Saturday, April 29, 2006

Filter #5 What did Paul think?

Filter No. 5
Paul was against us keeping the Law of Moses.

In Acts 21, Paul is informed of a rumor being spread that he has been teaching the Jews to forsake the teachings of Moses. So, Paul is asked to pay for and participate in taking a “Nazirite” vow along with four other men, which actually included offering an animal sacrifice at the Temple. Now remember, this is after Jesus went to the cross. Did you know that Paul actually went thru with it? Why? Scripture makes it clear… So that “all (that includes you and me) may know that those things of which they were informed concerning you (Paul) are nothing, but that you (Paul) yourself also walk orderly and keep the law”. (Acts 21:24) It is so ironic that today we see the same thing happening again. Many people are being told from the pulpit even, that Paul is against us keeping God’s instructions as given thru Moses. Let’s see if we can once again put this rumor to rest by seeing what Paul has to say, in his own words. We do believe Paul right?
In Romans 3:31 Paul said this…”Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.” In Acts 24:14 Paul says “…so I worship the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the Law and in the Prophets. In Hebrews 10:28 he says “Anyone who has rejected Moses law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.” As plain spoken as Paul is concerning his view of the Law and the Prophets, many still honestly believe Paul is anti-Torah. How can that be? It turns out that Peter gives us an interesting warning in 2 Peter 3:15-16 concerning the writings of Paul. He says this…” our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures”. Peter then goes on to warn us not to be led away by their error. Sadly, many people including Bible teachers and many pastors, are untaught and unstable when it comes to understanding who Paul really was and the context from which he taught. So, what is the proper context? Listen up, and then check me out...
We know that Paul loved the Lord, and we know that Paul devoted his life to serving his Master. He was a bondservant of Messiah. We also know, and this is the important part…that Paul would never teach people to disobey the God of Israel, but… he did come against anyone who tried to add to what Jesus had done on the cross. This is what we see happening in the book of Galatians for example. In Galatians 5:4 Paul says “You have become estranged from Messiah, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace”. Remember, Paul was not against the law. His own words bear witness to this. So, what was he against? He was against those who would teach the law as a means for salvation. Do you see the difference? Most Bible teachers have missed the context of Paul’s writings, substituting obedience for justification. Paul was not teaching us to ignore God’s commandments when he said “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage” Paul was warning us not to listen to those who would seek to put conditions on God’s unconditional love.
Rest assured that Paul does not teach us to ignore the instructions of the Living God. In fact, if he did, then he was a false prophet as according to Deuteronomy 13 and deserving of death by stoning. Speaking of stoning, do you know why Stephen was stoned to death? If you remember he too was falsely accused of something. You can find the answer in Acts 6:11-14. Hold on to your hat and check it out!! And remember, this is after Jesus went to the cross!!

Friday, April 28, 2006

Cafe' Press saved Neil Young... this time.


Well, I had new T-shirts with Neil Young's picture on it, telling how I feel about his latest album, but Cafe Press made me get rid of them until I can get copyright approval. That stinks. Those were some of my best shirts! How do you like that? A guy can bash the President of the United States of America all day long and get paid for it, but I can’t even make a dollar from a T-shirt with the same guy’s picture on it.


I can still post it here though... while I am waiting to hear back from the "Powers That Be".






Thursday, April 27, 2006

Filters 3 & 4: I will put My Laws in their mind...

I hope you all are enjoying these as much as I am. Remember to check out Seeds of Restoration at seedsofrestoration.com, or scroll down until you see "Seedy Places" on the right hand side of any MangDiddles page.

Filter No. 3
"The Division of God’s Law (Ceremonial, Moral, and Civil)."

