Does The "All Israel Shall Be Saved" Doctrine Include Non-Believing Jews?

One of the most debated quotes in the Bible is Romans 11:26, which is part of the Apostle Paul's dissertation concerning "Israel", which most Zionists (both Jewish and Christians) use as proof that all Jews will be redeemed before the return of Jesus; therefore, Israel should be supported on all issues, regardless of its current behavior.

I have spent over 35 years researching this aspect of the Gospel and have written my findings in my book, The End Times Passover. In the 1st chapter of my book (Who Are God's Children of Promise?) I provide an exhaustive presentation that God's chosen people are not the Jewish race, but solely those who believe in, trust and obey the will of God through faith in Jesus Christ.

Obviously, including all the data I have gathered after 35 years of rsearch cannot fit on this posting. However, there is one great writer (Philip Mauro) who wrote the book, The Gospel of the Kingdom of God, in 1928, that provides possibly the most excellent explanation in one of his chapters, entitled, So All Israel Shall Be Saved. There is no Bible student, teacher nor preacher who can adequately represent the Gospel unless they have read this magnificent work, which we are presenting in this blog today. This article is in the public domain.

Say a little prayer before reading this, and ask the Holy Spirit for His confirmation.

SO ALL ISRAEL SHALL BE SAVED

Chapter 15

THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOMWith an Examination of DISPENSATIONALISM
and the "Scofield Bible"
by

Philip Mauro

IN my comments on the words, "until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in" (Rom. 11:25) I pointed out that, notwithstanding that the passage in which those words occur is plainly a prophecy of the state in which the Jewish people were to exist throughout this present age, and that it says nothing whatever as to their state thereafter, it is now commonly interpreted as predicting that, in a future "dispensation," the whole nation is to be healed of its spiritual blindness. The next words of the passage are these:

"And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, there shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob; for this is My covenant unto them when I shall take away their sins.As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes; but as touching the election they are beloved for the fathers' sakes." (Rom. 11:26-28).

This passage likewise has been very badly treated in the interest of the new dispensationalism. And, like as the preceding passage has been transmuted from a prophecy strictly limited to this age into one relating wholly to a future age, so this passage also is lifted bodily out of the age where the Spirit of God has placed it, and is transported to a future age, an age which exists only in the imagination of men. For the passage is usually interpreted precisely as if it read, "And then all Israel shall be saved," instead of "And so all Israel shall be saved." 

Indeed all that is needed for the correction of this gigantic "dispensational" error is first to note the significance of that little word "so," and then to ascertain its meaning from the context, which is easily done. 

The adverb "so" answers to the question "How?" It says nothing at all in answer to the question "When?" Yet my experience has been that, whenever Romans 11:26 is cited by dispensationalists, it is presented as proof that the entire Jewish race, reconstituted into an earthly nation, is to be saved in a future "dispensation." In fact, however, the passage teaches the very opposite; namely: that the phrase "all Israel" means, not the entire Jewish race of a future age, but the entire body of the redeemed of this gospel age. The word "so" occurs in the concluding part of the passage and hence necessarily refers back to the preceding verses, where the apostle, after explaining who they are that constitute God's true "Israel," tells in detail, and illustrates by the figure of the "good olive tree," just how God's Israel was to "be saved." He there describes beforehand precisely what God has been doing from that day to this; and when he finished his description, and has illustrated it with marvellous clearness by the figure of the olive tree, he brings the matter to a conclusion by saying: "And so" --that is, in the manner he had been describing-- "all Israel shall be saved." And he adds that the saving of "all Israel" in that manner would fulfil certain Old Testament prophecies, which he quotes.


If therefore we simply ascertain from the preceding verses (as can be done with little trouble and with certainty) who are the "all Israel" of God's purpose, and how they were to "be saved," we shall also ascertain in the process when they were to be saved. 

WHO ARE THE "ALL ISRAEL" OF ROM. 11:26? The "all Israel" of Rom. 11:26 is the whole body of God's redeemed people. It is composed of "the election" (which, as we have seen, has "obtained" what the natural Israel as a whole had "not obtained") with the addition thereto of believers from among the Gentiles. For the main purpose of this passage (Rom. IX-XI) and that also of chapter IV, and likewise of Galatians (chapters III and IV) is to make known that the real "Israel," the true "children of Abraham," who inherit the promises of God, are not the natural seed of Abraham but his spiritual seed.


Paul proves his doctrine, and at the same time exhibits the great difference between Abraham's natural seed and his spiritual, by citing the historical fact that "Abraham had TWO sons" (Gal. 4: 22); and from the Old Testament records of the very different things that befell Ishmael and Isaac respectively, Paul deduces the great difference, in the purposes of God, between the unbelieving mass of the Israelitish people (answering to the son of the bondwoman) and the believing "remnant" (answering to the son of the freewoman). For those things, the apostle tells us, "are an allegory," the meaning of which he proceeds to explain (Gal. 4:21-31).


Abraham's elder son, Ishmael, represents the natural Israel, those "born after the flesh." Ishmael had the first-born's place in Abraham's house for a number of years before Isaac, who was to be the true and sole heir, was born. And during all that time, which answers to the period from Sinai to Pentecost--that is the era of the old covenant--Ishmael was the heir apparent of all that Abraham had. Moreover, even after Isaac appeared upon the scene, Ishmael continued for a time in occupation of the premises, and took advantage of his position to persecute the true heir. The period when Ishmael and Isaac were both under one roof and the former still had the status of a son and heir of Abraham, answers to the time from Pentecost to the destruction of Jerusalem. For during that period the natural Israel, "the son of the bondwoman," still occupied the holy land and city, and "persecuted" the true Israel (Gal. 4:29: 1 Thess. 2:15).


