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He’s better off dead if he’s gay

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Below is the fourth letter in the series, “Letters To Dad.” They are written by Sam Riviera, and are based on the true stories of people he actually knows in real life.

Dad,

You probably thought you’d never hear from me again. Well, it’s me. I’m alive.

But now I’m somewhere where you can never find me or hurt me.

LGBT Homeless TEenThere’s a public library near here where I can get on the internet. I check Facebook. Sometimes I see your posts. I read that you found out I’m gay. Did you really say “He’s better off dead if he’s gay”? What is that supposed to mean? Is that some kind of threat? To your own flesh and blood? You want me dead? Seriously?

I didn’t have a choice to be born. I didn’t get to choose who my dad is. I also didn’t get to choose that I’m gay. Regardless of what you think, I didn’t choose any of those things.

I wasn’t kidnapped. I had been planning my escape for a long time. I had to get away from you. Why? You scare me. Actually, you terrify me. I figured sooner or later you were going to find out I’m gay. I had to get as far away from you as possible before that happened.

Now that I see what you wrote on Facebook, I’m glad I ran.

I didn’t want you trying to beat demons out of me. That’s what you said. “If I ever find out any kid of mine is gay, I’ll beat those demons out of them if it kills them.” You said that.

Seriously? You think I have demons in me? Why are you such an angry person? You need help.

homeless gay teenWhere did you learn this stuff, anyway? From those homophobic guys you work with? You know that some of them are gay, don’t you? Seriously, dad. Some of them are gay. Don’t you know that? You have gay neighbors and gay relatives and gay coworkers. Which of them are you going to beat the demons out of? That could get you some serious jail time.

You said the Bible says gay people are abominations and should be stoned. Nice. Is that supposed to be Christian love? Where did you learn that? That is sick. And frightening.

Anyway, not that you care, but I’m surviving. For now. I’ve hooked up with some other kids in similar situations. About half my group is gay. Some got thrown out by their parents when they came out. The rest of us took off before our parents found out so we wouldn’t get the crap beat out of us.

We live outdoors most of the time. We steal to survive. We panhandle. Some of us sell drugs. Some of us sell sex. Don’t be surprised. Stealing, begging, addiction, dealing drugs, selling sex, and being homeless is our lifestyle … chosen for us by our parents … by dads like you.

Oh, and add dead to that list. Our lifestyle makes for a short lifespan. Suicide, overdosing, disease, getting stabbed, shot or beaten to death, or dying from exposure on cold nights is our lifestyle.

I’m not really mad at you. I’m seriously afraid of you. Thinking about you hurts. You are my dad for God’s sake. How can you be like that? How could you sentence me to a life like this? You’re the one who made that choice. You chose. I didn’t. You cut me off. You threatened my life. You’re responsible for me being on this earth. You brought me here. Now you want me dead?

One of my group read online that kids like us have a lifespan of four or five years at most. Maybe I’ll beat those odds. Maybe not.

Seriously, Shaun

Homeless LGBT Stats

[#17] Genesis 1:26-27 – Let Us Make Man in Our Image

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In Genesis 1:26, God refers to Himself in the plural. He says, “Let us make man in our image.” Why does He do that? Why does Moses write it that way? Is this the first verse in the Bible that proves the Trinity?

No, I don’t think so. This podcast on Genesis 1:26-27 explains what I do think.

let us make man in our image Genesis 1:26

The Text of Genesis 1:26-27

Genesis 1:26-27. Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

In this discussion of Genesis 1:26-27 we look at:

  • The pinnacle of the creation week
  • The creation of mankind in Genesis 1 contrasted with other creation accounts
  • The eight views of why God speaks in the plural in Genesis 1:26
  • My preferred view for why Genesis 1:26 speaks of God in the plural
  • How to be like God by living in relationships

Resources:

Downloadable Podcast Resources

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If you want to deepen your relationship with God and better understand Scripture, take one (or all) of these courses. They are great for personal study or for a small group Bible study.

You can see the list of available courses here, and if you join the Discipleship group, you can take all the courses at no additional cost. Go here to learn more and join now.

Go Buy a Sword! (Luke 22:36)

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I was recently listening to a radio talk show host talk about the right of American’s to own guns and he made the statement that even Jesus wants people to own guns.

He said that true Christianity is a Christianity that bears arms. He then went on to quote Jesus’ statement in Luke 22:36 where He instructs His disciples to sell their cloak so that they can go buy a sword. “See?” the talk show host said, “Any Christian who says we should not buy and own weapons is not a true Christian because they are contradicting Jesus Himself!”

