Schools Receive Request for After School Satan Club

Doug Mesner, who goes by the professional name Lucien Greaves, is co-founder and spokesman for the Satanic Temple, a group of political activists who are seeking to establish After School Satan Clubs as a counterpart to fundamentalist Christian Good News Clubs, which they see as an attempt to infiltrate public education and erode the constitutional separation of church and state. (Josh Reynolds/For The Washington Post)

The following article was written by AP correspondent, Heather Hollingsworth (August, 2016)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — After-school religious clubs appear to be the next venture of a national group that sought to install a statue of Satan outside two state capitols to protest Christian monuments on public grounds. 

The Satanic Temple contacted nine public school districts across the country this week seeking to start after-school Satan programs. In all but one district, religious clubs are operated by the Child Evangelism Fellowship's Good News Clubs, in which students can study the Bible and pray, according to temple co-founder Lucien Greaves. 

Several districts contacted by The Associated Press said they were reviewing the group's request and noted their facilities were available to community groups. 

Mat Staver, founder of a Christian legal aid group that has represented the Child Evangelism Fellowship, said Greaves' organization was illegitimate and an "atheist group masquerading" as religious. Greaves described Satanism as an atheist philosophy whose believers "feel it provides everything a religion provides to be legitimized as such." 

The Satanic Temple, which is based in Salem, Massachusetts, and has chapters in several states, said it wants to counter well-funded fundamentalist Christian organizations that it believes are eroding the separation of church and state in public schools. Greaves said the after-school program would show "that people can be of different religious opinions and still be moral, upright people." 

"We think that when kids are being exposed to the idea that they will burn in hell and other supernatural ideas, that there is a positive upshot to being exposed to the presence of a satanic after school program," he said. 

Greaves said his group could pose tough legal fights if its requests are denied. 

In Utah, the Granite School District said that if the group meets set requirements, including paying rent, there's nothing the district can do to stop it. District spokesman Ben Horsley said the group won't be able to put up fliers in schools or talk to students during school hours, the same arrangement given to the Good News Club. 

Springfield Public Schools in Missouri also said it was reviewing the group's request. It noted that granting requests to use the district's taxpayer-funded facilities "does not constitute the district's endorsement." The school district in Prince George's County, Maryland, described a similar policy and noted parental permission was required for after-school activities. 

The other districts are in Georgia, California, Florida, Oregon, Washington state and Arizona. 

The Satanic Temple has taken up similar causes outside schools, including seeking to install an 8½-foot-tall bronze statue of Satan at the Oklahoma Capitol to stand in contrast to a Ten Commandments monument. Oklahoma's Supreme Court later banned all religious displays on Capitol grounds. The group is seeking to do the same outside Arkansas' statehouse, where a Ten Commandments monument has been proposed. 

 

I Peter 5:8 ~ "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:" 

Related Articles: 

The Satanic Temple's Extracurricular Program For Public Schools   

An After School Satan Club could be coming to your kid’s elementary school

The "After School Satan Club" Wants to Show Kids Another Path to the Moral Life

After School Satan Club proposal spurs debate on religious activity in public school

The Prophet Nahum

Nahum, one of the twelve Minor Prophets in the Old Testament, wrote about the destruction of the Assyrian Empire and the ultimate downfall of its capital city, Nineveh. His early beginnings are somewhat obscure and the only clue to his heritage is mentioned in Nahum 1:1, which states that he was an Elkoshite.

Nahum's poetic predictions were mainly directed against the city of Nineveh and divided into two sections: the sins of the nation and the destruction of Nineveh. Little is known about this ancient prophet, but some scholars and theologians believe Nahum lived somewhere between 700-600 B.C.

The writings of Nahum could be taken as prophecy or literal history. There are at least two different accounts of such a theory... 1) some scholars believe this to be a prophecy written before the downfall of Assyria in 615 B.C.; 2) other theologians suggest it was a liturgy written after the downfall in 612 B.C. Then according to other sources, it is believed that Nahum prophesied during the reign of Ahaz or possibly during the reign of Hezekiah in the 8th century B.C. Yet most all scholars believe the Book of Nahum was written in Jerusalem, where he witnessed the invasion of Sennacherib and the destruction of his host (2 Kings 19:35).

