On this page you'll find my latest Blog entry (and maybe a favorite or two), and
in the links to the right you'll find archives of my blogs as well as some essays
I've written, and other (hopefully) interesting things.
I've now been on
Planet Earth for over 70 years(!) and I've been fortunate to pursue many of my interests,
worked in some rewarding positions, traveled all over the United States, and met
many interesting people. I hope you find some things on this site of interest, and
possibly of use.
First, before reading my blog or any of my essays, you
might want to see where I'm coming from. So, here's a link to my "First Things First"
perspective:
www.bullock.org/pages/perspectives.
Second,
check out my first book (the second is in the works!):
And, now for the articles...
The Case for Thursday
The real meaning of Good Friday
Most Christians take for granted that Christ was crucified on Friday, buried
that afternoon before dusk, and remained in the tomb until early Sunday
morning when he was discovered to be missing by His followers. This is only partially correct.
There are two problems with this timeline:
First, the week of Jesus' crucifixion, the "passion" week, was the
completion of picture of Israel's delivery from Egypt in Exodus. He was the
perfect sacrifice. So, when God planned the sacrificial system in Exodus,
He had in mind the sacrifice of His son. The passover week was to be the
prototype for the Passion week. As such, the events had to line up perfectly
- and they did!
Second, Jesus Himself in Matthew 12:40 said, "Just as Jonas (Jonah) was
three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so shall the Son of man be
three days and three nights in the heart of the earth". Now, you can make a
weak case for three days: Friday as He was being buried; all day Saturday;
and then Sunday just before His resurrection, and that's how you can just
barely eek 3 days out of that. But, there is no way to account for three
nights. You have Friday night and Saturday night, and that's it!
So, if that's not possible, just what was the timeline?
Working backwards, we read in the Gospels that the day after the Sabbath,
on the morning of first day of the week - Sunday - just after dawn, the two Marys went
to the tomb to complete the burial rituals, since there was not enough time on
the day of His crucifixion. So, from these facts we know two things:
The first is that immediately after the Crucifixion, Nicodemus and Joseph of
Arimethia had to rush to get Jesus' body wrapped because they were forbidden
by the Law to do so on the Sabbath.
The second is that Christ was discovered on that Sunday morning (the first
day of the week - the day after the Saturday Sabbath) to be missing from His
tomb. He was risen!!!
The day after His death was a Sabbath, and the day of His resurrection
was Sunday.
So, He was crucified on Friday, right? Nope.
Going back to Exodus Chapter 12 we discover the institution of two things:
The Hebrew calendar, and the Passover. The first thing God told Moses was
that He was establishing a new calendar for the Hebrews, and the first month
of the year would be called Abib, Aviv, or Nisan (depending on the language and
spelling - Aviv/Abib would have been the Hebrew name, and Nisan the Assyrian
name). In either event, this was the first month of the Hebrew year.
On the 10th day of Abib/Nisan, the Hebrews were to choose an unblemished
lamb or goat to be used as a sacrifice. That sacrifice would live with the
family until the 14th day of Abib/Nisan when it would be killed, roasted, and
eaten before sundown that day. On Palm Sunday, the city was crowded because
people were there to begin the Passover celebration. They were there choosing
their lambs and goats. Turns out, they were also selecting Christ! Palm
Sunday was the 10th day of Abib/Nisan.
The day following this passover meal would be the beginning of the seven
days of unleavened bread, and the first of these days, the 15th of Abib/Nisan,
would be "an holy convocation", or a holy day (Exodus 12:16, Numbers 28:18,
Leviticus 23:5). In other words, that day would be a Sabbath!
Now, most people, when they think of the term Sabbath, they think Saturday,
because God had instructed Moses to command the Hebrews to rest on the 7th day
of every week and set it aside as a holy day - a Sabbath. But, the term
Sabbath is not specific to Saturday! There are other days that can be a
Sabbath, or holy day, and the 15th of Abib/Nisan would be one of those days,
regardless of what day of the week it fell on.
For example, if the 10th of Abib/Nisan fell on a Sunday, then the 15th of that week would fall on Friday, in which case that day would be a Sabbath,
and the following day, Saturday,
would also be a Sabbath. This is exactly how the Holy week occurred.
So the first problem we have to face is was the day following Christ's
crucifixion also the Saturday Sabbath, or was it an additional Sabbath because
it fell on another day of the week? The answer lies in the definition of the word 'Day'!
