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The Different Beginnings of Jesus in the Gospels: John’s Jesus

The beginning of John’s Jesus is very different from those of Mark, Luke and Matthew. John’s Jesus is not introduced as a man from Galilee or the son of Mary and the Holy Spirit. One word describes John’s Jesus: For those who know how to use the BHC Greek-English Transliterator , take a moment to transliterate this word ( if you haven’t downloaded your FREE BHC Transliterator click here to get it and learn how to transliterate Greek words ). Click here to continue reading this blog .

What does “Peace on Earth and Good Will Toward Men” Mean?

Suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: Glory to God in the highest, Peace on earth and good will toward men. The message of the angels to the shepherds in Luke’s account is one of the most powerful messages in the New Testament. It has been memorized by children for centuries and touched the hearts of millions who long for – “peace on earth and good will toward men.”  It is a message that hearts understand, regardless of the doctrines lodged in the minds. The message announces that peace on earth and good will toward men will come through the baby – the future Savior and Anointed One – but not in the way that most people have been taught to expect . What if all 2,000,000,000 Christians understood the real message of the real Jesus and did what that Jesus did and taught? What would happen? Read the complete article at -- http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/12/peace-on-earth-and-good-will-toward-men.html

The Different Beginnings of Jesus in the Gospels: Matthew’s Account

This is third Gospel account of the beginnings of Jesus. We are examining them in chronological order – Mark , Luke , Matthew and John. David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon begot Rehoboam . . . And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called the Anointed One. (1:6-7) If you read Luke’s account, I bet you immediately saw a major difference in Matthew’s genealogy. In Luke, Joseph was from the line of Nathan, but in Matthew he is from Solomon’s line . Matthew’s Joseph is a party to David’s covenant, which descendants of Nathan were not. Read the complete blog at --  http://fromonejesus.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-different-beginnings-of-jesus-in_22.html

The Different Beginnings of Jesus in the Gospels: Luke’s Account

In the  sixth month  God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth of Galilee to Mary an unmarried young woman engaged to Joseph, of the house of David.  (1:26-27) Luke begins by letting readers know that this event took place “ in the sixth month ,” which is the month of  Elul  ( August/September ) on the Jewish calendar. If this is correct, then Jesus could not have been born in December, as Christians have been taught for the past 1,700 years. This may be a factor in why some translators inserted something in their translation that is not found in the ancient Greek manuscripts.  Read the rest of the study at --  http://fromonejesus.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-different-beginnings-of-jesus-in_20.html

The Different Beginnings of Jesus in the Gospels: Mark’s Version

The modern New Testament canon contains four Gospels. When they are placed in chronological order (the order in which they were written) they are: Mark, Luke, Matthew & John. They were written as separate scrolls and circulated that way at first. Each Gospel was “the” Gospel of different congregations in the early years of Christianity. Then copies were made and shared by communities until the first New Testament canons appeared. There are many other gospels in existence, but only the four above ultimately were chosen by Athanasius to be in the New Testament he created in the 4th century.  This is the Christmas season and the “Christmas story” is told often, but the story we hear and see in school plays and church services is not found in that form in any of the Gospels. It was created by taking stories from multiple Gospels and putting them all together. But that destroys the ancient accounts of Jesus’s beginnings that were known in the different early congregations. This is the

Getting Acquainted with Ancient Manuscripts of the New Testament

Parts of the New Testament have been preserved in more manuscripts than any other ancient work, having over 5,800 complete or fragmented   Greek   manuscripts, 10,000 Latin manuscripts and 9,300 manuscripts in various other ancient languages. Read complete article and see examples at --  http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/12/getting-acquainted-with-ancient.html

Amazing Video of Oldest Living Holocaust Survivor & Pianist Alice Herz-Sommer (110 years old now).