An often repeated, yet completely unscriptural “filter of interpretation” that many have added to their “vehicle of understanding” goes something like this: The Commandments of God can be divided into three different categories: 1) Moral laws, 2) Ceremonial laws, and 3) Civil laws. We as modern day believers should abide only, by those instructions considered to be “moral commandments” The “ceremonial and civil commandments” were for a different people in a different time and thus no longer apply.
While this “teaching” might have a good ring to it and stand in unison with most Bible commentaries, it has no Scriptural support. None. Time and again throughout the Scriptures, the Lord tells us to keep all of His commandments so that it might go well for us. We need to understand that every command from the God of Israel is a “moral” commandment, given from a loving Father to His children. He defines right and wrong, we trust and obey. At a time before there was a “New” Testament, Paul told Timothy that “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work”. (2Tim 3:16-17) Paul evidently did not read many Bible commentaries. Also, look up Leviticus 19:3…in it God says “Every one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and keep My Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God”. How would we divide that one?

Filter No. 4
"The Church was given a New covenant which did away with the Law of Moses."

The next “flawed filter” that is often used, but never “tested” against the Word of God tells us that... “we in the church are under a new covenant, so we don’t have to obey the Commandments of God”. Many believe that God for some reason changed His mind concerning His Torah, and made a deal with the “church” that allows for us to forget about keeping His commandments. So, with a hearts desire to know the “truth of the matter”, let’s take a fresh look at Scripture, laying aside what we think we know and ask the questions... Who is the new covenant given to and does it do away with the Law as given thru Moses? Remember, we are talking about the new covenant that most in the Church claim as their own. Here goes…Hebrews 8:8 “Behold the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—“not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord’ for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more”
Houston, we have several problems! 1)The “new covenant” is clearly given to Israel. 2) He calls them “My people” and 3) The law will still not be done away with! Once again, we find it problematic to adhere to any form of replacement theology which does not recognize the “church” as part of the redeemed of Israel. And once again, Scripture teaches obedience to Torah. Even in the “New” covenant! Notice, nowhere in Scripture do we ever find permission to come up with our own set of commandments.



"Let's Deport Neil Young" Sweeping the Nation!

By now, you have probably read the lyrics to Neil Young’s new song, “Let’s Impeach the President”, but have you by chance seen the lyrics to a little ditty that we at MangDiddles like to call, “Lets Deport Neil Young”?
I didn’t think so.
With out any further ado, I will now post the lyrics that America loving, President supporting Americans everywhere have been longing to see. ...And remember, you saw it here first.


Let’s Deport Neil Young

Let’s deport Neil Young for treason

And pull his CDs from the stores

He believes rock-and-roll gave him the power

To slam our President, Country and more

His treasonous words are criminal

The Crazy Horse belongs up North

Let’s deport Neil Young for treason

Seal the boarders, and guard the shores

History has an example

From Abe Lincoln, bless his soul,

Abe shipped a treasonous reporter

To Neil’s homeland - of Toronto

Let’s deport Neil Young for treason

His fame has gone to his head

He claims to support our fighting kids,

Then mocks the freedom for which they are dead

Neil lives safe and wealthy in our Country

In a “Mansion on the Hill”

That hill is free today, of course,

Because of blood our soldiers spilt

I fought in Desert Storm, Neil Young

But hippies don’t pay to hear me

I fought authority like you when I was young,

But you, you’re over sixty

As an American Veteran I have paid my dues

And I value the freedom I live in

I have earned the right as an American to say

Let’s deport Neil Young for treason


Please feel free to share it.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Not the ports! ...But could I interest you in Stealth Technology?

Warning: The following post may cause severe irritation to the Patriotic, the Attentive, or the "Average American". -m.d.

Tammy Bruce: US Approves Second Dubai Deal

Remember all of the buzz around the Arabic company that intended to buy up all of the Port Security positions in the US a few weeks ago? That seemed to be the icing on the cake for people who believe that Americans have completely lost their minds. Do you remember how intensely people were rallying for our President to stop the insanity in it's tracks?
Well, much to the public's relief, President Bush put a stop to it... for a little while. The same company is now buying the company that builds sensitive military and aircraft equipment. Yes, that's what I said - Military, and aircraft parts - precision parts for defense contractors. This includes the Stealth fighter jet, tank parts, and parts for Boeing, Honeywell, Pratt & Whitney and General Electric.

