Volume 4 Issue 40

Praise Jesus

After BFF in Mumbai I and my wife reached home along with others. The Lord granted us a wonderful time to enjoy his presence seeing the mighty works God did for each one of them in Jesus name through his disciples (Goa and Mumbai team)

After reaching home, the next day I saw my neighbor Miss Ana Rose coming out of her flat going down to market and as usual wished her and inquired her when she arrived at Goa from Mumbai. She said yesterday at  6:30 pm. She reached by flight as it got delayed due to heavy rain.

So I said to her we also arrived from Mumbai yesterday night by train. She inquired the reason for us to be in Mumbai. I told her about the BFF we had in Panvel, Mumbai. She got enthusiast and asked me where do you pray or gather here. I said to her a new Troop church on the 2nd floor of our building on Saturdays  We gather at 7:00 p.m. she said “I want to attend” and I told her “sure”.

She attended and for the first time our sister prepared that day the Lord's supper as this was  the  4 th meeting and I had to explain her you cannot partake as one must be  water baptized ( immersion ). She immediately responded I am longing / desiring for a long time to be water baptized and I told her we will give you tomorrow and requested Bro. Aravind about it and we arranged the next day to baptize her and said even if it rains heavily you should not cancel as it was raining.

As we gathered the next day for preparing for the next BFF in Goa from  14th  Oct to 19 th Oct. That day at every 2 hrs interval  it was raining heavily, as we had to give water baptism to Sister Ana Rose and we prayed for rain to stop and for sunshine. Yes God answered our prayers and there was sunshine and did not rain , from that afternoon the rain stopped.

Praise Jesus , she was baptized  that day and she testified that she feels very light, like something lifted up from her. Praise Jesus One soul was brought to Goa from Mumbai by The Holy Spirit and added to His church and today Tuesday she left for Mumbai as she was desiring now to stay little longer.

Friends as I shared in the previous 2 BFF in the last,  while proposing the  a vote of thanks, I said  that we must go and make disciples, desire to bear fruit, that is winning souls for Christ. Surely God has done it and is doing it as we desire to step out to Go and make DISCIPLES.

Yes Jesus said I will make you Fishers of men. My prayer tonight is Lord Jesus give us India for CHRIST. Desire and Desire and Desire all you who have completed BFF and the Troop Church members.

Surely God will increase your fruit. The tree shall be known by its fruit.

Blessings.

- Br.Francis Alvares

Part 3 (concluding part) – The Epilogue : Why Jesus had to come down to earth?

IN THIS PART:

• Why the Son of Man had to take the human form?
• The redemption plan – seed of the woman to pay the price for sins!
• Jesus is the seed of the woman.
• Why virgin Mary?
• Satan disarmed and made null on the cross
• Hope for cancellation of generational curses
• Redemption plan: Jesus had to take the human form as a bond servant
  1. Prophecy about Son of Man in the bible
     1. In the book of Genesis (about 6000 years ago)
     2. Through a sorcerer named Baalam (1445-1405 BC)

• Messiah (Jesus), promised through Moses (1445-1405 BC)

1. Through prophet Isaiah (700-680 BC)

1. Gentile Babylonian emperor Nebuchadnezzar on rein of Jesus (confirming Isaiah 9:6-7) –536-530 BC
2. Medo Persian emperor Darius on the rein of Jesus, the son of man. 536-530 BC

• Prophet Daniel saw Jesus, the everlasting king of kings, in a vision – his kingdom shall not be destroyed!
• And the future (prophesied through John, the apostle at Patmos island) – 90-96 AD
• The redemption plan: Jesus defeated death
• Keys of death and hades back to Jesus, the Son of Man
• The box item: no one can kill Jesus, the Almighty God.
• Let the blind see: for those blind people who say Jesus was just a man and not the Son of God!
• Jesus has been given name above all the names:
• And Jesus is alive and active even today, doing miracles, signs and wonders:
• So, what is the verdict?

           The Son of God (Word of God)the second person of the trinity is eternal.The incarnated Word of God is called Jesus who was born on earth “When the time had fully come”(Gal 4:4)

     What Jesus has said about himself: “I am the only way to Heaven”

EPILOGUE:

WHY THE SON OF MAN HAD TO TAKE THE HUMAN FORM?

