ChristSkyd

With Walter Cronkite's passing and the emerging references to his support for the Satanic New World Order http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dd2M4S5D1uc&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbBOnopr4iM we need to be prepared to offer correct Scriptural guidance in these last days to those who seek answers. For those who haven't seen it before, the Roman Road is an excellent guide for presenting God's plan for salvation. Copy, save and print for study overview and keep it handy when witnessing to non-believers. The Roman Road (New King James Version) Romans 3:10 As it is written: “ There is none righteous, no, not one; Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned— Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 10:13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.” Romans 10:9,10 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation

Are you sure? It does exist in some pagan religions. Even Karma is based on good actions, and "bad actions", i.e. sins. So, saying it another way, anybody with good common sense will not accept Jesus if not being under extreme stress, when the person's ability to behave rationally is greatly diminished. Correct? Or, extreme anger, anxiety, depression, guilt. Anything that puts you into the realization that you are lost and their is no way out. In the chemical dependency field we call reaching the bottom. What about the people who never heard of Jesus, and therefore will not accept him as his Lord and Saviour? Is it their fault that your Jesus doesn't do daily broadcasts so everyone knows about him? Quote God judges the heart of the individual. The Wycliff Bible Translators and their tech branch JAARS are dedicated to taking the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all people groups in the world.

Forum's for everyone, friend. Start your own if that bugs you. No it does not bug me. That is what I was trying to explain the other gentleman.

*** Genesis 1:1 [ The History of Creation ] In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Sin is first mentioned, I believe, in Genesis 4:7 as stated above. Authorship attributed to Moses, born around 1200 B.C. concerning events approximately 4000 B.C. I did not mean 00-99 A.D. I apologize for the confusion.

Point well taken. Note, the OP was for Christian Skydivers. Others chose to become involved by making comments. You even jumped in when I was supporting another Christian poster.

And, that was before He issued the Great Commission. *** Matthew 28:18-20 (New King James Version) 18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore[a] and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen

That is incorrect, unless you're restricted to a uniquely Judeo-Christian - and thus self-actualizing - definition if sin. As for the generic definition of sin, here's one by the Merriam-Webster dictionary. This defintion, taken broadly, is hardly unique to Judeo-Christian religion or cultures, either historically or presently. Genesis is first century. The above definition is based on that reference e.g., "before 12th century," ergo, Jewish Scripture. ***Genesis 4:7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”

That appears to be an excellent reference. Thanks. I am currently studying the timing of the rapture and am leaning toward the mid-tribulation point. However, there are arguments for pre-tribulation and post-tribulation.

The concept of sin only exists in Judeo-Christian belief. Natural man cannot conceive sin without a life changing experience. For most, that life changing experience is the epiphany when Jesus Christ is accepted as the personal Savior and the Holy Spirit then indwells the new believer. The Holy Spirit guides the understanding of Christ. The natural or rational mind is incapable of such comprehension. Dr. William Wilson, professor emeritus, Duke University Department of Psychiatry, once said that person will not accept Jesus until they have experienced deep emotional trauma. The debilitating trauma may last only a few seconds but it must be present. One of the primary purposes of Christian witnessing is provide the information the sinner can grasp in their desperation, which has not yet manifested. IMO, everyone gets one chance at salvation, many are fortunate enough to get more than one. One thing is certain, God will not force you to go to heaven. You have to desire it. That is a choice, the exercise of your free will. A preacher friend once said, "Do you know what you have to do to go to hell? Absolutely nothing."

I don't know. There are certainly skydivers who follow those paths. You don't hear much about fellowship from those folks. Fellowship is a type of love, phileo or brotherly love. Christians desire fellowship with other Christians. We know we are establishing eternal bonds. A friend of mine did some missionary outreach in Nepal and he said there is no concept of the love of God in that area. "For God so loved the world," was a fascination to them. Muslims confuse me. I have met some who were very friendly and shared easily without animosity. Others have only spoken of the desire to die for Allah.

I was not aware. Thank you for the enlightenment.

It's the daily devotion for July 7 from his book.

July 7th. ALL NOBLE THINGS ARE DIFFICULT "Enter ye in at the strait gate...because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way....” Matthew vii. 13-14. If we are going to live as disciples of Jesus, we have to remember that all noble things are difficult. The Christian life is gloriously difficult, but the difficulty of it does not make us faint and cave in, it rouses us up to overcome. Do we so appreciate the marvellous salvation of Jesus Christ that we are our utmost for His highest? God saves men by His sovereign grace through the Atonement of Jesus; He works in us to will and to do of His good pleasure; but we have to work out that salvation in practical living. If once we start on the basis of His Redemption to do what He commands, we find that we can do it. If we fail, it is because we have not practised. The crisis will reveal whether we have been practising or not. If we obey the Spirit of God and practise in our physical life what God has put in us by His Spirit, then when the crisis comes, we shall find that our own nature as well as the grace of God will stand by us. Thank God He does give us difficult things to do! His salvation is a glad thing, but it is also a heroic, holy thing. It tests us for all we are worth. Jesus is bringing many "sons" unto glory, and God will not shield us from the requirements of a son. God's grace turns out men and women with a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, not milksops. It takes a tremendous amount of discipline to live the noble life of a disciple of Jesus in actual things. It is always necessary to make an effort to be noble. My Utmost for His Highest ~ Oswald Chambers

Seems like I got reprimanded once a while back for soliciting in the forums. Anyone interested in joining can visit the CSA website for further info.

