Exceptional

Today, at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses in Shoreline, Washington, one hundred twelve thousand congregations, included the one I attended, learned how the Word of God, as well as His name, Jehovah, has been preserved by Him over the span of thousands of years, even though Satan himself has vigorously labored to prevent accessibility to both throughout the history of mankind. Despite this being the case, many who profess to be Christians do not spread the word of Jehovah in line with His intentions. The first article of the February 2013 publication of The Watchtower, a magazine, released months ahead of time, from which Jehovah's Witnesses conduct their sermons directly out of several days a week in a seminar fashion, gives a brief history of how the most accurate translation of the Bible possible has been passed along to shield us from the evil messages of some other translations (all of the ones that aren't their version, The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures), which were crafted by the devil.

The most important distinction between the NWT and heretical versions of scripture is how often God is referred to by His name, Jehovah. Not referring to God as Jehovah as many times as the scriptures literally do in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek the way the NWT Bible does is essentially the same as worshipping anyone who may go by any name, even if the supposed god is is defined by all of the same stories and traditions as Jehovah is. Admittedly, the name Jehovah is pronounced differently depending on the language it's spoken in and its true pronunciation God prefers is unclear. Regardless, the fact that Jehovah's Witnesses call God by His name to the best of their ability gives them a leg up on the other, less dedicated sects of Christianity.

God expressed His approval of the practices of those who, at the time, identified themselves as "Bible Students" at the 1931 Watch Tower Convention in Columbus, Ohio, when He allotted them the title Jehovah's Witnesses through their leaders. According to The Watchtower, "no one else in the world wanted that name, but God has blessed [them] in the use of it for over eight decades," and since no one else thought of the title before them, it's apparent that Jehovah's way of specifically anointing them His Witnesses was by intending them to conjure it up and claim it first.

Because Jehovah's Witnesses are Jehovah's chosen people, The Watchtower says "nothing in Satan's arsenal can do [them] permanent harm." The most harmful thing Satan tries to do is print copies of the Bible that don't specifically use the name "Jehovah" as many times as they're supposed to. Luckily for us, God has thwarted Satan's attempts and preserved His name in His Word by making the NWT Bible as accessible as possible. Even though the Catholic Church has prohibited the use of vernacular copies of the Bible that people could read or translating the scriptures into English in the past, Jehovah has used John Wycliffe, William Tyndale, Miles Coverdale, and Martin Luther as His instruments to reach the world with accurate versions of the Bible so that "no demonic or human power will ever block the preservation of Jehovah's Word," which is now available in over one hundred sixteen launguages.

Modus Ponens

Easter Sunday, at Blue Sky Church in Bellevue, I learned that without believing in not only Jesus's resurrection and ascension into the heavens, but also the feasibility of the resurrection of any dead person, one's very belief in Christianity is worthless. I was fortunate to receive today's message from Lead Pastor Steve Morgan, which was made possible by Blue Sky's four hundred members, whose $6.1 million in tithings last month will enable them to expand in enough volume to reach over twice as many of Christ's followers as before with their life saving message of the accuracy of the literal content of the Bible.

In Pastor Morgan's Easter sermon titled "Wonderful Truths That Christians Believe," he addresses that "shocking" irrefutable fact that has everyone asking "what are Christians talking about?" "Jesus actually rose from the dead," he informs us. The Bible is actually quite clear that Jesus and various others have undergone a transition from dying for days at a time to not being dead anymore. Sadly, many people find this truth, which is self evident in that it's written in the Bible, hard to believe. Morgan justifies that there must be existing circumstances of resurrection from the dead because the Bible says there are, and if there aren't, as he puts it, "Christianity unravels entirely."

Although it's a hard concept to believe, let alone wrap your head around, one's belief in God is explanation enough of how a corpse can revert back into a living being, Morgan denotes, asking "Is Christianity true or not?" (obviously). "There is no in between. You have to be logical about this." Millennia ago, the so-called believers in Corinth weren't grasping this level of reasoning and purported that Jesus was actually the only former corpse to be restored of his physical life. Paul caught wind of their flawed teachings and was disturbed deeply by the notion that they could be spreading a false gospel that is untrue and would therefore offer no salvation from sin, or, at the very least, one that is exponentially less entertaining.

