Walking in the Spirit

If we say, "God told me..." is that a biblical statement? Let us walk in the Spirit and not fulfill the deeds of the flesh. [Please bear with the first 60 seconds. David got off to a slow start, but the teaching is excellent.] Here's David's teaching from today:

Trinity Covenant Church Sermons

Reformed Theology

Peter was in the library to use their internet and came upon the book, "Encyclopedia of American Religious History." As a general book viewing the Reformed tradition from the outside, it is interesting to see how it summarizes the Reformed tradition (i.e. Calvinism, Presbyterianism, Dutch Reformed, German Reformed, etc...). It gives five distinctives that characterize Reformed teaching. 

The first is God's sovereignty, especially as it plays out in salvation.

The second is the doctrine of human depravity. 

The fifth is the importance of doctrinal formulations and orthodoxy. 

But the third and fourth distinctives are especially interesting, due to the tendencies in some contemporary Reformed circles to move away from them, especially the fourth:

"Third, Christians in their personal behavior must be obedient to the laws of God that are revealed in the Bible. The church, too, should conform itself to the mandates of Scripture and eradicate all ceremonies that lack a clear biblical precedent.

"Fourth, the Reformed tradition has consistently emphasized that religion is not merely a private affair, but demands an engagement with society. Church and culture function together in creative tension. Despite its fallen state, the world belongs to God, and Christians must help to transform it into the image of God's kingdom." (volume 2, p. 598-599)

Mormon Temple Visit

We parked in front of the Utah State house. It was beautiful. There was a bee hive statue in front, just up the first set of stairs. Inside there were gorgeous marble pillars. The floors and office doors had the honey comb look.  Gabe wanted to sing Psalm 134 and hear it echo.

Right under the Mormon temple, we met Tom, a Melchezadek priest, who was married in the Temple 45 years ago. 

Bruce asked, “What do you think about trying to be god and having your own planet someday?” 

“Yes, that’s what we believe, but we don’t focus on it every day.” 

I asked,   "Will you be married in heaven."

“Yes, for eternity.” 

"But Jesus said, "In the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven."

He denied the idea of being sealed with more than one woman.

 "You will stake eternity over a novel written by Salomon Spaulding and turned into 'words of Jesus' by a con man named Joseph Smith. 

He does not fit the qualifications of an elder who is not to be a novice lest he be puffed up. He is to be the husband of one wife. lf a man does not rule his own household well, how can he rule in the household of God? Also Exodus 18:21 says leaders are to be able men such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness. 

Joseph Smith goes downs in flames. He fails God's test. He also starts his con job by saying that God says all the churches are wrong. That means everybody for 1800 years was wrong. Then he becomes an enlightened fool that’s going to tell us what God really meant. 

The father above is discipling his children.

Lance pled with him to set aside the book of Mormon

and teach his children the Bible.

His daughter begged him to come look at a quote on a chart 

that she thought would help him respond to Lance.

The Mormon Church is a curse on the world taking with it a horde of Mormons to hell. Paul said, "If I, or an angel from God teach any other gospel then what I have taught, let him be cursed.             

I said, “Are you aware that Joseph Smith was a Mason and got killed because he took some their rituals?  They killed him also because his men took other people’s wives. He was a peep stoner, glass looker, a trickster. Shortly before he became a 'Prophet of God,' he was convicted in New York for being conman. 

And you are willing to spend eternity in hell because you are going to rely on his view that the scriptures are in error and this crook is going to clarify the 'mistakes in the Bible?' I said, “If you want to understand what the Bible says, study the early Church fathers: Clemet of Rome, Poly Carp who was disciple of John the writer of the last book of the Bible.” 

Victor asked, “Do you study the creeds and confessions?” 

He said, “No.” 

Mormons do not believe revelation closed with scripture. They believe their church gives them revelation even to this day, even though their most inspired book that cleans up the so-called errors, the Book of Mormon has had to be revised over 4,000 times for things like outlawing polygamy, because the US government ruled that it was illegal, so now they have heavenly polygamy, like the Muslims. 

'The flower fades the grass withers but word of God endures forever.'   

And we don’t need a Joseph Smith to tell us what the word of God says. God is capable of preserving his words without somebody changing it.    