I laughed at this sort of argument, but sadly, the radio host was deadly serious, and far too many Christians agree with him.

go buy a sword

Far too many Christian see Jesus’ instructions to His disciples to go buy a sword as an endorsement by Jesus of gun ownership, and in some cases, an endorsement of violence. I am not of this persuasion.

For the record, I support the constitutional right of United States citizens to buy and own guns. But I don’t do so on the basis of Scripture. I support gun ownership for political, historical, and rational reasons. But none of that matters for this post.

The real issue I want to address is why Jesus told His disciples to go buy a sword in Luke 22:36. There are a couple things to note about this instruction from Jesus which shows us that the instructions of Jesus to His disciples to buy a sword cannot in any way be viewed as an endorsement from Jesus of gun ownership.

1. These Swords Were Not For Violence

First of all, we must recognize that whatever reasons Jesus had for telling His disciples to buy swords, the swords were not to be used for violence.

Peter, put away your swordAfter all, when Peter actually used the sword that he was carrying, Jesus not only rebuked him and told him to put the sword away, but He also healed the damage that had been done by Peter’s sword (Luke 22:47-51).

Furthermore, when Jesus was put on trial, Jesus told Pilate that since His kingdom was not of this world, His followers would not fight (John 18:36). Obviously, if Jesus had wanted His disciples to use the swords they had purchased, Jesus could not have said this.

Jesus clearly knew, and His disciples seemed to understand (especially after learning from the rebuke of Peter), that Jesus did not want them to use their swords for violence.

So why then did Jesus have His disciples buy swords?

2. The Swords Were For the Fulfillment of Prophecy

Immediately after telling His disciples to buy a sword, Jesus gave them the reason why: “For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in me: ‘And He was numbered with the transgressors’” (Luke 22:37).

Jesus told His disciples to buy swords so that He can fulfill this prophecy from Isaiah 53:12. Jesus wanted His disciples to buy swords so that it will appear to the authorities that He and His band of followers were transgressors!

That this is what Jesus meant is confirmed by the statement of Jesus in Luke 22:38 when the disciples show Jesus the two swords they had obtained. Jesus said, “It is enough.” In other words, “That will do.”

If Jesus was seriously condoning violence, two swords were not “enough” to accomplish anything, especially in the hands of a ragtag bunch of fishermen and tax-collectors who had no military training.

Jesus out of contextJesus told His disciples to buy swords, not so that they would use them, but as a fulfillment of prophecy so that they would have the appearance of being transgressors.

To fulfill prophecy, Jesus had to be viewed as a transgressor. He had to at least appear to be a political revolutionary to the Jewish authorities for them to feel justified in arresting him. His cleansing of the temple a few days earlier was probably calculated for the same effect. So, to fulfill the prophecy and to provoke the Jewish authorities, he had to have enough weaponry to justify being viewed as a law breaking revolutionary (Greg Boyd, Go Buy a Sword )

So Go Buy a Gun if You Want To…

So if you live in a country that allows gun ownership, and if you are a law-abiding citizen, go buy a gun if you want to.

But don’t ever suppose that Jesus endorses gun ownership because He told His disciples to “go buy a sword.” That is a terrible misreading of Luke 22:36.

[#16] Genesis 1:24-25 – The Theology of Evolution

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While I do not believe that Genesis 1 speaks directly against the theory of evolution, I do believe that the theology behind the theory of evolution has been around a lot longer than the theory itself.

In fact, the theology behind the theory of evolution has been around since the very beginning.

The verses we will look at today, Genesis 1:24-25, speak directly against these theological ideas. Listen to this episode to learn how.

genesis 1:24-25 humans animals evolution

The Text of Genesis 1:24-25

Genesis 1:24-25. Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind”; and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

In this discussion of Genesis 1:24-25 we look at:

  • The first part of the sixth day of creation is the creation of the animals.
  • How the creation of the animals is different than the creation of the plants.
  • The three categories of animals that were created.
  • Similarities of Genesis 1:24-25 with other creation accounts, and how the Genesis account is polemical against them.
  • How Genesis 1:24-25 refutes the theology of evolution, even if it doesn’t speak to evolution itself.

Resources:

Downloadable Podcast Resources

Those who are part of my online discipleship group may download the MP3 audio file for this podcast and view the podcast transcript below.

You must join a discipleship group or login to download the MP3 and view the transcript.

Membership-become-a-member

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Upgrade your Membership to one of the paid groups.

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Do you like learning about the Bible online?

Do you like learning about Scripture and theology through my podcast? If so, then you will also love my online courses. They all have MP3 audio downloads, PDF transcripts, quizzes, and a comment section for questions and interaction with other students.

