BTZ Blog

Is December the 25th the birth date of Jesus? Not only was he not born on that date, He was not even born in the winter season! When the Christ-child was born "there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night" according to Dr. Luke. This never could have occurred in Palestine in the month of December. The shepherds always brought their flocks from the mountainsides and fields and corralled them prior to the winter season to protect them from the cold, rainy season of winter. The Bible states in Song of Solomon 2:11, and Ezra 10:9, and 13, that winter was a rainy season not permitting shepherds to abide in open fields at night. According to the Adam Clarke Commentary, Vol. 5, page 386-370, it was an ancient custom among Jews of those days to send out their sheep to the fields and deserts about the Passover (early spring), and bring them home at commencement of the first rain, Continuing, his commentary states: "d

Where did this Christmas thing come from? From the Bible or Babylonian paganism? Should we as believers promote Santa Claus...Christmas trees and the custom of exchanging gifts? Many are concerned about "keeping Christ in" or putting “Christ back into Christmas.” I question if He was ever there. Long before Dec. 25, people's thoughts are turned to the Christmas rush...Christma s Pageants are rehearsed, parties are being planned, evergreens are being spied out to be ornamented and gift buying is starting to be in full swing as a result of Christ's birth. Isn't it the time that professing Christians focus on Jesus Christ. After all, it is the “Christ-mass” season! Christmas is celebrated by most people as a good time, focusing people on giving, family togetherness, beautiful music and decorations, feasting on special foods and singing Christmas carols throughout the neighborhood. All of this is supposedly centered around the worship of Christ. Now i

Let's explore the thinking that Christmas is a festival for the community of the redeemed. it is well accepted in the religious realm that Christmas is a most important religious holiday observance and treated as one of the principal rituals of Christendom. This ritual religious celebration promotes the birth of Jesus as being December the 25th and teaches that the the scriptur e sets this date as a cornerstone event to commemorate. The validation of the exchanging of gifts is because the wise men presented gifts to the Christ-child. If you would indulge me, at least for the reading of what follows, lay aside your preconceived ideas and assumptions as to why you believe what you believe regarding the momentous event surrounding Christ's birth and take a look with me into the history and the scripture for the FACTS regarding whether or not the Christmas ritualistic festival is legit for believers in Christ. Many who are excitedly preparing for their Christma

Is the Observance of Christmas Scripturally Organic...Or...Is it a Paganish Ritualistic Intrusion that is Without Scriptural Warrant even though it is Viewed by most Denominations as Biblical Sound. Does Christmas festivities really commemorate the birth of Jesus? Was He born on December 25th? Did the apostles, Paul or 1st century believers celebrate Christmas? Does the scri pture in any way support the Celebrating of Christ's birth with Santa Clause, the Christmas tree, gift giving, the partying and all that goes with it? DO we as believers in Christ know WHY we DO the things we DO, or WHERE our religious customs came from? We were born into an environment filled with customs, religious or otherwise. We grew up practicing them, taking them for granted but, have we EVER QUESTIONED the SCRIPTURAL VALIDITY of the customs we consider scripturally based such as Christmas and Easter? Is the Christmas really honoring Christ by our upholding and participating in the fe

There are two words translated "sin" in the Scriptures. In the Old Testament the word is chataah, from the root word chata, meaning, "to miss the right point". In the New Testament the word is hamartia, meaning, "t o miss the goal". Now, if we know whose point and whose goal is being missed, we might know what sin is. the meaning of chataah and hamartia have to do with God’s point and His goal therefore sin is missing God's goal for us, not missing religion's goal. So, what should we conclude from this? The things we do that violate God’s point of view, His purpose, and His goal for us must define sin. Our religious training has taught us to identify what we have decided is sin in others and resort to judgment and condemnation by condemning them to Hell's torture chamber. And, instead of leaving it up to God to conform us to the image of His Son, we have taken that responsibility upon ourselves and have decided to change o

Growing up in a religious denominational environment, I learned at an young age what sin was...or so I thought. What I accepted as sin was what I was told was sin by the denomination I was in. I found this denomina tional sin defining to be somewhat confusing in that different denomination's opinions as to what sin was varied. What some denominations said was sin was accepted by other denominations as not being sin. The denomination I found my self in was the "no preparing food for the Sunday meal, that was a Saturday task so as to avoid working on the "Sabbath" because it was a sin to work on the Sabbath...yet, Sunday was not and never will be the Sabbath. Then there was the no going to the restaurant on Sunday...no riding of the bike...no playing hopscotch...no smoking...no drinking...no dancing...no going to the movies...no going our with "bad" girls, avoid the baccy chew and no running around with those who do. Yet other people who

Leaders who favor the rich and famous lifestyle funded by fleecing the flock off their money...with the illusion that they are giving to God's work...are manipulating the poor and lowly "laity", revealing that the true va lue of their inward character is corrupt and controlled by worldly standards exposing their money hungry true character as coveting, deceitful and prideful. Fleecing leaders are THIEVES who are FEEDING themselves by FLEECING the FLOCK...NOT FEEDING the FLOCK.

