Messages

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General Discussion / Sanctification

« on: May 03, 2023, 08:44:53 AM »

Sanctification seems almost inevitable regardless of what my worldly body actually wants to do. I spent a few days last week relapsing into old unhealthy habits and was living very materialistically and not giving myself to studying God's word. I think a lot of it stemmed from feelings of pride and thinking that I could partake in some of the worldly distractions around me, like there was something that I was missing out on. After just a few days of living like this I felt lower than I ever had in the past. I was left with no choice but to sanctify myself from this way of living since I felt so low. It was hard to even pray sometimes because I felt like such a hypocrite. I just thought I would post this because I believe the only thing which brought me out of this was having a repentant heart throughout the whole ordeal. I kept praying for more repentance and I believe it was given to me. I just wanted to say that this teaching on repentance being Godly sorrow has been absolutely monumental in how I tackle my life. I had repentance even before I learned about it's true meaning but to have it clearly explained has really allowed me to make sense of what I knew to be true vs what I was being told in bible study. Thanks

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General Discussion / Re: Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 19, 2023, 11:59:53 AM »

That is cool, good system. Who would have ever thought of a forum that requires EFFORT to participate (looking at you reddit).

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General Discussion / Re: Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 19, 2023, 10:13:15 AM »

Hey does anyone know what the edification number on the profiles is? I couldn't find anything on the forum info.

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General Discussion / Re: Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 18, 2023, 09:48:39 PM »

I won't go into the details right now, but generally speaking, the problem with a lot of new-age cults is that they believe the dietary laws of the Old Testament were given to the Jews for health reasons. That is not the case. The dietary laws were given as a sign of sanctification. The problem was they got wrapped up into the following of the law, without understand what it was given for.

This is why, when Peter was told "kill and eat," he would not do so because of the law. God used Peter in that instance to show him (and subsequently, all of us) the fullness of why the law was given, which was for that moment, to demonstrate the spiritual fulfillment in Christ to make a man clean, rather than a ruleset of deeds that would make one "holy."

This is something that I had not considered but makes a lot of sense. I saw an overlap between two areas of my life, but didn't stop to think that correlation=/=causation, and believed that it must have given to the Jews for health reasons. Peter being told to "kill and eat" takes on a different meaning under the context of sanctification rather than health.

I had never heard of the Hebrew-roots cultists prior to finding CLE so I hope people here do not think that I am trying to propose their ideas. Although this particular issue of diet has been difficult for me to approach from an unbiased view point at times.

This has given me something to think about though definitely, it's kind of blowing my mind a little bit

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General Discussion / Re: Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 18, 2023, 02:38:14 PM »

I also have to watch what I say, I often find that I get really excited and say things in the passion of the moment. I have found that many of the things I said when I was in the first months of being born again were just flat out wrong relative to scripture, even though I may have had the best of intentions when I said them. In fact I am 100% positive that I say things now that are wrong but I just don't yet have the wisdom to see it yet. I guess it can just be avoided altogether by just not overextending myself into unfamiliar territories, but I will be honest I don't always catch myself.

I can also admit there are times where I have definitely taken the diet thing past the point where it was being helpful and into an unhealthy territory potentially. Not like an eating disorder, but definitely to the point where I was not doing it to honor God and more so to just honor myself. Also if I was starving I would never turn down pork or shellfish. Not many camels out here so I don't think that is a problem I will be facing. I appreciate the perspective though because it is easy for me to run with my own point of view until challenged or faced with other peoples positions.

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General Discussion / Re: Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 18, 2023, 11:45:56 AM »

I had thought that part was talking about opening up things to the gentiles since Paul came to him like right after that but I could also be wrong and it could be trying to communicate two things at once but the spreading the gospel to the gentiles was my initial take. I sometimes think to the part in Matthew where Jesus is talking about what defiles a man is not what enters him but what comes out of his mouth. I took this more so as telling the pharisees to not worry about the traditions that they had in terms of hand washing, not necessarily the food. Also in terms of what the Jews considered food, I would think they would only consider food to be clean animals, for example, no food can defile a man but unclean animals would not be food therefor not being talked about.

A lot of it to would come down to how the animals were raised and treated now adays. A nice pork chop from a properly raised pig would probably be leagues healthier than Burger King chicken fries, despite one being technically clean. I think you hit the nail on the head with saying that as long as it doesn't push into the realm of gluttony it should be up to a persons personal convictions. Thank you for reeling this back into scripture because I was afraid I might have gotten a little too out there with my original post haha. The dietary laws were just always so fascinating  to me.

