A Tale of Two Churches

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I was in Indiana last weekend "trying out." That part of Indiana has small churches of Christ all around it.  One of the local families was taking us around the countryside showing us the lay of the land.  They pulled up to this now defunct church building and began telling us about its demise over 80 years earlier. The people directly involved are now dead.  Most of them are buried in the cemetery across the road due west of the church building. What I am sharing below is taken from part of their family history.  (An unpublished manuscript.)  I have not edited it in any way except that I have added current pics of the two buildings of the little churches involved. And a few labeled comments below… 

This is not a great doctrinal treatise but how it was remembered in later years by a nine year old child… 

Bethany Church of Christ

The Family Needs Grandma

“The aged women likewise, that they be in behavior as becometh holiness, not false accusers: not given to much wine, teachers of good things: That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed." (Titus 2:3-5)

In this passage, Paul identified the role of Grandma as a key stabilizing factor for a successful home.
This is the last line of defense as mapped out by Paul… Grandma! Today this is compounded by the fact that now, in many cases, Grandma hasn’t known marital success or a “settled life” either. I was born in 1955 and graduated in 1973. I was the product of a happy home, as were both my parents.

The hoary head (gray head) is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness.  Proverbs 16:31

 Previous to my generation, divorce was unheard of. When I married, my Grandma started in lecturing me, “In our family, we marry for life!” She was right… She died with the man she had loved all her life. My mother, her daughter, died with the man… (my father) whom she had loved all her life. My father loved my mother till the day she died. With my generation, that presumption has collapsed. There are fewer and fewer of us left.

Note from the following chart that I was not alone. This situation of crumbling marriages and fragmented families has been in a state of decline though out my lifetime.

From Conception to Birth in the Womb, Visualized

Today’s offering is going to be very unique in our mailings.  I am simply going to give you a link to a secular video artist’s presentation of the growth of the human body. 

I have no idea of the man’s religious beliefs or his stand on abortion. He presents an incredible animation based on cat scans etc. No gross stuff, only the beauty of God’s creative work inside the womb...

Will Your Kids Go To Heaven?

Do you want to have a successful Christian home?

"You will know them by their fruits.” (Matthew 7:16)

Do you want your kids to go to heaven?
Do you want your family/marriage/home to be solid?
If you answered yes….. The next question in front of you is:
“Should you choose a liberal or conservative church?” 

Which path gives you the best hope of building a strong family that will lead to your children choosing to be Christians? Today it is common for kids to be raised in a church only to hit teenage years and turn away from the “faith of their fathers!”  Many do not realize that it doesn’t have to be that way… and it is not that way among us.

Our families stay together and our kids become Christians.… Want to know more?

The Christian, The Bible, and the Practice of Abortion

I am certain virtually everyone has heard of the murder of Dr Tiller here in Wichita.  This one strikes close to home for us.  Our new congregation meets right around the corner from his infamous abortion clinic.
What a thing for a community to be known for!  We are the abortion capital of the world.  People literally come here from all over because you can get away with things here that you just cannot do elsewhere.  Dr. Tiller would do things that no man of conscience could do.

 Here is a link to an undercover video made of him bragging about his procedures and complaining about the born alive protection act.  You’ll have to sign in and confirm you are over 18 if you wish to watch it because of a couple of his photos he shows at the beginning of the video.  Dr. Tiller was giving a speech while being honored by the National Education Association as a hero.  After said speech he was interviewed by some that he perceived as friends and appears not to realize he is on tape.  He speaks rather freely of his monstrous trade. There are a couple of rather important quotes in that video:

“Let’s say you have 15 or 16 and you had one slip out with a heartbeat, that is not a viable fetus, but that is born alive or has a heart beat. Then you have to take that non-viable fetus and rush it to the hospital against the woman’s wishes.” 
“If the baby is born alive it is sloppy medicine and it shouldn’t be done.”
““I have done (them) up to the day before delivery.”

When the Vow Breaks

Today’s article is a rarity.  I generally write the articles for this list but every now and then one really hits home and I’ll forward it. This is one of those articles.  No one alive remembers what it means to live in a country where the Bible is truly respected.  A local reporter (Wichita, Ks) in 2004 did a local average on divorces and they hit 70% in 2002.  I.E. 70 divorces for every 100 marriages. By way of contrast, once upon a time, long, long ago…. In 1870, there was only one divorce for every 34 marriages. 

