The Preeminince of Christ

So as to remove all doubt as to who Jesus Christ is and His complete equality with the Father,

Paul in this next section 1:15-20 presents very specific evidence that Jesus is absolutely equal with God the Father. Despite this very clear teaching as to His essence and nature as God, Arius of Alexandria, in the early 4^th century taught that Jesus was the first of all created being and superior to all else created but not eternal, not of the divine essence and nature of the Father.

This heretical theory was refuted in 325 at the Council of Nicea. The Council did not elevate Jesus to divinity but reiterated the biblical orthodox view that had been held from the beginning of the scriptures and the church. The heresy was reintroduced by Socinus during the Reformation and into America by William Channing and others. It is a basic teaching of the Mormons, JW's and other cults and heresies today.

In the first century this passage, as well as the above verses, would have also shown that Caesar's claims to be Lord and divine were ridiculous. He could not be compared to Jesus. He was a fraud and so was the false limited Christ presented by the false teachers then and today.

Gerald Tilley

Do you choose to believe?

If you say Yes, please give me an example of something. If you say no, why not?

Food for thought. Rom 4:20 Heb 11:11,13 Acts 27:25

Mitt Romney as president?

Since the Mormon Church believes it has a living prophet "who is not limited by men's reasoning" and can receive revelation from God on any subject and involve himself in civic matters, I believe a fair question, to be asked respectfully of Governor Romney is "Given that the president of your church is considered a "prophet , seer, and revelator" and the living mouthpiece of God on earth, if you faced an important decision as president of the United States and received a personal phone call from the prophet saying that God was instructing to you take a certain course of action, would you be obligated to obey? Why or why not?" Is this not a fair question?

Wow, Texas BBQ is incredible. Our family is adjusting well, and our home is close to being done. Here is the latest update from my Dad with a short but important study on the book of Colossians. More evidence that you cannot lose eternal life.

Partners in International Ministry, September-November 2011 Dear Partners, For several years I have been working on a commentary on the book of Colossians. I have also taught the entire book as well as sections of it on several occasions. There are many verses that have impacted me greatly. One such verse is 1:13 where speaking of God, Paul states " for He delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son." “delivered”=rhuomai, to draw to oneself. We were not merely rescued, emancipated, and conveyed from one destiny to another but these things were the result of the Father drawing us to Himself. He did for us that which we were incapable of doing. This is not a gradual deliverance nor a future one. The verb tense shows this was accomplished, completed in the past, which was at the cross when he achieved deliverance for all, and specifically for each one of us at the time of our individual salvation when we responded to the gospel. Like slaves, we were freed, released from the authority and controlling power that was previously over us. We had to have divine intervention to escape from this bondage which held us. To be delivered is to be free of the authority, and power of that domain which once controlled our lives and our destiny. Because of God's action we are presently citizens of a new kingdom and under the authority and power of the rightful king with a completely changed destiny. “transferred us” methistemi, to change, pervert. Our status and future was dramatically altered, the evil purposes of darkness were perverted so they have no more authority over us. This too refers to an event that happened at salvation. This concept was used in the first century of deposing a king, firing a worker, executing someone or removing a defeated population from their previous location to the victorious nation, which is the specific idea here. Each usage referred to someone’s situation, their life and future being significantly and permanently altered. Our life and destiny were significantly and permanently altered by God from that of a hopeless and helpless slave of the realm of darkness to the glorious future inheritance of the saints in light because God has delivered us from that prior status through the work of His Son. The end of the Fall semester at Cerritos College is quickly approaching. I have just begun to make some tentative contacts for the May-June 2012 ministry expedition. I already have definite invitations to return to Belgium and to a new city in the Ukraine. I have also contacted ministries in Spain, Portugal, France and Germany. Soon I plan to contact other locations where I have previously been involved. I am also open to God leading me to new situations and locations if that is His plan. * Please pray with me the I will know which invitations are the essential ones to pursue. * Pray with me that God will again work out the schedule that s according to his plans. * Please also pray that Nancy will be up to joining me for part of the mission. Your gifts are tax deductible as long as you use only the name of the Mission on the check. Please send donations to: Partners in International Ministry, 1218 E. First St., Tustin, CA 92780 Thanks for continuing to partner with me, Gerald

Texas?

News update! I have relocated to Texas and happy to be here! I found a great church that is clear on the Gospel of Grace! Here is my dad's latest letter. If you want information for supporting him, let me know.

Partners in International Ministry August 2011

Dear praying friends,

The United States has been experiencing more tragedies and a lot more trials than usual the last few years. Isaiah wrote that those who choose another God (other than the only true one) multiply their sorrows. Could it be God is attempting to wake us up to the peril we are in as a nation because of replacing Him? We desperately need a Bible based spiritual awakening!

This year my ministries have been limited to the Southern California area. In late July I taught a short module for the California Biblical University on the LDS church, commonly known as Mormons We covered the early history and the beliefs of this cult showing that its several 'holy books' contradict each other, and contradict the reliable text of the Bible. They also contradict Anthropology and history. Contrary to its current claims- it is definitely not Christian. It claims to be the only true church and in fact was intended by its founder to replace Christianity.