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General Discussion / Helping people after suicide attempt

« on: April 17, 2023, 02:59:05 PM »

I just had someone very close to me attempt suicide. I have been praying but I also know from my own experience that these are sometimes the things that people go through that bring them low and humble them enough to find God and be brought to repentance. If anyone in the the church has experience with these situations and has any scripture I may be able to use to help them through this it would be appreciated. I understand from my own experience that these suicidal tendencies come from a selfish place, and I want to be able to provide them with the message that they need to hear, not necessarily the one that is easiest to hear because I love this person and I want to help them.

Thanks

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General Discussion / Re: Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 17, 2023, 09:30:59 AM »

I misspoke, it was not the person who created the HIV PCR tests I apologize. However here is a link to the video
https://www.bitchute.com/video/Q76VKd0wUjEa/

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General Discussion / Re: Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 17, 2023, 09:09:43 AM »

I have even heard that parasites can feed off of the adrenaline our body dumps when taking part in risky activities. There could be the typical risky activities such as thrill seeking, but I would argue that any activity such as lusting, lying, covetousness, and murderous unrighteous anger, can release adrenaline. I don't know if anyone has ever lied before (rimshot), but when I lie it feels like a fight or flight response that gives me that cortisol and adrenaline dump feeling, much as if I were to have done something risky that I know I shouldn't have done.

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General Discussion / Re: Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 17, 2023, 08:16:42 AM »

I would like to amend that humans not producing our own vitamin C only leaves us susceptible to parasitic infection, I can't speak for the bacterial aspect.

This was all difficult for me to bring up because it sounds kind of ridiculous but I can't help to think that the role of sin and unclean spirits in this world seems very parasitic. Prayer and and repentance has played a massive role in my healing and was what resulted in my salvation and I'm not trying to claim that doing some kind of parasite cleanse is going to save someone.

I'm not exactly a researcher however, so I figured I would bring it to the churches attention to see if anyone had heard of this before. One of the things that lead me to this belief was seeing that scientists have been unable to isolate a virus since the concept of viruses has been introduced, they have been only able to isolate protein fragments that exist within symptomatic persons. This isn't an idea that I came up with, there is a video of the man who created the PCR test for HIV explaining this, I will try to find it and provide a link. I guess to make my stance more clear I should say that I am operating under the belief that viruses don't cause illness, but parasites do. And to further that, it seems like a lot of the things that the bible teaches us to avoid as Christians (gluttony, fornication, uncleanliness, certain foods, intoxication) are all things that either can lead to parasitic infection or promote it. Also the practice of fasting is the most effective method of dealing with parasites as it starves the parasites of whatever they need to survive. It just seems like there is a lot of overlap with the bible and how a lot of people treat parasitic infections (fasting) and the things they avoid to prevent getting an infection in the first place.

Thanks

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General Discussion / Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 16, 2023, 11:19:25 PM »

Having gotten into naturopathy prior to ever reading the bible, I couldn't help but to notice the correlation between the dietary laws of the bible and the dietary laws that I had already been abiding by through practicing naturopathy. Specifically the idea of avoiding foods high in toxins and parasites.

The physiology of some birds, animals and fish is such that their flesh is not fit for consumption. This includes carnivorous birds without a crop, animals which don't chew cud or have a cloven (split) hoof, and fish without fins or scales. All animals which eat other animals are unclean. Camels have a high level of toxins in their bloodstream, caused by retaining their body fluids rather than sweating. Rodents have a poor thermo-regulator and their enzymes are unstable, resulting in intestinal fermentation, as well as high parasitic load. Their meat is very acidic, predisposing to disease. Rabbits are coprophagous, meaning that they eat their own feces, and the levels of toxins and parasites in their bodies are much higher than acceptable for human consumption. All rodents and the horse are the same. Pigs have very high histamine levels and sulfur content. Pigs also have a high level of bacterial contamination of salmonella, other harmful bacteria and parasites. These are just a couple of brief points. Fish without fins and scales are either scavengers or carnivores and have a high level of toxins and parasites in their bodies. Urea in sharks and other fish gives these creatures a distinctive flavor but the flesh is not healthful in the diet.

I can only speak for my own experiences with parasitism and toxins, but when I began to eliminate foods such as pork and shellfish, it was a night and day difference in terms of my "mental health." Coupled with frequent antiparasitic protocols such turpentine cleanses and fasting, I was able to completely eliminate what doctors had labeled as schizoaffective disorder, which I honestly could only describe as feeling like I had a demon in me. I have some lofty ideas about parasitism and it's role in the bible but I also don't have anything concrete to back them up besides my own experiences. I know of some people that believe parasites are a physical manifestation of demons. I have had people tell me that they treated conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar, and homosexuality through treating parasites.

I also couldn't help but to remember the story in Matthew where Jesus cast the demons out of the men into the pigs, which then ran down the hill and drowned themselves. This also stuck out to me when I first read it because there have been parasites which will cause animals to drown themselves to infect the water supply and complete their life cycle.

