Matty Lawrence

March 31, 2019May 30, 2019

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And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.

24

And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is:

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Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?

Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? ( Psalms 2:1 )

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The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.

The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,
Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.
( Psalms 2:2-3 )

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For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,

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For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.
( Psalms 2:4 )

The pharisees and religious rulers may think that they got their way, but it was part of God’s plan.

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And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word,

Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.
( Psalms 2:5 )

The Pharisees and religious rulers are definitely being vexed.

30

By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus.

Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.
( Psalms 2:6-7 )

31

And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

Is being filled with the Holy Spirit the same thing as being receiving the Holy Spirit? They were also filled with the Holy Ghost at Pentecost.

And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
( Acts 2:1-4 )

Perhaps they are not the same.

Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.
( John 20:19-23 )

For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.
( Acts 1:5 )

March 27, 2019January 1, 2021

What Purpose?

Danby House

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28

What kind of purpose are we talkimg about?

God’s purpose for our lives?
God’s purpose for making creation?

Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God; Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
( 2 Timothy 1:8-9 )

Are they the same thing?

When was the purpose decided on?

According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
( Ephesians 1:4 )

Whatever the purpose is, or for whom, it was estanlished before the foundation of the world.

In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
( Titus 1:2 )

March 20, 2019March 20, 2019

Danby House

And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities.
Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.
( Matthew 11:1-6 )

How do we know that Jesus is real?

Danby House.

Why am I here? Why is it important to me? What could I possibly gain from it?

Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
( James 1:27 )

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
( Luke 4:18 )

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
( Isaiah 61:1 )

עֲנָוִ֗ים – anavim

poor, afflicted, humble, meek

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
( Matthew 28:19-20 )

Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.
( John 6:27 )

Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.
( Proverbs 23:4 )

His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
( Matthew 25:21 )

March 20, 2019March 14, 2021

The Sides of the Pit

Whose graves are set in the sides of the pit, and her company is round about her grave: all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which caused terror in the land of the living.
( Ezekiel 32:23 )

If you are on a downward course and leave the lower mantle, once you enter the great gulf there is nothing to stop your fall into the core. This means that the pit refers to everything below the mantle.

March 18, 2019March 22, 2021

The Earth with Her Bars

I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God.
(Jonah 2:6) KJV

Jonah gives us direct observation of the pillars of the earth, he calls them bars. Something directly observed is called empirical. Thanks to Jonah the pillars of the earth aren’t metaphorical nor theoretical, they’re empirical.

March 17, 2019May 30, 2019

Unschooled Idiots

Open Door Baptist Church

Acts 4:13-21

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Unlearned – unschooled – ἀγράμματοί – agrammatoi

Ignorant – ordinary – ἰδιῶται – idiōtai

The irony here is that over the last few days Peter has quoted:

Acts 1

Psalms 41:9
Psalms 55:12-13
Jeremiah 32:6-10
Zechariah 11:12-13
Psalms 69:21, 25
Psalms 109:8

Acts 2

Joel 2:28-32
Malachi 4:5
Psalms 110:1
Psalms 16:9-11
Job 19:25-26
1 kings 2:1-4, 10
2 Samuel 7:12
2 Kings 9:1-5
*Matthew 17:10-13 *Matthew 17:10-13 (eyewitness)
*Luke 1:30-33 (eyewitness)

Acts 3

Isaiah 30:15
Ezekiel 47:1-12
Deuteronomy 18:15-16
Genesis 22:18
*Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10-11; Luke 20:17 (eyewitness)

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What was the commandment that the apostles were obeying?

The great commission.

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
( Matthew 28:19-20 )

The importance of obeying God?

And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
( 1 John 2:3-5 )

And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
( 1 John 3:23-24 )

Revelation 12:13-17

And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
( Revelation 12:17 )

Revelation 14:9-12

Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
( Revelation 14:12 )

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March 15, 2019March 14, 2021

Searched Out Beneath

Thus saith the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD.
( Jeremiah 31:37 )

IF God will cast off the seed of Israel if the foundations of the earth may be searched out,
AND we know that God does not cast off the seed of Israel,
THEN the foundations of the earth may not be searched out.

March 15, 2019March 14, 2021

The Ground, Adamah

Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
(Genesis 3:23) KJV

The Hebrews had a well developed idea of life after death. For them physical death, the grave, was a portal into a complex underworld realm. The grave is merely the beginning of what happens next.

March 15, 2019March 14, 2021

The Ends of the Earth

God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof. For he looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven; To make the weight for the winds; and he weigheth the waters by measure.
( Job 28:23-25 )

If you want to believe in flat earth no one is going to stop you. However nothing in the Bible, either in the meaning of words or the context of passages, requires you to believe that earth is flat and has an edge.

March 15, 2019March 14, 2021

Two Trees

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.
( Genesis 2:17 )

Evolution on the scale required in the popular science paradigm requires death. There was no death before sin, therefore the evolutionary basis of the Phylogenetic Tree of Life is impossible.