     Because of our sins, the Creator God had to come down to earth and live like a slave. The King of kings had to come down to give His life in the most horrible manner to redeem us from eternal death. If not for the price paid by Him we would not have any hope for eternal life.

     The Lord Himself tells this to Pilate.

     John 18:37 (NKJV) Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. FOR THIS CAUSE I WAS BORN, AND FOR THIS CAUSE I HAVE COME INTO THE WORLD, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” (to fulfil the prophecy in Genesis 3:15. His word alone is the truth-John 17:17).

     He came to the world to pay the price for sins committed by us.

     This plan was declared by the Lord in Eden garden when Adam and Eve fell to the deception of the serpent (devil).

THE REDEMPTION PLAN – SEED OF WOMAN TO PAY THE PRICE FOR SINS!

JESUS IS THE SEED OF WOMAN.

     Genesis 3:15 (NKJV) And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”

      When Adam and Eve committed the first sin, they had to pay the price because the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23) and there is no redemption without shedding of blood (Hebrews 9:22).

      Instead of Adam and Eve or their descendants human beings paying the price for the sin with death, the Lord, the Creator of the universe chose to pay the price. The only route found out by Him was to come down to the earth in flesh and blood as a slave and allow satan to torture him and bleed him before killing Him (see the box item “no one can kill Jesus, the Almighty God”).

      Crucifixion route was chosen because in crucifixion alone the blood of the victim would be shed like the passover lamb.

      The Lord chose His own method of paying the price on the Cross and no one has a locus standi to question Him (Isaiah 40:13). He, being the repository of wisdom does not need anyone's counsel. Amen.

WHY VIRGIN MARY?

      The Lord chose virgin Mary because sin came into the world because of Eve, a woman. And redemption also had to come through a woman.

     Satan cunningly deceived the first woman – Eve, who was given as the greatest blessing to Adam (man). Satan succeeded in making the blessing into a curse. Now the Lord who created Eve had to do the reversal. That reversal had to happen through the same route which satan had taken. A woman had to be used to finish of satan for good and forever. Amen.

     And so, the Son of Man, Jesus was promised as the seed of woman in Genesis 3:15 and He came down at the right time as the seed of the woman to crush satan's head on the cross. Jesus accomplished it fully on the Cross.

    The Cross is a finished job (John 19:28,30). Full price for sin was paid to satan on the Cross. Amen.

    The Son of Man came to the earth at the right time.

    Galatians 4:4 (NKJV) But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

SATAN DISARMED AND MADE NULL ON THE CROSS

     Let us take a look at what had happened on the Cross – satan thought he finished Jesus, but the contrary had happened.

     Colossians 2:13 (NKJV) And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 HAVING DISARMED PRINCIPALITIES AND POWERS, HE MADE A PUBLIC SPECTACLE OF THEM, TRIUMPHING OVER THEM IN IT.

 - To be Continued

Biochip Technologies: From Fringe To Mainstream

Biochip technology is becoming big business, but not everyone is embracing the changes. There are concerns about the potential dangers these technologies can offer. Right now, implants are already being designed that will provide your medical information, act as a key to your home, and store business card information.

These are not wearable devices that you can put on and take off, but actual implantable devices that are placed under the skin. The implants work through RFID technology, which can be read by smartphones and readers that allow people access to buildings through ID cards or badges.

Current estimates indicate that some 50,000 people around the world may already have these implants and be using them for access to their homes and businesses, contact details, and more. While it is becoming a popular trend in some circles, there are real worries about where the use of these kinds of devices may take society.

The tags only work when the scanner activates them, so there is no worry about dead batteries, and they take only seconds to implant under the skin. That makes it sound almost too easy to get and start using these implants for all sorts of daily things.

Will This Become Mandatory?

One concern for many people is that the "chipping" of human beings may eventually become mandatory. Similar to how pet owners in some areas have seen the optional chipping of pets now become mandatory.  In that case, these chips would be needed as identity markers, much the same way people now carry a driver's license or ID card.

The implants could also be used to open doors, pay for things, and store medical and other types of data. But the argument against this is strong, coming from both religious individuals who feel the implants are similar to the "mark of the beast" that is mentioned in the Bible, and scientific individuals who worry about the long-term health effects of the chips on the human body. 

