The irony of forecasting publication of a book titled, The Rebel Jesus, below a post condemning those who are resisting authority is quite amazing!! What did Jesus continually do when He was told: “It is not lawful ...”?* And do you not think that the Scribes and Pharisees might have written the same of Jesus and John the Baptist that you wrote of Tim and James? [Italics identify cleric Michael's words; square brackets [ ] mine.]
“[We] can't help thinking that [publicity] is precisely what these [two rebels, John and Jesus] want. ... these [rebels] who have a contrary, jarring interpretation of scripture. An extreme fringe. This is the view not just of [we, S & P,] ... but the Roman[s] ... and so many others. In fact, it's only an extreme fringe. ... It's those [rebel]s, however, that tend to make the noise and gather the attention. A case in point being, for example, [that locust-eating John and that Sabbath-breaking Jesus of Nazareth. (Can anything good ...?] The case has, predictably, attracted international attention. And, by the way, to embrace various conspiracy theories** ... [of plans to kill them and to] see the immoral hand of secular government ... and to regard resistance as some form of [divine] command. There's an element of ... martyrdom on display in these [two], because they know that their ... rejection of authority appears heroic to their base. Bombast and hubris: they can tell their supporters that they're being persecuted for their faith.”And Michael, what of your “gentle rabbi Jesus”? You know, the One with the “scourge of small cords” (2X); the One who called the “authorities” hypocrites (7 times in rapid succession) interspersed with “ye blind guides;” “ye fools and blind;” “whited sepulchres;” “Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers”? Not to mention “Tell that fox [Herod] ...”
As to your other comments [appended with my added perspective]:
... while the lockdown has certainly made life more challenging for all of us, clergy included, it certainly hasn't made it impossible [except for the escalation of suicides, the overdoses, the cruelty of isolation, extreme loneliness, extreme stress of sudden instability, the increasing child and spousal abuse and murders; etc. etc.. that are estimated by many to be far more catastrophic than the deaths attributed to COVID.]The essential difference between you, dear Michael, and the resisters (that you have judged as “extreme fringe”) is that you manifest as a believer in the narrative of “authorities,” whereas the resisters do not believe in that narrative (just as Jesus didn't believe in the power narrative of His day, including the rituals of washing, etc.) But this is different, you might say: “There is a terrible, novel virus.” Except, do you not know that long ago, the powers recognized the power potential of disease? (Remember the small-pox blankets?) Do you not know about decades of multi-national, gain-of-function research?
In fact, it's only an extreme fringe within Christianity [except for the thousands on thousands of science, medical, mental health, legal professionals*** and others who know and understand the science and history of power and power abuse. To cast off conspiracy** as merely a theory is to be amongst those who “seeing, see not, and hearing, hear not” the reality of things as they are, as they have been, as they will continue to be unless we wake up to the reality of the power-obsessed prince of this world, and then act with discerning wisdom in defense of truth and justice.]
Yes, there are people sick or dying, but many resisters believe in Revelation 2:9 — that we are in an age of “lying wonders,” the like of which the world has never seen, aided by a technology and a bio-weapon industry devised and designed for total control. Many know that the power paradigm that killed Jesus and most of His Apostles, plus tens of thousands of His disciples in every age, even to this very day, is working feverishly to finally achieve what has been sought for millennia — the destruction of the world and of man as created by Almighty God. It will not end with a comfortable martyrdom for those who live by their conscience because the lines and divisions are being drawn more rigidly every day.
So, yes, some people are sick and some dying, as they always have and will, but the COVID death and case counts have been manipulated which can be clearly discerned if one can break out of indoctrination to look beyond the MSM and power narrative into the real data, even the revised WHO data.
Investigate the COVID deaths in your congregation (or personal knowledge) compared to deaths in prior years. Do COVID deaths deserve more compassion than other deaths like cancer, influenza, suicide, overdose, accident, etc.? What was the “test cycle threshold” that justified a COVID death report***? Whom should we believe? The powers pursuing and protecting more power, gain, and glory? or the whistle-blowers and truth-seekers who risk everything in pursuit and exposure of what is real?
The resisters see the deliberate fomenting of division; the destruction of people's lives, hopes, and dreams; the disparagement of rights and rights' advocates; and the obsessive pursuit of total control by the powers to be but a repeat of numerous attempts in the past as documented in history and prophesied in scripture. Remember Ephesians 6:12? John's Revelation?
