Amazon's owner, Jeff Bezos, world’s wealthiest man, funds quest for eternal life
Sep 7, 2021 03:52:38 #
Amazon's owner, Jeff Bezos, world’s wealthiest man with almost $two hundred billion dollars, is funding research laboratories in a quest for eternal life.
Today's news has multiple stories regarding billionaire, Jeff Bezos, who, for several years, has been investing in the pursuit of something money really cannot buy: immortality.
Mark 10:17-31. As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Many billionaires in the tech industry are obsessed with prolonging human life. Among them is Jeff Bezos, former CEO of Amazon and richest man in the world, who is investing in different companies that have set themselves that goal. The last one is called Altos Labs and its team includes a Nobel laureate and two of the most internationally recognized Spanish biologists.
Altos Labs aims at biological reprogramming, a way to rejuvenate cells in the body that some scientists believe could be used to slow down the biological clock of entire organisms and thus prolong human life.
The ‘startup’ is incorporated in the US and the United Kingdom and aims to create several institutes in places such as San Francisco and San Diego, in America, Cambridge, in the United Kingdom, and also in Japan. According to the MIT Technology Review, Altos Labs is attracting large numbers of scientists, offering them stratospheric salaries – some, the outlet says, reach a million dollars annually-, participation in the company and the promise that they will be able to dedicate themselves to their research without restrictions.
Scientists seek a new mechanism to delay aging
Among these prestigious researchers are the Spanish Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte, Spanish biologist from the Salk Institute, in California, and Manuel Serrano, from the Barcelona Institute for Biomedical Research, who will go on to earn between five and ten times what they now earn as scientists.
“The philosophy of Altos Labs is to do research driven by curiosity. This is what I know how to do and I love it, says Serrano in statements to the MIT magazine. “In this case, through a private company, we have the freedom to be bold and explore. In this sense, it rejuvenates me.
Serrano assures that he plans to move to Cambridge to join the company’s facilities in the English city. “The goal is to understand rejuvenation”, maintains Serrano. “I would say that the idea of having income in the future is there, but it is not the immediate objective.”
Another of the researchers collaborating in the project is Shinya Yamanaka, winner of the Nobel Prize in 2012 for the discovery of cell reprogramming. Yamanaka, the American media says, will be an unpaid senior scientist and chairman of the company’s scientific advisory council.
Yamanaka and his team discovered a number of factors, now known as factores Yamanaka, They play a vital role in the creation of induced pluripotent stem cells, cells that have the ability to become any cell in the body.
As Jesus speaks with this wealthy young man and challenges him to give up his possessions, we hear the refrain of familiar sayings. “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of heaven” and “The first shall be last and the last shall be first”.
Jesus seems to be coming down hard on the rich, and this might make us uncomfortable, for we know that we are the world’s wealthiest Anyone with an income over 34,000 is in the top 5% of income earners on the planet. - And Jesus appears to be saying that if you are rich, it will not be easy for you to enter the Kingdom of God. That means most of us. Ouch.
listening to Mark’s gospel, Jesus has been uncharacteristically harsh, calling people dogs, or Satan, or telling them they would be better off dead for they have hard hearts.
Jesus might just be letting us off the hook for our particular wealth today.
This story about the encounter between the rich young ruler and Jesus, posited in modern terms, makes an understandable point.
Extremely wealthy folks are often in the news these days. The world’s wealthiest person Amazon’s Jeff Bezos is in the news for deciding to pay his employees a minimum of $15 an hour, yet is also planning to open 3000 cashier-less retail stores because what better way is there to add to $156 Billion in personal wealth than owning 3000 stores that require no staff… wealth carries power and prestige in our world, just as in Jesus’ world.
And what do the extremely wealthy have to do with today’s story? Well, when we hear about this young man coming to Jesus, we aren’t meant to think of a nice young middle manager at the bank. We are meant to imagine someone like Jeff Bezos pulling up to Jesus in an expensive sports car with loud base booming in the air long before you can see the car and that neon glow coming from underneath. And then Jeff steps out to inquire of this wandering, near homeless street preacher named Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Serrano was one of the first scientists to genetically engineer mice to produce Yamanaka factors. Their studies led to the conclusion that time can be reversed in a living animal. “The factors are introduced and they do the magic. It is very simple experimentally, although it is not understood”, says Serrano.