Read Tammy Bruce's Blog - all of it (US Approves Second Dubai Deal). Just exactly who is buying the factories?...(an) "Arab Islamist regime, which does business with Iran, does not recognize and boycotts Israel, is a dictatorship, and forbids women to marry non-Muslims, will have in their possession and control the secrets and details of American military vehicles and stealth technology."

I find it very, very Orwellian that the Mainstream Media has chosen to hide this second deal. The American public made it very clear that we do not approve of this when an outcry was heard over the "Ports Deal".

It is almost like we are in a sinking ship, and our Captain and crew are shooting all of the life boats.

Side Note: I thank God that my Hope does not rest in anything I can see. The daily news will not determine wether or not I have Joy. My Master is the Soverign God of the Universe... and His very Name means "Salvation". I pray that everyone that reads this knows the Peace that only He can give us through His Holy Spirit.

... I will now step down from my soap-box...

Monday, April 24, 2006

Filter #2... Who are the Commandments for, anyway?

Filter No. 2
from Tim Terry of

The Commandments were given to Israel and do not apply to the modern day church.

Another “clogged filter” restricting the understanding of many of God’s people is basically this...God gave the Commandments to Israel, not the modern day church. Believe it or not...I agree!! Paul says in Romans 9:4-5 that Israel is “to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God and the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen”. As we can see from Scripture, God did give the law to Israel. However, He also gave the covenants, the promises, the adoption and the glory to Israel! So, where does that leave the so called “Gentile” Church? Let’s take a look at the “truth of the matter”.
Thankfully, God has always made provision for all who would want to follow after Him, but on His terms, not ours. Even in the Great Exodus it was a mixed multitude (Exodus 13:38) that came out of Egypt. Paul tells us in Romans 11 that Gentiles are grafted into the “Olive Tree” by faith and become one in Messiah. Paul makes it clear that by faith in Messiah we are children of the promise and are counted as the seed of Abraham. We must remember that the idea of the “church” (ecclesia—the assembly, the called out ones) being something other than God’s chosen people is a concept completely foreign to Scripture.
In Ephesians 2:8, Paul tells us an awesome thing. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Praise the Lord for that verse… now notice verse 11. “Therefore remember that you once Gentiles in the flesh-who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands- that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” He then goes on to say that “we are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,” Praise God. Want some more? Consider this. Paul tells us in Galatians 3:28 “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Praise the Lord!


Now, considering what we just learned from Scripture, let’s reexamine the question. Do we in the modern day church consider ourselves as part of the commonwealth of Israel to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants the giving of the law and so on? I believe the answer must be a resounding yes. If not, and the teachings of Moses are not meant for our instruction, which Scriptures do we use to live by? After all, in the Apostolic Scriptures we find the Book of James addressed… “To the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad”. The book of Hebrews is written to…well… the Hebrews! It becomes obvious that we as Christians must either accept the Bible in its entirety or throw it away and live each according to his own desires. It’s the same life defining choice Elijah gave to Israel years ago. “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him… I submit to you that we are God’s people, Israel. Not because of any bloodline, but by the blood of Yeshua, our Messiah. And, as His people, we are not to subtract from His Word. (Deut 4:2)
It comes down to this...we have rejected much of God’s Word just because we didn’t stand at the mountain. We should find that ironic and quite sad. After all, we made a deal with God at that mountain, promising to do all that Moses would tell us. We were scared of God’s voice and asked Moses to “hear all that the Lord our God may say, and tell us all that the Lord our God says to you, and we will hear and do it.” (Deuteronomy 5:27)

Sunday, April 23, 2006

Time to check the filters!


I am going to be posting some very thought provoking teachings that were put together by a friend of mine, Tim Terry. Tim runs a website called "Seeds of Restoration" (seedsofrestoration.com).
Some of these things are pretty hard to get a hold of if you are not familiar with the "Hebraic Roots Movement", or the "One Law" (I like to call myself a Messianic). At any rate, I am going to post them here, because they are very good; and they answer a lot of questions. Please check out Tim's webstite if you wish to see them in their entirity. Some of these are pretty lengthy, so they are going to come in installents...

