The written text points to the Eternal Word - King Jesus!   Are you obsessed with the Bible? Are you obsessed with studying the text? Getting the facts right? Fearful of saying the wrong thing? Praying the wrong prayer?  -The living lord Jesus takes the pressure off, delight in getting to know Him, and relax.

If reading the Bible is your central focus, it'll become a chore, it does not give you life.

Consider this question: how can an object be the centre of our belief?

People worshiped Jesus long before the Bible was written - Miriam (Exodus 15:21), Moses (Exodus 3, 15:1-18, Hebrews 11:26). The Bible ultimately points to the greatest revelation of God - the Lord Jesus.

Medieval writers drew Jesus creating the universe (John 1:1-3, Colossians 1:15-17, Hebrews 1:1-3). He is drawn as the designer.  Cultures worldwide draw Jesus to look like them. We know He was born into a middle-Eastern tribe - but He is loved and worshiped by all cultures. From Ethiopia to Syria, China, Scandinavia…  The God of all people. (Psalm 22:27, Daniel 7:14)  What about the Qur’an? If the final revelation is a book - then tragically  A book will be the closest you can get to God. According to Islamic theology, the Islamic god is not in paradise. God, in Islam, does not speak with you face to face (Exodus 33:11), sit down with you for a meal (Genesis 18), speak with you directly in person (Numbers 12:8) or in visions (Hosea 12:10, Acts 2:17-21), fight for you to conquer evil once and for all (Revelation 19), give His life for you (John 3:16-17, Revelation 19) or live with you (Revelation 21-22). Allah is simply not with you. Notice the Bible references which teach us about the God who does meet us, speak to/with, eat with, fight for, give His life for us, so we can live with Him.   What about our planet? Jesus the Gardener cares for the details of our world (Job 38-39).  Some panic when they see our broken societies and broken planet, and yes, we are called to care for this planet, and yet Jesus will not let it go to dust; he planted this garden (Genesis 1-3, Psalm 19:1, Psalm 95:4-5, Psalm 104:24-25, John 1:3, Romans 1:20, Job 38:1-41) Be challenged by His words to Job  "Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation?" (Job 38:4) But we are not the ultimate solution; God's got us; God's got our planet; God's got our civilisations, tribes and nations. All is not lost.   Are you in? We are! We choose life and our ultimate destiny with the Living God who gives life, more magnificent than all we can dream or imagine. Jesus our Emperor. He's got this….

Knowing the one who made the animals  Texts, books, religious books.  Important to religion  Is the text or the person most important to Christians? The text points to Jesus. The revelation of God is Jesus.  For Muslims the Qur'an is the revelation ,a book and text,  Adam and Eve, Abraham don't need the Bible, but they did need Jesus.  Adam and Eve trusted in the living, walking word of God  -preaching about  -the book  -ultimately it is the eternal Jesus   John chapter 5: Gospels 'scribes' 'teachers of the law': Jesus "you search the scriptures, you love your Bible studies as if these words will give you eternal life, but these are talking about me, but you are not willing to come to me get life."  People get obsessed with texts. Texts are only useful if it leads you to the King.  The most Bible entered people killed Jesus. Stick to the text, killing God. The God of the bible is right infant of you and you can't see you.  Look up - its me.   Jesus tells us that Moses and King David wrote about Him.  Whole OT talks about Jesus  Translation of the Septuagint Bible N.T. quotes OT especially about Jesus, but isn't quite the same (e.g. book of hebrews) Septuagint - Jesus and apostles used, is it is reliable.  Medieval Authors - Erasmus, just read it. What has the Church received, rather than critical text. Adulterous woman handed down to us, even though it isn't in all early texts.  Textual criticism, is not historically criticism. helps us ask questions, but the skepticism that is not of God and influences an non-Christian way to approach our scriptures  Rules to - the hardest one to understand more reliable, or make it an allegory. Which makes it more confusing. But if the scriptures really happened, then it just informs us of history, it tells us what God is like, his throne room, the beings in the heavens working,  -today modern ways of reading into scriptures, tell us the opposite of Jesus who   Dangerous to love the Bible as the centre. So church for them is lectures on the Bible.  Church is not about sitting down and hearing information. It is aobu living in life, love and unity If Jesus is the centre then the Bible becomes a alive If you distance Jesus form the Bible, then it doesn't make sense. If you just see the OT as poetry, wisdom sayings, then you don't want to read it, like the epic of Gilgamesh but slightly compatible with Chrsitnaity. but full of Jesus then it comes alive.  The whole Bible tells us about Jesus..

