Commenter: Dear Ron, Holy Mary was/is a foreshadow of ark of the covenant!

The ark of the covenant cannot be explained outside the theology of the coming of Lord Jesus and the creation of His Church. Outside of the theteology of the Hoy Fathers who become worthy to the presencre of God the ark of the covenant becomes an object that is a fountation of story telling none related to man's Divine Inheritance (the Church/ Colosians 1:24) and His Divine Destination /1 Peter 1:16

!   

THE ARK OF THE COVENANT ILLUSTRATES BEFORE HAND THE COMING AND THE ROLE OF HOLY MARY FOR THE SALVATION OF ALL MAN KIND!

Holy Mary is unquestionably the greatest receiver of the Triad Gods Grace for ALL TIME because she held God Creator  (God Logos, Spoken Truth Words), in her womb for nine months!

Thus Holy Mary is considered to be the greatest of all theologians. However her role in the Church was one of a mother, an advisor and a friend to the Apostles simply because this was the role given to her by her Son and God Lord Jesus. The very foundation of a healthy type Christian life that produces Saints is the family, and a woman is called to be the backbone of this foundation as a mother an advisor and a friend to her husband and children aiding the whole family achieving the only purpose of life on earth which is ETERNAL LIFE. Holy Mary’s Holy remains are to be found nowhere. It is commonly known in Orthodoxy (knowledge passed down by the Holy Fathers), that Panagia (the All Holy Mary) resurrected thee days after her death. All the Apostles where there except Thomas. Tradition has it that the Apostles where brought there from around the world on clouds! As Holy Mary was ascending here comes Apostle Thomas late as usual. He could only see her up in a distance and so immediately he cried out “I don’t believe that it is Mary” Panagia (Panagia means all Holy) replied by answering from up high “misbeliever Thomas, take my belt in order to be convinced that it is I” and she threw her belt to him.

Holy Mary’s belt is located today at the Batopedi Monastery in Athos Mountain which is known as the garden of Panagia and it is exhibited daily.

The Holy Father teaches that her begotten Grace which will be known by the brightness of Her Being in the Heavenly Kingdom will be by far the greatest of ALL. Paul is very lucid in [1 Corinthians 15:41] in describing the personal characteristic of each and every Saint after His Second Coming. “The brightness and shine of the sun, differs from the shine of the moon that differ from the shine of the stars that all differ between them. And he continues in verse. There are 21 Monasteries on Mount Athos Greece today. Two of these Monasteries do not have an abbot The abbot is Holy Mary!

Holy Mary is the Ark of the Covenant

The early church understood Mary to represent the new Ark of the Covenant. Like the Ark, Mary is a created thing that was capable of containing our uncontainable God.

http://theorthodoxfaith.com/article/mary-as-the-new-ark-of-the-covenant/

Why do the Orthodox Honor Mary

https://blogs.ancientfaith.com/glory2godforallthings/2015/07/30/why-the-orthodox-honor-mary/

GOD IS LIGHT AND THE SAINTS IN THE HOLY SPIRIT BECOME LIGHT   

[Acts: 6-15] "15 And all that sat in the He face council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel.  

The Image and Likeness of God

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezItFNpdnVY&feature=youtu.be  

Dolphins brought out from the bottom of the seas in Russia the icon of Holy Mary!

https://proskynitis.blogspot.com.cy/2017/06/12_15.html

Holy Mary and Seraphim Mount Athos      

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmDI5HTKgZQ

Understanding the Orthodox Christian Faith  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxdbE7033Ho

Ty: FYI: Ron Wyatt died in 1999. His documentaries here are from a video collection I received many years ago. Commenter, you are correct that Mother Mary was an ark for the Lord, but I'm afraid you have been blinded by false teachings and false guidance, especially in the realm of the veneration of Mary. I can see that from your statements and choice of reference material. They take scripture out of context and include unverified accounts, for example, I don't believe that account of Mary being resurrected in three days or that all the apostles witnessed it.

I have many years' experience working through spiritual guidance and teaching of all kinds, and one area that you may not be aware of, is the existence of imposters of the Lord and His saints, including Mother Mary. They give much real miracles and gifts to back up their claims of being the real things, but in fact they are false gifts and miracles "in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness" (2 Thessalonians 2:9).

They give these real signs and wonders to trick people into following them and their teaching and into worshiping them. But it is idolatry to worship anything other than God. Giving respect to or venerating the saints and angels is fine, but the church often crosses the line into worshipping them, and so God has allowed these imposters to come since the earliest days of the church as a test and curse (Galatians 1:8-9).

May you have discernment from the Lord and come out of your false beliefs. There are many accounts of saints ascribing to ascetism or harsh treatment of the body and extreme isolation in the church's history. However, it is not Biblical to live like this, even for the disciples of Christ. Rather, the New Testament states those things have "the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence" (Colossians 2:20-23).

Many saints in history that were involved with imposters and false miracles and teaching, are urged to pray almost constantly and they do not receive the Holy Spirit unless they do so for long periods of time, but this kind of prayer is taught by imposters.

The truth is we receive the Spirit nearly instantly, like shown in Acts 10:44-47 when new believers got the Spirit right at the moment they heard and believed Peter speaking about Christ. There are also different ways of receiving the Spirit as well, but I don't believe we must sit in prayer for long periods of time to have the Spirit come to us.

There is much to say about bad teaching, false beliefs, and spiritual imposters. If you want to know more, may you read Light Within: http://3rdCompass.org/go?LIGHT

And as far as the importance of the ark of the covenant, you are wrong that it is only an object of story telling and not related to man's divine inheritance. God had Christ's blood spill onto the ark to completely fulfil His atonement for mankind. It is something He ordained to happen from the beginning of creation and prepared through the mandatory use of blood sacrifice to atone for sin in the Law of Moses for the Jews (Leviticus 16:2-34).

Ron Wyatt had the blood he found on the ark tested and confirmed it to be that of Christ, because it was missing all the chromosomes from a human father, thus proving there was no worldly father for Jesus. All this works together as God wanted for our eternal atonement, so the ark and its testimony are still very important in telling the truth.

Commenter: THERE CAN ONLY BE ~ONE CHURH~ FOR THE SALVATION OF MAN

There was only ONE CHURH present in the world the first 1054 years of Christianity! Do you think there was Salvation for those Christians belonging to that Church that was created the day of Pentecost by the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4) Yes or No

Paul was very lucid as to a certain characteristic of the Church none negotiable that was delivered by the Holy Spirit. If Salvation Truth had to be based on one verse of the Holy bible alone, it would be the verse spoken by Paul to the Ephesians 4:5 “5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism”.