But the method is now unsafe and requires more research. Returning cells in mice to their embryonic state caused all of them to develop cancerous tumors. “For me, the Yamanaka factors are not viable for clinical use,” says Serrano. “They involve the introduction of genes, some of which are oncogenic. This is difficult to pass through the filter of regulatory agencies.”
According to the MIT magazine, Altos Labs will also work on an aging biomarker that will serve to measure the effect of any type of longevity and anti-aging treatment that is developed in the future.
Silicon Valley and its obsession with eternal youth
Big Silicon Valley entrepreneurs have spent years investing huge amounts of money in research and development of anti-aging therapies. And it is not only to find the fountain of eternal youth, this type of therapy could mean a market that generates billions of dollars in profits.
In addition to Jeff Bezos, Alto Labs has other tech moguls among its investors. Among them the Russian millionaire Yuri Milner, who is one of the main promoters of the company. Alto Labs has received an investment of more than 270 million dollars According to Will Gornall, professor at the University of British Columbia business school, to Technology Review, who claimed to have had access to company documents.
The technology that uses young blood to reverse aging
In June, Stanford biologist Tony Wyss-Coray took the TED stage to describe no less than “an absolutely amazing development in aging research” (How young blood might help reverse aging. Yes, really). His research has shown that proteins found in the blood of younger mice can dramatically reverse the effects of aging when given to older mice. The implications are huge, perhaps ushering in a new era for the treatment of diseases like Alzheimer’s and maybe — just maybe — providing a way to treat aging itself.
But the same research has also triggered some hand-wringing, and it’s not hard to guess why. If turning back the clock on our bodies is as simple as infusing ourselves with “young blood,” won’t young blood become a commodity? And if it does, what will that mean for the world’s most vulnerable children? “I am petrified to think of the industry this would create,” wrote Todd L. in response to Wyss-Coray’s talk. “Think of how third-world children are treated now for inexpensive electronics and clothes. They would be treated like cattle to have their plasma harvested.”
https://ideas.ted.com/what-are-the-ethics-of-using-young-blood-to-reverse-the-effects-of-aging/
Altos Labs isn’t the only company Bezos has put money into in the rejuvenation field. The former CEO of Amazon, along with other billionaires such as Elon Musk’s former partner at Paypal, Peter Thiel, has also invested in the Californian company Unity Biotech that specializes in the elimination of senescent cells. As we age, cells stop dividing and become ‘zombies’ that cause inflammation associated with diseases of old age. The elimination of senescent cells causes this process to subside and healthy cells to function normally again.
Larry Page, co-founder of Google, is one of the investors of Calico Labs, a San Francisco-based company that also has research stars and huge budgets. Calico Labs has been working on regeneration since 2013 – without conclusive results to date – and is now also engaged in cell reprogramming.
The Spanish Pharmaceutical Grifols is also looking for a piece of this millionaire cake and acquired all of the shares of Alkahest, a company specializing in rejuvenation. Six of his therapies to treat age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s are already in phase 2 of clinical trials and it is believed the results will be soon known.
Despite all the capital movement and hours of research behind these types of therapies, still there are none that have been approved by drug agencies. It is speculated that it is too soon and the new investments are the push scientists need to overcome the obstacles that these treatments face today.
It is easy to understand Jesus’ criticism of the rich… which was inspired by their display of faith in their bank accounts, rather than looking to the God of the universe. But we are not to believe Jesus is criticizing us for trying to be faithful citizens, spouses, employees, and parents by providing safe, comfortable homes and decent lives for our families.
We are meant to see the absurdity of someone as wealthy and powerful as Jeff Bezos believing he can obtain for himself eternal life, whether in heaven or on earth, without reconciliation with God through God's standards.
The point isn’t to condemn having an enormous amount of money or having great possessions. The problem is believing that acquiring material wealth is a blessing from God.
When the rich young man walks away from Jesus unwilling to give up his possessions in order to follow Jesus, the disciples, too, wanted to know what was up.
