This is an interesting and very thorough study.

Freedom Baptist Ministries – Pastor John Weaver March 5, 2023

Has a Live Coal Touched Your Lips, Isaiah 6:1-11

The book of Romans is often cited as a road to building faith in God and how to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. So too, the book of John seems to have as a primary purpose telling of forgiveness for sin through Jesus Christ by faith in His death, burial, and resurrection from the grave. And many example verses and sections of Scripture show the truth about the hopelessness of the works of man’s own doing, the consequences of sin, and the pain of death and hell for men who reject Christ. But what did Christ say about these things, including trusting in Him alone to have faith to enter into life everlasting with the Holy Creator?

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.” Jesus Christ

Whether building initial faith or as a self-education tool for sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ, this post is presented to increase men’s faith in Jesus. Faith comes by hearing the word of God, which He has magnified above His own name (Psalm 138:2), so we’ll look at several verses in the word of God, primarily from the book of Luke.

It seems that Luke, though he was a believer, recorded Christ’s time on earth and the times of very early Church history from the approach of a dispassionate observer. Luke, inspired by the Holy Spirit of God, is the penman of the Book of Acts. He also penned down the Gospel According to Luke, from which the verses below are taken.

“For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” – Luke 19:10

This verse sounds very simple at first glance, and you may think it doesn’t apply to you. Jesus is seeking you, but what does it mean to be lost and then saved, and why is Jesus seeking you?

Salvation is from sin, and admitting you are a sinner is often a hurdle. So a lost sinner must understand why corruption from sin is harmful and, most importantly, how it has damaged your relationship with Holy God. And you must know that Jesus is the way to have your sin not only forgiven but removed altogether from the presence of Father God. Without shedding of blood there is no remission. Here is the requirement to enter heaven: having your sins purged by the blood sacrifice of a perfect and sinless living offering to God. There is only one such offering, the Christ of God, Jesus.

A man is lost because he’s wandering alone without God, and Jesus is seeking you to save you from hell, like a shepherd looking for His sheep that’s gone astray.

“4 And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.” – Luke 12:4

We were designed to fear death, given an innate desire for life by our Creator God. You can try to prolong your life with great effort, but eventually, your body will expire. Your fears won’t save you, and no amount of wealth, doctors, or good things you’ve done will stop the day from coming. Everyone must die. Death is the result of sin. It stalks every man; we are all sinners. If there was no sin, if you were not a sinner, then you could have no fear of death. But you are a sinner.

“2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. 3 Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. – Luke 12:2-3

Nothing is covered or hidden from God. There will be a judgment of all men. No sin will be allowed into heaven. All that’s been done in darkness; lying, stealing, cheating, slandering, every word and every evil thought and desire of the heart and lusts of the flesh will be judged.

God knows all your secrets, and everything you’ve attempted to keep hidden from view will be brought to light; there can be nothing private at God’s great judgment. Secrets are kept due to shame of oneself or malice toward another man, all of which God rejects. God is holy, perfect, and sinless; He won’t allow sin in heaven because it would defile His holiness. He won’t have unforgiven sinners in heaven with Him.

It’s excellent that Jesus calls us friends and He teaches us who to fear in the following verse from the Holy Bible. The Bible is God’s holy word; do you trust it to tell you the truth? It shows Christ’s loving kindness and desire for you to know and entrust Him with your soul in eternity.

“5 But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.” – Luke 12:5

You know that you have sinned against Holy God, and the judgment of God requires payment for your sin, which is death and hell. You must fear God, understanding that He alone has power and authority over whether you go to heaven or hell, and His decision is final. There is no higher power over you than the Almighty, who created you and gave you life.

You must know that you are a hell-bound sinner, fearing God Almighty. When you meet God, you will finally realize what holy is and how awful your sins have been.

God holds the number of your days in His hand; at the appointed time, you will die. He’s a just judge and will have an accurate accounting, but He’s a merciful God who also wants rest for your soul in heaven. Not only is Jesus your friend who loves you, but God loves you so very much that He knows your name and sent His Son Jesus to warn and to call you to Him. God is warning that there is no other way but Jesus Christ as payment for your sin. Nobody wants to die and go to hell, and with Jesus as your Saviour, you needn’t fear death.

