate the reasons for them. … As China did not have this system before, legislators are confused. They do not know what issues should be discussed. A few persons with exposure to the law and politics of other countries have only a partial understanding and cannot cite appropriate precedents or articulate them clearly. Moreover, they cannot communicate well with others as most people are rather ignorant. Therefore, although decisions are made by majority vote, the assemblymen rarely support or reject proposals appropriately. During the thirty to forty days of the session, more than half of the assemblymen have not spoken at all. Constitutionalism was introduced with the aim of fostering communication between the government and people. I fear that if such problems persist, the government and people will be further estranged. It is particularly worrisome that the outcome would deviate so much from our initial aim”. There were countless reasons for conflicts between the provincial assemblies and governors. First the provincial officials tended to have a weak idea of constitutionalism and tended to not allow the provincial assemblies participate in public administration. Secondly, the new restrictions upon governors within the constitutional order hindered action. Thirdly the transition to constitutional rule was messy, for example the respective powers of provincial officials and assemblies were very vague. Fourth provincial assemblies tended to be insensitive to the real problems faced by governors. Fifth governors and assemblies had very different positions, responsibilities and thus priorities, conflict was inevitable. Lastly, the provincial assemblies often focused too much on trivial issues such as etiquette. Simultaneously while all of these reforms and debates were going on, something else was brewing, revolutionary fever. In September of 1905, a revolutionary named Wu Yue set off a bomb trying to assassinate the 5 ministers who were about to be sent abroad to study constitutionalism. On July 6th of 1907 Xu Xilian led a failed revolt in Anqing, but was successful in killing its governor. This incident sparked a lot of attention from the Qing court and provincial officials. The Qing government was in a tough spot, to them it seemed there were revolutionaries pushing for constitutionalism and those pushing against it. There were countless revolutionaries and revolutionary groups that had formed throughout the Qing Dynasty's history. Many sought to re-establish a Han-led government, you know all those pesky Ming types. I obviously cant talk about them all, but there is one in particularly thats worth mentioning. In 1891 one man studying to become a doctor, met some friends in Hong Kong, many of whom were revolutionaries. One was named Yeung Ku-wan, and he was the leader of the Furen Literary Society calling to overthrow the Qing dynasty. The man went on to become a doctor and wrote a 8000 character petition to our old friend Li Hongzhang in 1894. His petition presented ideas for modernizing China. He traveled to Tianjin to try and personally meet Li Hongzhang and give him the petition, but was not granted an audience. It seems from the experience, Sun Yat-Sen's heart turned to revolution. He departed China and traveled to Hawaii, a place that was basically a second home to him, he was educated there and had family living in Honolulu. In 1894 in Hawaii he founded the Xīngzhōnghuì “Revive China Society”. This would be the first Chinese nationalist revolutionary society and each person admitted to it would swear the following oath “Expel Tatar barbarians, revive Zhonghua, and establish a unified government”. Sun Yat-Sen returned to Hong Kong in 1895 and met up again with Yueng Ku-wan. Both men viewed the First Sino-Japanese war situation as a huge opportunity and resolved to merge their societies. Dr. Sun Yat-Sen became the secretary of the newly merged group while Yeung Ku-wan was the president. They had Lu Haodong design a flag for their society, the Blue sky with a white Sun flag. If you pull up a picture of the flag, the 12 rays of the white sun represent 12 months and 12 traditional chinese hours, it symbolizes the spirit of progress. Soon their society began to brush shoulders with some old friends of ours, the Tiandihui “heaven and earth society” and even the triads. Dr Sun Yat-Sen was associating with such groups to gain funds and aid in his global travel to support a revolution.  In 1895, the Xīngzhōnghuì unleashed their planned uprising in Guangzhou, thus earning the name the “first Guangzhou uprising”. On October 26th , Yeung Ku-wan and Dr Sun Yat-sen led Zheng Shiliang and Lu Haodong to Guangzhou intending to capture the city in a single strike. However their plans were leaked to Qing authorities. The Qing arrested many of the revolutionaries, including Lu Haodong who would later be executed. The uprising was a complete failure. Yeung Ku-Wan and Dr Sun Yat-sen were both sent into an exile for 5 years. Dr Sun Yet-sen spent his exile promoting revolution within China abroad. He went to Japan, the US, Canada and Britain. While in Britain Dr Sun Yat-sen was seized by the Chinese secret service and nearly smuggled back to CHina in an effort to be executed. James Cantlie working with the globe, the times and foreign office managed to get Dr Sun Yat-sen released. James was a former teacher of Sun at Hong Kong college for medicine and a lifelong friend. When Sun made his way to Japan in 1897 he befriended the Japanese politician Tōten Miyazaki who motived him towards Pan-Asianism. Sun would also befriend Mariano Ponce, a diplomat of the first Philippine Republic. During the Philippine Revolution and Philippine-American War, Sun helped Ponce procure weapons from the IJA. Sun hoped to help the Filipinos win back their independence so the Philippines could be used as a staging point for another Chinese revolution. Ultimately the Americans won and thus Sun's dreams of allying with the Philippines vanished. On October 8th of 1900 Sun ordered the launch of another uprising, this time in Huizhou. A revolutionary army led by Zheng Shiliang, around 20,000 men strong, began a coup. This led his force to fight against the local Qing forces, with Sun working out of Taiwan promised to supply his men with ammunition from the Japanese. However, the Japanese got cold feet and the Japanese Prime Minister prohibited Sun Yat-sen from carrying out revolutionary activities on Taiwan. Sun tried to turn to the triads for help, but it simply did not pan out, thus after a month of fighting, Zheng Shiliang had no choice but to order the army to disperse.  After this Sun traveled to Bangkok in 1903 trying to secure funds. On Yaowarat Road in Bangkok's Chinatown Sun issued a famous speech claiming “overseas Chinese were the mother of the revolution”. Yaowarat road would later be commemorated as Sun Yat Sen Street. In 1905 Sun Yat-sen went to Singapore and merged his Xinzhongwei with the Guangfuhui “restoration society” and a few other smaller groups to form the Tongmenghui. Sun then created the three principles of the people: Minzu “nationalism”, minquan “democracy” and minsheng “welfare”. With Minzu, Sun sought national independence, as during his time China was under threat from imperialist powers. China needed to break the unequal treaties and harmonize the differing peoples of the nation. This led to the development of the Five races under one Union: Han, Mongol, Tibetan, Manchu and Muslim. For Minquan, he sought for the people to have real say in governance, and for Minsheng he sought for the government to take care of its peoples needs.  The Tongmenghui rapidly grew, finding support all over the world. With this rapid growth came more and more uprisings. On December 1st of 1907, Sun led an uprising in Zhennanguan against the Qing forces at the Friendship Pass. If you remember all the way back to when we were covering the Franco wars in indochina, the Friendship Pass is the border of China-Vietnam In Guangxi-Lang Son provinces. The uprising failed after 7 days of fighting, but Sun never gave up. In 1907 he launched more failed uprisings such as the Huanggang uprising, the Huizhou seven women lake uprising and Qinzhou uprising. In 1908 even more came, the Qin-lian uprising and Hekou uprising. And these were those backed by Sun Yat-Sen, there was a hell of a lot more going on such as the Great Ming Uprising in 1903, the Ping-liu-li uprising, the Anqing uprising. Then in 1910 Sun unleashed the second Guangzhou uprising, seeing a few hundred revolutionaries break into the residence of the Qing viceroy of Guangdong and Guangxi provinces. This one was initially pretty successful,but the Qing gathered forces and turned the tide of battle. 72 revolutionaries out of 86 dead bodies were identified and revered as the 72 martyrs. To say revolutionary fever was at an all time high is an understatement. China was about to change forever, in the year 1911. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Qing government was in full panic mode. Too much damage had been dealt to the empire, China had lost face. To quell the outside world she signed humiliating treaties, but to quell her own people, now that was more challenging. The old ways gradually fell to new policies, but can an old dog learn new tricks? 

In episode 2 of Mystic Radio, we will be discussing God; who and what is God in Sufi mysticism? The ego, is it your friend or foe? And how do we know when we are being influenced by the desires of the ego? Thirdly, we will be talking about discovering our true selves; what is the true self and how do we go about discovering who we really are? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/paul-james-caiden/support

In today's Lecture, exploring the Course and its assertions, Professor Renaldo McKenzie asks a fundamental question that raises a vital observation briefly explored in this lecture. It begins to analyze the Caribbean post-independent experience and the black/brown position in the world today. We begin by reviewing the course outline, highlighting that Caribbean Thought explores diverse currents that have come to define the Caribbean. We presented the main themes and began considering: The Paradox of Sovereignty: Cuba and Haiti's Struggle for Freedom and the Challenge of Development (Chapter Excerpt). By Rev. Renaldo McKenzie, Author of NeoLiberal Globalization Reconsidered, Professor of Caribbean Thought, at Jamaica Theologica Seminary Brain Teaser: Quiz: What do Haiti and Cuba not have in common with D.R., Jamaica, Trinidad, and Barbados? 1. Poorest in the world 2. Black and brown people. 3. Granted freedoms 4. Taken Freedoms5. Embargoes and shaky diplomacy and international relations6. Debt, dependency and non-competitiveness7. Formerly colonized Options: A. 2, 5, 6 and 7; B. 1, 4 and 5; C. 1 only 3; D. 3 and 4; E. 1, 4, and 4; F. All of the above. The Answer Reveals A Complex Tapestry of Independence and AdversityWith its vibrant cultures, rich histories, and diverse peoples, the Caribbean region has long been a subject of fascination and study. Within this complex tapestry of Caribbean thought lies a brain teaser, a puzzle that invites contemplation and analysis. This quiz, exploring the nuanced differences among various Caribbean nations, catalyzes deeper reflection on the socio-political landscapes of these countries. At the heart of this brain teaser lies a question: What sets Haiti and Cuba apart from the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Trinidad, and Barbados? The options presented delve into a myriad of factors, from economic status to historical legacies, shedding light on the unique trajectories of these nations. Upon closer examination, the correct answer emerges 1, 4, and 5. This selection illuminates key distinctions between Haiti, Cuba, and their counterparts. Firstly, Haiti and Cuba are the poorest nations in the Caribbean, grappling with economic challenges exacerbated by external pressures such as embargoes and diplomatic complexities. Unlike their counterparts, who have experienced varying degrees of economic stability, Haiti and Cuba find themselves ensnared in a cycle of poverty and dependency. Secondly, the notion of granted freedoms versus taken freedoms emerges as a pivotal theme. While countries like Jamaica, Trinidad, and Barbados have navigated the complexities of post-colonial governance and attained a degree of political autonomy, Haiti and Cuba have a tumultuous history of fighting for their independence. Yet, despite their efforts to chart their own destinies, they remain ensnared in geopolitical struggles, their sovereignty undermined by external interventions. Thirdly, embargoes, shaky diplomacy, and international relations are formidable barriers to progress for Haiti and Cuba. Unlike their counterparts, who have forged diplomatic alliances and pursued avenues of economic growth, Haiti and Cuba are marginalized on the global stage, grappling with the repercussions of contentious international policies.... Let's take "A Deeper Look," check out the 3-hour lecture, and subscribe to get the upcoming Lectures, https://anchor.fm/theneoliberal Renaldo McKenzie is the Creator and Host of The NeoLiberal Round and Author of "Neoliberalism, Globalization, Income Inequality, Poverty and Resistance," and a new book coming in February, Neoliberal Globalization Reconsidered. Renaldo graduated from graduate  @penn  and is currently  @georgetownuniversity  as a Doctoral Candidate. Please support us at https://anchor.fm/theneoliberal/support. Visit us: The NeoLiberal https://theneoliberal.com https://renaldocmckenzie.com. ⁠ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/theneoliberal/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/theneoliberal/support

As we look ahead to Christ's second coming, all we have is the permanence of his words recorded in Scripture. - SERMON TRANSCRIPT - In this world that we're living in, it's right for us to ask what is permanent and what is temporary. This is a world of constant change. The older you get, the more you see that. Things just fade away, pass away. We've had significant events even in our culture with 9/11 in which the Twin Towers just melted away in a matter of hours and gone forever, or we also saw in the pandemic a number of businesses or patterns of life that ended, and we had a sense of the fragility of our life and of our society. I feel the older I get, the more I see how temporal is everything around me. What is permanent? One answer commonly given is the ground beneath our feet is permanent. It says in Psalm 104:5, "God set the earth on its foundations. It can never be moved." But my family and I had the experience when we were missionaries in Japan of an earthquake. It's something most people don't actually live through, but I felt the ground beneath my feet shaking. I felt the entire house we were living in shaking. We were not at the epicenter, but we weren't far from it. The epicenter was in Awaji Island just off the coast of the major city of Kobe, 7.3 on the Richter scale, resulting in over 6,000 deaths in the city of Kobe. It was a devastating earthquake. The elevated Hanshin Expressway, which is a technological marvel, toppled over. Reinforced concrete and all that just fell over because the ground on which it was supported, cracked open. A number of months later, my family and I went to Kobe and we saw the rift or one of the rifts in the ground. There were still some tremors and aftershocks months later. We also saw some very sobering sites. As I walked around with my brother-in-law, Bill, we saw huge piles of rubble that, of course, still hadn't been cleared away. I saw one particular office building, a six-story, very modern office building, a steel and glass structure in which one of the floors had collapsed, the fourth floor; it went from three to five and that floor just collapsed. It was gone, some kind of structural weakness there. It was strange because you could see the Venetian blind sticking out, straight out from that now missing floor, and the entire building was slanted over about 20 degrees. Earthquakes are terrifying because they're a sign of impermanence of even the ground beneath our feet. In our text today, Jesus spoke of the impermanence of every created thing in the universe, but He also spoke of the one permanent thing on which we can build our lives and our souls. Look at verse 31, Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away." That's an incredible statement. What is a word? What is that? It seems like the most evanescent temporary thing they could ever be. It's a sound that goes out into the air like the whisper of the wind that floats through the air and then it disappears like faint echo in a cavern. It seems like nothing could be more fleeting, more temporary, more of a shadow of reality, more like nothing than a word. For many of us, words are the very picture