As a boy growing up in our public school system, I was taught the “theory” of evolution as “fact”. It was explained to me that over billions of years, everything had somehow “evolved” from nothing. I was given periodic tests to make sure I understood the “truth” of what I was hearing. I passed with flying colors. Everything went along okay until that day I read in the Bible where The Holy One said He created everything in 6 days! Uh oh... Now what?.... I wish I could tell you that because I was a very wise young man, I immediately took The Living God at His word and pitched the theory of evolution. However, I would be lying. Sadly, evolution, had become a “filter of interpretation” thru which, I would screen any and all information as it pertained to the world around me. Instead of questioning this “filter of interpretation,” namely that “everything evolved,” I would simply interpret 6 days to really mean billions of years… even though, the Bible clearly says 6 days. In this manner, I would make things “line up” or “fit” within my comfort zone of understanding. And, after all, how could my preacher...sorry, I meant teacher...with his or her degrees, ever be wrong about what he or she is teaching? And so it is…..Today, each of us have various “filters of interpretation” thru which, our understanding of Scripture flows. If we have the correct “filter”, we will be able to learn and grow in Messiah, while “filtering out” deception and false teachings. If however, our filter is “flawed” or “plugged,” certain truths of God’s Word may not make it thru to us. Why? Because when we view Scripture after it has passed thru one of these “flawed filters”, we may see a distorted picture of what God is actually saying. Often times, it forces us, as it did in my case with evolution, to “add to” or “take away” from His Word, so that things “fit” within our belief system. So, what should we do about this? First, it’s important for us to recognize that each of us do have some flawed “filters of interpretation”. Even Paul admitted that he “saw thru a mirror dimly”. Knowing that, we should heed Paul’s advice to the Thessalonians when he said “Test all things; hold fast what is good” Let me ask a question. Have you done that? Have you “checked your filter” lately? In this issue of “Truth of the Matter”, we will “test” or examine seven common “filters of interpretation” that are found within Christianity. Perhaps you have come to view Scripture after it has passed thru one or more of these “filters”. If so, I challenge you to prayerfully check out what I say, and let me know if you think my filter is “plugged”. Here we go…..

Filter No. 1

Jesus came to do away with the Law of Moses, or change them.There are many people who love the Lord today, who honestly and with a pure heart believe Jesus came and did away with the “Torah”, God’s “instructions” for His people. Scripture however, very plainly teaches just the opposite, both by the life our Messiah lived and by the words that He spoke. Consider this...we know that Jesus was the spotless Lamb of God, (John 1:29) He was without sin, (2 Cor 5:21) which means, He kept the instructions of God, the Torah, perfectly. (1John 3:4) He was the Living Torah. (John 1:1) On these points I believe all Christians would agree. However, many never consider what this means to those who would be called His disciples... those who would desire to imitate and pattern their life after Messiah. Jesus honored the Sabbath. (Luke 4:16) He kept the appointed Feasts of God. (John 2:23, 10:22) He taught obedience to the Torah as given thru Moses (Mark 7:6-13). In short, Jesus lived out His Father’s instructions perfectly while saying “follow Me”. Now, Jesus told us very plainly not to think He would abolish any of His Father’s instructions. (Matthew 5:17) In fact, He said until heaven and earth pass away, not one stroke would pass away from the Law or the Prophets until all is fulfilled. That’s about as plain spoken as it gets. Heaven and earth both are still here and many prophecies have yet to be fulfilled. I guarantee you that Jesus meant what He said. He even warns us of a terrible day when He would have to tell many who practice lawlessness to depart from Him. (Matthew 7:21-23) And, He warns all of us as Believers, that breaking and teaching others to break, even the least of the commandments will cause us to be “least in the Kingdom of Heaven”. (Mathew 5:19) Jesus would not have said these things if the Law as given thru Moses would be “done away with”. Friends, these are plain and simple teachings from our Master. How is it that some don’t believe Him? Perhaps He gave us an answer in John 5:46... “For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” In Malachi, the last book of the Prophets, just three verses before the book of Matthew, we see these words from The Holy One. “Remember the Law of Moses, My servant, Which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel, With the statutes and judgments.” How quickly we can forget when we turn the page and begin reading from Matthew. As you know, Jesus came to pay the price for our sins. He took away all of the condemnation that was against us. However, He did not give us permission to sin against God by rejecting His Torah... His instructions. In fact, in Matthew chapter 4, Jesus who is quoting from Moses, (Deut 8:3) warns us that God’s Word is a matter of life for us. He says… ”It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” He said this of course, before the “New testament” was written. Also, notice that Jesus said “Man shall not live…” This statement is made to all men. He did not address this statement to just “Men of Israel” I point that out as an introduction to our next “filter of interpretation”