If you want to deepen your relationship with God and better understand Scripture, take one (or all) of these courses. They are great for personal study or for a small group Bible study.

You can see the list of available courses here, and if you join the Discipleship group, you can take all the courses at no additional cost. Go here to learn more and join now.

Will You Partner with Me to help others see that God is better than they imagined?

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Your support helps over 250,000 people each month discover the love of God
and find freedom from the shackles of religion.

Make a Monthly Gift

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In the last decade, I have published over 2 million words on this blog, and I am glad that you have found some of these words to be helpful and encouraging in your own relationship with Jesus.

It is a privilege to write about something I am passionate about, which is helping people see that they caFn have a personal relationship with God without the manipulation, control, guilt, fear, and shame that is central to all religious systems.

free from religionBut I have recently encountered a big problem on this blog: Blogging starts to get expensive. Very expensive.

Running this blog is expensive

Blogging, like anything else in the world, costs money to do it right.

As my blog has grown, it has also become more expensive to run. When I first started blogging, it cost me about $100 a year to run this blog. That expense was worth it for me.

But within the last year or two, as my blog readership has exploded, so have my expenses. This month, people will read about 250,000 articles on my blog. I am thrilled with the impact this blog is making in the world!

But it is also costing me over $400 a month (about $5000 annually) to keep the blog up and running.

Why does blogging cost so much?

There are “free” or “low cost” ways of blogging (for less than $100 per year). While I used to use these methods, they often crashed under the weight of my readership, and so I have had to steadily upgrade to better web hosting, email service (for my email newsletter), and podcast hosting (for my podcast) so that my site doesn’t crash.

This is a good problem to have because it shows that this blog is helping millions of people around the world each and every year.

I get emails every day from people in various countries who have been helped by the content of this blog. Many of them struggle under the bondage of religion, have questions about the character of God, and desperately need help about how to understand Scripture in light of Jesus Christ. They write to me from all over the world telling me how thankful they are to have found my blog. This blog and my writings are helping liberate thousands of people every month from the shackles of religion so they can enter into the genuine relationship with God they have always desired.

I know that you might have been encouraged by this blog as well.

So I want to do whatever I can to keep my blog up and running.

The problem, however, is that the costs are becoming unsustainable.

While I love blogging and writing to encourage others, the costs are getting to the point where I simply cannot afford it, and I am not sure what to do.

To help defray the cost of blogging, I have tried various things.

I have tried using affiliate links, writing books, and selling advertising.

While each one of these activities brings in a little bit of money each month, they do not even come close to covering the total cost of running this blog.

Monthly Costs: Monthly Income
$150 – Domain and Hosting $15 – Book Sales
$40 – Podcast Hosting $60 – Advertising
$100 – Membership Area $90 – Membership Income
$70 – Email Newsletter
$80 – Miscellaneous
Total: $440 Total: $165

As you can see, the domain name registration and hosting fees are the largest expense. I have numerous blogs, and (as explained above) I have too many readers to go with entry-level hosting (a good problem to have). Also, I cannot host my podcast files on my site, because the number of downloads I receive would crash my blog. The Membership area expenses include the software and shopping cart features I use to create a secure members-only area on my website. I use an email service to send out my email newsletter and keep track of all the thousands of subscribers. The miscellaneous item includes one-time fees for things like book design and publishing expenses, and software or equipment upgrades.

So altogether, I have about $440 in monthly expenses and $165 in monthly income.

blogging expenses

So, I need your help.

I have already cut costs everywhere I can without causing this website to crash, which means I have to find new ways to cover the costs of blogging. Here are my only options:

  1. Accept Donations
  2. Put new blog content in a members-only area and charge a small monthly fee for access.
  3. Make weekly or monthly pleas for people to buy my books so that the blog content can remain free.
  4. Close down this site and cancel the podcast.

Obviously, option 4 is out of the question. I am going with Option 1 and Option 2. Let me tell you about Option 2 first.

Option 2: Membership Area

I recently started a Members-Only area of the website. There is a Free Member’s area (the “Faith” Membership level) which grants you access to all sorts of free eBooks, online theology lessons, and audio downloads.

But the real benefit comes in the Paid Membership levels, which is the “Hope” and “Love” Membership levels. These levels help support the work I am doing here at RedeemingGod.com, but also provide you with numerous benefits as well. I want to thank those who support my work, and so these membership levels provide a way for me to do this.

Among these benefits are more free eBooks and free online theology courses. More benefits and courses are coming soon. Go here to become a Member of RedeemingGod.com.

