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Mojave Desert Extraterrestrial Travel Guide
High Desert Test Site Head Quarters
The HDTS HQ is a visitor's center and creative hub where artists, craftsmen, visionaries, and friends engage with the high desert community through creative projects and performances. You can pick up a copy of the HDTS driving map to HDTS projects and other local sites of interest at the HQ every Saturday from 9 am–1 pm. They also sell gems and minerals, HDTS publications, postcards, t-shirts and totes, and a selection of items made by local friends.
7028 Theater Road, Yucca Valley, CA 92286
The Integratron
The Integratron is located in Landers, California, 20 miles north of Joshua Tree National Park. Its creator, George Van Tassel (1910-1978), claimed that the structure is based on the design of Moses' Tabernacle, the writings of Nikola Tesla and telepathic directions from extraterrestrials from Venus. The Integratron was designed to be an electrostatic generator for the purpose of rejuvenation and time travel.
2477 Belfield Blvd, Landers, CA 92285
Rainbow Bath House
A safe space for the earthbound. The Rainbow Bath House space involves creating an immerse community of healing experiences. Produced by visionary director and healer Marina, the space is where creative communities can come together to collaborate and build on their collective dreams. Marina has invested and incorporated her life's artwork into her home and has worked to make it a safe space for all communities. This is a living piece of art that can allow rejuvenation and creative activation for all walks of life. This space is a queer and femme artist cooperative located just 2 hours outside of Los Angeles in Joshua Tree.
Giant Rock
Giant Rock is a seven-story giant boulder the has attracted UFO conferences, spiritualists, and the engineers of a "rejuvenation machine."
Giant Rock Rd, Landers, California
The Singing Dunes of Kelso
The Kelso Dunes consist of 45 square miles of quartz and feldspar located within the Mojave National Preserve. The dune they create a low rumbling unearthly song that can not only be heard, but can also be felt vibrating through the ground.
Kelso Dunes Trail, Baker, CA 92309
34.89244, -115.69906
Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex
Goldstone is one of three complexes around the world known as the Deep Space Network (DSN) established to provide the ability to communicate with spacecraft; not only in orbit around the earth, but also in the farther reaches of our solar system. The Deep Space Network complexes, placed 120° apart, provide constant communication with spacecraft as the Earth rotates.In determining the exact position for the site in California, a remote location, free from radio signal interference, was needed. The remote location of the Mojave Desert in California, near the old mining town of Goldstone, was determined to be an optimal location and in 1958 the first antenna was built. Facilities near Madrid, Spain and Canberra, Australia complete the Deep Space Network providing 360 degree coverage for spacecraft tracking. Closed to the public.
93 Goldstone Rd, Fort Irwin, CA
The Desert Oracle
"The Voice of the Desert". Tune in to the Desert Oracle Podcast for ufo and desert folklore, history, and current events by Ken Layne.
Friday nights at 10 pm., Desert Oracle Radio, KCDZ 107.7 FM on your radio dial. Or stream the program live at z1077fm.com and click "subscribe" for full, free episodes from iTunes.
Little A'Le'Inn
An alien themed bar and motel. Its not in the Mojave, but we couldn't resist -
Walk in... Drive in... Fly in...
get to Little A'Le'Inn !!!
ET's & Earthlings
Welcome Always
9631 Old Mill Rd, Rachel, NV
UFO Social Club
Are you looking for like-minded individuals? The Yucca Valley UFO Social Club is a club for those interested in the UFO phenomenon. Come for booze, tunes, and esoteric conversation. Disarm all alien implants at the door and tip your bartender well.
Touchdown Bar, 57360 Aviation Dr, Yucca Valley, CA
34°07'39.6"N 116°24'43.8"W
Goat Mountain and Goat Mountain Astronomical Research Station
Goat Mountain is an isolated rocky formation extending in Landers, California. In addition to panoramic desert views, Goat Mountain has been the site of many alien and ufo sightings.
The Goat Mountain Astronomical Research Station (GMARS) is a public site for amateur to professional astronomers. GMARS is maintained by the Riverside Astronomical Society. Check their website for Star Party events.
34° 17' 26.33" N, 116° 23' 01.77" W
Sky's The Limit Observatory
Sky's The Limit Observatory and Nature Center is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing hands-on learning opportunities. The campus is always open to explore.
QR codes posted around the site, when scanned with a smartphone, will take you to a text or audio explanation of what you are seeing. A volunteer docent is usually on campus on Saturdays from 10 am to 2 pm. Visit their website for more information and events.
9697 Utah Trail, Twentynine Palms, CA 92277


The Waag and AMS Institute will dig into these questions and use design sessions to find their solutions during our three-part programme series, Designing the City.
But how does this work practically? What are the issues with this new form of research? Who are the people researching and developing these solutions? During this programme series, we are investigating how new design methods and technologies can be optimised for research and experiments. How do you collect data? How does research lead to tangible results in the city? And what does it take to scale up solutions to create substantial impact?
The entrance fee for the event is € 5,- (includes a drink). Order your ticket via this link.
For more information see the website and this article.


This cycling extravaganza takes you from the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana to the glistening waters of the Adriatic Coast, pedallin' through glamorous Italian towns before reaching the amazing town of Piran – a true Slovenian gem. It's a heady concoction of the buzz of the capital city, quiet country routes, spectacular sea views and chilled towns – not to mention incredible sunsets.
Your trip begins with a relaxed vibe as you discover Ljubljana's riverside cafes, bustling farmers market and rich culture. Hopping on your bikes, you'll journey across the historic plains of the Ljubljana Marsh, breathing in the exhilarating country air, as you cycle off the beaten track in search of Slovenia's unspoilt countryside. You'll be surrounded by mountains and lakes, as you journey between rustic Slovenian villages, making stops at world-famous Karst caves and an array of museums.
Cycling further west towards the Adriatic Coast you'll cross the Italian border, taking in the incredible Venetian-style towns of Trieste and Muggia, where you'll be rewarded with lashings of sunshine and delicious food. Saying ciao to Italy, you'll cycle back into Slovenia via the former Parenzana railway line connecting Slovenia to Italy and Croatia, as you enter the land of salt and the glamorous seaside towns of Portoroz and Piran. In Piran your cycling efforts will be rewarded with astonishing views and a unique main square in the town considered to be the most picturesque in Slovenia.
Jam-packed with coastal views, city vibes, peaceful countryside and not to be missed sights, this trip combines all the classic Skedaddle ingredients. Snap up this unrivalled opportunity to discover Slovenia by bike!
Traveled many times with Skedaddle and their trusted partners. Always problem free. Excellent service, I keep coming back! I have to say that all of the days were great, with something of interest to go and do on each day, set as optional side trips. Slovenia is a hidden gem, which they are trying to keep quiet!
I loved every minute. The bikes were amazing. The routes interesting. Everyday was different. We did the extras which were well worth it. I loved Slovenia. The countryside varied and the people were most friendly. Bikes provided – the best bike I have ever ridden!
Don't think I'd trust anybody else when booking a cycling holiday!
From expressing an interest to booking and going, Saddle Skedaddle staff were excellent. Consistently high standards delivered year on year. Really fantastic accommodation! Enjoyed all the days, so many different experiences on the route. Enjoyed last day along coast. Don't think I'd trust anybody else when booking a cycling holiday!
We combined this holiday with a walking holiday run by a different company and Skedaddle service was better – friendlier, less fussy, clearer and more responsive, well done. Having done both group and self-guided with you, I'd go for self-guided as I'm happier setting my own pace.
From Saddle Skedaddle is an eight-day self-guided cycling tour that begins in Ljubljana, Slovenia's capital, and continues into Italy, passing Trieste on the way to the Slovenian coast. The route ends in Piran.
The post Customer Story: Cycling Slovenia appeared first on Skedaddle Blog.


