Based upon an article by Dr. Kenneth Stevenson:
FAKE NEWS HAS REAL CONSEQUENCES
First of all if something is truly "fake news" it is by definition untrue, therefore: a lie. From a Judaeo-Christian perspective the importance of discerning "the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help me GOD", which I learned as a child and still believe to be the standard used in every courtroom, cannot be overstated. After all the Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation reveal the origin as well as the dire consequences of lying. In Genesis 3:1 the serpent fabricates the original lie "hath GOD said" and as a consequence, mankind is separated from their Creator. Yeshua confirms this and declares that the devil is the "father of lies" from the beginning. Because the "lawgivers" (scribes and Pharisees) could not accept the truth they were determined to destroy Yeshua:
"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. And they answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?...Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham. Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not....He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God." John 8:37-44, excerpt
Sadly the same lie is rampant in every defiant facet of humanity today which refuses to receive the "truth" with the result being GOD gives them up to every type of wickedness:
"And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient." Romans 1:28
Yeshua's final prayer for His disciples provides a crucial understanding of "the truth": "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy WORD IS TRUTH !" (John 17:17 emphasis added).
Therefore it becomes crystal clear that GOD's Word separates us (sanctifies us, cleanses us from sin) and that if the Word has no place in you the lie will! Paul even prophesies a stern warning regarding the deception of the end times. In the warning found in 2 Thessalonians 2 there are several crucial points that should alert any "Berean" (one who diligently searches the Scripture to discern "truth") to the lateness of the hour. Verse 1 reminds us that the Lord is returning and will gather His believers. In verse three we read that there will be a great falling away which will culminate in the "son of perdition" being revealed. Indeed as lawlessness increases many have tried to identify such an individual. Next the "man of sin" will sit in the Temple to proclaim himself to be God. Just this week there was a report concerning the Third Temple.* From verses 10-12 we once again read about "fake news" (in the Greek it reads "the lie" which again refers to the original lie "hath GOD said"). This time sent by GOD to those who: "...received not the love of the truth...believed not the truth...had pleasure in unrighteousness". Verse 13 in stark contrast identifies believing brethren as "beloved of GOD through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth". Furthermore, GOD's position on lying is clearly spelled out in Proverbs 6: 16-19 where both a lying tongue and a false witness are listed among seven things which HE hates:
"These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren."
Finally in Revelation 21:8,27; Rev. 22:15 "all liars" along with "anyone who loveth and maketh a lie"are denied entrance into HIS Kingdom and instead are destined for separation from GOD in the "lake of fire".
The Scriptures are full of examples of dire consequences from a belief in "fake news" ("the lie"). One prophet lies to another resulting in his being devoured by a lion. (1 Ki. 13:24) Men of "renown" in the Israelite community chose to use their positions to lie against Moses and like the serpent himself they parsed their words using the Torah to justify their behavior. The accusers, their families and all who sided with them were destroyed when they all were taken by what is most certainly the first ever recorded giant sinkhole. The following day an additional 14,000 are destroyed in a plague when they believed the "fake news" report that Moses killed their brethren. Perhaps they chose not to believe their "lying" eyes and ears (Numbers 16). In 1 Kings 22:22-23, GOD allows a "lying spirit" to seal the fate of the wicked King Ahab. The Prophet Elisha, at the height of a famine caused by a Syrian seige, prophesies a miraculous breakthrough for GOD's people the following day. When the King's supporting minister calls it "fake news", the prophet of GOD says, you will see it but not eat any of it. The minister is trampled to death in the gate where he was sent to oversee (2 Kings 7). In Acts 5, Ananais and Sapphira both die untimely deaths for attempting to lie to the Apostles about their giving. Perhaps every professing believer at this juncture needs to re-examine their own hearts to ensure they hold to the "truth".
In my opinion there is a "fake news" account that has been recycled for nearly 2000 years which has eternal consequences. When Yeshua rose from the dead, there were numerous eye witnesses. According to the Apostle Paul, (originally the chief persecutor of the faith) more than 500 on one occasion (1 Cor. 15:3-8). However a contingent of the guards assigned to the tomb were paid a "large" sum of money to spread "the lie" that the disciples stole the body. Like Matthew stated "to this day that story is still being told" (Mt. 28:11-15). In 1965, author Hugh Schonfeld published the same "fake news" yet again, and it was even made into a film in 1976. The fact remains that the central truth of Christianity is the Resurrection. Again citing the Apostle Paul, in 1 Cor. 15:12-56 we find the a detailed defense of the resurrection from one trained in the "truth" of the Scriptures. In two separate additional passages Paul cites his faith and training as a Pharisee in connection with the resurrection of Yeshua. First in Acts 23:6-8, where he makes it plain that the "hope of the resurrection" was a central belief. Later writing to the Church at Philipi (Phi. 3:5-11) Paul first establishes his spiritual lineage as a Pharisee and then goes on to equate that to "dung" as compared with knowing Christ and the "power of His resurrection", so that he might "attain unto the resurrection of the dead".
