Adam and Eve were real people

The Genetics of Adam and Eve

Adam and Eve are my favourite topic at the moment. We don't know particularly much about them but we do know that they were the very first people and that their choices still have an effect on us today. 

We know - from what the Bible teaches us - that Adam and Eve were created by God. They were not born. They were formed by God directly - just like that. 

• I talked about why it is good to get saved and become a "new Adam" as opposed to wanting to be transformed into a "god" through some form of enlightenment.
  You can read the article here.
  
• I also encouraged every believer not to go to bed with the "old Adam" and to avoid his company as much as you possibly can... here.
  
• And then I made you think that Adam and Eve must have had many children to get you to study the Bible and see for yourself how many they actually had, which then got me talking about how they could have multiplied. A video by Answers in Genesis provided lots of helpful information.
  
• I also wrote about Adam's and Eve's fall and that some people think Eve must have been really evil while Adam was just a stupid goat ... Well, maybe you need to read the Biblical record more carefully because there's much more Biblical insight to be gained from these first chapters of the Bible... 

Today, I want to point you to the "Genetics of Adam and Eve". 

Many Christians don't believe that Adam and Eve were real people. The problem is that sin needs to be viewed in the context of Adam's and Eve's fall and cannot be defined without paying careful attention to what happened in the Garden of Eden. 

God says that they were real people. Are we saying that the Bible has mistakes? If this is your viewpoint, then how can you be certain that you know anything about God at all? 

If you don't trust God to take care of HIS WORD, how can you trust Him at all?

In this video by "Answers in Genesis".the science of genetics provides evidence that Adam and Eve could have existed, just like the Bible states. Get a copy of this video or download it and take the insights to heart and let God change your thinking to be in line with the revelation that He has provided to us in HIS WORD. 

We need to consider whether there are two kinds of truths and whether we really understand what original sin actually is. Read Ken Ham's blogposts here: “Are There Two Kinds of Truth?” and “Understanding Original Sin.”

#MercyMinder  #Adam  #Eve  #Genesis #AdamWasReal

Walking in Wisdom - Make the Most of Your Life

How can you know a fool from a wise man? It's easy. If you meet someone who trusts entirely in himself, you've met a fool. If you meet someone who knows that trusting in yourself is foolish, you know that this person has gained a little bit of wisdom already and might be searching for God already... 

Walking in wisdom all the days of your life is a real challenge. A wise man is someone who walks in wisdom. It's difficult to picture that. Is he walking on a path that leads to "the great wise man"? Is he wearing a "wisdom suit" that helps him navigate through life wisely?

We know that Christians need to wear their "faith armour" in order to be able to get through life the way Christ wants them to. Is wearing your "faith armour" the same as walking in wisdom?

What do I mean by "faith armour"? I mean the armour of God, as described in Ephesians 6:10-19.

(*This is a quote directly from the Authorized King James Version. Read it online here.)

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;19 and for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.This Bible passage tells us that being strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might, is in effect wearing the whole armour of God. When we are wearing this armour, the devil will automatically enter battle ground when he wants to trick us, for we will withstand him and will wrestle against him. All of us know that the devil doesn't like us to be obedient followers of Christ. His dark underlings are engaged in a battle, and they are fighting you. Being aware of this fact, will make you wise. 

If you know that you've got an enemy who is opposed to who you are in Christ 24/7, you know that you are constantly engaging in spiritual warfare.

Does this mean that you need to seek out the evil one and confront him - and pick a fight with him all the time? No!

Does it mean that you need to be talking to evil spirits and engaging in exorcism and the like? No!

Does it mean that you run around  - like on an egg hunt - trying to find out where the devil has hidden his snares? Yes and no.

1. Don't pay particular attention to the dark forces but be aware of them, nonetheless.
2. Pray that God would protect you and that God will help you keep your eyes on Jesus!
3. Don't get lured into wanting to know how many dark beings are camping near your house and what their names are. This is what sourcers, magicians and witches do. You are a child of God. You do not engage with spirits. You don't call them by name. You don't entertain them. You simply ignore them, and if you notice them, you turn to God but not to them.
4. Know that Satan and all his dark underlings are liars. They never tell the truth. They always twist the truth. It may look very much like the true gospel but something's awfully wrong about how Lucifer promotes himself as false Christ. Learn to watch out for his slight twists that will present a totally different Christ to you, and once you get lured into a different way of thinking, you will accept more lies and will eventually replace the true Christ with a false Christ.
5. Get away from evil spirits and seek solitude with your God and your Bible in order to find out whether God wants you to confront the evil spirit/s or not.
   Remember the story of Paul in the book of Acts where he was being bothered by a woman who had a spirit of divination: (Acts 16:16)
   
   This woman promoted Paul and Silas and told everyone that they were messengers of God. The problem was that she had an evil spirit inside of her, which could have well been the "spirit of Delfi", for it was a spirit of devination. Paul was bothered by this but let her continue with her "advertising compaign" for several days - but the rebuked the evil spirit inside of her and drove it out.
   