Paul hastily wrote them to rebuke their erroneous testimony so that they could be equipped with the one he presented to all of the other new converts. He explains to them that if living beings can not in fact be risen from the dead, then Jesus could not have been risen from the dead; and if Jesus hadn't been risen from the dead, then the sacrifice of his life for our sins didn't pay for our sins, so in death they would all still be judged and justifiably punished for all of their transgressions against God, and the good word they preach to others and believe themselves is nothing more than a bunch of meaningless rituals and unexplainable habits. Since Jesus, aside being the only tangible arm of a trilateral God, was a living physical being who had died and been risen from the dead, then the dead in general, which too are the remains of formerly living beings, can and do rise from the dead (1 Cor 15:12-22).

"Historians are absolutely clear that this letter is actually true," Morgan says. "The Apostle Paul was scared about it," and he is scared about it too, because, he says, "if [Jesus] wasn't raised from the dead, none of it is true," explaining that it is impossible to subscribe to Christianity by picking and choosing the parts you find most believable– otherwise, it is a completely different doctrine, and since there is no actual scripture in favor of any such doctrine, the idea of a form of Christianity that only advocates that the relatively believable portions of the Bible are true is preposterous; therefore, either everything the Bible says is true, or it is all a lie and attending church is a complete waste of time that contains no useful substance. As a matter of fact, if the Bible is not wholly true, the persuit of a Godly lifestyle should be set aside for other persuits of happiness and moral satisfaction, since our souls wouldn't be saved from eternal damnation anyhow. Morgan puts it best when he says "if it's all just a lie, people ought to really feel sorry for you Christians."

Happy Easter!

While I spend time with family before starting my Easter post about what I learned at Blue Sky Church in Bellevue, enjoy this blessing; a message directly from God.

Eternal Prosperity

Today, Palm Sunday*, from the top of the upper seating level at the second floor of the auditorium of Champions Centre in Tacoma, Washington, I learned that there is more solid evidence that God, His love, and all of our souls are inexhaustable, everlasting, and timeless. Pastor Kevin Gerald points out that it feels unnatural to think about life and time, let alone anything, without limits, since all of the things we can physically observe, test, and monitor are all bound by restrictions in time, space, and matter. This, however, isn't the case with things that we cannot physically observe, test, and monitor, because those things were made outside of those boundaries, which is why it's exceedingly difficult to explain or even understand them. Although comprehending intangible beings and forces is by definition impossible, we still know they exist, and those who don't know they exist can turn to the scriptures for any necessary information (and it's all necessary) regarding them.

God's timelessness is why we need not doubt Him in the face of unimaginable catastrophes that seemingly wouldn't be made possible by a just god. Pastor Gerald stresses "God ascends out of [time], and what I want to try to help you understand is that we see it as it is right now; God sees it evolving into something good. Right now, it might be hard for you to see it as good, but it's good because God is timeless in his perspective." This means that even one's worst day is part of God's plan for something better, no matter what. "He sees backward and He sees forward," as Gerald puts it. Since God sees time from an "always all at once" perspective, He uses all points in time, good or bad, to unravel his plan. To my understanding, this means that God even uses those with generally bad intentions, whom He knows will never at any point in time (all of such points being equally visible to God) believe in God nor give Him any say in or control over their actions, as instruments of good as well.

It is important to acknowledge, with some sort of confidence and clear or not-so-clear understanding, one's belief that God is forever, completely free of time and boundaries, and currently observing what is happening everywhere, what has already happened everywhere, and what is to come at every later point in time everywhere. Gerald advocates that Paul's enthusiasm about God's timelessness through his emphatic tone and wording in the eighth chapter of his letter to an early Christian church in Rome, begining at verse 28, is the proof in the pudding.

Paul says to the Romans,

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? (Romans 8:28-32)

God's infinite parameters are what allow Him to grant prosperity to His people. According to Gerald's book Excuse Me, I'm Prospering,this includes, but is not limited to, financial prosperity and peace of mind. To Pastor Gerald, there are "five timeless words" that confirm the infinity of God, and are as follows:

Foreknew - The pastor informs us, "you had a preexistence, in some fashion or form, with God before you showed up here." "You are not a human being having a spiritual experience; you are a spiritual being having a human experience called 'a lifetime,'" says Gerald. He elaborates that even though we are humans and that going to church or worshipping God feels like a spiritual experience, it is not in fact the case. We are actually immortal, spiritual beings that share an existance outside of time taking part in the temporary ritual of humanity.