You have the new one, SN 006; mine is SN 004.

Thanks for the kind words. I'm jumping in late on this thread. But, for those who don't know the CHRISTIAN SKYDIVERS ASSOCIATION has been around since 1987. Several other jumpers before me attempted to organize but for one reason or another discontinued their efforts. The CSA is along the same lines as POPS, ultra informal. The purpose is to provide a point of recognition between skydivers who are Christian, via the CSA emblem. After that, let the Lord guide. I usually jump at Skydive Tampa Bay, South Lakeland Airpark, Cliff Dobson's DZ, because it is only 8 miles from home. We have been holding a Sunday morning Bible study at 0700 and then manifest for the first load. BTW, what do you mean "old canopy?" My Z-po 190 is only 13 years old and my PD 218 Lightning about 16. Shucks! Don't you know how to take care of your gear? And, just for the record, I know how to Pro Pack. I choose not to, most of the time.

I like to apply the model developed by Charles R. Solomon in my counseling work. It goes something like this: Man is composed of 3 parts, the body, the soul, and the spirit. The body relates to environment. The soul relates to others. And, the spirit relates to God. The body is physiological and is World-conscious. The soul is psychological and is Self-conscious. The spirit is, well, spiritual and is God-conscious. The soul functions as the mind, emotions, and will. Spirit functions as intuition, conscience, and communion. The spirit is the essence of life, the "elan vital." The question is, how do we unite or communicate in the spiritual realm. Or, who is at the center of the human construct. Is is God? Is it the person? How do you know?

Thanks to all who responded to my question. My work keeps me separated from mainstream society. The radio and my PC are my main sources of contact. BTW, the Great Commission that Jesus gave to his disciples was to go and preach the gospel, disciple new believers, and baptize them. Salvation is the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit. Only you know if and when the Holy Spirit is speaking to you. If you hear His voice you can't escape it. You can ignore it but you can't escape it. The work therefore of the Christian is to assist those that hear the voice of the Holy Spirit.

Nor do any Christians that I've come into contact with. Ron included. Being around him in the past and knowing his background and commitment to his beliefs... I have the highest respect for him, he never pushes anything on anyone... But instead answered any query with measured enthusiasm and genuine sincerity.

On the way to church this morning I was listening to a national pastor on the radio. He posed an interesting question. From the begining of the Christian movement, followers of Jesus Christ have willing accepted martyrdom. All agree they are willing to give their life for Christ. The pastor's question, "Are you willing to be unpopular for your belief in Jesus Christ?" How many Christians at the DZ are afraid to let their skydiving friends know where they stand in their faith for fear of being shunned?

The difference is that I work in the field of mental illness, chemical dependency and substance abuse. Homosexual is masculine because I don't interact with happy men that are sexually confused.

Yep! It's called Social Services and it's an unpleasant field to work in. If I had it to do over, I wouldn't. So it goes, too late now. To paraphrase Willie Nelson, "...(it) ain't the right life, but it's my life." I'm outta here. 8-{)

First, I'm not selling anything. I stated a supportive opinion. Second, in my world "homosexual" carries a masculine connotation. The term "gay" is not used by heterosexual males. Third, if you're annoyed at my choice of words, well, I don't know what to say about that. I'll be out of town, camping, for several days. That's an informative statement meaning, I'm not trolling for anything. My line is out of the water.

BRAVO! I am currently working on the development of a social services program for men called "Fathers and Families First." The principle concept behind the program is that men need to teach men how to be a father and a man. The goal is to break the cycle of domestic violence, prevent mental illness in the children, and generally promote the "welfare to work" concept. The government has actually supported a "Fatherhood Initiative" to promote the standard of males as head of household. Social services in the US has reached a point where they are managed by primarily by feminists, lesbians and homosexuals. The services are focused on the single mother and men are considered "less than" at best and "evil" most commonly.

Liberal doesn't necessarily mean Democrat and Conservative doesn't necessarily mean Republican. Liberals will seek bigger government and more taxes. Conservatives will focus on bigger business. Where does your paycheck come from, welfare or work? "Where do we go from here, chaos or community?" Jefferson Starship, c.1972.