and who decided that these people actually had favor from God and that God communicated through them? You've already stated that my revelation through Jesus Christ was just so much imagination.
Everybody but Paul was baptized with a week of the resurrection. Acts:2 is an example of what they and others experienced that comes with that baptism. Paul came through that same thing and the 3 views are from Saul, his friends with him and by the Holy Spirit (eyewitness). That is the first step in gaining the 'real ability' to be able to tell rocks what to do with your voice. That could be step 2 in your relationship with God and the first step is reading the book He left behind as the witness for us being informed to events before they unfold. From De:4:30 on there are passages that enlighten us as to what to look for and if it doesn't fit that pattern then it isn't God pulling the strings.
Joh:14:16:
And I will pray the Father,
and he shall give you another Comforter,
that he may abide with you for ever;
Isa:42:9:
Behold,
the former things are come to pass,
and new things do I declare:
before they spring forth I tell you of them.
It would appear that you and cliffy have adopted the idea that Scripture is myth based and symbolic in it's terminology, rather than meant to be taken as literal as possible. The prophecy and fulfillment in the verses below cost a lot of innocent children their lives just so the 'message' about how serious and how literal the words were meant to be taken. This one lesson hold true for the whole book.
Jer:31:15:
Thus saith the LORD;
A voice was heard in Ramah,
lamentation,
and bitter weeping;
Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children,
because they were not.
Jer:31:16:
Thus saith the LORD;
Refrain thy voice from weeping,
and thine eyes from tears:
for thy work shall be rewarded,
saith the LORD;
and
they shall come again from the land of the enemy.
Jer:31:17:
And there is hope in thine end,
saith the LORD,
that thy children shall come again to their own border.
M't:2:17:
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet,
saying,
M't:2:18:
In Rama was there a voice heard,
lamentation,
and weeping,
and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children,
and would not be comforted,
because
they are not.
Those children are destined to be out of the grave literally before the hand of God is involved in the reality that unfolds around us every day
In the first place, God created man. That was for practice. Then God created woman.
- after Samuel Clemens
To show man how inept he was at following directions. In the verse below it doesn't really sound like Adam is making all the demands, he seems to be in the follow mode. If a man makes the sermons in Church on Sunday you can bet he spends 6 days in front of his wife practicing until he gets it right. (I better not have to explain that last part, lol)
Ge:2:24:
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother,
and shall cleave unto his wife:
and they shall be one flesh.