But that era of the overlapping of "the two covenants" was of short duration. For "what saith the Scripture? Cast out the bond woman and her son: for the son of the bond woman shall not be heir with the son of the free woman" (Gal. 4: 30). And the next verse gives us the application of the incident: "So then, brethren, we are not the children of the bond woman, but of the free."


The meaning of the words, "shall not be heir," is free from all uncertainty. Those words mean that the promises of God to Abraham are all for his spiritual seed. And this, moreover, is precisely what the apostle had already said in plain language: "Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham" (3:7). "And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (3:29). The same truth is plainly taught in Romans 4:13-16.


Coming now to Romans IX-XI, it is the plain teaching of that passage (1) that God's true "Israel," the nation concerning which it is said, "And so all Israel shall be saved," is the whole body of the redeemed of the Lord: and (2) that, that body is composed of the believing "remnant" of the natural Israel (the "remnant according to the election of grace," Ch. 11:15) with the addition thereto of believing Gentiles. Those two elements, so diverse and antagonistic by nature, are incorporated into a spiritual unity, "the unity of the Spirit" (Eph. 2:12-18, 4:3). And this is according to that "mystery" of God's eternal purpose, which was not clearly revealed in ages past, but now is made fully known (Eph. 3:4-6). That "mystery" is what is graphically illustrated by the olive tree of Romans XI. And as regards the salvation of the natural Israel in a future era, so far from teaching that doctrine, the passage we are studying was written for the purpose of refuting it. This will very clearly appear in what follows.


This section of the Epistle begins with the declaration of a fact which caused the apostle great heaviness and continual sorrow in his heart, namely, that "they are not all Israel which are of Israel" (9: 6). Observe here the phrase, "all Israel," concerning which we are now inquiring. And observe further that what we here are told is, not what it includes, but what it does not include. The "all Israel" of this passage does not embrace all who are Israelites. Paul is here speaking of his "kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites" (ver. 3,4). And what caused him such acute anguish of mind was the fact, revealed to him by the Spirit of God, that not all these, but indeed only a few of them, were to be included in the "all Israel" of God's purposes.  

It is simply impossible that Paul could have penned those words of poignant grief; it is impossible, I say, that he could have wished himself "accursed from Christ" for the sake of his "kinsmen according to the flesh" if he had held and was about to declare the doctrine now frequently attributed to him, namely, that all the Israelites in the world were to be saved at the second coming of Christ--an event the christians of that day regarded as imminent. That doctrine, which was the very corner stone of the Judaism of that day, Paul had cast aside; and it was moreover an important part of his ministry to expose the falsity of it. The next two verses (Rom. 9:7,8 ) make the matter still clearer. There we read:


"Neither because they are the seed of Abraham are they all children: but 'in Isaac shall thy seed be called.' That is, they which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed."


This calls for no explanation; for it is the Spirit's own explanation. We need only to observe that the reason why the truth here stated caused the apostle such acute distress was that it so rigidly excludes from God's salvation all the natural descendants of Abraham except the few who were of the faith of Abraham (Rom. 4:13-16) that is, those who believed the gospel.


The apostle then proceeds to make known that it had been God's plan and purpose from the beginning to save--not all the natural descendants of Abraham, but--only such as He should choose. And here we have the doctrine of "election" (Rom. 9:10-26) which takes its name from the fact that God makes an "election" or choice, from among Jews and Gentiles, of those He will save and have eternally as His people. This principle of God's sovereign choice is illustrated by the case of Esau and Jacob (vv. 10-13) where His choice was made before the children were born.


In the closing verses of chapter IX (27-33). Paul returns to the matter that was causing him such acute sorrow, namely that, as Isaiah had prophesied, "Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant (only) shall be saved." That remnant is the Jewish part of "the election"; and thus we have a clear light upon verse 26 of Chapter XI; for the words "a remnant shall be saved," explain the words, "all Israel shall be saved."


In chapter X the apostle, after expressing the desire of his heart and his prayer to God for Israel "that they might be saved," goes on to show that none can "be saved" except by believing the gospel ("the word of faith which we preach," v. 8); and that in respect to this vital matter there is "no difference between the Jew and the Greek. For whosoever shall call on the Name of the Lord shall be saved." And the chapter closes with a strong intimation that the Israelitish nation as a whole would not be saved; the word of Jehovah to that nation being, "All day long I have stretched forth My hands unto a disobedient and galnsaying people" (v. 21).


Special heed should be given to the first part of chapter XI. It shows that God's rejection of Israel nationally does not warrant the conclusion that God has cast away His people. For, as we have already seen, God's part of the nation, that is, the election, He did not then cast away, and never will. Hence, in bestowing upon "the election" what had been promised to "Israel," God was fulfilling His promises strictly in accordance with their true intent.  

The result is that "Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded" (11:7).


Seeing therefore that "the election," by believing the gospel of Christ, has obtained (and certainly will never be deprived of) that which God had promised to "Israel," it is clear that "the remnant according to the election of grace," with believers from among the Gentiles added, is the "Israel" of the prophetic Scriptures. Indeed it is evident, upon an impartial study of the entire passage, that its main purpose is to make known that very fact.


