{"id":411,"date":"2009-10-27T10:59:37","date_gmt":"2009-10-27T17:59:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/?p=411"},"modified":"2009-10-27T13:15:00","modified_gmt":"2009-10-27T20:15:00","slug":"ye-are-gods","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/last-days\/ye-are-gods","title":{"rendered":"Ye Are Gods?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.\u00c2\u00a0\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I said, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcYou are \u00e2\u20ac\u0153gods\u00e2\u20ac\u009d; you are all sons of the Most High.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 But you will die like mere men; you will fall like every other ruler.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> (Psalm 82:5-7)<\/p>\n

\"\"I read Dan Brown\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s new book The Lost Symbol<\/span><\/em> last week. I should have known better \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Dan Brown was the guy who brought us the DaVinci Code<\/span><\/em>. The DaVinci Code<\/span><\/em>, if you remember, was the fast paced, action filled novel in which Brown tries to convince us that Jesus really didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t die on the cross and later married Mary Magdalene and produced offspring whose lineage may be around today.<\/p>\n

Uh-huh.<\/p>\n

According to Dan, Jesus didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t die on the cross; therefore mankind\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s sin debt wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t paid. If he didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t die then he didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t rise from the grave \u00e2\u20ac\u201c no resurrection. And if he didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t die and wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t resurrected and later got married and had children, then he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not really God.<\/p>\n

Wonderful philosophy. Thanks Dan.<\/p>\n

The DaVinci Code<\/span><\/em> tried to make God into man. Brown\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s new book The Lost Symbol<\/span><\/em> does its best to make men into gods. To convince us that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re really gods Dan quotes three words from the Bible, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcye are gods.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> He also throws in the Torah (isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t that part of the Bible?), the Koran, the Bhagavad Gita, the Tao and whatever other \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcscriptures\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> he can come up with as proof that they and the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcprophets\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> (Jesus, Mohammed, Confucius, Buddha and Tom Cruise) all came to share the same message with mankind; \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcye are gods\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve got to surrender the point to Dan; those three words are<\/em> in the Bible \u00e2\u20ac\u201c right after \u00e2\u20ac\u0153They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> and right before \u00e2\u20ac\u0153But you will die like mere men; you will fall like every other ruler.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> Dan fails to work the full context into the book \u00e2\u20ac\u201c besides it would kinda ruin his thesis: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We have the power to become gods within us, all we gotta do try \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 or become Masons.<\/em><\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve also got to admit that Dan writes a pretty fast moving, action packed story. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what hooked me; I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m a sucker for action. Other than being fundamentally wrong, the problem with The Lost Symbol<\/span><\/em> is that the bad guy is dispatched and all the action is over by page 460 \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 the book doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t end until page 509. Dan fills the last 49 pages trying to back up his thesis, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcye are gods\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> with a gobblety-gook philosophy built on a foundation with all the firmness of a fresh cow patty on a warm summer day (*Hint to Dan: stick with the fast moving action; it works for you.)<\/p>\n

It took me the better part of a day to get through The Lost Symbol<\/span><\/em>. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a day I won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get back \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 forgive me Lord. My recommendation: save yourself twelve hours and thirty-bucks.<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

When I was a kid I heard what the Bible said the world would be like in the last days and I wondered at how such things could practically come to be. The thirteenth chapter of Revelation predicted that, in the last days, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcthe earth and its inhabitants would worship the beast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> and that everyone would receive a mark and only with this mark could anyone buy or sell anything. I couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t imagine all of the earth worshiping a single \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbeast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> or the entire world buying and selling only enabled by a mark which the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbeast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> gave them.<\/p>\n

What I couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t imagine was believers falling for something like this. Surely the requirement of a single world religion (all men worshiping the same \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbeast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>) and a single world economic system requiring a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcmark\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> given to each person by the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbeast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> would take years to set up and the cooperation of every nation and religion on earth. Not only would Christians see through this and rebel, free people from every corner of the earth would rise up against the idea of the world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s religions and economies being controlled by a single \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbeast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>. I just couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t see how we could all roll over and allow something like this to happen, especially when the Bible had already warned us against it.<\/p>\n