As the destruction of Thebes, Egypt [in 663 B.C,] is mentioned in Nahum 3:8, the scholarly consensus is that his "book of vision" was written at the time of the fall of Nineveh at the hands of the Medes and Babylonians.

Regardless of his early beginnings or the correct date of the oracle's predictions, Nahum is considered the most enigmatic of all the Minor Prophets.

Simplified plan of ancient Nineveh,
showing city wall & location of gateways.

From an historical context, Nahum's prophecy proclaimed the complete destruction of Nineveh, which was the Assyrian Empire's greatest city, as well as its capital. At the height of its glory, it was the center of the civilization and commerce in the world. Yet, according to Nahum it was "a bloody city all full of lies and robbery" (Nahum 3:1), which was a reference to the Neo-Assyrian Empire's military campaigns.

Jonah was the first biblical prophet to utter warnings against the city of Nineveh, and Nahum was followed by Zephaniah, who also confounded the nation with the same prophecy of destruction against the capital city.

The Book of Nahum consists of two parts: 1) Chapter 1 - shows the majesty and might of God the Creator; and 2) Chapters 2-3 - describe the fall of Nineveh. In his book he epitomizes the siege and frenzied activity of Nineveh's troops as they try in vain to halt the invaders. From a poetic view Nahum becomes a participant in the battle, and with subtle irony, barks battle commands to the defenders. It is also believed that this ancient prophet used numerous similes and metaphors in his style of writing. One such example is that he compared Nineveh with a lion, in reference to the lion as an Assyrian symbol of power, who once was strong but ended weak [like a lion hiding in its den].

The great city of Nineveh was destroyed by fire somewhere between 625-612 B.C., bringing the Assyrian Empire to an end just as the prophet had predicted. Based on this event, some theologians enunciate that the siege of Nineveh came at the hands of the king of Akkad and the king of Media during the summer of 612 B.C., and not long after the death of the king of Assyria. The Assyrian Empire officially ended around 605 B.C. and the rise of the Babylonian Empire began. This prophetical event would go on to change the face of Asia.

Despite Nineveh's great power, the ancient city indeed was conquered and destroyed just as Nahum had forewarned. The ancient prophet proved to be correct when he said the city would be "hidden". (Nahum 3:11)

It would not be until the A.D. mid-1800s that archaeologists would begin excavating portions of the biblical city; by 2011 (A.D.) the ruins that were slowly unearthed over a century of hard labor are in dire threat of becoming "hidden" once more due to environmental effects, lack of funds and natural elements.

It is commonly purported the tomb of Nahum is inside the synagogue at Alqosh (present-day northern Iraq), although there are others that lay claim to him being buried in the original ancient town of Elkosh (present-day northern Israel) from which Nahum hailed. Even in death this Minor Prophet remains obscured in history. 

Where is the Center of the Universe?

The following excerpt was written by John Michael Thompson, author of Scientific Theory Of God: Proof That God Exists

WHERE IS THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE?

This question is profoundly important, because if we humans are special beings created by God, then we are the center. For thousands of years people intuitively believed they were at the center of God’s universe. As civilization and mathematics advanced some people began to mathematically and scientifically analyze the physical world.

Before the beginning of our modern age Ptolemy was the authority on the system of the universe. He was a Greco-Egyptian scientist, mathematician, astronomer, and astrologer. He defined a system of the universe with a motionless Earth at the center. According to Ptolemy the Sun, Moon, planets, and the stars all revolved around the Earth. Ptolemy’s earth-centered model was necessarily very complicated, because he needed to geometrically show, among other things, how the planets sometimes make backwards loops as seen in the Earth’s sky. He came up with invisible mechanisms such as epicycles in order to explain how the system’s objects interacted. Ptolemy’s geocentric universe dominated scientific thinking for fourteen centuries.

Before the invention of the telescope Ptolemy’s earth-centered model made sense to anyone on the Earth looking up at the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars. The force of gravity was not yet understood. Ptolemy theorized that the Sun, Moon, planets and stars were supported in space by being attached to nesting crystalline spheres, which separately rotated around the Earth. The vast distances to the objects in space had not yet been realized, so scientists didn’t know to make adjustments in size for distance. Using the naked eye the Sun and Moon appear to be the same size but much smaller than the Earth. The Earth appeared to be by far the biggest and most massive object in the universe, so it made sense that all heavenly objects must revolve around it.