Learning from Hippos.  What do hippos teach us about God? -how to rest, family, community. Looking out for each other. Protecting our young.   "Creation cries out the beauty of the Lord" In Job: ask the animals In the N.T.: look at the birds look at the horse - goes to battle look at the ostrich - silly, yet scare off a lion, outrun a lion What does God think as he created the creatures - joy, design, fun, laughter, expression, enjoyment Very cool how the Lord tells us to ask the animals to teach us.  Weeping turned to joy. There is a time to mourn, but it becomes joy, only with Jesus.  Learning from ostriches.  What do the animals teach us about God's character?   How can our mourning turn into joy?  Learning from the Dawn Chorus - the dawn praise.  Excited to see the sun rise. Light defeats the darkness.  Gives light and life to the whole creation.  robin red-breast - a powerful bird, a sign of love. the first to sing.   Learning from budgies. automatically sing. Happy, joyful. a new day has come. A new hope. A new opportunity.  Learning from parrots - their humour, their pranks. Just a laugh.   Learning from the Lord how to care for animals God knows when each sparrow falls. Nothing is meaningless. The tiniest bird is known, how much more he knows us. He hears young ravens - the ugly sound - God hears that. He delights in it. That bird crying (Psalm104) is crying to the Lord. Animals know the reality of the living God, how much more us. He knows how many hairs are on our head,   Laws of Moses - how to treat animals. -don't muzzle their ox.  -Don't put a babies goat in her milk, disrespecctive to use that mile that gave it life.   Jesus I the wilderness with the wild animals All creation makes sense around him. When he lives here, all the animals behave the way they were meant to.  wild animals came to Jesus in the wilderness. Not wild around Jesus. They are around us, because they know we are wild.  The angel of the Lord - Jesus closed the mouth of the lions.   God uses animals used to described himself how he looks after us hen covers his chicks.   learning from Ants hard workers. think about the future. work to gather. work in formation. United. single minded. Like a good church. Serve a monarch, a queen.  Medieveal beasteries sees ants as knights. moving forward towards the monarch.   Created by the one from who we originate from.  Shout out to the hippos - inspiration.

Let's reclaim the truth of historical Christianity interacting with paganism. Today's episode we consider Scandinavia, Russia, Finland, Latvia, Northern Germany, Netherlands... Let's consider some early crusaders: 1. Boniface - English Christian (Saxon) who preached Christ at Saxony (Northern Germany through to the Netherlands), his ancestral home. He was warned by the pagans, that if he laid hands on the 'sacred' oak tree, the gods would kill him. So he chopped it down, and he was just fine. Just like the Old Testament stories (1 Kings 18:20-46). God stands against murdering ideologies, including ancient ISIS type beliefs. God will hold terrorising leaders to account "those who live by the sword die by the sword" (Matthew 26:52). Ask, seek and knock, and God will 'show up' for you; in both the best of times and the worst (Hebrews 11:32-12:3, Acts 7:54-60); power and ability to face anything when you trust in the King of Kings.

2. Charlemagne - fought against the pagan Saxons who fought against Frankish Christians, at the same time Islam was invading Spain, enslaving and killing its citizens; Saxons to the north; Islam to the south. Charlemagne, an educated King, whose scribal principles we still use today.