It would make sense that God would put so much emphasis on cleanliness in the bible because humans are the only mammals which don't produce vitamin C naturally which leads us extremely susceptible to parasitic and bacterial infection. Even things like drinking alcohol can lead people susceptible to parasites.

Obviously God has the utmost authority to heal and healing from my ailments would not have been possible without his mercy. I also don't want to push this into conspiracy territories and these are not ideas that I am married to because salvation is not dependent upon figuring out why parasites exist. Maybe this is me just being an overly curious new Christian, I'm not sure, but it just seems to me that parasites are unlike anything else in God's creation, and from what I have seen in my own life, they were capable of influencing my past behavior just like a demon possessed person the bible would have been described. If anyone has ever heard of anything like this before or ever thought of these things before, let me know. If anyone thinks this is way off the mark, also let me know. I have more ideas about this from the testimonies I have seen from others but at the risk of getting too out there with it I'll just leave it at that.
Thanks

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General Discussion / Re: Effects of your faith on personal and professional life

« on: April 13, 2023, 08:17:35 PM »

I would agree with the saying and doing stupid things. This year has been the most beautiful yet embarrassing year of my entire life but mistakes have to be made. I am really glad I was able to find this website. I was trying to make it work for 3 months in a methodist mega church bible study and I thought I was going to lose my mind. The amount of times we opened up group with 6 minute long prayers, listened to praise music with that same tom pattern drum backing, read these extremely hokey books from other mega church preachers. It was called grow group and they would get mad at me for pointing out that Billy Graham and Mark Batterson are not teaching biblical concepts and that maybe we should study the bible in BIBLE study. But they wouldn't get like a normal mad it was like a really weird fake mad where they were simultaneously really nice to me so I could never really claim that they were mad. It really was messing with my head because I felt the spirit was telling me these things were not biblical and then the group would constantly call me prideful for not reading the books and being part of the praise music sing time. I knew in my heart that what they were doing was not what God had intended for us to do but it was really difficult to stand in confidence of my beliefs when I only had 1 year of experience with the bible and I was with a group of people who could quote scripture backwards and forwards. The most frustrating part was knowing I read a verse which supported my stances but not being familiar enough to quote it off the top of my head or say where it was. Even in instances where I would remember, they would pull out the NIV or NLT (I had KJV) and theirs would say something wildly different, at which point I would raise concern over that and they would assure me that it doesn't really matter because it is all the word of God. I would disagree and the whole slippery slope would start again.

Your audio and articles, along with seeing the posts made by other members really helped me. I prayed for fellowship, but I really prayed a lot that God would show me if my heart was truly in the right place, because from my angle it just looked like I was making other Christians angry and I hated the thought of going against other Christians. A lot of the suspicions I had were resonated in what you all talk about and it was reassuring to know I wasn't the only person out here who felt the same way.

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General Discussion / Re: Effects of your faith on personal and professional life

« on: April 13, 2023, 07:19:02 PM »

Thanks for reply. I also wanted to add the most important question, what parts of scripture were the most influential to you guys early on, or really what parts of scripture hit home the hardest? For me Job 41 and 42 stand out. I found these two chapters really helped to outline the absolute power of God. They are very poetic yet very commanding and I find myself in absolute awe every time I read them and they really help to humble me.

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General Discussion / Effects of your faith on personal and professional life

« on: April 13, 2023, 04:25:37 PM »

What did the very beginning (roughly 1-2 years) of the members born again journey look like?  What were some of the biggest struggles you experienced when trying to evangilize to people with christian backgrounds vs people with no knowledge of the bible? What effects did your faith have on your personal and professional life? No one has to answer all of these but I ask out of curiosity because my personal and professional life have been shifted extensively since I was born again. This is especially true in the last 4 months.

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Introduce Yourself / Re: What a journey

« on: April 12, 2023, 02:01:43 PM »

Was using NKJV audio bible out of laziness. Switching to the KJV audio on an mp3 player when I download it tonight.

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Introduce Yourself / Re: What a journey

« on: April 11, 2023, 09:36:19 PM »

There are few, if any, in this group that haven't learned that same lesson the hard way too.
So many people would fancy themselves as Christians really have no stomach for proper doctrine, nor can they stand the thought of turning from paganism in its many forms.

I have no doubts about that. I'm sure this is just a small taste of what will continue to happen on this path. For me the frustration over the situation stemmed from two parts. First being someone claiming to be Christian not taking taking the word of God seriously. Second being anger towards myself for being more concerned with being right rather than helpful.

Philippians 2:3 - Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.