This is because the  Church is not an human made organization. [In Colossians 1: 24] Paul verifies the fact that the Church is the Body of Christ! “Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church::

The Church is a  living ~god man~ organism that is Divine creatred by the Holy Spirit the day of Pentecost with 85 Holy Apostolic canons that considered the WILL of GOD for the Salvation of man kind!

Cannons of the Apostles  (the Greek Orthodox still go by these canons today)                                                                                  

http://www.voskrese.info/spl/aposcanon.html

All of your ancestors that were Christians before the years 1054 AC were all Orthodox.

The cave where John wrote Apocalypses is a Greek Orthodox Monastery.

The cave of the Apocalypse

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSqLBy5fw-A

On Mount Sinah where Moses received the 10 comandments is also an orthodox monastery of Saint Cathwrine.

https://video.search.yahoo.com/search/video?fr=mcafee&p=Mount+Sinah+saint+Caterina+U+tube#id=3&vid=c09e26d2c4eb43b9c14c30da54e04bbf&action=click  

GOD IS LIGHT AND THE SAINTS IN THE HOLY SPIRIT BECOME LIGHT  

[Acts: 6-15] " 15 And all that sat in the He face council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel.  

The Image and Likeness of God

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezItFNpdnVY&feature=youtu.be

What Is the Orthodox Church? – Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick    

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95P744siC7U&feature=youtu.be      

TO BE AN ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN

Is to experience the Apostolic Faith ...

https://orthodoxwiki.org/What_is_Orthodoxy

Greek Orthodox by country
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Orthodoxy_by_country

God bless

Ty: Commenter, What exactly are you trying to point out? This page is about the ark of the covenant, but you are trying to argue general Orthodox theology. You are overly adamant to promote it when you need to take all division away.

There is also no evidence that the "canon of the apostles" or other doctrinal text you share as inspired by God was written by the first apostles or by people with their authority.

It is also incorrect that all Christians before 1054 AD were Orthodox. The church had divisions and upheavals since the days of the first apostles. The New Testament speaks of that, and considering how easily people become blinded to truth and correct teaching, I believe the church was divided well before the last of the apostles died.

Ephesians 4:5 is a good summation of salvation in Christ, but there is much more that needs to be understood about it. "One Lord, one faith, and one baptism," yes but, how you define baptism is variable and is a subject I teach a lot on.

From what I know of your beliefs, the baptism you believe Paul speaks of is that of Pentecost - the Holy Spirit coming in power with the showing of gifts, however, that is not the only kind of baptism of the Holy Spirit and is not the one Paul was speaking of in Ephesians 4:5 if you are speaking of eternal salvation in Christ.

Does it make sense we can only be saved if we have the Spirit come in power, which is often temporary and needs to be subsequently prayed for again? Does our eternal salvation in Christ need so much maintenance? It does not.

Did you read the article I suggested? I tried to point out some serious problems with your beliefs and that false teaching has blinded you. If you read the Light Within article, it would be more obvious that I'm trying to tell you the enemy is behind things you believe in and they are blinding you to the truth.

Denominations like yours and the Apostolic Pentecostal Church who rely heavily on spiritual signs and gifts are being blinded by false signs and gifts that are not of the Holy Spirit. You may have true gifts of the Spirit, but the majority I have seen are faked by the enemy are mixed up with true gifts of the Spirit. They all work at the same time. I urge you to read the Light Within article to learn more about that.

I can agree on some things you say, like, there is only one Church in Christ, God defined it and not man, and it is the believers who make up the Body. It is not the church buildings, institutions, sects or denominations. However, the church was not created on Pentecost. That was when the Holy Spirit came in completeness to the church, but I see why you believe that is when the church began.

The church actually started when the very first believers became saved by the New Covenant, which was spoken by Jesus before He died. This page isn't for lengthy teaching, though, so I must point you to learn more at 3rdCompass.org.

You need to understand how the New Covenant works to save people. It is a conditional covenant like the Old Covenant was, and I explain in detail why Jesus said we MUST be born again of the Spirit to enter the kingdom of heaven in this article: http://3rdcompass.org/go?TRUE-GOSPEL. It is not about the Spirit coming in power with gifts.

I also explain how we become that "God man organism," which is the baptism of most importance. Without it, we are not truly saved or belong to Christ. Yet, even with that baptism, it is still possible to become "unsaved," so may you learn more, free yourself from bad teaching, and understand what I've been saying. Let it be in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Commenter: Understanding the facts! The scism in 1054 AC. The priority in Orthodox life and worship is not theology but becoming worhty to the prsence of our Creador God!

This following statement was made from those Christians who wanted to keep all the decisions of all Ecumenical Synods the same, the same Saints the same icons and especially the SAME Holy Tradition unchanged begotten by the Apostles the day of Pentecost the day of the creation of His Church.

VIIth Ecumenical Council, 787 A.D. The Synodal of Orthodoxy.
Theological Texts translated or written by Irene Economides.

"What the Prophets saw, what the Apostles preached, and the Church received and the Teachers (of the Church) indoctrinated, and the inhabited world (Ecumene) accepted in agreement, as the Grace shone, as the truth was proved, as falsehood was driven away, as the wisdom obtained outspokenness, as Christ hath confirmed all this by His reward: the same do we believe, equally do we speak, likewise do we preach Christ our true God, and we honour His Saints through words, scriptures, seasonings, and services, either in temples or in icons, worshipping the first as God and Master through our reverence, and venerating the second as His genuine Servants who have the same Master with us, honouring also them in a relative manner. This is the Faith of the Apostles. This is the faith of the Fathers (of the Church). This is the faith of the Orthodox. This is the faith that hath supported the human universe (Ecumene).

This text was proclaimed in the ceremony of the Restoration of the icons, March 11th 843 A.D.,when Theodora was on the throne of the Byzantine Empire.(She finished her life as a nun and her incorrupted body is kept in the Orthodox Metropolitan church of the island of Corfu (occidental Greece)and works miracles to this day. Since that date this text is read in church on the «Sunday of Orthodoxy», the first Sunday of Great Lent,in order to commemorate this important event which expresses the victory of Orthodoxy over heresies".

If the Salvation does not include the return to the presence of God...what good is it?

The vision of Divine Light

This is what Lord Jesus told St. Symeon when He became worthy to His presence in His Divine Light.

“It is me, God, Who became man for you; and behold that I have made you, as you see, and shall make you god”.

http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/67
What Is the Orthodox Church? – Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick    

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95P744siC7U&feature=youtu.be

TO BE AN ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN Is to experience the Apostolic Faith …
https://orthodoxwiki.org/What_is_Orthodoxy

Greek Orthodox by country
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Orthodoxy_by_country

God bless

Ty: As I said, there is no evidence your Orthodox doctrines were taught by the first apostles or by people with their authority. You reference scripture, but your Orthodox teaching does not always use it correctly. Also, 787 AD is a very, very long time for the church and I said it started its corruption in the days of the first apostles.