Christian Scribal Tradition Christians documented and wrote what they saw and heard. The Old and New Testament bear testimony to this. Written witness is Biblical. Oral tradition, Holy Spirit empowered, is first-hand witness! If the God of the universe is behind your traditions, has spoken to you directly, it is worth taking note of them. If God isn't, then we can begin to doubt that tradition. Early Christians speak of priceless relics, wrote testimonial accounts, stopped pagan cruelty, rebuilt cities (such as Reiga, capital of Latvia), or built new cities; civilised cities built on the foundations of the Giver of abundant new life -King Jesus, (Psalm 18:2, Psalm 46, Isaiah 28:16, Romans 8).  Let's discuss real paganism Is it recycling? Love of nature? Uh, 'no'. If you really love nature, and wish to preserve the earth - go to Jesus.  Love and care of creation, animals, environment is Christian.

Pagan's burned people (Northern pagan gods), let animals suffer (cows in India), sacrifice animals and humans (paganism of Saxoni, Netherlands and Scandinavia). Slavic pagans sacrificed humans to their 'god' Radegast (such as the Scottish Bishop John Scotus, 1066). Paganism worldwide (from the Americas, through Asia into Europe) carries similar themes - rivalry, includes sacrifice of personal items, human beings and animals, to be appeased, oppressed by and feared.  True paganism destroys nature, it does not preserve it. Christianity stopped pagan death-practices in South America.  Christianity stopped Suttee burning deaths (burning widows alive) in India. Christianity stopped pagan death-rituals in Europe and America...  Christianity does not suppress, but frees us from the suppression our pagan religions impose on us, especially on the vulnerable, or outsider tribes.

Christ gives life (Romans 8:31-39)

Palio - "I have an advocate with the Father in heaven" -  Reconquista granted to be crusade  Bernard of Clairvaux   Elsid - Alfondo the Brave, united Spain. Emperor, almohads invaded and took Spain (West African). Elsie fought back. Kingdom of ... South Spain, reonconqured much land. reinvigorated.  He was like King Arthur. Richard Lion heart used to be appreciated like King Arthur,  Sultan rejected Richard Lionhearted...  Peasant soldiers surrounded by Muslim soldiers,  Fighting a hoard of fighters. Saludin saw the king rescuing his soldiers  Saladin, was brutal. romantic versions. Richard killed the prisoners, using his own people to slow down Richard's army, as bait and fodder.   Hear two side of the story -  Read the original sources. Crhonicles of the crusades. letters, witnesses, journals, artwork,  Chronicle of crusades mamorot (written in France, in 15th century) just before the reformation.   Antioch conquered... exhausted, outnumbered by Muslim army approaching. They are praying and fasting. Lance that had pierced Christ, they found it, and empowered. Went to win the battle.   Eye witness accounts... very different from what you hear today. Education tells us It was all evil, without thinking.  Why not hear (read) what people   Miracles of encroaugements - after Antioch, christians from history came to encourage them. The bible tells us God fight for His people. They believed the God of Bible   You don't want to be against him, but if you are for him he is so for you.