Anther Mormon, Dave from the Portland area asked “Do you believe that all these people are going to hell?” 

Well, if they don’t repent of their sin of following a lie and turn to the one true and living God reveled in scripture they will go to hell. His wife Susan added, “but look at the fruit.” 

The federal judge pictured with Lance above 

gave them a tour of the Mormon Tabernacle. 

"It looks good on the outside, but on the inside, its full of dead men's bones. In Utah, a few years ago, one their top guys was running around at night with a prostitute. Also, Utah is number 2 in the world for going to the most perverted sites, just below Pakistan.They deny the trinity.They have redefined Jesus in to a man.The Jesus they believe in, had three wives. They follow the Brigham Young statement, “As man is, God once was. As God is, man can become.”

But God says, "I am jealous God and I will share my glory no other. There is none like me." 

Man makes for a loser god.

Mormons are anti-trinitarian. They believe that Jesus and God the father are two distinct gods made of flesh and blood. 

The Christian believes in three distinct but not separate persons in the Godhead equal in power and glory and each uncreated.

 Jesus Christ, the sinless lamb, died on the cross for our sins, was raised on the third day just as he said, and ascended in to Heaven waiting until his enemies are made his footstool for his feet. To those who believe in his name, He has imputed his righteousness to us and taking our sin on him. The hope of the world is not living by every word of Joseph Smith. That takes you to hell. The true hope is living by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

Biblical Christianity

We cannot preach the gospel unless we preach “Calvinism:”  justification by faith, without works; nor unless we preach the sovereignty of God in his dispensation of grace; nor unless we exalt the electing, unchangeable, eternal, immutable, conquering, love of Jehovah: nor do I think we can preach the gospel, unless we base it upon the peculiar redemption which Christ made for His elect and chosen people; nor can I comprehend a gospel which lets saints fall away after they are called, and suffers the children of God to be burned in the fires of damnation after having believed. Such a gospel I abhor. The gospel of the Bible is not such a gospel. We preach Christ crucified in a different fashion, and to all gainsayers we reply. "We have not so learned Christ." (Charles Spurgeon)

If salvation is based on man and his confession, apart from the grace of God, he cannot stand, but, salvation based on the promise and power of God cannot fail: "All those who the Father gives me, no one will take out of my hand." 

God is the ultimate, Sovereign authority in law, truth and reality. God is the ultimate source of man’s salvation and He must be the center of man’s life and worship.

Humanism asserts that man is the ultimate, sovereign authority in reality, truth and ethics. The essence of humanism is that man is the ultimate source of man’s salvation and man (or corporate man, the state) must be the center of man’s life and worship.

God said, apostate Israel was "not beloved." Those who leave the faith (e.g. Karl Marx, Frederick Nietzsche, Jean-Jacque Rousseau, etc.) are apostates, not covenant sons.

Hear Calvin on this matter (from the Institutes of the Christian Religion): “By the Gospel, I understand the clear manifestation of the mystery of Christ. I confess, indeed, that inasmuch as the term Gospel is applied by Paul to the doctrine of faith (1 Tim. 4:6), it includes all the promises by which God reconciles men to himself, and which occur throughout the Law. For Paul there opposes faith to those terrors which vex and torment the conscience when salvation is sought by means of works. Hence it follows that Gospel, taken in a large sense, comprehends the evidences of mercy and paternal favor which God bestowed on the Patriarchs. Still, by way of excellence, it is applied to the promulgation of the grace manifested in Christ.” (2.9.2)

Mercy's Baptism on Easter Sunday

Baptism is a sign of the covenant, 
as circumcision was in the Old Testament.  

And he took them that very hour of the night 
and washed their wounds, 

and immediately he was baptized, 
he and all his household. 
Acts 15:33

It is greater to marry a kingdom driven man or woman 

than to make a decision based on credo vs. paedobaptism.

Natural Family Planning?

"I do not believe a person is to try to prevent the blessing of children in any way. Naturally or otherwise. I am completely content to leave all pregnancies in God's hands and believe that the Lord brings children in His time. The intimacy of marriage should not be separated from the blessing of children. 1st Corinthians 7:5 speaks to a couple abstaining for a time to give themselves to fasting and prayer but I have never seen anywhere in Scripture where we are to try to prevent children. In Genesis 38:6-10, Onan tried to prevent having a child for his brother and the Lord slew him... 