Five stars (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn) could be observed wandering amongst the four thousand or so other visible stars. These wandering stars were called planets. The stars were attached to the outermost rotating sphere, which was called the celestial sphere. The universe was perceived as and so assumed to be a freestanding (existing by itself needing nothing else in order to exist) finite system of physical objects. The Earth was the inner most boundary and the celestial sphere was the outer most boundary, which was calculated to be at a distance of 20,000 earth radii.

Ptolemy’s scientific universe system supported the long held religious belief that we humans are special beings located at the center of everything that exists. But then in the fifteenth century a Renaissance mathematician and astronomer named Copernicus challenged the Ptolemaic model. He claimed that the retrograde motions of the planets could be explained much easier by understanding that the Earth was a planet, and all the planets revolved around the sun. For example: as the Earth and Mars orbit the sun, the Earth moves faster, so it catches up to and passes Mars, which causes Mars to appear to change its direction when viewed from the moving Earth. Copernicus showed that with the Sun in the center of the universe system there is no need for epicycles.

The Copernican heliocentric model positioned the Sun at the center of the entire universe. Gravity was still not understood, so the crystalline spheres were retained with the celestial sphere still being the universe’s outer most boundary. At first scientists and religious leaders rejected Copernicus’ theoretical sun-centered system, even though it scientifically worked much better than Ptolemy’s earth-centered system, because the new Copernican system went against long established scientific and religious beliefs and the common sense of the time.

Then in the sixteenth century a physicist, engineer, philosopher, and astronomer named Galileo used his newly invented telescope to find evidence to support the sun-centered system. He saw among other things that Jupiter has its own moons, which proved that everything does not revolve around the Earth, and the Copernican model began to catch on. People had to absorb the perceived fact that humanity does not live at the center of the universe and therefore must not be special creations. People began to question humanity’s religious place in the grand scheme of things.

When Galileo looked up at the night sky through his telescope, he saw that the planets became larger but the stars did not. He realized that the stars were much too far away to show magnification. Galileo proved that the planets are located closer to and orbit the Sun, but the stars are located much further out into space beyond our planetary system. Our known size of the universe became vastly larger.

The telescope continued to lead to the discovery of a more and more vast, complex, and seemingly infinite universe. It became clear that our Sun is the center of our solar system, but it is not the center of the whole universe. Scientists discovered that the stars are actually suns like our own Sun. Our solar system is only one of a vast number of other solar systems. Our Milky Way galaxy is only one of billions of other galaxies. This caused a sea change in human thinking.

Technology continues to advance. Telescopes, microscopes, and particle smashers continue to become more powerful, and scientists keep discovering more objects further out in space and more objects further into sub-atomic space. Scientists can’t find any fixed boundaries to universe, so they can’t define a physical center. Science now teaches that we humans live in a minor solar system on an insignificant planet lost somewhere in infinite space.

Today we like to believe science has come a long way since Ptolemy, and we now understand the universe and humanity’s place in it. Over the past few centuries the modern system of the universe has removed the Earth from the center, replaced the crystalline spheres with the force of gravity, become vastly larger and more complex, and eliminated fixed boundaries. But despite these structural changes, the modern system is still fundamentally the same universe as the ancient system. Both are perceived by scientists as and assumed to be freestanding physical universes existing in independent in space and time.

When we look around and interact in our object world, it is common sense that the objects we see and interact with exist separate and independent from us. But, we have learned from the past that our common sense often deceives us, because the scientific evidence actually shows that the universe does not exist freestanding by itself in space and time.

The scientific evidence actually shows that both the ancient and modern systems of the universe are wrong.

It is a known scientific fact that we humans do not directly see our physical reality. We do not look out across volumetric space and actually see or otherwise sense objects. We receive information from objects in the form of electromagnetic signals (light), and then we each transform the information into a solid three-dimensional reality on our mind’s viewing screen. Our senses of sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste are all electrical processes that provide input to generating our seemingly solid reality in our mind. A modern scientific analogy would be a virtual reality. When our minds are embedded in a virtual world, we think the virtual world is a solid freestanding universe, but it is not. We cannot distinguish a virtual world from our real physical world.