I'm not here to argue teaching as it is fruitless (2 Timothy 2:14), especially when people are spiritually blinded by what they believe. Atheists are not the only people to be so cursed.

It's good you want the facts understood, and so I have been trying to give you that. But it appears you do not wish to study what I suggested and simply continue in your views. I, however, did examine the things you gave and determined them to have faults, which I explained.

I am presenting the facts as I know them and teach on the scriptures as one who is approved and trustworthy, for we should "be diligent to present [ourselves] approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15).

You will need to let go of your false beliefs and teaching to be freed from spiritual blinding and see things as they truly are. Your Orthodox beliefs, like other denominations, have made icons of the saints and angels and have crossed the line into idolatry. They have become idols as opposed to icons.

That is a reason you see signs and wonders, like uncorrupted corpses and miracles associated to saints. Yet those same saints do not tell you to stop worshipping them, as the true saints and angels would do (Acts 10:25-26; Revelation 19:10, 22:8-9).

I will urge you again to study what I gave you and what I have at 3rdCompass.org. This is not the place to argue doctrine and it is fruitless as I already said.

May you stop trying to convince people of teaching that is in error and heed Paul's words that continue in 2 Timothy 2, "But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some" (2 Timothy 2:16-18).

Instead, devote yourself to be freed of lies and deceptions so your efforts for the Lord are approved and beneficial. All grace and peace be on you in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Commenter: In the center of your worship my brother you have placed the bible and your knowledge for it! In the center of Orthodox worship we have the expectation of purifying the heart in order to become worthy of the presence of God! [Mathew5:8] “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God”. This is because there is no Salvation with sins!

[John 8:21]  “You can not come to where I am going with sins”.

The greatest of Saints for the past 2000 years did not not even know how to write or read. On mount Athos the monks seek in thie spiritual lives to get a live attestation of hte relality of God! So Christianity it is not about what someone teaches but about artacting the Grace of God throught obedience  in order to be able to return to His presence.

Jesus did not come to teach philosophically but THERAPEUTICALLY.
The term "Orthodox Psychotherapy" does not refer to specific cases of people suffering from psychological problems of neurosis. iI refers to people disabled because of sin from  ever being able to having communion (PERSON to person) with God.

http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2013/03/the-foundations-of-orthodox.html

Lazarus the resurected frien of ord Jesus was the 1st Bishop in Cyprus after leaving Jerusalem. The Church of Cyprus here was the 2nd Church creaded by the Apostles after the first in Jerusalem. Do yu think Lazarus would be a person not to conform to Lord Jesus to the canons provided by the Holy Spirit for the Salvation of man?

Lazarus video of Church and His resting place

http://www.cyprusisland.net/churches/church-saint-lazarus

What Happens to the Soul After Death?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv4660Zp8OM

Ty: You are very incorrect that the center of my worship is the Bible and my knowledge of it. I have been trying to point out that you and your Orthodox teachings are not using scripture correctly.

True worship is done in spirit and truth, for "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth," (John 4:24) , which goes with Paul saying, "present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable spiritual service of worship," (Romans 12:1).

I do that in spirit and truth. I do no worship of scripture or my knowledge of it or spiritual things. In fact, I have been fighting that kind of worship for many years. The church often puts the words of scripture and its faulty interpretations and translations over the actual truth.

For example, you quote a faulty translation of John 8:21. It does not say, "You cannot come to where I am going with sins." A good translation is, "Then [Jesus] said again to them, 'I go away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come.'" (NASB)

Christ was saying to Jewish leaders that they would die in their sins, because they rejected Him and not be saved by the New Covenant. He did not say we cannot go to heaven with sins.

Like you, I have the expectation of a pure heart to be worthy in the Lord's presence, but mine is not based on works of sanctification as yours is. The gift of eternal salvation in Christ is not based on such works, it is a free gift of God (Ephesians 2:8-9) and those who have it will stand with the Lord at the first resurrection, no matter how sanctified or free of sin we made ourselves.

Tell me how much sanctification the criminal crucified with Jesus could go through, yet the Lord told him he would be with Him in heaven (Luke 23:40-43). He was saved by the New Covenant and his faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior. He had no chance to be further sanctified, nor did he get the Holy Spirit in power. He got heaven with the Lord because he fulfilled the New Covenant, which allowed him to fulfil the baptism that does make us saved. If you read The True Gospel article, you would understand that.

You are also incorrect that there is no salvation with sins. Sin in general does not take away our eternal salvation in Christ. This is shown in 1 Corinthians 5, where Paul gives a man living in serious sin to Satan for the "destruction of his flesh" or early death, so that his spirit is saved in the day of the Lord. Paul is saying this man who lived in sin will be saved and join us in the first resurrection or Rapture.

Paul also warned believers about trying to be saved through works, saying, "Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?" (Galatians 3:2-3).

I will tell you again, Brother, you are blinded by religious spirits and false teaching. You cannot see the truth because of your beliefs. That is why I told you to focus on getting rid of lies and false teaching.

Another example is that you give the history of the Church of Cyprus as proof of the validity of your doctrine, but fail to see that the teaching Lazarus did there was lost. Another history states, "Written records of that time did not exist or have not been preserved" (http://en.agioslazaros.org.cy/history). And the link you provided for the history said the church was built in the 10th Century, long after Lazarus was there.

My point in saying 787 AD, a year you noted as significant in Orthodoxy, was a very, very long time for the church was meant to say hundreds of years is more than enough time for false teachings and false beliefs to corrupt the church when it had already started in the days of the first apostles. Your assumption that Orthodox teachings are from the first apostles or that they are without error is faulty.

You and Orthodoxy are not reading or using scripture or other references correctly. You treat unvalidated accounts, signs, and miracles with improper weight while scripture is also not fully understood, interpreted or used correctly.

I also see you prescribe to therapeutic theology that mirrors things taught by gurus, like Deepak Chopra and Paramahansa Yogananda, who have mixed Eastern Buddhist and yoga spiritual teachings with Christianity. They also over emphasize prayer and "mindfulness" as your Orthodox Psychotherapy does, while they also teach incorrectly about God, Christ, and Christianity.

Prayer and mindfulness aren't bad in themselves, but when you mix them with pagan spiritualism and meditation that becomes a form of divination, it invites the demons that are behind these teachings.

We need only depend on God's mercy and power to deliver us from the ills of this life, which often are influenced by our sins. I do not suggest pursuing means of health and healing that come from other forms of spiritualism as many of them are connected to bad spirits.