Our medical transportation in Moscow, Idaho and also hospital shuttle buses are spotlessly clean and well furnished. Our drivers are more than pleased to help to entering your vehicle and properly secured for safety measures and comfort. United Coachways has actually been providing medical transportation in Moscow, Idaho to hospital wards, treatment centers, doctor's offices, health centers, and nursing homes for many years.
Along with our improved upon choices of minibuses, school buses, as well as passenger vans, we can easily put together medical transportation in Moscow, Idaho to and from local area international airports, doctor's offices, xray and radiation visits in addition to therapy medical treatments with this hospital shuttle service.
To confirm medical transportation in Moscow, Idaho provided by hospital shuttle buses or for just about any of our various transport services, give us a call at 1-888-943-1466.


Otis College of Art and Design is embarking on a year-long campaign to support, elevate, and celebrate the creative individual and creative community.
We call it the 100% campaign.
As part of the campaign, Otis College is proud to announce an open call for submissions to the 100 Projects. This call is open to all artists, designers, and other creative persons, with unique perspectives and approaches, who are interested in displaying their 100% commitment. The selected 100 Projects will be heavily promoted throughout the campaign. The call is open to the public and a broad range of mediums and formats will be considered. Be one of the first 100 submissions and the application fee is waived. See below for project guidelines and details.
The 100 Projects' theme is centered on the concept of 100%. It's about your unique voice and commitment. Our goal is to exhibit 100 different artists and creatives, each with a singular voice.
Our ideal submission presents work that is 100% committed, whether in its theme, subject matter, materials, or concept. The work can embrace an entire range of creative endeavors. For this reason, proposed projects that include a strong sense of narrative and speak to a wide audience are highly encouraged.
All work in the 100 Projects will be displayed on our digital gallery platform and a number of pieces will be presented on the campus of Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles and in other public venues and outlets, as available. The selected participants will be responsible for ensuring their work meets requirements for display, presentation, and/or installation. Staff will have final approval of the presentation of the work. All work submitted to the 100 Projects will be digitally represented online for an indefinite period.
Otis College will promote the 100 Projects as a central part of the Centennial celebration. It will be distributed across all facets of Otis College's' online channels including through the College's website, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and a new Find Your 100 Website dedicated to the 100% Campaign. The 100 Projects will also be represented to the press.
The second Call for Entry submission deadline is on a rolling basis.
We ask artists and designers to submit their creative work to be included in this exciting showcase.
Applicants may submit images and/or links to work in any medium, including: digital and new/interactive media (i.e. video, animation, motion, graphic design, photography, 3-D, virtual/augmented reality, audio), performance, film, 2-D artwork (i.e. painting, illustration, photography), a piece of writing, and physical artwork (i.e. sculpture, installation, ceramics, fashion, textiles, product design, toy design).
Artists and designers may submit pre-existing work that fits within the theme or propose new work.
A "Find Your 100" t-shirt will be sent to every winner and all 100 winning projects will be considered for a $1,000 prize.
Selected participants will be responsible for all costs associated with work's shipping, return, insurance, installation, and de-installation of their work/project.
Applicants may apply for additional funding.
If applying as a collective, please designate one person as the point of contact.
Artists and designers outside of the Los Angeles area are encouraged to submit digital video or photography and/or new media projects.
Digital video submissions should be supplied through Vimeo, Youtube, or other web link for application purposes.
Be one of the first 100 submissions and the $5 application fee is waived (for SlideRoom).


Arbitrary arrests and expulsions of migrants have risen to a historic high in Algeria, Amnesty International says. The human rights organization has called on Algerian authorities to comply with international conventions.
The UN agency, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has said that nearly 111,000 migrants reached Europe by sea in 2018. The Mediterranean is the deadliest route for migrants traveling to Europe with 2,160 victims registered so far this year, the IOM said.
A project that aims to protect migrant workers' rights in North Africa has been launched in Tunis. The project, titled "Support to Improving Migration Governance and Promoting Fair Labor Migration in the Maghreb," will support improvements in migration management.
Italian authorities arrested two suspected migrant smugglers from Algeria. They were caught navigating a boat with 30 migrants on board. The suspects were reportedly arrested after an incriminating video-selfie of the pair emerged.


Drew Altdoerffer. Photographer. Travel Addict.
I've been fortunate in life and work. My parents instilled in me a strong work ethic and allowed me to pursue my passion as a photographer. It's a job working with the world's greatest photographers and camera systems, not to mention the extensive opportunities for adventure.
Traveling the world with Phase One has been an absolute privilege and it continues to mold my life experiences. I've been photographing the world since I was a teenager and have no plans to stop.
I live and work in Copenhagen, Denmark and I'm constantly traveling and waiting for that fateful assignment that will send me back home to the U.S. to visit friends and family.