Predestined - Gerald also tells us that our purpose and the purposes of everything before, now, and still to come were established before we were, or, I suppose, outside of where we are. Again, even in the face of disaster, he says "misfortune is factored in his purose; it's all part of his purpose," so, again, it is unnecessary for one's faith to be jilted by shortcomings, even of the most severe kind. These shortcomings are simply points in time that lead up to various kinds of prosperity. For example, Gerald explains, as is also the case in any other creator-creation relationship, a building is built with some sort of purpose, rather than being given one after its sporatic, unpredicted discovery. Our predestined purpose in our physical lives is exactly like that–aside from the notion that misfortune and disaster are intended to lead to a better future as a gift by the creator–buildings never work like that. Everyone's purpose is a destiny that can be found by asking God personally.

Called - God didn't call us to our duty of worshipping Him and spreading His word to as many people as possible as a result of our existence, but rather we were called before our bodies existed. God isn't like an insurance company that pulls your file because you made mistakes, but actually gave us insurance with prior knowledge of mistakes that are still to be made by forgiving us ahead of time through the intentional and foreknown slaughter of His son, with whom He shares an existence, as a sacrifice. Answering the call of God and His Holy spirit can result in crying and shaking without an understanding of why it's happening.

Justified - The actual definition of "justified," according to Pastor Gerald, is "Just as if I've never sinned." This justification, in Gerald's words, "qualifies you to stand without shame before God." God's prior justification of our transgressions is what allows us to let go of our past and justify ourselves as proper followers of Him because we are already justified in the eyes of God. No matter what evils may have been dealt by your hand, you are still justified by God to take on His ministry, which is why Paul, the author of this particular letter, who, before finding Jesus, routinely collected Jews in droves to stone Christians to death for the religion they practice, was even anointed as the thirteenth apostle. In fact, Paul even points out in verse thirty-one that "if God is for us, who can be against us?" Any Christian's actions, no matter what the ends or means, are already justified by God. Therefore, any Christian, no matter what their character, previously or currently, is still welcome to follow God amongst anyone because God is on their side.

Glorified - Those who will forever show their loyalty to God are already winning their fight as if it has already happened as far as He is concerned (which it already has, as far as He is concerned). "From a timeless perspective, God doesn't see us failing," even when we fail at certain finite objectives, Gerald informs the congregation." He also makes a not of the past tense "glorified," instead of a present tense "glorifies" or a reference to future glorification. This particular wording is invaluable for interpreting Paul's archetypical insight to Jesus's ancient teachings and definition of God's eternity.

After the sermon, Kevin Gerald's wife, Sheila Gerald took the alter to say "Thanks to you who are giving today, and thanks especially to you who are giving for the first time." She even boasts, "We love to give here! The ushers, we're keepin' 'em busy." Which is fortunate, because giving to the churches like Champion Centre is important, since, as she explains, while being saved by God is in fact free, providing it as a service can get really expensive when you're mass marketing salvation. Preceding the showing of the following Ad to be aired during The History Channel's "The Bible," Sheila announces "This commercial has been brought to you by the tithers at Champions Centre!"

*I actually attended Champion Centre approximately twenty-five hours ago, but my ability to finish it on time was hindered by a combination of lunchtime scotch, marijuana, and Benadryl. I merely wanted to stick to the theme "Today, in church." Fortunately, it is doubtful that anyone has noticed yet.

Reality

Today, St. Patrick's Day, at St. John's Cathedral in Seattle, where "even those who [weren't] wearing green love St. Patrick," who is best known for his work bringing Catholicism to the Irish masses by incorporating their preexisting pagan rituals into those of the Christian faith, I learned that today is the fifth Sunday of Lent. In mourning of the brutal execution of Jesus and remembrance of His forty day fast from eating and drinking, Catholics fast from things they like for approximately forty days a year (except for on the Sabbath, so abstaining from mass isn't an option), a practice of sacrifice comparable to priests' vow of celibacy, but on a smaller scale, so that volumes of followers aren't consumed by perverse pathological urges such as pedophilia.

