Tuesday, January 27, 2015

HOW I KNOW WITHOUT A SHAWDOW OF A DOUBT THT JEHOVAH WITNESSES ARE A CULT, TOO MANY CONTRADICTIONS, AND VIOLATIONS AGAISNT GOD'S WRITTEN WORD, YET SOME OF THEM CARRY BIBLES

4 neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which promote questions rather than godly edifying in the faith, so do!

 1 Timothy 4 New King James Version (NKJV)

The Great Apostasy

4 Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, 2 speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, 3 forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth

 2 Timothy 2:15New King James Version (NKJV) 15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 
2 Timothy 4 New King James Version (NKJV)

Preach the Word

4 I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at[a] His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables

TITUS 1:10-16

10 For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, 11 whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 One of them, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” 13 This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, 14 not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn from the truth. 15 To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled. 16 They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work

Avoid Dissension

TITUS 3:9-11

9 But avoid foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and useless. 10 Reject a divisive man after the first and second admonition, 11 knowing that such a person is warped and sinning, being self-condemned.
 
Submission to Government

1 PETER 2:13-16

13 Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, 14 or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— 16 as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. 
Colossians 2:8

New King James Version
8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. 
Colossians 2:16
New King James Version
16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths
Colossians 2:18
New King James Version
18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not[a] seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
Ephesians 4:12-14
New King James Version (NKJV)
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,
Ephesians 4:17-20New King James Version (NKJV)

The New Man

17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of[a] the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.

Isaiah 30:1

“Woe to the rebellious children,” says the Lord,
“Who take counsel, but not of Me,
And who devise plans, but not of My Spirit,
That they may add sin to sin;

Galatians 2:4New King James Version (NKJV) 4 And this occurred because of false brethren secretly brought in (who came in by stealth to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage),

 

John 4:1-6

4 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess that[a] Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.

4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. 6 We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

2 Peter 2:1-11New King James Version (NKJV)

Destructive Doctrines

2 But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. 2 And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. 3 By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does[a] not slumber.

Doom of False Teachers

4 For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; 5 and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; 6 and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; 7 and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked 8 (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)— 9 then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries, 11 whereas angels, who are greater in power and might, do not bring a reviling accusation against them before the Lord

2 Peter 2:18-19

 Deceptions of False Teachers

18 For when they speak great swelling words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped[a] from those who live in error. 19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage.

2 Corinthians 2:17

17 For we are not, as so many,[a] peddling the word of God; but as of sincerity, but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ.

Romans 10:3

3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God

 

 

Friday, January 23, 2015

UNDERSTANDING THE IMPORTANCE OF A SPIRITUAL CONNECTION TO AND WITH GOD

 
                                          Thessalonians 5:19
                                       Do not quench the Spirit
                                   ROMANS 8:9
But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
                                     Romans 8:26
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.
                                     Romans 8:14-16
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.[a] And by him we cry, “Abba,[b] Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.

2 Corinthians 3:17

17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
                                    2 Corinthians 4:11
  For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body
 Corinthians 4:16-18T
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal
                           FOR IN THE LAST DAYS SOME WILL NOT

                      BE CONNECTED TO GOD IN THE SPIRIT
                               Isaiah 30:1

“Woe to the rebellious children,” says the Lord,
“Who take counsel, but not of Me,
And who devise plans, but not of My Spirit,
That they may add sin to sin;

                      2 Thessalonians 2:9-10

 even him, whose coming is according to the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders,

10 and with all the deceit of unrighteousness in those who perish, because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved

                                  Revelation 16:14

14 For they are the spirits of devils working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world to gather them for the battle of that great Day of God Almighty.

 


THE KINGDOM OF THE BEAST, AND THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN HELPING IT'S ESTABLISHMENT, RIGHT HERE IN THE U.S. AND HOW SOME SCRIPTURES, WILL TAKE PLACE, TO A REAL UNDERSTANIDNG OF HOW.