Listen to Alice Herz-Sommer, now 110 years old (109 when the video was made) play the piano. She is the oldest living Holocaust survivor.  Alice was born in Prague, Austria-Hungary. Her father was a merchant, her mother was highly educated and moved in circles of well-known writers, and her older sister Irma taught her how to play piano, which she studied diligently. She also studied under Václav Štěpán (cs), and at the Prague German Conservatory of Music. She had begun giving concerts and making a name for herself before the Germans took over her city. In July 1943, Alice, her husband, and six-year-old son Raphael were sent to Theresienstadt concentration camp where she played more than 100 concerts with other musicians. Her husband was later sent to Auschwitz and then to Dachau where he died in 1944. After the Soviet liberation of Theresienstadt in 1945, Alice and her son returned to Prague and in March 1949 emigrated to Israel to be reunited with her family. She lived in Israel and

The Transliteration that Restores the Original Messages of Jesus

The more you study the biblical text using the BHC linguistic skills, the clearer it becomes that many chapter and verse breaks were inserted in the wrong places. When that happens the context may be adversely affected or destroyed. It is very important to learn to learn how to ignore the chapter and verse markers and define the context by following the flow of what is written. One of the obvious examples of verse markers being in the wrong place can be seen in contexts where the Greek word “AMEN” appears in the Gospels. Being able to understand this blog will help you reconstruct the original messages and points that Jesus made. Read the blog at -- http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-transliteration-that-restores.html

Looking at Christianity From the Other End of the Timeline

When we look back down the timeline of Christianity to the period in which Jesus lived, an inch on the timeline can cover centuries.  The importance of many of the events that took place during that inch are unknown today, along with the people that lived in that inch. This is a reality that every genealogist comes to understand very quickly. We also learn another very important truth – every one of the people in my line of ancestors had to live for me to exist . It took them all to create my DNA. But, there is more to each of us than a collection of genes that made their way across time to become our part of our DNA – our beliefs were also making their way across time to become part of our Belief Systems.   Genes and beliefs both affect how we understand, view and understand our world and the things that happen in it. Until we learn about the journeys of our genes and beliefs, we live our lives completely unaware of their origins and roles. Read the complete blog at -- http://fr

Putting Time In Perspective

Humans are good at a lot of things, but putting time in perspective is not one of them. It's not our fault—the spans of time in human history, and even more so in natural history, are so vast compared to the span of our life and recent history that it's almost impossible to get a handle on it. If the Earth formed at midnight and the present moment is the next midnight, 24 hours later, modern humans have been around since 11:59:59pm—1 second. And if human history itself spans 24 hours from one midnight to the next, 14 minutes represents the time since Jesus lived in ancient Israel. Check out the graphics in this article because they really put things in perspective -- http://www.waitbutwhy.com/2013/08/putting-time-in-perspective.html

Understanding the World of Yeshua

The opening series of blogs I posted are designed to introduce visitors to the Jewish Jesus and his world. If you haven’t read them yet or would like to review them, click on the links below. The more you can learn about his world, the better you will be able to understand his message and recognize those which were not. 08/15/13 - How "Yeshua" Became "Jesus" 08/16/13 - A Day and Week in the Life of Yeshua 08/19/13 - Living and Walking With the Real Yeshua 08/20/13 - Water in Yeshua’s World 08/21/13 - Experiencing the Temple that Yeshua Knew 08/22/13 - The Eighth Day of Yeshua’s Life 08/23/13 - Yeshua’s First Trip to the Temple 08/26/13 - When Yeshua Went to the Temple Dail y If you like The Real Yeshua Blog -- let us know! Go to our Facebook page by clicking here -- “Like” it & “Share” it with others. It really help when we know you are reading our blogs. Shalom & be empowered!

What are the moral, ethical, religious & spiritual implications of the current banking model?

What are the moral, ethical, religious & spiritual implications of the current banking model that is used around the world? How much of a factor is it in creating and perpetuating the economic inequality that exists in our world today. Read the blog at -- http://thecountrycogitator.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-money-is-created-part-3-fractional.html

How Money Is Created: Part 2 - Making Money Out of Thin Air

In Part 1 of this series, How Money Is Created, we learned how the Federal Reserve Bank creates money in the form of Federal Reserve I.O.U.s called “Federal Reserve Notes.” In this part we will learn about the origin of another form of money called “Bank Credit.” The story begins in the Netherlands in the 17 th century. The Netherlands had become a commercial crossroads where the East and West met and created a new economic class -- the first middlemen . They discovered how to make huge profits by purchasing unfinished imported products, finishing them, and then selling them to exporters. They became accomplished craftsmen and benefited handsomely. Read the complete blog at --   http://thecountrycogitator.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-money-is-created-part-2-creating.html