You said the greatest of saints did not even know how to write or read. I cannot say every great saint in the eyes of the Lord was literate, but study and knowledge of the scriptures is essential to our wholeness as a people of God and for ministers, it is absolutely essential knowledge to teach correctly.

The enemy uses ignorance against people. Muhammad of Islam was so deceived by an imposter of Gabriel to found Islam and teach that Jesus was just another prophet, instead of Lord and Savior. Muhammad too is said to not have been literate, yet was able to write Islam's scriptures and have miracles.

The enemy has many devices that are deceiving you and the church, Commenter. If you studied what I asked, you would see that and start to get rid of their hooks in you, which are false beliefs, lies, and false teachings.

I ask you to stop giving me your Orthodox teachings as I have explained plainly why they are in error. Heed Paul's warning, "But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. Reject a factious man after a first and second warning, knowing that such a man is perverted and is sinning, being self-condemned" (Titus 3:9-11).

Brother, you are an unwitting partner for the enemy by keeping to your false teachings, so may God grant you "repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and [come to your senses] and escape from the snare of the devil, have been held captive by him to do his will" (2 Timothy 2:25-26) - through Christ Jesus. Amen.

Commenter: Let as examine something importand. Let us examine holiness. You wrote my brother, "a pure heart to be worthy in the Lord's presence," My question is how do you estblesh holinesss in your Church? How do you know?

Ty: First, if we are to examine worship in "truth and spirit" we need to look at individual circumstances and not of a whole church or denomination. The beliefs and actions of individuals vary a lot within a sect or church.

Next, the first thing we must pursue is the eternal salvation and cleansing of everyone. This is to make sure they are truly saved or baptized through real belief in Christ and through public acknowledgement of it.

This is very important because it is what fulfils the New Covenant and literally makes us reborn with God's Spirit, which I said is REQUIRED through the words of Jesus, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God... I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:3, 3:5)

This is not the coming of the Spirit in power, like at Pentecost, or about water baptism rituals. Water baptism does not save people eternally and the Spirit coming in power is temporary.

The rebirth and baptism I speak of is much more permanent. It is the rebirth of our spirit with God's, so that we truly are remade or reborn with God's Spirit within us. I speak of this in greater detail in the True Gospel article, http://3rdcompass.org/go?TRUE-GOSPEL

I say this is very important, because it marks when we are truly saved by the New Covenant, reborn with God's Spirit, and eternally cleansed of all sins, past, present and future. It gives us the new heart God spoke of to do what is right in the New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:33; Romans 5:5; 2 Corinthians 1:22, 3:2-6; Hebrews 8:10).

Having that new heart with God's Spirit makes us want to do what is right by God, which goes with our worship in "spirit" of John 4:24. It is the will and desire to do what is right.

The next steps for believers are to know what is truly right and wrong (what sin actually is), and what is truth and what is false, and then walk out a new life away from sin and darkness. This goes with the worship in "truth" part of John 4:24. God wants us to walk in real righteousness and not false versions created by man or the church.

So establishing holiness is to have the mind and heart to want to do right and also to walk out true righteousness. There is no absolute required level of sanctification or holiness for us to have eternal salvation in Christ, but it has great effects on our lives as sin brings curses and judgement, and our acts as saints are judged to determine our place or roles in the afterlife.

It is a false gospel to say we must have a certain level of holiness to have heaven with God. That is salvation by works through the excessive pursuit of holiness. The only level of holiness we need to be saved by the New Covenant is to be saved and reborn by God's Spirit, which is given when we fulfil the New Covenant's terms requiring faith in Christ and public loyalty to Him.

It is also a false gospel to say we are saved only if we get the Holy Spirit come to us in power or with gifts.

Orthodoxy, like other denominations, teach these false gospels, and are cursed. You are very resistant to the truth of how things actually work because of that, for Paul said, "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!" (Galatians 1:8-9)

I teach what Paul said was "his gospel," but like you I had to come out of many false beliefs and bad teaching. It will be impossible for you to proceed into the full truth if you hold on to your false beliefs.

But let's go back to your main question, How do you know there is holiness? We need to see a person walking in faith of Christ, having the desire to do what is right, and walking a new life out of sin. But it is God's place to judge this. We cannot know all of a person's heart or circumstances, but as ministers we are to guide as needed.

Commenter: You also wrote : "I have been trying to point out that you and your Orthodox teachings are not using scripture correctly".

The Holy Bible does not SAVE…the Church that wrote it does because of the presence of Lord Jesus as High Priest for the Salvation man with His Holy Sacraments!

The Holy Bible was not wroten as a philosophical book but as an Ecclesuiastic one. The firt Gospel of Mark started to show up the years 60AC . This si why the Holy Sacraments are consitered to be higher than th holy ile because they SAVE in the absence of it with the Holy Sacraments.

[A Kor. 4:1] LET a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God

http://orthodoxwiki.org/Holy_Mysteries

The Holy Bible mentions Baptism but it does not tell you how. The Holy Bible mentions becoming Holy but it does not tell you how. Only the Church that wrote it as an Ecclesiastic BooK can! The very center of Salvation and Eternal life is the pure heart. The reading of the Holy Bible can not possibly achieve this. Only the reddening from sin divine life of the Church can! [Matthew 5-8] “BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART- FOR THEY SHALL SEE GOD”.

After is Ascension Lord Jesus (God Logos) became the "head of His body the Church". The head is a head of a body and a body is a body belonging to the head in a way they are undivided. Lord Jesus became  the high priest of His Body the Church after ascending to His Father. [Hebrews 4:14] “For we have a great Priest who has gone into the very presence of God” He became High Priest and Mediator to His Father enabling  those baptized and receiving the Holy Spirit with in TO BE REDEEMED FROM ALL SIN, to purify the hearts (only God can forgive sins) and become MEMBERS OF HIS BODY.  During Baptism a person receives the gifts of the Holy Spirit however it is up to each and every individual to energize them or set them in motion at will based on their greatest gift from God which is their freedom.

http://orthodoxinfo.com/general/stjohn_church.aspx

Holy Trasdition,
WHAT THE APOSTLES PREACHED AND THE CHURCH RECEIVED

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-i0xH2NRUhs  

God bless

Ty: You are trapped in the wrong focuses of your teachings. I never said the Bible saved people. And it is not the church that saves, but God through Christ and the New Covenant. We are servants or the sowers of God's seeds, but the works and power to save come only from God.

Holy sacraments do not save either, so they should be placed in their appropriate place.

The Bible does hold "philosophy" as well as "ecclesiastical" teachings. Christ had/has a philosophy of greater forgiveness and mercy. God's "philosophy" or way of thinking is established throughout the Bible.