ONE of the suspects involved in the murder of businessman Sir George Constantinou in December 2008 was caught by police yesterday, The National reports.
During a routine patrol in the Tete settlement on the outskirts of Gerehu in the NCD, police nabbed Kevei Paul, 16, of Tapini in Goilala, Central province, who was taken by surprise.
Paul dropped to the ground when police fired a warning shot.
Paul has been on the run for over a year after his name had was released to police by prime suspect Joe Auki, who reportedly released all other names in connection with the killing of Sir George.
Auki, also from Tapini in Goilala, was only recaptured by police last month after escaping from Bomana jail last year.
Gerehu police station commander Insp Steven Kapera said yesterday police were on their routine patrol and on the look-out for suspects in the area related to the murder when they spotted Paul.
Insp Kapera said as a first time offender, they did not have a picture of Paul but had his name.
Paul was also on the NCD police homicide unit's "hit list".
Insp Kapera said eight suspects were involved in the murder of Sir George.
So far, Paul was the fourth suspect to be arrested.
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All Android phones should have on-device voice typing
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
To help entice buyers to invest in the Pixel ecosystem, Google strictly locks some interesting features to Pixel devices. Magic Eraser is a good example (it allows you to "magically" erase objects from photographs) as is Call Screen (Google Assistant answers your phone call for you to handle telemarketers). Another example is on-device voice typing, which is currently exclusive to the Pixel 6 and Pixel 7 series.
If you use the voice-to-text feature on a non-Pixel phone, you'll face some limitations. First, you'll need to speak a little slower than normal because your phone will take a few milliseconds to process each word. Second, you'll have to dictate punctuation, such as "period" or "comma." The third is that you'll need to go back and fix things when you're done talking because the system isn't accurate when it comes to syntax, homophones, numbers, and more.
See also: The best Pixel-only features explained
The voice typing system on the Pixel 6 and Pixel 7 phones — also known as Assistant voice typing on Gboard — however, doesn't face these problems. You don't need to dictate punctuation because Google Assistant can handle that automatically as you speak. You can talk at a normal speed and you don't need to fix as much at the end. As added bonuses, you can even fix things manually as you go without needing to disable and enable voice typing again and again, and you can type an emoji by describing it. It is, universally, a better experience.
Voice typing on the Pixel 6 and 7 is a universally better experience than on any other Android phone.
It's a real shame that Google locks this to Pixels. I think everyone with a capable Android phone should get this feature.
Voice typing on a Pixel 7: An eye-opening experience
Normally, I text with my voice for two reasons: I'm driving or I know I have a lot to text and it will be faster to say it than type it. With the Pixel 7 Pro, though, I'm finding myself gravitating towards using my voice more often than not because it's so fast and accurate. Even if I'm sitting at my desk and could easily pick up the phone and type, I'll choose to use my voice instead.
This fast and accurate way to type is changing the way I use my phone.
This might not seem like a big deal, but it's fundamentally changing the way I use my phone. I don't even need to touch it anymore. I can simply say, "Hey Google, text Dad," and the phone will open up a message prompt to my father. I can then say whatever it is I want to send him just as I would if he was sitting right next to me.
Obviously, I can do this with most modern Android phones, as there are a ton out there that support the Google Assistant wake word. But if you try this with a phone that isn't a Pixel 6 or Pixel 7, you're likely going to have a bad time. Words aren't going to transcribe properly, your request for an emoji isn't going to be understood, and you'll need to speak at a slow pace to prevent things from getting jumbled. With the Pixel 7 Pro, though, it's effortless.
This feature alone is making me wonder how I would go back to a non-Pixel. That sounds like great news for Google, but I think it's important that everyone have access to this.
Do you like the new voice typing experience on the Pixel 6 and 7 series?
Yes, it's so much better than before.
It's a nice improvement, but not a life-changing feature.
I didn't notice any difference.
I didn't try it / I don't have a Pixel 6 or 7.
Everyone should have access to this
I understand that Google's Tensor chips make this feature possible. This is the intention of Tensor: not focusing on raw power and instead tweaking certain aspects of chipset architecture to make machine learning and AI features better. That's why this feature doesn't appear on older, non-Tensor Pixels. But other chips are absolutely capable of on-device voice typing, and Google should help bring it to the masses.
Related: The Google Tensor G2 versus the competition
We reached out to Google about the feasibility of this port. Google dodged answering our question directly, but it did confirm that it builds its applications on the Android NN API which, in theory, would allow these applications to run on other platforms that provide drivers for the API, including Qualcomm, Mediatek, Samsung, etc. In other words, it seems that this is possible, but Google would need to make it happen.
Despite this needed effort, I think this is important because it offers more accessibility and better safety. People who find it hard to type for whatever reason — arthritis, injuries, permanent mobility problems, etc. — should be able to use high-quality voice typing without needing to get a Pixel. Google has every right to launch exclusive features for Pixels, obviously, but locking better accessibility behind a paywall isn't an ethical way to go about that. Locking Magic Eraser behind a paywall makes sense, for example, but doing the same for a system that helps disadvantaged people use their phones better doesn't.
Paywalling features that make phones safer and more accessible isn't a good look.
Likewise, better voice typing encourages people to put down their phones while they're driving. I have definitely tried to use my voice while driving, gotten frustrated that things aren't coming out the way I want, and then just given up and used my fingers. That's not good at all, as my eyes should be on the road, not my phone. Once again, paywalling features that make life safer for everyone isn't great.
Even if Google won't bring the high-quality voice typing of the Pixels to everyone, I hope it at least makes the current version closer to that quality. Most people out there are probably like me and don't even know how much better things could be.
Source by www.androidauthority.com
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Axed X Factor girl group Belle Amie have slammed ex-mentor Simon Cowell for spending too much time with teenage boy band One Direction, and blame him for their early exit, according to reports.
The teary girl group – who were booted out over the weekend, after losing out to Cheryl's Katie Waissel – have revealed they struggled to understand why they weren't a hit with voters, adding that girl bands never seem to do well in the competition.
'We've always had that bad curse girl band thing hanging over our heads, so anytime we even did well it was like 'they did really well, great performance, they looked great but girl bands never do well,' outspoken singer Sophia Wardman revealed in an interview with This Morning.
And it seems the girls blame their mentor for their lack of success, insisting he put all his effort into popular boy band One Direction.
The girls added a group of boys would always do well, maintaining it was Belle Amie who really needed Simon's help.
This is not the first time Simon has been criticised for spending too much time working with his boy band.
Just weeks ago, fellow judge Louis Walsh blamed him for the girls' poor performance on the show.
'You've got a problem because you're on your own in this competition,' he told them after their performance.
What are your thoughts on Belle Amie's early exit? Are they right to blame Simon for being voted out? Let us know your thoughts in the comments box below.


At art class this week we had a blast with leaf prints! First, as a group we walked around outside and collected different types of leaves that we thought would make cool prints. This is a fun project because it allows us to really pay attention to nature and the designs of each leaf when we look at these things as "art." Once we found enough leaves we came inside and first painted the leaves and then pressed them onto paper with rollers for even distribution! So fun and they all turned out beautiful!
Older PostHow can I help make Kauai a better place?