Will New Advancements Mean Additional Implants?

As technology moves forward, more options will be available to be implanted in human beings. These implants are the size of a grain of rice, but how many of them is too many, and how much data can they hold? Will they ever fail and need to be removed or replaced?

With so many questions still circulating when it comes to how these implants will be handled, it is entirely possible that advancements in technology will mean that new and better implants will come along. Since there are a number of good choices for placement of these implants, people could theoretically have an increasingly large number of them for different information and functions.

But What About Informed Consent? Among the biggest hurdles to the use of these tags is consent. While a healthy, competent adult could certainly choose to have a tag implanted, there may be others who would not be able to say yes or no to the procedure. That can include very young children, and the elderly who may have Alzheimer's disease or other types of dementia. Additionally, those who have mental impairment or mental illness may struggle with understanding what the tag is for, and may not be able to consent to its usefulness and implantation.

Viruses and Hacking of People Instead of Machines

Computers and RFID scanners can get hacked. So can humans, if they have these implants. While storing data on a chip located inside the body may seem like the ultimate way of being safe when it comes to protecting information, that information can still be stolen under the right conditions. In theory, medical data, access to a home or a secure facility, and anything else that was stored on the implant could be the target of a hacker and could be something that a person would not want accessed by others. Controlling this kind of attack is very difficult, and data breaches happen every day in the technology sphere. Avoiding that with humans when it's so common with machines may not be realistic now, and may never be realistic, putting many people's data at near-constant risk. One can only imagine what would happen to a society that relies on such chip implants to function if it were struck with a widescale virus.  In 2010, Dr. Mark Gasson from the University of Reading had a chip inserted in his hand which was then infected with a virus.

In trials, Dr Gasson showed that the chip was able to pass on the computer virus to external control systems and if other implanted chips had then connected to the system they too would have been corrupted, he said. "With the benefits of this type of technology come risks. We may improve ourselves in some way but much like the improvements with other technologies, mobile phones for example, they become vulnerable to risks, such as security problems and computer viruses.

Government belongs to RSS, says BHU VC Girish Tripathi

Banaras Hindu University on Friday joined the controversies surrounding the premiere educational institutions in India as #SaveBHUfromRSS started trending on social media. The university that houses about 40,000 students making it one of the largest residential campuses in India, is facing accusations of rampant sexism by its students. Reports suggest that with the appointment of Girish Chandra Tripathi as the Vice Chancellor, the democratic representation of students, teachers and another staff has taken a back seat. Tripathi has been accused of openly endorsing the RSS ideology.

He also expelled Sandeep Pandey, winner of the Ramon Magsaysay award and renowned social activist. The expulsion is speculated to have happened as a result of Pandey’s denial of agreeing to the Sangh ideology. When objections surfaced as to his use of the university as an RSS unit, he openly said that there was nothing wrong in establishing an RSS shakha in BHU, since the Indian government itself belonged to the RSS.

With the VC talking on RSS principles and regulating them in the university, that should ideally be free of any political enforcement, it was only a matter of time that restrictions were imposed on students; more specifically female students. Reports have surfaced that the college administration has banned the use of mobile phones by girls after 10pm at night. As ridiculous as this may sound, the VC topped it with banning girls to study after 10 pm. His reason for such a rule was that girls who study at night are immoral. This has resulted in the 24×7 library being shut down for girl students at night. the prospectus of the BHU states that bus service can be availed by all the students of the university. Although, it has come to light that the female students have been banned from using it. Female students are also being made to sign affidavits stating that they would not participate or indulge in any protest or agitation. This is a direct choking off the fundamental rights of an Indian citizen. Female students are also banned for any sort of participation in socio-cultural activities outside the campus.

This discrimination between the genders also exists in the hostels as women are not allowed to consume meat as compared to their male counterparts. VC Girish Tripathi believes that the consumption of non-vegetarian food makes women “impure” in accordance with the Malviya rules. While male students have no curfew time, women have been asked to come back to the campus as early as 8 pm. women wearing short dresses and skirts are reported to have been reprimanded by the administration.