When Jesus told the Disciples to prepare for the Passover, he instructed
them to find a man in the city who would prepare them a room. Matthew
26:18-19a says, "Now when the even was come, He sat down with the twelve and
they did eat...". Here's the most important part of this verse: "When the
even (evening) came". Remember, the Hebrew day started at dusk on
what would be our previous day. So, Thursday actually began at around 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday
evening. Thursday evening at 6:00 p.m. would have been the start of Friday
the 15th of Abib/Nisan. The passover meal would have been mostly prepared
Wednesday before 6:00 (the 13th), then at 6:00 p.m. that evening, Thursday the
14th began, and the lamb was killed and prepared, and since the rest of food had
just been prepared, they would sit down to eat the passover meal.
Afterwards, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray, and that's
where he would have been arrested.
So Wednesday they prepare the meal. Wednesday evening (our Wednesday -
Their Thursday!) they eat the passover meal and go to the Garden to pray.
Later that evening and early into Thursday morning Jesus is arrested, tried,
condemned, and on Thursday afternoon around 3:00, He yields His spirit and
dies. Nicodemus and Joseph of Aramathia have but 3 hours to prepare His body
and place it in the tomb before 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, because that would have
been the beginning of the first Sabbath for that week, the 15th, and they could not do this on a Sabbath.
Jesus ate with His disciples on our Wednesday evening, which would actually
have been the beginning of the Hebrews' Thursday.
He was crucified on Thursday, and buried before sundown that evening.
Friday was a Sabbath, the 15th of Abib/Nisan, and the beginning of 7 days of unleavened bread.
Saturday was the regular Sabbath, so there were two Sabbaths that week -
Friday and Saturday.
Sunday morning, the first day of the week, the Marys and the the Disciples
discover the empty tomb, and the rest, as they say, is history!
So, here's the Timeline:
Sundown Saturday through Sundown Sunday:
Palm Sunday
10th of Abib/Nisan
Christ presents Himself as the Lamb of God
Sundown Sunday through Sundown Monday:
11th of Abib/Nisan
Jesus clears the Temple
Jesus spends the night in Bethany
Sundown Monday through Sundown Tuesday:
12th of Abib/Nisan
Jesus and the Disciples travel to the Mount of Olives
The Olivet discourse is recorded in all 4 Gospels
Sundown Tuesday through Sundown Wednesday:
13th of Abib/Nisan
The Disciples are instructed to reserve the Upper Room where the passover meal will be.
The room and the passover meal is prepared
Sundown Wednesday through Sundown Thursday:
14th of Abib/Nisan
After Sundown Wednesday, Christ and the Disciples meet in the upper room
They eat the passover meal (By now, it is the 14th of Abib/Nisan)
Later that night, after the meal, they go to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus is arrested
During the night, Christ is tried, found guilty, and beaten
In the early hours of the morning, Barabbas is chosen over Christ
Jesus is condemned and carries His cross most of the way to Golgotha.
Between 9:00 a.m., and 3:00 p.m. Jesus hangs on the Cross
3:00 p.m., Jesus dies
Nicodemus and Joseph of Arithamea bury Jesus just before sundown
Sundown Thursday through Sundown Friday:
15th of Abib/Nisan
The first day of the feast of unleavened bread
The Sabbath after the passover meal
Christ's first night in the grave
Sundown Friday through Sundown Saturday
The regular weekly Sabbath
Christ's second night in the grave
Sundown Saturday through Sunday around dawn:
Christ's third night in the grave
Early in the morning, as the sun is coming up, the two Marys find Jesus' grave empty
Christ is risen!
Good Friday is Good Friday not because Christ was crucified, but because that is the first day of our complete atonement for sin!!!
Good Friday Didn't Seem So Good
Good Friday, April 3, 2015
Today, our Savior lay in the grave, dead. To His disciples, Good
Friday wasn't so good. They had deserted Him in His greatest hour of need and,
instead of being His messengers to the world, were cowering, scared, and not very
Christ-like. That's not a criticism - just the way things were. Would any of us
have been any different? Nope - we would probably have been worse! Regardless,
it was not a "good" day.
Hindisght has the unique ability to change perceptions,
erase fears, and add explanation to events that, at the time, seem unexplainable.
Now, some 2015 or so years later (depending on whose calendar you believe) we truly
can call this "Good" Friday, because we now know a truly mircaculous work was being
done. Just as "Jonah was in the whale", Christ, the embodiment of the Creator of
the universe, was about to unfold the greatest event in history. He was to reveal
how He'd conquered death; and not only that, He'd sacrificed for us all.