The Love of Money is the Root of all Evil

Those who want to get rich   fall into temptation and a trap   and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.   For the love of money   is a root of all evil . Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith   and pierced themselves with many griefs. (1 Timothy 6:9-10) This Bible warns us of the dangers of “the love of money,” but no one teaches us where our money comes from. I also write another blog called "The Country Cogitator" and today’s subject was: “How Money Is Created.” This is something you probably  didn't  learn about in school or college. You also probably didn’t learn about it at your church or synagogue or from a political party. Read the blog at -- http://thecountrycogitator.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-money-is-created-part-1.html

Religious difference and war: The sharp edge of sectarianism

WHENEVER conflict flares between groups of people who are divided by theology (often rather obscure points of theology), commentators will say: "Of course, it's not really about religion—the actual cause has to do with economics, or geopolitics, or just tribal identity..." And the clever commentators have a point. In Northern Ireland, Protestants and Catholics do not fight  because they disagree over the pope or rosary beads; they fight because the former mostly want to remain part of the United Kingdom while the latter yearn (eventually, at least) to join the Irish republic. But that doesn't mean that religion is completely irrelevant. At least in the recent past, if Protestant firebrands wanted to whip up anti-Catholic sentiment, it was convenient to portray their adversaries as practitioners of an exotic and vaguely frightening cult, and their own side as a people mandated by God to maintain the truth in a hostile land. Even if religion is not the main cause o

Part 2: How to Transliterate Hebrew Words

The purpose of this lesson is to make you more familiar with specific Hebrew letters. You have probably noticed that some of them look very similar and that there are cases where two Hebrew letters are transliterated by the same English letters. You will also learn the Hebrew Alphabet Song so you can easily memorize the Hebrew alphabet. Click here to go to lesson --  http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/11/part-2-how-to-translate-hebrew-words.html

Pew Research Center Polls Reveal Interesting Insights About Islam

Pew Research Center polls conducted in 2011-2012 find high levels of concern about sectarian tensions in several countries where Sunnis and Shias live side by side. These concerns are particularly pronounced in Lebanon, where fully two-thirds of all Muslims, including about half of Shias and 80% of Sunnis, say sectarian tensions are a very big or moderately big problem. Roughly half of all Muslims in Iraq, more than four-in-ten in Afghanistan and nearly a quarter in Iran say the same. Some key findings are summarized below: (1) In four of the five countries surveyed, sizable percentages of both Shias and Sunnis are concerned about sectarian conflict.   (2) Substantial percentages of Muslims in four of the five countries surveyed say they are very or somewhat concerned about religious extremism.   (3) In four of the five countries where substantial numbers of Shias and Sunnis were surveyed, most Muslims say they are very free to practice their faith. But only about half (4

Was “The Early Church” Really “The Early Church” or Like Your Church?

Historian Paul Johnson made an important observation about “Early Christianity”: Yet what was Christian heresy? And, for that matter, what was the Church? Most of our knowledge of early Christian history comes from the writings of Bishop Eusebius of Caesarea in the fourth century, Eusebius was in many ways a conscientious historian, and he had access to multitudes of sources, which have since disappeared. But he believed, and was therefore concerned to demonstrate by his presentation of the evidence, that a Christian Church, vested with the plenitude of Christ’s teaching, and with divine authority to uphold it, had been ordained by Jesus right at the beginning, and had then been solidly established by the first generation of apostles. Moreover, it had triumphantly survived the attempts of various heretics to tamper with the truth it passed on intact from generation to generation.  This view is a reconstruction for ideological purposes . . . He wanted to show that the Church he rep

How to Transliterate Greek Words

Learning how to transliterations of Greek and Hebrew words will elevate your level of Bible study skills tremendously. Even if you have never seen a Greek word before, in the next 10 minutes you will learn how to use the BHC Greek Transliterator and will be working with the Greek language. We created this Bible Study Tool to help you & it is FREE! Click on the following link to learn how to transliterate Greek words & download you FREE BHC Greek Transliterator --  http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-to-transliterate-greek-words.html