Crusader Kingdoms were true examples of 'sanctuary cities'-safe, fair, real freedoms, international, just, prosperous, multi-national-The Kingdom of Jerusalem cared for all, including Muslims who had left Islamic areas and moved into the Crusader Kingdoms. So much so Imams of the time declared such Muslims as traitors. Rulers of Jerusalem from the First Crusade. Crusader Baldwin was King of Odessa (South East Turkey, including Iraq, Syria and Turkey) - a Christian Kingdom.Turkey now ignores its Christian history. Today "to be Turkish means to be Muslim", yet Turkey was not originally Islamic. It was taken over by brutal invaders, and Christianity was forced out leading to the Ottoman Empire - not an exemplary kingdom despite modern myths. Where are the ancient libraries of North Africa?What about 'Islamic Architecture?’What about scientific research?Why is it important to discuss these examples?Because believing a non-existent history helps no one. Believing falsehood leads to deception, and misinformation, leading to false ideas. Following myth influences our ideas and beliefs into the modern era, and leads us away from truth and life.Most Crusaders were a liberating people. We believe in liberation today! Should we liberate people today from evil regimes?Today’s modern crusades do not bring liberation, freedoms and prosperity.Today’s crusaders - the Western worlds have not made Jesus Lord of their countries and lives. Without the Lord Jesus being given the crown, the region will remain distressed.Islamic history and texts teach a different story to many of our Muslim friends. As human beings we long for peace and justice, but the ideas and attitudes which drive us (religious and non) can lead to destruction and ongoing pain without the Prince of Peace.

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Ok - this is perhaps a perspective you have not heard in recent years?  Were the crusades evil?  

Lets reclaim the truth of history back  The crusades were launched, after all diplomacy failed.  How can we do things so the most people are cared for...?  What about religious warfare?  Today we have a lot of war - yet it doesn't seem to accomplish much.  Modern wars go on for years, no objectives, masses of civilians killed. Millions of refugees, unable to ever return  Why the Crusades? Did they go on for years and years? Or did they take the measures they needed to, to achieve what is good and right?  Who is Bernard of Clairvaux? 

A Preacher of the 2nd crusade. He was not a hate preacher, though he preached through the wars. To find out what really happened, read their views. Modern day opinions of them do not reflect reality. Read the eyewitness accounts, not today's post-enlightenment biases. The preachers, like Clairvaux, encouraged the people who tagged along with the crusaders to live godly lives, to not be racists, i.e. protecting Jews, en-route.  Did the Crusaders massacre everyone?  Why did the crusades happen? The First Crusaders responded to calls for help.  The people wanted freedom from oppressive imperialistic regimes. Did the crusaders lead colonial expeditions into the Middle East? Or did they became Middle Easterners, assimilated into the culture?   What about the Fatimid Islamic Caliphate?  How did they treat the Coptic Christians?  Consider the coptic flag, what does the blue represent? Read their tragic history and understand why some of the crusades had to take place.   

Similarly, Turkish Muslims had taken Christian Anatolia before the 1st Crusade.  Is it right to let a people be oppressed and overrun by a brutal regime? Do we oppose this kind of even today?  The early Church Fathers were North African and Asian.  Yet Islam had taken the land away from the people and Arabised them. Islamised lands, which today have never been given back. Did the crusaders steal the land and or did the Crusaders respect the people?  Islam did not spread by persuasion.  Their armies spread fast and brutally through Arabia, Africa, Europe, Persia, Central Asia, India, Pakistan through to China.  North Africans enslaved by Islam, were either given rewards or death/suppression. It was they who were brought into Europe to fight; not by choice. -Slave-warriors, under brutal Caliphs, invaded as far as Tours in France. -choosing not to fight did not end well for you. -slave warriors - fighting for their freedoms.  

 "This spread of these tyrannical armies took over lands that were nothing to do with Arab lands."  They conquered North African Berbers, Turks - Christian lands. The people were forced to submit.  Local Reconquista's (fighting to reclaim land taken) had risen up over the 400 years of Islamic invasions.  European Christians didn't initially go to war, but when unbelievable persecution, killings, pillaging and poverty continued, the Crusader Armies began (after 400 years!).  What about modern day wars?  

When invading armies take over, do you believe world leaders should respond to atrocities? Is it right to stop brutal leaders, who imprison, kill, mutiliate, suppress their own people?  Are Muslims native to Africa and Asia?  Not at all.  Islam colonised Africa and Asia, and never gave back the freedoms of the people of the land.  A new religion which invaded quickly, adopting ideas from the religions they were encountering.  Understanding our history correctly, helps us move forward, and understand where we are at today.  