The universe based on human consciousness is not a new or radical idea. Religious people pray to God through their consciousness. All of the world’s major religions have always claimed the universe is based on human consciousness. During the nineteenth century, philosophers and scientists debated whether the universe exists freestanding by itself in space and time or whether it is exists based on human consciousness. Some scientists understood that we form the universe in our minds through our sensory apparatus. These scientists understood that we couldn’t actually know the universe outside our mind.

It is a scientific fact that space and time cannot be shown to exist outside the mind, and it is a scientific fact that physical objects cannot exist except in space and time, therefore the physical object universe cannot exist separate from the human mind. So some scientists thought it was a mistake to adopt a universe model separated from human consciousness, but never the less the larger scientific community assumed the universe is so vast and complex that it could not possibly be based on the supposedly insignificant human mind.

This has proved to be a wrong assumption. Scientists again mistakenly relied on the common sense of the time.

Science has now discovered that the human brain is the most complex thing in the universe. New measurements of a human brain’s memory capacity increase previous estimates by a factor of 10 to at least a petabyte, which is in the same ballpark as the World Wide Web. This is equivalent to twenty million four-drawer filing cabinets, and this is just what we understand today. The brain’s capacity is very likely much higher still, because scientists are just starting to understand a small part of it. Total human memory capacity is based on the population of the earth, which is over seven billion human brains all working together to form human reality. Humanity’s memory capacity is at a minimum equivalent to seven billion World Wide Webs. This does not even consider the brain’s processing powers or the amazing power of the human mind, of which scientists admittedly know very little.

As telescopes continue to become more powerful astronomers are continuing to find more and more outer space with more and more objects. And as microscopes and particle colliders continue to become more powerful physicists are continuing to find smaller and smaller particles in inner space. This has proved to be a never-ending process. The ongoing process of scientific discovery has proved that the universe has no boundaries big or small. There is no outer boundary or smallest foundation particle, so the universe is not a standalone physical system. To the contrary modern science has shown that the universe operates just as we would expect a human connected physical reality would operate. A universe based on human consciousness would be an unlimited physical system without boundaries, big or small. Its known size and complexity would depend on human intelligence and imagination.

Both ancient scientists and modern scientists have misinterpreted the universe. The earth is not the center, and humanity is not lost in space and time. The universe is centered on our consciousness and not where we physically live, so it has never mattered where the earth is located.

We humans are the center of our universe, so anything is possible. We just have to believe.

Prophecies of a Bulgarian Prophetess (Baba Vanga)

(from Wikipedia.com)

Baba Vanga (Bulgarian: баба Ванга) (31 January 1911–11 August 1996), born Vangeliya Pandeva Dimitrova (Вангелия Пандева Димитрова), known after her marriage as Vangelia Gushterova (Вангелия Гущерова), was a blind Bulgarian mystic, clairvoyant, and herbalist, who spent most of her life in the Rupite area in the Kozhuh mountains Bulgaria. Millions of people around the world were convinced that she possessed paranormal abilities. 

Vanga was illiterate or semi-literate. She did not write any books herself. What she said or allegedly said had been captured by staff members. Later numerous esoteric books on Vanga's life and predictions were written.  

Vanga claimed that her extraordinary abilities had something to do with the presence of invisible creatures, but she could not clearly explain their origin. She said that those creatures gave her information about people, which she could not transmit to them, because distance and time did not matter. According to Vanga, the life of everyone standing in front of her was like a film to her from birth until death. But changing "what was written on the generation" was beyond her power.   

However, according to close friends, Vanga was not the type to voice predictions she saw if they were catastrophic because she knew that chaos that would ensue around those she told. Witnesses and close friends also claim that she never made such prophecies, and in fact when asked claimed that there will be no World War III. Nevertheless, after North Korea — a nuclear nation — attacked South Korea on 23 November 2010, there was a spike in internet interest about Vanga concerning this alleged prophecy. 