Religion...I am saved by grace but I maintain my salvation by my doing and the way I live. Grace... My salvation is entirely God's doing and nothing of my doing. Salvation is of the LORD!" (Eph. 2:8-9; Jonah 2:9). Religion is a DO-DO endeavor...man trying to DO things to please God and earn His favor. Grace is summed up in one word DONE...Christ dying on the cross to save sinfu l and religious people (John 19:30). Religious people are busy "working" for God to maintain salvation and gain God's favor. Grace people are "not religious work-a-holics" (Rom. 4:5) but is RESTING upon the finished work of Jesus as they work with Him. Religion is all about TRYING and DYING right. Grace is all about TRUSTING and LIVING right. (Acts 16:31) Religion is about being sin conscious. Grace is about being God conscious. Religion is about a work to Do which never gets Done because it can't be Done. Grace is about believing and trusting. (1 Pet. 1:25) i

Inside every person there is a TREASURE waiting to be found. The treasure within a person is far more valuable than a person looks. The inner treasure of a person cannot be possessed by another person for personal gratification of the flesh. To understand the inner treasure of a person requires an intimacy and an emotional closeness that outer beauty does not provide. A person should see their value by the way you look at and talk to them. A person’s inner treasure is seen with the eyes of the heart while outer beauty is seen with the eyes on your face. Until a person is CHERISHED, APPRECIATED and LOVED that TREASURE remains hidden. Some people go through a lifetime without that TREASURE inside of them being found. Seeing the beauty of a person's soul is far more rewarding than seeing the beauty of a person's face whose soul is ugly.

I wish believers who say they believe and obey the scripture would believe and obey the liberating profound truth found in this Hebrew passage. Chapter 10:1 For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approac h perfect. 2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins. 3 But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. 4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins. Then in verse12 it continues, But this Man (Jesus), after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, 13 from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. 14 For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. 19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to e

Why do so many rule-keeper do-gooders profess to be the best yet, play loose with the truth, thus causing hell by what they tell and try to sell to aid people in getting well? Should not they know that a lie cloaked in religious garb to give it a gospel feel is a lie by another name but, IT IS STILL A LIE! Confess that playing loose with the truth is not the best way to profess that you are the best.

WHETHER the WEATHER in your life be good or WHETHER the WEATHER in your life be bad, whatever the WEATHER, WHETHER the WEATHER, WHETHER you like it or not! WEATHERING the WEATHER in your life will reduce the stormy WEATHER of stress and anxiety that you may sail through.

A Gospel expounder may be heralding a gospel that is not really the Gospel. Why? Because everybody's belief as to what the Gospel is has been influenced by the environment they live in and their exposure to what was expo unded as the Gospel. What you have heard through your ear-gate, mediated upon with your mind-gate along with studying the bible and interpreting it to back up the doctrine you have been taught, has renewed your mind to the point of you accepting misinterpretation, man-made doctrine, wrongly understood application, and acceptance of tradition as the Gospel, when in fact it is not the Gospel at all. This deception that has laid hold of you has made the effect that the word of God is to have on people of no effect because the Gospel delivered is not the Gospel of Jesus Christ given to Paul to deliver to the community of humanity. Paul, who wrote most of the New Testament, preached a gospel that was revealed to him directly from God; And, broth

God is not a God of PEACELESSNESS, He is a God of PEACEFULNESS. God is not a God of ANGER, He is a God of GENTLENESS. God is not a God of CRUELTY, He is a God of COMPASSION. God is not a God of CONFUSION, He is a God of CLARITY. God is not a God of REVENGE, He is a God of FORGIVENESS. God is not a God of DISUNITY, He is a God of UNITY. God is not a God of REJECTION, He is a God of ACCEPTANCE. Got is not a God of DEATH, He is a God of LIFE. God is not a SINNER HATER, He is a SINNER LOVER. God is not a SEGREGATIONIST, HE is SEGREGATION-LESS. God is not a DENOMNATIONIST, He is DENOMINATION-LESS. God is not a RELIGIONIST, He is RELIGION-LESS.

