To the White House,

I have had recent experience with our health care system.  My wife had to have surgery this month.  Her bladder had fallen and needed to be lifted and attached and also a web put in to hold it.  The surgery was serious enough for a hospital stay.  Our total out of pocket expense including deductible was less than 2,000 dollars. 

The surgeon was excellent, the care of all the people who worked at the hospital was wonderful.  They were all very helpful, professional, and kind.  The hospital was state of the art and kept very well.  In short this surgery will have benefits to my wife for the rest of her life.  And all for about the price of a few pieces of furniture.  It really is a deal.  You cannot even buy a used car for 2,000 dollars. 

We had zero problems with the health care insurance company.  No delays of any kind.  No appeals needed.  In short the entire process went smooth and uneventful.

You don't need to be messing up our health care system.  From my personal experience the system is working really well.

Sincerely

Bryan Hansen

Who Wrote Hebrews?

You will often hear preachers mention that they think that Paul wrote Hebrews, but they very seldom take the time out of the message to explain why.  And I can understand why you would not want to interrupt the flow of the message or get on a side trail that distracts from the point at hand.  I also think that Paul wrote Hebrews and I think so for many reasons.

1)    It was written about 64 A.D. The book had to be written before 70 A.D. because it was written before the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D. Hebrews 10:11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:

Paul writes in the present tense about the priests making sacrifices. This shows that the temple was not yet destroyed.  So the timeframe of the book allows for Paul to be the writer.

2)    The early eastern church accepted Paul as the writer. It was not until the 4th century that the writer was in doubt.

3)    There is also internal evidence that Paul was the writer. Hebrews 13:23 Know ye that [our] brother Timothy is set at liberty; with whom, if he come shortly, I will see you.

Paul says our brother Timothy. The writer knew Timothy in a personal way.  That certainly fits with the writer being Paul.

4) The writer of Hebrews was in prison. Heb 10:34 For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.

That certainly fits Paul

5) The writer is writing from Rome.  Heb 13:24 Salute all them that have the rule over you, and all the saints. They of Italy salute you.

The writer was not only in prison but he was in Rome.  Paul was in prison in Rome.  This fits. 

6)  The salutation at the end is like Paul's. 

7)    Peter says that Paul wrote it.  This takes some logic so follow closely.  In the book of 1st Peter he is writing to Hebrew Christians and reminds them that Paul had also written to them about the same subject. 

2Pe 3:15 And account [that] the longsuffering of our Lord [is] salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

Peter says that Paul had already written to them.  And watch the first words of verse 16. 

2Pe 3:16 As also in all [his] epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as [they do] also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

The words "As also" connects what Paul wrote to them to Paul's other epistles.  This means that what Paul wrote before is also scripture.  You see this in the end of verse 16 where it says, as they do also the other scriptures.  The word "also" connects Paul's earlier writing as also being scripture. 

So far we have established that Paul wrote to these Hebrew Christians before.  And Peter established that what Paul wrote earlier to them was scripture.  None of the other letters of Paul were written to them.  This leaves you with only 2 possibilities.  Either we are missing a whole book of scripture, or Paul wrote Hebrews.  Since God promised to preserve His Word, then we must have it all because God cannot lie.  That only leaves one possibility and that is that Paul wrote Hebrews.

8)    There is a mathematical law that affects the occurrence of important words.  If you take certain words in Paul's Epistles alone then the law does not work.  If you include Hebrews to Paul's writings then the law is in harmony.  This most likely will be a foreign idea to you unless you have studied numbers and the Bible.  Important words will appear in squares, cubes, or multiples of 7 and 11.  A square is a number times itself.  A cube is a number times itself and then times itself again.  For example 3 cubed is 27.  Or the number will appear by a multiple of 7 or a multiple of 11.  It really is fascinating.  Here are some examples of how Paul's writings are only in harmony if you include Hebrews.