Vanga purportedly predicted another 'realm of being,' claiming that entire cultures would begin to spread through a 'false world.' She claimed that in 2003, any person would be able to think in synchronicity with others, allowing for a form of secondary existence. 2003 marked the year of release of the game Second Life, in which an account holder can make an avatar and engage in social interaction with others. Many believe this to be the secondary 'realm of being' that Vanga spoke of.  

Vanga attempted to prophesy about newborn or unborn children. She said that she was "seeing" and "talking" to people, who had died hundreds of years ago. Vanga talked about the future, although she did not like to. In her words, in 200 years men will make contact with brothers in mind from other worlds. She said that many aliens have been living on the earth for years. They came from the planet, which in their language is called Vamfim, and is the third planet from the Earth.  

Followers of Vanga believe that she predicted the precise date of her own death, dreaming that she would die on 11 August, and be buried on 13 August. Shortly before that she had said that a ten-year-old blind girl living in France was to inherit her gift, and that people would soon hear about her.[citation needed]   

Vanga reached news headlines after predicting, in 1989, what many interpret to be the 9/11 terror attacks.

"Horror, horror! The American brethren will fall after being attacked by the steel birds. The wolves will be howling in a bush, and innocent blood will be gushing."— Predicted in 1989 by Baba Vanga

Vanga predicted that the 44th President of the United States will be African American, and the last US president. Other of her predictions include that Europe will be transformed into an Islamic caliphate and the transformation will be complete in the year 2043, that communism will return to Europe and the rest of the world in 2076 and that there will be a war on Mars in 3005. Due to the subjective nature of many predictions, many remain skeptical.  

During World War II, Vanga attracted believers in her ability to heal and soothsay –a number of people visited her, hoping to get a hint about whether their relatives were alive, or seeking for the place where they died. On 8 April 1942 the Bulgarian Tzar, Boris III, visited her.   

She continued to be visited by dignitaries and commoners. After the Second World War, Bulgarian politicians and leaders from different Soviet Republics, even Leonid Brezhnev, sought her counsel; in the 1990s, a church was built in Rupite by Bogdan Tomalevski with money left by her visitors. Vanga died on 11 August 1996 from breast cancer. Her funeral attracted large crowds, including many dignitaries. Fulfilling Vanga's last will and testament, her Petrich house was turned into a museum, which opened its doors for visitors on 5 May 2008.

                                                                                ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~

Here are 13 predictions that the Prophetess Baba Vanga made for 2016 and beyond:
                                                                       

1 - Barack Obama will be the last president of the US: Baba Vanga had predicted that the 44th US president would be an African American, but she had also added that he would be the last one. According to her, he would leave office at a time when the country would be in economic ruins, and there would be a huge divide between the northern and southern states – as was the case during the American Civil War.

2 - Europe will cease to exist: According to Baba Vanga, the continent will cease to exist by 2016, and all that would remain will be empty spaces and wasteland, nearly devoid of any form of life. She is reported to have said that chemical weapons would be used by extremists against Europe.

3 - Muslims will invade Europe: The blind mystic had also predicted that Muslims will invade Europe, and there will be widespread destruction by extremists, which will go on for many years, until the continent ceases to exist. She had also predicted that a Great Muslim War will begin in Syria. 

4 - China will become the new super power: As per her predictions, China is set to become the new superpower in 2018, bringing an end to the United States and its economy. According to her, the exploiters (the developed nations) will become the exploited (the third world). In 2011, the International Monetary Fund had also predicted that China’s economy will overtake that of the US in 2016, emerging as the new superpower. 

5 - Hunger eradication: Baba Vanga has predicted that hunger will get eradicated sometime between 2025 and 2028.

6 - On to Venus: Humans will travel to Venus, according to the Baba, in search of new energy sources. They might even set up a colony there.

7 - Rome as the capital of the Islamic caliphate: Islam will finish invading the whole of Europe by 2043, and Rome will be the capital of the new caliphate.

8 - Ice caps melting: According to the Baba, ice caps will melt by 2045. The rate at which the ice caps are melting already due to global warming, does seem to suggest the same. 

9 - Cloning of organs: As per Baba Vanga’s predictions, body organs will be cloned in 2046, and that would be the easiest method of treatment. 