   We can learn from this that Paul didn't easily and hastily confront evil spirits. The text doesn't tell us explicitely whether Paul and Silas instantly knew that this woman had an evil spirit or not.
   
   But it tells us that Paul eventually got fed up with the situation and drove the evil spirit out. The point I want to make here is, that we can be sure that:
   
   a) Paul was constantly in communion with his God. He told God about everything that was happening around him and God responded to Paul through the Holy Spirit inside of Paul.
   
   b) God conveighed to Paul that this woman had an evil spirit, and
   
   c) God told Paul that he was to put an end to it, otherwise Paul wouldn't have removed the evil spirit.
   
   This is an important case study! You need to know whether you need to get away from people who you feel might be possessed or obsessed by spirits. It's a delicate matter.
   Too many Christians have told others that they have an evil spirit just to abuse them spiritually and take control of them. So many wrong things have happened in the name of Christ. This is why you need to be careful and think and pray a lot.
   
   Do not claim you know whether someone has an evil spirit, if God didn't disclose this to you clearly. Yes - there are people who appear to be very devoted Christians who are being led by evil spirits and not by the Holy Spirit of God - but it's very hard to discern at times.
   
   You need to know whether you are prompted to do something about this or not. You need to know whether you are to drive evil spirits out or not. If you don't know, you don't know. Then don't act on God's behalf. You might sin greatly against a brother or sister in Christ or against a person who is still seeking God and hasn't yet accepted Christ as his or her saviour. Don't play God. Be sober, clear-sighted and sound in your thoughts and conduct.
6. You need to know what God wants you to do. You can't engage in exorcism just because someone asks you to drive their spirits out or because you feel you should. This is dangerous. It might be a snare to get you to address evil spirits and start talking to them. Never do that!
   
   Make sure, God empowers you to drive out evil spirits and if you are not sure that God wants you to drive them out, turn the other way and get away fast and don't draw near to these people again  - for these spirits may want to gain a foothold in your life and may want to blind you in order to pull you away from God and from your Bible.
   
   Know that not everyone is equipped to serve God like Paul was. Walk in wisdom, dear fellow believer in Christ and do not get involved with evil spirits.
    
7. Further up I wrote that we should and shouldn't engage in an egg hunt, i.e. we should try but also shouldn't try to find the snares the devil has hidden all over the place. That's a confusing statement. Let me explain…
   Of course, we need to know how the devil deceives. We need to know his schemes and his language. The devil loves symbols and mysticism. It's good to know that. The devil loves music. He absolutely cherishes music. It's extremely helpful to know that.
   The devil likes disguises and he likes to masquerade as an angel of light. The devil wants to be the Morning Star but he is not. Lucifer is a tremendously powerful angel of music who fell from grace, for he rebelled against God and wanted to take God's place. When he fell, he became a very biestly demonic angel. He's a biest and a fallen angel. He's got wings. He is described as the serpent and as the Leviathan.
   He may well take the form of these biests but he can also take on other forms. He surely also has biests that are his underlings and they take all kinds of horrible biestly shapes and forms. He is directly associated with the roaring lion, the great dragon, and the serpent of old, the Leviathan - the fleeing serpent. Lucifer is also known as Abaddon, or as angel of the abyss, or as Belial. 
   Satan dwells in the deep. He calls from the deep. If your "christ" is calling from the deep or likes you to sing songs delighting in the deep, know that this is Satan who is deceiving you. Satan is calling you - not the Holy God of the Bible.
   You need to know the character of God and you need to know Satan's character and what he is seeking to do in this world. You need to be able to tell the two apart. You need to distinguish God and distinguish Satan. When you are able to do that, you will be able to demasque Satan and you will be able to make out his tricks. You will not be deceived.
   But do not be pre-occupied with Satan and his dark forces, for this is not what God wants us to do.

Walk in Wisdeom - Redeeming the Time

In Colossians 4:5 (kjv) is says: "Walk in wisdom ... redeeming the time."

How can you do that?

Read this Bible verse: 2. Timothy 2: 22-26 (AKJV)

22 Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23 But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes. 24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, 25 in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; 26 and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will. 

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Note: If you find the above Bible passage difficult to understand, try other Bible translations in order to understand the words used in the Authorized King James Version, for instance the ESV. 

But, please remember that the Auhorized King James Version is the most reliable Bible around these days and that you will gain the most from reading this Bible because God has blessed this translation in a way He has not blessed other translations. It is a bit of a mystery but the facts prove my statement to be true. Research it if you like. 

A friend of mine said that God made sure that the Bible in its purest form was made available in English - being the new world language - and that's why this Bible version, the Authorized King James Version -  is so tremendously true to the original texts and truly inspired, while so many Bible translations that were written later on, are clearly not.