Word	Paul's Epistles	Hebrews	Total	Square,Cube,7 or 11
Angels	5	2	7	7
to announce	5	4	9	3 squared
unbelief	5	2	7	7
worthy	8	1	9	3 squared
sanctification	8	1	9	3 squared
blood	12	21	33	3 x 11
unbelief	5	2	7	7
to be ashamed	5	2	7	7
to hear	34	8	42	6 x 7
another	31	2	33	3 x 11
to deny	6	1	7	7
bread	10	1	11	11
the devil	8	1	9	3 squared
to beget	7	4	11	11
earth	14	11	25	5 squared
to write	62	1	63	7 x 9
to receive	13	1	14	2 x 7
to pay	8	3	11	11
to convict	8	1	9	3 squared
to come	72	5	77	7 x 11
last	6	1	7	7
to pray	20	1	21	3 x 7
to endure	10	1	11	11
to seek	20	1	21	3 x 7
God	548	68	616	7 x 88
to send away	5	2	7	7
to raise up	5	2	7	7
to set down	3	4	7	7
to purify	3	4	7	7
to invoke	6	1	7	7
inheritance	5	2	7	7
fellowship	13	1	14	2 x 7
sin	63	25	88	8 x 11
law	119	14	133	19 x 7
lawlessness	5	2	7	7

This is only a sampling to show the principal and how it gives evidence that Paul is the writer of Hebrews.  Add up all the above 8 reasons and it makes a strong case for Paul being the writer.

Some will still reject that Paul is the writer.  There are people who have a hard heart about it for some reason.     

Others will reject that Paul is the writer for the reason that the style of Greek is different.  I say so what.  It is not uncommon for a writer to use different styles for different reasons for different groups of people to accomplish different goals. 

Hebrews is written different than all of Paul’s other books because this one he wrote to his own people. The rest of his books were written to the Gentiles. It is Paul’s style when he is writing to his own people.

I believe that when you add up the circumstantial evidence, the Biblical evidence from Peter, and the mathematical evidence that Paul is the writer of Hebrews.

 

I was recently asked what I think about our current banking crisis.  Here is my brief answer.

The first thing I think about all this is that God is on the throne.  He is not surprised by the banking problems. 

It is not going to twart His plan in the least.  In actuality I believe that it is according to His plan.

Are we headed for a depression?  It very well could be.  A depression might be what it takes to get this country to realize that it needs God.  Again God knows what is best.  If He sends us into a depression it is right and if He keeps us out of a depression it would be right.  He is God and whatever He does is right.

Can they fix it by throwing money at it?  That really depends on God.  If God wants it fixed, then throwing money at it will work.  If God does not want it fixed, then no amount of money on earth will fix it.

Much of this problem was caused by greed.  God is not mocked, men will reap what they sow.  So even if the money thrown at it stablizes the situation, there will still be some reaping from it for years to come.  This is right and just.

As a child of God I know that whatever trouble that this brings to me was allowed by my heavenly father.  It will be filtered thru His hands.  And when He allows trouble He also provides the grace to get thru it.

 

If 99.9 Is Good Enough....

 

•  Two million documents will be lost by the IRS this year.

•  2.5 million books will be shipped in the next 12 months with the wrong covers.

•  Two planes landing at Chicago's O'Hare airport will be unsafe every day.

•  22,000 checks will be deducted from the wrong bank accounts in the next 60 minutes.

•  1,314 phone calls will be misdirected by telecommunication services every minute.

•  268,500 defective tires will be shipped this year.

•  14,208 defective personal computers will be shipped this year.

•  55 malfunctioning automatic teller machines will be installed in the next 12 months.

•  $761,900 will be spent in the next 12 months on tapes and compact disks that won't play.

•  107 incorrect medical procedures will be performed by the end of the day.

•  315 entries in Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language will be misspelled.

•  20,000 incorrect drug prescriptions will be written this year.

•  880,000 credit cards in circulation will turn out to have incorrect cardholder information on their magnetic strips.

