They meet three times a week to increase their understanding of the Bible and to learn how to preach and teach its message to others.
WHAT THE BOOK CONTAINS
So many articles regarding the Bible are written nowadays, hardly surprising it being the number-one best-seller in the world. Translated in whole or part into over 2100 languages The Bible has survived more controversy than any other book. During the Middle ages people were burned at the stake for simply possessing a copy of the scriptures.
Written over a period of 16 centuries by some 40 different contributors from various backgrounds. The bible contains 66 books in two sections the Old Testient and the New Testiment. 39 Books were written in Hebrew and 27 in Greek The Hebrew scriptures cover the creation story and Gods dealings with the Israelites from the birth of their nation in the 16century B.C.E on into the 5th century B.C.E. The Greek scriptures focus on the teachings and activities of Jesus Christ and his disciples during the first century C.E.
Yet the Old Testiment and teh New Testiment blend harmoniously in their theme, the phrophesys and historical accuracy link the two harmoniously together. The Hebrew scriptures contain scores of phrophecies on the life birth ministry and death of Jesus Christ, fullfilled in the Greek scriptures. Archaeological finds support the historical facts in the bible and many can be viewed in the British Museum. The record of how the Bible survived thousands of years recopying so minutely by hand can be verified by anyone visiting the British Museum in London which has portions of the books of the bible dating back to the 4th century The recent find in 1986 of the Dead Sea Schrolls also verify this fact. Portions of the Book of Isaiah was found buried in a cave on the outskirts of........................... verify the extreme lenghths the copiests would go to. Whenever they made a mistake the writings were discarded and started all over again.
SCIENTIFICALLY ACCURATE
Only with the dawn of the space age in the 20th century has it been possible for humans to travel far enough into space to verify by direct observation that the earth is a globe, yet thousands of years before humans saw the earth as a globe from outer space the Hebrew phrophet Isaiah stated with remarkable simplicity in the bible: "There is One who is dwelling above the circle of the earth." (Isaiah 40:22)
People had no conception of gravity although Aristotle and Issac Newton held various theories. Nearly 3500 years ago the Bible stated with extrodinary clarity that "the earth is hanging upon nothing." (Job 26:7) A planet hanging 'on empty space was far ahead of its time, the bible writer recorded a statement that is scientifically sound. The cycle of rain and evaporation from the oean unknown in ancient times is described in Ecclesiastes 1:7
The Mosaic law as part of the Hebrew scriptures contained laws far ahead of their time on hygeine included the burying of excretement away from the camp (Deuteronomy 23:13) quarintining of infectious diseases (Levitictus 13:1-5) The contact with any dead animal or dead corpse warrented the avoidance of contact with others (Numbers 19:1-13) All preventative meassures to safeguard against disease thousands of years before medical science learned about the ways in which disease spread, knowledge and wisdom not shared by the surrounding nations at that time. Another law conveyed for sanitation was the circumsision of baby boys instructed to take place on the seventh day after birth the only day a baby would not bleed. More than 2.200 years before William Harvey published his findings about the circulation of the blood, Proverbs 4:23 pointed out the role of the human heart.
Facts
Some relevant facts I have learnt
Jesus Christ was not born on Christmas Day During that time there was a law decread that every person should go to the place of their birth to register themselves for tax purposes as some might have had to make a long journey this would not have been made during the winter time. Luke 2:8-11 shows that the shepherds were in the field at the time of Jesus birth, during the winter months the animals would have been put in a shelter during the night.
Matthew 2:1-16 shows that a star led the atrologers (wise men) first to King Herod and than to Jesus and that then Herod sought to have Jesus killed. No mention is made that anyone other than the astologers saw the star. After they left Jehovah's angel warned Joseph to flee Egypt to safeguard the child Was the star a sign from God or was it from someone seeking to have the child killed??
The bible does not say that the astrogers found the babe Jesus in a manger as depicted in Christmas art, when they arrived Jesus and his parents were living in a house as to Jesus age at that time, based on what Herod learned from the astrologers ordered every boy baby under the age of two to be destroyed. Also we need to note that nowhere in the bible does it give a date as to the birth of Jesus Christ. How did the roman church fix then on the date of 25th December there are many innumerable festivals during the Roman and Babylonian times that can account for this date. Long before the fourth century and long before the christian era itself a festival was celebrated among the heathens, at that precise time of year in honour of the birth of the Babylonion son of the queen of heaven and to swell the number of the nominal numbers of christianity the same festival was adopted. In Egypt the son of Iris the Egyptian title for the queen of heaven was born at this very time of the winter soltice.Thisn tendancy of the christian church to meet paganism half-way was very early developed. Pagan Anglo Saxons worshipped "Yule Day or "The Childs Day" and the night that preceeded it "Mothers Night" this festival referred to the suns's yearly course and the commencement of a new cycle. Among the Sabeans of Arabia this period is observed the moon not the sun as the object of their idolitory. Lord Moon was the object of Arabian worship at that time.\The Saxons refferred to the sun as their idol of worship on the 25 th December.