"Ecclesiastical" just means "not secular" or "of or relating to the church or clergy," so, yes, the Bible is ecclesiastical, but its purpose goes far beyond only being "of or relating to the church." It is a historical record and teaching for all mankind.

Also again, you give text that is not considered scripture. You will need to remove bad references and scripture, such as bad translations and teaching, from your life as well. How can you proceed out of corrupt and false things when you continue to use them as truth?

According to my last reply to you about establishing holiness, it is not up to the church to judge an individual's holiness. That is God's role as Judge.

You also quote one of the Beatitudes again. None of them have to do explicitly with eternal salvation through the New Covenant. They are more general statements, but some of them do have to do with getting into heaven, such as "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:3; Luke 6:20).

Why doesn't your teaching say you can be saved by being in poverty or oppressed? The first Beatitude, notes what was told in the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31), where the rich man ended up in hell and poor Lazarus ended up in heaven.

This has to do with further truth that our acts will determine our place in the afterlife apart from being saved in Christ. I talk about that in the True Gospel article.

You also say the Body of Christ is undivided because He is the head. That is untrue. Christ is head of the church, but the enemy is in it as well and has much influence, and sometimes much more influence that God does. I also talk about it being God's will the church is divided until the end of the age in the True Gospel article.

Brother, I am repeating many, many things that I told you to study before. I will not repeat everything on this page. I have addressed all of your points that try to affirm your beliefs and gave you truth and corrected teaching, yet you continue with a rigid mind. It is not entirely your fault as I said you are blinded. You have a religious spirit, and I have been patient and kind in my replies to you, but I cannot continue to refute every little thing you bring up.

You also assume I only learned by reading the Bible and other texts, but that is far from my background. The Lord brought me out of a secular life to be trained in spiritual things, the truth, and correct teaching through spiritual guidance and many real world experiences, as well as academic learning.

My interpretations are not my own or of the popular church, but of the Lord. If you wish to see my background, there is a Predestined page at 3rdCompasss.org that gives many details.

You need to get out of your false beliefs and teachings and study good teaching. I ask you to study things at 3rdCompass.org and then contact me personally if you have further questions. You can do so through the website. Be blessed in your pursuit of the truth, through Christ Jesus. Amen.

Commenter: WHAT IS HOLY? Beloved brother

I can see from your writings that you have stydied greatlty and that you have a deep Love for Lord Jesus and Salvation. You must agree with me then that being holy is a description of Salvation. “Be Holy because I am Holy ” (1 Peter 1, 16).

Allow me to explain Church expirience for the past 2000 year of being Holy.

The term Holy is not a moral or an ethical term it is a ~ontological transformation~ divinely begotten when becoming ~part man part~ god beginning with Baptism testifying to the awesome presence of God in the  body. (1 Corinthians 3 :16) Don’t you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and who was given to you by God”? This union with God (part man part god) ) is also described as becoming a new creation or becming a new Adam. This is how Paul describes His personal experience, as being a new creation. (Gal 2:20) “So that it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” Paul admits that God (Christ) lives in him, making him this way - part man and part god - a god-man by His Grace, a way of being never seen on heaven or earth before. (Galatians 6:15) “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature”. So the heavenly Kingdom is NOT a “place” it is “a way of being”, begotten and experienced from this here life. (Luke 17:21) No one will say, “Look here it is”! Or, “There it is!” because the Kingdom of God is within you”. This is how the Apostles and the Saints did/do their miracles…it is not man that does them it is the God (Holy Spirit) within!

Holy Remains testifying to a persons Holiness (the presence of the Holy Spirit with in while alive)

It is a 2000 years old worldwide Orthodox Monastic Tradition to exhume the bodies of the monks 5 years after they die. The Church is looking to see if the Remains of our monks show signs of holiness, and this is the reason they do this. They are actually looking to see if their Remains have acquired a honey gold color. They are also looking to ascertain if a beautiful distinctive aroma (that reminds an exotic flower) emanates from the Remains. In some cases (that are not rare) like in the case of Saint Demetrios the “fragrant” who lived the 3rd century, His Holy Remains to gush out a semi-liquid aromatic unction that looks like honey. The Grace of God that sanctifies the holy remains with aroma is mentioned in the Holy Bible in 2 Corinthians 2:14-15 14.”We owe thanks to God, because while he wins and while being triumphant, he always carries us all about in his triumph as deacons of his victory that takes place for Christ and his gospel”. 15. “Because we the apostles and the preachers of the gospel are indeed the scent of Christ that is pleasing to God˙ a scent amongst those who are saved and also amongst those who are sentenced to eternal loss”.

Luke the evangelist Holy relics     

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luke_the_Evangelist#Relics   

Holy relics  in Orthodox Church

http://easternorthodoxspirituality.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-place-of-holy-relics-in-orthodox.html    

God bless

Ty: Brother, I know personally what it is like to be spiritually blinded by false teachings. You will need to let go of your false beliefs to be delivered of your religious demons. Their lies and false teaching are hooks in you, just as the lie of no God is a hook into the blinding of atheists and other non-believers.

You are not respecting my requests to keep Orthodox teaching off this page or to contact me personally. You are not giving me any new valid teaching and because you continue to wish speaking in a public forum, you must examine the motives behind continuing to give me public teaching that I already explained is faulty.

You cannot see how the enemy is controlling you and your thinking. You are consistently giving statements and teaching that is out of context with the scriptures and contrary to good teaching. And you continue to assume that your beliefs and teachings are not faulty.

I will never assume that and will examine everything as needed. A good minister and teacher for the Lord must never be above correction and should be open to correcting their beliefs.

Because of your blindness, you are interpreting everything based on how you understand them, which is skewed by false teaching and darkness. I call this spiritual brainwashing, because that is exactly what it is.

In recent months, I helped a Christian brother who grew up in the Pentecostal Church to get out of his brainwashing. It took much time and was difficult because when you are spiritually blinded you try to interpret things as you had accepted.

I told my brother to get rid of all his false beliefs and bad teaching and he did. He trusted me to guide him in correct teaching, and now he is free of much darkness and on the way to being an approved workman for the Lord.

I was trying to do that for you by giving you correct teaching and telling you what to do. But because you still hold onto your bad beliefs, you are having a difficult time absorbing the truth and correct teaching. People with spiritual blinding read material with literal censors in them - their demons and the false beliefs they have.

Your censors are making you gloss over truths and correct teaching and ignore their true weight. They can make you completely dismiss valid and valuable evidence. This is why you must get rid of your false beliefs and bad teaching. Only then can you be delivered of your spirits.

More examples are that you mix up the different kinds of baptism of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 3:16, Galatians 2:20, 6:15, Luke 17:21 are about the baptism of being reborn with the Spirit within us, not about the Spirit coming in power like at Pentecost.

