Thursday 07/3/2026 Topics: Opening comments Adam and Eve had great bodies. And we got this miserable sack of crap. Link to: www.SinnersBlood.com Let's Get Discipling!

Pride Has Been the Problem Since the Garden by Pastor Joseph Cortes Pride has been the problem since the beginning. In Genesis 3:1-5, the serpent came to Eve and said, “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Satan was subtle. He did not start by making an obvious attack. He started by questioning God’s Word. Then he questioned God’s goodness. Eve repeated what God had commanded, and then Satan said, “Ye shall not surely die.” That was the lie. But before the lie came the suggestion that God was holding out on her. Satan said, “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” That is still the same lie today. Satan is still telling people that God is holding out on them. He is still telling people that God’s Word cannot be trusted. He is still telling people that they can become enlightened by breaking away from God. He is still telling people they can define good and evil for themselves. That is the ultimate manifestation of pride: man making himself god in his own eyes. Eve looked at the tree, saw that it was pleasant to the eyes and desired to make one wise, and she yielded. Adam followed. And from that moment on, mankind has been trying to live independently from God. Romans 1:18-20 says, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness.” Paul says that what may be known of God is manifest in them, because God has shown it unto them. The invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so they are without excuse. God has given human beings knowledge of their Creator. Creation itself preaches. The problem is not that man has no witness. The problem is that man suppresses the truth.

Get Your Flares Out by Pastor Joseph Cortes We are living in a time when the church does not need more couch potatoes for Jesus. We need Christians who would rather burn out than rust out. There are too many rusty Christians sitting around while the world races toward the cliff. There are too many churches babysitting instead of equipping. Too many pastors managing crowds instead of leading the flock. Too many believers have turned church into take, take, take. They want social activities, programs, entertainment, and something to keep the kids busy, but where are the flares? Where is the warning? Where is the burden for souls? I am not against fellowship. I am not against believers gathering and encouraging one another. But if socializing is the main reason people go to church, something is wrong. The church is not a religious social club. The church is not a babysitting unit. The church is supposed to proclaim Christ, teach the Word, strengthen believers, warn sinners, and prepare people for what is ahead. There are too many Christians who have no flares in their hands. They may not be called to preach, but there is no excuse for doing nothing. You can point people to the Word. You can hand someone a card. You can share a message. You can tell them where they can hear about Jesus. You can speak when God gives you an opening. I am going to be honest. At this point in my life, you cannot shut me up. If there is an opening, people are going to hear about Jesus whether they want to or not. And I am finding that people are more receptive now because of the confusion and chaos in this world. People are uncertain. They are concerned about war, nuclear threats, economic collapse, moral insanity, and what the future holds. There are so many avenues now to tell them about Jesus and why they do not need to fear the future if He is the captain of their ship. We know what is coming after this age is done. We know who wins. We know who saves. His name is Jesus Christ.

Faith Repair Shop: Matt. 12:31-32 discusses blaspheming the Holy Spirit where Jesus said in summary, “Just don’t do it, or you won’t be forgiven?” He said speaking against the Son of man is forgiveable, but not against the Spirit (A part of the alluded to Unpardonable Sin idea). But this isn’t where I’m going here. The point is that the Holy Spirit is his own person, as emphatically mentioned, sided with the personhood of Jesus and personhood of YHWH, by proxy, according to vs. 31. There’s so much more to this, however. This is a small piece of the logic pie and something that Jehovah’s Witnesses, Unitarians et al. must consider from the start. It’s rather bewildering to consider that someone who does blaspheme the Holy Spirit would be UNforgiven, especially IF, IN FACT, the Spirit is only an “impersonal force or power,” an assistant to the Father, etc., so to speak, rather than a stand-alone, but still connected, communal and equal person with and withIN the God-head. To claim that the Spirit is simply an attribute of the Father is silly and insulting and cannot stand. Matthew 12 here makes a clear distinction in the God-head mix, concerning the Spirit and the Father in their positioning. I said all that to make the point that separation is key. If the Holy Spirit were only a part of the Father, an attribute, if you will, then to blaspheme the Father would mean to blaspheme the Spirit automatically, thus a violation of the Matt. 12:31-32 passages. Whomever blasphemes the Father (known by proxy as the God-head) or the Son CAN BE forgiven, but NOT the Spirit. This absolutely suggests separation, but not Tritheism, no, no. Other passages cover this area, e.g. Jn. 10:30---“I and the Father are One” (Jesus speaking), but too much to go into there. The Modalists [the one’s who say the Father and the Son ARE NOT separate in personage (United Pentecostal Church & Apostolic Church of Jesus Christ)] who claim the Spirit IS Jesus also fail here in that logic. To blaspheme one would be to blaspheme the other, simply as it’s comprehended by intelligence, with logic and according to the verses as they specify. So they have to be able to be 3 separate persons or the Matthew passages make little to no sense.

James 1:12–16 — Expanded from the Greek with Devotional Explanation Blessed, favored, and spiritually secure is the person who remains faithful under trial and does not run from God when pressure comes. The word James uses for “blessed” is μακάριος (makarios). It means someone who is truly well-off before God. Not because life is easy. Not because the trial feels good. But because his standing with God is secure. James says this blessing belongs to the one who “endures.” That word is ὑπομένω (hypomenō). It means to remain under, to stay, to hold your ground, and not give up. James is not describing someone who never feels pressure. He is describing someone who keeps trusting God while the pressure is real. When that person has been tested and shown to be genuine, he will receive the crown of life. This crown is not salvation. James is speaking to believers, those already born from above. The crown of life is a reward from the Lord for those who love Him and remain faithful under pressure. Then James makes something very clear: Let no one say, when he is being tempted, “This temptation is coming from God.” The word for “tempted” is πειράζω (peirazō). Depending on the context, it can mean to test, try, prove, or tempt. James separates those meanings for us. God may allow our faith to be tested through trials, but God does not tempt anyone to do evil. That matters because many people blame God for the wrong thing. When they go through a trial, temptation, tribulation, or any other kind of σκύβαλον (skubalon) — the garbage and refuse life throws at us — they assume God must be the One giving it to them. But James does not allow us to put that accusation on God. God is not baiting us into sin. God is not trying to make us fail. God is not standing over us throwing evil at us to see if we break. James says each person is tempted when he is pulled away and baited by his own desire. The word for “desire” is ἐπιθυμία (epithymia). It means desire, craving, longing, or appetite. James is honest here. The pull does not come from God. It comes from our own inward desire.