•  103,260 income tax returns will be processed incorrectly during the year.

•  5.5 million cases of soft drinks produced in the next 12 months will be flat.

•  291 pacemaker operations will be performed incorrectly.

•  3,506 copies of tomorrow's Wall Street Journal will be missing one of the three sections.

•  A typical day would be 24 hours long (give or take 86.4 seconds).

 

99.9 Percent is not good enough on earth.

And 99.9 Percent is not good enough to get you to heaven.

 

You cannot work your way to heaven. 

 

The only way to heaven is by accepting Jesus.

 

Joh 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

 

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

 

She had 19 children, and raised them well with the following 16 rules:

1 No eating between meals.
2 All children in bed by 8:00pm
3 Take your medicine without complaining
4 Subdue self will in each child.
5 Work with God to save the soul of each child.
6 Teach child to pray as soon as he can speak.
7 Require all to be still during family worship.
8 Give children nothing they cry for.
9 Give them only what they ask for politely.
10 To prevent lying, punish no fault which is first confessed.
11 Do not allow a sinful act to go unpunished.
12 Command and reward good behavior.
13 Preserve property rights, even in the smallest matters.
14 Strictly observe all promises.
15 Require no daughter to work before she can read well.
16 Teach children to fear the rod.

 

Would it not be wonderful if godly mothers would set up a few rules by which their children could be raised?  If we had more mothers like Mrs. Wesley maybe we would have more sons like Charles and John Wesley.
 

There is a Difference Between Watching a Video at Home and Going to the Movies.

 

I used to go to the movies a lot before I got saved at the age of 34.  I went to the movie house afterwards a few times, but I no longer felt comfortable there.  Even though my choice in what I wanted to watch had drastically changed.  It did not feel right to be there.  So I quit going.  However, I do watch a FEW SELECT movies at the house from time to time and did not get the same uncomfortable feeling.  Now the point of this article is not to discuss what is ok or not ok for a Christian to watch.  I am going to stick to what is the difference between watching the same movie at the movie house vs. watching it at home.  There is a difference.  Some will call you a hypocrite if you will not go to the movie house but you will watch them on the TV.  I have heard this before and you probably have to.  I heard it for years and could not give them a very good answer.  My answer sounded kind of shallow.  So I decided to go to the movie house one more time and watch a “safe” movie.  I did not have much of a choice.  Almost all of it is garbage.  So my wife and I picked out something that did not sound too bad and went.  But this time I was going to pay close attention to what was different from watching this same movie at home. 

 

1 The People

 

I noticed the first difference before we even got in the theatre.  It felt more like a party atmosphere.  The parking lot was jammed full, people were cutting people off, horns were honking, and people were cussing at one another.  After I finally found a parking space and got out of the car I heard the most awful sounds.  Boom Boom Boom went the noise as cars drove past us as we walked.  And the people were yelling and hollering continually.  There were several groups of “adults” and groups of teens that were looking like they were going to have sex right there in the parking lot!  I thought to myself well here is the first difference.  I would not be subjected to this at home.  Now you can’t go out anywhere without getting some of this today.  Even if you go to Wal-Mart.  But not at this level!  Strike one for the movies and I had not even got into the theater yet.

 

2 The Music

 

We get our tickets and find our seats before the previews started.  I did not want to have to fight for a seat.  And strike two happens.  They are playing the most awful noise over the theater speaker system that I have ever heard in my life.  It was loud, with a hard beat.  This music had no melody or harmony at all.  They were not even singing.  Some of the stuff that the guy was saying in this “music” is not even fit to repeat!  I was sitting there thinking this movie that is about to start is rated for children and they are playing this hate filled garbage.  At this point I said well I got two strikes against the movie house verses my home and I can’t take any more of this so I was just about to leave when the music stopped and the previews started.  So we stayed thinking that the worst was over.  After all the rest of this we would watch at home right?  Wrong again!