I think this makes a lot of sense. God is the creator of all people, and He wants to save people from all over the world. The New Testament was written in Greek, which was the global language of the time. Today, English is the global language of the world. God knows what he's doing, you see! :-)

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Walking in Wisdom Means Being "Wise Ones of the Heart"

We have a new heart. We are alive in Christ. We love God, the Father like Christ, the Messias loved Him. It means that we have godly understanding and knowledge. We are not bothered by the mystery of the Trinity of God. We trust God to be triune and to be ONE. We know that God came in the flesh and saved us while we were yet sinners through Christ who was both man and God but ultimately God, the Son, the Lamb of God. God's own provision of Himself to save his people, the sinful humans that he had created ... We trust that Christ is the perfect lamb, found without sin. Christ is the true Morning Star. 

It means that we are people who are instructed by God. It means that God's Holy Spirit can prompt us to do God's will and to proclaim Him truthfully. 

God is our Reality-Shield

God makes sure, we see things as they really are. We know that God's wisdom has seven pillars and that our faith is firmly established within God's wisdom. (Proverbs 9:11). 

Just as much as we know that our God has seven spirits and seven stars, as written in Revelation 3:1. We may not understand what the seven spirits of God actually are, but we understand that they are important and that in the days that are prophecied to come - we will see the words of the book of Revelation come to pass. 

We also know that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. And we know that the knowledge of the Holy is the beginning of understanding. We will not talk lightly of God. We respect Him and honour and glorify Him. But we are not afraid of Him. We know that He is our loving Father - but that He is a Holy God not be made fun of or talked of lightly. 

And we know one thing for sure:

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. (Romans 8:14)

May God lead you into His wisdom every day of your life.

Much love in Christ - MercyMinder

#ThingsToConsider #MercyMinder

Rather be a new Adam than a transformed "god"

Why is it important to distinguish between Adam and Eve? Why not talk about human No. 1 and human No.2? Why not just talk about "the male" and "the female"? Why not just talk about the first-created and the second-created? 

There must be a reason why God wanted us to know Adam and Eve by name. One obvious reason is that Adam means man. His name identifies Adam as man, and the other reason is that Adam is also a symbol for all of humankind. He is the prototype of a human being, and he is every human being's ancestor. In the end, we're all related because we can all be traced back to him. We have the same ancestor. After all, we're one big family - no matter what our skin colour is and were we grew up. 

Of course, you will only believe that if you believe that Adam was truly created by God - the Trinitarian God - as the first human of his kind. Eve was the second human and she was of Adam's kind. She was made from his rib and made by God. 

I like that fact that Adam was made from dirt. It is clear that he wasn't angelic. He was just "dirt" come alive. Even his name alludes to that. Some people like to think that they are actually little gods who - for some odd reason - were made to live in human bodies but that they will one day be set free to be what they really are: gods. 

Some people like to believe that they were created with a godly spark and that that spark will eventually transform them into gods. 

If you are made of dirt, nothing will transform you into a god. If you are made from dirt, you know that you are not an angel and that you will never be one. You will know what you are and you will accept your "human kind". You will not endeaver to become a "god kind".

I also like the fact that God made Eve from Adam's rib because this shows that the two belong together. That's significant. In our day and time, men and women often find it difficult to belong together. They drift apart and they often don't know how to generate that sense of belonging - of belonging together. It really helps to know that we do belong together. If you can get your mind around that concept and make it part of your frame of mind, your emotions will follow eventually. 

If we are meant to be nothing but "human kind", why are so many people trying to become "gods"? Why do they want to be a different kind than the one that God designed for them? That's a valid question, don't you think? Why do people want to be enlightened or transformed? Why do they want to see into the future and into mystical realms beyond? What's the thrill if we are made as humans with certain limitations and that's what we are supposed to be? 

I believe that's it's a misunderstanding of what your calling as a human actually is. If you know that God is your Father in Heaven and that he deeply cares about you from the day you were conceived until you were born right unto this very day and for all eternity, you will ask very different questions about yourself. 

You will ask God why you were made and what for. You will ask God to give you His sense of direction. You will ask God what you are supposed to do while you walk this earth. You will want to discover your place in God's universe - right here on planet earth. 

You will not try to look behind the "looking glas". You will not try to transcend into other spaces, realms and places that bring you to delirious, dark and mystical spheres. You will not dare to trespass against God's decrees, knowing that God has warned you not to dabble with dark forces and not to call on the darkness. You will not do it because you will not desire to know things that God doesn't want you to know. 

You will not follow preachers and teachers who lead you into a sensual faith - one that thrives on emotions, electrical spells and all kinds of physical manifestations. You will not follow teachers and preachers who teach you that God wants to make you rich. The only "god" who wants to make you rich is the "god" of this world, and his name is Satan. He is Mammon. You will know, and you will understand that the God of the Bible is not identical with Satan. 

You will learn to trust God and walk with Him whether you know where you are heading or not. You will not get involved in magic or in the occult. You will love your God and honour Him and wait for Christ's return. You will not seek signs and wonders. You will not covet healing powers and prophetic wisdom. You will exclaim: "Your grace, my God, is sufficient for me!"

You will call your Creator God, "my Father in Heaven" and you will yearn to be like Jesus and you will want to learn from Christ and follow in the ways of the apostles. 

