Matthew 12:43-44 King James Version
When an unclean spirit is gone out of a man,
he walketh through dry places, seeking rest,
and findeth none.
Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out;
and when he is come, he findeth it empty, and swept, and garnished.
Joseph Smith Translation
Then came some of the scribes and said unto him,
Master, it is written, that,
Every sin shall be forgiven; but ye say,
Whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost
shall not be forgiven.
And they asked him saying, How can these things be?
And he said unto them,
When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man,
he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none;
but when a man speaketh against the Holy Ghost,
Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out;
and when he is come, he findeth him empty, swept, and garnished;
for the good spirit leaveth him unto himself.
1. The question that created the LORD's answer is finally restored to its rightful place in the canon of scripture.
2. The scribes wanted to know why there is one sin that cannot be forgiven. Sounds to me like Evangelical Christians, who would like to do whatever they want while alive, and then expect JESUS to forgive all their sins. JESUS will pardon almost all sins, but a pardon is different than forgiveness. Even being forgiven does mean an individual can go to the Highest Heaven, whether it is the Celestial Kingdom of LDS theology, or the 7th level of Jacob's Biblical ladder alluded to in the Old Testament. If you want to live with JESUS you better repent and serve like HIM.
3. The irony of this incident is that the scribes had no chance of ever denying the HOLY GHOST, because that would require that they first accept CHRIST. These people were worried about a sin that never could never possibly commit, because they were never going to follow CHRIST.
4. The confusing dialogue in verse 44 is the unclean spirit talking to himself, but now there is a reason for the evil spirit's return- the denial of the HOLY GHOST.
5. JESUS and his authorized servants can cast out unclean spirits, but that does not mean they cannot return if the individual goes against the HOLY SPIRIT. If you speak against what you know to be true (not just hope), you run the risk of having the influence of the HOLY GHOST leave you unprotected from evil spirits.
6. The KJV makes it look like we are left without hope against evil spirits, and creates doubt and fear in those who read the Bible. CHRIST protects anyone not fully dedicated to evil via the Light of Christ. The HOLY GHOST is a further protection for sincere seekers of truth who have been baptized authoritatively. GOD will shield his fold from the devil and his minions. GOD will not protect those who knowingly choose evil.
7. A little more light from JESUS CHRIST via Joseph Smith, and a little less darkness.
Sunday, March 26, 2017
Wednesday, March 15, 2017
Matthew 12:31 - The 2 things needed for Repentance and Forgiveness
King James Version
Wherefore I say unto you,
All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men:
Joseph Smith Translation
Wherefore I say unto you,
All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men
who receive me and repent.
1. Since we all need to repent and we all need forgiveness I thought we should look at a verse about both. The words come from the One Being who makes these ideas possible, JESUS CHRIST. No JESUS = death and hell and dissolution for everyone. Not a pleasant thought.
2. The words "who receive me and repent" are missing from all other versions of the Bible. Why is that?
3. I hypothesize that if you are a powerful church and you want to keep your members giving you their money, you create middle men for them to report to in order to be forgiven. You might have a priest to confess to, or a Bishop, or Branch President. You can then sell indulgences or require tithing of your flock. CHRIST requires only a broken heart and contrite spirit, but no money.
4. Satan would like people to believe repentance is not necessary so he had his mortal minions in charge of the Bible texts get rid of this one line of scripture, so it appears that all sin can be forgiven with no effort at all.
5. JESUS originally stated very clearly that there are 2 components for forgiveness of sin. Coming to Him is literal. We need to confess our sins to the GOD who worked out an infinite atonement for those sins. We also need to receive him personally by asking Him to come to us.
6. The most critical message of Joseph Smith is not the Book of Mormon, not the Doctrine and Covenants, and not his translation of the Bible. Joseph's greatest legacy is that of asking GOD in faith for forgiveness and information. The first thing CHRIST said to Joseph in their initial encounter ("The first vision" [aptly named since Joseph had others]) was "Joseph, thy sins are forgiven thee."
What a declaration! Can you imagine GOD the SON telling you that? It can happen. Give it a try. A teenager pulled it off in 1820.
I teach teenagers and they are collectively the most hard-hearted people on the planet. No one thinks they know more than a teenager, and no one knows less.
PS- If you want to see the best definition of true repentance I have ever read check out Adrian Larsen's excellent blog at www.totheremnant.com and read his entry from March 12, 2017 "Ask, Seek, Knock, part 4"
Wherefore I say unto you,
All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men:
Joseph Smith Translation
Wherefore I say unto you,
All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men
who receive me and repent.
1. Since we all need to repent and we all need forgiveness I thought we should look at a verse about both. The words come from the One Being who makes these ideas possible, JESUS CHRIST. No JESUS = death and hell and dissolution for everyone. Not a pleasant thought.
2. The words "who receive me and repent" are missing from all other versions of the Bible. Why is that?
3. I hypothesize that if you are a powerful church and you want to keep your members giving you their money, you create middle men for them to report to in order to be forgiven. You might have a priest to confess to, or a Bishop, or Branch President. You can then sell indulgences or require tithing of your flock. CHRIST requires only a broken heart and contrite spirit, but no money.
4. Satan would like people to believe repentance is not necessary so he had his mortal minions in charge of the Bible texts get rid of this one line of scripture, so it appears that all sin can be forgiven with no effort at all.
5. JESUS originally stated very clearly that there are 2 components for forgiveness of sin. Coming to Him is literal. We need to confess our sins to the GOD who worked out an infinite atonement for those sins. We also need to receive him personally by asking Him to come to us.