And this purpose stands forth in the clearest light in the figure of the olive tree, whereby the apostle, at the end of the passage, illustrates the truth he has been expounding. That olive tree represents "the Israel of God," "the election," the "one body" of the redeemed. Not all who are of Israel are in it. On the contrary, many of the natural branches, "because of unbelief were broken off" (v. 20). And on the other hand, many believing Gentiles are included; these being the branches of "the olive tree which is wild by nature," which branches have been "grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree." This is the fulfilment of all God's purposes and promises, the final outcome of all His dealings in grace with both Jews and Gentiles.


And now, in seeking an answer to the question, who are the all Israel that are to be saved? We have found also the answer to the other question. How shall they be save? For, as we have seen, the passage teaches in the plalnest way that they are to be saved by believing in Jesus Christ. And in so teaching, it simply affirms the foundation truth of the Gospel, namely, that there is no other way of salvation; for "he that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him" (John 3:36). The natural branches of the olive tree were broken off "because of unbelief," and any of them that are saved, must be saved by personal and individual faith; for there is no other way.


Furthermore, in saying that "God is able to graft them in again," and that He will do so "if they abide not still in unbelief" (v. 23 ), the passage bears a clear witness to the truth that there is no other salvation for them but that which the olive tree represents. This verse alone forbids the idea that there is, or can be, a national salvation for the Jewish race in some future era.  

God, in His great forbearance and long suffering (II Pet. 3:9,15) still keeps open to them the door of salvation, so that individual Israelites, by personal faith in Jesus Christ, may enter in and be saved. But when He rises up and shuts that door, then they who begin to seek Him for salvation will hear Him say, "I know you not; depart from Me, all ye workers of iniquity," and it was to Jews He said this (Luke 13:25,27).


Furthermore the word "So," in Romans 11:26, meaning in the manner described above and illustrated by the figure of the olive tree, plainly answers the question, How all Israel is to be saved. They will "all be saved" precisely "SO," and not otherwise.


And finally we have found also, in what has been set forth above, the answer to the question, "When shall they be saved?" For, seeing that all Israel shall be saved so -- that is, by means of "the word of faith" which the apostles preached, --then most certainly they must be saved ere this day of gospel-salvation comes to an end. And this is plainly declared in other Scriptures, as has been shown above.

Philip Mauro (1859-1952) was a brilliant lawyer who practiced before the Supreme Court, popular author, and well known Bible Teacher. He contributed articles to The Fundamentals, (ed. R. A. Torrey) and published several popular books including: The Seventy Weeks and the Great Tribulation, The Gospel of the Kingdom: Examining Dispensationalism, The Wonders of Bible Chronology, The Hope Of Israel, and Which Version? Authorized or Revised?  

God Does Not Operate a Convenience Store, But He Does Provide All of Your Needs!

     “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
   ⁹ “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹ If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him, (Matthew 7:7-11)

     Almost every city in the United States has a convenience store, that local retail outlet that is usually open 24 hours a day, where you can buy almost anything you need, when you don’t have time to go the large market where you normally buy your weekly provisions. In California (and probably even in your state), the biggest and most well known is the 7-Eleven. And probably the busiest small shop in your neighborhood.
     It’s interesting that the above group scripture speaks to the issue of asking God for the things you want and desire, but many miss the more succinct message being conveyed. Sadly, many of us look to God (on a 24 hour basis) to provide us gifts that may not necessarily be what we need. This past Christmas, most of us went all out to buy gifts for our family members, which include luxuries they did not necessarily need, but stuff we felt would ingratiate them to us through our largess.
     Many may agree or disagree with this mind-set, but, in reality there is an inherent nature for us to bless those who are closest to us, and that’s not all that bad. However, after we open the gifts, play with them or use them all the time, my deep feeling is that the even more important aspect to relationships is fellowship, and appreciation for each other. This is inherently what I believe God seeks from His children.
     The above scripture actually conveys this to us and the key to understand better this group of scripture is the word GIFTS, which we find in verse 11. We read:
     If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him, (Matthew 7:11)

     Most Christians believe this implies that more often than not we go to God not only for our daily provisions (food, shelter, clothing etc.), but most often for whatever our hearts desires. Many prosperity preachers nowadays use this group of scripture to get their flock to claim what they want because God says in His word that we can do this!
     However, upon closer examination of the word gifts, we find the Greek word there is doma, which has a more profound message we need to understand. While the word does represent a present, it is not always a gratuitous or wholly unsuggestive of recompense, but rather, it denotes it is a gratuity, hence the benefactions of a sovereign, which God confers as possessor of all things. In essence its deeper meaning is more so an expression of God’s favor.

     The message here is that through our prayers we are to seek more so that relationship that provides for us the security in the knowledge that we are children of promise and He will never forsake us. Until the return of Christ, He recognizes our journey will be a perilous one, coming under constant attacks (from unbelievers and all who oppose Christ), but one that will be gloriously rewarded upon His return. In the interim, He also knows our needs and will provide them. But He will provide those things we need and not necessarily those things we desire that are not consistent to His will.
     The following is a Commentary by one classical theologian, Matthew Henry, who brings these verses into greater clarity.

Mat 7:7-11

Our Saviour, in the foregoing chapter, had spoken of prayer as a commanded duty, by which God is honoured, and which, if done aright, shall be rewarded; here he speaks of it as the appointed means of obtaining what we need, especially grace to obey the precepts he had given, some of which are so displeasing to flesh and blood.

