My opinion of "end times"

Well, there is some process of reading the Bible which has given rise to plenty of bad predictions when it comes to for instance the time scale of the apocalypse. I don't know exactly what that process is, but I know it's unreliable (because it has come up with untrue conclusions the vast majority of the time). If "because the Bible says" amounts to "because I infer" and inferring is unreliable, the processes that lead to us thinking "the Bible says" seem also to be unreliable.

 

Matthew 24:36 King James Version (KJV)

36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

 

But it will happen during the lifetimes of the people who pierced him (Revelation 1:7).

 

I'm not asking them to know the exact hour, I'm merely asking within a generation or so, which Jesus is often interpreted to have promised.

 

Well yeah, that is the general meaning, you have to be prepared, as you would against a thief in the night, or, one knows not when the master of the house may arrive, so the servant need have all needful things in readiness against an unanticipated Masters arrival.

Christians are enjoined to not be concerned as much about when as much as being ready, as the 10 Virgins at the Marriage feast, 5 were wise and carried extra oil and wicks, 5 were not and had enough to last a little while, and asked the 5 wise for supply, and the 5 wise refused lest they run out too, advice ?

Go to them that sell, and buy some, and as the 5 foolish did so, the 5 wise were admitted to the feast, the door shut and locked and the 5 foolish arrived soon after to the feast and were not admitted.

Main point is the need to be prepared, not know when.

A young guy once told me, no problem, I will have my fun, then when I am old, I will settle down and be serious in the Church, 20 years later, he did just that, he actually got serious and quit fooling around.
That is not however, the recommended way.

 

The line says "Truly I say to you..." (NIV), not "We'd better act as if...".

Either way, the point I was making is not about the "general meaning" of it, it is the fact that humans have interpreted it and got it wrong. If our interpretations are consistently wrong, then there is no solace in the fact that the text might technically be correct. If we have to wait for things to pass in order to figure out how to interpret the text, then what good is any prediction of ours?

 

It's already occurring in places. Maybe not in your home town but in others'. Have you ever wondered why those things happen to places which are less corruptive than others?

Large natural disasters occurring in places where 'life' was somewhat going 'okay'? No outcryings from within them, not too high of a crime rate. Families still holding onto family values, etc...

 

What was that first highlighted part ?
I lost it mostly.

Our Predictions are of no value.

The point stressed answering you is,
Nobody can make any predictions on when as nobody knows when or even what generation, the point is to be ready, and yes, we may likely die before then, and that is why the Let us eat, drink and be merry, fore tomorrow, We Die." Mindset of some.

Let us not be as the Beast the perish.
Be ready.

 

Deadly Mudslides Are the Latest Natural Disaster to Hit California



By morning, it looked “like an apocalypse happened,” one resident told the L.A. Times. Rescue workers found bodies in the streets and searched for more, walking through the roads with long poles used to probe the mud for what may lie beneath.

• Search crews, made up of rescue workers and citizen volunteers, have been dispatched to locate the missing. With so many roads impassable, helicopters have been combing the area for trapped survivors and plucking them off the roofs of their homes.

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligence...atest-natural-disaster-to-hit-california.html

Around 500 homes have so far been damaged in the mudslides and another 1,500 are still under threat. A stretch of the 101 freeway has also been covered by mud and will be closed through next week.

 

That is California and people building homes in potentially unsafe areas such as hillsides which are prone to massive erosion and mudslides, nothing Newsworthy there.

Matthew Chapter 7

24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:

27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

 

Hurricane Maria is regarded as the worst natural disaster on record in Dominica and Puerto Rico. The tenth-most intense Atlantic hurricane on record and the most intense tropical cyclone worldwide of 2017,

Originating from a tropical wave, Maria became a tropical storm on September 16, east of the Lesser Antilles.

://wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Maria


Hurricanes begin forming when the 'hot/warm' air from inland is too great for the 'cool/cold' air in the ocean/sea. Imbalance.

Hot 'inland' air is produced by 'heat producing' mechanics, human mechanics included.

Calories, the fuel for humans, when 'burned' produce heat. Small amount but nonetheless.

Lying next to another person in cold enables 'the calorie burning' heat to be shared.

The more calories being burned, the greater the heat.

When carbohydrate calories are extinguished, the muscle protein is the next set of calories burned. After that, the fat calories are burned. You will lose muscle mass before you lose fat mass, if you starve yourself.

Severely 'depressed' persons who are bed ridden lose their muscle mass. But they still need to eat which is one of the reasons they appear overweight and without muscle definition.

The major muscle groups lose their definition and shape.

And a contributor to this is 'heat producing' mechanics such as television, radio, computers, smart phones, video game consoles, cars, etc...