What the News Doesn’t Tell You About What’s Really Going On in the Middle East

If you want to know the facts about what’s going on in the Middle East, instead of the highly politicized accounts produced for by news organizations that clearly have their own agendas – take time to watch this short video. Gil Elan is the president and CEO of Southwest Jewish Congress. He is a former   Lieutenant Colonel in the IDF and widely regarded expert on   Israel   and the Middle East . I have no doubt that you will be surprised at the real causes of the current conflicts – especially the role that multinational corporations are playing in the current negotiations. Make sure you share this with as many people as possible. The short overview video (approximately 30 min.) is at -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKO4anbgJrA A longer much more detailed analysis (about 90 min.) is at -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmsWImhCpN8 Gil also holds regular briefing in Dallas and Ft. Worth that are open to the public. Check the SWJC website for the schedule & sign up

How to Transliterate Hebrew Words Even if You Do Not Know Hebrew

Learning how to transliterations of Greek and Hebrew words will elevate your level of Bible study skills tremendously. Even if you have never seen a Hebrew word before, in the next 10 minutes you will learn how to use the Hebrew Transliterator and will be working with the Hebrew language. We created this Bible Study Tool to help you & it is FREE! Click on the following link to learn how to transliterate Hebrew words & download the FREE Hebrew Transliterator -- http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-to-transliterate-hebrew-words.html

The Salvation Message of Jesus: Light and Darkness

The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, if you are  a generous person that gives to the poor your whole body will be full of light . But if you are a stingy or greedy person who gives his poor needy brother nothing , your whole body shall be full of darkness . If therefore the light that is in you is darkness , how great is that darkness ! (Matthew 6:22-23) My two previous blogs have unlocked the meanings of the two idioms Yeshua used in the verses above: (1) good eye – a generous person that gives to the poor (2) evil eye – a stingy or greedy person who gives his needy brother nothing Now let’s turn our attention to the words light and darkness . In the Jewish culture light and life are often used sy nonyms . Read the complete article at --  http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-salvation-message-of-yeshua-light.html

What Really Happened at YAHWEH’s House?

According to I Kings, 480 years after the Israelites came out of Egypt King Solomon began building The House of YAHWEH (The First Temple). As Solomon grew older his wives pressured him to recognize and worship their gods and goddesses too. Ultimately Solomon became involved with all of them and even appointed the priest who served at their deities. What did his subjects think when they saw their king worshipping foreign deities? Would they do the same and simply view YAHWEH as just another god? Read the complete article by clicking on – http://biblicalheritage.org/DTB/1013DTB_What_Really_Happened_In_YAHWEHs_House.pdf

Who is “God”?

“God” is a theologically loaded word because of the conflicting “bundles of associations” people have attached to it – for example Christians , Jews , and Muslims . (1) For most Christians, their “bundle of associations” is “Jesus is God.” (2) The “bundles of associations” of most Jews and Muslims does not include “Jesus.” (3) For most Jews, their “bundle of associations” is “YAHWEH.” (4) For Muslims, their “bundle of associations” does not include “YAHWEH.” (5) The “bundle of association” for Muslims is “Allah.” (6) The “bundles of association” for most Christians and Jews do not include “Allah.” However, in spite of the above facts, the American media uses the word “god” as if it is a reference to all of the options above. Read the complete article at – http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/10/who-is-god.html

Allah can no longer be used by a Christian newspaper to refer to God

Allah can no longer be used by a Christian newspaper in Malaysia to refer to God after a landmark court ruling on Monday, reversing a decision made four years previously that maintained the term transcended different faiths. “It is my judgment that the most possible and probable threat to Islam, in the context of this country, is the propagation of other religions to the followers of Islam,” said chief judge Mohamed Apandi Ali, announcing the change. The panel of three judges was unanimous in their decision that the use of Allah by the Roman Catholic Herald newspaper constituted a threat to the sanctity of Islam, as defined in the federal constitution. (Does this make it clear that for the Muslims involved in this case, Allah and the Christian God are not the same being? Should Christians request that the word "God" not be used in the media for Allah?) Read the complete article at -- http://world.time.com/2013/10/15/allah-means-god-unless-youre-a-christian-in

What is a Good Eye?