I. Here is a precept in three words to the same purport, Ask, Seek, Knock (v. 7); that is, in one word, "Pray; pray often; pray with sincerity and seriousness; pray, and pray again; make conscience of prayer, and be constant in it; make a business of prayer, and be earnest in it. Ask, as a beggar asks alms.’’ Those that would be rich in grace, must betake themselves to the poor trade of begging, and they shall find it a thriving trade. "Ask; represent your wants and burdens to God, and refer yourselves to him for support and supply, according to his promise. Ask as a traveler asks the way; to pray is to enquire of God, Eze. 36:37. Seek, as for a thing of value that we have lost, or as the merchantman that seeks goodly pearls. Seek by prayer, Dan. 9:3. Knock, as he that desires to enter into the house knocks at the door.’’ We would be admitted to converse with God, would be taken into his love, and favour, and kingdom; sin has shut and barred the door against us; by prayer, we knock; Lord, Lord, open to us. Christ knocks at our door (Rev. 3:20; Cant. 5:2); and allows us to knock at his, which is a favour we do not allow to common beggars. Seeking and knocking imply something more than asking and praying. 1. We must not only ask but seek; we must second our prayers with our endeavors; we must, in the use of the appointed means, seek for that which we ask for, else we tempt God. When the dresser of the vineyard asked for a year’s respite for the barren fig-tree, he added, I will dig about it, Lu. 13:7, 8. God gives knowledge and grace to those that search the scriptures, and wait at Wisdom’s gates; and power against sin to those that avoid the occasions of it. 2. We must not only ask, but knock; we must come to God’s door, must ask importunately; not only pray, but plead and wrestle with God; we must seek diligently; we must continue knocking; must persevere in prayer, and in the use of means; must endure to the end in the duty.

II. Here is a promised annexed: our labour in prayer, if indeed we do labour in it, shall not be in vain: where God finds a praying heart, he will be found a prayer-hearing God; he shall give thee an answer of peace. The precept is threefold, ask, seek, knock; there is precept upon precept; but the promise is six-fold, line upon line, for our encouragement; because a firm belief of the promise would make us cheerful and constant in our obedience. Now here,

1. The promise is made, and made so as exactly to answer the precept, v. 7. Ask, and it shall be given you; not lent you, not sold you, but given you; and what is more free than gift? Whatever you pray for, according to the promise, whatever you ask, shall be given you, if God see it fit for you, and what would you have more? It is but ask and have; ye have not, because ye ask not, or ask not aright: what is not worth asking is not worth having, and then it is worth nothing. Seek, and ye shall find, and then you do not lose your labour; God is himself found of those that seek him, and if we find him we have enough. "Knock, and it shall be opened; the door of mercy and grace shall no longer be shut against you as enemies and intruders, but opened to you as friends and children. It will be asked, who is at the door? If you be able to say, a friend, and have the ticket of promise ready to produce in the hand of faith, doubt not of admission. If the door be not opened at the first knock, continue instant in prayer; it is an affront to a friend to knock at his door, and then go away; though he tarry, yet wait.’’

2. It is repeated, v. 8. It is to the same purport, yet with some addition. (1.) It is made to extend to all that pray aright; "Not only you my disciples shall receive what you pray for, but every one that asketh, receiveth, whether Jew or Gentile, young or old, rich or poor, high or low, master or servant, learned or unlearned, they are all alike welcome to the throne of grace, if they come in faith: for God is no respecter of persons.’’ (2.) It is made so as to amount to a grant, in words of the present tense, which is more than a promise for the future. Every one that asketh, not only shall receive, but receiveth; by faith, applying and appropriating the promise, we are actually interested and invested in the good promised: so sure and inviolable are the promises of God, that they do, in effect, give present possession: an active believer enters immediately, and makes the blessings promised his own. What have we in hope, according to the promise, is as sure, and should be as sweet, as what we have in hand. God hath spoken in his holiness, and then Gilead is mine, Manasseh mine (Ps. 108:7, 8); it is all mine own, if I can but make it so by believing it so. Conditional grants become absolute upon the performance of the condition; so here, he that asketh, receiveth. Christ hereby puts his fiat to the petition; and he having all power, that is enough.

3. It is illustrated, by a similitude taken from earthly parents, and their innate readiness to give their children what they ask. Christ appeals to his hearers, What man is there of you, though never so morose and ill-humoured, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? v. 9, 10. Whence he infers (v. 11), If ye then, being evil, yet grant your children’s requests, much more will your heavenly Father give you the good things you ask. Now this is of use,

(1.) To direct our prayers and expectations. [1.] We must come to God, as children to a Father in heaven, with reverence and confidence. How naturally does a child in want or distress run to the father with its complaints; My head, my head; thus should the new nature send us to God for supports and supplies. [2.] We must come to him for good things, for those he gives to them that ask him; which teaches us to refer ourselves to him; we know not what is good for ourselves (Eccl. 6:12), but he knows what is good for us, we must therefore leave it with him; Father, thy will be done. The child is here supposed to ask bread, that is necessary, and a fish, that is wholesome; but if the child should foolishly ask for a stone, or a serpent, for unripe fruit to eat, or a sharp knife to play with, the father, though kind, is so wise as to deny him. We often ask that of God which would do us harm if we had it; he knows this, and therefore does not give it to us. Denials in love are better than grants in anger; we should have been undone ere this if we had had all we desired; this is admirably well expressed by a heathen, Juvenal, Sat. 10, (Matthew Henry Commentary on Matthew 7:7-11)

     Thank you, Matthew Henry, for your words of wisdom. And for reminding us that prayer is not about asking God to grant us our wishes as if He were a magic Genie in a bottle, there to provide us the luxuries that mortal men seek, such as fame, power and wealth; but the sustenance to get us through the day, with the bread of life (His words of wisdom and guidance), to be an effective disciple, to enhance His kingdom, for His everlasting praise and glory! 
     Our eternal reward is guaranteed as we abide in Him and endure to the very end.
     By the way, the next time you go to the 7-Eleven, don’t forget to pick up some of those hot wings! They are awesome!