of impermanent, something that lasts only as long as it causes the eardrum to vibrate. But Jesus said His words will last forever and heaven and earth won't. The context of this statement couldn't be more dramatic and more powerful. Jesus has predicted the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem to His disciples. Verse 2, "Do you see all these great buildings? Not one stone here will be left on another. Every one of them will be thrown down." But Jesus is saying in Verse 31, "Not just the temple, not just the city of Jerusalem, everything you see with your eyes is temporary.” The disciples when they heard of the prediction of the destruction came to Him on the Mount of Olives and asked Him that three-part question. "Tell us when will this happen? What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? What are the signs by which we can see that final day approaching?” By this time in Mark as we're walking through Mark 13, Jesus has already traced out some amazing aspects of the future. In verses 5-13 of Mark 13, He describes in general, but striking terms, how life in this sin-cursed world will progress between the First and Second Comings of Christ, "There will be wars and rumors or wars," and He said, "famines and indeed earthquakes in various places." There would also be the special and ongoing vicious persecution of the church. They'll be brought before tribunals and they would suffer in their witness concerning Him. There would also be a constant and escalating apostasy of believers, of people that claim to be believers, under the pressure of that persecution. Therefore, the call, he who stands firm to the end will be saved, the need for perseverance. But more than anything, the measurable sign of the progress between the First and Second Coming is the preaching of the gospel in all nations, a testimony in all nations. We can see measurable progress being made between the First and Second Coming of the spread of the gospel from Jerusalem through Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the earth. Then He turns the corner in Mark 13 and gives us the special “abomination of desolation” teaching. That's something that's unique to that specific generation. Indeed, I argued, to the final generation as well, “abomination of desolation." First the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in the year 70 AD. Then I believe the foretelling “as it was, so it will be.” As it was, so it'll be at the end of the antichrist setting himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God [2 Thessalonians 2]. At that time, both in the year, but then again, at the end of the world, the need to run for your lives, the tremendous urgency of Christians who run for their lives. Then as we saw last week, the description of the actual Second Coming. Look at verses 24-27, "In those days following that distress, the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time, men will see the sun of man coming in clouds with great power and glory, and He will send His angels and gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens." We looked at that last week. Now the sending out of the angels to gather the Elect is what's commonly known as the Rapture, the rescue of the Elect from the surface of the earth to be caught up in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air. 1 Thessalonians 1 teases that very, very plainly. The things that the Jews thought were permanent, the Temple, the city of Jerusalem, Jesus revealed actually were going to be destroyed, "Not one stone left on another." Jesus's disciples were stunned and they wanted to ask more questions. When would it happen and what signs can we see as it approaches? That's what we're going to look at today. Then deeper, I think the question is, "If all of this is impermanent, what is permanent? What can I build my life on that won't move? What can I establish my life and my soul on that will not be cast away?" He answers that, and He gives the sense of when this will happen. The answer He gives for the rest of this discourse, both in Mark 13, but even in more detail in Matthew 24:25, "Look for the signs for these things that happen.” Add up those signs. "Know that the Lord will come," it says, "like a thief in the night, suddenly and unexpectedly." So you need to be ready at any moment. You need to be ready and be faithful. But concerning what's permanent, what can I build my life upon? The unifying theme of this sermon today is the word of Christ. The word of Christ, the trustworthiness of Christ's words. We're going to look at aspects of the words of Christ. It's clarity, it's immediacy, it's difficulty, and then it's permanence. In the end, all we have as we look ahead to the Second Coming of Christ is this. We have the words of scripture and no other source of information. It's going to come from here, it'll come from nowhere else. Everything comes down in the end to Christ's word. I. Clarity: The Parable of the Fig Tree Let's start initially with clarity, the clarity of Christ's words, and the fact that we will be able to perceive certain things if we understand both the Scripture and the signs of the times. With eschatology, it's a combination of the two. We're going to see in the Scripture specific things laid out. We've already seen them, but we're going to keep seeing them, and then we're going to see current events. He said, "When you see the ‘abomination of desolation’, when you see that, put it together, you'll know what to do." To get at this clarity, He gives a parable, the parable of the fig tree. Look at verse 28-29 and learn this lesson from the fig tree. "As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it is near right at the door." Jesus gives this parable of the fig tree. A parable is a common everyday story that has a spiritual lesson, a spiritual point in which you take common things that we're used to seeing, frequently agricultural, but not always. If you have the interpretive key, the insider information, it makes everything clear. If you don't, it makes things worse. Jesus told His disciples that they were the insiders, and He said in Mark 4:11, "The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but not to them. To those on the outside, they get everything in parables." What He means there is unexplained parables, parables don't make any sense if you don't get the interpretive key if you don't have them. I've said before, all you have to do is just go to some public place, like a mall, whatever, and go up and just tell them one of Jesus' parables with no explanation and see what they say. If they're not a church person, not a Christian, they will look at you like you're nuts, and that's the way it is with parables. It doesn't make anything clear if you don't understand it. But if you understand it, it makes everything clear. So we have this parable of the fig tree. The thing with all of Jesus's agricultural parables in particular is it takes time to develop. You get a seed planted and then it springs up and grows and develops. You got this idea of patience and of things developing and growing. We're familiar with that. The point Jesus makes here with eschatology and end times things, the lesson of the fig tree is just like what happens with the seasons, if you're trying to understand the seasons, you can look at the trees. There's certain trees that bud at certain times and you look at that, and until you see that, you don't think that summer is near, even though you have ridiculous 68 degree weather in the middle of January. What in the world? I came out on Wednesday night, and it was 68, but I didn't think summer was near because I was looking at the trees. I knew I was going to preach this parable, so I figured I'd give that illustration. No, summer's not near, even though it's 68 degrees, just weather's weird because it was 17 degrees a few days before that. But you know as soon as the twigs get tender and its leaves come out, that summer is near. When you see these things, you know that the coming of Christ is imminent. So despite the fact that there's an essential mystery to the timing of the Second Coming, the signs leading up to it mean that we're not in the dark. We can see things developing. We can see things coming. There needs to be, as I've been saying, a combination of the word of God rightly understood and current events rightly understood when you see those things come together. Jesus says, "When you see all these things, the signs that I've been giving…” Now, of course, there are those vague, nondescript signs. By that I mean they're not unique to any generation or any era such as wars, rumors of wars, famines and earthquakes. That's just a sign that we're not in the new heaven and new earth yet. We're still in the sin era. We're in the misery era. It's just good to know that. Wars, rumors of wars, famines and earthquakes just shows we're in convulsions now, and that's good to know. But then you've got, as I said, that measurable progress of the gospel in Mark 13:10, "The gospel preached in the whole world as a testament in all nations." That wasn't true a week after Jesus ascended to heaven or a year after Jesus sent to heaven. It had only begun, that process had only begun. But now we've had 20 centuries of progress of the gospel. Then we've got the teaching and the "abomination of desolation", which we'll walk through what that is, Gentile power—taking a holy space, a sacred space, taking it over, blaspheming, claiming that he's God, demanding the worship as God, all of that stuff predicted in the Book of Daniel — the “abomination of desolation”, and then that whole running for your life, the great tribulation. If those days have not been cut short, no one would survive. We have much more information about this, not just in Matthew 24. There's more detail in Matthew, but even more in the Book of Revelation. If you look at the Book of Revelation, we have the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and the seven bowls. The Holy Spirit knew very well He was going to give His people subsequent to the time of the apostles, based on their testimony, 66 books, indeed, 27 books in the New Testament, and so there's a division of labor. There's more information than just in Mark 13 here. There's more signs that we can look at in the Book of Revelation. He knew very well that He was going to inspire John to give us that information. If you go to Revelation 8 and you look at the ecological disasters that are described there that I think, and when I preach through the Book of Revelation, cannot be symbolic of anything. A third of the sea turning to blood and a third of the living creatures in the sea dying and a third of the drinking water on earth, undrinkable, what is that? The green grass burning up, the trees burning up, a third of the trees, burning all that. What is that? Ecological disaster such as the world has never seen. We've never seen anything like that. If you were to argue, "Well, Revelation's a apocalyptic, symbolic book," I can find it. What's it a symbol of? What is a third of the sea turning into blood and a third of the living creatures in the sea dying a symbol of? I think it's going to happen. I think it's the consummation of the terrible effect of human sin on the ecology of earth, just like happened with Adam's sin and the ground was cursed because of him and it produced thorns and thistles. That's just the end of that journey. So when you see those ecological disasters happening and you see people unable to drink water where they live and you see forming a one-world government and you start seeing a particular leader rising, when you see those things, you know the end is near. I think that's what He's saying. Now, the fig tree, some people say the fig tree is Israel. Maybe you've heard that, maybe you haven't. I'm going to spend a lot of time on this. But I remember back in 1988 a former missionary wrote a book, 88 Reasons Why The Rapture Will Be in 1988. I sure hope it wasn’t, because I definitely was left behind at that point. One of his reasons had to do with the formation of the nation of Israel in 1948, May 14, 1948, and that within one generation 40 years after that, the end would come. Pastor Chuck Smith preached this kind of thing as well, so there's a number of people. I don't look at that it's been a lot more than one generation since Israel was formed in 1948. It's been 76 years. However, I do think it is right for us to combine current events and scripture and look at that. That's what I think the idea is of the budding of the fig tree. II. Immediacy: Near…Right at the Door Secondly, the immediacy of the word of God. He says “it's right at the door, it's near, right at the door.” Verse 29, "Even so when you see these things happening, you know that it is near, right at the door." What is near? His coming. The Second Coming is near. There will be believers on earth, Bible believers filled with the Spirit who will know that the end is near, it's imminent because they see these things, but it hasn't happened yet. That's the sense of immediacy of something that hasn't happened yet because we believe that the Bible is a supernatural book and does, in fact, predict the future. We believe in the predictions of the future. We've seen the track record of prophecy, things that were predicted and have now been fulfilled, and we're waiting for unfulfilled things yet to come, such as the Second Coming. There is a sense of the immediacy of an event that hasn't come yet, but based on the word of God, for us, it's immediate. We know it's coming. As it says in another place, we're not in the dark, so this day shouldn't surprise us, we've been instructed. You're being instructed right now. You've been instructed before, and so you hear this. It's a sense of immediacy, and that's important. But I want to say something more than this. I don't think I'm spiritualizing by saying this. There's another sense of immediacy which is important for me. There is by faith in the Word of God the ability to have an immediate encounter with invisible spiritual realities by faith. We are able to come right into the presence of an invisible God by the ministry of the Word. We are able to have a sense of an invisible God speaking directly to us by the Word of God. This is vital. This is the immediacy of the word. It's how we have a relationship with Jesus Christ. It is by His Word, by His Spirit that we have that relational immediacy. I thought about verses that teach, probably the strongest for me, that teach us is in Hebrews 3 where the author to Hebrews in verse 9, quoting a very old scripture, Psalm 95, introduces it with these words: "So as the Holy Spirit says, today, if you hear His voice, don't harden your hearts." "We believe that the Bible is a supernatural book and does, in fact, predict the future. We believe in the predictions of the future. We've seen the track record of prophecy, things that were predicted and have now been fulfilled, and we're waiting for unfulfilled things yet to come, such as the Second Coming." Do you realize the importance of that statement? Let me intensify the present tense. As the Holy Spirit is saying right now in Psalm 95, "Today, if you hear His voice, don't harden your hearts." That makes even the most ancient Psalm written 1000 years before Christ, alive, it's living and active for us. The Holy Spirit is saying something to us right now, and what is He saying? "If you hear Me speaking in the word, don't harden your heart." Speaking about what? Anything the Spirit is speaking in the Word. Don't harden your heart but yield to it. That's a sense of the immediacy of the Word of God. Then with the idea of a door, look at verse 29, "Even so when you see these things happening, you know that it is near right at the door," meaning the door hasn't opened yet. Christ hasn't come yet, but He's at the door. It made me think about Revelation 3:20, which is a very powerful verse. In Revelation 3:20, Christ says this, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him and he with Me.” O. Hallesby, in his book Prayer, made that the central text of a healthy prayer life. We frequently hear Revelation 3:20 connected with evangelism; Christ knocking on the door of your heart and that's fine. I don't have a problem with that, but I think it would be wrong for even mature Christians to cast aside the power of that verse. Jesus is knocking at the door, He wants you to open it and He wants to have a meal with you. He wants to sit down and eat with you and you with Him. The redoubling of the language says this is an intense, intimate relationship we have with Christ through the ministry of the word. What I get, putting all this together is, I can and should experience the Second Coming day now by faith, even though I know it can't come imminently. I'll tell you more about that in a second. But I should experience now by