I was thinking this morning about family planning and Psalm 127 came to mind. In  this psalm, the fruit of the womb is called a reward from the Lord. Thus, who are we to try to prevent His reward?” ~ Megan Peterson

"Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so whenever he lay with his brother's wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from producing offspring for his brother.

What he did was wicked in the LORD's sight; so he put him to death." Genesis 38: 9-10

"Those sins that dishonor the body and defile it are very displeasing to God and evidences of vile affections." Matthew Henry

"The voluntary spilling of semen outside of intercourse between man and woman is a monstrous thing. Deliberately to withdraw from coitus in order that semen may fall on the ground is doubly monstrous. For this is to extinguish the hope of the race and to kill before he is born the hoped for offspring. This impiety is especially condemned, now by the Spirit though Moses' mouth, that Onan, as it were, by a violent abortion, no less cruelly than filthily cast upon the ground the offspring of his brother, torn from the maternal womb. Besides, in this way he tried, as far as he was able, to wipe out a part of the human race." (Calvin's Commentary on Gen. 38:8-10)

Strong words like this are shocking in our day! Seems like Onan would be pleased to give life to one who would inherit his brother's estate since he was pleased to marry the widow. 

Steve Wilkins states, "Human beings were made for the society of marriage. Unless a man was given to gift of celibacy, it is not just a privilege to be married--it is a divine obligation. Men are commanded to seek a wife and should take it as seriously as any other command that God has given...He is a fool who thinks he can live by himself." 

A young couple should be prepared to have children when they get married. You can grow in your relationship during marriage and child bearing. It's never perfect. To divorce the marriage relationship from bearing children is perverse. Seems like those who do often end up setting aside the marriage relationship for just living in the same house but in separate bedrooms. Everything should be done in faith to the Glory of God.  

Many great people have been born out of extremely difficult situations: Moses, Jesus...The greatest theologian of the last century, R. J. Rushdoony, was conceived while his parents were fleeing the Turkish genocide of the Armenians.

R. J. Rushdoony noted, the rejection of fertility marks a suicidal age and the end of society. 

Some who are the most demanding that their wife use birth control and get furious with her for getting pregnant are the most proud of those "unwanted" children and later their grandchildren.

Doug Phillips reminds us that the bible calls debt a curse and children blessings, yet many apply for curses and reject blessings.

Women in the bible grieved over barren wombs, and cried out to God for children. Today, many are in a crisis over positive pregnancy tests. 

 God created marriage.  Man did not come up with the idea:

Malachi 2:15 

Has not the LORD made them one? In flesh and spirit they are His. And why one? Because He was seeking godly offspring. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth. 

Theology Is A Life And Death Issue

What we believe dictates what we do. Ideas have consequences, whether good or ill. 

If we didn't have a Trinitarian Eternal God, all forms of governmental systems would be askew. We would either have Pantheism leading to anarchy or we would have a top-down centralized government (with a false god like Allah). Trinitarian covenantal Christianity creates forms of government that have limited powers. 

We don't view marriage or family as an end in and of itself, but as means to build and advance Christ's kingdom. For instance, we don't idolize the patriarch, but his position is given and limited by God. God's law regulates marriage. In the trinity the Father begat the Son and the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, eternally. In the family, the father, mother and children are equal in value, but have differing roles and responsibilities. With trinitarian thinking we have the one and the many, order and diversity, brought together by God's Word.

Theology is vital.

Christianity today has abandoned the Law of God. It has embraced humanism, man's law. It therefore has no basis to combat the "emergent church" or Sharia law. Rather than preach that God will covenantally judge all rulers, nations, and peoples that refuse to bow the knee to King Jesus, they embrace humanism. Not only has the Church not fought the battle against evolution it has embraced evolution, to the point that in Christian universities there are more pro-evolution Religion dept. heads than science dept. heads. Christians for the most part send their children as "missionaries" to be educated by the Romans and are surprised that they come back apostates, committed to serving the State.  Muslims have an optimistic view of the future, believing that their (false) religion will convert the whole world. We serve the Living God who is "reconciling the world to Himself." He is the King to whom all Kings must bow. We must embrace this and be more optimistic than the followers of a false god. 