So we see clearly from the author of 60% of the New Testament the centrality of the resurrection to Christianity. Which brings me to my own experiences in connection to the resurrection itself. In 1977, I was tasked with editing the papers of a number of scientists and prelates about the Shroud of Turin. Later that year along with a select group of the scientists we journeyed to Turin to present a platform of testing on the Shroud. Working heavily in our favor: using space technology we had produced scientific evidence that the image on the Shroud contained three-dimensional information from a 1933 photographic image ! That completely unique characteristic intrigued many around the globe about the unusual relic. One year later the Shroud of Turin Research Project (STURP) became the first scientific group to conduct hands on intensive testing in an effort to determine what caused the image on the Shroud. The nearly six twenty-four hour days of testing took nearly three years of analysis, collation and peer-review in order to produce the following incredible statement: "We can conclude for now that the shroud image is that of a real human form of a scourged, crucified man. It is not the product of an artist. The bloodstains are composed of hemoglobin and also give a positive test for serum albumin. The image is an ongoing mystery and until further chemical studies are made, perhaps by this group of scientists or perhaps by some scientists in the future, the problem remains unsolved."
In the same manner of continuing belief to this day in the lie that Jesus did not rise from the tomb, but that His disciples took His body, the results of later carbon dating tests performed by the British Museum, which did not follow accepted scientific protocols, and have subsequently been proven to be false*, are still being accepted as scientific fact, and truth. It is time to reveal the lie, and accept the proven truth in this matter.
I have written the book, NAZAH: White Linen and the Blood of Sprinkling, the culmination of forty years of research, to shine the light of truth regarding the Shroud, and its image of what I believe to be the crucified Jesus of Nazareth, and the moment of His resurrection.
*." (Shroud of Turin Research Project) STURP Chemist Raymond N. Rogers uncovered cotton fibers in the tested sample areas of the Shroud cloth, but no cotton fibers in samples taken from the main part of the shroud during the 1973 examination. These two combined clues (isolated gum arabic as well as added cotton fabric) strongly indicate that the carbon dated samples were taken from repair fabric utilized in the re-weave process at a later date...although the original protocol had called for the chemical analysis of the samples prior to their destruction during testing, the three testing laboratories did not perform the analysis. When this evidence is taken into consideration, the carbon dating cannot reflect the date of the untested original main Shroud body, only the period of the tested material added at a later date. Moreover, Rogers found that the Shroud sample used for radiocarbon dating contain alizarin dye (utilized by the re-weavers to match the original main cloth), whereas no dye of any form was found on any part of the original Shroud cloth." Brendan Whiting http://www.datingtheshroud.com/Index.htm
Dr. Stevenson's Contact Information:
Dr. Kenneth Stevenson
P.O. Box 154221
Waco, TX 76705
https://twitter.com/everlastingcov8
http://endtimeschool.com/
P.O. Box 154221
Waco, TX 76705
https://twitter.com/everlastingcov8
http://endtimeschool.com/
To watch/hear Dr. Stevenson's complete message:
https://twitter.com/everlastingcov8
Prayer of Salvation for all who desire to receive Jesus as their Savior: Lord Jesus, I desire to know You, and to know Your salvation. I believe that You died for me, and that You were resurrected for me. Forgive me of my sins. Come into my heart, change me, fill me with Your righteousness. Inscribe my name in the Lamb's book of life. Baptize me in Your Holy Spirit, so that I can learn the truth of Your Word and ways, and be strengthened in my walk all the days of my life. You are the hope of my life, and You are my eternal life. I place my trust in You, Lord, for myself, and my whole household. Use me to do the will of the heavenly Father, Who sent You, in Whose name You came. In Your name, and in thanks and praise I pray, Amen.
https://twitter.com/everlastingcov8
Prayer of Salvation for all who desire to receive Jesus as their Savior: Lord Jesus, I desire to know You, and to know Your salvation. I believe that You died for me, and that You were resurrected for me. Forgive me of my sins. Come into my heart, change me, fill me with Your righteousness. Inscribe my name in the Lamb's book of life. Baptize me in Your Holy Spirit, so that I can learn the truth of Your Word and ways, and be strengthened in my walk all the days of my life. You are the hope of my life, and You are my eternal life. I place my trust in You, Lord, for myself, and my whole household. Use me to do the will of the heavenly Father, Who sent You, in Whose name You came. In Your name, and in thanks and praise I pray, Amen.
To order "NAZAH": https://twitter.com/everlastingcov8 http://endtimeschool.com/
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