Then came to Him the mother of Zebedee's children with her sons, worshiping Him and desiring a certain thing of Him. And He said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto Him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on Thy right hand and the other on the left in the Kingdom. But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink? They say unto Him, We are able. And He saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of My cup, but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give. But it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared by My Father. And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren. But Jesus called them unto Him and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority over them, but it shall not be so among you. But whosoever will be great among you, let him be your servant. And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your slave; even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give His life a ransom for many.
What a lesson for them and for us. The great men and the great women in God's Kingdom have always been those whose lives were marked by humble service, never the self-seekers, the glory seekers, those who sought to be lifted up to the prominent place. But always those who serve God with a heart of humility, selflessly.
Abraham, that very special and wonderful servant of God, said, "Behold now, I have taken to speak unto the Lord who am but dust and ashes." Isaac, Isaac was willing to die as an offering to the Lord if that's what God required. Jacob, Jacob who cried out to God, "I am not worthy of the least of the mercies and of all the truth which Thou hast shown unto Thy servant." Joseph, Joseph who dishonored, sold into slavery by his own brothers, humbly forgave those villainous brothers and never retained in his heart one ounce of bitterness or vengeance. Joseph, who it says in Genesis 50, when he saw his brothers wept and comforted them and spoke kindly to them. And there was Moses.
Moses, that humble servant of God who said, "Who am I that I should go unto Pharaoh and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?" And Joshua who faced the Lord after the defeat that came because of a lack of faith on the part of the people, a lack of obedience. It says he tore his clothes and fell to the earth upon his face and put dust upon his head. And there was Gideon, that very special servant of God who said when called to lead his people, "O my God, where with shall I save Israel. Behold, my family is poor and the least in Manasseh and I am the least in my father's house."
And then there was David, a wonderful servant of God who knew his own frailty and wrote in 1 Chronicles 29 one of the great and humbling texts of all the Old Testament. "Praise be to You, O Lord God, of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O Lord, is the Kingdom. You are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from You. You are the ruler of all things. In Your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks and praise Your glorious name. But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from You and we've given You only what comes from Your hand. We are aliens and strangers in Your sight as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow without hope. O Lord our God, as for all this abundance that we have provided for building You a temple for Your holy name, it comes from Your hand and all of it belongs to You."
Those are the great heroes of the Old Testament. Every one of those that I just mentioned to you is listed in Hebrews chapter 11 as a hero, one who is great in God's Kingdom. And they were great because they served humbly, not because they sought prominence like James and John did here with their mother's help. And there were others, too. We cannot mention them all but I think of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, who it says in 2 Chronicles 32, humbled himself. And there was Manasseh, another king of Judah, of whom it says he humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. And then I think of Josiah, king of Judah, who was told by God, "Because your heart was tender and you did humble yourself before God, and you tore your clothes and you wept before Me, I have heard your prayer."
And there was Job who was humbled and put on himself dust and ashes. And there was Isaiah who was so humbled he cursed himself and then he cried out, "I have a dirty mouth and I dwell amidst a people of dirty mouths." And it was just that kind of humility that God could use and so He called him to be a great prophet.
And there was Jeremiah who said, "Ah, Lord God, who am I to speak?" And then there was John the Baptist who was shocked that he should be asked to baptize Jesus Christ. And who cried out, "He must increase and I must decrease for it is He who is so worthy and I who am unworthy, even to unloosen the laces of His sandals."
And I think that John the Baptist may have been the greatest because he was the humblest. In fact, it's more than just a thought for Jesus said in Matthew 11:11, "There hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist." And the reason he was the greatest was because he was the humblest. You see, the greatest is always the humblest in God's Kingdom, not so in the world. The greatest in the world come to greatness by the way that James and John sought to come.
Do you remember our study last time? They sought to come through political power play, through manipulating by virtue of who they knew. They sought to come by audacious ambition, self- seeking, self-promoting. And Jesus warned them that greatness in the Kingdom does not come by those means. It does not come by dominant dictatorship, He says in verse 25. It doesn't come by lording it over, as the pagans do. It doesn't come by charismatic control. It doesn't come by charming your way into greatness. Those are all the ways of the world, not God way...God's ways.
When we think of the great men of the New Testament after John the Baptist, our minds are drawn to two men that seem to dominate the scene. The first is Peter. And Peter found his greatness, I believe, in the expression of his heart in Luke 5:8 when he said to Jesus, "Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man." And in the heart of his humility was born his greatness.
And the greatness of the Apostle Paul is found in the fact that in chapter 20 of Acts and verse 19 he could say, "I have served the Lord with all humility of mind." It is always the humble heart. It is always the servant heart. It is always that slave perspective that ushers us into the greatness of the Kingdom. "It is reserved for those, Jesus said in Matthew 18:4, "who come as little children." For He says, "Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the Kingdom of heaven."
And James reiterating that great Old Testament truth says, "God resists the proud but pours out grace to the humble." And so we learn a great lesson, beloved. Or we are reminded of a great lesson. And that is that greatness in God's Kingdom is reserved for those who are humble. And when it says in verse 23 that the honor of the Kingdom is reserved for those for whom it is prepared by the Father, it is for those who are humble that the Father has in fact prepared eternal glory and greatness in its maximum reality.
So, if we pursue greatness, we pursue it on the path of humility. If we pursue greatness, we pursue it on the path of service, we pursue it on the path of slavery. And that takes us, then, to verses 26 to 28.
Last week we looked at 20 to 25, how not to be great. Let's look at how to be great, verse 26 to 28. And I confess to you that I hold this in my own heart to be one of the most beautiful passages in the gospels. It is a simple passage. It is exceedingly clear. It needs very little interpretation, but may demand for our time and our age and our heart attitude, a great amount of emphasis and exhortation.
There are two things to notice in these three verses. The exhortation and the example...or, if you will, the precept and the pattern. The exhortation comes in verses 26 and 27 and the example is given in verse 28. Let's look at the exhortation in verse 26. "But it shall not be so among you." Stop right there.
In the world, people get their greatness by political power play, audacious ambition, dominant dictatorship, charismatic control. Not so with you. Jesus says to the disciples, you're in a Kingdom where that's all reversed. You remember John 18:36 where Jesus says, "My Kingdom is not of this world?" What did He mean by that? He meant My Kingdom doesn't operate on the principles that the kingdoms in this world operate on. It's the opposite. It is the very opposite.
In fact, it is a total reverse. In the world it's pyramidic. You get on top of the pile and you control everybody underneath you. In the Kingdom, the pyramid is inverted and you're on the bottom. And that classic Lutheran commentator, Lenski, says, "The great men are not sitting on top of lesser men, they are bearing lesser men on their backs." He's right. Jesus says it's not so among you...not so.
So, to begin with then, we do not seek greatness in the Kingdom as the world seeks its greatness. Sad to say many do. There are many like James and John and their mother. There are many who...who pursue the limelight of Christianity, who want to be on a part of the contemporary Christian personality cult, who want to be a part of the Christian super-star list, who want to seek the prominent place, the place of prestige and honor, the place of personality affirmation, the place of respect, a place of power and control where they can generate those kinds of creature comforts that minister most of their physical bodies and their psychological needs and so forth. And they may be esteemed by some to be great, but not so in God's Kingdom. And when the true evaluation is made in the end, they'll be far down the line from those who are the truly great whose lives were marked by humble selfless slavish service.
Now as you approach verse 26, you see that the standard is different. And then you hear this statement, "Whosoever will be great among you," and you can stop again with that phrase because that's a very important thing to comment on. It literally it says "whoever wishes among you to become great." And some have said at this point, "Well, isn't Jesus sort of accommodating a very ungodly ambition? I mean, for Jesus to say if you really want to be great, do this. Isn't that to acquiesce to someone's ambition? I mean, is it really right to want to be great? Is it right to seek a reward? Is it right to want to be a leader? Is it right to be rewarded and seek that? Is it right to seek exaltation?"
I remember speaking one time on the subject of Christian rewards and the crowns on a college campus. And a student came to me afterwards and said, "I just really can't take what you said. You remind me of the guy in the Imperial margarine commercial who kept getting crowns and stashing them up in the cupboard. I mean, is that what you live in the Christian life for, just to amass some kind of crowns?" And he really did not understand whether or not it was proper or right, or he concluded it wasn't to seek to be great, to seek to be rewarded, to seek to receive from God something special in the time of judgment.
I tried to take him to the Word of God again and explain it to him, and I guess the best defense of it is the fact that Jesus here advocates it. Jesus never promotes a sinful ambition. And Jesus dealt with the sinful ambition of James and John but He reaffirmed that it wasn't wrong to seek to be great. It was only wrong to seek it for the wrong reason, that's all. I mean, even John said, "Look to yourselves that you lose not the things that you've wrought, but that you receive a full reward." And Paul said, "Run that you may win." And he also reiterated that we ought to be concerned that our works when they stand the test of fire at the judgment seat of Christ are not wood, hay and stubble, but gold, silver and precious stone. And that we so live according to 2 Corinthians that when we come to that day and face the Lord Jesus Christ, we may receive reward for the things done in the body, whether they be good or worthless. And John reminds us at the climax of the whole Bible that the Lord said, "Behold, I come quickly and My reward is in My hand to give you according to your work."
And so, it's not wrong to seek glory in eternity. It's not wrong to seek exaltation. The Lord has given us that as a goal. It's not wrong to seek that, it's only wrong to seek it for the wrong reason. It's only when you're motive isn't right, when like James and John, you seek it so you can lord it over the others, or you seek it so you can be more esteemed than others in this life, or you seek it so that you can have for yourself greater authority, greater power, greater comfort. It's not wrong to seek it, it's wrong to seek it for wrong and selfish reasons.
And let me add a note to that. If you seek it, if you seek greatness on God's terms, you will seek it on the track that He has ordained. And it's the track of suffering. And that sort of helps us to deal a little more honestly with the issue, for the path to glory is the path of suffering, it's the path of sacrifice, it's the path of slavery, it's the path of sacrificial selfless service. And so, if you seek the glory on that path, it is in itself a self-effacing seeking. You understand that?
Oh, there are those who seek the glory but would avoid the pain. There are those who seek the glory through the pain and they are the ones who seek it on God's terms. That's why the Apostle Paul says, you know, "I have done many things in my life, in effect, but all I want to be said of me when you take account," 1 Corinthians 4, "is that I was a faithful under-rower, that I was a third-level galley slave who pulled his oar, that's all. Because," he said, "that's a little thing with me whether men judged me. It's a small thing with me to be judged by men, it's even a small thing to be judged by myself because I tend to be bias in my own favor, I'm not objective so I don't listen to my own evaluation and I really don't care about people's evaluation. What I'm looking for is the day when the Lord brings to light the hidden things of the heart and makes manifest the secret things and then will every man have his praise from God."
In other words, only God can read motive. Only God can read the reason why we did what we did. But we can read a little bit from the outside because if a man seeks to give his life for Christ, if he seeks to spend himself, if he seeks to be the best teacher, or the best Christian, the best disciple he can be, if he seeks that in order that he may receive a reward, but willingly seeks it through the path of self-sacrifice, humility and suffering, then it marks a man with a pure motive, doesn't it? It marks a woman with a pure motive. So it isn't wrong to seek it.
In fact, in 1 Timothy 3, the Apostle Paul said if a man desires the office of an overseer, he desires a good thing. That's a good desire. I'm in the ministry today basically because I desired it. And someone said to me when I first came to Grace Church: how did you know you were called? And they've asked me that thousands of times since, but how did you know you were called to the ministry? And at that very point, I said, "I know because it's my desire. I want to do that." And I believe God has planted the desire there. And I believe the only way you know you're called into ministry is in the New Testament age is that you have the desire and it's affirmed by the church. First Timothy 3, "You desire it, it's a good thing." The church then looks at your life and evaluates whether you have the principles that would qualify you to serve in that in capacity. And so, the church comes together with the desire of the heart and says this is a man fitted for service. And you desire a good thing.
So, there's nothing wrong with desiring that. I desire for my life that I might give all that I have to serve Christ. I desire that through eternity I might be able to give Him the most glory that's possible. I want to fulfill my spiritual gifts. I want to maximize the potential I have for God. I want to so live my life that I can be an honor to God throughout all eternity. I don't want to lose any of that capacity by the forfeiture of sin in my life. Now you can judge in your own mind whether that's an ambition that I may gain some esteem for myself, or whether it's a desire to please the Lord I love who died for me. It's God ultimately who can measure the heart. But you can evaluate a little bit if you look at the sacrifice of life. If you don't see the sacrifice there, then it may not be as pure a motive as it ought to be.
But those are the conditions upon which the desire is legitimate. And I think that's what our Lord is saying in contrast to James and John whose desire was very selfish.
Now look at the end of verse 26. Because at the end of verse 26, He says, "If you want to be great, let him be your servant." That's the path. You know, people, you don't want to get tied down to this world. It passes awfully fast. And you don't want to waste all your time trying to pad your own case with creature comforts and psychological affirmation and making sure you're at ease and at peace and so forth and nobody's ruffling your feathers and you're not dealing with too much pressure, too much anxiety and so forth. You don't want to get caught in this culture's mad dash for leisure and so forth. Some people are wearing themselves out trying to relax, little question about that. You don't want to panic into that kind of a situation. What you want to do is spend yourself for the purpose of the Kingdom. You want to abandon yourself for the purpose that is eternal. And you want to give yourself away to that end.
And that's what I think He's saying here. You need to be a servant. We get letters all the time, I mean all the time, weekly, from people across the country, wonderful folks, godly folks, who would like to come and serve on our church staff. They would like to be a part here. They'd like to minister here. And they, no doubt, would be a tremendous blessing from God. They would be a great help to us. They would enrich us. And we would really cherish that opportunity. But we have established the simple principle in the Scripture and that is that you cannot lead until you have proven you can serve. You cannot be given the rulership role, you cannot be given the responsibility at the broad level until you have shown the humble...the humble heart of a servant. And so, we always respond to people by saying we appreciate the fact that you would consider us and desire to serve here, and we would like to suggest to you that we are not committed to just hiring people and bringing them here, but if you would wish to come on your own and serve among us, should God approve of the service you render, He might by His own will be pleased to lift you up to a place of responsible leadership.
Well, the truth is that's foreign to most people's understanding. But nonetheless, I believe that's the thing that is consistent with the Word of God. And many of these people have been so approved in the place where they minister, but it's hard for them to perhaps see the need to do that in another place.
Now the word for servant here is very interesting. The word is diakonos. We get the word "deacon" from that. And I suppose we all think "deacon" is a religious word. And in fact in our society it is. It has no other use in our society. But in the time of the New Testament, the word was a secular word. It had no religious use. It's not a word taken from pagan religion or something. It is a word that had to do with low menial service. You would hire a deacon to clean up your yard, take away your trash, serve a meal, collect the garbage, do some kind of menial job. It's just a...it's not a dishonoring term, it's just a low term in terms of social strata. It talks of the guy who simply serves, who simply does a menial job. It doesn't take a lot of education or training or skill, an unskilled kind of thing where a person willingly comes to serve. That's the word.
And the word was taken out of paganism, it was sanctified and it was made the most dominant word in the New Testament to speak of the service of Christians. It is the most dominant word. And it is not as though there were no other ones to choose from. There were a myriad of terms they could have chosen. They could have used the term "priest" which is somewhat an exalted term. They could have used the term archonwhich has to do with a ruler or a leader, one in a responsible place. There were terms, timea place of honor, an office of honor. There were words that had to do with a place of authority, but the chosen word by the Spirit of God was this word "deacon," menial service. And it's used with its cognate verb more than 50 times in reference to the service of Christians...lowly service. God is looking for those who come to serve. That's the right spirit.
I want you to look with me for a moment to a passage I moment ago alluded to. First Corinthians chapter 4, because I think it enriches our understanding of this. The Apostle Paul in this chapter has marked out his own attitude as a servant. He has spoken of himself in a humble way. In verse 1 he has called himself a servant only this time he uses the word hupereteswhich is a word referring to a slave who rode in a big ship underneath in the hull, a galley slave who did nothing but was chained to some kind of post and he pulled an oar in the darkness of the hull of a ship. And Paul says, "May it be said of me that I am a third-level galley slave, under-rower for Christ."