Saturday, April 22, 2006

You'll put somebody's eye out with that!


Funny, though they are from the Associated Press, I didn't see either of these stories in the Mainstream Media...
Reports: Russia again warns against pressure on Iran
A top diplomat reiterated Moscow's opposition to sanctions or the use of force against Iran on Saturday, saying that turning up the pressure on Tehran will only aggravate the standoff over its nuclear program, Russian media reported.
"We firmly stand today for resolving the problems in and around Tehran diplomatically rather than militarily," the Interfax news agency quoted Oleg Ozerov, deputy director of the Foreign Ministry's Middle East and North Africa Department, as saying. (AP)
Click here for more Israel news from Ynetnews.com
Radio: Iran has "basic" enrichment deal in Russia
Iran's ambassador to the U.N. nuclear watchdog said on Saturday that Iran had a basic deal to enrich uranium in a joint venture in Russia but said details were still being worked out, Iranian state radio reported.
Ali-Asghar Soltanieh, who is in Russia, was also quoted by the radio as saying that Iran would issue tenders next month for two nuclear power stations, in addition to the one being built with Russian help. It was not clear if he meant May or the next Iranian month which starts on May 22. (Reuters)
Click here for more Israel news from Ynetnews.com
...do you ever get the feeling that we are poking a big bear with a stick?

Friday, April 21, 2006

"Racial Profiling"

Two reasons I am for it:

Logically, if every other Wal-Mart in the country was getting targeted by suicide bombers who tended to be thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards; then thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards should be getting searched before entering Wal-Mart (or any other store for that matter). It would be a disservice to the public if they were not. The thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards who were not criminals would not have a problem with this... especially if they have families. In fact, most thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards who are law abiding citizens would be thankful for the "profiling" if they value their lives, and shop at Wal-Mart. This is not to say that the law abiding thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards wouldn't get a little irritated by continually having to get searched every time they go to buy diapers, but logically, their lives far outweigh the value of their feelings.
The thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards who intend to blow op the local Wal-Mart, on the other hand, have good reason to be upset. With all of the 'description specific' searching going on, the ability to kill masses of innocent people at Wal-Mart has been greatly reduced. Why? Because merely the sight of a thirty-something, white, balding guy with a beard is going to put up a red flag.
Unfortunately the common, thirty-something, law abiding, white, balding guys with beards will suffer some persecution, simply for looking like the criminals. They will be stigmatized to some degree for their appearence. If they were to be stigmatized to such a degree that their lives became intolerable, the common, law abiding, thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards then have a moral duty - a civic duty - to denounce publicly, the actions of the sinister thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards. If this does not quell the violence, then more evasive action would have to follow. No matter what the remedy is, there would have to be some sort of public outcry; an audible outrage. Most importantly, action must be taken to counter the suicide bombing thirty-something, white, balding guys with beards crowd.


Nobody likes to go to war - nobody. A fool can sit around day after day explaining why war is not the answer, and accomplish nothing, but a righteous man knows when he has to go to war, and he goes.


Monday, April 17, 2006

My thoughts on Limbaugh, Garrison and a Unified Consortium of Monsters.

If you have never heard of Greg Garrison, or the Greg Garrison Show on WIBC 1070AM, I strongly encourage you to give him a listen (If you are out of his listening area, you can catch the show online, click here to listen). Greg is the next best thing to Rush Limbaugh, and it is very encouraging to hear him speaking the truth when our country is in such desperate need for it.