I have not followed this very well since I have been born again. I very much thought certain things I knew about the world put me in a position of superiority over others. I was extremely blind to my pride prior to hearing Chris's explanation of pride.  Even down to the bad driver example which he used because I have been incredibly guilty of driving like a maniac, to the point that I have dropped to my knees and prayed for forgiveness in tears upon arriving home. In conversations I have tended to cut people off pretty badly which gives me a lot of shame because I would hate if someone did that to me. I can say that since repenting and praying to God for help in this area things have gotten better, but I still am very prone to this sin and it will need some work and dedication to fix. Becoming aware of the disgusting amount of pride I have has been one of the biggest breakthroughs but also the most painful. Then I saw that the two videogames I spent the entirety of my early 20's playing (Diablo 3 and the binding of Isaac) were featured on his youtube channel which I do not think is any coincidence. It is all painful but I am honestly joyed that I am aware of these things because I get terrified at the thought of having never discovered how twisted I have been. With all of that said, I think being so recently withdrawn from doing these awful things make me feel very much hypocritical at times and I think that lack of confidence is sometimes reflected in the way I talk with people. Every problem I have ever had since being born again has always gotten better by leaning more into the word of God so I don't see why this would be any different.

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Introduce Yourself / Re: What a journey

« on: April 11, 2023, 08:50:03 PM »

The book thing in my area didn't turn out so well. I found out someone was actually clearing out my books, and not allowing them to be seen, even though I tried to hide them in there. They were clearing it out and only putting in the books they wanted in there, even thought they claim it's "community driven" -- I actually think it's run by the corrupt church building across the street. You should first try to find out who operates or oversees it because someone always does.

I figured as much, it would be wishful thinking to believe whoever paid for its instillation would not be policing the literature to some degree. I have toyed with the idea of fitting covers on literature that would otherwise be removed, however it seems deceptive and books aren't free. None of the ideas I have had so far seem like very effective ways of reaching people.

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Introduce Yourself / Re: What a journey

« on: April 10, 2023, 10:25:59 PM »

I actually just saw this reply today someguy, and it is quite interesting that you mentioned the audio bible because that is exactly what I started doing last Friday! I was very surprised to find that hearing the spoken word of God tends to stick with me a lot better than just reading. I always make time for daily scripture, even if it is just a few pages, but the audio bible is nice as I can throw the headphones in at work and listen when I'm not to busy and can focus. I like to listen to the NKJV to gather the general concept and then hone it in with reading the KJV at home.

Personal health has been one of many important aspects of my life which led me to belief, once my body started to wake up it was as if I was receptive to the word of God for the first time in my life.

I am part of a bible study at a 501c3 church that I had been invited to. One of the members and I had got into a massive phone argument on Friday last week and I felt awful about it. I had known about the b17 cancer cure for a while because of naturopathy and recommended it to a group member who said they had a family member with cancer. Another group member approached me and said I shouldn't have recommended that and it devolved into a horrible conversation where I didn't act with love. I maintained composure until he started to put me down for believing in literal creation timeline and not trusting chemo and science and then I lost it. I just wish I could have communicated my stance better because I ruined the chance to really help someone although I don't think they would have been receptive however I approached it. I already received flack from the group for calling into question why we were using a Mark Batterson book called "The Circle" which uses a story from the talmud to help Christians enhance their prayer life which is just absolutely ridiculous and disrespectful to God and encourages people to put circles around what they are praying for which is just pagan trash no matter how much people tell me they like it. I'm no longer going to attend because I really do not feel welcome which is fine because now I can use the time I wasted there to be active and ask questions here. It just really hurt because I was so excited to talk with other Christians when I started this journey and it destroyed me to discover that church going christians have been the most hurtful people towards me. Not to info dump but I just have no one else to share it with.

I just discovered the online video ministries that Chris posted and I was relieved to find that he had experienced these same difficulties and that it wasn't just a matter of not explaining things right. I think my time could be better used talking with the homeless in my area because I used to be in the exact same position. Lol also they put a take a book leave a book thing up in my neighborhood as well, i'm going crazy thinking about all the literature I could put in there 

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Introduce Yourself / Re: What a journey

« on: April 06, 2023, 09:29:22 PM »

I don't believe I currently have the time or the knowledge to keep up with the level of discussion on this site. I love to read all the posts and articles but I think my efforts would be better used by trying to help people in my life how I can at my current level. I just wanted to say this so the admins wouldn't see an inactive account and delete it, in case I have questions in the future about scripture. I would ask that if possible posters could pray for me that I may find the time to be able to fast. I work a very physical job and I can't get it done for more than over the weekend. It has been really frustrating because I have been wanting to do a longer fast for a while. I just started the job so I was insecure about asking for vacation early on but now I wish I had. thanks

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Introduce Yourself / Re: What a journey

« on: April 06, 2023, 03:45:03 PM »

Thank you