Therefore, we understand, thus far, that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God; none can get to heaven on merit or ability. You will die and face the judgment of God for your sin, which is hell. We’ve hinted at it already, but what can a man do? It’s essential, this thing of avoiding the wrath of God in judgment. Deciding to trust Jesus and serve God is the most pressing decision you will ever make.

Let us now look at two important things that Jesus said.

“I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” – Luke 13:5

Jesus leaves no room whatsoever for discussion or argument over the matter. There’s no other way; if you do not repent, changing your mind about the sinful condition of your eternal soul and admitting that God is the Judge of the living and the damned, you will perish in eternity, which is eternal death in the damnation hell.

And this next verse, again spoken by Jesus Christ, says that He didn’t come to call the righteous.

“I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” – Luke 5:32

He didn’t come to call pretty good folks. He didn’t come to call those doing good things for their neighbors, or those following the law, or keeping some religious ceremonies or church rituals. He didn’t even come to call people who’ve kept the Ten Commandments or people being faithful church members.

No, He came not to the righteous man but is calling a sinner like you to repent toward God by putting your faith in the power of Jesus to save you.

So what can you do?

Jesus Christ is the sinless Son of God and lived in bodily form as a man, yet without sin. He, being innocent, accomplished for you what you could not do on your own. Being perfect, Jesus satisfied God’s judgment on the cross against sinners and was raised from the dead.

“Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day.” – Luke 9:22

You must believe, by faith, that Jesus Christ was slain; crucified on the cross, Jesus paid your sin debt to Holy God. This sacrifice occurred two thousand years ago and stands good with Holy God today as payment for your sin. And He was buried, but He was raised again on the third day. He proved that He has command over life and death when He rose from the dead. This shows you that He can give you eternal life.

“And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee.” – Luke 5:20

What does Jesus say; thy sins are forgiven thee! If you have faith and believe in the power of Jesus to save your soul, God will forgive you eternally, which means forever. He’ll make you a son of God, welcomed into His loving kindness.

And, here comes the best part. Jesus has the power of life and makes the offer of life everlasting to take you to heaven with God for all time. Do you believe it? Jesus can change your life now, and you can meet God and be friends with Him!

It’s all about life everlasting in heaven. If you will follow Jesus in the Kingdom of God and be His disciple above anything else, then pray to Him.

Nobody can tell you what to say to God. It’s between you and God through faith in Jesus Christ. But you have learned the essential things to pray about while reading this discussion; you know what Christ said in the verses above. Pray to God from your heart if you would.

In prayer, seeking to be saved from the offenses you’ve committed against Holy Father God, ask forgiveness from Him; tell Him you’re sorry for your sin. Tell Him you know in your soul that He has the power and authority to save you from hell. Explain that you believe Jesus paid your price for entrance into heaven. And explain to Holy God, in prayer, how you will serve Jesus in the Kingdom of God.

God is faithful and true; He always honors His word. When He makes a covenant, you can count on Him. He says you will receive eternal life in the glories of heaven with Him if you believe.

“I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.” – Luke 15:7

There shall be joy in heaven for you who call upon God through faith in Jesus, seeking in prayer everlasting forgiveness and life eternal. You, just one sinner seeking Holy God, bring all of heaven to tremendous jubilation for your trust in Jesus Christ. Salvation is of the Lord.

I’ve watched John Bryan do God’s work for several years now in WV, and he is in large measure responsible for shining light on the complete corruption of the WV state police.

He’s lost some significant cases, but solely because of the horrible rulings by the Fourth Circuit, a gaggle of sophomoric, pompous and unscholarly rubes second only to the second circuit.  They found against the defendant in the case of a young man carrying an AR-15 to hunt Coyotes, claiming directly against what they claimed in U.S. versus Black, and going on a diatribe against the rifle itself.  Just several months ago, even after Heller, McDonald and Caetano, went on another diatribe against the AR-15 and ruled in favor of Maryland’s AWB in Fianchi v. Fosh (and the SCOTUS had to send it back to the Fourth Circuit for reconsideration under Bruen, just as they are pressing the Second Circuit to make the right call for gun owners in NY).

Anyway, even though Bryan has lost some cases, in every case I can think of, his arguments were sound and the fault lies with stupid courts.  But he has won many cases, and managed to bring a lot of light to the corruption in WV on the local and state level, and at least a modicum of justice for his clients.