And that is because just as in our world, they lived in a world that considered being rich as a blessing from God. They had been taught that being wealthy and healthy and powerful was a sign of God’s favor. - Just as so many of us have heard on TV ministries, or from local pulpits preaching a prosperity gospel, or from well meaning friends and relatives. Our world thinks that God is in heaven doling out cash to the "good" people and suffering to the bad.
This reasoning, however, must come to a screeching halt, whenever a person who is rich but not a good person is encountered, or a good person that is struck by illness or tragedy, inevitably causing one to realize that something else is going on with God.
It is deeply humbling to be present at the deathbed of a person, whether known to you, or (even more so) of a complete stranger.
Attending the bedside of a person who is dying is a moment where all other things in the world stand still, where all of life and death is contained in a small hospital bed surrounded with close family and friends.
In those situations, prayer is never centered on "Lord, grant him mercy because of the money he accrued during his lifetime, or because of the good deeds he performed, or even because of all the rules he obeyed and the commandments he kept.
When all there is is a hospital bed, and a ventilator and tearful loved ones – money, rules and good deeds have no meaning.
And this is what Jesus is trying to make the rich young man understand. A camel could never pass through the eye of a needle, and even a rich man cannot enter into eternal life in God's heaven through his own effort.
Rich or poor - Healthy or ill - Sinner or saint... The only way anyone gets into heaven is through God’s mercy.
The only way the Kingdom of God is opened to us, is through faith that Jesus died on the cross for us.
The only person who has earned our salvation is God.
God is the only one who has done the work.
We do not inherit or earn or achieve eternal life.
God gives it to us as a free gift because we have believed upon Jesus Christ.
Jesus accomplished, upon the cross, on our behave, the payment in full of our sin debt.
And maybe, just maybe, that is what Jesus means when he says the first shall be last and the last shall be first.
Those who are relying on their own righteousness, their own goodness, their own prestige, their own worldly achievements, their own riches and health and wealth, those who are relying on those things to get themselves into heaven will be incredibly surprised when they find out that none of that stuff mattered. They might go from feeling first to feeling last.
But what about those who know themselves to have been sinners, abject wretches, totally unworthy and unlovable people? Those who know that they don’t measure up, that they aren’t good enough, or powerful enough, or important enough, or rich enough, or pious enough for God to show them mercy… won’t they be shocked when it is confirmed to them that none of that stuff mattered? God has indeed given grace and mercy even to them, just as He promised... Might not they feel like they have gone from last to first?
All we, who during our lifetime, have believed upon Him for our salvation,, might well feel that we have gone from last to first… because we have.
Thanks be to God - regardless of our blessings, possessions, wealth, education, social standing, or lack thereof, God decided long ago, to give us mercy, to show us grace, by granting us eternal life, by applying His grace through the conduit of our faith in Jesus Christ - nothing more.
https://today.in-24.com/News/349914.html
https://ideas.ted.com/what-are-the-ethics-of-using-young-blood-to-reverse-the-effects-of-aging/
https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/09/04/1034364/altos-labs-silicon-valleys-jeff-bezos-milner-bet-living-forever/
Today's news has multiple stories regarding billionaire, Jeff Bezos, who, for several years, has been investing in the pursuit of something money really cannot buy: immortality.
Mark 10:17-31. As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Many billionaires in the tech industry are obsessed with prolonging human life. Among them is Jeff Bezos, former CEO of Amazon and richest man in the world, who is investing in different companies that have set themselves that goal. The last one is called Altos Labs and its team includes a Nobel laureate and two of the most internationally recognized Spanish biologists.
Altos Labs aims at biological reprogramming, a way to rejuvenate cells in the body that some scientists believe could be used to slow down the biological clock of entire organisms and thus prolong human life.
The ‘startup’ is incorporated in the US and the United Kingdom and aims to create several institutes in places such as San Francisco and San Diego, in America, Cambridge, in the United Kingdom, and also in Japan. According to the MIT Technology Review, Altos Labs is attracting large numbers of scientists, offering them stratospheric salaries – some, the outlet says, reach a million dollars annually-, participation in the company and the promise that they will be able to dedicate themselves to their research without restrictions.
