No Good Deed...

To understand this event, I need to give a little background about myself personally. I am, at the time of writing, a 30-year-old vegetarian woman who lives in a 3-bedroom house with her 6 cats, 2 dogs, fishtanks, and numerous houseplants (including some fascinating carnivorous species). Due to a multitude of health issues, I have never had a chance to marry, nor do I have the energy to spare for courtship. To make matters worse, even if I did someday wish to pursue a romantic relationship, my health would make it nearly impossible for my boyfriend/husband to touch me, and absolutely impossible to do anything "else".

Because my health also limits my ability to get out of the house and get my much-needed doses of social interaction, I invite the few local kids who still live in my tiny, western Kansas farm town to come over to my place to hang out. I have a laptop computer with internet, a Wii (also with internet), a PS2, 2 DS game systems (a DSi and a 3DS), and numerous boardgames they are welcome to play with while visiting my home. I also buy them a nice amount of snack food every month (when I go on my monthly shopping trips) and some small "fun size" candy bars, of which they are allowed to pick 2 per day. Since our local library is only open a few times a week for a couple hours at a time, my house has become the local hang-out for the two families of pre-teens and teens (as well as a few young adults from those families) who live in this town.

As a final personal note, I should mention the rules of my house. I do not permit profanity (at least not within my hearing range), nor do I permit lude or inappropriate jokes. As I tell them, "If it's not G-rated, it doesn't need repeated." I also ask that if they use something, they put it away when they're done, and if they make a mess, they clean it up. If they want to earn a few extra dollars for themselves, I frequently have chores they may do for me to get paid, if they wish to do so. As for the computer, the first rule I tell every person who comes over to use it is, "No porn". I will not tolerate any use porn in my home, and it's one of two things that they've been told will earn them a permanent ban from my house (the other is stealing).

On that note, I'll relate what one of the kids told me yesterday. He has a friend from a town about 15 minutes drive away who sometimes comes over to visit or stay the night with him. When his friend comes over, he says that they can't come over to my house because his parents forbid him to come to my house. They think, according to him, that any 30-year-old woman who lets kids come over to her house and gives them free candy must be a child molester.

Now, I'm not offended by this baseless accusation. Goodness knows I've been accused of other crazy things before, such as a few supposedly religious people saying that all my health problems stem from the fact that I play a video game as evil and Satanic as Pokemon *eyeroll*. It did, however, make me stop and think. I had always assumed that it was impossible to offend people merely by being kind. I now see that this is, in fact, not true. I considered what I would do in such a situation, and I honestly feel that a better solution would be to come and meet the 30-year-old woman. Sit down and talk with her. Find out why she has no children of her own and yet loves to be around children and makes a place in her home for them to visit and enjoy themselves. I think that I would find out more about someone before I proposed the possibility that they might be a child molester and forbad my child from visiting their home.

In short, I feel that we should all try to be slower to take offence and quicker to bear one another's burdens that they may be light. Perhaps, if we do so, we'll be able to change the common saying from "No good deed goes unpunished" to something more positive, such as "No good deed is ignored" or "No good deed goes unpraised".

~Quaggy

Jehovah Who?

(Reposted from my Website Blog Page - Original Post from October 7th, 2011)

I recently participated in a lengthy (but friendly) discussion on Click Critters with a couple of people who insisted that Jehovah was the name of God the Father, not Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Afterward, I wanted to see if this is a point of confusion for most of the Christian world or unique to those with whom I was speaking. Looking up the word "Jehovah" in a normal dictionary quickly told me that this misconception is quite common, and I find myself perplexed by it. I had always thought the Bible more than sufficient to ascertain the identity of Jehovah (and with modern scripture, it becomes unmistakable). Thus, I decided to compile a list of scriptures that seem to make this point abundantly clear.

Creator

1. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men." (John 1:1-4)
   
   • If he was with God, i.e. the Father, and all things were created by him, then John is saying that the "word", i.e. Jesus the Christ, is the creator.
     