Two
mornings hence, on a Sunday morning, the stone was rolled away, the body-cast that
He'd been wrapped in was hollow, and the disciples and other followers were astonished
to discover that He was not just missing - He was risen! The angels announced it
to them, and a few days later Jesus Himself appeared to the disciples - holes in
His hands and all! When it was all said and done, Friday really did turn out to
be "Good". Sunday was even better!!!
I came to my realization that I needed Christ
at an early age, and accepted His gift literally as a child. While I've not been
entirely faithful to him over the last 50 some-odd years, He has always been faithful
to me. I can look back and see His guiding hand, keeping me from disaster, and
guiding me through the turbulence I created, always with a plan in mind that I couldn't
always see. Had He not been in that grave that Friday, and arisen from it on that
Sunday, there would be no need to remember a "Good" Friday, and no need for an "Easter".
Millions of our neighbors have yet to grasp the enormity of what He has done for
us, simply out of love. Will you join with me this weekend and pray for those masses
- our neighbors - that the God who came down in human flesh and paid our penalty
will become so real to them they'll have to do something about it?
Happy Good Friday,
and Happy Easter!!!
Bible Inferences
September 29, 2023
(A series of articles on the Bible and details
it provides, but doesn't necessarily spell out.)
Reading the Bible is an
adventure every time you open it. History, Tragedy, Hope, Love, and of course, Salvation.
Every identifiable literary category can be found, and the amazing thing is that
it's all true (except where it specifically indicates an allegorical example is
being used - e.g. "Parables"). While there are a lifetime of issues to focus on,
one issue that has fascinated me are the inferences.
So much information
is given, but yet there is much that is not the real focus. Many times this is because
the Bible wishes to impart specific information, while at the same time leaving
out details not necessary to impart the primary lesson. Many of these specifics
were, at the time, more clear to those who first heard it because they understood
the context - much of which has been lost in history. This sometimes serves to deny
the casual reader deeper contextual understanding, while at the same time imparting
the primary information the text was meant to convey. This may seem like a contradiction,
but it is really not. As I said, it's an adventure.
What follows are some
of the particulars the Bible has not specifically focused on, yet enough information
is given that we may infer some things which may also be true. This is not an attempt
to add or subtract anything from what the Bible is meant to convey (See the warning
in Revelation 22:19!), but to search for a deeper understanding, particularly by
inferring what was actually going on "on the ground" at the time the words were
written, or at the time being described by the text. In fact, many sermons are preached
on this very assumption!
In other words, "given what the Bible is telling
us, what would I see if my own eyes if I were there"? These are the things I think
about...
1. For the last 100 years, slowly but surely, Congresses,
the Presidents, and the Courts, have bit by bit began dismantling the Constitution.
2.
While the 20th Century was young, it was decided that the educational system needed
to be taken over by the Federal government. Once that process was started, a companion
process began to change the curriculum in such a way that the role of the Founders
was de-emphasized, the basic principles on which the country was established were
marginalized, and the emphasis changed from preparing young students for life to
preparing them for further education.
3. The Congress, with the consent
of the States mind you, made two major changes in the Constitution. First, they
made it legal to tax individuals directly on their incomes. Once that was done
they put in place a system that made these confiscations before the funds ever reached
their rightful owners by deducting it from their paychecks prior to payment. This
simple and ingenious process made such confiscations more palatable. Second, they
took away the choice of Senators from the State governments and made it a general
political process. Once having done this, the government began instituting rules
on how elections could be held. When these two major changes were made, the next
ingenious step took place: They married these two processes. They created tax-exempt
status for entities that promised to stay away from the political process. This
powerful incentive was a trap that Churches readily fell into and consequently lost
all influence on the national political process. This entire process led to the
"Separation of Church and State" Supreme Court ruling that is now bought into almost
universally.
4. With all these changes in place the Federal Government
began to creep step by step into everyday life. States were kowtowed by the threat
of withholding tax dollars the Feds had confiscated from their own citizens. In
the name of safety a well-funded government instituted one-size-fits-all rules on
every facet of life from what was in the water to how food could be served. The
benefits of such controls became more and more to be offset by the intrusion by
the government and the penalties they were more and more imposing on those who refused
to live by what the government mandated. This intrusion migrated to almost every
facet of life - slowly to be sure so the outrage could be managed - but intrusion
nevertheless. Then, in the 6th decade, a powerful politician/President pushed through
the master stroke. Under the guise of "eliminating poverty", he set up the most
socialistic system ever devised by man - the "Great Society". Trillions of dollars
later and poverty is not only still here - it's institutionalized. And pity the
poor politician who meddles with all this money and the votes it has bought.