faith, reading the word of God, rightly dividing it, what that day will be like. The final day of human history, and I should experience that right now. That's the immediacy of the word of God. Now what do I mean by saying it can't happen today? You've been listening to what I've said about Revelation 8. Do you see the ocean, a third of the ocean turning to blood and a third of the living creatures dying? No. Let’s get very specific. Let's go to 2 Thessalonians 2. In 2 Thessalonians, Paul's writing to the Thessalonians who had a very aggressive and even realized eschatology. They had been lied to. They had been told that they had missed the day of the Lord. Furthermore, reading between the lines with Thessalonians, it seems like some of them weren't working and they had quit their jobs. There wasn't a need to hold down a job because Jesus is coming, like today, and he's pumping the brakes and all that in 2 Thessalonians 2 saying, “Stop! That day cannot occur until X happens." If you rightly divide that, you're like, "All right, I can't think the Second Coming can happen until the events listed in 2 Thessalonians to occur," and that's all the stuff in the “abomination of desolation” sermon. I already preached that. When you see all that, then you know that box has been checked where it's imminent. You're like, "Pastor, am I supposed to expect the Second Coming any day or not?" Well, yes and no. I told you the word's complex. I'm trying to feel the weight of 2 Thessalonians 2, the “pump the brakes” passage to say it can't happen until the Man of Sin sets himself up in God's temple proclaiming himself to be God. However, I'm not going to trust my own view of Jesus and deny the clear repeated teaching by Jesus that I need to be ready anytime for the Second Coming. Like the five wise and five foolish virgins, I need to be ready now. I need to buy my own now. I need to be ready now. So this much I do know, there is a personal eschatology for you called the day of your death. That's when it all ends for you. Do you know when that day is? You don't. The same preparation you do for the Second Coming, you have to do for your own death, and since you don't know that day it's going to end up the same. In the end, I'm not going to steal the thunder of sermons yet to come, but it basically comes down to two things with the Second Coming: be ready and be faithful. Be faithful means do the work God has entrusted you to do. Don't quit your jobs. Don't whatever. Farmers need to keep sowing and reaping and they need to keep doing things. We need to keep doing work. We need to keep doing evangelism and church work and all that until that day comes. To be faithful with the job given to us, we also need to be ready. For me as a Bible teacher, I'm already thinking, "I'm not so sure about my eschatology, but I'm sure Jesus is coming back and I'm sure He told me to be ready anytime. That much I do know." That's how I put all of that together. We need to keep watch and be ready at any hour. That's the immediacy of Christ's word. III. Difficulty: Who Is “This Generation” That Will Not Pass Away? Thirdly, the difficulty. We already covered some of the difficulty. That was difficult, and there's more difficulty yet to come. Verse 30, "I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened." Let me read it again. "I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened." Do you see any difficulty in that verse? It's like, “that's why I'm glad you're the pastor and I'm not." Many of Christ's words are difficult. The scripture's difficult. We don't expect all of it to be easy. Many times He taught, and they didn't understand what He was saying, it happened a lot. Mark 9:32, “they did not understand.” Luke 18:34, “they did not understand.” This is a hotly-debated passage. This is a solemn declaration Jesus gives. The way I approach difficult passages is I talk about things that cannot be the answer. I actually identify them and say, "It can't be this, it can't be this, it can't be this." I think it's helpful. The word “generation” in this verse cannot refer to the human race generally. In other words, "The human race will not be extinct before I come back." What's the point in saying that? That's good to know. It tells you nothing. Neither does it mean that the church would not be extinct before He comes back. We'll set that aside. Here's another thing that it seems like it does mean, but it doesn't. The generation of people who are alive right now when I'm speaking these words will still be alive when all of the events I've just described such as the sun, the moon and the stars ending, and Jesus coming in the clouds with power and great glory and all the angels sent out, that is not what that means. How do I know that? Because it didn't happen. That would mean that Jesus was wrong. So can we all agree to not do that because if Jesus is wrong about that, there's no point in guessing at where He is wrong somewhere else. This is the doctrine of an errancy. There's no mistake here. Now what do we do? We try to come up with the best description of what this could mean. Even though you don't feel great about it, you end up saying, "I'm going to move on," and I've done my best to explain this verse. I'm not throwing out an errancy, and I'm certainly not throwing out the Bible, just because I can't fully understand every aspect of it. There are some reasonable explanations. The first is that Jesus is really only speaking about the fall of Jerusalem at this point and saying at this point in verse 30, "The not one stone left on another, the destruction of the temple and indeed of the city of Jerusalem will happen within one generation of this present moment," and that is true. That is a significant prophecy actually if you think about it. It is a significant prophecy. Jerusalem went centuries between being sacked, so that validates you as a prophet if that's what He meant, that the destruction of Jerusalem would be within one generation, and it was. In support of that approach, that's the most common use of the word “generation,” like the people alive today, people alive within this room. That makes you feel good about the word “generation”, and then you're like, "All right." The problem is the full statement. Look again at verse 30, "I tell you the truth, this generation will not pass away until," what? "All these things have happened." All what things? We'll go back a few verses or remember last week's sermon, it's like, all that? That didn't happen. That's the very thing that didn't happen. What do you do with the phrase all these things? That's a challenge. "The sun will be dark and the moon will not give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the heavenly bodies will be shaken, and at that time, men will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory." That's hard. Another possibility is that the word “generation” is mistranslated and it could refer to this race. He's specifically talking about the Jewish people, and that's another conservative interpretation of this, that the Jews will not become extinct before the end of the world. It fits the context because obviously the Romans came in with a great intention of slaughter and they killed, Josephus tells us, over a million-and-a half Jews by the edge of the sword. There was a rage that went to heaven when they pulled down every stone one from another. They would've loved to obliterate the Jewish race at that point, and this is actually no small promise on Jesus' part. The Jews have been consistently hated in every generation. Again and again, there has been anti-Semitism and genocidal attacks on the Jewish people, right in the Bible, the Book of Esther, remember? Haman, that was a plot of genocide to exterminate the Jews entirely from the Persian Empire, and God averted it. There's long history, and I've laid out here in my sermon, the crusaders that were anti-Semitic and sought to wipe out the Jews, first crusade, 1096. During Black Death, the Jews were blamed for the Black Death, and there were tremendous reprisals on the Jewish people. Muslims consistently wiped out communities of Jews in various lands, in Morocco in the 8th century, in North Africa in the 12th century, Tunisia, Libya, other place in the 16th, 17th century. Moorish Spain saw a terrible massacre of Jews in Grenada, 1066. In Czarist Russia in the 19th century, there were terrible attempts at genocide in Russia. The story “Fiddler on the Roof” has that as one of its significant themes. The 20th century, of course, saw the greatest most organized attack on the Jews of all time under the Nazis, and then later, again, under the Communists, the Holocaust from the Nazis, and then the Communists. Therefore, Jesus' prediction that Jews would not be exterminated is amazing, and also that they would not be absorbed into the surrounding Gentile world as many peoples have. People become extinct, like the Last of the Mohicans, they're out. Moabites and Amorites, they're gone. We don't know where they are, maybe some people who have great, great, great ancestors who were Ammonites or Moabites, but we don't know them as such. Those peoples are gone, but the Jews are still here. I believe Romans 9 through 11 teaches why, because God's gifts and his purposes toward them are irrevocable. He has a final chapter to tell. I believe when it says in Romans 11, "All Israel will be saved," He's talking about that final generation of Jews. There's going to be a mass revival. The deliverable will come from Zion. He will turn godlessness away from Jacob, "And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins." That's going to be a tremendous final act of redemptive history, so I think that's what it means. IV. Eternity: Christ’s Words More Permanent Than the Universe Let's move on to eternity. In verse 31-32 Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away." First of all, Jesus asserts that this physical universe itself is temporary. The physical universe is temporary and many verses assert this. Hebrews 1:10-12 says, "In the beginning, O Lord, You laid the foundations of the earth and the heavens of the work of Your hands. They will perish, but you remain. They will all wear out like a garment. You will roll them up like a robe, like a garment, they will be changed, but you'll remain the same and your years will never end.” 2 Peter 3:10 says, "The day the Lord will come like a thief, the heavens will disappear with a roar. The elements will be destroyed by fire and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare." There is nothing you see with your eyes or hear with your ears, you touch with your hands, nothing physical in the universe is eternal. The physical universe will someday pass away. But the second half of the statement, even more amazing, "Christ's words will never pass away.” Christ's words are eternal. They will last forever. In the new heavens and the new earth, Christ's words will be established and will be delighted in and celebrated and studied forever. We'll be feeding on them and resting on them and relying on them and pondering them, probing their depths forever. You must see this as a claim to deity. Only God, Almighty God could make such a statement, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words, the words I speak will last forever." This is the very statement Jesus had made about the Old Testament, the laws of Moses and the prophets. He said in Matthew 5, "Do not think that I've come to abolish the law of the prophets. I've not come to abolish them, but fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen will by any means disappear from the law until everything is accomplished." God's Word, the Old Testament and New Testament, is eternal. It's eternal. He's equating His own words to the words of the Bible. This assertion has proven true so far, and it reaches beyond the end of the world. Christ's word will stand forever as Isaiah 40:8 says, "The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever." Let me say something, it's not in my sermon, but I want to mention it. About the earth, I do not believe that the new earth will be created “ex nihilo”, “out of nothing”. I believe it will be this present earth, but in some sense, resurrected. I think there must be a continuity between the present earth and the new earth or else the promise made to Abraham in Genesis 13, "Walk through the land, go through the breadth of it. Look and see, I will give this land to you, Abraham, and to your descendants forever." That promise would be null and void. It didn't happen. Hebrews 11 said they died not having received the promise. There's an outstanding promise of the land still made to the patriarchs. I believe that the new earth will be this earth resurrected, just like Abraham's new body will be his old body resurrected, so there's continuity and difference. That's what I believe about the earth. "God's Word, the Old Testament and New Testament, is eternal. It's eternal. He's equating His own words to the words of the Bible. This assertion has proven true so far, and it reaches beyond the end of the world." The purpose of Jesus' assertion is our faith and confidence. The most intensely wrenching circumstances in human history are described in this chapter, horrendous suffering, famines, earthquakes, wars, rumors of wars, attacks on the church, destruction of Jerusalem, a tribulation so great that no one would survive if those days that not been cut short. The events are so immense and so stupendous even to the shaking of the heavenly beings at the return of Christ, all of this tends to make us say, "Where can I stand? Where can I put my feet that won't move?" The answer is the word of God. Trust in the words of Christ. Rest securely on the foundation. V. Application That's the application I'm taking from this. Let's rest securely on the word of God, first and foremost, for your own salvation. In John 5:24 Jesus said, "Whoever hears my words and believes him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned. He's crossed over from death to life." What a beautiful statement that is. Has that happened to you? Have you heard Christ's words about your sinfulness, your violation of the laws of God, the corruption that comes up from your inner nature that defiles you and all of us, the ways you violated God's commands, the fact that there is no remedy, no works that could ever be done, but that Jesus came to give His life as a ransom for many and that if we believe our sins will be forgiven, like the paralyzed man? When He saw their faith, He said, "Take heart, son, your sins are forgiven." Has that happened to you? If Jesus declares, your sins are forgiven, they are forgiven. The question is, has that happened to you? The foundation of your life, the word of God. Concerning the clarity, immediacy, difficulty, and eternity of God's word, first clarity. Come to Christ, trust in Him and then He will give you the Holy Spirit to illuminate the word of God, and it will become increasingly clear to you by the power of the Spirit as you study it, clarity. What about immediacy? Go back to Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock." He does that by the word of God and by the Spirit. Open the door, and He'll come in and eat with you and you with Him. Intimate fellowship with Christ is available, immediacy. Again, Hebrews 3, as the Holy Spirit is saying to you right now, "Today, if you hear His voice, don't harden your heart." What does that go to? Anything covered in the Bible, any topic in the Bible. If He's telling you what sin is and you're convicted, repent and make changes in your life. If He's giving you wisdom or promises or giving you guidance, follow it. Today, if you hear his word, if you hear him speak, don't harden your heart. That's immediacy. Concerning the difficulty of the word of God, there are always going to be passages where you're not quite sure what it means. Doesn't that show you that the Bible came from a mind so infinitely greater than any of ours? "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are God's ways higher than our ways,” and God's words higher than our words," so expect difficulty. Finally, eternality. I think it's exciting to think that when we get to heaven, we will still be learning, studying and probing the extent and the dimensions of the words of Christ. To me, that's exciting. Close with me in prayer. Father, thank You for giving us a sure and certain foundation of our souls. We thank You that this foundation, the word of God, cannot be shaken. As Jesus said at the end of the Sermon of the Mount, "Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts him into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock, and the rains came down and the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock." Help us to build on the unshakeable foundation of the Word of God. We pray in Jesus' name, Amen.