As a Christian, this is all grimly difficult to watch, because it's so potentially dangerous. [Not potentially, Michael, IS, because the last-days' powers will not dis-empower themselves for as Harry Kissinger admits: “Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac.” Thus the variants and fear-mongering by the powers and their MSM will proliferate, as needed till their Utopian (dystopian) WO is achieved. They are already telling us so.]This COVID scenario is a made-in-hell, nigh perfect scenario to perpetuate fear, blind obedience, and distrust in everything and everyone except the advocates of the narrative — the promising saviours.
Also, frankly, because it makes the beliefs I hold so dear to appear crass, extreme, anti-science and hysterical [because you accept the power narrative that tells you so. The resisters are not anti-science. They are anti-corrupted, -manipulated science in the service of WO.]
This is, please believe me, not the church [that the powers want nor that Satan wants. He wants a compliant, unquestioning church, trusting in the arm of flesh to blindly accept experimental vaccines and anti-social, defacing, demoralizing, dehumanizing mandates under cover of love and sacrifice — till the Church is no more.]
That's because the most central teaching of Jesus is to love God, and love one's neighbour as oneself. That means love for community, a concern for the well-being of others, a selfless and sacrificial empathy for everybody. [But it also means love of rights and freedoms given by God. It means not trusting in the arm of flesh. It means to be awake to the reality of power abuse. It means that until we admit that the pursuit and protection of power gain, and glory have plagued every age of history, we will never understand the events of our time. It means standing for truth. It means knowing that even devils can quote scripture in furtherance of a control agenda.]
The Almighty was unavailable for comment [except that He and many of His followers already have commented and set the example to ignore “laws” that are not lawful or that are based in fear and exaggeration of purpose to support power agendas. And if you think “turn the other cheek” means placid submission to wrong or harm, read the works of Walter Wink.****]
So please, do not be a blind guide to your parishioners or the public. Study the science and history of power abuse, mind control, the 1960s Stanley Milgram Experiment, psychological warfare, and the adversary's agenda throughout history. Perhaps Jesus already gave us a clue? Count the sheep on the narrow way, then count the sheep on the broad way.***** Which has been the persistent way of history? Being led astray is why a persistent Gospel message is: repent, repent, repent. Trust in the Good Shepherd.
The powers and the crowd have almost never been a safe escort.
Sincerely,
SMSmith
CC: Fairview Baptist Church
GRACELIFE Church
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† Michael's article: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/road-ahead-covid-19-rules-ignored-churches-alberta-1.5923035
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Examples: “It is not lawful.”
New Testament | Matthew 12:1–4; Mark 2:24–26; Luke 6:2–4 ~ AT that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day. But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him; How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests?
New Testament | John 5:8–11 ~ Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath. The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed. He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk.
[Added March 3, 2021: Old Testament | Esther 3:2-4 ~ And all the king's servants, that were in the king's gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence. Then the king's servants, which were in the king's gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king's commandment? Now it came to pass, when they spake daily unto him, and he hearkened not unto them, ...]
Old Testament | Daniel 3:16–18 ~ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Old Testament | Daniel 6:10 ~ Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed [in contravention of the law], and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
New Testament | Acts 16:20–21 ~ And [the masters of Lydia] brought [Paul and Silas] to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.
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Conspiracy (theory??) in scripture (Bold emphasis added.)
Old Testament | Isaiah 14:13–14 ~ For thou [O Lucifer] hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
Old Testament | Genesis 37:18 ~ And when they saw him [Joseph] afar off, even before he came near unto them, they [his brothers] conspired against him to slay him.
Old Testament | 1 Samuel 22:13 ~ And Saul said unto him, Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast enquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?
Old Testament | 2 Samuel 15:12 ~ And Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David's counsellor, from his city, even from Giloh, while he offered sacrifices. And the conspiracy was strong; for the people increased continually with Absalom.
Old Testament | 2 Samuel 15:31 ~ And one told David, saying, Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.
Old Testament | 1 Kings 15:27 ~ And Baasha the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him; and Baasha smote him at Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines; for Nadab and all Israel laid siege to Gibbethon.