For more information about the author and his books, click on Joe Ortiz.

An Open Letter to Christians, Jews and Others Who Believe We Have to Support the State of Israel by Bombing Iran!

Dear fellow Jewish friends as well as believers of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, who has fulfilled all the Promises God made to His Children.

This historical debate that Christians must support the state of Israel, based on a misunderstanding of Genesis 12:3 (I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you), must needs to be resolved, once and for all; if for no other reasons than to prevent the destruction of mankind that looms in the immediate horizon.

As most of you know, Benjamin Netanyahu, the current Prime Minister of the state of Israel is applying pressure on the President of the United States to militarily support and join him in his quest to bomb the nation of Iran for ostensibly developing nuclear weapons to annihilate the Jewish country of Israel. The Prime Minister, in his heart of hearts genuinely believes He has the right to launch a nuclear attack on Iran because He believes God is on the side of Israel and his alleged proof is based on Genesis 12:3. A great percentage of Christians agree with him, such as John Hagee, Hal Lindsey, Tim LaHaye, Mike Evans, and a myriad of other evangelicals as well as politicial leaders throughout America.

But yet, you, fellow Christians and many of our Jewish friends, rather than question this war plan, you believe this myth rather than to read, study and realize that God does not, nor ever has urged any of His children to fight their enemies (perceived or otherwise) through military action. Let me help you out here.

There is one group of scripture in the New Testament that clearly dismisses and trumps the misunderstood caveat stated in Genesis 12:3 (which is really intended for Abraham and his children of faith, and not for the Jewish race, a group that did not even exist when this statement was made by God. This clarification is found in the entire book of Hebrews (most precisely in Chapter 11), which makes it clear that the current geographical area in the Middle East (today known as the Land of Israel), was a mere stopover for all of the patriarchs (from Abel up through King David and the prophets, including all of the Apostles) in their journey to the true Promised Land that God has ever so clearly stated to His people throughout His word.

Please read the entire chapter:

Hebrews 11

By Faith                       

¹ Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. ² This is what the ancients were commended for.

³ by faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

⁴ By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.

⁵ by faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. ⁶ And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

⁷ by faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

⁸ By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. ⁹ By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. ¹⁰ for he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

¹¹ by faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he^[a] considered him faithful who had made the promise. ¹² And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.

¹³ All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. ¹⁴ People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

¹⁷ by faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, ¹⁸ even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring^[b] will be reckoned.”^{[c] 19} Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.

²⁰ By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.

²¹ By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.

²² by faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones.

²³ by faith Moses ’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.

²⁴ by faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. ²⁵ He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. ²⁶ He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. ²⁷ by faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. ²⁸ By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.

²⁹ By faith the people passed through the Red Sea^[d] as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.

³⁰ by faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days.

³¹ by faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.^[e]

³² And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, ³³ who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, ³⁴ quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. ³⁵ Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. ³⁶ Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. ³⁷ They were stoned^[f]; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— ³⁸ the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.

³⁹ These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. ⁴⁰ God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect, (Hebrews 11:1-40)

Dear Christian and Jewish friends, if you will note carefully above, to verses 15 and 16, all the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (and ALL of Israel) had the opportunity then (and even today) to return to that country; but they didn’t because they were looking for a better country, a heavenly country, not a parcel of land in the Middle East as their eternal resting place.

More importantly (as we read in verse 40 above) God had planned something better for us (who were not part of the commonwealth), which were excluded from citizenship in Israel, and were foreigners to the covenants and of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. However, that entire problem was solved when Jesus Christ (God in the flesh) sacrificed His life on the cross and accomplished something as basic as the salvation plan that each of us Christians should know by heart. In essence, Dear Christian and Jewish friends, the better plan than residing in a parcel of land in the Middle East was that only together with us (who call ourselves ‘Christian’ and Jewish Israelites today) could be made perfect. God’s sacrifice on Calvary accomplished that task! There are no longer any Jewish people nor any other nation that needs be considered in God’s future plans, whatsoever, because people of faith (the only way to qualify to be called truly chosen children of God), are ‘one in Christ’                      

One in Christ

¹¹ Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men) — ¹² remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. ¹³ But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

¹⁴ for he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, ¹⁵ by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, ¹⁶ and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. ¹⁷ He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. ¹⁸ For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

¹⁹ Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, ²⁰ built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. ²¹ In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. ²² And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

Many who choose to believe the myths of men rather than the word of God keep insisting that God has a future plan for the current nation of Israel, and that Christians and Jews must support what they perceive is rightful ownership of that region in the Middle East; but God’s word does not agree with that line of thinking. God’s initial land promises were fulfilled (read Joshua 21:43-45); but for the most part ownership of that land was conditional, which since then the Israelites abrogated by virtue of their consistent disobedience to the will of God. Moreover, those patriarchs of “faith” (which is what a true Child of God should be) recognized then and should acknowledge today is that the true promise land is not located in the Middle East, but it is a ‘heavenly’ city that will descend when Jesus Christ returns to rule and reign on earth forever, with the prophets and apostles (and all believers in Messiah Jesus) as His administrative assistants. We are warned not to entertain fables and Pharisaical myths throughout God’s word; most especially we are warned of this in Hebrews 13:9-14:

⁹ Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings. It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by ceremonial foods, which are of no value to those who eat them. ¹⁰ We have an altar from which those who minister at the tabernacle have no right to eat.
¹¹ The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies are burned outside the camp. ¹² And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood. ¹³ Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore. ¹⁴ for here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.