Miracles are done in many ways as well, so not all of the saints' miracles were from the Spirit within them. God can send angels and work directly Himself outside of the Spirit or gifts of the Spirit given to the saints.

Also your reference to 2 Corinthians 2:14-15 is taken out of context. Paul is not speaking of aroma coming from dead remains. He is speaking of our teaching and example of Christ to others. You have taken many scripture verses out of context, which is something you will have to work on.

You are also still holding too much value in things, like miracles and holy relics, when you cannot validate their true origins. The miracles are real as I said before, but they are not all from God.

For example, the bodies of saints not decomposing may or may not be of God. Just a week or so ago, I found an account of a mother who got spiritual guidance, like a dream, to exhume her daughter who was dead for years. She got the body exhumed and found her daughter had not decomposed.

This was not anyone of great background or sainthood, and the account did not even say the daughter was a believer. There seemed to be no practical purpose for the find. However, relics and preserved bodies being displayed have gotten people to worship saints.

The origins of these miracles must be questioned. True saints do have power in their remains and saints who were corrupted by false teachings may still have been saved in Christ, but not all their miracles and powers are from God or gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Another example is a relic of a preserved heart of a saint in Ireland. There are stories of miracles happening with it, but a news article of a woman examining the relic in the museum saw a ghostly face appearing with it. Some people thought it was the spirit of the saint, but I don't believe true saints haunt the world or their remains. They should be at peace with the Lord in heaven. This saint, though, ascribed to asceticism like many who were tainted by the enemy.

Ghosts of people are their spirits in purgatory and I don't know of any account of a well-known saint haunting the world. There are many accounts of apparitions or spirits of saints and angels, though, but as I said, they are not all the real thing, because they give false teaching and get people to worship them.

You quote 1 Peter 1:16, "You shall be holy, for I am holy," and have constantly brought up holiness. Excessive sanctification is something religious spirits teach and make people pursue. They will tell ministers not to marry, couples not to kiss or even touch each other in public, make women absolutely obey men and husbands, and all sorts of "holiness" that is false.

Religious spirits make people speak with too much absoluteness and religious zeal, proclaiming things as "supreme truth," stating things as fact when they are not, giving many unnecessary exclamations, capitalization of words, and repetition of statements. Your writing is full of this, Commenter, and so I tell you again to pursue being rid of your false beliefs and demons, and replace them with good teaching and references.

For example, you state "being holy is a description of salvation." I already stated how holiness or sanctification is not related to being eternally saved in Christ. If you are talking about temporal or physical salvation in this life, then our holiness does have affect, but I don't believe that is what you are trying to say.

Our sin and righteousness (holiness in general) does affect us in this life through judgment and curses, but that is something I said already. You are making us go in circles, Brother. This is a reason why Paul said arguing doctrine is fruitless (2 Timothy 2:14). I thought I was clear about that, but your censors and condition are making you bring up things that were already addressed.

You must try to think much more logically and in entirety of knowledge - of the scriptures and all things. This is something I told my brother to do to get out of spiritual blinding. May you do so and speak to me personally as I requested. I'm here to help you and anyone who wants it. Peace and wisdom be on you in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Commenter: EXAMENING TRUTH AND SPIRIT. WHAT IS THE TRUTH?

Beloved brother,
The Truth begotten as the supreme personal truth is a PERSON (GOD), and as a PERSON they who truly love Him they shall know Him

The TRUTH is revealed ONLY to those who have properly prepared to receive it those who love Him by obeying His commandments and it is RECEIVED PERSON to person, meaning that the TRIAD God delivers the knowledge personally to man just like he delivered Moses the Ten Commandments. [John 14:2] “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him”

Salvation means “Salvation from death”, and “death” means the Eternal separation from God.

If a person does not cure their selves as the Lord provided the day of Pentecost, they will never know God not now not ever  [Mathew5:8] “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God”.

Lord Jesus did not come to tech philosophically but therapeutically (to cure man from sin to enable him back to the presence of God)

http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2013/03/the-foundations-of-orthodox.html

This is what Lord Jesus told St. Symeon when He became worthy to His presence in His divine Light.

“It is me, God, Who became man for you; and behold that I have made you, as you see, and shall make you god”.

http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/67

God bless

Ty: Commenter, read my last reply to you and contact me through 3rdCompass.org for any further correspondence. Your efforts to convince me of your teachings does nothing to sway me. Keep your teachings off this page, but be free to discuss the ark of the covenant here. Thank you with the grace of Christ.

Commenter: You take care my brother...God bless

Ty: Thank you, Brother. May you take care as well and if you are a minister and teacher for the Lord, do pursue what I asked you to. Be blessed in that, through Christ Jesus. Amen.

[At this point, the conversation paused a day or two after he removed his comments, which removed the whole conversation from YouTube page. However, I had my own copy of the conversation. Then he started commenting again on the same page.]

Commenter: Ty, THIS IS WHAT THE gREEK ORTHODOX ARE AFTER : Becoming able to deny every thought and desire that entraps the mind and will of man in passions regarding earthly (materialistic) things is exercised by all who are part of the Church created by the Apostles 2000 years ago the Greek Orthodox Church today. Predominantly thought this is the science of monks. The personal entrapment in the earthly sphere that accepts everyday life meanings containing passions is not harmless for it brings spiritual death (the eternal separation of man from God) because it becomes a source of a conceited pride and individualism, that bring on dispositions of greed and hatred which in turn feed unreasonable desires.

https://wordpress.com/posts/jameswiliamsblog.wordpress.com

God bless

Ty: Brother, you are still not seeing everything completely. Your Orthodox teachings are not what the first apostles taught. "Denying all thought and desire" (killing the self and thought stopping) are schemes that the enemy uses to brainwash people into their teachings of ascetism and other bad spiritual focuses. When you excessively pursue false holiness, you do not kill all bad desires. You increase dark religious zeal as you kill your capacity for normal and good feelings and desire. Please thoroughly study the Light Within article for details on how the enemy operates: http://3rdcompass.org/go?LIGHT and contact me personally to discuss things further.

Commenter: Ty, I see that you have done many years of work my brother and I am very convinced that you truly love the Lord a lot however I must inform you with broherly love and respect of the 2 ways of aquiring knowledge!

THE TWO WAYS OF ACQUIRING KNOWLEDGE

[Colossians 2-8] “Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit after the tradition of man.”

There are two ways by which man can acquire knowledge. The first way is known as Philosophy and is described to be begotten “a man centered way” because man has always the first word to his own understanding, his own mind, his own logic that in many times is accompanied by man’s fantasia.  Man’s logic and thinking process have the first word in formulating ideas in order to express ideas, opinions or visions, or in order to further benefit mankind in medicine and science.