Scientists seek a new mechanism to delay aging
Among these prestigious researchers are the Spanish Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte, Spanish biologist from the Salk Institute, in California, and Manuel Serrano, from the Barcelona Institute for Biomedical Research, who will go on to earn between five and ten times what they now earn as scientists.
“The philosophy of Altos Labs is to do research driven by curiosity. This is what I know how to do and I love it, says Serrano in statements to the MIT magazine. “In this case, through a private company, we have the freedom to be bold and explore. In this sense, it rejuvenates me.
Serrano assures that he plans to move to Cambridge to join the company’s facilities in the English city. “The goal is to understand rejuvenation”, maintains Serrano. “I would say that the idea of having income in the future is there, but it is not the immediate objective.”
Another of the researchers collaborating in the project is Shinya Yamanaka, winner of the Nobel Prize in 2012 for the discovery of cell reprogramming. Yamanaka, the American media says, will be an unpaid senior scientist and chairman of the company’s scientific advisory council.
Yamanaka and his team discovered a number of factors, now known as factores Yamanaka, They play a vital role in the creation of induced pluripotent stem cells, cells that have the ability to become any cell in the body.
As Jesus speaks with this wealthy young man and challenges him to give up his possessions, we hear the refrain of familiar sayings. “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of heaven” and “The first shall be last and the last shall be first”.
Jesus seems to be coming down hard on the rich, and this might make us uncomfortable, for we know that we are the world’s wealthiest Anyone with an income over 34,000 is in the top 5% of income earners on the planet. - And Jesus appears to be saying that if you are rich, it will not be easy for you to enter the Kingdom of God. That means most of us. Ouch.
listening to Mark’s gospel, Jesus has been uncharacteristically harsh, calling people dogs, or Satan, or telling them they would be better off dead for they have hard hearts.
Jesus might just be letting us off the hook for our particular wealth today.
This story about the encounter between the rich young ruler and Jesus, posited in modern terms, makes an understandable point.
Extremely wealthy folks are often in the news these days. The world’s wealthiest person Amazon’s Jeff Bezos is in the news for deciding to pay his employees a minimum of $15 an hour, yet is also planning to open 3000 cashier-less retail stores because what better way is there to add to $156 Billion in personal wealth than owning 3000 stores that require no staff… wealth carries power and prestige in our world, just as in Jesus’ world.
And what do the extremely wealthy have to do with today’s story? Well, when we hear about this young man coming to Jesus, we aren’t meant to think of a nice young middle manager at the bank. We are meant to imagine someone like Jeff Bezos pulling up to Jesus in an expensive sports car with loud base booming in the air long before you can see the car and that neon glow coming from underneath. And then Jeff steps out to inquire of this wandering, near homeless street preacher named Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Serrano was one of the first scientists to genetically engineer mice to produce Yamanaka factors. Their studies led to the conclusion that time can be reversed in a living animal. “The factors are introduced and they do the magic. It is very simple experimentally, although it is not understood”, says Serrano.
But the method is now unsafe and requires more research. Returning cells in mice to their embryonic state caused all of them to develop cancerous tumors. “For me, the Yamanaka factors are not viable for clinical use,” says Serrano. “They involve the introduction of genes, some of which are oncogenic. This is difficult to pass through the filter of regulatory agencies.”
According to the MIT magazine, Altos Labs will also work on an aging biomarker that will serve to measure the effect of any type of longevity and anti-aging treatment that is developed in the future.
Silicon Valley and its obsession with eternal youth
Big Silicon Valley entrepreneurs have spent years investing huge amounts of money in research and development of anti-aging therapies. And it is not only to find the fountain of eternal youth, this type of therapy could mean a market that generates billions of dollars in profits.
In addition to Jeff Bezos, Alto Labs has other tech moguls among its investors. Among them the Russian millionaire Yuri Milner, who is one of the main promoters of the company. Alto Labs has received an investment of more than 270 million dollars According to Will Gornall, professor at the University of British Columbia business school, to Technology Review, who claimed to have had access to company documents.