In the previous article I discussed the idiom “ evil eye .” Now I will focus on the idiom that is used in parallel to it – good eye . The eye is the lamp of the body. If you have a good eye ,   your whole body will be full of light. (Matthew 6:22) In the Greek text we find it is the phrase o ofqalmoV sou aplouV that creates a problem for translators. It proves to be a more difficult challenge than evil eye was for many translators. Below are the different ways they translated the Greek phrase above. ● eye be single (King James Version) ● eye be true (Basic Bible in English) ● eyesight is good (Weymouth New Testament) ● eye is sound (World English Bible) ● eye may be perfect (Young’s Literal Translation) ● eyes are healthy (New International Version) No wonder people get confused when they read English translations of the words of Jesus. Read the complete article at -- http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/10/what-is-good-eye.html

A Man Shall Leave and Cleave

Genesis 2:24 is a verse that many people are very familiar with because it has been used in wedding ceremonies for centuries:. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh . Who said it? In verse 23, the man had been speaking. If these are his words, then it raises a couple of interesting questions. Read the complete article at --  http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-man-shall-leave-and-cleave.html

The Sadducees

The Sadducees arose sometime during the Maccabean period and disappeared around the time of Jerusalem’s destruction. It is difficult to offer a description of their beliefs and practices because we do not possess any written records from the Sadducees, no personal description of their beliefs and practices. Nonetheless, there are multiple sources that speak of their existence in the first century. These sources include the New Testament, Josephus, and some rabbinic texts. These sources, while often hostile towards the Sadducees, do offer a consistent picture of the Sadducees. They show the Sadducees connected to the high priesthood, possessing differing view of the afterlife, and holding different understandings of certain laws.  Their earliest mention occurs in Josephus’s account (Ant. 13.293–299) of John Hyrcanus (160–143 BC). It is likely that the Hasmonean Dynasty, the heirs of the Maccabean revolt, formed a political alliance with the Sadducees. The Hasmoneans sought to consol

What is an Evil Eye?

But if you have an evil eye , your whole body shall be full of darkness. (Matthew 6:23) Some terms create real problems for translators and o ofqalmoV sou ponhroV h  ( evil eye in above translation) is one of those terms. Below are some of the other choices translators have made. ● your eyes are unhealthy (New International Version) ● your eye is bad (New Living Translation) ● your eye is diseased (Net Bible) ● thine eye be evil (English Revised Version) ● your eyesight is bad (Weymouth New Testament) The majority of translators chose to translate it -- your eye is evil .  “Evil eye” is a well-known term, as can be seen by simply searching on Google. The evil eye is a malevolent look that many cultures believe able to cause injury or misfortune for the person at whom it is directed for reasons of envy or dislike. Talismans created to protect against the evil eye are also frequently called "evil eyes." The term also refers to the power attribu

How Christian Is the New Testament Book of Revelation?

Dr. James Tabor’s new article is very interesting and will no doubt ignite some new conversations about one of the most popular books in the New Testament. “Is it possible that the New Testament book of Revelation -- known to millions as "The Revelation of Jesus Christ," and known for its dire apocalyptic language and horrific visions of the "End of time," was originally not a Christian work at all? I have become convinced that this most influential of Christian writings was taken over by the Christians and "rewritten" with a Christian overlay but the original can still be fairly easily recovered by a bit of textual sleuthing.” Read the complete article at -- http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-d-tabor/how-christian-is-the-new-_b_4093870.html

Did Anyone Call Yeshua “Christ”?