As I said, he is doing God’s work.

‘Long guns’ removed from legislation, setting up showdown with House

Of course, 18-year-olds have the right to carry a firearm, but we are most interested in the open carry of Long Guns for all Tennesseans.

Source:

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted Tuesday to drop the permitless gun-carry age to 18 from 21, aligning Tennessee with a pending court order.

The panel endorsed the legislation by Sen. John Stevens, R-Huntingdon, on a 7-2 vote after amending the measure to exclude “long guns.” Removal of rifles from the legislation puts it in conflict with the House version of the bill and could force a compromise.

Note that two of the senators voted to violate the rights of 18 to 20-year-olds even in the face of a recent civil rights lawsuit that states folks in this age range have a civil right to go armed in Tennessee.

Stevens, an attorney, argued that the right to bear arms is not granted by the government.

“It’s something we’re born with as Americans, and it’s to be preserved. It’s for self-defense. That’s not a right we’re given, it’s a right we have, we’re given it by God alone,” Stevens said. “We have to protect life, and that’s consistent. It’s our number one duty as legislators.”

The bill passed along party lines with Democratic Sen. London Lamar contending that 18-year-olds shouldn’t be given the right to carry weapons, especially without a state permit.

The other Democrat isn’t named?

“We are killing people in our community by expanding access to guns. Homicide rates in our state are increasing,” said Lamar, D-Memphis. “We are leading the nation at killing folks and we are passing irresponsible legislation that allows 18-year-olds to have access to guns when they can’t even drink ’til they’re 21.”

Blood in the *checks notes* community! Also, “we” are killing people.

Firearms Policy Coalition Inc. of California sued the state in April 2021 when the legislature passed the permitless carry law, arguing it was unconstitutional because it didn’t apply to the 18-to-20 age group. The law also allows active-duty military and those who’ve been discharged to carry, even if they’re under 21.

Any firearms bill that comes out of House and Senate committees usually means it gets a floor vote. The good news is that if the bill gets a floor vote, it’ll automatically pass. Here’s the “Inside Baseball;” in Tennessee; this indicates that the Republican supermajority, including the Governor, supports it. We pray the House does the right thing and demands that Long Guns be included in the final version. The length of a gun has no bearing on our civil rights!

Source:

Florida gun rights activists will have to settle for, at most, permitless carry this Legislative Session.

Thanks to @Georgiaboy61 in comments for mentioning Bryon Litz. A simple search found some useful calculators.

Berger Bullets has these Bryan Litz Ballistic Tools, including a  Twist Rate Stability Calculator and this Ballistics Calculator. Included is the Applied Ballistics online Ballistics Calculator, which has more fields providing greater data granularity. Applied Ballistics also offers a desktop Ballistics Analytics Program. We hope you find these tools useful but if readers know of other valuable tools for reloading or shooting, please weigh in.

This is just a terrible catalog of goofy, dangerous and unnecessary foibles in a very short amount of time committed by the best and brightest America has to offer.  The list is culled from many examples I have and is not even nearly comprehensive.

First up, cops in Colorado handcuffed a woman, put her in the back seat of a squad car, and then chatted with each other about the woman.  The problem is that they parked their car on railroad tracks.  Yes, seriously, railroad tracks.   The car was hit by a train shortly thereafter.  Here is video.

The most serious, necessary, and fundamentally requisite thing you’ll ever do as a worker in a manufacturing plant, power plant, construction zone, or working with lifting and rigging, scaffold building, or basically for anyone who can be held liable for injuries or cited by OSHA, is work safely.  Safety training is so important that it interrupts work activities, even critical ones.  You’re never late with safety training – ask me how I know.  You don’t climb stairs in a plant environment without holding both rails, or else if someone sees you, you might lose your job.  You never climb above a few feet off the ground without lanyards and harnesses.

It gets even more serious if it has to do with basic radiation safety, the annual retraining and testing taking a day to complete before you’re allowed in an RCZ.  If anyone ever sees you knowingly violating those protocols, security is called, you’re ushered off the premises, and management will collect your stuff and send it to you at home.  You’ve lost your job.