   • Note the usage in "the Word was God". We'll come back to this idiomatic expression later in this section.
   
   
2. "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." (Gen. 1:1)
   
   • So, the creator is often referred to as God, also.
   
   
3. "In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist." (Colossians 1:14-17)
   
   • Through whose blood do we find redemption? By him were all things created. Unless "mainstream" Christianity is trying to say that we find redemption through the blood of God the Father and *not* Jesus Christ, His Son...
   
   
4. "Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;" (Isaiah 44:24)
   
   • Again, who is the Redeemer of mankind? We are once more told that the Redeemer "maketh all things".
   
   
5. "And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land." (Jonah 1:9)
   
   • The creator is also called "the Lord, the God of Heaven", another name we can then ascribe to the Savior, Jesus Christ.
   
   
6. "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people" (Luke 1:68)
   
   • So, the Lord God of Israel is also the redeemer, and who is the redeemer, again? Thus, we can add yet another reference to the Savior to our list.
   
   
7. "Thus saith the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me. I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded. ... Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour." (Isaiah 45:11-12 & 15)
   
   • This passage makes clear a distinction between "the Lord, the Holy One of Israel" and "his Maker". Who could be the Maker of the Lord God of Israel except God the Father? Thus, the Lord God of Israel must not be the Father Himself, especially since God the Father is not our direct Savior. Everyone together now, who is our Savior? :)
   
   
8. "And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:" (Ephesians 3:8)
   
   • Again, God (the Father) created all things *by* Jesus Christ, denoting Jesus specifically as the creator. If the Lord God of Israel, Jehovah, created all things, and Jesus Christ, the Son of God, created all things, does it not stand to reason that Jesus the Christ *is* Jehovah, the Lord God of Israel?
   
   
9. "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;" (Hebrews 1:1-2)
   
   • Once again, Jesus is specifically designated as the one by whom the worlds were made.
   
   
10. "And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all." (Colossians 3:10-11)
    
    • Christ is once again designated as the creator, but I didn't include this passage just to repeat the point again. I included it to note another occurrence of the idiomatic expression I mentioned in the second note to Point #1 (John 1:1-4). "Christ is all and in all". Obviously we are not all Jesus Christ. This expression, while somewhat difficult for most people (myself included) to understand, seems to denote a close relationship, so close that two become one.
    
    

I AM

1. "And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations." (Exodus 3:13-15)
   "And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. And the Lord said unto him, Who hath made man’s mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say." (Exodus 4:10-12)
   
   • I lumped both of these together because they are from the same conversation, specifically Moses speaking with God in the burning bush, but for the sake of brevity, I cut out the passages inbetween that don't pertain to our stated topic. Now, we've already established who created all things, thus, if "I AM" created all things (including man's mouth, the seeing, and the blind), then "I AM" must, logically, refer to the creator, which we've already established to be Jesus the Christ.
     
   • Also notice that "I AM" promises to be with Moses and, in the verses I didn't include, specifically ones like Exodus 3:20, the Lord promises to "smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go". Thus, the deliverer of Israel is also "I AM", i.e. Jesus the Christ. This will be relevant in a moment...
   
   
2. "Then the Lord said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land. And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the Lord: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them." (Exodus 6:1-3)
   
   • So, the deliverer of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, was and is Jehovah, and, as we've already established, the deliverer of Israel and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was and is "I AM", who is also known as Jesus Christ. Thus, Jesus Christ = "I AM" = Jehovah. To drive this point home, I'll add the words of the Savior Himself...
   
   
3. "Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by."
   
   • The footnote here points out, "The term I Am used here in the Greek is identical with the Septuagint usage in Ex. 3:14 which identifies Jehovah." Since the Septuagint predates by centuries any English translation of the Bible, we can only surmise that the reason the Jews took up stones to kill him (by stoning, a common punishment in that day for blasphemy) was because he claimed to be "I AM", i.e. Jehovah, the God of Israel. If we, who believe on the name of Jesus Christ, believe him to be a sinless man, must we not, therefore, accept his word when he calls himself "I AM", i.e. Jehovah?
   