The technology that uses young blood to reverse aging
In June, Stanford biologist Tony Wyss-Coray took the TED stage to describe no less than “an absolutely amazing development in aging research” (How young blood might help reverse aging. Yes, really). His research has shown that proteins found in the blood of younger mice can dramatically reverse the effects of aging when given to older mice. The implications are huge, perhaps ushering in a new era for the treatment of diseases like Alzheimer’s and maybe — just maybe — providing a way to treat aging itself.
But the same research has also triggered some hand-wringing, and it’s not hard to guess why. If turning back the clock on our bodies is as simple as infusing ourselves with “young blood,” won’t young blood become a commodity? And if it does, what will that mean for the world’s most vulnerable children? “I am petrified to think of the industry this would create,” wrote Todd L. in response to Wyss-Coray’s talk. “Think of how third-world children are treated now for inexpensive electronics and clothes. They would be treated like cattle to have their plasma harvested.”
https://ideas.ted.com/what-are-the-ethics-of-using-young-blood-to-reverse-the-effects-of-aging/
Altos Labs isn’t the only company Bezos has put money into in the rejuvenation field. The former CEO of Amazon, along with other billionaires such as Elon Musk’s former partner at Paypal, Peter Thiel, has also invested in the Californian company Unity Biotech that specializes in the elimination of senescent cells. As we age, cells stop dividing and become ‘zombies’ that cause inflammation associated with diseases of old age. The elimination of senescent cells causes this process to subside and healthy cells to function normally again.
Larry Page, co-founder of Google, is one of the investors of Calico Labs, a San Francisco-based company that also has research stars and huge budgets. Calico Labs has been working on regeneration since 2013 – without conclusive results to date – and is now also engaged in cell reprogramming.
The Spanish Pharmaceutical Grifols is also looking for a piece of this millionaire cake and acquired all of the shares of Alkahest, a company specializing in rejuvenation. Six of his therapies to treat age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s are already in phase 2 of clinical trials and it is believed the results will be soon known.
Despite all the capital movement and hours of research behind these types of therapies, still there are none that have been approved by drug agencies. It is speculated that it is too soon and the new investments are the push scientists need to overcome the obstacles that these treatments face today.
It is easy to understand Jesus’ criticism of the rich… which was inspired by their display of faith in their bank accounts, rather than looking to the God of the universe. But we are not to believe Jesus is criticizing us for trying to be faithful citizens, spouses, employees, and parents by providing safe, comfortable homes and decent lives for our families.
We are meant to see the absurdity of someone as wealthy and powerful as Jeff Bezos believing he can obtain for himself eternal life, whether in heaven or on earth, without reconciliation with God through God's standards.
The point isn’t to condemn having an enormous amount of money or having great possessions. The problem is believing that acquiring material wealth is a blessing from God.
When the rich young man walks away from Jesus unwilling to give up his possessions in order to follow Jesus, the disciples, too, wanted to know what was up.
And that is because just as in our world, they lived in a world that considered being rich as a blessing from God. They had been taught that being wealthy and healthy and powerful was a sign of God’s favor. - Just as so many of us have heard on TV ministries, or from local pulpits preaching a prosperity gospel, or from well meaning friends and relatives. Our world thinks that God is in heaven doling out cash to the "good" people and suffering to the bad.
This reasoning, however, must come to a screeching halt, whenever a person who is rich but not a good person is encountered, or a good person that is struck by illness or tragedy, inevitably causing one to realize that something else is going on with God.
It is deeply humbling to be present at the deathbed of a person, whether known to you, or (even more so) of a complete stranger.
Attending the bedside of a person who is dying is a moment where all other things in the world stand still, where all of life and death is contained in a small hospital bed surrounded with close family and friends.
In those situations, prayer is never centered on "Lord, grant him mercy because of the money he accrued during his lifetime, or because of the good deeds he performed, or even because of all the rules he obeyed and the commandments he kept.
When all there is is a hospital bed, and a ventilator and tearful loved ones – money, rules and good deeds have no meaning.
And this is what Jesus is trying to make the rich young man understand. A camel could never pass through the eye of a needle, and even a rich man cannot enter into eternal life in God's heaven through his own effort.
Rich or poor - Healthy or ill - Sinner or saint... The only way anyone gets into heaven is through God’s mercy.
The only way the Kingdom of God is opened to us, is through faith that Jesus died on the cross for us.