 Times have changed.  All of us, even the innocent, have been affected by all this.  Even those with godly happy homes have not escaped the pain. For example, my little sister was murdered over a divorce gone awry. The human heart truly needs it’s creator! This article below puts a human face on one of the great tragedies of our time.  

Yours in Christ,
Jerry Blount

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When the Vow Breaks

By Wilson Adams

            I am divorced. Like the alcoholic who finds the courage to stand at his first A.A. meeting and admit what he would rather hide and deny, well, that's me. It's not easy writing those words or even admitting them to myself.

            You may wonder why it is that big of a deal. After all, many marriages end in divorce and it is a common thing for people to talk in flippant tones about an ex-husband or wife as if they were speaking about a once-loved vehicle they have traded in on a newer model. I hate that. My view of marriage is one of permanency—one man and one woman "until death do you part" (Romans 7:2-3). I learned, however, a valuable lesson along the road of life—you cannot make some-one else remain committed nor can you make him / her do what is right. You can, however, control yourself.

Muhammad's Teaching & Behavior Relevant to Young Girls

(This post is a continuation of "Did Muhammad Promote Pedophilia?" and "Muhammad's Teaching Relevant to Boys")

The obvious place to start, is with Aisha. Muhammad married her when he was approximately age 55 and she was approximately age 6.  Muhammad had sex with her at age 9.  She was 18-19 when Muhammad died.  I feel compelled to explain my use of the term “approximate.”  The Hadith is not consistent on this.  How could it be?  It takes legitimate inspiration for multiple versions of events to be recorded without flaw.  The Hadith in its various forms is anything but flawless.  In this case, it only varies by a year either way.

"'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married her when she was seven years old, and he was taken to his house as a bride when she was nine, and her dolls were with her; and when he (the Holy Prophet) died she was eighteen years old." [Sahih Muslim Book 008, Number 3311]

Aisha also reported these events herself:

"The Messenger of God married me in Shawwal in the tenth year after of his prophethood, three years before the Migration as I was six years old. I was nine years old when he consummated the marriage with me.     [Tabaqat, 8:58; Abu Dawud, Nikah 34; Ansab al-ashraf, 1:410; Usd al-ghaba, 5:501] "Narrated Hisham's father: Khadija died three years before the Prophet departed to Medina. He stayed in Medina for two years or so and then he married 'Aisha.  At this time she was a girl of six years of age, and he consummated that marriage when she was nine years old." [Sahih Bukhari Volume 5, Book 58, Number 236:]

Muhammad's Teaching Relevant to Boys

(This post is a continuation of my previous post, "Did Muhammad Promote Pedophilia?")

This goes far beyond the recent scandals within Catholicism.  The reason is that this is sanctioned.  Homosexuality is condemned within Islam.  Now we pose an interesting dilemma.  Define homosexuality!  Apparently boys and men are viewed differently.  

There is a dilemma here when we start trying to get at the true teaching of the Koran.  What does it say?  It says that in paradise, you will have an unlimited supply of boys to satisfy you! I wish that I were making this up.  I feel compelled to apologize for the disturbing nature of the image.  Unfortunately though, the worst thing would be to hide from it.

Most of us have been muttering for some time about the image of being surrounded by the perpetual virgins  in the Islamic view of paradise.  By the same token, most in the West have not picked up on the teaching that you’ll also be given in unlimited supply of boys if you make it to the Muslim paradise.

Here are three translations of the same verse from the Koran.  I am afraid to only give one.  If I quote either of the two accurate translations you’ll think I am picking and choosing. (Pickthal, a more western friendly version, softens it.)

• 052.024 YUSUFALI: Round about them will serve, (devoted) to them, young male servants (handsome) as Pearls well-guarded.
• PICKTHAL: And there go round, waiting on them menservants of their own, as they were hidden pearls.
• SHAKIR: And round them shall go boys of theirs as if they were hidden pearls.

Did Muhammad Promote Pedophilia?