For more details and to read primary sources see the well documented book by: Darius Morera, The Myth of the Andalusian Paradise.

Human political leaders vs. the King Power of the people versus power of the Emperor of the universe Monarchy versus parliament/senate vs. anarchy The true King versus counterfeit rulers  Ever wondered why human Kingdoms rise up, fail, struggle, constantly compete, keep changing, never last, struggle to solve our societal troubles, discriminate, endless wars, unjust wars, oppress, controlled by anarchists or controlled by murderous despots, manipulated by others? Ever wonder who you can believe? Struggle to know which story is based on truth? 

Ever wondered what on earth has happened to our world?   The book of 1 Samuel chapter 8 explains the background to modern governments and why are in the state we are currently are... -God as king was no longer society's desire. We chose human rulers over God, and we have never recovered from the consequences of this decision.  (1 Samuel 8:10-18) God and His mediators (prophets) warn us what human rulers look like: heavy taxes, more and more rules, more control, dependency on a man-made state, women taken, long hours of work, money taken, endless senseless wars, confusion, competition for leadership, direction ruled by the masses, authority hated, authority doubted. Why? 

A human being has a different kind of rule to the monarchy of Emperor Jesus.   Psalm 95:3 'The Lord is the Great God, the great King' The Lord Jesus is above all 'gods' and all politicians.  Think about it... Human kings only rule a little piece of land, the little things.  Jesus sees the whole universe and beyond. He gifts all his people who look to Him, with guidance through life's journey, with peace, understanding, insights, solutions and ability to go through anything thrown at us. Jesus knows when to give us mercy and when to war against evil, but of course - God knows and sees us all (Revelation 19 & 21). No earthly king can do this. King Jesus can.   Countries based on the rule of Jesus Jesus shows us how to run countries, the 'perfect hand guide' in the Bible is ignored by most modern rulers. Yet, on our own we are not doing very well. 

Most politicians today have taken power or have been given power by the people. Western civilisations make a contract with political leaders to receive services in return. Rulers in some parts of the world steal power. Others, and pockets in most societies, push for anarchy. The more we leave god out of our lives, the more messed up our nations will become.   Who is King Jesus, and why is it worth asking Him to be our ultimate leader? Revelation 18-19 we see the final judgement of the nations - the unjust acts dealt with, the innocent protected, Jesus and the armies of heaven fighting once and for all for the health, life and good of human-beings.

Psalm 145:8-9, 13-14 The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, Slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to all, And His tender mercies are over all His works.  Psalm 145:13-18 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Your dominion endures throughout all generations. The Lord upholds all who fall, and raises up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look expectantly to You, and You give them their food in due season. You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing. The Lord is righteous in all His ways, Gracious in all His works. The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.

Learning from our hippos: When we know who our Maker is, we can be drawn back together.   Our value, reality, identity, has a lot to do with WHO God is.  Believe in God because of Jesus. Knowing Jesus helps things fall into place  There are lots of 'gods' in society, including the Wests's god of 'self'.   Concept of personal knowledge.  Take Pilot who asked 'What is truth?' to the very person who says 'I am the truth'.  Why do people want truth in the form of information on a page, impersonal? You can't just have 'truth' - it is in relation to a person, community, the one from whom we come.  Truth is not ultimately found in a concept, but found in a person.   Is science the most objective work?  -maybe, but they still passionately love what they do, they are engaged with what they do. They believe it. They are involved with it. They experience it. It is not dead. You do what you love.  Knowledge has a personal character to it - knowledge is pursued with our emotions.  Has modernity deadened our value, healthy emotion, true unified diversity? People struggle to value truth, and it is compartmentalised.  Uni-versities in the past used to seek after 'one truth', the truth, the heart of reality.  They started with Jesus, and as a result saw the big picture. The whole truth (Jesus) came to our little part of the universe - all diverse subjects were studied based on the one truth.  Modern universities have diversities with 'many truths', meaning it now has nothing to hold its people together. Diversity is a strength only if there is a deeper truth that holds us all together.  Diversity is not a strength on its own. But it is when you are united by something more important, when there is something bigger that holds us together.   Church is place we can disagree What joins us together is our love for Jesus. Jesus draws us together, diverse, yet united.  Society pushes diversity, yet diversity goes nowhere if it is just care for self.  The Bible builds into its culture, freedom to disagree with each other.  Take the book of Revelation -the end of all history, after judgment day, when we live with Christ, we will still have all the languages, cultures, different ways of doing things, with the tree of life healing all the nations. All nations are joined together, worshiping in their own languages and cultures.   When we lift eyes to Jesus, we can love our many cultures, our foods, our dress, and be united and rejoice with each other.   Father Son and Holy Spirit Diversity of persons in the godhead - the son goes and makes, the seen face-off God. The father who plans. Jesus doesn't know when the end of the world is, but the father does.  The spirit goes out and fills everyone with life. Empowers us.  Imagine if society was build on this example! Real diversity in unity.   Francisancs had nothing, clueniacs had much and built magnificent cathedrals.