Nevertheless, some people just want to give and do not care too much about receiving the extra benefits of membership. If so, you can make a donation below…

Option 1: Accepting Donations

While I am not a non-profit organization (I am not a 501c3), I have decided to accept financial gifts from those who appreciate how my writing has helped them gain a clearer picture of God and a deeper understanding of how to follow Jesus outside of religion, and who want this same message to continue to be freely offered to others.

I am not asking for donations to cover the time I spend on this blog. I put my blood, sweat, and tears into this blog because I am passionate about showing people a way to break free from the shackles of religion and see God in a whole new light.

Yet I am happy to accept your help in covering the growing expenses of this work.

So if you believe in the impact my blog and podcast are having on others around the world and you would like to partner with me to keep it going, I would greatly appreciate any support you can provide below.

A monthly gift of $10 or $20 would be of great help, or a one-time gift of $50 or $100. Please note that since I do not have 501(c)(3) non-profit status, these gifts are not tax deductible. (I looked into becoming a 501(c)(3), but it would cost even more money I do not have…)

If you benefit from this blog, know that it also benefits thousands of others around the world every single day. But since it is not free to run this blog, would you please consider how you can support this site?

Thanks for reading, and for partnering with me in any way you can. You can make a one-time or a monthly gift through the form below.

Your support helps over 250,000 people each month discover the love of God
and find freedom from the shackles of religion.

Make a Monthly Gift

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One-Time Gift

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thanks for your support

Books I Consult for Every Podcast Episode

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Here are some of the books I consult for every single episode of the One Verse Podcast:

Genesis books podcast

There are several more that are not in this picture… nor does this factor in the journal articles I read or books I use on Logos Bible Software.

And in case you are curious, here is my study method.

I hear that many podcasters just sit down to record their podcast, talk into a mic for an hour, and then they’re done.

My podcast episodes take a bit longer to prepare than that… Each 30 minute podcast takes about eight hours just to prepare. The picture above shows part of the reason why.

Sooo … is it worth it?

Well, I’m enjoying studying Genesis 1 and recording what I learn. I hope you enjoy listening to them!

If you do enjoy listening to the podcasts, would you use the share buttons below to invite others to subscribe, and then also leave a Rating and Review on iTunes? Thanks! There are instructions here for how to leave a Rating and Review.

So far, I’m not using drugs

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Below is the third letter in the series, “Letters To Dad.” They are written by Sam Riviera, and are based on the true stories of people he actually knows in real life.

homeless youth in the city

Dad,

At least that’s what I’ve called you the last few years. You’ll probably be the only person I’ll ever call dad, even though you were my foster dad. According to grandma, if my mom knows who my real dad is she’s never said. She probably doesn’t know. Grandma says mom was strung out most of the time around the time she got pregnant with me so who knows who my real dad is. I’ll probably never know.

Grandma says it’s a wonder I ain’t in prison or some institution. All the meth mom was using when she was pregnant with me shoulda fried my brain. Well, I didn’t do great in school and spent a lot of time in the counselors office, but I’ve managed to stay out of jail. So far…

You told me I could go live with grandma or some other relative. That isn’t happening. No one wants me or has space for me. Grandma thinks I should be able to find a job. I’ve tried, but they tell me I don’t have any experience and they’re looking for people with experience. How much experience do you need to wipe off tables and take out the garbage?

I think grandma’s afraid she’ll have to support me. She barely gets by on her Social Security check and her landlord is threatening to raise her rent. She says she can’t pay more and doesn’t know where she can find another place for what she can afford, so she can’t have another mouth to feed and a big guy like me must eat a lot.

There’s this place for homeless and runaway kids where I can get a hot meal every night. They have showers and used clothes and a few other things. I got a backpack and I’m hoping for a sleeping bag. There’s a place I sleep up under a freeway bridge behind some bushes. It keeps me dry when it rains.

sleeping homeless teen

I was trying to sleep on the street, but it’s too dangerous. I couldn’t find anyone to hang with and you can’t sleep on the street alone. You’ll get kicked in the head when you’re trying to sleep and they take your stuff. You can’t get any sleep.

A guy I know down there said there was a shooting on the other side of the street last Saturday. Ten cop cars showed up. They ran everyone off the block and took what you couldn’t carry. The next night there was a stabbing in the alley around the corner. Some guy died. More cops. This stuff doesn’t even make the news. Like anyone cares when a homeless person gets murdered. Bad for the tourist business. Pretend it doesn’t happen. We’re not real people.