As we learned in an earlier blog – How “Yeshua” became “Jesus” – during the life of Yeshua, and for over another thousand years afterwards, the name “Jesus” was unknown. It didn’t exist. This isn’t a recent discovery. It has been known in scholarly circles for centuries. However, when it comes to local pulpits, there are numerous examples of sermons and theological disputes over the importance of the English word “Jesus.” Some say there is no salvation without the “name of Jesus.” Others preach that healing only comes through the name “Jesus.” They use the word “Jesus” like it has some “magical properties” connected to it. But, as pointed out above, no member of the Yeshua Movement or anyone else for over the first thousand years of Christianity would have known who you were referring to if anyone had asked if they knew “Jesus.”  The same thing would have been true in Galilee, Samaria and Judah if anyone had asked about “Christ.” Read the complete article at --   http://therealye

What did “Heaven” Mean to Yeshua?

What did “Heaven” mean to Yeshua -- “store up treasures in Heaven ” or “kingdom of Heaven ”? Before we learn what it meant to him, let’s consider what it means to millions of Bible readers today. The place we will begin our study is the BHC Bible Study Tools Section on our website. Be sure to bookmark it and use it in all your Bible studies too. The first tool we will use is a dictionary to look up the word “heaven.” The first entry is: The abode of God, the angels, and the spirits of the righteous after death; the place or state of existence of the blessed after the mortal life . Read the complete article at --  http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/10/what-did-heaven-mean-to-yeshua.html

Did God or Satan Do It?

And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel. (1 Chronicles 21:1 KJV) In your mind, visualize what took place in the above verse between Satan and David. We will probably all agree on who David is; but who or what is “ Satan ”? Let’s look up the word “Satan” in the dictionary and see what it means: The devil, adversary of God, and tempter of mankind: sometimes identified with Lucifer . [i] Are the devil , Lucifer and Satan all the same being? Is this what you had in mind when you read the verse above: And the devil, the adversary of God and tempter of mankind , stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel. Read the complete BHC Bible Study at --  http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/10/did-god-or-satan-do-it.html [i] http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Satan?s=t

Never Forget Those Little Shoes

I was updating the Biblical Heritage website tonight and reformatting pages that I hadn't reviewed for a long time. One of those pages contained the story about a little child that died at Jonestown. It was back in late 1990 that I first saw the picture that showed the body of this innocent little child laying between the bodies of two adults that I assumed were his parents. This was a life changing moment for me and most of the work I have done since then was inspired by those "little shoes." Please take a moment and read this short story and in honor of that little life. Click on --  http://biblicalheritage.org/shoes.htm

BHC Bible Study -- Acts 6:1

A Conflict  Between the Disciples of Jesus - Acts 6:1 In those days, as the disciples were multiplying,  the Hellenists   among them complained against the Hebrews because their widows  were being overlooked in the daily support. (Acts 6:1) Read the complete Bible Study at --  http://bhcbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2013/09/acts-61-conflict-between-disciples-of.html

Why Jerusalem still hangs onto ancient archaeological mysteries

Jerusalem has been a religious and historical hot spot for millennia, and yet it still manages to surprise the experts. Why does the city continue to yield unexpected revelations about the days of King David and Jesus — seemingly in plain sight of its residents? One big reason is that it's devilishly difficult to tease out the history of a place where every acre is closely guarded and deeply coveted. "It's a living city, and it's a city that's been inhabited continuously for thousands of years,"Jodi Magness, an archaeologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, told NBC News. "Unless, God forbid, the city is ever completely abandoned, we'll never get a complete picture." Magness is one of the scientific stars of a new movie titled "Jerusalem." The movie, opening this week, takes advantage of IMAX 3-D technology to produce an ultra-big-screen vision of the city, its history and its people. On one level, the film

Atheists Create Their Own Church & Branches Out in First Wave of Expansion

It started, as a number of the world's great religions have done, with a small group of friends and a persuasive idea: why should atheists miss out on all the good things churches have to offer? What would happen if they set up a "godless congregation" that met to celebrate life, with no hope of the hereafter? Eight months after their first meeting in a deconsecrated church in north London, the founders of the Sunday Assembly have their answer: on Sunday they will announce the formation of satellite congregations in more than 20 cities across Britain and the world, the first wave of an expansion that they believe could see 40 atheist churches springing up by the year and as many as 1,000 worldwide within a decade. Satellite assemblies will agree to the central charter of Jones and Evans's original gathering – which still meets monthly in central London – and Jones expects them, initially at least, to stick to a similar format, in which a "host" leads se

