Today’s Devotional – October 11th (“Literally in Trouble: The Johnny Appleseed Delusion”)

By admin On September 7th, 2014

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Today’s Devotional – October 11th

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“Literally in Trouble: The Johnny Appleseed Delusion”

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And He (Jesus) said,

Unto you it is given to know

the mysteries of the kingdom of God:

but to others in parables;

that seeing they might not see,

and hearing they might not understand.”

Luke 8:10

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John Chapman, born in 1774, spent his adult life as a vagabond, traveling around Ohio,

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Johnny_Appleseed_1.jpg

Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, and Illinois, planting and caring for apple orchards, and being somewhat of a missionary and evangelist, preaching the doctrines of a self-proclaimed prophet, Emanuel Swedenborg.

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Yes, this man did what he thought was his commission from God, to plant apple seeds wherever he went. And of course, his nickname became Johnny Appleseed. And he walked barefoot through the countryside, wearing a tin cooking pot for a hat, and a bag of apple-seeds over his shoulder, planting seeds, and talking of the Swedenborg gospel to whoever would listen.

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Drawing of Jonathan Chapman, aka Johnny Appleseed. – Wikipedia – US Public Domain

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THE NATURAL (CARNAL) MAN

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Johnny_Appleseed.gif

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Now this article is not to disparage the folksy legend of Johnny Appleseed. (But to set the record straight, the gospel Chapman preached is currently known as the “Jesus Only” gospel, which denies the existence of the Father and the Holy Spirit.) 

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But it does make a somewhat appropriate introduction to a great problem which often occurs when people try to interpret the Bible literally, when the Bible should be interpreted spiritually, and even allegorically.

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Listen… “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” 1st Corinthians 2:14

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The Bible uses many things in nature to present spiritual truths. For instance, John Chapman quite possibly read many passages such as this one… “Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;)” 2nd Corinthians 9:10.

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And from such similar passages as this, John Chapman perhaps took a literal connotation, and began his mission to plant literal apple seeds throughout the land.

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Johnny Appleseed – Wikimedia – Public Domain 

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GETTING INTO REAL TROUBLE

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But there are many readers of the Bible who have ended up in a lot more trouble than Johnny Appleseed, by ignoring the true meaning of certain allegories. At least Johnny lived a somewhat healthful life!

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But there have been many who have read about wine in the Bible, and have taken such passages literally, and eventually became drunkards. When the truth is, wine is used in the Bible as an allegory concerning the blood of Jesus.

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There have been others who have read the parable of the Ten Virgins, and have begun advocating polygamy, when in fact that parable is speaking of churches, not literal women!

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And there are many today who look at passages concerning dancing, and have taken this metaphor concerning the joy we have in Jesus, as permission to engage in today’s sensual dances!

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Five Wise Virgins – Matt 25 – www.thebiblerevival.com – Public Domain

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THE BIBLE, A SUPERNATURAL BOOK

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“And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:” 2nd Thess. 2:11.

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God has written the Bible in such a way, that it reveals to each person whatever is the ruling force within each particular individual’s heart.

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Listen to David… “With the merciful Thou wilt show Thyself merciful; with an upright man Thou wilt show Thyself upright; With the pure Thou wilt show Thyself pure; and with the froward (crooked) Thou wilt show Thyself froward (unsavoury).” Psalm 18:25, 26.

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For those who wish to prove the Bible is not the Word of God, they will have no trouble finding supposed error within its pages. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Jan_van_Eyck_-_Diptych_-_WGA07587.jpg.

For those who wish to have a God who will endlessly torture all those who reject their church, there are certain verses which seem to confirm that idea of so-called, “Eternal Torment” (which name is never found in Scripture).

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For those who wish the “bad guys” to be someone else, the Bible will seemingly point the accusing finger at “the other guy”.

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For those who wish to find an excuse to sin, the Bible will appear to supply excuses.

http://theheavensdeclare.net/the-fleeing-revelation-12-woman-constellation-the-message-of-habakkuk/.

For those who don’t want to be bothered with Bible study, the Bible will almost seem to give the necessary permission to be excused from Bible study.

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For those who want to go after worldly enterprises, earthly riches, or amusements and pleasures, the Bible supposedly contains all the necessary encouragements to do so.

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And on and on and on it goes…

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Hell – Jan van Eyck Diptych – Wikipedia – US Public Domain

ABOVE PICTURE: Unfunny Judgment Day Cartoon – a party tonight – signsofheaven.org

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THE BIBLE REVEALS MY OWN HEART

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In other words, for those who wish to find the Jesus of their own making (for there are many Jesus’s, howbeit false ones), there are enough relevant passages in which to do so.

