Dear Joel,
If you present rational arguments for your position, then you will be a welcome addition to the conversation.
But this is already a very long thread, and I suspect you have not had time to acquaint yourself with many of the more relevant ideas that have come to light. It should be of particular interest for you to be aware of some very unique beliefs held by Michael Cadry, the thread originator (whom you have already exchanged pleasantries with.)
In his opening post (and periodically since) Mr. Cadry links to a small booklet he has published, and which is available online. Within that book, Mr. Cadry asserts:
| Hiccups are the way in which God gives His Spirit to people by putting it into them, sometimes forcefully. The diaphragm spasms as this is happening, but that is not just air going into your left ear. I have found this to be true by my own experience. You’ll find out soon enough, so you don’t have to believe me now. Also, this is not the same as having the Holy Spirit descend on you. |
| Now I must mention something written of in Revelation, chapter 12. I know most of you won’t believe this, but you’ll need to know it for later. The scripture speaks of a woman. The woman was my mother. She has passed away and gone to be with God recently. In Revelation 12:15, it says that the serpent (Satan) cast out a flood of water after the woman (symbolism, figure of speech), that she might be overcome by it. This was my mother’s battle with beer and alcohol. |
| The only ones for sure who are written to go to the lake of fire are Lucifer, the beast, the antichrist, the false prophet, and Satan, and possibly the 666 who are deceived by Uri Geller (the antichrist) and Jean-Pierre Girard, the false prophet. |
| … a woman from Hollywood named Betty Hutton. It said she was a movie actress from past days, and that she’d been married many times and made lots of money…. a voice again spoke from the air above me, exactly as I’d heard the first angel speak to me. “Babylon is fallen, is fallen,” he said. I didn’t really understand what it all meant initially, but I knew it had something to do with this woman. … God’s spirit helped me to understand what I’d heard and what it meant … It concerned … the Old Testament (Please see Hosea 2:16) about a woman who had many husbands and riches, but would lose them both. |
| I had an out-of-body experience and was in a hospital room. I saw ex-singer-songwriter Cat Stevens (a.k.a. Yusuf Islam) lying near death in a hospital bed with tuberculosis. Then I listened as God spoke to him from a corner near the ceiling of the room and told him that he would live and would sing new songs. I understood that Cat was made aware of the fact that God really existed and that the latter days were upon us. |
Michael is planning on being killed (late this year?), and his body will lie in the street for a few days:
| The Lord told me I am one of two witnesses and one of two olive branches who would come before the second coming and give pertinent information to others on earth. This is so everyone won’t have to experience to the letter, everything I’ve had to suffer through and learn. This way others can read about what I had to learn in 40 years instead. (See Rev. 11:3). |
| I do know what I’m talking about because it’s not my interpretation, but was given to me by the Lord directly and also through a number of angelic visits and certain visions. |
| I was told by an angel that a great earthquake in Phoenix, Arizona must first happen after the two witnesses ascension or resurrection. It will be the greatest earthquake since man has been on earth. Another earthquake, in Hollywood, California will follow the Phoenix earthquake |
| Jesus’ heavenly body will be Venus |
| Satan is but a man who fell from God’s graces during a race of men and women before our own Adam and Eve. Lucifer (now an evil spirit who was once an angel of God) misled Satan (while he was previously a man on earth before our own Adam and Eve) against God. He just uses talking telepathically to sway you from God. |
When Michael started this thread 2 years ago, he fiercely defended his belief that God had populated the earth with people and then wiped them out again and again, before Biblical Adam was formed (you still see a remnant of that belief in the excerpt from his book above about the origin of Satan). About 1 year ago in this thread he vacillated between old-earth and young earth beliefs, before finally jettisoning (most) of his old-earth ideas (this required a revision to his on-line book to eradicate the mention of old-earth ideas there as well). Interestingly, prior to jettisoning his old-earth beliefs, on a number of occasions he defended his old earth beliefs with statements like:
Note in the above explanations that Michael authored his rationale for his old-earth beliefs comes from what he says was divinely endowed knowledge. You judge how sincere he was when shortly after he turns against his self-avowed divine instructions and jumps over into the YEC camp. You think Michael is the sort of reliable teammate you can rely on?
A final note. According to Mr. Cadry, your tenure at TOL will probably be rather brief. This is because he has asserted numerous times that he feels certain that the rapture will occur late this year.