Protests cannot legally be organised by women as they were made to sign a lawful affidavit stating otherwise by the university administration. VC Tripathi has also been seen moral policing around the campus saying that it is aginst Indian cultures for boys and girls to hang out. The university has repeatedly warned the students that nay such acts would lead to a “category-A punishment”, which can be safely assumed to be a suspension. A few months ago, the university administration had denied the students’ demand for a cyber library stating the students ‘would’ use it to tune into pornography. The university, it seems remains ignorant about simple security software enabling them to ban porn sites. Although, under current circumstances, if the software is made available, the administration might use it to ban a lot more than just porn. The university administration solely consists of upper cast members of the Hindu community.

Students, though have been reported to have joined hands to form a joint action committee to stop the slow decay of saffronisation from spreading over the university. the committee is to spread information about the wrongs happening inside the walls of BHU to the world. Tags like #SaveBHUfromRSS and #StopCampusSexism were seen trending on social media with many prominent personalities all over the country were seen criticising the university for its enforcement of draconian traditions.

The BJP led Indian government has often been criticised for its age old views based on the Hindu books of mythology. While the Narendra Modi government has actively avoided any such controversies, it is high time that they step in to understand these issues and stop such rampant violations of fundamental rights of students.

ESV Bible Translation Revisions Won't Be Permanent Says Crossway: 'The Decision Was a Mistake'

Just a little over a month after its announcement that the text of the English Standard Version Bible will remain unchanged in all future editions, Crossway is now "convinced that this decision was a mistake" and would "allow for ongoing periodic updating of the text." The goal behind the earlier decision was "to stabilize the English Standard Version, serving its readership by establishing the ESV as a translation that could be used 'for generations to come,'" the Christian publisher says in a statement. "We desired for there to be a stable and standard text that would serve the reading, memorizing, preaching and liturgical needs of Christians worldwide from one generation to another."

But "this decision was a mistake," says Lane T. Dennis, Crossway president and CEO. "We apologize for this and for any concern this has caused for readers of the ESV, and we want to explain what we now believe to be the way forward. Our desire, above all, is to do what is right before the Lord." The Crossway Board of Directors and the ESV Translation Oversight Committee had unanimously decided that the ESV Bible would remain unchanged "throughout the life of the copyright" beginning the summer of 2016, calling it "the culmination of more than 17 years of comprehensive work by the Translation Oversight Committee, as authorized and initiated by the Crossway Board in 1998." That decision was made after making 52 word changes "to make only a very limited number of final changes to the ESV text, where such changes represented a substantial improvement in the precision, accuracy, and understanding of the ESV."

Crossway now believes that "the means to that goal … is not to establish a permanent text but rather to allow for ongoing periodic updating of the text to reflect the realities of biblical scholarship such as textual discoveries or changes in English over time." The updates are likely to be "minimal and infrequent," the publisher says, and adds, "but fidelity to Scripture requires that we remain open in principle to such changes, as the Crossway Board of Directors and the ESV Translation Oversight Committee see fit in years ahead." In its statement, Crossway also quotes the Preface to the ESV Bible, which reads: "We know that no Bible translation is perfect; but we also know that God uses imperfect and inadequate things to His honor and praise. So to our triune God and to His people we offer what we have done, with our prayers that it may prove useful, with gratitude for much help given, and with ongoing wonder that our God should ever have entrusted to us so momentous a task. To God alone be the glory!" Some biblical scholars had expressed concerns over the word changes Crossway made prior to its earlier announcement.

"This new translation of Genesis 3:16 suggests the curse against the woman is an act of God (a curse) that seals estrangement, alienation and tension between females and males," Northern Seminary New Testament professor Scot McKnight earlier told The Christian Post. "By so rendering this verse, the ESV creates the impression that females and males are contrarians with one another."

McKnight added that some think they make women rebellious and men authoritarian in response. "That is a sad and potentially dangerous interpretation for it gives the wrong kind of males a ready-made excuse for domination." Carolyn Custis James, a professor at Biblical Theological Seminary in Hatfield, Pennsylvania, also noted in a post on Missio Alliance that "because of the awkwardness of the ESV translation, I've heard pastors in churches with ESV Bibles in the pews abruptly interrupt their public Bible reading to explain that the actual meaning of the text is "brothers and sisters."