Constitution of Arkansas

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The Constitution of the State of Arkansas is the governing document of the U.S. state of Arkansas. It was adopted in 1874, shortly after the Brooks-Baxter War, replacing the 1868 constitution that had allowed Arkansas to rejoin the Union after the conclusion of the American Civil War; the new constitution and the Brooks-Baxter War marked the end of Reconstruction in Arkansas, two years before the disputed 1876 presidential election ended it completely. Adopted toward the end of Reconstruction, the new constitution provided a transition period between it and its predecessor.


History[edit]

First Constitution[edit]

In 1833, the Territory of Arkansas was eager to be admitted as a state, although Congress was hesitant to admit another pro-slavery state due to the tense equality levied by the Missouri Compromise. Nonplussed, the territory elected delegates for a state constitution convention. Territorial governor, William Fulton tried to halt the convention, but Attorney General, Benjamin F. Butler ruled assemblage legal. The first state constitution was ratified by congress on January 30, 1836, and on June 15 of that year, president Andrew Jackson signed the act making Arkansas the 25th state.

Secession and Re-entering the Union[edit]

The first constitution was vague and short. It was replaced by the second Arkansas state constitution when Arkansas seceded from the Union on May 6, 1861. This constitution was very similar to the original except for its references to The Confederate States of America.
When Arkansas re-entered the union, they were required to ratify a new constitution. They did this on March 18, 1864. This constitution stipulated that federal recognition and support would resume after ten percent of 1860 voters took the oath of allegiance to the union. Slavery was abolished in this constitution, but no mention of former-slaves rights was included. The purpose of this constitution was to hurry reconstruction and return power to local governments as quickly as possible. This was the first constitution to define election procedures for a number of important posts within the state government.
When Arkansas finally re-entered the union in 1868, it was under yet another constitution, this one created and ratified by the reconstruction legislature rather than by the state elected government. This constitution made racial discrimination illegal and provided for public education and a state university. This constitution was much more formal and powerful than previous editions. It was also heavily skewed towards counties with a large African-American population.

Current Version[edit]

The fifth and current constitution was adopted in 1874. When Democrats regained the majority for the first time since the Civil War, they spent a summer re-writing the constitution. This version reflects the emotions resulting from the previous twenty years of turmoil. Arkansans were, by now, suspicious of any military authority, and purposely put enormous power in the hands of county governments. This included legal issues, transportation, taxation and spending. The power of the governor was significantly curtailed. State officials' terms were dropped from four years to two years, and fewer officials could be appointed by the governor.[1] This is the constitution that the state uses today, with some 87 amendments and various other changes.

Subsequent Efforts[edit]

In addition to the five Constitutional Conventions that resulted in new State Constitutions, Arkansas also had Constitutional Conventions in 1918, 1969, and 1979, called the Sixth, Seventh, and Eight Constitutional Conventions respectively. However none of the resulting proposals were ratified.[2]

Summary[3][edit]

Preamble[edit]

We, the People of the State of Arkansas, grateful to Almighty God for the privilege of choosing our own form of government; for our civil and religious liberty; and desiring to perpetuate its blessings, and secure the same to our selves and posterity; do ordain and establish this Constitution.

Article 1- Boundaries[edit]

This article establishes the boundaries of Arkansas as running from the Mississippi river on the east to the Oklahoma and Texas borders on the west, and bound by Missouri in the north and Louisiana in the south. This article also defines the seat of government as being in Little Rock.

Article 2- Definition of Rights and Power[edit]

For the most part, this article affirms the same limits to the State Government that are similarly constrained by the US Constitution to the Government of the United States.
One interesting note, Section 26 states that no religious test shall be applied as a requirement to vote or hold office, yet later on in the constitution Atheists are expressly forbidden from holding office.

Article 3- Elections[edit]

Article 3 mandates that all elections shall be fair and equal. No person shall be denied the right to vote. Any resident citizen over the age of 18 may register and vote. Electors are exempt from arrest while they are traveling to and from elections. Soldiers may not vote on the basis of being stationed in Arkansas, they must establish residency through other means.

Article 4- Branches of Government[edit]

This article states that there will be 3 branches of government, legislative, judicial, and executive.