 

3 The Previews

 

The first preview was ok.  The second one was filled with violence.  The third preview only started and it was horrible.  I remember seeing a message before the previews (I don’t remember the exact words) that it carried the idea that the previews had been rated and approved for all audiences.  Either they lied.  Or they have a perverted idea of what is ok for children to see!  Strike three for the movie house.  I do not have to be subjected to the previews at home.

 

4 The Movie

 

All we had to go on to make our choice was a commercial we saw on TV, and the movie poster we saw before we got our tickets.  Not much to go on.  The movie was going on ok for quite a while.  I was actually enjoying seeing the scenery on the big screen.  And then it happened, all the sudden the movie turned into what I would call a rated R.  How can they in good conscience approve this stuff for children?  The answer of course is that they don’t have one.  We were trapped in the middle of the row.  I was thinking stupid, stupid, stupid, why didn’t we seat where we could escape.  We closed our eyes and held our ears hoping that we could guess when it was over.  What I would have given for a remote control right then.  The main point here is that you decide to watch something at home and it turns out that it is not what it was represented to be, and then you have a remote.  You watch something at the movie house and you have to endure the bad part or leave.  If a movie has one bad scene you can fast forward at home.  But not at the movie theater.  When the movie industry sells their wares, they are not very honest about what you are buying.  You cannot trust their rating system.  Now remember I am sticking to the difference between watching something at home and at the movie theater and not what is ok to watch.  But in my opinion, very very little that Hollywood produces today is any good for consumption.

 

5 The Exit

 

The ordeal was finally over.  I was thinking how much worse it was than I remembered it being.  Was my memory that bad, had I changed that much since I was a babe in Christ, or had it gotten that much worse in the years since I had been there?  Or was it a combination of all three?  I was glad that it was over.  But wait, it was not over.  The awful music started again.  We were trying to get to the exit but it was clogged with people.  Then the “lady” in front of us started going into convulsions.  I was thinking about yelling for a medic when I realized that her convulsions were in step with the awful beat.  Somehow she was able to stay on her feet and get thru the exit.  Her convulsions stopped as soon as she got out of the range of the “music”.  Then I noticed the people who were getting out of the other movies, most of which were R rated, and they seemed to be different than when they went in.  They were even more wound up than they were 2 hours before.  If I would have remembered it like this, I would have never walked into that place.  I had committed a sin by going.  I now had to pray and ask God for His forgiveness, and I asked Him to keep from EVER doing it again.  Wanting an answer to the question what is the difference between watching something at home and watching the same thing at the movie house did not justify the wrong that I did by going.  What did I do wrong you ask?

By being in association with the party even though I did not party myself.  We are to be separate. 2 Cor 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.

 

By hearing that awful music. Eph. 5:19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

Our music is to be spiritual and not fleshly.  Our music is to have melody and not beat.

 

By getting a few glimpses of things before I could shut my eyes in the previews.   

Psalm 101:3 I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes:

And if you think about it a while you can find many more things that I did wrong by going. 

 

Even IF you can find a good movie to watch, you can not escape the other wickedness that you will be exposed to by going to the movie theater.  There is a difference between watching something at home and watching it at the movie theater.

 

I am the host of a podcast called The Word Podcast.  http://www.thewordpodcast.com

 

The purpose of the podcast to to bring people the Word of God in concise messages.  The messages range in length from 8 to 25 min. 

 

Podcasting is a way of providing audio content via the internet.  The best way to get the messages is to go to the web site and download our FREE Podcatcher Software.  It is already pre-configued for The Word Podcast.  The software will automatically download the messages as they become available.  You then can listen to them on your time table.

 

I believe that there is something that God Cannot Do!  He cannot lie.  He said that His words are pure and that he would preserve them.  Therefore we have them today and can count on them to tell us how to be saved so we can go to heaven, and we can count on them to tell us how to live.

 

My prayer is that the messages will challange you to draw closer to God.

 

Bryan