5.
With Churches at bay, seemingly unlimited funding, a political "fix" in place,
and educational institutions doubling as indoctrination centers, the slide from
Freedom to Tyranny reached its pinnacle when the Supreme Court decreed it was Constitutional
to murder human beings before they were physically able to defend themselves - all
in the name of "safety" and "privacy" for the would-be mother whom God had designed
for just the opposite. Once that abomination was in place, others would become
acceptable, and life itself could be snuffed out for any number of reasons, including
"death with dignity". Soon, such principles (or lack thereof, actually) assaulted
the very basic building block of any society - the family.
6. The last
piece to be put in place, and the basics are already in place, is to protect the
government itself from the very citizens who were supposed to be its masters. Tools
that could be utilized to keep the government in its place were restricted to government
use only, and what tools that are left are more and more restricted for use by the
"unwashed masses" - that's us!
Now, all this is demonstrably and historically
true, but when presented as I have just presented it, it looks like someone's conspiracy
theory. Indeed, there are many out there who vocally present this as just such
a conspiracy - and it's possibly true, particularly if you research such things
as the
"Cloward-Piven Strategy",
depending on how much actual planning for all this
one thinks might have gone on before now.
But here's where I'm going: What
has happened here is a natural process. Governments tend to covet power and are
predisposed to gather such power to themselves without any overt planning being
required. Our Founders knew this, and agonized on how to design a government that
would resist that tendency, and decided to vest as much power as possible in the
individual. However, if you read their writings, they knew it was probably not
possible to design a system that would forever resist such tyrannical tendencies,
they hoped that, with the processes they'd put in place, the People would stand
up and stop it.
Based on where we are now - I'm afraid they were wrong.
There's A War Coming!!
March 31, 2022
On March 27, 2022, the South Carolina Legislature voted to be the 19th State
to call for an Article V Convention of States (if you are unfamiliar with the provisions
of Article V, here's a link to review).
When we reached 17 the year before, we were
halfway to the required 34 State Petitions required to force a CoS. Although some
are paying attention now, my guess is that once we hit 20+ states, two things will
happen: First, Congress will begin to pass legislation to thwart other States from
calling for a CoS. Now, while that may have some positive benefits, it is NOT a
positive thing. Second, the forces opposed to what these Legislatures are trying
to do will ramp up their opposition. Further, the closer we get to 34, the harder
they will fight - and it's going to get nasty.
One of the most popular,
and necessary elements of a possible Convention of States is to pass an preposed
amendment and send to the States mandating Term Limits on Congress, the Courts,
and possibly other governmental institutions and agencies. Over 80% of Americans
surveyed favor some form of term limits on Congress. It's the one item that could
change the way things work in Washington (personally, I'd like to move Washington
to the middle of the country where there is more sanity, but I digress...). Other
things to be considered would be to force a balanced budget, reduce the scope and
power of the government, and address fiscal responsibility.
BUT, none of
this will happen until after the War. Those who have power, or vested interests
in keeping things the way they are, will spare no expense, leave no stone unturned,
and will not forsake any action to prevent this Convention from happening. When
(not "if") such a Convention is called, the attack will shift from prevention of a
Convention, to either destroying anything the Delegates try to do, or to disrupt
the proceedings to make it as difficult as possible to complete any proposed Amendments.
As
this time approaches, you need to decide how much you want things to change, because
this battle will not be fought just in Washington or in the highly-compromised "Press",
but will involve every one of us, from your employer, to your friends and any groups
or organizations you are affiliated with.
So, when the battle lines begin
to be drawn, you need to already be familiar with the issue to address the attacks,
from answering concerns that people you know might have, as well as vetting public
figures (particularly politicians) for their position as well.
Make no mistake,
though - this will be a war. I just pray it doesn't escalate beyond the exchange
of ideas and political action. The Founders knew the Convention of States would
be a "Hail Mary" (though they had not heard of that term) which would be used when
normal tools (elections, court challenges, and common sense) had all failed.
Pretty
astute of them to see this coming, don't you think?
If you haven't already joined the fight - what's wrong with you? Start Here:
Everyone has friends, some that might be referred to as 'close' friends.
If you're fortunate, though, you'll have at least one friend you might think of
as indispensable. Wayne Ridge was that indispensable friend in my life.