He really had the right perspective. He was so self-effacing, so humble. He was helped in his humility by the Lord leaving him with a thorn in the flesh and he was helped in his humility by God bringing all the pain and anxiety and suffering into his life. He was helped even in his humility by the failures that occurred in his life when he had tried to disciple people who bombed out on him like Demas and John Mark early in his life. I mean, he had enough failure to be sensible and realistic and enough success to know God was at work. But it was in that humility that he rightly evaluated himself and in chapter 3 and verse 8, or rather verse 5, he says, "Who is Paul? Who is he? Who is Apollos? They're nobodies, they're just servants, that's all." And Apollos was the greatest living Old Testament scholar and Paul was the greatest living new covenant scholar. And yet he says they're nobodies, just third level galley slaves for the sake of Christ.
In contrast to that, he indicts the haughty proud boastful honor-seeking Corinthians in verse 8 as if to say who do you think you are? This is dripping with sarcasm. Now you are full. Now you are rich. You have reigned as kings without us. Aren't you something? Then he says pensively, "I would to God you did reign. I wish it were true that you were what you think you are." And then he goes on with the sarcasm. "I think that God hath set forth us the Apostles last as it were appointed to death for we're made a spectacle unto the world and angels and men, we're fools for Christ's sake, but you are wise in Christ. We're weak but you are strong, you are honorable and we're despised even unto this present hour we both hunger and thirst and are naked and buffeted and have no certain dwelling place and labor working with our own hands; being reviled we bless, being persecuted we endure it, being defamed we entreat, we are made as the filth of the world and the off scouring of all things to this day."
In other words, he says you just don't know where true greatness is. You're puffed up and proud and think you're honorable and think you're wise and think you're strong and you're not. You think you're kings, you think you reign and you don't. We who are apostles who are buffeted and abused and mistreated and do it for the sake of the Kingdom, we are the ones who are truly exalted. Paul understood that.
Oswald Saunders writing in his wonderful book Spiritual Leadershipquotes William Law as saying, "Let every day be a day of humility. Condescend to all the weaknesses and infirmities of your fellow creatures. Cover their frailties, love their excellencies, encourage their virtues, relieve their wants, rejoice in their prosperities, compassion at their distress, receive their friendship, overlook their unkindness, forgive their malice, be a servant of servants and condescend to do the lowliest offices of the lowest of mankind."
And he also quotes Samuel Brengle(?) who wrote in his diary, "If I appear great in their eyes, the Lord is most graciously helping me to see how absolutely nothing I am without Him and helping me to keep little in my own eyes. He does use me but I'm so concerned that He uses me and that it is not me by which the work is done. The axe cannot boast of the trees that it cuts down. It could do nothing but for the woodsman. He made it. He sharpened it and he used it. The moment he throws it aside it becomes only old iron. O that I may never lose sight of this."
And so, the heart of the servant is the heart that truly pursues greatness. The next verse, verse 27, basically reiterates the same thing only makes the contrast even more stark. "And whosoever," this for emphasis, "will be chief," and here the word is protos, it means first, "whoever will be first, let him be your doulos," and now He uses a word of even lesser nobility than diakonos, this word means bondslave. "Whoever would be first, let him be your slave." Boy, when you said that word in the context of the New Testament, they understood something, didn't they? We hear the word "slave," we don't understand much because we don't have slaves. But they did. They knew what it was to see slaves whipped and beaten. They knew what it was to serve in the terrible kind of conditions that many of them served in. They knew that. And yet, for them it became a graphic demonstration of how committed they should be to serving one another to find the true place of greatness.
It's a tremendous illustration in their world. You are to be a slave. And I think Paul looked at his life in that way. He knew that his life was not his own, that his master was in charge. He said, "If I live, I live. If I die, I die. Both unto the Lord. So whether I live or die, I'm the Lord's." He was a slave bound to Christ. Over and over again he said that. He calls himself a slave of Jesus Christ. He even said to the Corinthians, "Death works in me that life might work in you." He said, "I go through all of the things I go through for your sakes." Slavishly did he fulfill his responsibility before God for the sake of others. And you can know that in the back of his heart, he knew that some day there would be a reward, some day he would enter into his glory and some day he would receive that great weight of glory which was so much beyond that light affliction that he told the Corinthians about. Sure he did it seeking to be exalted. Sure he did it for those reasons, but he did it that the Lord might be glorified in his exaltation and that was demonstrated by his willingness to go through the path of pain to get there.
And I see a lot of people who want the path to glory but they don't want the pain. And they build Christian institutions around them and organizations around them. And they build their little world around them to insulate and to pad them and to promote them and to exalt them. And you see very little of the pain and very little of the suffering. And I look at my own life, too, and I wonder sometimes if my own motives can remain pure. All of us need to ask that question. And Paul becomes for us a wonderful illustration of one who sought the glory but he was also willing to bear the pain.
Oswald Saunders writes, "Scars are the authentic marks of faithful discipleship." It was said of one leader, "He belonged to that class of early martyrs whose passionate soul made an early holocaust of the physical man."
One of the most beautiful of all the writings of Amy Carmichael is this poem, listen to it: Hast thou no scar, no hidden scar on foot or side or hand? I hear thee song is mighty in the land. I hear them hail thy bright ascendant star. Hast thou no scar? Hast thou no wound? Yet I was wounded by the archers spent, leaned me against the tree to die and rent by ravening beasts that encompassed me, I swooned. Hast thou no wound? No wound? No scar? Yes, says the master, shall the servant be and pierced are the feet that follow Me, but thine are whole, can he have followed far who has no wound? No scar?"
Well, the cost of greatness is humble service, selfless service. Do you wish you could get this across to young Christians, especially young men who go out in the ministry that they would not fear the hard place but seek it? Not seek the comfortable place, but the uncomfortable one? That they may receive that greater weight of glory? Time is so short and eternity is so long. And the cost of greatness may be persecution, it may be death. In some cultures more so than in ours. But even in ours there is a price to pay, the cost of humble suffering service. The true path to glory I think is marked by loneliness. And that's a suffering of sorts. There is a certain loneliness, there is a certain being apart from the social scene. There is a price of quietness to pay.
Tozer once said, "Loneliness is the price of saintliness." You just are so consumed by that which God has called you to that you lose some sight of the whirling of the world around you, even the good things sometimes cannot be fully enjoyed because deep in the heart is this...this mandate of God that you should accomplish His goals for eternity. There is loneliness involved in that. And most people don't understand the burden that's borne in the pursuit of glory along the path of suffering.
I think, too, there is weariness there. Fatigue is the price of pushing past mediocrity. I never met a man who was abandoned to the cause of God who wasn't tired and weary..or a woman. And criticism is another part of the pain. You can expect to be misunderstood and misrepresented, misjudged, wrongly evaluated, accused. And to handle that without self-defense, without self-justification means that you bear the burden between you and the Lord and perhaps someone close and dear to you. There are those pains in the path to glory, but they are but momentary light affliction for the weight of glory that is forever.
And so, he who seeks to be first...and that's not wrong. I don't know about you but I would want to be all that God would want me to be. I would want to be known as one who served Him with my whole heart. That's not wrong. And for the right reasons to seek that, you must then be a slave, you must give your life away.
Out in the world, the people who are great are the ones who can manipulate the most folks, who can ambitiously sell...seek self-glory, who can dominate others, who can charm others into doing things they need done for them. But that's not how it is in God's Kingdom. I think William Barclay put it rather succinctly when he says, "The world may assess a man's greatness by the number of people whom he controls, and who are at his beckon call, or by his intellectual standing and his academic eminence, or by the number of committees of which he is a member, or by the size of his bank balance and the material possessions which he has amassed. But in the assessment of Jesus Christ, these things are irrelevant," end quote. And what is relevant is his humility.
Ask yourself the question: what sacrifice do you make to serve Christ? What sacrifice? What pain? Or do you demand mostly to be served? And if it's uncomfortable, you're not willing to do it. Those are very important questions that we need to face every day. So, the exhortation is very clear. Let's look at the example.
And if you can resist the exhortation, and you really love the Lord Jesus Christ, I question whether you can resist the example because it comes with such clear impact. "Even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve," stop right there.
Here's our example. You say you love Christ. You say you abide in Him. First John says if you say you abide in Him, you ought to walk as He walked. And His life was utterly abandoned, as an act of humble selfless service on behalf of others. For He thought it not robbery, something to be grasped to be equal with God but made Himself of no reputation, took upon Him the form of a servant, was found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, was obedient unto death even the death of the cross. The Lord Jesus Christ went through the greatest humiliation ever. God became man. The sovereign of the universe, the sovereign of all eternity came to be a victim of sin. The greatest humiliation of all. And that's why in the Kingdom He's the greatest. He is the greatest, the most exalted because He was the most humbled. And He is the example.
Even as...those two words mark Him as the example. He is called the Son of Man. That's the Messianic term drawn from Daniel 7:13 used more than 80 times in the gospels by Christ to refer to Himself. It speaks of Him as the incarnate one, the Messiah, God in human flesh. And He came not to be served. He didn't come like other kings come. And that's what kind of confused Pilate who said, "Are you a king?" And in effect what he's saying is, "You don't look like a king and You sure don't act like one. I mean, You've been abused and maligned and mistreated and You don't do anything. You don't retaliate. And it's obvious that You don't have any Kingdom, it's obvious You don't have any possessions, You don't have anything." And all He did have was a robe on His back. "I mean, are You a king?"
By all standards there was no way that He could be a king. And that's when Jesus replied and said, "Well, you don't understand because My kind of Kingdom isn't your kind of kingdom." Most kings demand to be served. This king came to serve.
In fact, in Luke 22:27, one of the most beautiful statements ever came out of His mouth, He said, "I am among you as one who serves." I am among you as one who serves. And you see it when He washes the feet of the disciples. They are so self-seeking that they will not wash each other's feet and so the Lord takes off His outer garment, puts a towel on His waist and then He washes their feet. Oh what humility. And He is the pattern. What an example.
Forfeiting our comforts to meet others needs, that's service. And it says His service extended in verse 28 to the giving of His life. The ultimate act of service--to die on behalf of someone else, the voluntary act of ultimate self denial. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man...what? Lay down his life for his friends. And you're My friends if you do whatever I command you, He said, John 15:13 and 14.
I was kind of encouraged the other day, in a way, by...what I read in the paper about the very heroic act of Joe Delaney, who was a very excellent running back for the Kansas City Chiefs, saw some little boys drowning and even though he knew he couldn't swim well, he dove into the water to try to save the little boys. And it's difficult to save one person because they tend to want to drown you along with them. And he had three on his hands. And the result was that he drowned, two of them ultimately drowned and one was saved. And it was wonderful to see a young man at the height of his career who had heard all the accolades of the crowd, who had lived in the euphoria and the fantasy world of professional athletics, then made almost into a God and yet he saw himself as one who served. And with all that he had to protect for himself, he gave his life, as it were, to save some little boys, or to try.
The world seems to understand so little of that kind of selflessness that they, I think, rather quickly passed off his heroics, lest it become too intimidating in a selfless self- consuming kind of society.
But Jesus sets the pattern for us. He gave His life on our behalf. The passage could end there. And all we would really need to hear at this point would be that Jesus is our pattern. He gave His life in service, we must do the same. If we want to be great, we do so by selfless abandonment. But the passage can't end there. And the reason it can't end there is because if it does there will be a misunderstanding. And the misunderstanding will be that Jesus died only as an example of selflessness, that Jesus died only as an example of one who was willing to humble Himself for others' sake, that He died only in an effort to try to demonstrate humility.
But there's more than that. And so, the Spirit of God adds a new teaching in the New Testament, never heretofore given to this point. And it is this, that He gave His life not just as an example but as...what?...as a ransom. And here we are introduced for the very first time in the New Testament to the redemption work of Christ, the substitutionary vicarious ransoming redeeming act on the cross. It is not only an example, yes, He gave Himself as an example. There's no question about that. An example of selfless sacrifice. Peter makes it very clear in 1 Peter 2 that Christ suffered for us leaving us an example. There's no question about that. But Peter also says it was more than example, "Who by His own self bore our sins in His own body." More than example, His death was ransom, redemption. Oh, what a great truth.
The word "ransom", you see it there? Lutron, only used twice in the New Testament. Here and Mark 10:45. Lutronis the price of the release of a slave. You have a slave, he wants his freedom, lutronwas whatever the price was to free him. We were slaves of sin, death, Satan, the flesh, the world, hell. Christ paid the lutronto release us. And now we know as Romans 8 says the glorious liberty of the sons of God. What a great thought. His death was not only an example, it was a ransom. He paid the price for our sin to release us. There was a price a slave could pay to be released. But a slave, for the most part, could never earn it because a slave was paid only the wage to sustain his life. How could he also amass enough money to buy his freedom, when all that he received was given just to sustain the bare necessities? And so, we could no longer...or could no more buy our freedom than a slave could. Someone else had to come and pay the price. Christ did it. He became the ransom.
And though the word lutron, that noun form, is only used twice in the New Testament, other related and varying forms of that root are all over the New Testament. And at least, I think I counted 83 times in the Old Testament. The idea of ransom and redemption is a very, very common idea in Scripture. First Corinthians 6, for example, says we are bought with a...what? With a price. We have been redeemed. That's what that means. We have redemption. It's in Galatians, Ephesians. It's in 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Romans, Corinthians.
Peter, I think, sums it up wonderfully. First Peter 1:18, he says, "You are not redeemed with corruptible things such as silver and gold," you weren't purchased out of your slavery by silver and gold, "but by the precious...what?...blood of Christ as of a lamb without spot, without blemish."
So, the passage then comes to a wonderful climax in the fact that the Lord Jesus is not only our example, but He's our redemption. He's our ransom who purchased us from sin.
Now I want you to notice in verse 28 the word "for" because it, too, is a very important theological term. It is the word ante, we get our word "anti" from it. It means as over against something, or an exchange for something, or in the place of something. And what He is saying here is He's a ransom in exchange for many. In other words, it was His death for our death, His life for our life, His sin bearing for our sin bearing. He was our ransom.
Then the word "many." People wonder, "What do you mean by many? You mean He only died for a few? You mean many means some that are outside that ransoming capability? Is this teaching a limited atonement?" No, it is not. Many is simply an expression referring to all, but it is used in a contrasting way as over against one who gave the sacrifice, many--by contrast--are ransomed. It's simply used to demonstrate contrast.
And that's not uncommon. Look for a moment at Romans chapter 5 and I'll show you something very important. Romans 5, it says in verse 12, "Wherefore as by one man, sin entered into the world and death by sin; so death passed on all men for all have sinned." Now it's saying then that when Adam sinned, death came on all men for all have sinned. So we know he's talking about all men.
Now you go down to verse 15. It says in the second sentence, "For if through the offense of one, many are dead." Well, we just heard how many? All. So "many" then when used in a contrasting context is substitute for the word "all." To demonstrate contrast, one...many. And in verse 19, "As by one man's disobedience, many were made sinners." Well, we know the "many" there means "all." So, again I submit to you that the "many" here is simply used in the contrasting terms here and has reference to everyone.
I believe Christ provided a ransom for all. And the Scripture points that out in many, many passages. He has been ransomed for all of us. We need but appropriate that.
Now, beloved, because of what He did, Philippians 2 which is the commentary on this passage says God has highly...what? Exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow and every tongue should confess Jesus as Lord to the glory of God. Now what happened was because He was so humbled and because He offered Himself in selfless service, God so highly exalted Him. It is proportionate. In proportion to His humility is His glory. And that is the principle you must learn. Greatness in the Kingdom, capacity for glory in the Kingdom is in direct proportion to humility and selfless service rendered.
Simple and yet profound truth. And if your spiritual life is on target, then you will seek that eternal weight of glory and you will desire it with all your heart which will cause you to serve Christ with a whole heart and to take the path even though it means pain or suffering that brings about that eternal weight of glory. Let's bow in prayer.
Lord, we study these grandiose truths, we study the wonder of what You are saying and we feel so far away from the standard. We feel so short. We could almost wish that we could suffer more when what You're asking is that we serve more and the suffering takes care of itself. And if we do not suffer and if there is little pain, then perhaps there is little service. So, Lord, help us to seek to be great for Your glory and to seek it through the path of humble service as our Lord did.
Yes, our Lord said glorify Me with the glory I had with Thee before the world began. Yes, He sought the glory. But willingly through the path of suffering. May we be so seeking that Your name would be glorified and that we through all eternity might receive that eternal weight of glory by which we can with full capacity praise you forever and ever and ever.
Our Father, we pray that You'll draw into the prayer room when we dismiss all who should come, that Your work might be accomplished in every heart. Bring us back together tonight with anticipation of what You have for us. And may we serve as our Savior served that we may know that eternal weight of glory that brings honor to Your name. We pray in Christ's name. Amen.