-How can we disagree, enjoy it, and stay friends?  What has led Western society to become so divided? Has society always been this broken? What has led to such abuse, neglect, disharmony? What is the source of our polarised, fragmented communities?  -Free speech is supressed -Feelings of offence can have you arrested -Racial abuse -disharmony -division between countries.   What is the word that describes the Middle Ages? JOY! Why? They are captivated with the Kingdom of Heaven,  The Lord Jesus, the scriptures.  Then able to have 'disputations'  -students had to upheld a defend an untenable position (11th-12th century)  -this is true university -Universities founded in the middle-ages today hold on to some form of 'disputation'.  -Students had to defend 'there is no god' absurdity in the Middle Ages.   How were they able to disagree yet love each other? -When identity is secure    by the Lord Jesus and His Kingdom -when the future is known -When they knew they were citizens of heaven -truth, security, value, joy was a fact,  The King has truth beauty and goodness in His hands  Sanctuary and safe spaces  Asking simple questions about life and choices.  Can have views 'this is how I see things' can deeply offend some people? -This could not have happened before due to ideological differences Existentialism - all you know is yourself, 'I think therefore I am'  (Decarte) - you just know yourself.  If all you know is yourself, your own experience, to then question it, hits at the deepest levels.  If everything you believe is your own experience, there is nothing else to give life, to make you laugh at an offence, to look up and see your value is in place, regardless of someones idea about you.  "Mummy doesn't like that" A mum tells off her child -  'mummy doesn't like that' - well, does that really matter? What does the Child need to know? That there is something more important than personal opinion -if you steal, or hurt someone, that is wrong.  Your opinion is not the measuring bar for your child's behaviour.  "Your truth" How can you have 'your truth'?  -This goes against what the word means "Your truth" does not help anyone live life in joy, in freedom. "Your truth" will hurt you if anyone dares say they disagree with it. How can it be a building block for society?   What kind of world have we built with personal 'truths'. Division in society is uncivilised - the roots are post-enlightenment, whose value is self, and not eternal value given by simply who are and ultimately can belong to.   When universities were run by Christians  -they were places of freedom and dialogue and exploration.   What if the scientific data that supports creation allowed to be published?  -does this get shut down too?  All our lives we hear things which offend, but thank people for making us think.  We need to think and rethink.  We have to hear ideas we disagree with.  To live under regimes we may disagree with.  Join groups, communities, debates, you don't agree with, so you can understand people, love them, know how they think. Learn to freely disagree and deeply love the one disagreeing. Like Jesus.  You can do this if Jesus is your anchor. Their choice, lifestyle, opinions don't affect you, because you are valuable together, both made the image of God.   Value, united, whole, together, healed.  When Jesus is our anchor and uniter.