I can only imagine an America where Rush is the Commander in Chief, and Greg is the vice president. These guys have the ability to call things like they are - shamelessly, and I thank them both for what they are doing.


I have an update on the bomb blast this morning in Tel Aviv also. I had mentioned that there would probably be more deaths, and there are now 9, with at least 68 people wounded according to Ynet News.

CNN actually has a headline that reads: Tel Aviv Attack Shows Palestinian Divide

Divide? Excuse me while I pick my jaw up off of the floor – Never have “Palestinians” been so unified. Islamic Jihad and Fatah's al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades have both claimed responsibility, and Hamas’ leaders have justified it by calling the murders, brace yourself... self defense!

Yes, those deadly fast food restaurant patrons were truly stepping out of line by standing in line. Unbelievable.

This attack shows nothing more than the fact that Israel is dealing with monsters.

Israel, it's time to hit Palestine... and Neil Young if you're not too busy.

This is a perfect reason why these people do not deserve a pennies worth of “Aid” from any foreign government.


AT LEAST 6 KILLED, 30 WOUNDED IN TEL AVIV BLAST (-Jerusalem Post)

That death toll may go up, as 15 of them are in serious condition. YnetNews reports 52 injured. This sort of mindless stupidity just makes me sick. The worst part is yet to come though; the Mainstream Media will report Israel’s retaliation in the next few days, no doubt claiming they used excessive force.

Personally, I hope the IDF uses less restraint than what we are accustomed to seeing. The Israeli Government has been holding back far too long. The Geneva Convention says that armies can not kill women and children (among other things the Palestinians are notorious for; like attacking hospitals, and bombing civilians). Why is it that the Press and foreign Governments continue to hold Israel accountable to "rules" that the other side dismisses?

Islamic Jihad and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades both have “taken responsibility for the attack”. Good. We know who did it. Now that the IDF knows who to look for, they should roll directly into their neighborhoods, and vaporize them. If it were our women and children getting hit by a bunch of fools wearing 'suicide vests', Americans would expect strong force to be used by our Government.

While I know we should be praying for "Peace in Jerusalem", I am forced to believe that that Peace will not be achieved by anything short of our Messiah's return. In the meantime, I believe that the only "Peace" we will see is that which is accomplished by superior firepower.

As a side note, Neil Young needs to shut up.
Anybody that believes, because he is a Rock and Roll star, that he has a right to bash our president publicly the way he is, needs to be deported... to top it off, Neil is a Canadian. That is just infuriating. If he isn't already gone, get rid of him. He is guilty of treason... and he can't sing.

Thursday, April 13, 2006

Unleavened Easter Lent Candy... for Passover?

Passover is over, and I must say, that we truly stumbled through it. I don’t think that we did it correctly. In fact, I am not sure that there is a correct way to do it at all. Research on the internet brought up about 3.6 million different ways of going about it!

Why then, you may ask, do we bother? There are so many pictures of Messiah that it would be wrong for us to throw out the baby with the bath water. I can pick at random, ten things from Passover that point to Jesus, while the mainstream Christian world looks to rabbits, painted eggs, candy, and baskets (all of which have Pagan origins).

The awesome thing about Passover is knowing that this is a festival that Jesus Himself took part in as an observant Jew – He was commanded by the Torah to do so! – To me, it was an easy decision; regardless of how much trial and error it involves. I will say it again; it has actually been fun.

Next on our agenda in this quest for the “Ancient paths” is the Feast of Unleavened Bread. We did this one last year with out a hitch – luckily, my wife makes an excellent matzo bread, so we are set for the week.

I realized this year that the Catholics call this "Holy Week" and have their own traditions super imposed onto this seven days. That seems odd to me, considering the Biblical rendition of this week is already so rich in tradition. Even the Methodists are doing Lent now.