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Lawyering for Liberation
By Haymarket Books / May 26 2021
Law for Black Lives is a national community of radical lawyers and legal workers committed to transforming the law and building the power of organizing to defend, protect and advance Black Liberation across the globe.
Amna Akbar is a professor of law at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. She writes about policing and social movements, with a focus on grassroots demands for social change.
Derecka Purnell is is a human rights lawyer, writer, and organizer. Since graduating from Harvard Law School, she has worked to end police and prison violence nationwide by providing legal assistance, research, and trainings to community based organizations through an abolitionist framework. Derecka is currently a columnist at The Guardian and Deputy Director of Spirit of Justice Center. She is the author for the forthcoming book Becoming Abolitionists: Police, Protests, and the Pursuit of Freedom.
Marbre Stahly-Butts, Executive Director of Law for Black Lives works closely with organizers and communities across the country to advance and actualize radical policy. Marbre is currently a member of the Advisory Committee for National Bail Out Collective, the group behind Black Mama's Day Bail Out. She currently serves on the Leadership Team of the Movement For Black Lives Policy Table and helped develop the Vision for Black Lives Policy Platform. Since graduating from Yale Law School in 2013, Marbre has supported local and national organizations from across the country in their policy development and advocacy. She joined the Center for Popular Democracy as a Soros Justice Fellow in Fall 2013. Her Soros Justice work focused on organizing and working with families affected by aggressive policing and criminal justice policies in New York City in order to develop meaningful bottom up policy reforms. While in law school, Marbre focused on the intersection of criminal justice and civil rights and gained legal experience with the Bronx Defenders, the Equal Justice Initiative and the Prison Policy Initiative. Before law school Marbre received her Masters in African Studies from Oxford University and worked in Zimbabwe organizing communities impacted by violence and then in South Africa teaching at Nelson Mandela's alma mater. Marbre graduated from Columbia University, with a BA in African-American History and Human Rights.