A person can spend as much time and produce as much heat remaining at home as 1 worker can in their day job.

Although there is an unemployment rate, if every unemployed and person was engaging in heat producing activities, it would be as if all 325 million or so persons would be submitting heat into the human atmosphere. All these heats need to get transferred which causes imbalances to off coast water and air temperatures.

This is called global warming by some.

I'm not sure if the 'sun', itself, can increase or decrease in its own temperature. If not, then the temperature fluctuations of the earth would have to do with things other than the 'sun's' activity, it would seem.

These temperature fluctuations can be compared to individual person fluctuations. They are dependent upon other 'heat producing' contributing factors, such as other persons.

 

Not only do our predictions hold no value, by the same logic, no interpretation or reading of the Bible holds any value. We are so likely to get it wrong, that any information we get out of the Bible is likely to be misleading.

 

But I can't be too certain that GOD is The One causing these.

 

No, that is weak.

Love your Neighbor as yourself is too simple.
Jesus simplified everything,
Forget about what eveyone else is doing or not doing, Work out your own souls salvation with fear and trembling.

It is all a chain of admonishments,
The Pharasee compared himself to the Publican and the Publican was considered because he had a contrite attitude and begged forgiveness.

You merely have to do what is right, and if and when you sin, repent.

You can hardly go wrong if you live your life by the standards Jesus set.

 

"I have come not to bring peace, but the sword".


how lovely

 

James 1:13 King James Version (KJV)
13 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:

 

In perspective, a commentary.


MichiePerch Perkins. Catholic reporter. Supporter CF Ambassadors
Homily of the Day

July 16th, 2012

First Reading: 1 Is 1:10-17
Psalm: 50:8-9, 16bc-17, 21, 23
Gospel: Mt 10:34-11:1

At the time the Gospels were written, the vast majority of Christians were converts from either paganism or Judaism.

Matthew was writing his Gospel primarily for converts from Judaism. In the eyes of everyone, these converts were renouncing their culture and their family, as well as their religion.

They embraced their new faith with such passion that it led to a severe wrenching from their past and to deep interfamily conflicts as well.

The words of Jesus consoled them:

“Do not suppose that my mission on earth is to spread peace.
My mission is to spread not peace, but division” –
The word our version translates as “division” is the Aramaic word for “sword.”

Jesus is saying, ” "I have come not to bring peace but the sword.”

And he says, “This sword will cut through blood relationships, making a man’s enemies those of his own household.”

Jesus’ words consoled the converts, assuring them they were moving along the right path.

What does this passage say to us who for the most part, certainly, are born Christians, not converts?

Given the closeness of family ties and deep family ties in our culture, perhaps the passage is telling us today that no matter how strong the claim of the family is on us, if there is a conflict between the demands of the family and Christ’s values, our primary loyalty has to be to Christ and his values, even if this means that the family-members will look on us as traitors.

As Christ puts it, this is the cross we must take up today, if we are to be worthy of him.

 

I have come to reassure you that you will be guided and protected and provided for after the sword has allowed for family breaks. Neat.

But what about those rascals that are not learning of Christ within the family? What of those? Ditch them high and dry and don't dry their eye if I should not see them cry? Each man to himself? Hasta la vista, family?

Thanks for all the past, now poof!, I'm my own person?

Oh by the way, could you pack lunch for me this one last time, please?

I'd probably help the door hit them on their way out.


I'm not saying what you say is wrong, in fact, much more consoling, in many ways, than the answers so far, but WHAT about for these questions?

Or is it 1 question and answer at a time?

 

Is this freedom of choice, as well? I have a choice? To be a Christian apart from certain individuals or be a Christian not apart from certain individuals?

Why would a child or house member leave if asked to stay or why would that person stay if asked to leave?

GOD has concern to the parent(s) as well as to the children.

OUR Father WHO is in Heaven. Not my Father, or her Father or his Father.

'Our Father WHO is in Heaven, why are so many of Your children breaking road rules'?

 

All of this seems to be subject to interpretation. There are certainly many others who have come to different conclusions. As such, they seem to me unreliable.

 

What is this imaginary "more evidence" that has recently been "provided" that was not available to prior generations?

 

It means your own friends and relatives are going to get pissed off at you if you turn Christian. On this forum people don't even have to know you to be pissed off at you.

 

There are only two conclusions: the correct ones and the incorrect ones. The tomato / toMAHto ones are irrelevant.

 

It's kind of like this also. If you know the difference between right and wrong, don't argue against your own knowledge.

I'm not speaking of right and wrong on theoretical theories of morality and human rights but to your own individual acts/works.

 

Do you think you will gain eternal life by believing in ancient fairy tales?