This is by far the most sensitive of our studies on Islam.  I have chopped a couple of the quotes down because I don’t want to rate this list “R”!  I have given you the references … you can look up the remainder of said quotes by using the links if you are so inclined.  By any Christian measure these standards presented by Islam are vile, even criminal.  The only thing more criminal would be to just hand over the keys to our way of life to them and embrace this nonsense.

Even if you ignored all the people Muhammad killed and the forcible rapes he committed…  He would have done hard time in a federal prison if he practiced the Islam he established in our country today.  If the Muslims among us practiced what Muhammad taught… so would they.  The age of consent, for both boys and girls is one of the things we will give up if Islam gains influence in America. It is important that you recognize the Ayatollah Khomeini’s name on the first quote below.   He is the one who originally established the Islamic state of Iran in 1979.

Beyond that, please note that I have gone to great lengths to allow Muhammad to speak for himself in this essay. These aren’t Christian quotes, they are Muslim.

         
"A man can have sexual pleasure from a child as young as a baby. However, he should not ***.” [Ayatollah Khomeini]    

(Yes, I censored this one.  -JB)

I have heard many times that Islam is a religion a religion of peace. I have also heard that Islam is a religion based on strong morals etc.  I guess my reaction is to ask a simple question.  Can you define “moral?”

In reality, Islam is a hostile invading force.  The West is not by any means a “Christian” society.  However…The West is definitely a society that has been massively influenced by Christianity, and we should make no apology for that.  To understand the implications of this invasion, we must know what we are being invaded by.

Sex with very young minors is integral to Islam.  Muhammad claimed that he was the ultimate example of right and wrong.  Many today believe this claim unquestionably.  For example, when Iran’s clerics overthrew the Shaw and established and Islamic state… the age of marriage for girls dropped first to 13, then to 9.  You’ll understand why when you read the story of Aisha below. 

Islam in the West is very different from the East.  i.e. Islam when it is a minority is very different from Islam when it rules! 

Let’s divide this study into two parts:
            1) Islam and sex relevant to young boys. (CLICK HERE)
            2) Islam and sex relevant to young girls. (CLICK HERE)

Hi I am glad you stopped by our blog. These articles are from an emailing that we did several years ago.   Today most of our work is on facebook

You can follow my personal page on Facebook by clicking on this link    ...  

  Jerry Blount 

You can follow the postings on the congregation's page by clicking on this link....   

Las Vegas church of Christ 

If you wish to worship with us....

Las Vegas church of Christ

709 Dora Celeste

Las Vegas, NM 87701

Our meeting times are

10am Sunday morning for Bible study.

11am Sunday morning for the worship service.

6pm Wednesday evening for Midweek Bible study.

If you wish to contact me...

yakipreacher@gmail.com

Be well 

Jerry Blount

What Islam Means to Women, Part 5

Supplements and documentation to this study

I have reproduced Muhammad’s farewell sermon here in it’s entirety.

• So that the text can be seen in it’s context
• A good short overview of Islam by its founder can be seen

The Prophet Muhmmad's (p.b.u.h.) Farewell Sermon, translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller:

"O people, hear me well: I explain to you. For I do not know; I may well not meet you again in this place where I now stand, after this year of mine. 

O people: your lives and your property, until the very day you meet your Lord, are as inviolable to each other as the inviolability of this day you are now in, and the month you are now in. Have I given the message? -- O Allah, be my witness. So let whoever has been given something for safekeeping give it back to him who gave him it. 

What Islam Means to Women, Part 4

Women, Intelligence and Hell fire

Muhammad had 15 wives; he allowed everyone else to have 4. By the end of his life, he appears to have been pretty cynical.  In a nutshell, women in Islam have been largely consigned to hell because of their supposed lack of intellect and ungratefulness.

Here are a group of women complaining to Muhammad about his teaching regarding them.  Muhammad explains why:

"[Muhammad said]: O womenfolk, you should give charity and ask much forgiveness for I saw you in bulk amongst the dwellers of Hell. A wise lady among them said: Why is it, Messenger of Allah, that our folk is in bulk in Hell? Upon this the Holy Prophet observed: You curse too much and are ungrateful to your spouses. I have seen none lacking in common sense and failing in religion but (at the same time) robbing the wisdom of the wise, besides you.
Upon this the woman remarked: What is wrong with our common sense and with religion? He (the Holy Prophet) observed: Your lack of common sense (can be well judged from the fact) that the evidence of two women is equal to one man, that is a proof of the lack of common sense”  [Sahih Muslim, Abdul Hamid Siddiqi, tr., Number 142.]