The Downside of Denominational Denominations. A major problem that denominationalism presents in the establishment of religious denominations is that there is no scriptural support for such an entity or the segregation that it spawns; to t he contrary however, there is scriptural support for unification, togetherness and oneness. History reveals that denominations are the result of, or caused by, conflict and confrontation over Bible interpretation or jockeying for "positional spiritual positions" which leads to division and separation and destroys unity. The words of Jesus are; "a house divided against itself cannot stand". This general principle can and should be applied to the segregated denominations that call themselves "Church". An example of this is recorded of the Corinthian church which was struggling with issues of division and separation. There were those who thought that they should follow Paul and those who thought they

Sin Management does not a Believer Make. The idea that most believers hold to in order to be a believer is primary behavior modification...Stop the bad doing and do the good doing. This concept reveals what it "looks like" to be a believer, and a lot of believers are dressed in such religious garb. Looking like a believer because of behavior modification, is nothing less or nothing more than sin management. What people who advocate sin management fail to understand is that Jesus has already dealt with the sin issue thoroughly and completely. Being a believer is not about behavior modification...it is about the revelation of that God has made His dwelling place in us and we are led by His Spirit that lives INSIDE us. Being a believer is not about trying to manage our sin. I subscribed to the gospel of behavior modification for most of my life and I never succeeded. The way we have been taught to study the Bible was an attempt to find out what we could and

Be careful what you listen to. What passes through your ear-gate it is not all truth and if you allow untruth to pass your ear-gate enough you will eventually accept it as truth. This is evidenced by untruth that is accepted as Bible trut h and presented as Bible truth by people who believe it is bible truth because they have believed the untruth for so long it is ingrained in them as Bible truth even though it is not Bible truth. The truth that you think you hear may not be truth at all!

Applying the word without a relationship with the WORD is lifeless! Jesus is the LIVING WORD, He gives us life to equip us to live life and guide us through life. To often the written word is applied without His life as a formula to fix ai ... See More

No Room. If you are a living a life of self-righteousness you have NO room for God.

One reason why Jesus died was to forgive sins. To forgive whose sins...the sins of the world. "For God so loved the world" ...(John 3:16) The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29) World in the verses above does not mean the round ball of dirt and rock that make up the earth, for that is inanimate therefore, it must mean the people of the world. Therefore, God forgave sinners...every sinner on earth has already been forgiven...their sins are no longer being recorded against them! WOW, such is the Grace of God! All this is God's doing: who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. (2 Cor 5:18-19) I can hear the oh's and aw's of the religious establishment followed by their charge of "he is teaching heresy."  People are si

I wonder...if people in their name-tagged denominated buildings connected with Jesus to work WITH Him, rather than connecting with denominated people to hear stories about Jesus and to see what message the hierarchal app roved spiritual denominated pipeline has for them to work with the denomination FOR Jesus...would Jesus become more prominent than denominated denominations? Through this Jesus connection, Would He would work His work through the community of His redeemed to affect the community of humanity for God?

The more a "Christian" judges and condemns people...The less he forgives and loves people...thus the less he is like Jesus.

God is not about creating evil to reside in people to destroy them in a torcher chamber of hell. God is about destroying evil and destroying the evil in people for a life of bliss in heaven.

The Bible states that "God is love". YET! Religion believes that a loving God creates people READY for HELL! Would a LOVING God create people...who have no choice as to whether they are created or not...all ready predisposed to spend eternity in the torcher chamber of Hell...would that not be the work of a HATEFUL God rather than a LOVING God? One Christian website gave the following statistics regarding people going to hell. I do not know how they arrive at these statistics, but they are fascinating, at least, to some Christians. This is what the website stated there were: 1.72 persons, per second, going to hell. 103 persons, per minute, going to hell. 6198 per hour, going to hell. 149,000 per day, going to hell. 54.3 million per year, going to hell. 3.8 billion per average lifetime (every 70 years), going to hell. If the above resembles truth? In knowing that the vast majority of people He creates are going to hell, would a loving God create them? What

Is...being religious...committed to a denomination...submitted to a hierarchy...shepherd by a seminarian denominated minister...bound by man-made constitutions and doctrines...manipulated and controlled by fear-mongering fear-mongers...housed in segregated buildings called "Churches"...believing that Church is Sunday-go-denominated-meeting in segregated buildings...the life style of the "celebrity pa-stars"...the judgmental arrogance of "Christians"...the priority that money giving by the "laity"...the money gathering by the manipulators and all that goes with a religious identity causing a smoke screen that hinders people from seeing the real Jesus?