10 - US attacking Muslim dominated Europe: By 2066, the US will attack Muslim dominated Europe using climate change weapon, and will try to retake Rome and bring back Christianity.

11 - The return of Communism: By 2076, communism will return to Europe and the rest of the world. 

12 - Underwater civilisations: By 2130, civilizations will learn how to live under water, with the help of aliens. 

13 - The death of the Earth: By 3797, everything on Earth will cease to exist. However, humans will be advanced enough to move to a new star system.

Related Articles:

Prophecies of Baba Vanga
So what else did Baba Vanga predict?
Europe will be gone by 2016 - All the prophecies by Bulgarian Prophetess Vanga

Jesus: From Genesis to Revelation (Part Two)

The article, Jesus: From Genesis to Revelation, concludes with Part Two.

PART TWO: New Testament

Like the Old Testament, the New Testament was written by various authors and contains 27 books. The majority of biblical scholars date the completion of the holy books of the New Testament between 70-96 A.D. The New Testament discusses the teachings and person of Jesus Christ, as well as events in first-century Christianity. While Jesus himself did not actually write any books of the New Testament, he is quoted in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Matthew – the Messiah who is King (King of the Jews)

"Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” ~ Matthew 2:1-2

Mark – the Messiah who is a Servant (the Servant)

"And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all." ~ Mark 10:42-44

Luke – the Messiah who is a Deliverer (He Whom is Delivered)

"He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” ~ Luke 24:6-7

John – the Messiah who is a God in the flesh (the Word)

"[The Word Became Flesh] In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made." ~ John 1:1-3

Acts – the Spirit who dwells in His people (the Holy Spirit)

"He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." ~ Acts 1:7-8

Romans – the righteousness of God (Christ)

"So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men." ~ Romans 14:16-18

I Corinthians – the power and love of God (Pure Love)

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing." ~ I Corinthians 13:1-3

II Corinthians – He is the down payment of what’s to come (Love of Christ)

"For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised." ~ II Corinthians 5:13-15

Galatians – He is our very life (Son of God)

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose." ~ Galatians 2:20-21

Ephesians – the unity of our church (Body of Christ)

"[Unity in the Body of Christ] I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." ~ Ephesians 4:1-3

Philippians – the joy of our life (My Joy)

"So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind." ~ Philippians 2:1-2

Colossians – holds the supreme position in all things (Firstborn of all Creation)

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell," ~ Colossians 1:15-19

I Thessalonians – our comfort in the last days (Lord Jesus)

"Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints." ~ I Thessalonians 3:11-13

II Thessalonians – our returning King (Righteous God)

"This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering—since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, hand to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels" ~ II Thessalonians 1:5-7

I Timothy – Savior of the worst sinners (King of the Ages)

"The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever." ~ I Timothy 1:15-17

II Timothy – leader of the leaders (Christ Jesus)

"But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work." ~ II Timothy 3:14-17

Titus – foundation of truth (God our Savior)

"1 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior;" ~ Titus 1:1-3

Philemon – our Mediator (For the Sake of Christ)

"I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ. For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you." ~ Philemon 1:6-7

Hebrews – our High Priest (High Priest)

"Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God's house." ~ Hebrews 3:1-2

James – He matures our faith (Producer of Steadfastness)

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." ~ James 1:2-4

I Peter – our hope in times of suffering (Shepherd the Flock of God)

"So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock." ~ I Peter 5:1-3

II Peter – the One who guards us from false teaching (The Rescuer)

"Then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority." ~ II Peter 2:9-10

I John – source of all fellowship (the Son)

"That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ." ~ I John 1:3

II John – God in the flesh (Jesus Christ in the Flesh)

" For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist." ~ II John 1:7

III John – source of all truth (Sake of the name)

"For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth." ~ III John 1:7-8

Jude – protects us from stumbling (the Only God)

"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen." ~ Jude 1:24-25

Revelation – and He is coming again (the God of the spirits of the prophets)

Revelation – in the last book of the Christian Bible, Jesus is assigned many different names throughout the tome, such as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, The Alpha and the Omega, The Beginning and the End. Yet, the one title I would like to credit is... the God of the spirits of the prophets.