A lot of water has passed beneath the bridge since the day I first learned about the prophecies of the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbeast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>. What was impossible has become possible. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s happening before our eyes and, yes, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re rolling right over \u00e2\u20ac\u201c not only allowing it to happen, but joining right in.<\/p>\n

Thirty years ago I couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t imagine an economic system in which an individual wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be allowed to buy or sell anything unless they carried a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcmark\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> on their hand and forehead. But that was before Debit Cards and Electronic Funds Transfer. When was the last time you paid cash (currency, not a debit card, credit card or check) for a major appliance? When was the last time you paid cash at the grocery store instead of sliding your debit card through the machine and punching in your PIN? Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t deceive yourself into thinking that writing a check is any closer to cash than a debit card. The cashier inserts your check into a slot in the register which reads the magnetic coding and withdraws the money from your account at that moment. No different than a debit card.<\/p>\n

We are well on the way to getting rid of cash altogether – it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s dirty, it cost money to print money, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hard to track, and trading all those different currencies of all those different countries slows down the global economy. Yep, cashless is cleaner, neater, and more efficient \u00e2\u20ac\u201c all anyone needs is a number in the system and a PIN code \u00e2\u20ac\u201c a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcmark\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>, if you would; one on your hand (or in your hand) and one on your forehead (or in your memory \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 and in the database memory).<\/p>\n

Well, I guess that part of the prophecy has already come true.<\/p>\n

But what about everyone on earth bowing down to worship the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbeast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>? The world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Christians would never stand for it! Other religions, Jews, Moslems, Hindus, Buddhists and the rest would refuse to bow their collective knees to a single entity. Surely the idea of a single world religion is practically impossible.<\/p>\n

Sorry \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re headed there too. We don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mention the words \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcChristian\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcJew\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcMoslem\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcHindu\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> or \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcBuddhist\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> much in public anymore; it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just not politically correct. \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcFaith Based Community\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> is a much easier term. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s more homogeneous \u00e2\u20ac\u201c not so \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcin-your-face\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> as those stark declarations of an exclusive belief system.<\/p>\n

And as for those few who can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t accept that all religions are of the same value and truth – for those who stubbornly cling to a single belief systems as \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcthe truth\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> \u00e2\u20ac\u201c we call those folks \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcFundamentalists\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>. And as for those who actually live out the tenets of their faith without regard to society\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s accepted common practice? Those folks are what we call \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcExtremists\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>.<\/p>\n

And everyone knows (as the media has so aptly indoctrinated us) that \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcFundamentalists\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> are whackos and \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcExtremists\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> are dangerous. It doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t matter that some groups demonstrate their \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcfundamentalism\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> and \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcextremism\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> by detonating suicide bombs and others by refusing to call good what God says is evil. Throw \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcem all in the same pot \u00e2\u20ac\u201c once we get rid of all the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcfundamentalists\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> and \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcextremists\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> the world will be safe for all of us who have no clue what to believe. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll be free to believe whatever Channel 2 or Dan Brown tells us \u00e2\u20ac\u201c it won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t matter what we believe as long as we do as we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re told and don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t take any of it too seriously.<\/p>\n

In order for the prophecies in Revelation 13 to come true, all the world needs to do is to replace freedom and truth with control and deceit. For better or worse, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re well on our way to accomplishing that goal. And if you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not completely deceived yet \u00e2\u20ac\u201c if truth still looks like truth and lies still look like lies – just keep reading Dan Brown\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s books, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll get there.<\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span> <\/span>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Jesus answered: \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcWatch out that no one deceives you. <\/span><\/sup>For many will come in my name, claiming, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcI am the Christ,\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 and will deceive many.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> (Matthew 24:4)<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

Next week we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll talk about where Dan Brown may have gotten his ideas (theyre not so new) and what the Bible really means when it states \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcye are gods\u00e2\u20ac\u2122.<\/p>\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.\u00c2\u00a0\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I said, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcYou are \u00e2\u20ac\u0153gods\u00e2\u20ac\u009d; you are all sons of the Most High.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 But you will die like mere men; you will fall like every other ruler.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d (Psalm 82:5-7) I read Dan Brown\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s new book The Lost […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[165],"tags":[794,93,791,795,792,793],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=411"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":425,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411\/revisions\/425"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}