MRI Magnets Market Boosting the growth | Leading Key Players: GE Healthcare, Siemens Healthcare, Philips Healthcare, Hitachi Medical Corporation, Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation, Shimadzu Corp..
Magnets used for MRI are of three types: permanent, resistive and superconductive. Permanent MRI magnets use permanently magnetised iron like a large bar magnet that has been twisted into a C-shape where the two poles are close together and parallel. In the space between the poles the magnetic field is uniform enough for imaging. Up to 30 tonnes of iron may be needed, restricting their placement to rooms with a strong-enough floor. Their low-field strength of about 0.15 – 0.4 T restrict their use to diagnostic imaging; being impractical for spectroscopy, chemical shift and susceptibility imaging such as functional brain imaging. Their magnetic field homogeneity is also sensitive to ambient temperature so room temperature must be controlled carefully.
The report evaluates the products available in the MRI Magnets market on the basis of the production volume, their pricing structure, and the revenue generated by them. Production chain and the dynamics of demand and supply has also been assessed in this report.
The research report also analyzes the market hierarchy carrying out a SWOT analysis of the key players operating on the global MRI Magnets market in order to provide an overall picture of the competitive landscape in the industry and assist the participants to come up with market winning strategies to gain an edge over their peers.
GE Healthcare, Siemens Healthcare, Philips Healthcare, Hitachi Medical Corporation, Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation, Shimadzu Corp, Carestream Health, Hologic, Barco and Nordion Inc.
An assessment of the market attractiveness with regard to the competition that new players and products are likely to present to older ones has been provided in the publication. The research report also mentions the innovations, new developments, marketing strategies, branding techniques, and products of the key participants present in the global MRI Magnets market.


