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i believe

we believe

everybody believes

and that's how it's written .

Ephesians 6:18 (NLT) - Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

Unbelievers

There is no such thing as an unbeliever.

We are all believers. Whether we are aware of it or not, every last one of us has faith in something. We all believe in, we all trust, something.

Whether it’s God. Or what we imagine science is. Or what we call “our research” (which, if we’re honest with ourselves, is more like an odd mixture of stuff we found online that confirms our biases). Or the classics – like power or wealth or ourselves.

All of us have faith in something. All of us trust something.

There is no such thing as an unbeliever.

But no matter what we think we believe in (if we think about it at all), for most of us, our faith drifts. Because we shift what we trust in.

Usually it happens without thinking. Even when we start the day off right with God, trusting in God. Something can happen that sends us off, trusting in something else.

Maybe someone calls us out on our BS.

Instinctively, we try to explain what we were doing. To justify why we were doing it. To show that it isn’t the BS they think it is.

Without really thinking about it, we’ve seamlessly switched into trusting ourselves to get us out of a situation that we don’t want to be in.

That’s how subtly we can switch our faith. Without ever meaning to.

When we do, all too often, we don’t notice it. We don’t even realize what we’ve done to ourselves.

The thing to know is that what we believe in is the foundation for our thoughts. Our actions. Our lives. Faith is that foundational. That’s why what we trust, what we believe in matters.

Today, look at how you respond to things. Especially the stressful stuff.

Your go to? The first thing that pops to mind? More like the first thing you say without thinking.

That’s what you’re putting your faith in. That’s what you trust.

If it’s anything other than God, eventually it will fail you.

That’s the point that Jesus is making in today’s Gospel. With the story about the two houses, one built on the rock and one built on the sand.

With all the people and things you can believe in, there’s only One that lasts.

Today’s Readings

JESUS CLEANSES THE TEMPLE

John 2:15 And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables;

THE TEMPLE OF GOD

1 Corinthians 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the spirit of God dwelleth in you?

1 Corinthians 3:17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Testing the Spirits

1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit [speaking through a self-proclaimed prophet]; instead test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets and teachers have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know and recognize the Spirit of God: every spirit that acknowledges and confesses [the fact] that Jesus Christ has [actually] come in the flesh [as a man] is from God [God is its source]; 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus [acknowledging that He has come in the flesh, but would deny any of the Son’s true nature] is not of God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming, and is now already in the world. 4 Little children (believers, dear ones), you are of God and you belong to Him and have [already] overcome them [the agents of the antichrist]; because He who is in you is greater than he (Satan) who is in the world [of sinful mankind]. 5 They [who teach twisted doctrine] are of the world and belong to it; therefore they speak from the [viewpoint of the] world [with its immoral freedom and baseless theories—demanding compliance with their opinions and ridiculing the values of the upright], and the [gullible one of the] world listens closely and pays attention to them. 6 We [who teach God’s word] are from God [energized by the Holy Spirit], and whoever knows God [through personal experience] listens to us [and has a deeper understanding of Him]. Whoever is not of God does not listen to us. By this we know [without any doubt] the spirit of truth [motivated by God] and the spirit of error [motivated by Satan].

God Is Love

7 Beloved, let us [unselfishly] love and seek the best for one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves [others] is born of God and knows God [through personal experience]. 8 The one who does not love has not become acquainted with God [does not and never did know Him], for God is love. [He is the originator of love, and it is an enduring attribute of His nature.] 9 By this the love of God was displayed in us, in that God has sent His [One and] only begotten Son [the One who is truly unique, the only One of His kind] into the world so that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation [that is, the atoning sacrifice, and the satisfying offering] for our sins [fulfilling God’s requirement for justice against sin and placating His wrath]. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us [in this incredible way], we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has seen God at any time. But if we love one another [with unselfish concern], God abides in us, and His love [the love that is His essence abides in us and] is completed and perfected in us. 13 By this we know [with confident assurance] that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given to us His [Holy] Spirit. 14 We [who were with Him in person] have seen and testify [as eye-witnesses] that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.