Article 5- Legislative[edit]

Article 5 provides for the operations of the Arkansas General Assembly. It requires the Assembly to meet biennially (Section 5) and limits these meetings to 60 days unless otherwise approved by two-thirds of both houses (Section 17). Section 4 sets the qualifications for members. Amendment 86 allows for biennial fiscal sessions in even-numbered years; these sessions are limited to legislative deliberation regarding the state budget, though other issues may be brought before the houses via approval of a two-thirds vote of the membership.
Section 1 allows for passage of laws or constitutional amendments by initiative. Petitions require signatures equal to eight percent of registered voters to appear on the ballot for a law, or ten percent for a constitutional amendment (see below). Section 1 also allows, by six percent of voters placing a petition, for a statewide referendum on any law or any part of a law. The petition must be filed no later than 90 days after final adjournment of the Assembly. The law is suspended until it is voted on in the next election; if part of a law, the portion subject to referendum is suspended while all other provisions remain in effect.
It also includes highly restrictive provisions regarding appropriations:
  • Section 38 requires, in order to raise "property, excise, privilege or personal taxes", either 1) approval of the voters or 2) a three-fourths majority of the legislature. However, since the sales tax is not shown in the listing (it was added after passage of the Constitution[clarification needed]), it can be increased by a simple majority.
  • Section 30 requires that the "general appropriations bill" be limited to the "ordinary expenses of the executive, legislative, and judicial departments of the State". All other appropriations must be passed by special appropriations bills. However, each bill can embrace only one subject; thus, hundreds of bills must be passed to fund other State agencies.
  • Section 39 places restrictions on funding. Except for "educational purposes, highway purposes, to pay Confederate pensions and the just debts of the State", no appropriations exceeding $2.5 million can be passed without a three-fourths majority. In recent years, this means that nearly every appropriation bill (including the general bill) requires such.
  • Section 40 further requires that the general appropriations bill must be passed before any special appropriations bill can be passed. Otherwise, no appropriations are valid.
The most recent example of how the restrictions can wreak havoc was in 1989.[citation needed] The general appropriations bill (which exceeded $2.5 million) failed to gain the required three-fourths majority, but was declared passed by the General Assembly under the "just debts of the State" exemption, and all subsequent special appropriations bills were passed thereafter. However, the Arkansas Supreme Court disagreed with the Assembly's use of the just debts provision. As a result, it declared every single appropriations bill of the session unconstitutional—the general bill did not receive the votes needed to pass under Section 39, and under Section 40 all other appropriations bills were invalid since the general bill must be passed first—requiring the Assembly to return in special session to reenact them.
Ironically, though, appropriations are not really the state budget in Arkansas; that is enacted near the end of the session, when the Revenue Stabilization Law, which provides the mechanism for distributing the state's revenue (even general revenues), is amended to reflect the actual budget. Any appropriation not funded by the Revenue Stabilization Law is essentially null and void. In hindsight, some observers believe that the Revenue Stabilization Act, while strict in its implementation, has prevented the state from experiencing financial difficulties seen in other states with less-strict deficit spending preventive measures.

Controversy[edit]

Article 19 Section 1, titled "Atheists disqualified from holding office or testifying as witness", states: "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any court."
However, there are no known cases of this article being enforced in modern times. It is commonly held that Article Six of the United States Constitution bans such qualifications when it states, "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States." Current precedent holds that this is binding on the states as well under the liberty clause of the 14th Amendment to the federal constitution. Additionally, the First Amendment to the federal constitution establishes freedom of religion as a constitutional right. While the wording of this amendment specifically bars Congress from restricting freedom of religion, current precedent holds that this amendment and the rest of the United States Bill of Rights are binding on the states by the liberty clause of the 14th Amendment. As a result, it is understood that this section would almost certainly be thrown out if challenged in court.