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No it’s not that the Bible has lies in it. Every Word of God is true and pure. But God has written it in such a way, to judge each and every person, as to show just exactly what is in a person’s own heart.

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Listen… “For the Word of God is (living), and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12.

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Yes, the Bible is a discerner of each and every human heart! It cuts both ways, either to save or to destroy.

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But for those who seek to become a true Follower of Jesus, the Bible begins to open up to that Believer. At first, it may only be a few passages. But it is enough for that individual to begin that upward journey on the pathway of truth. And more and more, as time goes by, does that truth-seeker begin to comprehend further Bible passages.

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And that pathway begins to shine brighter and brighter on the road to the Celestial City of God… “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.” Proverbs 4:18, 19

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MANY JOHNNY APPLESEEDS!

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Starlight_sower_(1)_by_artist_HAI_KNAFO_2011_inspired_by_Or_Zaruaa.jpg

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When rightly interpreted, the Bible reveals the true character of Christ and our relationship to Him. Yes, the true Gospel of Christ is quite often veiled by the many allegories, which are found throughout the pages of Scripture!

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Unfortunately, there are very many teachers who subscribe to a totally non-biblical hermeneutic which commands the Christian to abstain from the spiritual interpretation of Scripture, as far as possible!

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And so, many Bible students become locked out of much of the Bible, simply because their teachers command them, “to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.” 1st Timothy 4:3

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Yes, as this above verse allegorizes, many teachers command their students to abstain from the strong meat of the Word which are often veiled within allegorical types and symbols found in its various stories, in both the Old Testament, as well as the New Testament.

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Starlight Seed Sower – painting – cropped image – by Hai Knafo – inspired by Or Zaruaa Synagogue – Wikimedia – Creative-Commons Public-Domain

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GOOD NEWS!

David's sorrow - Wikigallery - Public Domain

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Well, there is Good News to be gleaned concerning these things. Yes, if I perceive that I have been deceived into believing lies, by my own misinterpretation of Scripture, God is allowing me time to amend my ways!

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Listen… And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.” 2nd Timothy 2:19, 21

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And so, with promises such as this above passage, I can turn from my wicked ways and seek God’s face. And God is very merciful and of a tender heart!

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Now isn’t that some really Good News!?

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David’s sorrow – Wikigallery – Public Domain

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anna_Blunden_-_%22For_Only_One_Short_Hour%22_-_Google_Art_Project.jpgTODAY’S PRAYER…

“Dear Lord, Please keep me from allowing my own heart to deceive me. Help me to seek the true Jesus, and be willing to forsake all, so to follow Him…

Prayer – Anna Blunden – For Only One Short Hour – Wikimedia – Public Domain

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Question_book_magnify2.svg

READ MORE…

To explore deeper into this subject, please read… “Fleeing to the Mountains, Part 3: The Abomination in My Heart”, or you can also read… “June 19th (The Bible, A Supernatural Book)”

Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license

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THE END

.picture - soldiers of the cross - armor up!

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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN

Info & pics of constellations on this site from Wikipedia & International Astronomical Union (click here)

 

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“FLEE TO THE MOUNTAINS”

Matthew 24:

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“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:” Matthew 24:15, 16

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Panorama_from_beth_meir_5.jpg

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So the above verse is a warning to all those who are living over there in Palestine. “Flee to the mountains!”. And this photo of the mountains of Judea just might be a good place to flee to. But with today’s tracking devices, it probably wouldn’t be too long until they found you. But does this passage have a message for us Christians who are scattered elsewhere around the world? Listen once again…

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“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:” Matthew 24:15, 16

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Notice it says in the above verse, “whoso reads, let him understand”. So there needs to be an understanding of this complex issue. There needs not only to be an understanding of the Abomination of Desolation, but also an understanding of just what it means “to flee”.

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Judean Hills Panorama from beth meir – wikipedia – share-alike license

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Question_book_magnify2.svg

READ MORE…

To explore deeper into this subject, please read… “Woman of Revelation 12 (Flees to the Wilderness)”

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rezando.jpg

TOMORROW:

” October 12th (Prayer in a Fragile World!)”

Woman Praying – cropped image – Wikimedia – Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license

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20+ MINUTE AUDIO JEREMIAH STUDY

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ALL ‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) ARE ENCOURAGED TO BEGIN FOLLOWING THIS 650+ AUDIO BIBLE STUDY THROUGH THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH EACH DAY ON THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL. 

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THIS IS STUDY #282 PRESENTED BY THE LATE HAROLD CAMPING…

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Prophet Jeremiah – www.christianimagesource.com – Public Domain

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Those who are interested in using photos on this page may click on the provided image credit link below each photo, to get to Wikimedia Commons for various licensing names, details, and tags, and all other necessary info on any particular photo. 

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