For the fifth Sunday of Lent, Father David A. Brant gave a homily dedicated to the reality of unending life. He asserts "life does not end in death;" which is self evident because "everybody knows in their blood that something is eternal." God and Jesus (who, of course, are One) created life as eternal— we know this beyond any reasonable doubt because Jesus has already proven it to us by raising the dead. The miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead as part of Jesus's ministry showed evidence that, although our human bodies age, face various diseases throughout their run, and cease to work, the spirit of Lazarus was very much still in existence, which was necessary for him to again inhabit his corpse, which died and decayed for four days.

Concluding the service, I took part as a vessel of transubstantiation, a form of communion that is exclusively effective in the "one, holy, catholic and apostolic church." During the process, I was given by a minister a wafer to be transformed into a literal piece of Jesus' body inside of me, and by another minister, a sip from a goblet of white wine to wash it down, which, in my stomach, was transformed into red wine and then into His blood. This ritual was originally led by Jesus and performed by the twelve apostles while He was still alive.Thankfully, this conversion took place after contact with my taste buds, so I didn't have to experience the aftertaste of blood and assorted body part. The flesh of Christ, being the holiest of meats, hasn't seemed to trigger any sort of cannibalistic urges in my psyche, nor has it upset my stomach, which fascinates me, since I don’t imagine it had been prepared for human consumption before being manifested in my esophagus. I will, however, post otherwise if my condition changes.

[EDIT:] The congregation was encouraged to pray for newly elected Pope Francis. I was really hoping for better material on him than that, but instead I'll just be content with disappointing you.

Everyone, No Matter What

Today, at Overlake Christian Church in Redmond, Washington, I learned that the Church is moving from individual to communal "fluffy, outlandish love". It is natural, through the Holy Spirit, to extend your love to all others as Jesus did for each and every one of us. "It's easy to love everybody," but, according to Lead Pastor Mike Howerton, "it's the individuals we seem to have a problem with." He says "Love is a really really big deal to Jesus," and is mentioned by Jesus in many forms, the most important being agape, a classical Greek word referring to divine, unconditional love. It is crucial to share this measure of love on both a communal and individual level in order to share the love and example of Christ with others to perform our task that He has delegated to us to hold the ones we love (everyone, no matter what) accountable and forever active in their participation in doing the same.

I also learned that "unconditional love does not mean unaccountable love," by which, Howerton means that Jesus loves all of his followers just the way they are, but still holds them responsible for the growth of their loyalty to him. The path to total sainthood lasts a lifetime, and at the end of it, there will still be more for Jesus to forgive, since it is a quest in which we are unequivocally destined to falter in our corporeal states. That being said, knowing that we will falter, it is essential to practice the faith as dogmatically as possible whenever possible lest we stray from the faith, as we are habitually programmed to do by our sinful nature. Jesus can tell us how to correct our ways through the Holy Spirit when we listen to our hearts, which Howerton has notably seen in romantic relationships. In fact, he says, "eighty percent of spouses who initiate divorce end up regretting it and wishing they were back in their marriage," which is why God fearing Christians often patch up their relationships.

No matter what kind of relationships you have in your life, it is important that you treat the recipient the same way Jesus would treat you in any given situation. 2 Timothy 4:2 reads "Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching." This sometimes requires one to show "tough love" characterized by a willingness to accept and forgive, but a refusal to support bad habits. An example given this afternoon was a man engaged to a woman who was several thousand dollars in debt. He, who practiced strict budgeting and tithed generously, was concerned about inheriting her debt. Although in cases like this, confronting someone with their wrongs can be uncomfortable, true love is expressed by selflessly guiding the ones you care about back onto the right path.

To confront a follower in error in order to point them back to the light of Jesus, it is imperative to use tact to obtain their trust. Sensitivity is key; convey subtleties that avoid confrontation. Your goal is to remind them you care. Let them know that you would have never even brought it up had you wanted your relationship to be shallow, so they know that the issue is equally important to both sides. The objective is to address and change behavior based on the word of God without resistance, so present the message simply and effectively without unloading too many frustrations that can overwhelm them.