Become a Paid Subscriber and get Uninterrupted Episodes: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/manifestelle/subscribe Get the SGSG hoodie: https://shopisla.co Subscribe to the Weekly ManifesTEA Newsletter: https://manifestelle.substack.com Follow me on IG and Tiktok: manifestelle In this episode of "Big Sis Advice," Elle shares her top 4 strategies for maintaining a low-stress lifestyle. Firstly, she encourages listeners to avoid 'lower-level struggles,' those unnecessary battles that prevent us from tackling bigger, more rewarding challenges. Secondly, she advocates for doing less to be more, suggesting that by reducing commitments, we can enhance our performance and satisfaction in the activities we do engage in. Thirdly, Elle advises listeners to distance themselves from 'crisis people' who constantly find themselves in chaos and stress. Lastly, she discusses the importance of being mindful with money, making thoughtful financial decisions, and ensuring financial peace. Throughout the episode, Elle emphasizes the importance of self-care and making choices that support a healthier, lower-stress lifestyle.

In the latest episode of our Greener Arbitrations podcast series, Alison Eslick and Vanessa Thieffry moderate a spirited debate between Michelle Nelson (Dubai) and Clément Fouchard (Paris) as they explore the pros and cons of electronic signatures and notification of awards, including discussion on recognition and enforcement, cost savings, technology challenges, convenience, security risks and resistance to change. ----more---- Transcript: Intro: Hello and welcome to Arbitral Insights, a podcast series brought to you by our International Arbitration practice lawyers here at Reed Smith. I'm Peter Rosher, global head of Reed Smith's International Arbitration Practice. I hope you enjoy the industry commentary, insights and anecdotes we share with you in the course of this series, wherever in the world you are. If you have any questions about any of the topics discussed, please do contact our speakers. Welcome to our Greener Arbitrations podcast miniseries where Reed Smith's International Arbitration lawyers will be exploring the legal and technical issues involved in reducing the environmental footprint of arbitrations. I'm Alison Eslick, an International Arbitration lawyer at Reed Smith's Dubai office and I am Vanessa Thieffry, an International Arbitration lawyer at Reed Smith's Paris office. In these episodes, we will hear from leading arbitration practitioners and external speakers and discuss insights, news and trends relevant to greening arbitration and the challenges that are entailed. We hope you enjoy this episode. Vanessa: Welcome back to another exciting episode of Reed Smith's Arbitral Insights. I am Vanessa Thieffry and together with Alison Eslick, we are delighted to host the sixth and final episode of our Greener Arbitrations miniseries in which lawyers of Reed Smith debate, how to reduce the environmental footprint of arbitrations. In 2022 Reed Smith launched an initiative to reduce the environmental footprint of our arbitrations. We quickly identified the need to raise awareness both internally and externally and organizing a podcast miniseries on greener arbitrations appeared as an obvious tool to do that. In the five first episodes, we addressed arbitration agreements and whether they should include sustainability measures, the campaign for greener arbitrations model procedural order and whether it was unavoidable. The topic of hard copied submissions in which we wondered if they were a thing of the past witness and expert preparation and whether video conferencing can match in person meetings and in person hearings and whether they are still worthwhile. If you haven't listened to them yet, they are available on Reed Smith's podcast channel, Arbitral Insights. Alison: Thank you, Vanessa. Now, in this episode, we focus on the entire points of going to arbitration and that is of course obtaining an enforceable award. So recently we see more and more institutions notifying awards by email and arbitrators signing awards electronically. Now this may well be greener, but when it comes to something as important as the final award, is green always better? So that is the question that our debaters will tackle today. I do have a short disclaimer as we always do with these debates, our debaters have been assigned the positions that they are advocating and this is so they can fully advocate for or against the proposition. The debate is of course role playing and none of the views expressed during the debates should be attributed to Reed Smith, the debaters themselves or of course any of our clients. So joining us today for this challenging topic, uh Reed Smith partners Michelle Nelson and Clément Fouchard who will present their primary positions and then each will have a chance for rebuttal. Vanessa: Thanks Alison. Let's see what our first speaker has to say. Clément Fouchard is up. Clément is a partner in Reed Smith's Paris office in the Energy and Natural Resources Group, focusing on international commercial and investment arbitration. He has over 16 years experience advising on major litigation and arbitration proceedings in particular in complex disputes in construction, energy and infrastructure, mining defense and distribution sectors. As well as considerable experience with joint ventures, imposed acquisition disputes. In addition to acting as counsel Clément acts as an arbitrator in domestic and international arbitration. Clément, the floor is yours. Clément: Thank you, Vanessa and Alison. I'm very happy to be with you today and to argue in favor of green arbitration, electronic signature and notification of rewards. Is green always better? So yes, green, that is the use of electronic signature and electronic notification of rewards is always better. And I will explain why. First a definition, an electronic award or e-award is an arbitral award that is signed digitally by the arbitral tribunal and emailed to the parties directly or if an institution is involved for transmission to the parties by the institution. First, I will start by saying that the appeal and desirability of electronic awards cannot be denied. In a survey published last year in the Journal of International Arbitration, questions were asked to leading arbitration institutions regarding the use of and practice of electronic awards. The participants overwhelmingly agreed that electronic awards are faster, 95% of the response. Cheaper, 85% and better for the environment, 80%. So let's look at those three criterias. First of all speed, while it is true that in some jurisdictions, it may take time to obtain a detailed signature for the first time. It cannot be denied that an award can be signed by the three arbitrators and sent to the parties by email in a manner of minutes. The same cannot obviously be said for hard copies awards that need to be printed out, circulated among tribunal members for signature and hard copy original notified by courier service. As to cost, now again, there is little doubt that an electronic awards are most certainly cheaper since they can often be prepared at no cost at all given that one, e-signature software are often for free and two, the sending being done by email, there is no additional cost and this is to be compared with courier service costs for all the back and forth required to have the award being signed by all members of the tribunal and then harm to the environment when electronic awards save paper because they do not need to be printed. This is abuse and reduce the emission of greenhouse gasses because they do not require physical transportation. Of course, electronic rewards are not entirely without carbon footprint, either data storage and related energy consumption have a certain, albeit, I submit a very small impact on the environment, however, the data storage needs of a paper award are in practice greater than those of electronic award. As to the COVID-19 crisis, put the world on hold. The legal community, and international arbitration in particular had to adapt and they actually adapt in a new way of working where online meetings and online hearings, it became the norm. So looking at e-signature of arbitral awards, there is clearly a growing trend amongst the major arbitration legal system, the vast majority of arbitration laws and institutional rules require the award to be in writing and to be signed. These requirements have primarily evidentiary functions and they have therefore little to do with the written text in digital or tangible formats. And this is the same situation regarding e-signature awards which will depend upon the electronic signature law, which in most cases would in principle allow the e-signature of arbitral awards. The New York Convention does not prohibit the electronic signature of awards and therefore most reductions should permit the arbitral award to be signed with any signature of awards. The issue of e-signature should be assessed, therefore, as the applicable at the applicable law level in this respect, we note that there is a growing number of jurisdictions allowing the signature of arbitral awards electronically. Looking first at France, Article 1366 of the French civil code provides that an electronic document has the same evidential value as a paper document provided that the person from whom it originates can be duly identified and that it is drawn up and stored in conditions that guarantee its integrity. So as we can see, the focus is made on the originality and the integrity of the electronic documents. Once this requirement is satisfied, French law grants the electronic document the same evidential value than a paper document. The legal framework dealing with the authentication of e-signatories has been based in France on the requirements of the EU regulation which deals with electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the internal market. So we have actually a legal framework in place and I could continue with the United States with the Uniform Act of 2000 which requires that an award must be signed or otherwise authenticated by an arbitrator. An arbitrator can therefore sign an award with an electronic signature. In the UK, the draft reform of the English Arbitration act explicitly unfazed that there was no need for an explicit reference to electronic signature and notification of words as these are already authorized and I can continue on and on. As to e-notification, the arbitral award uh is also on the rise. Taking again the example of France Article 1519 paragraph three of the French Code of Civil Procedure states that notification of international arbitral awards shall be made by service,  meaning by bailiff, unless the parties agree otherwise. This means that the parties can agree to another means of notification such as in the context of ICC arbitration, the electronic notification of awards by ICC Secretariat. So in conclusion, I submit that those solutions in e-notification and e-signature of rewards are more and more used and should be the preferred way in the international arbitration practice. Alison: Thank you very much Clément, some excellent points made there. And I do remember printing those thousands of pages back in the day. So let's see what our second speaker Michelle Nelson has to reply. Michelle Nelson is a partner in Reed Smith's Dubai office. She sits in our global Energy and Natural Resources Group. Michelle is a specialist arbitration lawyer with 27 years of experience advising a variety of clients on oil and gas and construction disputes. She is a qualified solicitor advocate. She sits as arbitrator on regional disputes and also has rights of audience before the DIFC courts. And I do have to mention that she is the only female in the Legal 500 Hall of Fame for Construction and has been ranked in the 2024 edition of  Who's Who Legal for the Arbitration category. So Michelle take it away. Michelle: Thank you very much, everyone and I'm delighted to participate in this Greener Arbitration podcast series and particularly on the topic of e-signatures and e-notifications of arbitral awards. I've been tasked today with arguing against the proposition that my colleague Clément put forward and specifically why in the case of e-signatures and e-awards, a greener approach is not always best. So my colleague Clément made some interesting points but there are fundamental reasons why parties should cautiously approach e-signatures and e-notifications of awards, even if they are better for the environment. A point which certainly from my side is itself is debatable, but there's specifically three points against the proposition that I'm going to be considering in some detail. First, the end goal of any claimant in arbitration is to have an enforceable award. And I think Clément agrees with that proposition. Whilst e-signatures and e-notifications of awards may well be a greener option, they will not necessarily be valid and enforceable in every jurisdiction and this requires a cautious case by case approach. If the award is unenforceable, then greener clearly is not better. Secondly, parties and tribunals who accept e-signatures and e-notification of awards open themselves up to a host of potential cybersecurity and data integrity risks. Even the largest law firms and the most prominent barristers chambers have been victims of hacking and data leaks. And as the world becomes increasingly more reliant on digital technology, these risks are expected to increase. This is the downside or perhaps I should say the dark side of opting for e-signatures and e-notification of awards. Thirdly, I have to question whether my opponent's claims that e-awards are demonstrably better for the environment at all. I suggest that in practice, the positive environmental impact of signing an award with an e-signature or notifying an award by email has perhaps been grossly exaggerated by my opponent. Whilst one could argue that every little bit counts, there are several other areas of arbitration and we've, we've, we've heard about those in terms of the printing of bundles and thousands of pages of submissions and issues of virtual hearing e-bundles and the like which certainly I would suggest should be prioritized. So taking down each one of these points. Firstly, the issue of enforcement now arbitration, in contrast to other ADR mechanisms has the advantage of a binding decision at the end, making it a viable and well established alternative to traditional litigation. Any doubts about enforceability of an award puts at risk, the whole purpose of the arbitration itself. The use of e-awards and e-signatures is particularly risky in the context of international arbitration. Each jurisdiction has its own different requirements as to the validity of enforceability of awards ranging from the need for a wet ink signature to an originality requirement where it will be expected that a hard copy original award will be provided. Awards with e-signatures, or that have notified by email only, will not suffice and are likely to lead to increased costs and prolonged legal battles around enforcement. Now, my opponent Clément gave a shopping list of examples of countries which theoretically allow for e-awards. Yet the countries mentioned only included Western European countries and the U.S. So I do have to ask, what about the rest of the world? e-Awards may not be enforceable in a number of countries. So care must be taken. Whilst I accept my friend's argument that national courts of some countries are moving towards acceptance of digital methods, we simply aren't there yet. The suggestion that scholars may argue that e-awards cannot be challenged will not give clients much comfort when a court says no. Here in the UAE for example, there are currently a number of cases in the courts and have been sent to the courts where nullification proceedings have been put on hold. Whilst the tribunals have actually been told to go away and reissue awards and sign them in wet ink, which not only of course, is increased time, it causes increased cost as well. And the risk the award will not be enforceable in any event. I should note that the Chartered Institution of Arbitrators has also given some reluctance in its guidance and said that even though digital technology is rapidly becoming a widely accepted business and legal tool, it's advisable to keep key procedural documents in both soft and hard copies containing signatures of participants where necessary. So again, this is suggesting a cautious approach. So the bottom line, I would say any party considering use of an e-award or e-signature perhaps should obtain an opinion from local council first to make sure that there is not a risk in that individual jurisdiction. Clearly greener is not better if the award is unenforceable. Secondly, although data security risks are inherent in any