Did you know that the Bible says a lot about "gods"? When they are mentioned, it's pretty clear what they are: They are fallen angels. They are demons. Now, why do so many people want to become "gods"? Scary, right? It seems they don't know what "gods" are. They think that there can be many gods beside the Holy God of the Bible. They are mistaken. God clearly says that there is only one God - and that's the Triune God. All the other "gods" are fallen angels. 

So - if you want to be transformed you want to become a fallen angel. You want to become a demon. Why do you want to go to hell? Why do you want to reach a point where you cannot turn toward the light and receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour? 

Think again and learn what the Bible says about "gods", "fallen angels", "fallen stars", and about Lucifer, Satan and Leviathan. You will be surprised - and you may realise that you have met some "gods" that visited you because you messed with dark forces, thinking you are in control. 

Please, dear reader, learn from the Bible and be warned. There is only one God and he doesn't want to see you be transformed into a demon. He wants to save you as a human and get you to heaven as a human through Jesus Christ who died on the cross to pay your sin just as much as mine and make sure that you and me can go to Heaven.

Demons will not see the Salvation of the Lord. Demons will never be saved. Don't become a demon. 

Stay a human! Seek God, find Him, get saved and walk with God on earth; and when you die, be certain: God will wake you up and invite you into His Heavenly Realms where you will dwell for all eternity - as a saved human being.

That's good news, don't you think?

The Bible clearly says that we are a new Adam, a new creation, when we are saved in Christ. But we're still Adam, you see?! We're all Adam. All Eves are, too! We are all still human beings! That's the good news about this: We are a new creation in Christ as human beings.

Yes - the old Adam lingers around until we die our human death but then he will be gone for ever. But our new Adam, our new human kind will live for ever with Christ for all eternity. That's mysterious enough for me. It's thrilling and exciting.

I pray that you will believe that what the God of the Bible says about you and me is actually true and that you will get to know God yourself and be saved.

Don't be transformed! Be saved! Don't become a fallen angelic-like creature that cannot be saved anymore. Turn away from these teachings - even if they sound so very "Christian". They are false and dangerous.

May God lead you into His truth. - May He save you!

- Much love in Christ, Mercy Minder

P.S. I will be posting Bible verses in the comment section every once in a while to make you see what "gods" are in the Bible... But you can do your own Bible search on the internet. It's easy. Go here: www.biblia.com

#ThingsToConsider  #MercyMinder

Do not go to bed with Adam

Building our faith is very important. Our relationship with God depends on it. Living with God requires faith. Without faith we cannot live with God. If we lack faith, we won’t trust God the way we could. If we lack faith, we might not develop the vision God would like us to develop. If we lack faith, we might decide to give up instead of hanging in there. Lack of faith is contagious. If you cannot trust God for big or little things, your whole attitude changes and this contaminates your environment. Sooner or later, people around you will realise that you are not depending upon God. He is not your No. 1 source of guidance, wisdom, love, joy and strength. He is not your most important friend. God wants to be our best friend. At the same time, he wants us to realise that we are far from being his best friend.

We need to stay aware of the fact that we are saved sinners and that we are still sinning a lot – even though we are a new creation in Christ. We are constantly up against our old self and this old self has no faith. This old self is full of pride and self-righteousness. This old self wants to be a hero. This old self wants to be like God.

Since Adam and Eve were tempted into believing that they could be like God himself, all humans battle with this urge to be independent and self-governed, and to achieve great things by themselves.

Let's remember that "the Adam" inside of us wants to live, and he demands it fiercely. He's set to run our lives. Our flesh will not die as long as we are alive. We have to put "Adam" to death as soon as we wake up in the morning. 

And when we go to bed and wake up the next morning, we will realise that or old Adam is alive and well again. O no! Like Phoenix arising from the ashes! He just won't die. He has to be brought as a living sacrifice to God and offered up to God. He needs to be put away every day. It's a strong picture to burn him on an altar but it won't do to put your "Adam" and my "Adam" in a room, lock the door and think we've taken care of him alright. He infects our thinking and our actions. He makes us have all the wrong desires.

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Get Adam out of the way at daybreak!

One good reason why reading the Bible in the morning makes so much sense is, to use our time with God in the morning - communicating with God and reading the Bible -  to get Adam out of the way at daybreak. And it's another good reason not to go to bed with Adam, too. Better not watch that TV film or show that will tune us into being all carnal and then go to bed with Adam. Not a good idea at all! Don't eat your breakfast with Adam and don't go to bed with him! 

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Adam will have to die eventually

There's good news though. Once we die physically, God will put our 'flesh' away. Our old Adam will disappear for ever. We will be in Christ only. We will get a new body and we'll have a perfectly wonderful new "Adam" that isn't evil. Our bodies will be fit to live in God's eternal kingdom. 