Already this month I have taught another module. This one was on the Jehovah's Witnesses. Though this cult is very different in most ways from Mormons there are also similarities. Both diminish the nature of God the Father but in different ways. Both teach the Jesus Christ was a created being instead of one of the Trinity from eternity. JW's teach that the Holy Spirit is merely the moral influence or active force of God. They take verses out of context and frequently mistranslate the Bible in passages that conflict with their false teachings Both cults make salvation dependent upon works. Both falsely claim to be Christian. Both are condemned by the Apostle Paul as "deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ for a different gospel, which is really not another, only there are some who are disturbing and want to distort the gospel of Christ." Galatians 1:6-9.

The third module on the cults is on Islam. It is important to understand this cult because of its false teachings regarding the Father, Jesus and salvation. It also is becoming more prominent, and influential due to extensive immigration to the US and because of support by some misguided national and local political leaders. This class is planned for September 6,8,9. Some of our regular students work on Saturday mornings and therefore have not been able to attend the final sessions. This time the sessions are on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday evenings eliminating the Saturday class. We begin at 6:30 pm. To audit is $25. To take for credit is $50. Contact Dr. Martin Mosier for additional information or to enroll at 714-730-9874.

The rapid growth of all three of these cults and the continuing problems facing our nation are to be seen as serious motivation to prayer and to the proclamation and defense of the Biblical Gospel by all genuine believers.

Nancy still has some pain from the knee replacement surgery though less than prior to it. She has not scheduled the second knee yet. Instead of that surgery she has had carpal-tunnel surgery on her right hand. That has been healing well and has greatly relieved the pain after about six weeks. In mid September she plans to have the left wrist done as well.

Thanks for your continued prayers for us, for the growth and direction of the ministry and for our nation's need of a Biblical revival!

For spreading the knowledge of Christ,

Gerald Tilley

Literal means in 6 Days God created the earth.

Currently I am discussing this with a friend, who has been taught by those who believe days in Genesis does not mean days. I think ICR.ORG has some very convincing arguments that it does, and believe it as well, but interested in some discussion in regards to this.

My dad's latest report on his Ministry

Partners In International Ministry, August 2010 Dear friends, this is the continuing saga of the summer ministry. While at Leuven , Belgium I mentioned to the missionary family I was staying with that I had two extra days in Donetsk , Ukraine with nothing to do. These missionaries live at the Evangelical Seminary. They told me there was a student from Donetsk living just down the hall from us. We talked with him. He contacted someone at the University in Donetsk who set me up to speak with some of the faculty and administration at the U. From that speaking engagement I was asked to speak at an English class, preach at a Sunday service and speak to another church's youth group. These events along with talking and praying with some of the foreign students at the U. filled in the extra time nicely. God has connections everywhere! With the Chinese Christian Fellowship in Leuven I shared my testimony and then about my year teaching and spreading the gospel in China. After that I had nearly two hours teaching and nurturing the faith of three new Chinese believers. Pastor Zhenya had gotten a traffic ticket on the way to Donetsk. In Donestk, attempting to find the University, he made an illegal u-turn and was pulled over again. This time I felt led to pray that he would not be fined again and not have any problem. Soon he got out of the police care and rejoined us. He said they were going to revoke his drivers license for two years and then asked what He did. He said that he was a pastor of a Reformation church. Shortly thereafter they decided to let him keep his license and did not fine him. God is so good to us. At the Apologetics Summit my topic was "Apologetics and World Religions." I focused upon dealing with the human origins of non-Christian Religions. The Bible indicates that the earliest faith and belief of humanity was Monotheism not animism, pantheism or polytheism. I gave them Anthropological and Historical evidence that validates the biblical presentation. The evidence proves that the so-called primitive religious beliefs were not original but rather degenerated from previously known truth. The other major world religions were human attempts to reform and advance religion over the degenerated earlier beliefs. The various theories of the evolution of religion, and some other non-biblical ideas cannot be sustained by the evidence. These other theories are based upon speculation, unjustifiable assumptions and ignoring the evidence. We also discussed how to deal with those from other religions. Most people had left the Apologetics Summit in Donetsk several days before I was to fly out to the Republic of Georgia . The plan was to call a cab but the offices were closed at the University. I saw two couples talking and walked up to them. One man said, "I recognize you." He was an administrator at the University. I told him of my need to get to the airport after speaking the next evening. He said their driver would take me. It would cost one-third as much as a cab.. The next day I was told the President of the U. was flying out that evening to Kiev and that I might be able to go to the airport with him. Our schedules worked perfectly and the half hour ride ended up not costing me anything. This was another example of God' working out the timing and conserving the funds He had provided. To contribute to this Partnership with missionaries and pastors in Eastern & Western Europe, make out your check to Partners in International Ministry and mail to: 1218 E. First St. , Tustin , CA 92780 . Thanks for being partners with me. In the Father's service,