form of electronic communications, the stakes are higher when it comes to e-awards due to their commercially sensitive and confidential nature. Confidentiality is one of the many factors that makes arbitration more attractive than litigation. Yet, a cybersecurity threat puts this at risk. Big businesses may well have excellent firewalls but many arbitration parties are smaller businesses without top class IT support. When it comes to a final award there are good reasons why it's worth having a hard copy in your office safe. And doubts could also be raised as to the authenticity of e-signatures used and the award itself. For example, courts may question whether the integrity of the e-award has been preserved and whether or not the award was safeguarded against later modification. One can imagine an enforcement scenario where a fraud has been committed and local courts do not have the means to authenticate thee-award, even if the local law ordinarily permits its enforcement. Now, I accept my friends point that some jurisdictions including the EU and specific EU countries like France have taken regulatory steps towards developing a framework to protect against forgery and other mischief involving e-signatures. But again, this does not include the majority of the world's countries. And in fact, underscores the very real risks that e-signatures present. And statistically, I think it's right to say that much of the world's users of arbitration is not necessarily in the EU. As for e-notifications, email does not provide the same level of certainty as a courier delivered and signed for paper award, a standard email will not inform the sender as to whether or not the recipient had received it, the email might be shown as sent however, there's no certainty as to whether it has in fact been delivered and given the sheer volume of email traffic, one could even imagine a scenario where a party misses that all important email. And if the award needs to be annulled time will be ticking to file those proceedings with irreversible consequences if a time bar is missed. So lastly, even if one were to disregard all of the things that I've said so far, we need to consider whether or not e-awards make a significant difference for sustainability. My friend was keen to point out the benefits of online hearings, general correspondence and so forth. But this debate is focused on e-signatures and e-awards. Now I accept that it is not ideal to fly several copies, an arbitration award around the world to be signed by three arbitrators and then delivered to the parties. Yet in the grand scheme of an arbitration carbon footprint, it is a relatively small package being carried on a large airplane that was making the trip anyway. While arbitrations do have a significant carbon footprint, studies show that energy use powering law firm offices and air travel for in-person hearings are the top two biggest causes of CO2 emissions in arbitrations. Apparently 92.7% of carbon emissions for hearings come from flights alone that if we really want to make arbitrations greener, our priority should be on those areas instead. So in closing, it comes down to a cost benefit exercise. Parties should ask themselves whether the benefit of a small reduction in paper waste and CO2 emissions is worth the risk of an unenforceable award. Indeed, a recent Queen Mary International Arbitration survey confirmed that participants are generally not overly enthusiastic about receiving an e-award. Only 14% stated that they wanted awards to be signed electronically. It seems that people have spoken and would agree with me that when it comes to e-awards, greener is not always better. Thank you. Vanessa: Thank you, Michelle. There are some very compelling arguments here. Both sides have made extremely strong arguments but how do we tell them apart? Well, it's time for rebuttal starting with Clément. Clément, what do you have to answer to Michelle? Clément: In response to Michelle's very interesting points I will limit myself to the following three remarks. First, as to enforcement of awards. As I said earlier, the question of enforcement must be resolved by looking at the applicable law and national solutions may vary from one region to another. That said, I also note that one, the New York Convention is silent on the delivery of the awards to the parties and two, although the risk regarding enforcement of e-awards has been expressed in relation to the formal requirements of an award, question of due process or international public policy, the reality is that e-awards cannot in fact be seriously challenged on those grounds. As mentioned earlier, formal requirements have in reality very little to do with the format digital or tangible of the substantive text of the award. As to due process requirements, a party must be given proper notice of an arbitral proceedings. And nowadays, emails are an accepted mode of giving notice while there are issues such as being unable to prove when a party receives an email. Email software has made it simpler for a sender to be notified if the receiver of the email opens a particular email by creating provisions of read receipts. And for instance, in another instance, the High Court in India has held that a notice sent on WhatsAppp was actually good service. And finally, the rendering of e-awards does not breach international public policy as we actually failed to see what would be the valid ground in this respect. Two on cyber security and online arbitration, I've listened to the legitimate concerns raised by my learned colleague. While these concerns should not be ignored, I submit the risk is that link, again I would say, to the form of the original award electronic or paper because in either case, the arbitrators can be hacked and the award tampered with. The reality is that both wet ink and e-signatures can be forged. And the difference lies in reality in the way in which the fraud is proven or discovered for a paper signature with the help of an expert, a graphologist expert, and for the electronic signature with the help of an IT specialist. The real issue is how to ensure that the signature on the award is not forged. As to online signatures are used additional requirements may be imposed. In application of the EU regulation mentioned earlier, French law, for instance, has created four different levels of security in which signatures can be categorized. The two highest levels are recommended to companies for their contracts and agreements where e-signatures are certified as having the same value of a paper hand signature. And there are numerous specialized IT platforms, and I will mention for instance, DocuSign, which has been certified by the French government to ensure the integrity of e-signatures. Last points, e-signatures and notification of awards in arbitration constitute a means to tackle the climate change problem. As it allows to reduce, reducing the impact of arbitration on the environment. They have a direct effect on paper consumption. And two, they have also an impact in reducing the need for air travel. As we know every step count and as international arbitration is taking the green transition turn e-signature and e-notification of rewards must be adopted on a wider scope. Thank you very much. Alison: Ok. Our time is up for this episode and we would like to thank warmly Michelle and Clément for their time and precious insights on this topic. Vanessa: This was our last episode for this miniseries on how to reduce the environmental impact of arbitration. But we will revert soon with a new topic. Until then, thank you for listening to our Arbitral Insights Greener Arbitrations podcast series. We hope you enjoyed it. Outro: Arbitral Insights is a Reed Smith production. Our producer is Ali McCardell. For more information about Reed Smith's Global International Arbitration practice, email arbitralinsights@reedsmith.com. To learn about the Reed Smith Arbitration Pricing Calculator, a first of its kind mobile app that forecasts the cost of arbitration around the world, search Arbitration Pricing Calculator on reedsmith.com or download for free through the Apple and Google Play app stores. You can find our podcast on Spotify, Apple, Google Play, Stitcher, reedsmith.com, and our social media accounts at Reed Smith LLP on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Disclaimer: This podcast is provided for educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice, and is not intended to establish an attorney-client relationship,  nor is it intended to suggest or establish standards of care applicable to particular lawyers in any given situation. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome Any views, opinions, or comments made by any external guest speaker are not to be attributed to Reed Smith LLP or its individual lawyers. All rights reserved. Transcript is auto-generated.

A central article of faith of Christianity is that Jesus will return visibly and powerfully to end this era and bring in a world of eternal life and glory. - SERMON TRANSCRIPT - Turn in your Bibles to Mark 13 as we consider the Second Coming of Christ. And as I do this morning, my mind goes back 29 years, my wife and I were missionaries in Japan. I went regularly on Saturdays to a different city, taking a train from Tokushima to Takamatsu. In that city I would teach English and the Bible. On one particular day, a Saturday, I was walking through the streets of Takamatsu, and praying about the ministry I was about to have. I looked overhead, and there was a spectacular cloud formation. You know what I'm talking about, one of those clouds that just heap up like a pile, like a mountain up to the sky. Very, very dramatic. It was especially dramatic in that there was a small peephole of sunlight coming through and there were rays that were streaming down. I was just overwhelmed. I began singing the hymn we're going to close with today, It Is Well With My Soul, because I really felt that it was well with my soul. I was especially thinking about the fourth stanza which says, "And Lord haste the day when our faith will be sight, the clouds be rolled back like a scroll. The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend. Even so, it is well with my soul." Think about that when we sing at the end. But I was thinking about that myself, and how dramatic and how awesome that day was going to be. As I was contemplating this sermon, I was thinking about that day, the day that is yet to come, and our understanding of all that will happen on that day. I would say easily the most dramatic moment in the history of sin-cursed humanity. I can't actually imagine a more spectacular and dramatic day than that, and we are going to understand it and effectively see it today by faith. My prayer has been that the eyes of your heart would be enlightened, that you would be able to see the invisible, the future. And that you would see the glories of the greatness and the majesty and the power and the terror, indeed the terror, of that day in which everything on earth will come to an end. To see it by faith and understand it by faith, that's my desire. How different is the circumstance of Jesus' Second Coming from that of his First Coming. Think of the Christmas hymn, A Little Town of Bethlehem, “how silently the wondrous gift is given.” We know that an army of angels came and appeared, but just to a very small number of shepherds on the hills outside Bethlehem, no one else got to see that. It was just a pregnant couple, a pregnant woman, no room in the inn, and then Jesus born in the natural way. Very quiet. But the Second Coming of Christ will not be so. and we need to understand it. We need to understand it biblically. We need to understand the reasons for it. This morning, as I was thinking about that, the reasons for the Second Coming, I listed out a series of them. Why is Christ coming back to Earth? First and foremost, for the glory of God, for the open, clear, plain, visible display of the greatness and majesty of almighty God. Secondly, to be praised and marveled at by the saints, stimulating us in worship such as we have never experienced before, and that, even for all eternity. Third, to rescue His persecuted people from imminent deadly danger. Fourthly, to bring about justice for them as they are crying out for justice day and night. To bring about justice and, indeed, vindication for His people. Fifth, to punish evildoers, idolaters, blasphemers and wicked people who have not fled to Christ for the forgiveness of their sins. Sixth, to end the open reign of Satan and antichrist and that final government which we have described recently. Seventh, to establish the kingdom of God in righteousness and purity in answer to the prayers that have been prayed in every generation, "May your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." To usher in the new heaven and the new earth, the perfect world free from all death, mourning, and crying, and pain. To be with His people forever and to end the reign of sin and death for all eternity. These are the reasons and many others. I. The Absolute Certainty of the Second Coming It's beneficial for us today to walk through this biblically, to understand it, to understand what Mark reveals about it. I begin with the absolute certainty of the Second Coming of Christ. The Second Coming of Christ is taught many, many times throughout the Scriptures. This is one of the central articles of the Christian faith, that Jesus Christ will return visibly and powerfully to end this era of human history and bring in a world of eternal life and radiant glory. We believe this as Christians. Now, Paul speaks of the purpose of Jesus's first coming like this in Galatians 1:3 and 4, "The Lord Jesus Christ gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age." To rescue us from this present evil age. What is this present evil age, and what world of eternal blessedness did Christ come to usher in? No text captures it better than Revelation 21:4, "He'll wipe every tear from their eyes. There'll be no more death, or mourning, or crying, or pain for the old order of things has passed away." This present evil age in Galatians 1 and the old order of things that is passing away are the same, they're just different ways of talking about the same thing. The present evil age is characterized by the reign of sin, sin reigning in death, and mourning and crying and pain. That's this present evil age from which Jesus has come to rescue us. The new heavens and the new earth that Jesus will bring in at His Second Coming will be forever free from those enemies, forever free from sin, and Satan, and death, mourning, crying, and pain. Therefore, the Second Coming of Christ is a central aspect of the Christian hope. We are looking forward to it. We're longing for it. We're yearning for it to come. We're seeking to speed its coming by service to God and by the proclamation of the gospel. The Second Coming is therefore taught in many places in Scripture. First, historically, by a man named Enoch, seventh from Adam. We learned this in the book of Jude. Enoch, seventh from Adam, that's a long, long, long, long, long time ago, said these words, prophesied about these wicked men, "Behold the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones, angels, to judge everyone and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against Him." Enoch said that. How in the world did Enoch know about the Lord coming with thousands of angels the same way we do? The Lord revealed it to him prophetically. "The Second Coming of Christ is a central aspect of the Christian hope. We are looking forward to it. We're longing for it. We're yearning for it to come. We're seeking to speed its coming by service to God and by the proclamation of the gospel." It started with Enoch, then many other places. I zero in into my mind to Daniel 7, the vision that Daniel the prophet had at night, a night vision. The centerpiece of it was a vision of the Son of Man, Daniel 7: 13 and 14, "In my vision at night, I looked and there before me was one like a Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. And He approached the ancient of days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory, and sovereign power. All people's nations and men of every language worshiped Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed." It's taught there in Daniel 7. It's taught in Matthew 24 and 25, and here also in Mark 13, and we'll walk through it carefully today, but there are many other passages on the Second Coming. Jesus, for example, in John 14, spoke to his apostles the night before He was crucified, saying, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me. In my father's house or many rooms. If it were not so I would've told you, for I'm going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you," listen now, "I will come back and take you to be with me so