What sort of a world do we live in that calls people like me odd for trying to do what Scripture commands, while portraying Easter, Lent, and the "Stations of the Cross" righteous? I guess it is not for me to decide. At any rate, I will choose to err on the side of Scripture. After all, our Master did... and has commmanded the same from His followers.

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

Passover / Pesach

Well, tonight, we are going to have our first Passover Seder. I am a little nervous about this, being as I have never lead one before. The neat thing about it is that it is new for our whole family - we are sort of creating tradition as we go, just like we did during Hanukah. My wife has baked home made matzo, and we are roasting a lamb leg tonight (I know that this is against tradition, but we didn't know that when we bought the leg. Besides, where else are we going to get a shank bone!?)

Never the less, we are already having a good time with it. We are keeping the kids out of school tomorrow, because it is a Sabbath, so they are pretty excited about that as well.

There are so many pictures of Messiah in this celebration - I will try to write more about these soon. I have to get some things ready right now. In the meantime, check out this web page at Aish.com

...I wish we would have started doing this a long time ago.



Monday, April 10, 2006

That was nice!

I love you too, Baltimore.
You will have to stand in line behind Hillary and Katie if you intend to join the MangDiddles fan club.

Sunday, April 09, 2006

Jesus on Ice and Moses wading through the Reads...

I remember hearing a joke involving a little boy sitting on his front porch, reading the Bible and shouting Hallelujah after every sentence. A scholarly man, advanced in years walked by, and asked the boy what he was reading. The boy replied, “I am in the middle of the story where God leads the Israelites through the Red Sea. The Sea just parted, and is standing up in heaps on both sides of them – God is allowing them to pass through on dry ground!”

The older gentleman started to chuckle, and commenced to tell the child, “Science has proven that it was really called the “Read Sea”, because it was so shallow - in fact, “The water was only about four inches deep where the Israelites crossed over.” What really happened was, “A great wind blew in from the North, causing the waters to be parted, allowing the Israelites to cross over on what seemed to be dry ground. There really wasn’t a miracle after all; just Mother Nature in action, along with a simple scientific explanation.”

The boy continued to read, although a little disappointed, and the man continued to walk by, grateful that he could enlighten the lad. No sooner did the man get to the end of the yard when the boy started shouting Hallelujah! Praise God!

Slightly irritated, the man turned around to straighten the boy out again saying, “I thought I explained to you that the water was actually only four inches deep, and a great wind caused the “parting” of the Read Sea!?

The boy then replied, “Yes you did, but if what you are saying is true, then God just drowned the entire Egyptian army in four inches of water! Praise the Lord!”

This leads me to the latest Reuters article on both of these events. Evidently, the same person that came up with the first lame attempt at explaining away a miracle is now saying that Jesus "walked on a floating piece of ice.". Let’s look at some of the insanity involved here.

  1. Peter walked out on the water with Yeshua. Are we to assume that when he took his eyes off of the Master, he slid off of the ice?
  2. could the boat that the disciples were in withstand a storm pelting the sides of it with pieces of ice large enough to support a man walking on it?
  3. If this “oceanographer” is so convinced that Yeshua’s miracles never happened, why would he spend so much time and energy trying to disprove them? I don’t spend the slightest bit of time trying to debunk Santa Clause, or the Boogie Man; that would be ridiculous!

The "scientific explanation” for this is called...

delusion.


The "Cold War" ain't so cold anymore

With recent developments in Iraq concerning Russian weapons, and the fact that Russia is funding the Iranian's nuclear efforts, I must say that a confrontation with Iran makes me a little nervous. Not because of the Iranians, but because of Russia and China's persistence in backing Iran's nut-case leader.
Remember all of that hype about the "Cold War" being over? Well, think again. Russia is arming our enemies, and Israel's enemies. China is doing the same (The Iraqi army was using Chinese made RPG's when I was over there).
You don't help the enemy unless you are the enemy - that's elementary.
Scripturally, we know that Magog is going to invade Israel from the North. If Magog is indeed Russia, can you think of a better reason for Russia to invade Israel than Israel destroying the nuclear facility Russia just built for Iran? If Magog is not Russia, ...who is it?
As a side note, I pray that America never stops supporting Israel. At the very least, I should tell any Israelis reading this, that there are many of us here that support you whole-heartedly; your right to Sovereignty, your right to the boarders laid out in Scripture, and your right to fight back against terrorism with full strength.