Dear Fellow Child of God? Who are you going to believe? Men who have a hidden agenda that want to control the world with its financial and military power, or the word of God?

 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. ² I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21:1-4).

Dear Children of God! You have the choice, and the power, to inundate both President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with emails, phone calls, letters to your elected officials, local and international media, to abandon their war plans, and better to seek peace between the Jewish and Palestinian people, and the entire Middle East region, before they light the match stick that will (and can) destroy the world through the senseless act of bombing the nation of Iran.For information about the author and his books, web sites and blogs, please click on Joe Ortiz.

                  

Christ tells the Pharisees who they really are!

     The debate whether the state of Israel and the Jews have the right to forcibly occupy Palestine is the oldest, the most heated and least understood paradigm ever conceived. Sadly, most of Christianity falls on the side of supporting the state and governmental leaders of Israel, based primarily in its inability to comprehend and trust what God's word specifically states in the Bible. Jesus spoke directly to the Pharisees (those who concocted the concept that they are God's chosen peoples) and have ever since been scheming to take away the Kingdom of God that has been given to Jesus Christ for what He did on the cross for humanity.

     The following article (posted by permission from Ian Welsh, webmaster of The Overloards of Chaos web site) discusses in great detail the conversation Jesus had with the Pharisees, who they really are and what position should be adopted by all Christians.
     "With the destruction of the Temple [70 AD] the Sadducees disappeared altogether, leaving the regulation of all Jewish affairs in the hands of the Pharisees. Henceforth, Jewish life was regulated by the Pharisees; the whole history of Judaism was reconstructed from the Pharisaic point of view, and a new aspect was given to the Sanhedrin of the past. A new chain of tradition supplanted the older priestly tradition (Abot 1:1). Pharisaism shaped the character of Judaism and the life and thought of the Jew for all the future." Jewish Encyclopedia (1905)

"The Jewish religion as it is today traces its descent, without a break, through all the centuries, from the Pharisees. Their leading ideas and methods found expression in a literature of enormous extent, of which a very great deal is still in existence. The Talmud is the largest and most important single piece of that literature … and the study of it is essential for any real understanding of Pharisaism." Universal Jewish Encyclopedia (1943)

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     In The Gospel According to St. John there is an account of Christ's meeting with a group ofPharisees that is known as Christ's Discourse with the Pharisees. This fateful meeting revealed the true nature of the Pharisee creed, its true spiritual nature, and its relationship to Christ.

     John 8 begins with Jesus going to the Mount of Olives on the evening of the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles (a celebration both of the general harvest festival and the anniversary of the beginnings of the wanderings in the wilderness). He did this for several good reasons one of which was to the escape the snares "the Jews" might lay for Him in the night having been disappointed and confounded in the daytime. What follows is the story of the woman taken in adultery who Christ delivers from her Pharisee tormentors and the time He declares himself the Light of the World(8:12). Then, after the cavils of certain Pharisees, Christ answers and shows His authority (8:14-20). Then, He properly begins His Discourse with the Pharisees.

     Immediately in His altercation with the Pharisees, Christ tells them He speaks with authority to which they reply that they too speak with authority, for, they are"Abraham's children." Christ replied that if they were indeed Abraham's children they would do the works of Abraham, but instead they seek His death. While Christ sets himself to convince and convert them they, the Pharisees, set themselves to contradict and oppose Him. Christ tells them that His teaching is from Heaven, copied out of the counsels of infinite wisdom, and the kind intentions of infinite love; and His revelations are of God and are not grounded upon conjecture and hearsay, but upon direct experience. Consequently, He understands their exact nature and was assured of the TRUTH of all he said. His great task is to be a witness to the people of the TRUTH of what God has done, and therefore, because of His exalted status as the Son of God, His Word is unimpeachable.

     Christ by His arguments began to show the vanity of the Pharisee pretensions and the wickedness in the hearts of "the Jews" that did not believe in Him and sought His death. Christ tells them that His teaching is not a farrago of nonsense and conjecture like those given by learned rabbis, but an exact counterpart of the Incontestable Truthslodged in the Universal Mind. Furthermore, it was not only what He had heard from His Father but also what He had seen with Him when the counsel of peace was between them both. Although Moses repeated what he heard from Yahweh, he was not allowed to see the Face of Yahweh. Similarly, although the Apostle Paul had been in the Third Heaven, he also could not say what he had seen. For, such things were the prerogatives of Christ: to have seen what He spoke, and to speak what He had seen.

     Christ tells the Pharisees that their works are man-made and error-ridden and are not the Work of God. Moreover:"You do that which you have seen with your father" by which Christ charges that by their malicious opposition to Him and the Gospel they have made themselves as like the Devil, as if they had willingly used him for their model, their father-figure. And thus, by inference, their works came from Hell and the Devil was their "father."

     By pleading a special relation to Abraham, that they are "Abraham's children," the Pharisees' intention was to arrogate honour for themselves, and to make themselves look eminent and authoritative. Christ rounds on them for their vainglorious boasts of a relation to Abraham and to God as their "fathers," and shows the vanity and falsehood of their dissembling. Christ said "Thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother a Hittite" (Ezek. 16: 3) thereby alluding to the true lineage of "the Jews" that boasted of Abraham and plotted the death of Him, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Hence, Christ alluded to the true, degenerate ancestors of these scheming, unbelieving "Jews" and in whose steps they trod; for, certainly, they did not follow those of Abraham, the first founder of the Hebrew family.