The only person who has earned our salvation is God.
God is the only one who has done the work.
We do not inherit or earn or achieve eternal life.
God gives it to us as a free gift because we have believed upon Jesus Christ.
Jesus accomplished, upon the cross, on our behave, the payment in full of our sin debt.
And maybe, just maybe, that is what Jesus means when he says the first shall be last and the last shall be first.
Those who are relying on their own righteousness, their own goodness, their own prestige, their own worldly achievements, their own riches and health and wealth, those who are relying on those things to get themselves into heaven will be incredibly surprised when they find out that none of that stuff mattered. They might go from feeling first to feeling last.
But what about those who know themselves to have been sinners, abject wretches, totally unworthy and unlovable people? Those who know that they don’t measure up, that they aren’t good enough, or powerful enough, or important enough, or rich enough, or pious enough for God to show them mercy… won’t they be shocked when it is confirmed to them that none of that stuff mattered? God has indeed given grace and mercy even to them, just as He promised... Might not they feel like they have gone from last to first?
All we, who during our lifetime, have believed upon Him for our salvation,, might well feel that we have gone from last to first… because we have.
Thanks be to God - regardless of our blessings, possessions, wealth, education, social standing, or lack thereof, God decided long ago, to give us mercy, to show us grace, by granting us eternal life, by applying His grace through the conduit of our faith in Jesus Christ - nothing more.
https://today.in-24.com/News/349914.html
https://ideas.ted.com/what-are-the-ethics-of-using-young-blood-to-reverse-the-effects-of-aging/
https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/09/04/1034364/altos-labs-silicon-valleys-jeff-bezos-milner-bet-living-forever/
Sep 7, 2021 04:08:52 #
Sep 7, 2021 06:19:31 #
Sep 7, 2021 07:07:32 #
Title of thread: Amazon's owner, Jeff Bezos, world’s wealthiest man, funds quest for eternal life
Simple answer: Why doesn't he just turn over his life to Jesus?
Reason: [Jesus said:] "...it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
Simple answer: Why doesn't he just turn over his life to Jesus?
Reason: [Jesus said:] "...it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
Sep 7, 2021 18:40:52 #
Thanks be unto God for His indescribable gift. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.
Sep 8, 2021 14:03:58 #
This is true of Jeff Bezos, as well as Bill Gates, George Soros, Jack Zuckerberg, Jack Dorsey and Sundar Pichai.
1. Their trust is totally in their wealth.
2. Their self-pride prevents them humbling themselves before God, and kneeling at the foot of Jesus's cross.
1. Their trust is totally in their wealth.
2. Their self-pride prevents them humbling themselves before God, and kneeling at the foot of Jesus's cross.
Parky60 wrote:
Title of thread: Amazon's owner, Jeff Bezos, world’s wealthiest man, funds quest for eternal life
Simple answer: Why doesn't he just turn over his life to Jesus?
Reason: [Jesus said:] "...it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
Simple answer: Why doesn't he just turn over his life to Jesus?
Reason: [Jesus said:] "...it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
Sep 8, 2021 14:21:40 #
For the eternal destiny of the soul of those unwilling to humble themselves, and trust God, in Christ, it is a tragedy.
bylm1-Bernie wrote:
Very sad, isn't it.
Sep 8, 2021 16:03:13 #
Peewee wrote:
You always hit that mark in my heart! Amen and thank you! 
Hi Peewee,
There is much in the reports on the very earthly pursuit of eternal life in which Jeff Bezos and his incredibly wealthy and politically powerful cohorts have engaged, that approximates opening Pandora's box into a chamber of horrors
that could adversely affect many upon the earth.
Certainly it goes beyond these egotistical Big Tech wannabee rulers-of-the-earth's spiritual destination, as they contribute millions to develop vaccines, seek ways to censure free speech, to impose CCP methods of tyranical control over the "masses," and even to depopulate the earth of those they classify as unnecessary (for supposed environmental reasons), as they seek to "save Gaia, i.e., Mother Earth."
If ever, this is the time for Christians to pray for wisdom and guidance, and to follow Jesus' Matthew 10:16 admonition to his disciples: "Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be as wary as serpents, and as innocent as doves."