Early Christian Sects - Cerinthus

Irenaeus was a priest of the Church of Lyons during the last quarter of the 2 nd century. He wrote Against Heresies , which is one of the primary sources of information about the different early Christian sects.  There was no one source of Christian authority or orthodoxy in existence at that time. The doctrines that would become the primary doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church would began to be created after 325 CE, over a century after Irenaeus. A single Christian canon of Scripture did not exist either. This is a period of history that is basically unknown to most Christians. Read what he  wrote about a Christian group led by Cerinthus at  http://fromonejesus.blogspot.com/2013/09/early-christian-sects-cerinthus.html

An Angry Man Who Almost Destroyed Mankind

By the time Yeshua finished his message on anger, every Jew listening that day would have recognized its connection to one of the most important accounts in the Torah. It is an account that was, and still is, considered so important because when past generations failed to observe the principles it taught, the result was the Great Flood and the conquering of Israel and Judea by foreign kings. Its message is clear -- the greatest threat to the existence the Jewish people -- and to mankind – is the failure of man to be his brother’s keeper .  Yeshua’s teaching on anger was a commentary on the account of Cain and Abel. Read the complete account at --  http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/an-angry-man-who-almost-destroyed.html

You Shall Not Ignore Your Brother’s Anger (Yeshua’s teaching on anger - Part 7)

In this part of Yeshua’s teaching on anger, we discover that the angry man isn’t the only one that may have to leave his sacrifices at the altar in the Temple. Everyone that heard what he said out of anger may have to join him. We now discover that Yeshua’s lesson on anger is about much much more. Read the complete blog at – http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/you-shall-not-ignore-your-brothers.html

2013 Constitution Day and Citizenship Day & Week

On September 17, 1787, the Founding Fathers signed the U.S. Constitution and each year, on September 17, Americans celebrate Constitution Day and Citizenship Day . In addition, September 17-23 is also recognized as Constitution Week . Below are some activities that will increase your knowledge and understanding of our Constitution and what it means to live as a participating US Citizen today. Take time to do them all on the 17 th or spread them out during the week. Continue by going to --  http://tovcenter.blogspot.com/2013/09/constitution-day-and-citizenship-day.html

Settle Matters With Your Brother While There is Still Time

Let’s continue with Yeshua’s teaching on anger (Part 6): Agree with your adversary quickly while you are still on the road with him; lest at any time your adversary deliver you to the judge, and the judge deliver you to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.  Amen! I tell you, you will not come out of there until you have paid the last kodranthn ( KODRANTEN ). (Matthew 5:25-26) The three key terms in the closing of Yeshua’s lesson on anger are adversary, amen and kodranthn . Read the complete blog at --   http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/settle-matters-with-your-brother-while.html

Would YAHWEH Not Accept His Sacrifice? (Yeshua’s teaching on anger, Part 5)

Why did Yeshua tell his disciples to leave the QORBAN (sacrifice, gift) at the altar in the Temple and walk away from the presence of YAHWEH? Therefore if you bring your QORBAN to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you , leave your QORBAN there, before the altar, and first be reconciled to your brother , and then come and offer your QORBAN. (Matthew 5:23-24) Notice that Yeshua gave a specific reason – your brother has something against . What does “has something against you” mean? Keep the context in mind -- Yeshua was teaching about a person being angry with his brother .  Read the complete blog at --  http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/would-yahweh-not-accept-his-sacrifice.html

Leave Your QORBAN at the Altar (Yeshua’s teachings on Anger, Part 4)

Now Yeshua continues his lesson: Therefore if you bring your QORBAN to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your QORBAN there, before the altar, and first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your QORBAN . (Matthew 5:23-24) Yeshua was clearly addressing people who understood what he was talking about because it was something they did. The Temple’s sacrificial rituals were part of all of their lives. There are many different types of QORBAN, and the laws related to them are detailed and complicated. ● Olah (Burnt Offering) ● Zebach Sh'lamim (Peace Offering) ● Chatat (Sin Offering) ● Asham (Guilt Offering) ● Food and Drink Offerings Read the complete article at -- http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/leave-your-qorban-at-altar-yeshuas.html

Will Calling a Person a Fool Send You to Hell?