I guess I understand. The foster kid checks you got for me stopped when I aged out of the system. You have other kids and your job doesn’t pay much. You said it’s time for me to make it on my own. So far that looks like dinner at the homeless kids place, sleeping under a bridge, and hoping I won’t get stabbed. I’m trying to follow up with several places that are supposed to help people like me, but they really don’t have any place for me to live or work.

So far, I’m not using drugs. I don’t have money and I’m not selling my body or dealing for the privilege of getting messed up by drugs. You don’t know what it’s like down here. It’s a lot more messed up than you know. There are a few people who care, but they don’t have a place for me to get off the street. The system is totally messed up. Guess I’m luckier than most. So far…

Tony

[#15] Genesis 1:21 – Redeeming the Sea Serpents

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Is there something in your life you are ashamed of? If you are like most people, there are probably a multitude of such things.

Maybe it is something evil that happened to you when you were younger. Maybe it is some addiction or temptation which you fall to almost every day.

By looking at some shocking truths from Genesis 1:21, we see that God doesn’t want to get rid of those things in your life. No, instead, God wants to redeem them. To turn them around to be used for His glory.

Listen to this episode of the One Verse Podcast to see what I mean.

Great Sea Dragons Genesis 1:21

The Text of Genesis 1:21

Genesis 1:21. So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

In this discussion of Genesis 1:21 we look at:

  • Why Moses uses the word bara (“to create”) in Genesis 1:21.
  • The meaning of tannin as “monsters” in Genesis 1:21.
  • The religious myths about sea serpents from Babylon, Canaan, and Egypt
  • What the rest of Scripture says about sea serpents.
  • The theological truth Moses was making by saying that God created the
  • The theological truth Moses was making by calling the tannin “good.”
  • Why God wants to redeem the evil that has happened to you and turn it around for good.

Resources:

Downloadable Podcast Resources

Those who are part of my online discipleship group may download the MP3 audio file for this podcast and view the podcast transcript below.

You must join a discipleship group or login to download the MP3 and view the transcript.

Membership-become-a-member

Thanks for visiting this page ... but this page is for Discipleship Group members.

If you are already part of a Faith, Hope, or Love Discipleship Group,
Login here.

If you are part of the free "Grace" Discipleship group, you will need to
Upgrade your Membership to one of the paid groups.

If you are not part of any group, you may learn about the various groups and their benefits here:
Join Us Today.

Membership-become-a-member


Do you like learning about the Bible online?

Do you like learning about Scripture and theology through my podcast? If so, then you will also love my online courses. They all have MP3 audio downloads, PDF transcripts, quizzes, and a comment section for questions and interaction with other students.

If you want to deepen your relationship with God and better understand Scripture, take one (or all) of these courses. They are great for personal study or for a small group Bible study.

You can see the list of available courses here, and if you join the Discipleship group, you can take all the courses at no additional cost. Go here to learn more and join now.

Supernatural – by Michael Heiser

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supernatural heiserA couple months back, I wrote about Michael Heiser’s book, The Unseen Realm. That book was a somewhat scholarly approach to what the Bible says about the world that many modern, Western people ignore: the spiritual world.

Now Michael Heiser has put out another book on the same theme, but with a more popular level audience in mind.

This new book is called Supernatural.

To be completely honest, I preferred The Unseen Realm over Supernatural, but that is probably because I prefer more detail and scholarly research rather than less. The basic content is pretty much the same, however, so if you want a quicker, easier read to get the same message, you might prefer reading Supernatural.

Both books encourage the reader to look at what the Bible says about what is going on in the world around us that we never see. Most importantly of all, Michael Heiser encourages the reader to live in a way that they can get involved in the world of the spirit by how we live, act, and think.

The first step, of course, is becoming aware that the spiritual world exists, and Michael Heiser’s books will walk you through what the Bible says about it.

My only issue with the book is how much emphasis Heiser places on the “Divine Counsel” motif in Scripture. The theme is definitely prominent in Scripture, but I was never quite sure what Heiser was saying about this theme in the Bible, or what he was implying about it. Was he saying that there truly are other “gods” in addition to Yahweh? Was he saying that these were just the angels? Was he saying that somehow we could participate in this Divine Counsel? Where and how do the “principalities and powers” fit within these supernatural perspective?

I hope to have Michael Heiser on as a guest for my Theology.fm podcast in December to ask him some of these sorts of questions.

If you want to know more about the Spiritual realm, one (or both) of these books might be good to read. If you want to learn more about the content of them before you buy one, here is a video about the content of these books in Michael Heiser’s own words:

You can buy Supernatural at Amazon.

FTC Disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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