   

Latter-Day Scripture (a.k.a. the Cheat Sheet)
(I need not make any content notes here. These speak quite clearly for themselves, one obvious advantage to the use of Latter-Day Scripture.)

1. "Yea, I know that ye know that in the body he shall show himself unto those at Jerusalem, from whence we came; for it is expedient that it should be among them; for it behooveth the great Creator that he suffereth himself to become subject unto man in the flesh, and die for all men, that all men might become subject unto him." (2 Nephi 9:5)
   
2. "For behold, the time cometh, and is not far distant, that with power, the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, who was, and is from all eternity to all eternity, shall come down from heaven among the children of men, and shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay, and shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases. ... And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and his mother shall be called Mary." (Mosiah 3:5 & 3:8)
   
3. "And also that ye might know of the coming of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and of earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and that ye might know of the signs of his coming, to the intent that ye might believe on his name." (Helaman 14:12)
   
4. "And now I bid unto all, farewell. I soon go to rest in the paradise of God, until my spirit and body shall again reunite, and I am brought forth triumphant through the air, to meet you before the pleasing bar of the great Jehovah, the Eternal Judge of both quick and dead. Amen." (Moroni 10:34) (See Romans 14:10 if you don't know about "the judgement seat of Christ", or...)
   
5. "Do ye exercise faith in the redemption of him who created you? Do you look forward with an eye of faith, and view this mortal body raised in immortality, and this corruption raised in incorruption, to stand before God to be judged according to the deeds which have been done in the mortal body?" (Alma 5:14)
   
6. "Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters. And never have I showed myself unto man whom I have created, for never has man believed in me as thou hast. Seest thou that ye are created after mine own image? Yea, even all men were created in the beginning after mine own image. Behold, this body, which ye now behold, is the body of my spirit; and man have I created after the body of my spirit; and even as I appear unto thee to be in the spirit will I appear unto my people in the flesh." (Ether 3:14-16)
   
7. "Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world. And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning." (3 Nephi 11:10-11)
   
8. "Behold, I am he that gave the law, and I am he who covenanted with my people Israel; therefore, the law in me is fulfilled, for I have come to fulfil the law; therefore it hath an end." (3 Nephi 15:5 - Jesus is speaking)
   
9. "We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit, before us; and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold, in color like amber. His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying: I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father." (D&C 110:2-4)
   
10. "Listen to the voice of Jesus Christ, your Redeemer, the Great I Am, whose arm of mercy hath atoned for your sins" (D&C 29:1)
    
11. "And he bore record, saying: I saw his glory, that he was in the beginning, before the world was; Therefore, in the beginning the Word was, for he was the Word, even the messenger of salvation— The light and the Redeemer of the world; the Spirit of truth, who came into the world, because the world was made by him, and in him was the life of men and the light of men. The worlds were made by him; men were made by him; all things were made by him, and through him, and of him. And I, John, bear record that I beheld his glory, as the glory of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth, even the Spirit of truth, which came and dwelt in the flesh, and dwelt among us." (D&C 93:7-11)
    

Conclusion

I feel that I've provided ample evidence, both Biblical and from Latter-Day Scripture, to support the assertion that Jesus Christ is Jehovah. Thus far, I have yet to find any evidence to prove that Jesus is *not* Jehovah other than the traditions of men (which usually have little or no connection to scripture). With Latter-Day Scripture, this fact is unmistakable, but even with just the Bible, I think it's a very clear point. Unfortunately, I suspect that the larger problem is a difficulty finding faith in the divinity of Christ, upon which all Christianity, of necessity, is based and without which it inevitably falls.

~Quaggy