Easter is nothing other than Astarte, one of the titles of Beltis the queen of heaven of the people of Ninevah of Assyria The worship of Bel and Astarte was very early introduced into Britain, along with the Druids. "the priests of the Groves" at an ancient Druidicial circle of stones a fire would be lit and human sacrifices would be made which says Reverend Alexander Hislop were all part of the ancient worship of Baal. The rabbit has always been a symbol of fertility and the egg in ancient times were used in religious rites of the Egyptians and Greeks and were hung up for mystic purposes in their temples "An egg of wonderous size is said to have fallen from heaven onto the Ephrates. The fishes rolled it to the bank where the doves settled upon it and hatched it out came Venus, who afterwards was called the Syrian Goddess" that is Astarte. Hence the egg became one of the symbols of Astarte or Easter.
It is the day we commemorate because it was the day od the death of Jesus Christ the 14th day of the Jewish month of Nisan began at sundown on Thursday March 31st 33CE it was the day that Jesus completed all that he came to earth to do. Nailed to a torture stake the bible says "The Son of Man came not to be ministered to ,but to minister and to give his soul a ransom in exchange for many" (Matthew 20:28) Jesus gave his soul or life, so that mankind could be rescued from inherited sin and death. "God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotton Son, in order that everone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life" (John 3:16) Jesus knew of our struggles, our human imperfections and sinful tendancies and temptations from the world and the moral decay that surrounds us. Can we really suceed without help?
Jesus did not die on a cross.The Greek word stau-ros is translated 'cross' in many modern bibles. In classical Greek, this word meant an upright pole or stake. If you raise your two arms above your head and imagine the death Jesus suffered on the basis of false charges Would we really want to wear a replica of the insrument of his execution, would you cherish it? The cross is a symbol, an object of devotion veneration or worship 1 Corinth 10:14 says "My beloved ones flee from idolitory" Exodus 20:4 "You shall not make yourself a carved image or any likeness of anything in heaven or on earth you shall not bow down and serve them"
This surely is a difficult one for many, the symbol of the cross in the form of jewlery and worship is renowned and renevated but with some reseach I had to admit this symbol is pagan in origin. Crosses were used as symbols of the Babylonian sun-god and are seen on coins of Julius Ceasar 100-44 B.C It is another symbol of Roman worship There were magic virtues given to the sign of the cross was also a symbol of the Chaldeans and Egyptians In ancient Israel the Israelites wept over the death of their false God Tammuz (Ezek 8:13,14) According to history Tammuz was a Babylonion god, and the cross was used as his symbolthe original form was the letter T' as was found on coins at that time the mystic Tau was marked at baptism on the foreheads of those who initiated in thease Mysteries. The mystic Tau was used as an amulet over the heart on the official garnments of priests of Rome.Th Vestal nuns of Pagan Rome wore the cross suspended from their necklaces as nuns do now The Egyptians did the same with the many barbarious nations with whom they had intercourse
Why we should not celebrate our own Birth days
Hell is not literal and was never meant to be interprted as a place of fiery torment The teaching of the Roman Catholic church began with the Roman ruler Augustus who incorperated his own roman pagan beliefs after converting to Christianity.
We all have a deep spiritual need and many are very much aware of that need in todays stress ridden world this has become more apparant as many are drawn to all sorts of healers mediums astrologers hypnotists and pychaiatrists to solve various problems and deal with our daily struggles. The Bible however, reflects keen understanding on our needs that applies to every generation of mankind. In Jesus's teaching in 'The Sermon on the Mount he showed the way to true happiness, how to settle disputes instructions on how we should pray, the wisest attitude to have towards material needs, the Golden Rule for proper relationships with others how to detect religious frauds and how to have a secure future. Its councel on how to have a sucessful marriage, preventing juvenile delinquency and how to gain and keep friends is far superior to any books or councelors on our mental health and pyschology.
There are articles on how the Red Sea might truly have parted due to a volcanoe erruption, the Ten Plagues did exist, and the virgin Mary was a real person but she was raped by a soldier which was covered up by saying her baby was a gift from God. Then there was what I read recently, and somewhat cynically, entitled 'cracking the code.' Michael Drosnin claims to have discovered hidden messages by means of computer analysis of the Hebrew Scriptures. Certain words, numbers and spaces are skipped to reveal hidden messages. These messages refer to important historical events which could not have been known about when the scriptures were written such as the rise of Hitler, mans conquest on the moon and the Gulf War.
Most people seem to find these theories and suggestions much easier to believe than the concept of there being a Creator of the Universe who prformed miracles. But true or not, it is evident that with this book the Bible comes a sense of peace, wellbeing and happiness to those that study its words, what I believe to be a miracle in itself.