"And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.” “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”" ~ Revelation 22:6-7

Jesus: From Genesis to Revelation (Part One)

According to some biblical scholars of Christianity, Jesus Christ is mentioned in every book of the Christian Bible. In the Christian's Holy Bible, which consists of an Old Testament and a New Testament, Jesus is acknowledged [in one form or another] from the Book of Genesis to the Book of Revelation. In these holy books, it is a well known fact that God goes by many different names, likewise so does Jesus Christ. This article will contain two parts - Old Testament and New Testament - and will point out the many names Jesus goes by. The first part (Old Testament) is comprised of 39 books and corresponds approximately to the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh). It is commonly accepted by the majority of biblical scholars the ancient books were written between 1200 and 100 B.C. and comprise the chief texts of the law, history, prophecy, and wisdom literature of the ancient tribes of Israel.

PART ONE: Old Testament

The Old Testament was written by various authors during the ancient era of mankind. While Christianity has dubbed the Hebrew Bible as the "Old Testament", Judaism divides the Hebrew Bible (the Tanakh) into three parts: the Torah (Pentateuch), Nevi'im (Prophets), Ketuvim (Writings).

Torah

Genesis – Jesus is our Creator (Spirit of God)

"The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." ~ Genesis 1:2

Exodus – He is the Passover Lamb (Passover Lamb)

"Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb." ~ Exodus 12:21

Leviticus – High Priest (the Lord)

"You shall not make idols for yourselves or erect an image or pillar, and you shall not set up a figured stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the Lord your God." ~ Leviticus 26:1

Numbers – Water in the desert (Rock that Yielded Water)

"And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. These are the waters of Meribah, where the people of Israel quarreled with the Lord, and through them he showed himself holy." ~ Numbers 20:11, 13

Deuteronomy – He is our Eagles wings of deliverance (He Becomes the Curse for Us)

"But the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam; instead the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loved you." ~ Deuteronomy 23:5

Nevi'im

Joshua – Commander of the army of the Lord (Commander of the Lord's Army)

"And the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so." ~ Joshua 5:15

Judges – He is the Lord of Peace (the God of Israel)

"She sent and summoned Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh-naphtali and said to him, “Has not the Lord, the God of Israel, commanded you, ‘Go, gather your men at Mount Tabor, taking 10,000 from the people of Naphtali and the people of Zebulun." ~ Judges 4:6

Kethuvim

Ruth – He is our Redeemer (our Redeemer-Kinsman)

"Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name [the kinsman] be renowned in Israel!" ~ Ruth 4:14 

Nevi'im

I Samuel – He is the Prophet, Priest and King (a God of Knowledge)

"Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed." ~ I Samuel 2:3

II Samuel –  Rock of Salvation (Lord of Hosts)

"And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale-judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the Lord of hosts who sits enthroned on the cherubim." ~ II Samuel 6:2

I Kings – Builder of a temple that will never fall (Lord is God)

"Let these words of mine, with which I have pleaded before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, and may he maintain the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel, as each day requires, that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God; there is no other." I Kings 8:59-60

II Kings – He is the reigning King (Chariots of Fire)

"When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha." ~ II Kings 6:15-17

Kethuvim

I Chronicles – Son of David that is coming to rule (His Throne Established Forever)

"I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. I will not take my steadfast love from him, as I took it from him who was before you, 14 but I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forever." ~ I Chronicles 17:13-14

II Chronicles –  the King who reigns eternally (the Glory of the Lord)

"As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple."- II Chronicles 7:1-2

Ezra – Priest proclaiming freedom (His Steadfast Love Endures Forever)

"And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the directions of David king of Israel. And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.”" ~ Ezra 3:10-11

Nehemiah – the One who restores what is broken (God of Heaven)

"As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. And I said, “O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments" ~ Nehemiah 1:4-5

Esther – Protector of his people (Protector)

In the Book of Esther, Jesus is more symbolically represented than other books in the Bible. God is not mentioned directly, but indirectly Esther's story is one of courage and survival in saving God's chosen people, the Jews, through the help of a Higher Power.

"Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” Mordecai then went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him." ~ Esther 4:15-17

Job – Mediator between God and man (Mediator)

"His soul draws near the pit, and his life to those who bring death. If there be for him an angel, a mediator, one of the thousand, to declare to man what is right for him, and he is merciful to him, and says, ‘Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom;" Job 33:22-24

Psalms – Our Steadfast Love in the Morning and Our Song in the Night (His Steadfast Love)

"By day the Lord commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life." ~ Psalm 42:8

Proverbs – Our wisdom and strong tower (Our Wisdom and the Beginning of Knowledge)

"The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth—Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:1-7

 Ecclesiastes – Our Meaning For Life (God Endures Forever)

"I perceived that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before him. That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God seeks what has been driven away." Ecclesiastes 3:14-15

Song of Solomon – Author of faithful love (Flame of the Lord)

"Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it. If a man offered for love all the wealth of his house, he would be utterly despised.

Nevi'im

Isaiah – Suffering Servant (He Who Bore Our Grief and Sorrows)

"Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed." Isaiah 53:4-5

Jeremiah – the Weeping Messiah (a Righteous Branch)

"Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’" ~ Jeremiah 23:5-6

Kethuvim

Lamentations – He assumes God’s wrath for us (the Lord is My Portion)

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” ~ Lamentations 3:22-24

Nevi'im

Ezekiel – Son of Man (the Spirit)

"And he said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.” And as he spoke to me, the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and I heard him speaking to me. And he said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day." ~ Ezekiel 2:1-3

Kethuvim

Daniel – the stranger in the fire with us (Son of the Gods)

"Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up in haste. He declared to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.” ~ Daniel 3:24-25

Nevi'im

Hosea – faithful husband even when we run away (My Husband)

"And in that day, declares the Lord, you will call me ‘My Husband,’ and no longer will you call me ‘My Baal.’ For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and they shall be remembered by name no more. And I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety. And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the Lord." ~ Hosea 2:16-20

Joel – He is sending His Spirit to His people (Lord Roars from Zion)

"The Lord roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake, But the Lord is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel." ~ Joel 3:16

Amos – delivers justice to the oppressed (the Lord God)

"Therefore thus says the Lord God: “An adversary shall surround the land and bring down your defenses from you, and your strongholds shall be plundered. Thus says the Lord: “As the shepherd rescues from the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear, so shall the people of Israel who dwell in Samaria be rescued, with the corner of a couch and part of a bed."~ Amos 3:11-12

Obadiah – Judge of Those Who Do Evil (The Lord Has Spoken)

"But in Mount Zion there shall be those who escape, and it shall be holy, and the house of Jacob shall possess their own possessions. The house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau stubble; they shall burn them and consume them, and there shall be no survivor for the house of Esau, for the Lord has spoken." ~ Obadiah 1:17-18

Jonah – the Greatest Missionary (the Word of the Lord)

"Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil[a] has come up before me." ~ Jonah 1:1

Micah – He casts our sin into the sea of forgetfulness (the Shepherd)

"And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace." ~ Micah 5:4-5

Nahum – proclaims future world peace we cannot even imagine (a Stronghold)

"The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. But with an overflowing flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries, and will pursue his enemies into darkness." ~ Nahum 1:7-8

Habakkuk – crushes injustice (Salvation of your Anointed)

"You marched through the earth in fury; you threshed the nations in anger. You went out for the salvation of your people, for the salvation of your anointed. You crushed the head of the house of the wicked, laying him bare from thigh to neck. You pierced with his own arrows the heads of his warriors, who came like a whirlwind to scatter me, rejoicing as if to devour the poor in secret." ~ Habakkuk 3:12 -14

Zephaniah – the Warrior who saves (a Mighty One)

"The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. I will gather those of you who mourn for the festival, so that you will no longer suffer reproach." ~ Zephaniah 3: -18

Haggai – restores our worship (I Am With You)

"Then Haggai, the messenger of the Lord, spoke to the people with the Lord's message, “I am with you, declares the Lord.” And the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people. And they came and worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God," Haggai 1:13-14

Zechariah – prophesies a Messiah pierced for us (Him Whom They Pierced)

"And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn." ~ Zechariah 12:10

Malachi – sun of righteousness who brings healing (The Healer)

"For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall." ~ Malachi 4:1-2

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Jesus: From Genesis to Revelation (Part Two)