Sep 8, 2021 16:53:44 #
Zemirah wrote:
Hi Peewee, br br There is much in the reports on ... (show quote)
Does that remind you a little of the "Tower of Babel" in the OT?
Sep 8, 2021 22:23:47 #
Yes, Bernie, I have reluctantly, regrettably and with great sorrow, believed for some years now, that the United States is the prophesied end-time Daughter of Babylon.
With the exception of Israel, the bible contains more prophecies about an end-time nation called the “daughter of Babylon” than any other nation on earth.
I did not, however, envision sliding into the abyss with the speed to which we have accelerated in this year of 2021.
I've never broached the subject to any appreciable degree online, envisioning it going over like a lead balloon...
- however, if you have an opinion on the matter, I'd love to hear it.
With the exception of Israel, the bible contains more prophecies about an end-time nation called the “daughter of Babylon” than any other nation on earth.
I did not, however, envision sliding into the abyss with the speed to which we have accelerated in this year of 2021.
I've never broached the subject to any appreciable degree online, envisioning it going over like a lead balloon...
- however, if you have an opinion on the matter, I'd love to hear it.
bylm1-Bernie wrote:
Does that remind you a little of the "Tower of Babel" in the OT?
Sep 9, 2021 09:07:21 #
Zemirah wrote:
Yes, Bernie, I have reluctantly, regrettably and w... (show quote)
Yes, Zemirah, that subject isn't likely to gain much traction in today's world. Even many believers are not keen to discuss the end times, believing that it's been 2000 years and nothing has happened. Peter makes it clear in his second epistle that God isn't slow about keeping his promises but wants everyone to repent, pointing out that one day is as 1000 years to him and 1000 years is as one day. You are right that things have been moving real fast in recent times but that is also our timing which isn't necessarily God's timing. An old hymn, Trust and Obey, comes to mind. For believers, there really is no other way but sometimes it's hard to avoid slipping into the thinking of the secular world.
Sep 9, 2021 22:20:03 #
Hi Bernie,
I understand the "thinking of the secular world," and have no interest in emulating it... Of greater interest to me is understanding, to the best of my ability, the whole council of God, over 1/4 of which is prophecy.
Matthew "24:42 Watch therefore: for you know not what hour your Lord does come", Jesus Christ says, "Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming."
He repeats this statement again in Matthew 25:13. Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man comes.
There are 49 Bible verses about the Signs Of The End Times, excluding, of course, the day and time.
Prophecy, by a conservative estimate, comprises 26.8% of the Bible, which, although of no interest to members of an on-line political forum, should be of vital interest to every devout Christian, for it is over one fourth of the whole counsel of God.
Paul said: "For I did not shrink back from declaring to you the whole counsel of God." (Acts 20:27).
The original Greek phrase translated, "the whole counsel of God," is πασαν την βουλην του θεου (pasan ten boulen tou Theou), and πασαν (pasan) means "all, every, whole, total," so the phrase means, "all, every, total, whole counsel of God."
"Every Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness" (2nd Timothy 3:16).
According to “The Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy” by J. Barton Payne, Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture at the University of Oxford, there are 1,239 prophecies in the Old Testament and 578 prophecies in the New Testament for a total of 1,817 prophecies.
These prophecies are contained in 8,352 of the Bible’s verses. There are 31,124 verses in the Bible, therefore, the 8,352 verses that contain prophecy constitute 26.8 %/percent of the Bible’s volume.
I believe in a literal, historical, grammatical interpretation of scripture.
Literal = the bible is the inspired word of GOD to be taken at face value unless there is compelling reason to do otherwise (indicated in the context of the passage).
Historical = each passage is put into its proper historical setting, and surrounded with the thoughts, attitudes and feelings prevalent at the time of writing.
Grammatical = words are given meanings consistent with their common understanding in the original language at the time of writing.
As I'm sure you know, much has happened in the last two thousand years. Many Bible prophecies have been fulfilled regarding nations and events.
The week before His crucifixion, Jesus told His disciples to “OCCUPY TILL I COME” (Luke 19:13). What does this word “OCCUPY” (Greek: καταλαμβάνω) mean? It does not mean “take up space.” It does not mean, “wait,” or “occupy your recliner until I return.” Nor does it mean, “hang around til I return.” No, this word does not describe passiveness.