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List of Joseph Gordon-Levitt Movies and TV Shows on Netflix
Find every Joseph Gordon-Levitt title available on Netflix. Our searchable database includes every movie or TV show featuring Joseph Gordon-Levitt available on any version of Netflix from around the world!


Once a certificate and key have been purchased and generated, you will need to upload the files to your server.
If FTP is enabled on the server I would recommend Filezilla or CyberDuck FTP Clients to upload your files.
Once the files are uploaded, SSH into the server and sudo mv the files into the /etc/ssl/ directory.
Now you will be able to setup the virtual host by configuring the Apache mod_ssl module. On a standard install, the file may be located at /etc/httpd/conf.d/ssl.conf.
Your website will now have a green padlock when using the HTTPS protocol. To redirect all non secure traffic automatically to HTTPS, edit your site's non-secure port 80 Virtual Host.
ServerName "Site's url (don't include protocol) ex: mysite.example.com"
DocumentRoot "Site files directory ex: /var/www/html/site"
Redirect permanent /secure "Site's url with new secure protocol https://mysite.example.com/"
Restart Apache and you're all set.
Re-Keying an SSL Certificate in GoDaddy.
If you see 1.6 or 1.7 in the response, go to /System/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/ directory and delete it.


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"It's so simple. If you have the space in your home and heart, you just do it."
"I said, 'I like you more than any other male except my Papa.'"
Supporting Children in Grief With StoryCorps DIY: Road to Resilience
"We're scarier than the person that's abusing them."
StoryCorps 497: Meet Them Where They Are
"...all night long our parents became other people."
"I always walk them through the lunch line..."
"I remember a private swim club..."
StoryCorps 526: A Parent's Job
"When I was growing up, I didn't think I was going to live long."
"I see a group of boys walking towards me, and I knew something was going to happen."
"It seemed like we got close — and then I was arrested."


Although Forza Street was announced by Turn 10 Studios today, the game is actually a rebranding of the existing title Miami Street, which was released by Microsoft nearly a year ago and has now been significantly updated to include a refreshed narrative, upgraded vehicle parts, faster boot-ups, new animations, languages and an audio polishing.
Microsoft previously released a free-to-play Forza game on Windows 10 called Forza Motorsport 6: Apex, but Forza Street won't be as demanding. You'll have to worry about when to accelerate, brake, and boost, but not much else. You can even squeeze in a quick one-minute race while waiting for your bus, or get immersed in an endless story with multiple ways of achieving victory.
Forza Street is already available for Windows 10 devices. Windows 10 PC owners can download the game from the Microsoft Store now, but it's unclear when, exactly, the title will arrive for iOS and Android.
I think they can make a stronger case on mobile. According to Turn 10 Studios, it will release new features for the game over time, as well as "actively" engaging with the game's community, though no additional details on that were provided. If you're feeling totally turned off, rest easy knowing that more mainline Forza entries await us.