you also may be where I am." It's a clear prediction of the Second Coming of Christ. Then that very night after Jesus was arrested, and early the next morning when He was on trial, He quoted Daniel 7, and I'm not going to read it now because I'll read it later in the sermon, but He referred to the Second Coming at that point. It got Him killed. It got Him condemned by the Jewish authorities. Then after His death on the cross, and after His physical resurrection from the dead, and after He had spent forty days instructing His disciples and giving many convincing proofs that He was alive, after all of that training was over, He gave them His final word, "You'll receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria to the ends of the earth.” [Acts 1:9-11] "After He said this, He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid Him from their sight. They were looking intently into the sky as He was going when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 'Men of Galilee,' they said, 'why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken from you into heaven will come back in the same way you've seen Him go into heaven.'" It’s a clear prediction of the Second Coming of Christ. The Apostle Paul, wrote of it often. He spoke of the Parousia, the coming of Christ. He spoke of it many times, most dramatically in 1 Thessalonians 4: 16-18, "The Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with a voice of the archangel, with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." That's the rapture. Caught up midair, mid-heaven to meet the Lord as He descends from heaven to earth, to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore, encourage one another with these words. I hope you're encouraged with these words. This is the future. This is what Paul taught in 1 Thessalonians 4, and in 2 Thessalonians 2, "Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ [the Parousia] and our being gathered to Him, we ask you brothers not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, reporter, or letter supposed to have come from us saying the day of the Lord has already come. You didn't miss it.” That ship has not sailed," et cetera. But he talked about the Parousia, the coming of the Lord. The Apostle Peter talked about it in 2 Peter 3: 3-4, "First of all, you must understand that in the last day, scoffers will come scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, 'Where is this coming he promised?” What coming? That's the Second Coming of Christ. “Where is it? We don't see it. Where is this coming He promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” Peter goes on to talk about how the generation of Noah before the flood were saying the same thing, Jesus made that same connection. They were saying, "There's no flood. We don't see any flood," until that flood came. Then later in 2 Peter 3 : 10 he said, "The day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar. The elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare." Also the Second Coming of Christ is taught many times in the Book of Revelation, such as Revelation 1:7, "Behold He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced him, and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of Him, so shall it be on men." We'll return to that passage a number of times. Then of course in Revelation 19, it openly depicts and describes the Second Coming of Christ with an angelic army, and Jesus coming with a sword coming out of His mouth with which He will slay the wicked. Then in the final chapter, Revelation 22:7, Jesus said, "Behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book." Again, Revelation 22:12 and 13, "Behold, I am coming soon. My reward is with me, and I'll give to each person according to what he has done. I am the alpha and the omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end." We believe in linear history. We believe in an unfolding history. We don't believe in reincarnation and cyclical history that goes around. No, we believe in a beginning, a middle, and an end. We believe in an alpha and omega, and Jesus is that letter and that letter and every letter in between. We believe in a purpose to history, and we believe it's going to end, this phase, this present evil age will end with the Second Coming of Christ. Then again, Revelation 22:20, the second to last verse of the Bible, "He who testifies to these things says, 'Yes, I am coming soon.'" That's three times in Revelation 22 He says, "I'm coming soon." Then John replies, "Amen. Come Lord Jesus." It seems then that looking forward to the Second Coming, yearning for the Second Coming, crying out for it as John does, is essential to our healthy lives in this present evil age. This is a major theme taught many times in the Bible. II. The Heavenly Bodies Darkened, Shaken, and Removed What aspects does Jesus give here in Mark 13, that's our purpose now, as we look through Mark 13:24-27. It begins with the heavenly bodies darkened, shaken, and removed. Look at verse 24 and 25, "But in those days, following that distress, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.” The context here, as we remember, is in those days following that distress. We're right in the middle now of Mark 13. The last sermon was entitled, as you remember, “Run For Your Lives.” Look at verses 14-19, "When you see the abomination that causes desolation standing where it does not belong, let the reader understand, then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the roof of his house go down or enter the house to take anything out. Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. How dreadful it be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers? Pray that this will not take place in winter because those will be days of distress unequal from the beginning when God created the world until now, and never to be equaled again." The Abomination of Desolation, we walked through that, devoting a whole sermon to that. The Abomination of Desolation is the defiling of a sacred space by a blasphemous Gentile power. Concerning the destruction of the temple, Jesus talked about the Gentile army surrounding the city ready to destroy it. But the Abomination of Desolation, per se, is the antichrist finally setting himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God. Jesus clearly warned his church that would be living in that geographical region, both at the destruction of the temple, but then as it foretold the final events. When you see that, when you see these things spoken of by the prophet Daniel, run for your lives, get away as fast as you can. This is what the Bible calls the Great Tribulation. The Book of Revelation gives many more details about what life on earth will be like at that time, and how terrifying and terrible it will be. Seven seals broken, seven trumpets sounded, seven bulls poured out. Those seven, seven, sevens give heaven's response to the wickedness and sinfulness of man on earth, and they will ravage the surface of the earth. Ecological disaster such as has never been seen before, a clear link between human sin and the ecology as we saw from the beginning when Adam sinned and the earth was cursed, and it produced only thorns and thistles for him. We learned in Romans 8 that the whole world has been cursed with the bondage of decay; there's a link between human sin and the ecology. The ecological disasters described specifically in Revelation 8, have never, however, been seen before. A burning up of green grass, a burning up of a third of the trees on earth, a turning of a third of the ocean waters to blood, a killing of a third of the living creatures in the sea. What effect would that have on human commerce and life itself? Then even worse, a third of the drinking water is fouled, made undrinkable. But what effect will that have on national boundaries when some parts of the world have drinking water and other parts don't? You can't live longer than a certain number of days without water, a terrifying, terrible rending of the planet because of the judgments of God. It's not an accident, but it's something God is pouring out. The unleashing of plagues on mankind resulting in painful sores and an agony so great that the people, the inhabitants of the earth, will long for death, but they will not find it. An unleashing of demonic powers billowing up from the deepest resources of the pit and coming to bring agonies and torments on people, [Revelation 9]. It's a terrifying time. Then the coming of the beast from the sea, the antichrist, the one-world government, the one-world religion, all of those things that culminate in the Abomination of Desolation. Those are terrible days. Mark 13:19-20, "Those will be days of distress unequal from the beginning when God created the world until now, and never to be equaled again. If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive," think about that, "but for the sake of the elect, those days will be shortened." Immediately after the distress of those days, the Second Coming happens, and it's described here as the shaking and rending and destruction of the cosmos. Look up into the night sky. Look up into the sky and see the lights that God put there. Verse 24 and 25, "In those days following that distress, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.” The heavens will be rent, similar to Isaiah's prayer concerning the wickedness of man. He said in Isaiah 64:1-2, "Oh that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you as when fire sets twigs, ablaze and causes water to boil. Come down and make your name known to your enemies. Cause the nations to quake before you." Isaiah 64, “Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down." It's interesting, this idea of rending the heavens, it creates a sense of a membrane or barrier between us and the heavenly realms. A rending is a tear and a rip, and out of it, Isaiah wants God almighty to come and bring judgment. What's interesting is, this is the language used at Jesus' baptism. When Jesus was baptized, the heavens were torn, but out came a dove, a symbol of peace, a symbol of reconciliation with God. That's the First Coming, peace on earth, goodwill to man. That's the first rending happening. The second will not be so. It'll be more like Isaiah 64, the wrath of God coming out of that rending of the heavens, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken and removed. I need to bring up the Polish astronomer, Copernicus. Some of you I'm sure are thinking about Copernicus. Maybe not, but I am, anyway. Until Copernicus, most people on earth thought that the stars, the sun, the moon revolved around the earth, the earth was the center of everything. They moved in concentric spheres, earth is center, and they moved across, so the sun would make it circuit across the sky in this sort of pattern. But along came Copernicus, and he wasn't the only one, but he led the way to teach us that actually the earth revolves around the sun, physically. That is true, physically. However, the Bible does give an earthbound purpose to the heavenly bodies. The reason they exist is found on planet Earth. We get that from Genesis chapter one, "And God said, let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years. And let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light to the earth, and it was so. God made two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, that's the sun, and the lesser light to govern the night, that's the moon. He also made the stars." One of the great understatements in the entire Bible, "Oh, by the way, He also made the stars." But God made them all, and God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light to the earth. That's twice we have an earthbound statement for the sun, the moon, and the stars. Let the earth physically revolve around the sun, that's fine. But when events come to their conclusion on the surface of the earth, the sun, the moon, and the stars will end their career. There's an earthbound purpose to these, to give light to the earth and to mark time, seasons, and days, and years. This proves also to me, there are no other planet earths out there having an unfolding redemptive history; that Jesus is doing that saving thing that He did here in planet after planet, after planet like some traveling roadshow. That is false. It is not true. When events come to an end here, the stars will fall from the sky. Literally, the sun will be dark and the moon will not give its lights. Either the sun's light will be blocked or reduced or ceased to give it altogether, because the sun will no longer exist. The sun and the moon, we are told, will not be needed in the new heavens and the new earth, the new Jerusalem, because the glory of God will illuminate that new universe and that new Jerusalem. It doesn't mean they don't exist, it just says they won't be needed, so maybe they won't exist at all. The sixth seal of Revelation speaks of the same thing. Revelation 6:12-14, "I watched as he opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair. The whole moon turned blood red, and the stars in the sky fell to the earth as late figs dropped from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. The sky receded like a scroll rolling up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place." Isaiah 64, "Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down and make the mountains shake before you like boiling water." The fourth trumpet in Revelation correlates, Revelation 8:12, "The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon and a third of the stars. So a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, also a third of the night." Isaiah had also predicted this, Isaiah 34:4, "All the stars of the heavens will be dissolved and the sky rolled up like a scroll. All the starry hosts will fall like withered leaves from a vine like shrill figs from a fig tree." We have this image again and again and again. I'm aware that in the Book of Isaiah, it's sometime linked to cataclysmic events that happen on earth such as the end of an empire, like Babylonian empire, when it doesn't literally happen that the stars fall from the sky, but it's like the events will be so big, it'll be like that. I understand that language. But since the language is used again and again and again and again, that may be just a poetical connection to what actually will physically happen at the end of the world. Now you wonder how could God do this? It's because God is sovereign over every created thing in the universe. Isaiah 40:26 says, "Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens. Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name because of His great power and His mighty understanding, not one of them is missing.” They continue to exist, according to Isaiah 40:26, because God wills that they continue to exist. God sustains the stars. A new heaven, a new earth will have a new cosmos as well. III. Jesus Comes With the Clouds Next, Jesus comes with the clouds. Look at verse 26, "At that time, men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with power and great glory." This was predicted by Daniel and then cited by Jesus at his trials. The very thing that Daniel saw in the Son of Man vision that I’ve already read for you, Daniel 7:12-13, he saw the Son of Man coming into the presence of almighty God on the clouds, and receiving from Him power and great glory. The angels and then all peoples on earth worshiping Him and serving Him. That's the Son of Man vision. Jesus cited that on the trial for His life before the Jewish authorities. Think of the boldness of Jesus, He knew they wouldn't be able to accept it, but He still proclaimed it, referred to it. in Mark 14:62-64, they asked Him, “'I charge you under oath by the living God, tell us if you're the Christ the Son of God.’Jesus said, ‘I am.’" Period. That's a claim to deity, "I am.” Then He quotes or alludes to Daniel 7, "And you'll see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the mighty one and coming on the clouds of heaven." Now that's a clear prediction to his enemies, "You will see this. You're going to see this whether you believe in me or not. It will not take faith to see this. You will see it." “The high priest tore his clothes,'Why do we need any more witnesses?’ he asked. ‘You've heard the blasphemy. What do you think?’ And they all condemned him as worthy of death.” Jesus predicting his own Second Coming is what officially got him killed, quoting Daniel 7. The clouds, Jesus coming with the clouds, I believe are both physical like I saw in Takamatsu that day, but they're also symbolic. Clouds are referred to again and again in connection with the great power of God. Clouds are awesome and dramatic. I think all of us who have flown have been above the clouds and then seen a carpet of clouds dramatically. And you can see, especially at sunset, they're all glowing, they're very dramatic things. Clouds literally hid Jesus when He ascended from the earth. It's reasonable for them to be a feature on his return. But the clouds also symbolize the wrath of God, again and again, the wrath of God. Like at Mount Sinai, Moses said to the Jews, in retrospect, looking back on the day at Mount Sinai, Moses said, "You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain while at blaze with fire to the very heavens with black clouds and deep darkness." God surrounded Mount Sinai with terrifying black clouds as though a lightning strike could come out of that cloud at any moment. Psalm 18 is probably the strongest connection here. Psalm 18:7-13, "The earth trembled and quaked. The foundations of the mountain shook, they trembled because he was angry. Smoke rose from his nostrils. Consuming fire came from his mouth, burning coals blazed out of it. He parted the heavens and came down. Dark clouds were under his feet. He mounted the cherub him and flew. He soared on the wings of the wind. He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him. The dark rain clouds of the sky. Out of the brightness of His presence, clouds advanced with hailstones and bolts of lightning. The Lord thundered from heaven, the voice of the most high resounded." It's terrifying. What's going on in Psalm 18? What is David talking about? What happens is David is in trouble on a battlefield, and cries out to God to deliver him, and then God does. He comes to rescue David in the midst of his trouble. Do you not see how that applies to the Second Coming? I believe the Second Coming is a rescue mission. I believe that the bridegroom is coming to rescue the bride because she's about to become exterminated by the antichrist, and He's filled with rage over it. Psalm 18 describes that. Would God do all that for one person, King David? We know that God protected David in every battlefield he ever fought on. He never died in battle, so God did deliver him, and rescued him, and crushed his enemies under his feet. David himself is a symbol of Christ. But ultimately, I think this idea of God rending the heavens, coming with the clouds to rescue his people is consummated at the Second Coming. It's a rescue mission where the people of God are rescued from their enemies, and from imminent death. Isaiah 30:27, "Behold the name of the Lord comes from afar with burning anger and dense clouds of smoke. His lips are full of wrath in his tongue of consuming fire.” Jesus comes with the literal clouds, the physical clouds, but also metaphorically, He comes in the wrath of God. "This idea of God rending the heavens, coming with the clouds to rescue his people is consummated at the Second Coming. It's a rescue mission where the people of God are rescued from their enemies, and from imminent death" IV. The Mourning of the Nations Next, the mourning of the nations. It's not mentioned in Mark, but I want to bring it up. It's mentioned in Matthew, and it's also mentioned in Revelation 1 and Revelation 18. Matthew 24:30, "At that time, the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn." Think about that, they’re all going to mourn. "They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.” Again, Revelation 1:7, "Behold, He's coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him. Even those who pierced Him. And all the people of the earth will mourn because of Him. So shall it be. Amen." A mourning. Why are the nations mourning? “It’s not the end of the world.” No, it will be the end of the world. That's it. All of the things that those unbelievers had been living for will instantly come to an end. This is depicted with the fall of Babylon in Revelation 18:9-11, “When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with [Babylon] and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her. Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry: "'Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power! In one hour your doom has come!' The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes any more.” The party is over. All the lust of the eyes, and the lust of the flesh, and the boastful pride of life is done that day. It's over. It's judgment day for them, and so they will mourn. The righteous wrath of the Lord is being poured out on them for their sins, especially because they have not loved Christ or his people. As it says in 2 Thessalonians 2:10, “They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.” Revelation 18:18-20 says, "When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, 'Was there ever a city like this great city?' And they'll throw dust on their heads, and with weeping and mourning, cry out, 'Woe, woe, Oh great city where all who had ships of the sea became rich through her wealth. In one hour she has been brought to ruin. Rejoice over her, oh heaven. Rejoice saints and apostles and prophets for God has judged her for the way she treated you.'" That's the justice of God, but there is mourning and grieving. Let me just stop right now and say the best thing we can do is believe all of these things, and the judgment day that follows, and even more, the hell that follows that, and mourn and grieve now by faith. Grieve over sin now and flee to Christ. That's the best thing we can do is believe these things now when there's still time. At that point, the tears will mean nothing. V. The Gathering of the Elect Then there's the gathering of the Elect. Look at verse 27, "And He will send His angels and gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens." This is, I believe, the primary reason, other than the glory of God, the primary reason for the Second Coming. He's come to gather His bride together, His people. The antichrist will be bearing down on them with great power, great hatred. He'll be hunting them down to force them to blaspheme by receiving the mark of the beast. Jesus said if those days had not been cut short, no one would survive. That's how bad it's going to be, but for the sake of the Elect, those days will be shortened. Everyone has their limit. There's only so much temptation we can face. No matter how courageous, no matter how faith-filled, no matter how much we are willing to suffer and die as martyrs, there is a limit to what we can endure. Remember, as I talked about last week, the night that Jesus was arrested, He made them say twice who they were there to arrest so that He could say concerning the rest of his followers, "If you're looking for me, then let these men go." John said Jesus said this so that the saying Jesus had stated would come true, "Of all those you have given me, I have not lost one." There is a time to run away. But if that antichrist power is spreading over the earth with so much domination, and if those days had not been cut short or counted as in Daniel 12, He would say, "When the Son of Man comes, will there be any believers left on earth?" So He intervenes. Furthermore, I think He just wants to be with us. Ultimately, isn't that it? Isn't that the point of His death on the cross? He wants to spend eternity with us. He wants to feast with us in heaven. He wants to walk with us in the new heaven, new earth. He wants fellowship with us. He earnestly desires to be with us. Isn't that amazing? Doesn't it blow your mind? We're pathetic, and yet He loves us and wants to be with us. And guess what? We're not going to be pathetic in heaven. Praise God. We'll be really pretty amazing. We'll be glorified. He loves us. He says in John 14:3, "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me.” Why? “So that you also may be where I am." Or again, 1 Thessalonians 4:17, "And so we will be with the Lord forever." Ezekiel 37:23, have you heard this before? "They will be my people, and I will be their God.” Do you know how many times it says that in Ezekiel and Jeremiah? The answer is seven. That's how many times again and again, "They will be my people and I will be their God." He wants fellowship with us. Or again, it's cited in Revelation 21:3, "I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them, they will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God, and He'll wipe every tear from their eyes and there'll be no more death, mourning, crying or pain.'" He wants to be with us. And this is at this moment, the rapture, as I mentioned. He's going to send out his angels and they'll gather his Elect. They're dispatched to collect us and bring us up to meet the Lord in the air. Let me read 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 again, "For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with a voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up." That's “rapture.” That's what the word means. And the Latin root is “to be captured up, caught up.” I picture like a mother cat and a kitten being grabbed by the back of the neck, something like that because we can't fly, gravity works on us. So how are we going to meet the Lord in the air? He's going to send out angels who can fly, and they will pick us up so that we can meet the Lord in the clouds. You may say, "Well, why does He want to meet us in the clouds?" I don't know, but He does. We're going to go out like a welcome committee, and meet Him in the clouds. This is the rapture. Verse 27, "He will send His angels and they'll gather His elect from the four winds from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heaven." By the way, the Elect by then will all have been converted. Evangelism and missions will be done by then, no unconverted elect. This is the eternal separation at this moment of the Elect and non-Elect, as Matthew 24:40-41 says, "Two men will be in the field, one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill, one will be taken and the other left." Yes, I believe in the “left-behind” thing. But the left behind here is not pre-trib seven year and all that. This is the separation of the Second Coming. If you're left behind at that moment, you are non-Elect, and the gospel era is over. The sheep and the goats are separated, the wheat and the weeds are separated, the good fish and bad fish are separated forever. The non-Elect will be stunned and seem like they have no idea what's happening. They will not understand this. Matthew 24, "As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man." From the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage right up to the day Noah entered the ark. They knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. VI. Properly Preparing for the Second Coming How can we apply this? How can we properly prepare for the Second Coming? I've already said it, but first and foremost, trust in Christ and Christ alone for the forgiveness of your sins while there's time. That day is the end of the faith era. It's the end of the gospel era. It's the end of the open door to Noah's Ark era. God closed Noah's door with His own hand. God ended that. Everyone outside the ark perished. Now is the time to enter. Now is the time to believe. Now is the time to trust in Christ, to believe in Him for the forgiveness of your sins. That's how it starts. And what does that look like? Paul spoke to the Thessalonian Christians in 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10, "You turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to wait for His son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, Jesus who rescues us from the coming wrath." What does it mean? It's to turn to God away from idols. What are idols? It's the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, the pride of life. It's all the things that lead us away from God. It's all the wickedness. We turn away from those things, away from sin to God through Christ, and we receive forgiveness for all of our sins, Jesus' blood shed for all of our idolatries. You did that in Thessalonians, you turned to God from idols, and you waited, to wait for His son from heaven. So prepare that way. Secondly, cry out in prayer, I would say daily, for the Second Coming of Christ. This line is already very famous. I cited it once, but you remember it's the Lord's prayer, "Our Father in heaven, hallow be your name." What's next? "May your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." That's the Second Coming. It's a crying out for the Second Coming. Pray that. Do it. Revelation 22:20, "He who testifies to these things says, 'Yes, I'm coming soon.'" What was John's response? "Amen. Come, Lord Jesus." That's a prayer, right? Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. Or again, Revelation 1:7, "Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all the tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him." John's answer, “Even so, "Amen. Let it be. I want that to happen." Or again, in 1 Corinthians 16:22, if you have New American Standard Translation, it reads like this, "If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be a cursed.” What is “maranatha”? It's Aramaic for, “come, Lord.” It's a prayer for the Second Coming. Christians should cry out for Jesus to come, and this accords with our understanding of prayer. Not as, number one, giving God an idea He didn't have before, or number two, persuading God to do something He didn't want to do until you persuaded him. That's not what prayer is. Then what is prayer? It's understanding from the Word what God has said He's going to do but hasn't done yet, and ask him to do it. Wouldn't you think the Second Coming fits that description? Has God revealed that he wants his son to come? Yes. Has it happened yet? No. Pray for it. Pray for it. Thirdly, look forward to the Second Coming and long for it. Your prayer for it will stimulate that. You should long for the Second Coming. 2 Peter 3:12 says, "Look forward to the day of God." 2 Peter 3:13, "In keeping with his promise, we're looking forward to a new heaven, new earth." Then verse 14, "So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this…” That's three consecutive verses. Look forward to it, look forward to it, look forward to it. That means yearn for it. Say, "I want this to happen." Fourth, be holy. Again, leaning on 2 Peter 3, "Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?" Answer, you ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God. 2 Peter 3:14, "So then, dear friends, since you're looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with Him." Now that day is coming, bringing about the destruction of the heavens by fire and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with this promise, we're looking forward to a new heavens and new earth called the home of righteousness. Only pure people will enter the new Jerusalem. We know we can't purify ourselves by our own efforts, but we know that it's justification, sanctification, and then glorification. That's purification. John says very plainly in 1 John 3, "We know that when He appears we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is." Everyone who has this hope in Him is purified, just as He is pure. The more you believe in the Second Coming, what Jesus is coming to do, the more zealous you should be to put evil and sin to death in your own life. Colossians 3:5 and 6, "Put to death therefore whatever belongs to your earthly nature, sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming." The Second Coming. That's why He's coming back, to destroy those sins. Fifth, speed the Second Coming by evangelism and missions. Peter said, "As you look forward to the day of God in speed, it's coming." Matthew 24:14, "This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." We speed the day of God by evangelism and missions. With every unconverted elect person who then becomes converted and crosses over from death to life through faith in Jesus, we've gotten that much closer to the Second Coming of Christ. We are called on to preach the gospel to lost people. We're surrounded by people who, like in the days of Noah, they are not ready for the Second Coming, and we should care about that. Sixth, serve the Lord's purposes in light of the Second Coming. 2 Timothy 4:1 and 2, "I charge 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, reprove, rebuke and exhort with complete patience and teaching." We are each given a role to play. You all have a ministry or should have a spiritual gift ministry. Do it. 2 Timothy 4, "In light of the second coming." In light of the fact that in view of his coming, you're going to give an account for your life and your ministry. Close with me in prayer. Father, we thank you for the time we've had to walk through this deep, powerful, and significant topic. Father, I pray that you would press these truths home. Help us to live in light of them, help us to be prepared, help us to warn others who we know are not yet prepared. Oh Lord, help us to be holy, to put sin to death. Help us to just saturate our minds in the truths of the Word so that we may live a life pleasing to God. In your name we pray. Amen.