This word “occupy” means to be busy, it literally means “to carry on business by trading. “The Lord’s meaning is not difficult. He is telling them to “TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS” KEEP BUSY UNTIL I RETURN. The end of verse 15 gives us the definition.
We are not to simply endure. It’s not about patiently or impatiently waiting for Jesus to return or waiting until we die. We are to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ wherever we go and attempt to glorify God in every situation.
Today, at least 2,000 languages of the 6500 to 7000 languages spoken today on earth still need a Bible translation started in order to read God's Word in their own language - in the fulfillment of the Great Commission, Wycliffe Bible Translaters are doing everything they can to see a Bible translation program in progress in every language still needing one by 2025, and Wycliffe is working faster than ever to reach those languages as soon as possible.
I understand the "thinking of the secular world," and have no interest in emulating it... Of greater interest to me is understanding, to the best of my ability, the whole council of God, over 1/4 of which is prophecy.
Matthew "24:42 Watch therefore: for you know not what hour your Lord does come", Jesus Christ says, "Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming."
He repeats this statement again in Matthew 25:13. Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man comes.
There are 49 Bible verses about the Signs Of The End Times, excluding, of course, the day and time.
Prophecy, by a conservative estimate, comprises 26.8% of the Bible, which, although of no interest to members of an on-line political forum, should be of vital interest to every devout Christian, for it is over one fourth of the whole counsel of God.
Paul said: "For I did not shrink back from declaring to you the whole counsel of God." (Acts 20:27).
The original Greek phrase translated, "the whole counsel of God," is πασαν την βουλην του θεου (pasan ten boulen tou Theou), and πασαν (pasan) means "all, every, whole, total," so the phrase means, "all, every, total, whole counsel of God."
"Every Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness" (2nd Timothy 3:16).
According to “The Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy” by J. Barton Payne, Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture at the University of Oxford, there are 1,239 prophecies in the Old Testament and 578 prophecies in the New Testament for a total of 1,817 prophecies.
These prophecies are contained in 8,352 of the Bible’s verses. There are 31,124 verses in the Bible, therefore, the 8,352 verses that contain prophecy constitute 26.8 %/percent of the Bible’s volume.
I believe in a literal, historical, grammatical interpretation of scripture.
Literal = the bible is the inspired word of GOD to be taken at face value unless there is compelling reason to do otherwise (indicated in the context of the passage).
Historical = each passage is put into its proper historical setting, and surrounded with the thoughts, attitudes and feelings prevalent at the time of writing.
Grammatical = words are given meanings consistent with their common understanding in the original language at the time of writing.
As I'm sure you know, much has happened in the last two thousand years. Many Bible prophecies have been fulfilled regarding nations and events.
The week before His crucifixion, Jesus told His disciples to “OCCUPY TILL I COME” (Luke 19:13). What does this word “OCCUPY” (Greek: καταλαμβάνω) mean? It does not mean “take up space.” It does not mean, “wait,” or “occupy your recliner until I return.” Nor does it mean, “hang around til I return.” No, this word does not describe passiveness.
This word “occupy” means to be busy, it literally means “to carry on business by trading. “The Lord’s meaning is not difficult. He is telling them to “TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS” KEEP BUSY UNTIL I RETURN. The end of verse 15 gives us the definition.
We are not to simply endure. It’s not about patiently or impatiently waiting for Jesus to return or waiting until we die. We are to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ wherever we go and attempt to glorify God in every situation.
Today, at least 2,000 languages of the 6500 to 7000 languages spoken today on earth still need a Bible translation started in order to read God's Word in their own language - in the fulfillment of the Great Commission, Wycliffe Bible Translaters are doing everything they can to see a Bible translation program in progress in every language still needing one by 2025, and Wycliffe is working faster than ever to reach those languages as soon as possible.
bylm1-Bernie wrote:
Yes, Zemirah, that subject isn't likely to gain mu... (show quote)
Sep 10, 2021 06:34:52 #
Zemirah wrote:
Hi Bernie, br br I understand the "thinking ... (show quote)
Thanks for the insight, Zemirah.
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