Isn't that great? Don't be sad about having to die. Everyone does, you know. It's just the way things are in this fallen world. It's normal but it's good to know why this is the case. It's not by God's design. It's by Satan's scheming. Thankfully, these schemes will eventually come to an end and so will our distorted sinful "old Adam" inside of each one of us. He can't come with us to Heaven. He's not welcome there. Jesus didn't die for us to save our sinful Adam and to make him go to heaven with us. No one can enter God's Heaven in a sinful body. God makes sure we get a new body - a new garment! We need it. 

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Our wedding dress

That new garment is our wedding dress. We are the bride of Christ. Each believer is part of the bride Christ. We are going to be united with Christ who is the husband. Isn't that a wonderful picture of what God's does for us? We will be a permanent part of God. 

We won't be gods. No! But we will be God's creatures and his created sons and daugthers through the covenant of Jesus Christ - the covenant of his saving blood. We will partake of God's holy and glorious life for ever and ever. I am looking forward to my new wedding dress - to this new body. I am looking forward to sharing in God's glorious, joyful, sinless, just and gracious life. I am looking forward to being part of God's family for all eternity. 

Doesn't that motivate you too? Isn't that a good reason to actively and fiercefully put your old "Adam" to death every morning and to make sure you don't let him into your bed and into your dreams at night, too? I think so. It's motivating.

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Don't harm yourself physically!

Don't misunderstand this article: don't harm your body! The Bible gives us many examples how we can put "Adam" to death figuratively. It's all in the mind and in the heart. 

Read the New Testament carefully and you will come to understand how you can make sure that your old "Adam" isn't running your life but that it is the Holy Spirit that can lead you in your Christian walk. 

I hope this article and the Bible verse below will be a heavenly spark for you. 

This time, I am going to share Romans 12, verse 1 with you (credits: www.biblia.com):

You might know that I particularly like the Authorized King James Version. I do read the King James Version, 1900 and the ESV, as well. So why not look up this Bible verse and read the whole passage here. You can change the Bible version whenever you like.

But I do want to caution you: the majority of Bible versions are seriously flawed. Remember that, please. 

It does matter to God what Bible version you read and I want to warn you not to use the NIV and not to read the book called "The Message", for this book does not deserve to be called Bible at all. The "message" inside the book "The Message" is very much a New Age "gospel". Beware of that, please. 

#MercyMinder  #HeavenlySparks

Adam & Eve must have had many children

Picture Adam and Eve outside the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve are now living outside of this special realm of God's blessing. They can't access it anymore. They have to face a difficult world and they need to learn to cope and make the right choices. They have to live their lives, see their children grow up and have children of their own. And then they will die...

It's difficult to understand how people multiplied in the early days and to get a grasp of what they knew about God and what they didn't know.  It's confusing. How could so many different races come about from just two people?

If this has been bothering you, listen to the videos and follow the links on this page and suggest books and websites to me, please. I, personally, believe that God created the world and he didn't take that long to get it done. I am not convinced that a long evolution took place ...

Comments by Answers in Genesis:

Did Adam and Eve really exist?
That's another question many people are bothered by. It's not one of these question that can be easily answered because, of course, we weren't around to validate their existence and it is a long time ago, after all (even several 1000s of years is a loooong time ago!).  

Christianity Today published an article "No Adam, No Eve, No Gospel. The historical Adam debate won't be resolved tomorrow, so stay engaged" in 2011. It's worth reading.

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SIDELINE SUBJECT: RACE & RECONCILIATION IN THE CHURCH

Christianity Today also released a whole series on "Race" hosted by Amy Julia Becker (2014), which I stumbled upon on the internet. Quote:"A dozen women and men have contributed essays related to racial reconciliation in the evangelical church.

Read about it here: RACE. Reflections on racial reconciliation with the church and culture.

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Christian Ministry International ask the question: 

Could there be CREATIONAL EVOLUTION?  Listen in...
Comments welcome!

 

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And what about Adam and modern Genetics? 

Read acticle "Adam, Eve and Noah vs Modern Genetics" here.


Watch out for blog posts on this subject! - Mercy Minder

#CreationalThoughts  #MercyMinder

God's Glory in Creation - Finetuning the Universe

I came across this video and think it's brilliant. Watch and enjoy! - Mercy Minder 

#MercyMinder  #GodsGloryInCreation

From the Bible - Genesis Chapter 2

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed. — Ge 2

#MercyMinder #FromTheBible

Does it Matter to God Where I Am and What I Do?

Does anything in my personal life matter to God? The simple and straight forward answer is: Yes! Yes it does! Our lives matter! Our conduct matters. Our testimony as a whole matters a lot to God. 

Unfortunately, we lack God’s perspective on many things. We need to be aware of that and take time to consider what God's perspective on our lives might be. We need to ask God to help us discover His perspective and to help us understand it, too. 

We might just follow along with the flow and adjust to a certain Christian culture, to a certain way of life as a Christian and think that this is what following Christ is about. Let's double check! Let's triple check! 

God might not be in your routines. God might not particularly like them. If you just go through the motions of reading the Bible but you don't engage your mind and heart while doing so, that habit of yours - even though it looks so pious and devoted doesn't really do much for your life as a Christian. 