“And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of GEHINNOM.” According to Yeshua, calling a person a fool, because one is angry, is even a more serious offense than saying he is useless, empty and of no value. We know this because the court that tries this offense is higher than the Sanhedrin. However, English translations make it impossible for readers to understand because of how they translated the underlined words – “but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.” Let’s start with the second term first. Translations, like the King James Version above, make it seem that Yeshua was saying that if anyone called another person a fool, he or she would spend eternity in Hell (for Protestants) or for a limited time (for Catholics). Read the complete blog at --  http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/will-calling-person-fool-send-you-to.html

Do Not Say RAQA! - Yeshua on Anger (Part 2)

“Whoever says to a brother, ‘ RAKA ,’ shall be answerable to the Sanhedrin.” [i] Yeshua reveals that the seriousness of the offense has become greater by elevating the crime to the next highest court – the Sanhedrin . It is the highest court in the nation and would be the equivalent of our Supreme Court. What makes this offense more serious than murder, to keep things in the context established by Yeshua? It is because of what the angry person said out of anger – “ RAKA !” RAKA is the English transliteration of the Greek word found in the ancient manuscripts of Matthew. Interestingly, the Greek word is also a transliteration of a Hebrew word into Greek. Read the entire blog at --  http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/do-not-say-raqa-yeshua-on-anger-part-2.html [i] Matthew 5:22

Religious divides fuel Syrian war

The battle lines in Syria are being drawn along sectarian — that is, religious — lines. Both sides fear that whoever wins power will obliterate the loser. Religious civil wars are longer and bloodier than other types of clashes, according to studies. They are also twice as likely to recur and twice as deadly to noncombatants. People hold onto religious fights longer than battles over land and water. It becomes existential and related to belief in a higher calling. If we come and give one group a total win, we may be setting up an ethnic cleansing. The situation is Syria is fluid, with a lot of conflicting reports and shifting alliances -- Alawites , Shiites. Sunnis , Christians, etc. Here is a breakdown of the religious groups at war and some background on their beliefs. Read the complete article at -- http://www.sentinelsource.com/cnn/religious-divides-fuel-syrian-war/article_887a5d1e-27a0-5cb7-9b80-962813cd7079.html

An Angry Person Should be Tried in Court like a Murderer

This was Yeshua’s attention grabbing opening for the lesson : “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be tried in the second highest court in the land, the 23 judge Bet Din .’ But I tell you – anyone who is angry with a brother would also be tried by the 23 judge Bet Din .’” Find out more by clicking here --  http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/an-angry-person-should-be-tried-in.html

Yeshua Master Builder of Fences

Yeshua, like other rabbis, used a popular method of teaching in which a light commandment is linked to a heavy commandment to show that keeping the light commandment is just as important as keeping the heavy commandment.  The premise is that if a man keeps the light commandments he will not break the more serious heavy commandments. On the other hand, breaking a light commandment can have serious consequences because it could lead to breaking a heavy commandment. Read complete article at --  http://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2013/09/yeshua-master-builder-of-fences.html

What You Have Been Taught about the Ten Commandments is Probably Wrong!

Everybody knows about the Ten Commandments, so let’s have some fun and see what we really do know. It will just a about 10 minutes to do the following. #1 - Without looking in your Bible or at anything else, find the commandments in Exodus 20, the traditional source of the Ten Commandments. Click Here -- http://biblicalheritage.org/DTB/Exodus%2020%20Text.pdf  -- to download and print the texts of Exodus 20 without the verse markers. Read the text and when you come to the end of a commandment insert a slash, like those in the example below: “You shall not commit adultery. / You shall not steal. / You shall not bear false witness against” Put the number of the commandment above the sentence & when you finish see if you have 10 commandments. #2 - After you finish locating the commandments in Exodus 20, down load the “Three Versions of the Ten Commandments” by Clicking Here -- http://biblicalheritage.org/DTB/Ten%20Commandments%20Three%20Versions.pdf .   Compare