Usury law[edit]

Section 13 originally set the state's usury limit at 10%; it was amended in the early 1980s to 5% above the Federal Reserve Discount Rate on 90-day commercial paper[4] (see the latest rates), but falling interest rates and poorly worded provisions made the amended version even more onerous than the original. For example, a clause in the 1980s amendment appears to set a 17% limit for consumer loans; but since they weren't exempted from the main "5% above discount rate" provision, the courts ruled that the limit for consumer loans was the lesser of the two clauses, usually the 5% rule. Also, other language in the amendment applying the usury limit "at the time of the contract" made floating-rate loans extremely difficult, even though the usury limit itself was a floating rate. Even worse, neither the original nor amended provisions allowed the legislature to make any exceptions to the general usury law, as happened in other states. The Arkansas legislature tried to permit payday loans anyway, but after two adverse decisions in 2008 the Attorney General ordered all payday lenders in the state to shut down.[5]
Eventually, after out-of-state banks took over most lending in Arkansas thanks to the Marquette decision and the Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act of 1994,[6] Arkansas banks received special relief from the usury law through Section 731 of the Federal Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act in 1999. Also in that year, an Arkansas Supreme Court decision allowed out-of-state auto finance companies to engage in subprime lending through Arkansas dealerships without violating the usury law.[7] Today, only a handful of loans made to Arkansans are still subject to this law, mainly private-party lending and some prime auto loans from companies like GMAC and Ford Credit.

Holford Bonds Not to Be Paid[edit]

This unique and unusual article (added by Amendment 1) prohibits the General Assembly from making appropriations for payment of principal and interest on several bond issues from 1869 to 1871, commonly referenced as Holford bonds, which were passed during Reconstruction by a Union-dominated General Assembly, some of which refinanced disputed debt from shortly after Arkansas' statehood in 1836. These bonds had been central to the Brooks-Baxter War.

Amendments[edit]

In addition to the 20 Articles listed above, several amendments (90 as of January 01, 2013) have been added. Though some amendments have been physically incorporated into the text of the Constitution (e.g. Amendment 1, adding Article 20 and Amendment 90, incorporated changes made to Amendment 82), others remain physically separate from the text.
Notable amendments shown separately include:
  • Amendment 34, which provides for the right to work (only Arizona, Florida, Mississippi, and Oklahoma have similar constitutional provisions).
  • Amendment 46, which allows for horse racing pari-mutuel betting, but only in Hot Springs, the location of Oaklawn Park. (Interestingly, there is no similar constitutional amendment relating to dog racing, though Southland Greyhound Park operates in West Memphis.[citation needed])
  • Amendment 68, which states that "[t]he policy of Arkansas is to protect the life of every unborn child from conception to birth, to the extent permitted by the Federal Constitution." This provision would allow Arkansas to restrict the practice of abortion in the event Roe v. Wade is ever overturned by the United States Supreme Court.
  • Amendment 73, which places term limits on Arkansas officeholders. Section 3 also placed limits on Arkansas's Congressional delegation, but it was found unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton. Section 4 placed a severability clause so the remainder of the amendment would remain in force.
  • Amendment 83 Denies recognition to all forms of same-sex unions.
  • Amendment 84 Authorizes bingo and raffles for charitable purposes. Passed in 2006
  • Amendment 86 Authorizes the General Assembly to meet in general sessions in odd-numbered years and fiscal sessions during even-numbered years
  • Amendment 87 Authorizes a state wide lottery. Passed in 2008
  • Amendment 88 Guarantees the right of Arkansans to hunt, fish and trap. Passed in 2010

Amending the Constitution[edit]

The current Constitution allows for two methods of amendment. However, each method is shown in a separate section.

Legislative amendment[edit]

Under Section 22 of Article 19, either house of the General Assembly may propose amendments. The amendment requires majority approval of both houses in a recorded vote, publication in at least one newspaper in each county for six months prior to the next election of the Assembly, and majority approval of the voters.
However, the Section places further restrictions on legislative amendments, requiring each amendment to appear separately on the ballot and limiting the number per ballot to three.

Amendment by initiative[edit]

Under Section 1 of Article 5 (as amended by Amendment 7), ten percent of legal voters may propose an amendment by initiative, requiring majority approval of the voters. The proposed amendment must be filed with the Arkansas Secretary of State not less than four months before the election, and 30 days prior to the election the petitioners (at their own expense) must publish the amendment "in some paper of general circulation". Unlike legislative amendments, there are no limits on the number of amendments by initiative that may be proposed on any one ballot.

External links[edit]

References[edit]