If you seek God just to get some emotional feeling of wellbeing out of it or even desire to be shown "secret" things, you are definitely going to grieve God. God doesn't want you to dabble in dark and hidden things. He wants you to move into the light and to revel in the light of the Word of God. 

That's not always a delightful exercise. It's work. Often it's hard work because you have to apply yourself, your spirit, your heart and mind to the things  of God, and you have to reject your "flesh". It is not what you desire that's important. It is what God desires. 

I need to be preaching this to myself over and over again, as well. 

When God is at the center of our attention, he will change the longings of our hearts. He will make them be in tune with His will, will His love, with His justice and with His grace. He will start communicating truthful interpretations of Bible passages to us. We will be amazed how we will change. We will discover that we are learning to trust God's Word much more than ever before. We will discover that God can be trusted and we will realise that we are continually being rooted in Christ and in the Word of God. We are getting stronger in the knowledge of the Word of God and in the things to pertain to eternal life. 

That's exciting. That's GOOD NEWS! 

Remember the verse about loving God, for he will give you the desires of your heart? 

God does not rush to give us the desires of the "flesh". Preachers who preach "god" like this are teaching another "christ" and another "gospel". 

Maybe Romans 13:14 can be a heavenly spark for you.

Read this Bible verse here: 

http://biblia.com/books/kjv/Ro13.14                        

This is the Authorized King James Bible: a very good translation.

http://biblia.com/books/kjv1900/Ro13.14  

This is the King James Bible, 1900 

http://biblia.com/books/esv/Ro13.14           

This is the ESV translation of the Bible.

#MercyMinder  #HeavenlySparks

The Spirit of God and the Counterfeit Spirit of God

Walking in the "Spirit of God" doesn't mean being zapped and energised by "river experiences" or "soaking experiences". It doesn't mean to have an electrifying experience like one might have when moving through spiritist "fire tunnels" or allowing someone to cast energy through you when he touches your forehead or casts his "energy" your way.

Some so-called Christian preachers do this; but all of these practices are not of God. They come from a dark source. The Spirit of God knows two kinds of fire. The Fire of Pentecost and the Fire of Judgement. 

The Fire of Pentecost signified an inner working of God's Holy Spirit. It didn't signify a "soaking experience". It didn't make any of the disciples fall backwards. It didn't make them high. It didn't make them laugh. It helped them preach the Gospel! It made them bold proclaimers of Christ and of His salvation. It made them VERY sober and very straight forward and very willing to risk their lives and to endure many hardships for the sake of proclaiming the Gospel.

At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit made the disciples speak in other tongues - but it wasn't recorded that they ever did it again after the event of Pentecost. It was a one-time miracle, in which they corporately spoke in many different tongues. It was a special celebration. A truly significant event; and the timing was brilliant. Messianic Jews will gladly tell you why.

These tongues were real languages. The people around them who came from many different places could hear them speak in their mother tongues. That was the miracle! What a miracle it was!

So - why get excited about tongues that no one can understand? Why seek for interpreters for languages that don't exist? Could it not be that the true gift of tongues is that of being able to speak in real languages  - just like that !!! - and that the gift of interpretation is really hardly ever needed because there should be a person in the room who actually understands his own language and can then respond to what he hears and tell the others at the gathering that these "tongues" actually explained the Gospel to him in his own mother tongue and that he/she now wants to get saved because of this direct message from God for him/her? Wow! That's prophetic Gospel proclamation! I'd love to witness that instead of all of this sing-song-mystic wailing, whispering type of tongue-singing stuff that sounds seductive like the singing of sirens (mermaids and spirit beings) and doesn't seem to benefit anyone except those who are doing it (Note: It's a sober thing to question whether that "personal benefit" is actually really beneficial to the soul or rather quite the opposite!).

Strange tongues are a sign of evil in the Bible, not of good! 

If you feel that you are blessed while you are speaking in strange tongues, check whether practising your "gift of tongues" makes you read your Bible, pray diligently and  lead a more godly life or whether these tongues do quite the opposite for you. Check whether your "tongues" actually get anyone saved around you. I am certain that Paul's gift of tongues got people saved left, right and centre. This was what the gift was for. He spoke in tongues a lot! He was a preacher-man. An evangelist. He preached the Gospel in the languages of the people he met. Incredible gift of God. Praise God! I don't know anyone who has Paul's gift of speaking in tongues. I have heard rumours of people reporting about listening to Christians speak in tongues and being shocked because they heard them curse God in their mother tongue. It is important to know the spirit that is doing the "talking". It has to be the Holy Spirit of God and not the counterfeit spirit. Be sure about that or better decline from your "gift of tongues"!

If you feel a particular physical thrill while "speaking in tongues", then beware. Physical manifestations and speaking in tongues are known in many cults and religions and they have nothing to do with Jesus Christ and with the God of the Bible.

Do not believe people who tell you that the sign of a born-again Christian is to speak in tongues. There is no reliable outward sign of your salvation. You will have to trust the Word of God. You will have to trust God's promise that he has saved you, if you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour.