     Just as it is common for once great and eminent families now fallen into decay to boast of their pedigree, so too is it common for corrupt and depraved churches to value themselves according to their antiquity and the eminence of their founders. Thus, boasted the Pharisee of their perceived lineage to Abraham and so pleaded the nobility and advantages of their birth. The Pharisee assertion that they were "Abraham's children" was also designed to insinuate that by attacking them by speaking of their father as one they had learned evil from, Christ attacked the patriarch Abraham.

     Christ overthrows this argument and exposes the vanity of it by a simple argument:

 "If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham" (John 8:38).

     Christ makes it clear that if these Pharisees were truly "Abraham's children," after the flesh, and thus could claim an interest in the Yahweh Covenant made with him and his seed, it would indeed put an honour upon them. Furthermore, if this was the case, then the Pharisees would do the works of Abraham, for, it was only to these of Abraham's House,who followed God's laws, as Abraham did, that God would deliver what He promised (Gen. 18:19). Only those, who tread in the steps of his faith and obedience are reckoned to be the Seed of Abraham, to whom the Yahweh promise belongs (Rom. 4 12).

     The "Jews" had genealogies and kept them exact and they could use them to make out their relation to Abraham, yet, to take the advantage of the ancient land promise they were perforce obliged to walk in the same spirit as Abraham. For, Christ said, those who would claim to be of Abraham's seed must not only be of Abraham's faith, but do Abraham's works (James 2: 21-22) and must come at God's call, as Abraham did. Moreover, they must resign their dearest comforts to him, they must be strangers and sojourners in this world and must maintain worship of God in their families and always walk righteousness before God. These were the works of Abraham and these are works the Pharisees did not do. They did not do the works of Abraham and although they were Abraham's offspring, after the flesh; they were notin a spiritual sense. The Pharisees were not followers of the faith of Abraham because they opposed everything Christ represented:

"I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you. If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham." (John 8:37-41).

     The Pharisees showed their true nature by seeking the life of a man, a mortal man like themselves, who had done them no harm, nor given them any provocation. Their enmity was boundless in seeking the life of one that had told them the TRUTH, had done them no injury but had done them the greatest kindness that could be, by instructing them in the most necessary and important truths. Moreover, the Pharisees were so impious as to seek the life of one that told them the truth, which He had heard from God. Who were a messenger sent from God to them, and thus their attempt against Him was an affront to God. This was their wicked work, and they persisted in it even when He, Christ, counselled against such iniquity. Such actions do not become the children of Abraham, the great patriarch who was filled with humanity, piety and a complete belief in God.

     Whereas the Pharisees, who boast of their forebear, were obstinate in unbelief. Where Abraham followed God, they fought against Him, to such a degree that Abraham would not recognise them and would not acknowledge them as his children, for, they were so unlike him. Moreover, Abraham would not have done these things the Pharisees had done if he had lived now. Nor would he have behaved so abominably towards Jesus Christ had He lived in Abraham's time. For, he would have easily recognised His God when He stood before him.

     Whatever the boasts and pretensions of the Pharisees were, Christ, assured them that they were not Abraham's children in the spirit, but that they spiritually come from another family. There is a "father," Christ told them, whose deeds they did and whose spirit they were of, and whom they resembled. Christ said that there are "two fathers"according to the "two families" into which the sons of men are divided: God and the Devil. And, without argument, these are inimical to each other. The Pharisees, said Christ, were the Devil's children. Thus, Christ described the essence of the Pharisee creed:

"Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not." (John 8:44-45)

     Christ here meant that they, the Pharisee and those like them, had given themselves over to the Dark Side and did the bidding of Evil. Here is the concept of the Two Seeds or Two Vines threading their way through human history: the Seed of the Women and the Seed of the Serpent - the followers of God and the followers of Satan. That the Pharisees, Scribes and Sadducees were predominantly of the Seed of the Serpent was evident in their hostility to Christ and the manifest hate they had for Him:

"If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me." (John 8:41).

    Christ had disproved the Pharisees' spiritual relation to Abraham by recording their great enmity for Him and their repeated attempts to have Him killed. But, now, He disproves their relation to God by their hostility and hatred of Him and God.

    A man may pass for Abraham's seed and be accepted as one of Abraham's biological descendants if he does not appear to be an enemy to Christ. However, a man cannot confirm himself a child of Godunless he was a faithful friend and follower of Christ. This is because all that have God for their Father have a true love of Christ. Thus, children of God will not only esteem Christ, have a grateful sense of His love and a sincere affection to His cause and kingdom, but also have utter certainty in the salvation brought by Him and in the method and terms of it. Moreover, they would also ensure that they to keep His Commandments, which is the surest evidence of love for Him. Mankind is on Earth in a state of probation, and how we conduct ourselves towards our Maker will ultimately be with us in the act of Final Judgement. God has repeatedly used various methods to test us in our trial on Earth, and the Incarnation of Christ was one. The past Incarnation of Lucifer and the future Incarnations of Lucifer and Ahriman in human form are others still to come.

    God had sent his Son into the world, with sufficient proofs of His status and mission, and all who called God, "Father,"would kiss his Son, and welcome Him as the Representative of Man who was the first-born among many brethren. Hence, proof of the real nature of a person and with whom they spiritually belong revolves around this simple question: Do we love Christ, or not?

"Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him" (1 John 5:1).