Thursday, April 06, 2006

Free Science Museum in St. Louis: Amexica, Neil Diamond, and Peepees!

We just got back from our trip to St. Louis. We had a wonderful time; the Zoo was fantastic, the Hotel was great, the Art Museum was incredible, and the Science Center/ Children's Museum was... well, it was disturbing. I took snapshots of a video that was looping on a TV, with little kids watching intently. It says that it is from Cheech Marin Records. I will post it, and then you can tell me if it is appropriate for our youth...

...is this Hugo Chavez in the background?

Please note that I did not add the subtitles in any of this...

And yes, he is pointing to it.

This reads just like a Public School History textbook...

"Gringos"

This next shot has a man shooting a flame thrower.

indeed we are...

The "Donuts" sign is above police cars that are being skate-boarded over. Isn't this a great message to teach the kids on a family vacation? The Neil Diamond look-a-like is wrapping himself in the American flag too. As a veteran, I find this extremely vile. Satire or not.

There was not a sign saying that it was supposed to be a joke - and even if it was, at what point is any of this funny?

Let's continue...

What an appropriate ending to this disgusting, sickening spew of filth that St. Louis calls "Education". These men have no right to salute my country's flag. I find it appalling that I actually fought for our country, in order to give scum like these the right to "free speech".

I am sure that there will be more on this soon.



Tuesday, April 04, 2006

Arches and Cellos

Today, we are in Sunny St. Louis. This place is great. This is just about as close to the West as I ever want to go though. I think we'll linger here in the "Gateway" for a couple days, then head back home. Remember the art museum that I posted earlier? We're going there this afternoon. I hope we have better luck this time.
I also got my first issue Strings Magazine last night, while at the St. Louis Mills Mall. We actually saw a cello for sale in a store there - that's something I have never seen in Indiana. How did I ever live without this? All of this time I have been supplimenting it with the online version (which i can't seem to find in order to link to it), but I knew it wasn't the same. If you get the oppertunity, buy it. It is excellent.

Sunday, April 02, 2006

Sometimes a name says it all.

Allow me to put my two cents in on all of this "Immigrant Reform" business. Before I start, I want to tell you about a man that I work with. He has been in America since the early seventies. He moved here from Mexico, where he lived in a very poor area, the son of a farming family, in a farming community. This person is a Christian who contributes to this community, and would gladly drop what he is doing to help any stranger. I know, because I have seen him do it. He has helped me out when I was having hard times. He owns a successful small business, and works a full time job in a factory, and has raised a family right here in the Crawfordsville, IN area.
Our country was, indeed, built by immigrants. I am sure that my family history traces back to people who are not indigenous to America. However, our country was built on Legal Immigrants; legal. I don't think that there should be any debate on this issue at all. The fact is this: even if a person from Mexico is a wonderful person who has never broken the law, the very second that they enter our boarders without going through the proper legal procedures that allow them to, they become criminals - by default. They are called Illegal Immigrants for a reason - they are here illegally. To be anywhere illegally, by definition, means that that person is trespassing - breaking the law. That means that just by being present on this side of the boarder, they are breaking the law of the land. Until that person is back on the Mexican side of the boarder, they are breaking the law every second of the day. A person that lives in a perpetual state of law-breaking is a criminal; even though they may not be breaking any other law in this land. The real immigrant issue is America's reluctance to enforce our own laws. If we had enforced the law as it was stated in the first place, we would not have the problem that we have today.
Here in America, we have far more thieves than we have Mexicans. Can you imagine 250,000 thieves marching the streets of L.A. demanding the US to recognize their right to steel? Or, 250,000 people who demand their right to snort cocaine? We have laws for a reason. The person that I described in the first paragraph, as kind and giving as he is, is here legally. Had he sneaked across the boarder, the unfortunate truth is that you would have to add the title "criminal" to the list.