There are indicators, though - whether you are falling in or out of love with God. If you are changing into a more godly person and you are moving away from profane and worldly things, and if you are starting to love the Word of God more than you love your favourite TV shows or your favourite hobbies, then this indicates that Christ is getting to be the most important person in your life and that the things of God are really dear to you.

If you are starting to feel grieved by secular Christianity and if unholy talk - even of Christians - is getting at you, you are showing signs of someone who wants to please God because you love Him.

If mere Christian entertainment - even the best of Christian songs and Christian social life - feel shallow compared to the inspired Word of God and your time with God alone - in a wide awake and active mental frame of mind ! - you are well on your way to knowing God and knowing him better every day!

If you know that you know that you know that you are saved, the Holy Spirit is communicating powerfully within you and you will not even feel the need to see God prove Himself in this world. You will know and trust that He does, and God will show Himself to you in many instances without any mass event spectacles and without flocking to events that promise that "god" will move and heal. Don't trust these people! Don't! They are dangerous. They can send you into a "deep spiritual slumber" and blind your eyes so that you will mistake error for truth and truth for error. 

Remember that Christ never showed up and said: "Hey guys, come here! I will heal you, and while I'm at it, I will tell you about my Father in Heaven." He NEVER did that. He preached - and Jesus' healing was mostly a side-line activity. Not talked about. Not talked about! Jesus never made physical well-being or being healed a primary subject. Never. He deliberately let Lazarus die.  Physical death is NOTHING to Him. Resurrection is EVERYTHING to Jesus! Christ showed us His priorities. Saving us from physical ailment isn't his main target. Saving us from eternal death is! From spiritual death! How powerful Christ made that clear when he resurrected Lazarus. Clearly, Christ showed us that He who can raise us from physical death can save us from spiritual death. But beware: there are many that heal but not all heal through the power of God.

Remember that a very dark and evil person will come to life again in the end times … Evil will be resurrected.  What a dreadful thought, isn't it? The dark forces in this world are very powerful. 

Remember: Not the force, nor the power, nor the miracle performed are  indicators that God is present. You need to know how the spirits sound and how God's voice sounds. If you know God well, you will not be trapped into the songs of the sirens. You will not listen to evil spirits. You will know the difference. 

Magicians and false teachers/false prophets make healing and being "filled with spirit(s)" a primary subject. 

Spiritists and occultists want to make you walk  "through real fire" or mystical, occult "fire tunnels". The Bible says that these people are evil. If they profess Christ and still entice you into all kinds of occult practices, they are all the more evil. They are wolves and roaring lions. They want to devour you. They  are presenting another Jesus  to you and another faith!

Their so-called "salvation" in "christ" has no saving power because they blaspheme the grace and justice and holiness of God in a major way. If you got "saved" in these surroundings, you may not know Christ at all. You may have given demons/evil spirits a foothold in your life. Especially if you participated in "soaking experiences", "the laying on of hands" by these false preachers and dangerously occult "healers", "prophets" and "seers".

There is one way out: leave these groups and go home. Take your Bible and pray and voice out the Word of God chapter by chapter (no repetitions, please! No mantras! No contemplative prayer! No transcendental, mystical mediation!) and pray that God would cast away all evil spirits and would make you see and understand the truth of the Word of God. God will. You do not need to go to an exorcist. Don't trust them. You need God alone. That will do. It is always enough.  Christ needs to be your all.

If you are being attacked in a major way by unseen or seen dark forces, ask Christians who have not been "infected" by these teachings and who are strong in the Word of God and in obedience to God, to pray for you and with you and to pray and fast with you in order to loosen the grip of the dark forces on your life. It may take a few days, a few weeks, months or longer. But be certain: God will set you free. You don't have to fear to be lost for all eternity.

You may even be saved and have still allowed the dark forces to gain such power over you. 

God will rescue you! No need to be hopeless. Confess your sins, humble yourself! But away the things of the flesh and trust God to strengthen your inner man/woman of God: your spirit! After all, the Holy Spirit is in communion with your spirit. You need to crucify your "old Adam" or "old Eve" and put you flesh on the altar of God. God will burn it up and set you free again. 

You will be able to walk away from deception, away from being obsessed and influenced, blinded and misled by evil spirits. God will open your eyes to his TRUTH. 

If you are indeed His child, HE will not leave you nor forsake you! Pray! Take courage, and leave that false teaching and walk in the true Spirit of God and not in the counterfeit spirit of darkness that masquerades as the light and the power of God. 

#MercyMinder #ThingsToConsider

The Fall of Eve and the fall of Adam in Genesis 3

Many people think that the first woman passed on a really treacherous character trait  to all women on earth because she tempted Adam to eat of the fruit, after she had eaten from the forbidden tree. Hardly anyone stops to consider that Adam witnessed the first sinner and decided to become a sinner, too.

While Eve was tempted in utter naivety, Adam witnessed how Eve ate that fruit. He liked that she liked the fruit and decided to try it, too.  