The second way in acquiring knowledge needed for the Heavenly Truth for Salvation is thought Revelation by the Holy Spirit and it is known as receiving knowledge the -Christ centred way. The precondition of acquiring knowledge the Christ center way (Revelation) is that religious Life is practiced according to the Will of the Triad God as delivered for the Salvation of man 2000 years ago with 85 Holy Apostolic canons (rules).

Cannons of the Apostles

http://www.holytrinitymission.org/books/english/canons_apostles_grabbe.htm#_Toc68522491

These Holy Apostolic Cannons that enable the presence of Lord Jesus as the “head of His Body the Church” and as a High Priest and Mediator to His Father for each and every one, ensures man’s freedom, because they were set forth to free man from his biggest tyranny that is SIN, and they are aimed to set man free from his biggest tyrant who is the devil.

(Α Colossians 1:18) “He is the head of his body, the Church; He is the source of the body’s life”.

http://orthodoxinfo.com/general/stjohn_church.aspx

The TRUTH is revealed ONLY to those who have properly prepared to receive it those who love Him by obeying His commandments and it is RECEIVED PERSON to person, meaning that the TRIAD God delivers the knowledge personally to man just like he delivered Moses the Ten Commandments. [John 14:2] “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him” Salvation means Salvation from death, and death means the Eternal separation from God.

Colombo did not discover America

The ancient Christian Church of the Apostles was present in America 1000 years before Colombo "discovered" her-

http://www.helleniccomserve.com/pdf/connecticuts-5th-century-church.pdf

Lord Jesus did not come to teach philosophically but THERAPEUTICALLY.

http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2013/03/the-foundations-of-orthodox.html

If the Salvation does not include the return to the presence of God...what good is it?

The vision of Divine Light

This is what Lord Jesus told St. Symeon when He became worthy to His presence in His Divine Light.

“It is me, God, Who became man for you; and behold that I have made you, as you see, and shall make you god”.

http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/67

Ierotheos Metropolitan of Naupaktos about Greek Orthodox Baptism

“Through the "rite of birth in God", holy baptism, man's nous (mind) is illuminated, freed from slavery to sin and the devil, and is united with God.

The word Salvation means "salvation from death" and the word "death" means the eternal separation of man from God!

Ty: Brother, I don’t know what else to say to get through to you. You have removed your earlier comments here, which removed my comments that tried to give you correction and good teaching. You continue to refuse to speak to me privately as I asked, and continue to keep giving me the same teachings that I addressed in your deleted comments.

You will notice I removed your most recent comments and I will continue to do so unless you want to discuss the ark of the covenant here. This is not the place to argue teaching in general.

You continue to be blinded in your false doctrines. Your references and teaching are not from the first apostles or by people with their authority. They are from a sect of Christianity that has erroneous teaching, and your constant use of it despite being shown truth and good teaching to refute it tells me you are held captive by the enemy and false teaching.

You have also not shown any of my teaching to be in error and only cling to your Orthodox beliefs. This back and forth with you is fruitless in bringing you into good teachings as I said earlier quoting Paul, “But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. Reject a factious man after a first and second warning, knowing that such a man is perverted and is sinning, being self-condemned" (Titus 3:9-11). May God grant you "repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and [come to your senses] and escape from the snare of the devil, have been held captive by him to do his will" (2 Timothy 2:25-26)”.

You need to get rid of a lot of bad teaching you accepted to progress, Brother. If you wish to pursue that then continue corresponding to me privately as I asked. I will not give you an audience for this here.

Commenter: Ty, The correct books of the Holy Bible that you have in our hands today were separated from the false ones during a small Cannon meeting 149AD. This was the work of the Bishops of the Christian Church whose work was later validated and was designated as the Churches 85th Cannon in the year 325AD during the 1st Ecumenical Synod in Constantinople.

The men that took place in the small canonical Synod in 149 were all BISHOPS in His Church. They all held Church services confessed peoples sins, prayed and took Holy Communion as the Bishops of the Orthodox Church do today. It would be very unwise to set aside and ignore the spiritual lives of those men in the beginning of Christianity who created Churches everywhere around the world they went and gave us the Holy Bible!

The word Ecclesia (Church) is found in the original Greek text 105 times!)

This is one example: [2nd Corinthians 1:1] ”From Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by Gods will, and from our brother Timothy- To the Church of God in Corinth, and to all Gods people throughout Achaia: May God our father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace”.

Apostles who became Bishops

http://orthodoxwiki.org/Seventy_Apostles

The Church was created the day of Pentecost by the Holy Spirit enabling Lord Jesus (God Logos) to become the "head of His body the Church" and high priest enabling  those baptized and receiving the Holy Spirit with in TO BE REDEEMED FROM ALL SIN, to purify the hearts (only God can forgive sins) and become MEMBERS OF HIS BODY! [Α Colossians 1:18] “He is the head of his body, the Church; He is the source of the body’s life”

[Hebrews 4: 14] “For we have a great Priest who has gone into the very presence of God”

http://orthodoxinfo.com/general/stjohn_church.aspx

Without the Church created by the Apostles begotten by the Holy Spirit the day of Pentecost, life after death will meet the same after life conditions as before of His coming where there was No Hope No salvation!

Ty: Commenter, I am aware of the history of the Bibles we have now, and I am not setting aside the spiritual lives of former leaders in the church in the centuries after the first apostles. I am taking into account a lot more information than you are, such as you do not take seriously the enemy’s influences on you and the Orthodox Church.

The reason I dismiss your teachings is because I have already evaluated what you sent to not be in accordance with good teaching, and you have not given me any information that says I am incorrect. You only cling to your viewpoint.

You also still refuse to discuss things privately and continue to give me repetitive and overly religious statements, as well as overgeneralizations. For example, you keep using references that were made long after the first apostles and assume that no errors or dark influences came in the following centuries.

If you want me to give you a full evaluation of what you say, then talk to me privately. Thank you.

Commenter: Ty, It is not my teachings my blessed friend...it is the teachings of the Holy Fathers who have managed in their spiritual lives to achieve everything they live for which is to enable their selves to the presence of Creador God....Salvation!  We seek purity from sins and not kowledge that would enable us back to the presence of God Mathew 5:8

Let me tell you a real story the type of story that can take place at any moment in the lives the monks for the past 2000 years.