Old Testament | 1 Kings 16:9 ~ And his servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots, conspired against him,
Old Testament | 2 Kings 9:14 ~ So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram.
Old Testament | 2 Kings 10:9 ~ behold, I conspired against my master,
Old Testament | 2 Kings 12:19-20 ~ And the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and slew Joash in the house of Millo, which goeth down to Silla.
Old Testament | 2 Kings 14:19 ~ Now they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem: and he fled to Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there.
Old Testament | 2 Kings 15:10 ~ And Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and smote him before the people, and slew him, and reigned in his stead.
Old Testament | 2 Kings 15:15 ~ And the rest of the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he made, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
Old Testament | 2 Kings 15:25 ~ But Pekah the son of Remaliah, a captain of his, conspired against him, and smote him in Samaria, in the palace of the king's house,
Old Testament | 2 Kings 15:30 ~ And Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him, and reigned in his stead, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.
Old Testament | 2 Kings 17:4 ~ And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea: for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year: therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison.
Old Testament | 2 Kings 21:23-24 ~ And the servants of Amon conspired against him, and slew the king in his own house. And the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon;
Old Testament | 2 Chronicles 24:21 ~ And they conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the LORD.
Old Testament | 2 Chronicles 24:26 ~ And these are they that conspired against him; Zabad the son of Shimeath an Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith a Moabitess.
Old Testament | 2 Chronicles 25:27 ~ Now after the time that Amaziah did turn away from following the LORD they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to Lachish: but they sent to Lachish after him, and slew him there.
Old Testament | 2 Chronicles 33:24-25 ~ And his servants conspired against him, and slew him in his own house. But the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon;
Old Testament | Psalms 37:12 ~ The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.
Old Testament | Jeremiah 11:9 ~ And the LORD said unto me, A conspiracy is found among the men of Judah, and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
Old Testament | Ezekiel 22:25 ~ There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof.
Old Testament | Nehemiah 4:8 ~ And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it.
Daniel 10:10-14, 20 ~ invisible forces were clearly at work in Daniel's life and times, as also the conspiracy that got him thrown in the Lion's den.
New Testament | John 5:16 ~ And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day.
New Testament | Acts 23:12-13 ~ And when it was day, certain of the Jews banded together, and bound themselves under a curse, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. And they were more than forty which had made this conspiracy.
New Testament | Ephesians 6:12 ~ For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high (heavenly?) places.
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Only a few of the counter-narrative voices out of many possible:
▪ PCR Testing Saga: Were We Duped? Were federal health officials and experts at WHO really unaware that the recommended high cycle count (CT) for PCR tests would produce an exorbitant number of false positives for COVID? by Dr. Joseph Mercola (Childrens' Health Defense | Feb. 23, 2021) https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/pcr-testing-incorrect-use/?utm_source=salsa&eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=b2c12bbb-ac81-4cb4-9987-6f4bd15c26f0
PCR Cycle Thresholds: (Bold emphasis added.)
“The FDA has given lab manufacturers a wide latitude in determining the cycle threshold cut-off number of their qualitative tests to determine positive versus negative. These tests were approved under Emergency Use Authorization and have not been subjected to typical FDA scrutiny. With this in mind, the state of Florida has required all laboratories doing COVID testing to report the cycle threshold numbers used in qualitative and quantitative tests.
“So how does a qualitative RT-PCR test work? Basically, the manufacturer sets the test to turn off the cycling or amplification process when a certain number is hit. For a qualitative test set at 40, after 40 amplification cycles, if any viral material is detected, it turns off and is reported as positive. If none is detected, it would be reported as negative. If the number of amplification cycles was really 15 or 25, it would still run until it gets to 40 and be reported as positive.
“With these type of tests, it's critical to use an agreed-upon cycle threshold value such as 33 (CDC) or 35 (Dr. Fauci) rather than setting it at a potentially misleading 40 or 45. Many of the current tests in use are preset by the manufacturer to these higher numbers.