We
met when I was 15 years old. I was looking for someone who would help me get in
to Amateur Radio, and Wayne was who was recommended to me. The story of my first
meeting with him is humorous, but he instantly took me under his wing (he was 8
years older than me) and taught me what I was looking for, as well as a number of
other things down through the years. He helped me get my Ham Radio license, and
forever K5YPV and WA5TMC were linked. I spent countless hours at his business;
we traveled together; we enjoyed our hobby together; and I worked for him for a
number of years. For over 53 years, I counted Wayne as one of the closest of my
friends.
Over his last three years, we both had health problems, then the
Covid pandemic kept us apart, but I always saw a smile from him when I'd show up,
and we'd still talk every so often. As his health declined, and the pandemic dangers
loomed, it became harder to meet in person, particularly when he was essentially
homebound.
Wayne passed away Thanksgiving Day, 2021, and one of my oldest
friends has joined all the others we both had said "so long" to over the years.
Am I sad? Yes, of course! But from what I know of Wayne, we will see each other
again. I'm sad because I can no longer just pick up the phone and call him, and
his signal is permanently "off the air", but I wouldn't call him back into this
mess from the paradise I'm sure he's now in.
So, 73, K5YPV. I will certainly
miss you from this place. But, we'll meet again in a better place where the signals
are always strong, the DX is coming in from all over, and it's permanent Field Day.
Keep the antennas tuned - we'll all be along shortly.
Karl, WA5TMC
Daylight Savings Time - It really saves
November 12, 2017
You may have heard some of these, but here's a couple
"Only the government would
believe that you could cut a foot off the top of a blanket, sew it to the bottom,
and have a longer blanket."
or my favorite:
"Daylight saving time occurs because
Chuck Norris hits snooze on his alarm clock."
There are those who think daylight
savings time is just a trick and we're the victims. Well, they're only partially
correct. The truth is, DST is there to correct the trick. What is the trick that
it corrects? The clock. Let me explain...
Before clocks became available to the
average man, people kept time by the sun. The day started when the sun came up,
and ended when the sun went down. Indeed, those of us familiar with the Bible read
how the Hebrews reckoned time by the number of hours since sunrise. The 9th hour,
for instance, was sometime around 3:00 p.m. - or 9 hours after sunrise. So, the
workday began, depending on your particular activity, when the sun came up, and
by the time the sun went down you were through with your daily work and it was time
to get ready for bed.
Then came clocks. Now we have a mechanical means of keeping
up with time. That was the first major change, and things would never be the same.
At the time, Great Britian was the world power, and since they'd basically invaded
every country on earth, they took it on themselves to decide what the time standards
were. Even today, the world's times are all keyed to the time in London. Listen
to the U.S. Government's time station, WWV, and you'll hear it called "Universal
Time". It's also known as Greenwich Mean Time, all based on the time standard in
Greenwich England.
However, even back then people didn't necessary become slaves
to the mechanical timekeeper, and things still were pretty much sunrise to sunset.
Then came Edison, and all of a sudden the lack of light was no longer a limiting
factor. But the real gamechanger came shortly after that. It was called Henry
Ford. Now, at the time, the change to a 40 hour workweek advanced by Ford Motor
Company was a great idea, because the workweek had been somewhere around 48 hours
per week, and Ford believed that a somewhat shorter workweek was better for worker
productivity. So 8 to 5 - punching the clock, and now we're slaves.
The problem
is that the sun still comes up and the sun still sets on different schedules depending
on the time of year. To correct this difference between "sun" time and "clock"
time, a New Zealander named George Hudson proposed moving the timezone to give people
like him more daylight to pursue interests outside of their work schedule. It
took a world war and the wish to increase productivity by lengthening the workday
by an extra hour to make it what it is now.
Now, remember, by this time we are
slaves to a mechanical clock rather than using the "natural" timepiece - the sun.
The use of daylight savings time was an attempt to correct that situation. So,
it turns out that, in reality, it's that thing you wear on your wrist (or, if you're
like me, those digits on your smartphone) that is fake, not the attempt to correct
things.
OK, so what? Well, here's the thing. In the days when we were an agrarian
society, the clock was not as limiting because most work was done outside and the
sun still dictated when the work had to finish. But once we became an industrial
society, the work moved inside and the clock took over. But, the sun still goes
down on its own schedule. Now, I hate seeing it dark at 5:00 p.m. I'm sitting
here right now at 7:00 p.m. and it looks like midnight outside. My eyes tell me
it's time to go to bed, but if I do that, I'll toss and turn all night long. The
clock doesn't track with the sun, and that really messes with your body.
So here's
my proposal: Just rip the bandage off and move the timezone permanently. Stop
calling it daylight savings time and just stick with it.
Why this long diatribe?
I had nothing else to do and it's dark outside...