Iran Arrests 25 Christians in Raid Persecuting Believers for Their Faith in Jesus Christ

At least 25 Christians have been arrested in the Islamic Republic of Iran solely because of their faith in Jesus Christ, it has been reported. According to the National Council of Resistance in Iran, Iranian human rights outlets are reporting that over two dozen Christians were recently arrested during a raid by authorities in the southern city of Kerman. Security officials raided Christians' homes where they confiscated belongings and arrested as many as 25 believers. As of now, there has been no reason given for why the Christians were arrested and their location is unknown.

As Iran is ranked by Open Doors USA as the ninth worst country in the world when it comes to Christian persecution, the authorities in the Shia nation are widely known for their hostility towards Christians. Hostility toward Christianity and the Bible is so great in Iran that Christians must worship secretly in house churches. When religious police suspect Christians are gathering to worship in secret, they have been known to raid homes, arrest church leaders, worshipers and confiscate and destroy Bibles and other religious material. In August, armed Iranian agents raided a house church in the central city of Isfahan and arrested 11 Christians. The agents also confiscated Christian literature found in the house.

Then on Aug. 26, authorities raided a Christian picnic that was held in a garden in Firouz-Kouh County, which is north of the capital of Tehran. At least five people of the party had been arrested, according to Morning Star News. Mohabat News reports that police in Iran have begun cracking down on Christian weddings and gatherings in which Islamic principles are disregarded. Not even on Christmas are Christians in Iran safe from persecution. On Dec. 25, 2014, regime authorities raided a house church in in Roodehen and arrested nine Christians. According to NCRI, the Iranian government also executed seven Christians on Christmas Day. Despite the Iranian regime's hostility toward Christians, Christianity is on the rise in the Islamic Republic. As there are believed to be anywhere from 450,000 to 1 million Christians living in Iran, according to a source close to the Iranian house church movement who told The Christian Post in March that a "great, great number of Muslims are turning to Christ." Iranian-American Pastor Seed Abedini, who was imprisoned in Iran for over three-and-a-half years, recently shared the video testimony of one of his fellow Christian inmates in Iran. The video was recorded before Ali Asadi was set to be executed. According to Abedini, Asadi said in the video that he is not afraid of his coming death because he knows that it is the Iranian leaders who should be afraid of God's judgment."That kind of life which Muslims leaders in Iran have is a really scary life, because of God's judgment on them and they should FEAR [God]," Abedini quoted Asadi as saying.

 Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, EXPOSE them” Ephesians 5:11

 Section 1 - The Old Testament - Ahab, Jezebel and Elijah

Now do Ahab and Jezebel remind you of anyone? They were virtually identical to Nimrod and Semiramis. It’s almost as though satan thought to himself that since this tactic had worked so well in Babylon, it might just be the one that would finally clinch victory in the battle to subvert the Israelites. Like when a play or shot works particularly well in sports, you’re tempted to use it again in the hope it produces the same result. This is what he was doing. He was attempting to create the same kind of structure within Israel that he had created in Babylon and was hoping the same end would be achieved.

Just as Semiramis had risen to power on the coat tails of Nimrod, the evil Jezebel wed herself to Ahab and introduced idolatry into their life as an evil religious practice. This was probably not a marriage of love; rather it was a spiritual and political affiliation designed to merge two different kingdoms. Just as Semiramis had an insatiable lust for power and would go to any ends to retain it, even killing her husband and plotting to kill her son, we see the same kind of spirit in Jezebel. A lust for power, control and domination. Given her background in Baal worship where sex acts and licentious living was exalted as a way to tap into the power of the gods, she would have had no qualms ‘sleeping her way to the top’. Ahab, King of Israel, was completely subdued and dominated by Jezebel. Israel was now full of pagan shrines, filled with priestess prostitutes servicing the worshippers. The sexual lure was more than the men of Israel could resist. By Jezebel’s influence, 10 million Israelites left the worship of God for Baal and Ashtoreth. Only 7000 people in the entire nation were not swayed by her control. This is how close Satan came to claiming Israel and thus, removing the last remaining barrier between him and world domination.

God however, as always, had a man for the job – Elijah. Jezebel had killed most of God’s prophets but hadn’t managed to get her hands on Elijah yet. And it was he who God used to turn Israel back from the brink. It all took place on Mount Carmel – a direct showdown between God and Baal. 

- Mark Fairley