“The World Health Organization issued a notice last week telling the labs "the cut-off should be manually adjusted to ensure that specimens with high Ct values are not incorrectly assigned SARS-CoV-2 detected due to background noise." Could this be a reason why many people test positive but remain asymptomatic? In that same memo, WHO said all labs should report the cycle threshold value to treating physicians.” at https://www.medpagetoday.com/infectiousdisease/covid19/90508
▪ Canadian Government Delays Mandatory Traveler Quarantine – #SolutionsWatch (James Corbett | 02/09/2021 | Time 36:25) at https://www.corbettreport.com/canadian-government-delays-mandatory-traveler-quarantine-solutionswatch/
▪ Canadian public health officials have no record of SARS-COV-2 isolation/purification performed anywhere, ever by Christine Massey, M.Sc., (exclusively for People for Justice Canada) at https://peopleforjusticecanada.com/2021/01/05/canadian-public-health-officials-have-no-record-of-sars-cov-2-isolation-purification-performed-anywhere-ever/
▪ PCR Pandemic: Interview with Virus Mania's Dr Claus Köhnlein (Sr. Sam Bailey | October 27, 2020 | Time: 35:45) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LToSnpz8A4
▪ COVID-19 panic more dangerous than the disease, say Catholic philosopher, doctor at https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/covid-19-panic-more-dangerous-than-the-disease-say-catholic-philosopher-doctor (PDF link to full article found in this link)
▪ Masks: The Science & The Myths (Dr. Lee Merritt) (Dr. Simone Gold | October 18, 2020 | Time 23:25) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RaBLKKXJt4
▪ The Truth About PCR Tests (Dr. Sam Bailey | Jan 12, 2021 | Time 17:42) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWNkJUDctdk
▪ Excess Mortality - What You Aren't Being Told (Dr. Sam Bailey | December 22, 2020 | Time 12:25) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw5ldWr9QD0
▪ Dr. Simone Gold: America's Frontline Doctors (several videos) at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcnTNQG1_WkZ5h7go3B0Ntw/video
▪ Dr. Simone Gold 2020 Book: I Do Not Consent: My Fight Against Medical Cancel Culture
▪ Making face masks mandatory is not backed by science or law: Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms at https://www.jccf.ca/making-face-masks-mandatory-is-not-backed-by-science-or-law/
▪ Dr. Roger Hodkinson CEO & Medical Director – MA, MB, FRCPC, FCAP (Dr. Marco Caravaggio |November 17,2020 | Time 5:02) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvYzf0MqObg
▪ World Freedom Alliance Stockholm Part 2 (Street Trooth | November 24, 2020 | Time 24:01) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nwtHWaHYoU
▪ Huge Lawsuits Coming Against COVID Totalitarians and Con-Artists at https://thenewamerican.com/huge-lawsuits-coming-against-covid-totalitarians-and-con-artists/?fbclid=IwAR0dzvQxcJbaogNTRoJ15DA2LgAcY49P6OWUqNfdFU0kGotagYjfm64QG34
▪ Coronavirus Fraud Scandal — The Biggest Fight Has Just Begun at https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2020/10/17/coronavirus-fraud-biggest-crime-against-humanity.aspx?cid_source=dnl&cid_medium=email&cid_content=art1ReadMore&cid=20201017Z1&mid=DM679632&rid=989570834
▪ https://childrenshealthdefense.org/
▪ What NO ONE is Saying About the Lockdowns (corbettreport.com | November 24, 2020 | Time: 9:08) at https://www.corbettreport.com/lockdowns/
▪ THIS IS WHERE WE ARE NOW (February 4, 2021 | Dave Cullen | Time 28:00) at https://computingforever.com/2021/02/04/this-is-where-we-are-now/
▪ GASLIGHTING, UNENDING LOCKDOWNS AND CLIMATE CHANGE (February 12, 2021 | Dave Cullen | Time 29:24) at https://www.bitchute.com/channel/hybM74uIHJKf/
▪ DEAR IRISH PEOPLE, IT’S TIME TO WAKE UP (Computing Forever | February 23, 2021 | 16:02) at https://www.bitchute.com/video/uxpMddbwYQU/
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Walter Wink. Naming the Powers: The Language of Power in the New Testament (The Powers : Volume One) Kindle Edition. Fortress Press
Wink, Walter. Unmasking the Powers: The Invisible Forces That Determine Human Existence: 2 (Powers: Vol 2) Fortress Press. Kindle Edition.
Walter Wink. Engaging the Powers: Discernment and Resistance in a World of Domination [Powers: Vol 3]. Fortress Press. Kindle Edition
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New Testament | Matthew 7:13-14 ~ Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