15 Whoever confesses and acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 We have come to know [by personal observation and experience], and have believed [with deep, consistent faith] the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides continually in him. 17 In this [union and fellowship with Him], love is completed and perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment [with assurance and boldness to face Him]; because as He is, so are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love [dread does not exist]. But perfect (complete, full-grown) love drives out fear, because fear involves [the expectation of divine] punishment, so the one who is afraid [of God’s judgment] is not perfected in love [has not grown into a sufficient understanding of God’s love]. 19 We love, because He first loved us. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates (works against) his [Christian] brother he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should also [unselfishly] love his brother and seek the best for him. — 1 John 4 | Amplified Bible (AMP) The Amplified Bible Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Cross References: Genesis 22:2; Leviticus 19:18; 1 Kings 13:18; Jeremiah 14:14; Matthew 5:43; Matthew 9:34; Matthew 10:15; Matthew 24:5; John 1:14; John 1:18; John 3:16; John 3:31; John 6:51; John 6:56; John 6:69; John 8:23; John 8:32; John 8:47; John 9:3; John 15:27; John 12:31; John 12:34; John 13:35; Romans 8:9; Romans 8:15; Romans 8:31; Romans 10:9; 1 Corinthians 8:3; 1 Corinthians 12:3; 2 Thessalonians 2:3; 1 Timothy 6:16; 1 Peter 1:8; 1 John 1:1-2; 1 John 2:3; 1 John 2:5; 1 John 2:7; 1 John 3:1; 1 John 3:10-11; 2 John 1:5

Totally Original Thought:

Kinda hilarious that Easter landed on Trans Day of Visibility this year. Here's your regular reminder that if Jesus truly had a virgin birth, then he is almost certainly a trans man, personal identification notwithstanding.

And yes, I said "is" and not "was" because he was likely a powerful wizard (miracles) who, allegedly, turned himself into a truly immortal lich by making his phylactery "anyone who believes in me". Truly some fae-level rules lawyering. They do say he resides in anyone who believes in him, or rather, a piece of his soul does.

I for one, welcome our trans lich savior, whenever he shows back up 🏳️‍⚧️💀🧙‍♂️✝️

"THAT CONTAINER IS LYING ABOUT ITS CONTENTS"

Matthew 7:15, “Be on your guard against false prophets; they come to you LOOKING LIKE SHEEP on the OUTSIDE, but on the INSIDE they are really like wild WOLVES.” (GNT) My two favorite seasons are Winter and Fall! Winter, because I love Christmas, snow, carols, decorations and the like. And Fall, because I love the colors, Thanksgiving, the start of the scent of fireplaces, but most of all,…

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Believers, Верующие, ビリーバーズ by Yamamoto Naoki.

(via Verse of the Day - Galatians 6:10)

Believers

ビリーバーズ (2022)

Brian Branston - Beyond Belief - Walker - 1974

1 Timothy 4:12 (NLT) - Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.

To judge or not to judge?

Matthew 7:1-6;13-20 “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

“Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

Many Christians remain forever stuck on those first two words, unable to see that they are indeed meant to judge others. We are commanded to judge the walk of others. For instance, if we see others sinning and we don’t warn them, we will be guilty of their sin (Ezekiel 3:18-21).

Throughout Scripture, we are called to judge. Jesus talked about how we are to judge one’s fruit (verses above). The apostle Paul commanded us not to even eat with false Christians (1 Corinthians 5:11), as well as commanding us to judge inside the church (1 Corinthians 5:12). We are to avoid associating with those whose morals are corrupt (1 Corinthians 15:33) and how can we do that if we’re not judging their walk? And the list goes on and on.

It’s important we must remember our hatred must be directed at sin, not the sinner. As noted by Martyn Lloyd-Jones, “Our anger must only be against sin; we must never feel angry with the sinner, but only full of sorrow and compassion for him.”

The main problem when it comes to judging sin is with those who try to judge indiscriminately. They will easily see the sins of others while often ignoring their own sin. This is true for all of us. We want to see the best in ourselves and the people we like, while easily seeing the error in everyone else.

We must be fair to all, friend and foe alike. The truth is the truth; it cares not if it upsets your friends or foes. We must be willing to stand with God, even if we have to stand alone.

Not to judge someone’s fruit is to invite disaster. We will either let them continue in their sin or allow a wolf among the sheep.

The only way to properly help the lost, and those being led astray by wolves, is to indeed judge people’s fruits. Knowing when, and how, to judge is crucial for a Christian.

THE BODY OF CHRIST

1 Corinthians 12:12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

JESUS' PRAYER FOR BELIEVERS

John 17:23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

THE BODY OF CHRIST

1 Corinthians 12:28 And God hath set some in the Church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then the gifts of healing, governments, diversities of tongues.

God is Faithful

Temptation has not come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful, who will not permit you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but will also make a way out together with the temptation, so that you may be able to endure it. — 1 Corinthians 10:13 | Lexham English Bible (LEB) Lexham English Bible 2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software. Cross References: Matthew 6:13; 1 Corinthians 1:9; Hebrews 10:23; 2 Peter 2:9