     If the Pharisees were the true spiritual heirs of Abraham they would love Christ, for, He said:

"I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me." (John 8:42).

     They, the Pharisee and those like him, will love Him if they believe that Christ was the Son of God. They will love Him if they understand that He came, as was the command of God on the matter, to be the source of their redemption. They will love Him if they understand His Divine exeleusis, or origin from the Father, and also the union of the Divine Logos (Christ) to his human nature (Jesus), were bound in His Person: the Divine Person of Jesus Christ. A union that is not abstract or figurative but a union that is physical, a union of two substances or natures to make one substance, one person. A union that means that God is man and man is God in the Divine Person of Jesus Christ. Understanding this could not but lead all those who are born of God to an indisputable conclusion: Christ is King.

     And, being the Beloved of the Father, Christ is thus called the "beloved" and is therefore the most beloved of all the saints. Furthermore, God sent Christ as an ambassador to the world of mankind, but not only as a Divine Emissary but also to be the Representative of Man and the Redeemer of us all. False prophets have neither their mission nor their message from God: Christ had both, for, He did not come of himself but was sent to us by God. Christ possessed both His credentials and His instructions from God who came to Earth to gather together in one the children of God (John 11:51), to bring "many sons unto glory" (Heb. 2:10).

     Proper understanding of all this would compel all God's children to warmly welcome such a Messenger sent from their Father on such errands. But, these Pharisees, these apostate "Jews," made it quite clear that they were not of God, by their hostility and hatred towards the Messenger from God, towards Jesus Christ. This was because the Pharisees' alienation from God and their immersion in the spirit of Ahriman meant that they were spiritually blinded to God and could not perceive or understand Christ's message.

 "Why do ye not understand my speech? Even because ye cannot hear my word." (John 8:43).

     This incomprehension was a sign they did not belong to God's family since they did not understand the language and dialect of the family. Although Christ's speech was divine and heavenly it was phrased and rendered intelligible by Him so that all those who heard it or was acquainted with the voice of Christ in the Old Testament, could apprehend the truth of His message. All those who have the love of God in their hearts needed no other key to the dialect of theDivine Emissary, the Messenger from God, the Representative of Man and the Redeemer of us all. But, those who secretly hated God and served different masters found Christ's words unwelcome and disturbing and some mischievously, like the Pharisee and Sadducee, attempted to pervert their meaning. Some even dared called the Son of God a barbarian even when He spoke the Will of God in the words of the Spirit of God.

     The Pharisees, who ostensibly practised the religion of Abraham, were far removed from the spirit of this great Patriarch. They pretended to belong to the Kingdom but its spirit eluded them and consequently they were unable to understand the dialect of the Kingdom of God and the message in the Words of Christ. The Pharisee understood the works of men inspired by Ahriman and not the idioms and properties of Divine Speech. And, when spoken to by Christ they, strangers to it, ridiculed it and despised it. They not only failed to hear but also consciously made the effort notto hear. Moreover, this deep resentment and refusal to listen to God is an endemic trait of those who have immersed themselves in the spirit of Ahriman and whose corrupted hearts are hardened to the Message of Christ.

     The Pharisees did not hear Christ's words because they had closed their ears, narrowed their minds, hardened their hearts, content in the falsity of their man-made construct, the Talmud; a work ultimately inspired by the Dark God,Ahriman who the Bible calls Satan. That is why, Christ, after disproving the Pharisee boast of their relation to both Abraham and to God, condemns them as Satan's seed. For, they are of the Serpent's Seed and thus "are of your father the Devil." Then, after this shocking charge, Christ proves it by a disputation that leaves no doubt of His knowledge of them and whom they truly worshipped. Christ condemns them as the willing tool of Evil.

"Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not." (John 8:44-45).

     The very actions and words of the Pharisees condemn them. They satisfy their lusts that are the Devil's lusts, and compelled by this Evil, gratify and please Satan, who is also called Ahriman, who is their true god of worship. And, by yielding to Ahriman's temptation, they are not only led captives by him, compliant to his will, but also they do those lusts, which Ahriman himself carries out. Ahriman is a spiritual being of immense power but he cannot himself satisfy fleshly and worldly lusts which he must enjoy vicariously by corrupting mortal men to commit them for him. Spiritual wickedness is Ahriman's forte. He induces men to crave intellectual power but an intellect devoid of Divine Wisdom. Acorrupt reasoning that ultimately leads to alienation of the spirit and the denial of mankind's spiritual nature and so his true spiritual inheritance. Also, such craving of the intellect cultivates pride and envy, arrogance and jealousy, wrath and malice, and thereby a fostering a great enmity to that which is "good." Moreover, it nurtures a great desire to entice others into this corruption.

     Consequently, those who are in thraldom of these intellectual lusts resemble Ahriman/Satan, as the child does the parent. The more men contemplate the nature of reality and of God with an abiding intellectual arrogance and in self-satisfaction the more their constructs fall into error and the more it resembles the lusts of Ahriman. And, when sin is committed by choice and not by accident, with pleasure and not with prudence, when it is persisted in with effrontery and resoluteness, then, as Christ told them: "the lusts of your father ye will do."

     The Pharisees revelled in two great sins by whose possession they manifestly resembled Evil: murder and lying, For,Evil is the enemy of Life while God is the God of Life and life is the happiness of man; similarly, Evil is the enemy toTruth, because God is the God of Truth and truth is the bond of human society. .

Posted with permission from Ian Welsh, web master of this great web site, The Overlords of Chaos. <<<Click to visit their magnificent web site. 

For more information about the author, his books and web sites, please click on Joe Ortiz