Note that it takes two women to override the testimony of one man in a court of law.  Crimes against women when they finally do come about are very difficult to prove for obvious reasons.  

What Islam Means to Women, Part 3

Protection and standing before God and man

Two more areas of  great divide between Islam and Christianity relevant to the standing of women are:

1. Protection of a woman’s right to say no 
2. The overall presumption of the inherent competence of a woman. 

Most do not realize that Muhammad actually promoted slavery... especially sexual slavery.  Christianity restricted it and eventually rejected it.  Muhammad promoted it.   For Christians to “force” slaves into fornication is repulsive to the entire concept of Christian respect for their fellow man… Muslims, on the other hand, have kept much of this alive in their part of the world. Here the mob traffics in women. Note the vastly differing mindset of Islam:

“Also (forbidden are) women already married, except those (captives and slaves) whom your right hands possess. Thus has Allah ordained for you." [Koran Surah 4:24]

Note straight from the Koran, that it is not:  1) Rape, 2) Adultery, or even 3) Fornication to force your attentions on either captives or slaves!  Read on…..

"Yahya related to me from Malik from Damra ibn Said al-Mazini from al-Hajjaj ibn Amr ibn Ghaziya that he was sitting with Zayd ibn Thabit when Ibn Fahd came to him. He was from the Yemen. He said, “Abu Said! I have slave-girls. None of the wives in my keep are more pleasing to me than them, and not all of them please me so much that I want a child by them, shall I then _adist_e coitus interruptus?” Zayd ibn Thabit said, “Give an opinion, Hajjaj!” “I said, ‘May Allah forgive you! We sit with you in order to learn from you!’ He said, ‘Give an opinion! ‘I said, ‘She is your field, if you wish, water it, and if you wish, leave it thirsty. I heard that from Zayd.’ Zayd said, ‘He has spoken the truth.’" [Book 29, Number 29.32.99:]

What Islam Means to Women, Part 2

The example of Muhammad's domestic life

“Verily in the messenger of Allah ye have a good example for him who looketh unto Allah and the Last Day, and remembereth Allah much.”  (The Koran, Surah 33.021)

 
In some ways Muhammad is to Islam what Jesus is to Christianity.  He is the ultimate example of dealing with the other in marriage.  Let’s take a look at Muhammad’s example.  In the first study we noted the type of example Jesus provided.  Let’s see in practice what it means to follow Muhammad. 

We have already noted “how” Muhammad taught to lead your family and forcibly subject your wife.  Here are some of the examples of him doing it.  Aisha is thought to have been his favorite wife.  He married her at age 6 (disputed in some circles).  He consummated the marriage with her at age 9 (virtually undisputed!)  Most of us would view the picture at left as a father daughter picture.  It could actually be a husband and wife within Islam.  In fact the man is too young to be Muhammad.  Aisha (spelling varies)  is the author of these next examples:
 

• "The Messenger of God married me in Shawwal in the tenth year after of his prophethood, three years before the Migration as I was six years old. I was nine years old when he consummated the marriage with me." [Tabaqat, 8:58; Abu Dawud, Nikah 34; Ansab al-ashraf, 1:410; Usd al-ghaba, 5:501]
• "Ayesha said "I have not seen anyone suffering as much as the believing women. Look! Her skin is greener than her clothes!"" [Sahih Bukhari. Volume 7, Book 72, Number 715.]  **The reference to “green skin” is the bruising that follows the beatings in Muhammad’s household. 
• "-He [Mohammad] struck me [Ayesha] on the chest which caused me pain, and then said: Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you?" [Sahih Muslim, Book 4, Number 2127] ***Notice that even his “favorite” bride was subjected to the physical reprimands of a child, only the blows were not those of a spanking….  She describes a punch in the chest, then Muhammad defends his actions. 