Those cops didn’t even think about safety.  Not the safety of the woman in the car, nor even their own safety.  Safety comes first, in everyone you do, in every activity in which you engage.  I’m left wondering if those cops would even have been able to pass basic safety training or recall what they learned while in the field.

Next up, here is a report from the great northeast.

It was mishandled, but it wasn’t.  It dropped, but it wasn’t dropped.  But it gets better and the excuses start.

“These weapons are not something like a handgun or something where you could just pick it up and the average person would know how to utilize it,” said Jeff Rinaldo, retired Buffalo Police captain.

No, of course not.  No one knows how to use a rifle.  But the best is coming up.

“It’s not the days of old when I was on patrol and we had officers out. You’ve got to have highly trained tactical officers now in these in these situations.”

This “highly trained tactical officer” who didn’t mishandle his rifle which wasn’t dropped, mishandled and dropped his rifle.  If you did that in the Marine Corps you would have spent some time in the “room of pain.”  At least that would have happened ten years ago.  As for now, it’s anyone’s guess.

Up next, they don’t know the law.  They never seem to know the law.  This video from one of my favorite lawyers (except for Stephen Stamboulieh) who explains the whole silly affair.

Next up in this parade of the obscene, Uvalde police are making excuses, the real one being that they are cowards.  “He has a battle rifle!”  Despite John 15:13, they just gave up and let someone else do the hard work, and even prevented fathers from going in to get the little ones.  What they’re doing now is figuring into the gun controllers’ calculus.

The cowards in the Uvalde Police Department that allowed a shooter to rampage inside a school for an hour before responding decided to peddle liberal gun control talking points to excuse their spinelessness.

Uvalde Police Department Sgt. Donald Page told investigators that they knew the weapon that the shooter had “was definitely an AR” and, therefore, “There was no way of going in. … We had no choice but to wait and try to get something that had better coverage where we could actually stand up to him.” One officer called it a “battle rifle.” The Texas Tribune, of course, ate this up, declaring that “The AR-15 was designed to efficiently kill humans.”

The Uvalde cops are weaponizing anti AR-15 sentiments to excuse their appalling incompetence and cowardice and people are eating it up. You're giving these people a pass because of their political utility to you. https://t.co/5POZBKj9WC

— Noam Blum (@neontaster) March 22, 2023

But remember boys and girls, they are the best, brightest and bravest America has to offer.

The reality is different as I’ve observed so many times before.  You’re never in more danger than when the police are around.  Get away from them as quickly as humanly possible.

And never, ever believe the myth that they’re there to protect you or your loved ones.

It’s like the Keystone cops, but with military hardware. Remember, with a simple signature of a police captain, they can go purchase machine guns and train them on you or your family … after busting down doors in wrong home raids.

Basically, this has unfortunately become the picture of cops in America.

GM 🌞

It’s Monday!!! pic.twitter.com/WEqcgDO844

— EducatëdHillbilly™ (@RobProvince) March 20, 2023

Amusing video.  I will remark that while I don’t have a strong opinion (or any opinion really) on Bear Creek Arsenal uppers, lowers or full rifles, he didn’t get great grouping with the heavier load.  One comment to the video indicates that one viewer got much better results with a 200 grain load.  But with such a lousy BC, I wonder why you would have the 450 Bushmaster and opt for a lighter load?

Anyway, if I was going to purchase a 450 Bushmaster rifle, I’d likely choose a Rock River Arms rifle in 450 Bushmaster.  They manufacture tight, close tolerance, well functioning rifles that usually group extremely close.  Of course, purchasing a RRA rifle will set you back more than buying a Bear Creek Arsenal rifle.  So the choice is up to you – if you make the choice at all.

If you have a rifle in 45-70, I would see this as overlap and maybe unnecessary.  But variety is the spice of life, and it’s always good to have more rifles.

Mark Smith makes a compelling case for his view.  He takes an incrementalist approach.  Listen to his whole argument.

Even after judge Reed O’Conner issued a preliminary injunction in the case of the Polymer80, the ATF is bowing their back up and demanding that their rule be enforced.  They literally don’t care what the court says.  They are in love with the courts when they side with the controllers, and ignore them when they don’t.

They are among the most lawless people on the planet. ATF doesn’t need laws – they make ’em.