173 - Night of the Comet Reflections Today, I'll discuss the 80s apocalypse movie "Night of the Comet." In this movie, we follow two sisters, Regina and Samantha, who survive an event that turns most of the population into zombie-like creatures. We'll explore the important apocalypse themes that this movie raises, such as trust, the importance of loved ones, and the need to establish a plan for rebuilding society. I'll be highlighting several lessons that we can learn from it. Firstly, it emphasizes the importance of questioning information and not blindly trusting what others say even when they promise the North Pole (Christmas movie?). People in the movie were misled about the safety of the comet, leading to disastrous consequences. Secondly, the bond between the two sisters emphasizes the importance of finding and supporting loved ones during challenging times through sarcasm and shopping. Thirdly, the movie encourages the search for other survivors, as it brings together individuals who can provide support and companionship, mainly if they are cute boys. We'll also discuss the need for defenses and strategies to protect oneself in a post-apocalyptic world, as seen in the 80s. "Night of the Comet" is a cult classic combining horror, comedy, and 80s nostalgia. I invite you to ponder what rules and principles you would establish if you were to rebuild society after an apocalypse. Even at the end of the world, girls just want to have fuuuuun. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087799/ Jill's Links https://affiliate.notion.so/NorthwoodsJill https://affiliate.notion.so/NorthwoodsAI https://www.buymeacoffee.com/smallstepspod https://twitter.com/SmallStepsPod Email the podcast at jill@startwithsmallsteps.com

Welcome to episode 174 of the podcast, where we explore the topic of positioning for lift. In this episode, Coach Tamika shares nine essential things you should do to position yourself in 2024 to be lifted to a higher position. Firstly, Coach Tamika emphasizes the importance of position mattering. It's crucial to know where you stand and what you need to do to move up. Secondly, Coach Tamika advises getting hooked onto something that can carry you. Finding a mentor or connecting with a supportive group can help you move forward. Thirdly, Coach Tamika reminds us that there will be tension. It's essential to anticipate it and prepare yourself mentally for any challenges that may arise. Fourthly, make sure you are using the right tools and resources to help you succeed. Fifthly, be in a neutral position. It's important to remain objective and not let your emotions cloud your judgment. Sixthly, adjust multiple times. Don't be afraid to pivot or change your approach if something isn't working. Seventhly, sometimes you may need to back up to relieve tension. It's okay to take a step back and re-evaluate your strategy. Eighthly, get out of the way. Sometimes, you may be your own biggest obstacle. It's important to recognize when you're holding yourself back and make changes accordingly. Lastly, move all obstructions. Clear any obstacles that may be standing in your way and hindering your progress. By following these nine steps, you'll be well-positioned to succeed and be lifted to a higher position in 2024. Thank you for listening to this episode, and we hope you found it helpful. Don't forget to follow us on socials Facebook - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/tamika.thomas143⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Restored Facebook Group - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/restoredcommunitytamikathomas/?ref=share⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/tamika_thomas_/?hl=en⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Shop with Tamika --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tuesdaywithtamika/support

Welcome to Episode 41 of The School of Intention Podcast, where we explore letting go of resistance and manifesting more in our lives. Resistance, that feeling of life pushing back at you, can create invisible barriers, limiting progress and causing frustration. Understanding its origins, whether from past trauma or lack of knowledge, is crucial. This episode delves into breaking free from resistance. Firstly, stop forcing things; find enjoyable, less forced ways to achieve your goals.  Secondly, prioritize relaxation to recharge fully, unlocking your creative potential.  Thirdly, listen to the resistance; it might be guiding you towards learning, patience, or a necessary change in direction.  Finally, the key to dismantling resistance is clearing clutter. Whether physical or mental, decluttering frees you from limitations, allowing abundance to flow into your life. The Catalyst Camp, a deep decluttering and Feng Shui immersion, is OPEN and you can join us HERE: https://www.fengshuimagical.com/declutter_your_life Head to The Tao of Dana website for tons more Feng Shui + personal consultations: https://fengshuidana.com

Welcome back to the Awwshift Podcast. I'm your host, Anthony Trucks. Today's guest is Eliza VanCort, the author of the book "Claiming Space." It's a fascinating exploration of how to authentically embody the person you aspire to be, both internally and externally. The concept of "anti-mentor" is also discussed, shedding light on those individuals who inadvertently undermine our growth. You'll discover more about what anti-mentors are and how to navigate relationships with them. Eliza shares insights gained from a traumatic injury that impacted her short-term memory, offering a unique perspective on the importance of effective communication. [2:48] Why should I listen to you?  Oh, that's an interesting question. I haven't been asked that before. Why should you pay attention to what I have to say? Well, I believe my life experiences, filled with both wisdom and a mix of joy and sadness, have shaped me into an interesting conversationalist. People who have navigated challenges often have compelling stories and insights to share. [3:30] What races have you run that gave you a challenge? Wow, it's quite a journey. I had a wonderful mom in my early years, but when I was four and a half, she developed paranoid schizophrenia. I went through the trauma of being kidnapped by her three times, traveling from New York to California hitchhiking, and stopping at truck stops. This experience deeply affected me, leading me to associate invisibility with safety. It ignited my passion for claiming space. Despite becoming a teacher and enjoying a good life, I still struggled to assert myself. Later, a head injury challenged my communication skills, forcing me to rebuild them from scratch. These two experiences profoundly changed me and taught me valuable lessons. [5:00] Before we delve into the story, could you provide some insight into your book and the concept of reclaiming space? I authored a book titled "A Woman's Guide to Claiming Space: Stand Tall, Raise Your Voice, Be Heard." For me, claiming space is about living your chosen life unapologetically and bravely. True bravery, in my view, isn't the absence of fear; it's confronting fear with action. The book is structured into five parts, offering direct guidance on how to assert oneself and claim space. [5:58] How did your experiences with your mom, particularly the cross-country incidents, inspire the concept of claiming space, and how can people who haven't gone through similar experiences connect emotionally with this idea? Well, I think everyone has had that moment in their life where they just feel so small, and they feel like everyone around them is somehow able to speak their mind and say what they want to say. And somehow they don't feel like they have the right to do it. We've all had anti-mentors along the way who read about my book, anti-mentors who tell you that you're not enough. And I think for me, claiming space isn't about becoming someone different. It's about me becoming your most fully realized authentic self and that's a lifelong journey for all of us.  [8:10] What was it like for you as a police officer to watch and subject yourself to those emotions? Can you recall the moments when you couldn't remember? It was surreal. I was involved in an accident while riding my bike, following all the rules, when someone who was texting and driving hit me in the head with their car. I suffered a black bilateral brain injury and a subdural hematoma. When I regained consciousness, I walked downstairs to find my ex-husband and kids, and there was a large spread of food on the table. Confused, I asked how it was possible, and he informed me that Tina had brought it over. Tina is the friend who seems to sense when someone needs a casserole from a distance. It struck me how time had passed without my awareness, making it challenging to learn and grow when the events were shrouded in amnesia. I likened it to a country going to war without remembering who started it, making it impossible to fix. [9:58] Can you share the journey or process you went through to reach the point you're at now? Did it involve specific healing tactics, or did it unfold naturally over time? The recovery of my memory gradually improved every day, but communication, which was severely compromised, didn't naturally come back. Realizing my struggle to communicate, I initially contemplated withdrawing from life, sinking into depression with thoughts of whether I could continue. However, lying in bed indefinitely wasn't a viable life strategy. So, I decided to embark on the challenging journey of rebuilding my communication skills from scratch. It was a lengthy and arduous process, yet remarkably enlightening. Eventually, I felt like I had cracked the code of communication, turning it into a kind of superpower—an unexpected outcome from a difficult experience. [11:09] What specific challenges did you face in communication during your recovery? Was it primarily related to verbal expression and articulating thoughts? When I reached out to my friend Kim, expressing confusion about people acting strangely around me, she candidly pointed out that it was me acting differently. My vocabulary was impaired, and I was speaking slowly, making everyone uncomfortable. Seeking another opinion from a friend who is a nurse, she bluntly remarked that I sounded like a stoned third-grader. [12:28] When you confronted the realization of the communication challenges, how did it feel, and what steps did you take to address and overcome it? My educational background is in political science, and I initially pursued a career in acting. After a detour to law school, I found my passion in teaching the Sanford Meisner technique for 20 years. This approach delves into the intricacies of human behavior, encouraging a deep understanding of both oneself and others. Combining this with my political science background, I recognized the impact of various factors like race, age, and background on communication. Confronted with one-size-fits-all communication advice, often tailored to a specific demographic, I delved into research and observation to reconstruct my communication style. Through this process, I gained profound insights into communication and the concept of claiming space. [14:58] How does that equate or carry over into the realm of this claiming space concept of being authentically you?  In the initial stages, being an extrovert who loves to talk, I had to adapt my approach as I would get fatigued easily. This compelled me to observe and listen more, offering a unique and valuable experience. Initially focused on communication, especially regarding how some individuals, particularly women, effortlessly command a room, I sought to identify the key factor behind this ability. However, I soon discovered that there are five essential elements contributing to this capacity, allowing individuals to lead a fully realized life. This revelation was genuinely surprising to me. [15:45] How do certain people enter a room and assertively control the space? The five aspects of claiming space are crucial. Firstly, effective communication involves mastering your physicality and voice to command attention. Secondly, building a supportive community is vital, shielding against negativity and anti-mentors. Thirdly, everyone faces life's boulders; instead of overcoming them, whittle them down into manageable pebbles for inner strength. Combatting efforts to make you small is the fourth aspect, shutting down aggressors skillfully. Lastly, embracing intersectionality, especially for white women, fosters better outcomes, as learning from diverse experiences enriches and uplifts everyone. [21:10] What's the process for breaking free from anti-mentors and creating a sense of liberation? Certainly, I believe there's no clear-cut definition for it. In my understanding, an "anti-mentor" should ideally be your greatest supporter, uplifting you. However, they end up making you feel small and diminished. This is often achieved through intermittent reinforcement, a tactic also observed in gambling, where the occasional big win keeps individuals hooked. Regardless of your actions, dealing with these anti-mentors involves facing constant criticism, punctuated by occasional praise. The study on mice, pulling a lever for intermittent rewards, draws parallels to human behavior in seeking sporadic affirmation. This pattern can lead individuals to persistently engage in self-destructive behaviors. [23:53] Do you ever have that kind of experience?  To begin with, it's crucial to identify these anti-mentors. I've outlined a comprehensive checklist in my book, offering different indicators of what makes someone an anti-mentor. Once you're certain, there are two approaches. The first involves neutralizing them, a method I delve into, and the second is removing them from your life. However, both paths necessitate a crucial initial step — a grieving process. Recognizing that they'll never provide the support you seek when you need it is foundational. It's about realizing you don't have to continually put yourself in a vulnerable position, akin to Charlie Brown hoping to kick the football, only to have it pulled away repeatedly. The first step in liberating yourself from an anti-mentor involves deciding not to play that game anymore. [30:20] How do people break out of their emotional comfort zones in intense moments, like running full speed or yelling loudly? I think teaching is like an art for kids, and I'm sure you're good at it if you work with them. You know, you eventually get through to them; you just have to consider all angles. As adults, many of us receive messages when we're young. You're too quiet, too loud—so many "tools”. I mean, the number of messages we get when we're young like I was too much of a space cadet. Now, I get paid to sit around and think about stuff. So, one of the things I always tell people is to sit around and think about stuff. If you start unpacking the messages you were told, it becomes clear that what people criticize might be your strength. You make yourself small to avoid expanding into what people target as a weakness, which is often your strength. If you want to know what you're good at, think about what people told you to stop doing or what they said you weren't good at—not what you thought they told you because that's usually your superpower. [32:45] How do you navigate the unique qualities of your daughter, like her spacey behavior, while also recognizing and nurturing the remarkable and creative aspects she possesses within that same frame?   That has been significant for me as a parent, given my experience with my nephew and my two sons and daughter. My oldest son struggled with dyslexia and exhibited unique traits. First, he had an intense ability to hyperfocus, making it challenging to divert his attention from a task. For instance, once he started with Legos, getting him to stop was nearly impossible. He also dealt with total time blindness and constant movement; he was incredibly active even before birth, almost breaking my rib. There were moments when I felt overwhelmed and exhausted, unable to keep up with him. However, he later became a three-time National Collegiate cycling champion for the United States, showcasing his ability to hyperfocus and disregard the passage of time. His extraordinary energy found a purpose in cycling. My daughter, on the other hand, was notably oppositional, and now she is a passionate activist for climate change. I strongly believe that the qualities in your child that might drive you crazy are often indicators of their unique strengths and potential. [43:13] What promise did God make to the world when he created you?  The existence of a soul is something I'm still undecided on. However, I hold onto the hope that if we are all genuinely kind to each other, actively listen, and extend compassion, perhaps there is a promise that things will eventually be okay. Key Quotes  [5:10-5:17] Claiming space is living the life you choose unapologetically and bravely.  [17:57-18:00] Mistakes are the foundation of learning.  How to connect with Eliza Vancort  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizavancort Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElizaVanCort Website: https://www.elizavancort.com