What Islam Means to Women, Part 1

Based on Muhammad’s farewell address compared to Ephesians 5:22-33

    Living in our politically correct society, I have begun to fear the ignorance of most when it comes to Islam and it’s impending impact on women in our society.  Even the Islam that exists in this country is so sanitized that most do not realize what will happen if Islam gains a significant voice in our society.  The entire relationship of men and women will change.

     Elijah once made an incredible proclamation in determining who had the right to be called, and worshipped as God.  “Elijah came near to all the people and said, "How long {will} you hesitate between two opinions? If the Jehovah is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him." But the people did not answer him a word.”  (I King 18:21)

      In a very similar and appropriate manner we amend Elijah’s obvious ancient choice.  If Jehovah is God, follow Him, but if Allah, follow him!

     The purpose of this study will be to determine from the “sacred writings” of Islam what this will mean.  One is compelled to observe that wherever in the world that Islam reigns, women are forced into the shadows.  Slavery and degradation follow (literally!).

What Islam Means to Women

This is one of the most important postings I've sent out to date. Islam is a great unknown. I have been compiling the material on Islam for several years now. It’s impact on women is something that all need to be familiar with. Since we have just elected a Muslim to congress the influence of this unknown on our legal system is about to begin. What will said impact be?
When your daughter starts dating a Muslim it will be too late. You need to do the teaching on all this beforehand.
I have gone to great lengths to pull these quotes directly from Islam’s holy books. I wanted all the quotes to be authentic. They are. In fact most of the Islamic material is straight from Muhammad.

Part 1
A comparison between Muhammad’s farewell sermon and Ephesians 5 
 Part 2 
A comparison between Muhammad’s married life and the kind of marriage taught by Christianity.  Did you know that at age 55 Muhammad married a 6 year old girl and consummated the marriage at age 9?
 Part 3 
A survey of the inherent right to “rape” slaves and the inherent incompetence of women as taught by Muhammad. There's a lot of double talk, but when the smoke clears, it is very clear that if they had the power... this would be the fate of unbelieving (i.e. Christian) women. 
Part 4  
A survey of the lack of a woman’s intelligence and Muhammad’s vision of hell mostly filled with women. 
Part 5
Some of the supporting documentation. This includes Muhammad’s farewell sermon in total also a modern defense of Islamic sleeping with someone you are not married to.

Return to "Islam vs. Christianity"

Hi I am glad you stopped by our blog. These articles are from an emailing that we did several years ago.   Today most of our work is on facebook

You can follow my personal page on Facebook by clicking on this link    ...  

  Jerry Blount 

You can follow the postings on the congregation's page by clicking on this link....   

Las Vegas church of Christ 

If you wish to worship with us....

Las Vegas church of Christ

709 Dora Celeste

Las Vegas, NM 87701

Our meeting times are

10am Sunday morning for Bible study.

11am Sunday morning for the worship service.

6pm Wednesday evening for Midweek Bible study.

If you wish to contact me...

yakipreacher@gmail.com

Be well 

Jerry Blount

What the Bible Says About Marriage, Divorce & Remarriage

Matthew 19:6... "So they are no longer two, but one flesh.
What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate." 

Today our world is in the process of changing dramatically.  Our great great grandparents, for example, lived in a world where only one marriage in 34 ended in a divorce (in 1870)!  By 1900 that number had risen to 1 in 12, by 1940 1 in 5, by 1970 it was up to 1 in 3. Recently a reporter in Wichita, Kansas determined that in our part of the country, the number was actually 7 out of 10. 

 Those numbers are a little deceiving because a few folks get multiple divorces to the point it skews the numbers a little higher than the real (across-the-board) odds.  However, it's difficult to overlook the obvious... For the first time in our nation’s history, a majority of the young men now entering marriage were not raised by their biological fathers.  I.e. they are now attempting to build and live a successful family life… when they have not witnessed one.  That's a tough call. If you were to choose a summary statement from scripture relevant to divorce what would it be? I think my choice would be: 

"For I hate divorce," says the LORD, the God of Israel, "and him who covers his garment with wrong," says the LORD of hosts. "So take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously!"  (Malachi 2:16) 

Whether looking in the Old or New Testament, this seems to be the basic attitude.  Part of the reason may be that, for God, this is personal.  God was divorced!