The doctrines referred to in this post title and in Old Testament Numbers 31:16 and New Testament Revelation 21 were the means “to cast a stumbling block” before God's covenant people. And considering that stumbling blocks come in all shapes and sizes, how might those doctrines be manifesting in our tech-saturated world?
I think most of us already know that we have ported many abominable doctrines directly into our homes for decades (subtly, at first) woven in amongst the news and entertainments of television programming. And programming is the operative word. We gradually accepted devolving standards until now we have the internet and the wild-west of western TikTok, a social-media platform, created in the east.2
60 Minutes Australia did a recent segment that is available in some countries,3 detailing the eastern and western versions of TikTok with a short trailer available here.4
Recent headlines include:
▪ China Is Attempting To Influence US Kids By Offering An ‘Opium Version’ Of TikTok, Expert Says5But should we blame China for the different versions or is this broader than China? The doctrine of Balaam existed before China. The doctrine of Balaam was to distract, entrance, and seduce covenant people into breaking covenant and thus, weaken them from the inside out. And whether China and friends have an agenda to weaken and destroy the western world, the western world has manifest, for decades, a myopia, a self-deception, and almost a death-wish in pursuing the pride cycle7 — in manifesting the grandiosity, narcissism, and psychopathy of “unimpeachable” superiority. Remember ex-CiA chief, Mike Pompeo, who crowed to an applauding audience: “We lied; we cheated; we stole; [we ... (fill in the m-word he held back)].”8 Consider how we re-elect / re-appoint, time after time, so many Right AND Left representatives who lie, cheat, steal, and endorse killing with recycling impunity. (BUT for how much longer?)
▪ TikTok is China’s Trojan Horse6
The doctrines of old — the severing of words from actions and meaning; the delusions of smoothing hypocrisies — are now tightly woven into the fabric of our countries and governance. With our mouths we espouse human rights and values, but in our actions and policies, we do the inverse. We live the lie. We pursue the lie. We believe the lie. We demand others believe it, too.
We cherish and safe-guard lie-porting devices, not just in our homes, but carry them constantly in our hands, pockets, purses, and packs. And YES, yes, there is much good we can access and do via these devices, but do we ever analyze or ask: What is the majority of my use? for the good or for the ill? as a stepping stone or a stumbling block?
Do we have the courage to investigate ourselves, individually and collectively?
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* Balaam: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balaam
Nicolaism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolaism
“Because Revelation seems to link Balaam with the Nicolaitans, one can assume the church of Ephesus faced a similar dilemma. Immersed in pagan Roman culture in that city, the sect of the Nicolaitans may have attempted to woo the Christians away from their religion, just as they had been wooed before.” https://www.christianity.com/wiki/people/who-were-the-nicolaitans-in-revelation-why-did-god-hate-their-practices-so-much.html
“The doctrine of the Nicolaitans appears to have been a form of antinomianism, which makes the fatal mistake that man can freely partake in sin because the Law of God is no longer binding. It held the truth on the gratuitous reckoning of righteousness; but supposed that a mere intellectual "belief" in this truth had a saving power. // Nicolaitans of the 2nd century seem to have continued and extended the views of the 1st century adherents, holding to the freedom of the flesh and sin, and teaching that the deeds of the flesh had no effect upon the health of the soul and consequently no relation to salvation. Today, the doctrine is now largely taught that the gospel of Christ has made God's law of no effect: that by "believing" we are released from the necessity of being doers of the Word. But this is the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which Christ so unsparingly condemned in the book of Revelation.” | https://religion.fandom.com/wiki/Nicolaitans
1. Old Testament | Numbers 31:16 (Bold emphasis added.)
16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.
New Testament | Revelation 2:12-17 (Bold emphasis added.)
12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
13 I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.
14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.
15 So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.
16 Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TikTok
https://moc-n-dox.blogspot.com/2022/11/hickory-dickory-dock-tiktok.html
3. TikTok in China versus the United States | 60 Minutes (60 Minutes | November 8, 2022 | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0j0xzuh-6rY
4. https://www.cbsnews.com/video/tiktok-in-china-versus-the-united-states-60-minutes/#x (Nov. 8, 2022)
5. by NICOLE SILVERIO, MEDIA REPORTER November 07, 2022 at
https://dailycaller.com/2022/11/07/china-influence-american-children-opium-version-tiktok-spinach/
6. BY ADONIS HOFFMAN, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR - 10/18/22 at https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/3694346-tiktok-is-chinas-trojan-horse/
See also:
• TikTok's Chinese platform enriches kids while US version dumbs them down: report AMERICAN NEWS Nov 7, 2022 at https://thepostmillennial.com/tiktoks-chinese-platform-enriches-kids-while-us-version-dumbs-them-down-report
• REPORT: CHINESE VERSION OF TIKTOK FOR KIDS EDUCATIONAL, EXPORTS LESS INTELLIGENT VERSION TO THE US | November 7, 2022 | at https://offthepress.com/report-chinese-version-of-tiktok-for-kids-educational-exports-less-intelligent-version-to-the-us/
• Chinese version of TikTok limits use of app by those under 14 | September 18, 2021 Reuters | at https://www.reuters.com/technology/chinese-version-tiktok-limits-use-app-by-those-under-14-2021-09-18/
• What are the Main Differences Between Douyin vs Tiktok? https://gab-china.com/what-are-the-main-differences-between-douyin-vs-tiktok/
• It looks like China does have access to U.S. TikTok user data TikTok confirmed that employees based in China are able to access U.S. user data through "approval protocols." By Christianna Silva and Elizabeth de Luna on November 3, 2022 at https://mashable.com/article/tiktok-china-access-data-in-us
• Warning Chinese-owned social media app TikTok is harvesting phone data | ABC News (ABC News (Australia) | Sep 2022 | Time 4:47) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9N9Ef56Cwk
7. Pride Cycle: https://dejavu-timestwo.blogspot.com/2019/08/are-we-repeating-history-without-memory.html
8. https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2020/01/lost-soul-of-america.html
https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2020/04/mike-we-lied-we-cheated-we-stole-pompeus.html