Mount Athos Greece

Everyday true stories from the gerontico

Understanding the essence of Christian Spiritual Life is understanding our purpose on earth

A monk went to Abbot Prokopi because he was very experienced with ascetic life, and ask him to give meaning on a certain verse in the Old Testament. Abbot Prokopi immediately replied that he did not know. The monk seemed very disappointed for he was writing a certain book about a certain period of the Old Testament… the Abbot saw the disappointment and wanted to help so he asked the monk to have a sit for a few minutes. As the Abbot went behind the old certain, he was heard to speak with someone. The monk knew that there was no window or no door behind the old certain where someone could come in, and so when the Abbot finished and came out he kept looking at him with wonder in His eyes. The Abbot went ahead and explained the Old Testament verse to him but the monk would not leave… the Abbot asked the monk… what is it that you want …the monk lowered his head and with a trembling voice he then asked the Abbot. Who you were speaking to? The Abbot looked at him for a second and replied… I asked the one who wrote the Old Testament… I asked Moses!

Someone who studies  theology will marvel and even envy at first the way the best of all theology is written… but this is not the essence in this true story. Abbot Prokobi was able to have a conversation with a Holy person that is now in Paradise …because of the therapeutic life of the Church begotten the day of Pentecost by the Holy Spirit, that enabled him to do so. The centre of attention in Orthodox life and worship is not the amount knowledge acquired from reading and understanding the Holy Bible, but the purity of the heart begotten from a way of life and worship enabling man to the presence of God! Abbot Pokopie, did not dedicate his life in acquiring knowledge (being a theologian) but dedicated His life in prayer and in keeping his heart pure in order to eternally STAY UNITED WITH GOD!

[Matthew 5-8] “BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART- FOR THEY SHALL SEE GOD”.

The nature of spiritual life

Spiritual life (according to the experiences of the Saints) is not the learning of spiritual truths, but the union and relationship that mankind was made to have with God! The Cross that we carry is the nature of this type spiritual life for it keeps our minds and spirits on an upward type incline that is centred in bringing prayer and communication with God

What is Orthodox Christianity?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVjKvwdRoj0    

God is Light and His Saints are light   

Elder Sophrony of Essex - Image and likeness of God

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezItFNpdnVY

God bless

Ty: Brother, the New Testament says, “Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men” (Romans 12:17-18).

I don’t know how many times I asked you to contact me privately and to keep your teachings off this page. You have now commented eight more times here with the same things after I asked you to stop. You also have not tried to contact me privately as far as I can see.

If you were truly driven by the Holy Spirit, you would respect my requests. Instead you simply ignore simple requests and keep giving the same kind of information about Orthodox teaching.

I cannot spend all my time on this back and forth, but for your benefit and that of others, I will address some things in your last message.

You gave a story of a monk going to an Abbot Prokopi who presumably spoke with Moses to get revelation on an Old Testament scripture. The story you gave could not be evaluated because of lack of details, like what scripture verse did Prokopi get revelation on and what was the meaning that was revealed to him.

Even with those details, though, we cannot just assume the abbot actually talked to Moses. The only other Old Testament prophet I know of that was brought forward from death to get revelation was Samuel in 1 Samuel 28, and that was done through a witch spiritual medium.

I told you before, we can’t just assume every spirit or apparition is who they claim to be. There are many imposters of saints, angels, Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Remember I said Islam was founded by an imposter of the archangel Gabriel who guided Muhammad. If the Prokopi story is even true, the Moses he spoke with could very well be another imposter.

I said before, you do not weigh things with correct weight, depend on signs and miracles too much, and do not evaluate things fully. Signs, miracles and supernatural revelation in themselves to not prove things are from God. I’ve seen the enemy work many things, and it is impossible to tell if something supernatural is actually from God. Even the testing of the spirits described in 1 John 4:1-3 will not work with some imposters.

The enemy knows scripture and the truth better than most learned saints, so even if Abbot Prokopi got truthful revelation, it doesn’t mean it came from the true Moses. The enemy uses ignorance to spread their lies and skewed teaching and they use real miracles to get people to trust them and their lies unequivocally.

We are in the age of the New Testament now, and a very important part of that is how we are reborn with the Holy Spirit, so that we have God’s mind, as noted here, “For to us God revealed [His wisdom] through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words” (1 Corinthians 2:10-13).

Having the mind of Christ is how the first apostles understood things they got, whether it was from their own gifts of the Spirit or what others told them. They did not become ascetics, like many of the saints you reference, and they did not get their revelations by praying or talking to dead saints.

In fact, I have personal experience with praying to dead saints and have felt dark energy from them, like some people have reported experiencing very unpleasant energy from the “slaying of the spirit” in Pentecostal Churches. These things are not from God or His Spirit as many people assume.

Having God’s mind does not guarantee we will be free from all error and deceptions, though. The influences of darkness and spiritual warfare are very complicated. I won’t speak of the details here, but I did tell you to read the Light Within article to get more information: http://3rdcompass.org/go?LIGHT

You keep saying your teachings (that of your sect of the Orthodox Church) is from the “Church or Holy Fathers.” However, they are not from the first apostles or anyone taught directly by the first apostles. They are from the fathers of the Orthodox Church, which came long after the first apostles died.

Your pursuit of “purity from sins and not [of scriptural or spiritual] knowledge” to get into the presence of God has blinded you with false teachings of ascetism and other skewing of the truth, like you quote Matthew 5:8 again, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” You assume that verse goes with your doctrines of how we are saved in Christ.

That verse does not have to do with the New Covenant as I said before, but notes the “pure in heart” will see God or to explain it better - those who seek God with a sincere heart will “see” or experience God in any form, which does not absolutely have to do with eternal salvation in Christ.

You also say, “the centre of attention in Orthodox life and worship” is pursing the Holy Spirit, like at Pentecost – getting the Spirit in power and the show of gifts. Other denominations, like the Pentecostal/Apostolic Church, Baptist Church, and prophetic movements, also pursue the Spirit and gifts excessively. And like, you they assume all spiritual happenings and gifts are from God or the Holy Spirit when they are not.

However, like you, people in these other branches of Christianity are trying to pursue God with a pure heart and firmly assert their teachings are inerrant. I was very much like this, but through many years of ministry and going through mountains of spiritual guidance and teachings, I have found the nature of spiritual things is much more complicated than most of the church understands.

I know the Lord predestined me to go through it all for the betterment of His People, so may you trust what I say and come out of your blinding. Do not keep commenting here, but talk to me directly if you want to continue.

[At his point, I blocked this person from the YouTube channel and never heard from him again.]

• Excessive desire to be heard publicly and to spread spiritual teaching
• Excessive use of exclamations and capitalization
• Excessive overgeneralization
• Excessive statements of fact that are not true
• Excessive use of absolutes
• Excessive focus on holiness or sacredness
• Excessive focus on maintaining religious definitions and rules
  
• Excessive focus on following laws and being obedience and perfect
  
• Excessive use of scripture in the wrong context or inappropriately
• Continuing to repeat the same or similar teachings despite being shown details that contradict them
• Ignoring or dismissing information that contradicts them
• Unwillingness to study details further or only skims over material