In turn, followers should respond to rebuke passively by acknowledging transgression against the scriptures and changing actions. Cooperation of this nature is needed for those in fellowship together to hold each other accountable and, in turn, loyal to God. Pastor Howerton is aware that this, too, can feel uncomfortable. He explains that we are psychologically hardwired to over personalize criticism and turn it into a permanent defining  omission. Defining the problem as permanent makes it unchangeable and takes off the pressure to actually change it. Keeping in mind that all repentance and revelations are made possible through Jesus himself, though, these mindsets are easily diminished in His name.

Pastor Howerton is also well aware that  bringing up uncomfortable subjects and holding others accountable for their spiritual welfare may feel inconvenient, but he reminds us to look to Jesus Christ, who exemplified the level of commitment we should all show to those whom we love. Howerton also points out that this level of commitment proved to be inconvenient for Jesus as well when He was whipped and beaten, had chunks of His beard ripped out of His face, a crown of thorns forced onto His head, and then nailed by His hands and feet to a cross and hung to death, but without it, we would be lost to our own sinful nature forever.

Battered

Today (actually Sunday, March 3rd), attending Christian Faith Center in Federal Way, soon to be hosting The Thorn: Easter Experience, which is described as "The Passion of the Christ meets Cirque du Soleil," I learned the importance of the attention and control of your life that God requires in a relationship with him. Not granting such to Him and including Him in every facet of your life could result in behavior that is unbecoming of Him, whom you have pledged your life and being to in gratitude for your unrepayable debt to Him for saving you from your faulty ways, without which, you would be helplessly suffering for eternity. Accepting His fellowship in exchange for His unyielding control of your thoughts, behaviors, and spending habits not only grants you His love and support, but guides you to carry yourself in ways that worthily represent him.

First and foremost, the most important thing in any person's life is to fulfill one's intended purpose of having a relationship with God. "Jesus doesn't want to be in one moment that changes the rest of your life, He wants to be in your every moment," Generations Pastor Caleb Treat explains. The pastor specifies, "He wants to have a say in every decision you're making," but that is only made possible by keeping constant company with Him through communion with the Holy Spirit.

Having fellowship with God enables Him to guide your decisions and establishes an accountable environment that avoids unnecessary probing. Immediately following the fall of man, when Adam and Eve committed the only possible atrocity against our Lord by eating the fruit which He had forbidden of them, God couldn't find Adam, so He asked where he was. In reply, Adam said that he was naked, so he hid when he heard God coming. Adam hadn't learned the idea of nakedness from God, who was concerned by where else Adam might be obtaining new information from. Before addressing whether or not Adam ate the forbidden fruit, God asks Adam "who told you that you were naked?" (Gen 3:9-11)

Pastor Treat points out to the congregation that the intent of God's inquiry was to find out whose company had influenced Adam to internalize information he hadn't previously received in God's presence and state offhandedly "your fellowship is not with me." Treat tells that when you don't regularly experience God's presence, answers to questions such as "Who were you with?", "Who have you been talking to?", "Why didn't you come to me?", and "Why aren't we closer?" are owed to God.

Many have relationships with God that are like a lot of long distance friendships, Treat points out. You talk and get back in touch and feel a new found commitment to each other, but gradually lose touch again after the chores and responsibilities of life start to get in the way. Similarly, he says, people come to a moving church service, causing them to find again their excitement for our Heavenly Father and be true to their commitment to Him by praying and attending church services regularly, buying the sermons on CD to hear again, buying books at the church's bookstore, and tithing, but lose track of their good habits when rest of their lives catch up to them. The only way to fulfill your obligation of the union between you and God without drifting away from his ever necessary grace is, again, to spend all of your moments in his presence and giving Him his deserved control over you that is evident through praying and attending church services regularly, buying the sermons on CD to hear again, buying books at the church's bookstore, and tithing, which is made exceedingly easy by the church, who leaves tithing envelopes that provide payment options of cash, check, VISA, Master Card, Discover, and American Express on all of the pews for you upon entry. To ensure you don't forget to accept God's companionship with your obedience, Christian Faith center ushers, bucket in hand, are conveniently located at the door on your way out of the sanctuary.

(Edit 3/4/13 ): There is another great way to walk in His company coming up on April 5th and 6th. Christian Faith Center will be hosting The Thorn: East Experience, a spiritual experience provided to His followers for a modest ticket price of $15-20.