6. The most critical message of Joseph Smith is not the Book of Mormon, not the Doctrine and Covenants, and not his translation of the Bible. Joseph's greatest legacy is that of asking GOD in faith for forgiveness and information. The first thing CHRIST said to Joseph in their initial encounter ("The first vision" [aptly named since Joseph had others]) was "Joseph, thy sins are forgiven thee."
What a declaration! Can you imagine GOD the SON telling you that? It can happen. Give it a try. A teenager pulled it off in 1820.
I teach teenagers and they are collectively the most hard-hearted people on the planet. No one thinks they know more than a teenager, and no one knows less.
PS- If you want to see the best definition of true repentance I have ever read check out Adrian Larsen's excellent blog at www.totheremnant.com and read his entry from March 12, 2017 "Ask, Seek, Knock, part 4"
Saturday, March 4, 2017
Matthew 9:16 - New cloth, old garments, and withheld information
KING JAMES VERSION
No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment,
for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment,
and the rent is made worse.
JOSEPH SMITH TRANSLATION
Then said the Pharisees unto him,
Why will ye not receive us with our baptism,
seeing we keep the whole law?
But Jesus said unto them,
Ye keep not the law.
If ye had kept the law, ye would have received me:
for I am he that gave the law.
I receive not you with your baptism,
because it profiteth you nothing.
For when that which is new is come,
the old is ready to be put away.
For no man putteth a piece of new cloth on an old garment,
for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment,
and the rent is made worse.
1. The entire reason for CHRIST's statement's about new cloth and new bottles is missing from the Bible! You can look at any other version of the Bible you like, and you will not find the Pharisees' question to JESUS about baptism.
2. Baptism is obviously critical for salvation, even the knucklehead Pharisees knew that. Getting someone to do it with actual authority is the problem. John had authority, but the Jewish church did not. After centuries of denying the Law-giver in favor of the Law, GOD did not accept their baptisms. If you do not have true faith in CHRIST you could have been baptized by John the Baptist and it would not be accepted by GOD. The majority of the Jews did not believe in JESUS, and so their ordinances were a colossal waste of time.
3. The Jewish leaders believed they kept the whole law. JESUS set them straight. No one except CHRIST can keep all of the commandments. If you think you are righteous you are not. The point of the commandments is to show us how weak we really are, so that we turn to JESUS as the only way out of Hell. The rich young ruler had the same problem, and he also failed to follow CHRIST.
4. JESUS gave the Law. The Jews disrespected CHRIST even before He was born by calling the Law, the Law of Moses. That would be like Mormons calling the gospel, the gospel of Joseph Smith (although most modern Mormons follow the false gospel of Brigham Young and the subsequent Presidents of the church). It would be like Christians changing their name to Paulian's or Johnites. It is called the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST for a reason. Try some other method of salvation and see where it gets you.
5. I am not righteous. I do not keep all of the requirements of the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST. My only escape is JESUS. To show my obedience to His gospel I have been rebaptized in the Pacific Ocean. It was done by a man having authority from CHRIST using the words of the baptismal prayer found in the Book of Mormon. Modern Pharisees and their foolish followers use the incorrect version found in the Doctrine and Covenants.
No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment,
for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment,
and the rent is made worse.
JOSEPH SMITH TRANSLATION
Then said the Pharisees unto him,
Why will ye not receive us with our baptism,
seeing we keep the whole law?
But Jesus said unto them,
Ye keep not the law.
If ye had kept the law, ye would have received me:
for I am he that gave the law.
I receive not you with your baptism,
because it profiteth you nothing.
For when that which is new is come,
the old is ready to be put away.
For no man putteth a piece of new cloth on an old garment,
for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment,
and the rent is made worse.
1. The entire reason for CHRIST's statement's about new cloth and new bottles is missing from the Bible! You can look at any other version of the Bible you like, and you will not find the Pharisees' question to JESUS about baptism.
2. Baptism is obviously critical for salvation, even the knucklehead Pharisees knew that. Getting someone to do it with actual authority is the problem. John had authority, but the Jewish church did not. After centuries of denying the Law-giver in favor of the Law, GOD did not accept their baptisms. If you do not have true faith in CHRIST you could have been baptized by John the Baptist and it would not be accepted by GOD. The majority of the Jews did not believe in JESUS, and so their ordinances were a colossal waste of time.
3. The Jewish leaders believed they kept the whole law. JESUS set them straight. No one except CHRIST can keep all of the commandments. If you think you are righteous you are not. The point of the commandments is to show us how weak we really are, so that we turn to JESUS as the only way out of Hell. The rich young ruler had the same problem, and he also failed to follow CHRIST.
4. JESUS gave the Law. The Jews disrespected CHRIST even before He was born by calling the Law, the Law of Moses. That would be like Mormons calling the gospel, the gospel of Joseph Smith (although most modern Mormons follow the false gospel of Brigham Young and the subsequent Presidents of the church). It would be like Christians changing their name to Paulian's or Johnites. It is called the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST for a reason. Try some other method of salvation and see where it gets you.
5. I am not righteous. I do not keep all of the requirements of the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST. My only escape is JESUS. To show my obedience to His gospel I have been rebaptized in the Pacific Ocean. It was done by a man having authority from CHRIST using the words of the baptismal prayer found in the Book of Mormon. Modern Pharisees and their foolish followers use the incorrect version found in the Doctrine and Covenants.
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