Did the woman tempt the man? Or did he follow her bad example without thinking much about what he was getting into?

Did he know what the snake had said to Eve? Or did he act without even being deceived and lured into false ideas about God? Was it "just" because of the "lust of his eyes" and the "desire to try the fruit"? Good question!

William Graham Scroggie writes in his book "The Unfolding Drama of Redemption": 

"The sin of the woman and that of the man must be distinguished or the meaning of the facts will be missed. Adam was created first, and he, not the woman, received from God the prohibiting command. He, not she, is the head of the race (Rom. v.). She was beguiled, but he was not (iii. 13; 2 Cor. xi. 3; 1 Tim. ü. 14). He sinned deliberately, and broke the commandment because he preferred breaking it to keeping it. Adam Iooked upon the first sinner, and then he followed her into sin. The race stood or fell, not in the woman, but in the man (1 Cor. xv. 21, 22). "

Now, that's a lot to think about. After all, both men and women are sinners and we can be very bad examples. Women are not more dangerous than men. They are not to be blamed for sin and made to be spiritual outcasts because Eve is made out to be the origin of all sin. She is not. It was the snake, Satan. Lucifer started the whole sin problem.

Men and women are equally sinful and both need to be saved. And once we've been saved, we need to make sure that we walk in the light of God and in the light of His Word, and that we shine Christ's light. If we cast darkness everywhere, people can get into bad habits; and they will sin because they watch our sinful lives rather than paying attention to what the Word of God says about the conduct of Christ's disciples.

It is important to remember that the flesh remains sinful and that we need to ask God daily to help us live in accordance with God's will and in harmony with the Holy Spirit. After all: we are the temple of the Holy Spirit; and how will we grow in our faith and walk with our Lord Jesus Christ, when we walk "in the flesh" and not "in the Spirit of God"?

Note: Please read the article about the "Spirit of God and the CounterfeitSpirit of God". 

If you are interested in purchasing the book "The Unfolding Drama of Redemption", you can find it here: Amazon (marketplace), Barnes & Noble, AbeBooks. 

From the Bible - Genesis Chapter 1

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day. And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the third day. And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. And the evening and the morning were the fifth day. And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. — Ge 1

Without God We Can Do Nothing

We know that a sanctified life honours God and that “without God we can do nothing”. So, you and I have accepted this truth. Maybe you have repeatedly prayed “Yes God, I accept your decrees. I want to live according to your will. Let your will be done.”

I definitely prayed this prayer many times – and sometimes – while I was praying this prayer – I was thinking: what is God’s plan with me HERE? I can’t see I am accomplishing anything here for God’s kingdom. It doesn’t make sense to me. 

In moments like these, I definitely felt stuck with my vision, stuck with what I could do, stuck with my life perspective. I felt that most things I approached were only half as good as they could have been. It never seemed the best, from my point of view. 

Ever felt like that? Wanting to do God’s will, wanting to believe God for certain outcomes and blessings – and then feeling stuck in the one or the other way?

How does God’s will translate into real life?
How does human failure and plans that don’t work out translate back into God’s world?

Relating to God in prayer, reading our Bibles, worshipping God, sharing our faith and our joy in God with other believers – all of this is real life and all of this is God’s will. 

God wants us to pray, to study his Word, to share our faith and our joy in God with other believers and with people who don’t know him yet. That’s the "easy" part.  We just do it. We live it. We enjoy it...

Do we?  Do we really? Do we do it? Live it? Enjoy it?
How many Christians really enjoy sharing the Gospel? The whole Gospel - with that horrible part about the possibility of being condemned for ever and that horrible information about our sinful nature and that we actually need to be forgiven and saved? And then that horrible part about submitting to the Lordship of Jesus Christ (please note: This doesn't mean submitting to a pastor or a group that demands your total submission/surrender! Beware of these pastors and churches!).

Or are we much more interested in wanting to see our dreams come true - even our "Christian" ones? Are we really interested in the people who don't know God yet? Are we going to walk with them the many extra miles until they understand who God is and why it is so important to have a life - a relationship ! - with God in this world?

Do we seek to know God and know him better every day?  Or do we use our faith in God like a magic wand that is supposed to turn out whatever we want to see come to pass? Are you an outcome-focussed Christian, always hunting for "fruits", which in effect are just outward signs? Are you a "signs and wonders" hunter? Do you desire God to send you on a constant emotional merry-go-round? Do you think this is what God wants to accomplish in your life?

Do you really live by faith and by God's Word? Or do you try to envoke God to do what you want to see happen in your life and in the life of others? (Be sure you can't. He's not a snake that will dance to your tune!)

Maybe Hebrews 13:5 can be a heavenly spark for you.

Let God be all. Do not love money, be content with what you have and trust that God will keep His promise that he will never leave nor forsake you.

Read the Bible Verse here:

• http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Hebrews-13-5/
  (old but very good translation!)
• http://biblia.com/books/esv/Heb13.5
• http://biblia.com/books/kjv1900/Heb13.5

#MercyMinder #HeavenlySparks