"For He must reign until He has put all 

His enemies under His feet." (1 Cor. 15:25)

Atheism Presupposes Christian Theism

As Dr. Greg Bahnsen said, "Atheism presupposes [Christian] Theism." 

Dr. Van Til is saying that the unbelievers 

have no basis for ethics, law, or truth apart from Christianity, 

all they can do is steal our worldview to build theirs. 

Baptism

John "the Presbyterian" didn't immerse anyone under water, like Baptists would, but sprinkled them according to the Law of Moses (Numbers 8:7). When the Old Testament spoke of baptism, it never, ever, had in mind immersion! Even so, Jesus Himself when giving His command to "baptize" (Matthew 28:20) directly fulfilled what Isaiah (52:15) and Ezekiel (36:25) said He would. ~Argin Gerigorian

We enjoy some of the age-old baptism controversy, though method of baptism (also credo, paedo) is not as significant as the obedience to the command: Go Disciple the Nations, Baptize in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Mary's Magnificat

Many prophecies were combined to make up the Magnificat. 

Mary realized these prophecies were fulfilled in her.

Christmas

"Christians have celebrated the incarnation and nativity of the Lord Jesus on December 25 since at least the early part of the third century--just a few generations removed the days of the Apostles. By 336, when the Philocalian Calendar--one of the first calendars of the Patriarchal church--was first utilized, Christmas Day was already a venerable and tenured tradition. Though there is no historical evidence that Christ was actually born on that day--indeed, whatever evidence there is points to altogether different occasions--the conversion of the old Pagan tribes of Europe left a gaping void where the ancient cult festivals were once held. It was both culturally convenient and evangelically expedient to exchange the one for the other. And so joy replace desperation. Celebration replaced propitiation. Christmas feasts replaced new moon sacrifices. Christ replaced Baal, Moloch, Apollo and Thor. Glad tidings of great joy, indeed."

~From Christmas Spirit by George Grant and Gregory Wilbur, pg. 103

Photo by Jaimie Trueblood/newline.wireimage.com

Rethinking the Pagan Origins of Christmas by Brian Abshire

The twenty-fifth of December as just another day, and is of no religious significance. There is nothing “holy” about it, and it despite the efforts of the Fathers to calculate the right date, probably was not the day Jesus was actually born. However If the angels of heaven could publicly proclaim His birth, what possible problem can there be for us to likewise commemorate that wondrous event? How can it be wrong to sing those wonderful, postmillennial hymns which celebrate the birth of Christ during the month of December? And since the incarnation is so central to human history, then where is the problem with preaching a special series of sermons exploring the implications of the advent of the Lord Jesus?" Continue reading

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In Defense of Christmas by Melody Seppi
"During the early missionary movement in Europe after the fall of Rome, tribe after tribe were converted to Christianity, the winter cult festivals were gone—leaving a gaping void—and as a result of following Christ their cultures were radically changed, instead of sin, bondage, a culture of death and human sacrifice, there was liberty in His law, freedom in Christ, a culture of life, and the worship of the one true and living God." Continue reading

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Peter B's Christmas Poems:

The Fire of Christmas

also

The Joy of the Light

See the house of days gone by, decked out in greenery fine 

The cold, sharp wind about it rolls with specks of glimmer and shine 

Outside is quiet, only the wind, and trees that are moved to and fro’ 

Stir gently the stillness that lays all around the valley now covered in snow 

Inside there is merriment, laughter, and joy–the sound of the fiddle and flute– 

The lads and the lasses are dancing a jig, their tongues and feet are not mute 

The companions of work, of worship and thought, they now enjoy what they’ve won 

Relationships firm, founded on time, now exalted through music and fun 

Oh praise the Lord Christ! He re-made us to show this joyful and most loving way 

Who, when we were in darkness, came as the Light and delivered us unto His day 

Though days be dark, sharp, windy, and cold, we dare not submit to their gloom! 

We strike up a tune and go gallantly forth, proclaiming Him ris’n from the tomb! 

Thus the darkest of days 

Will submit to this praise 

And become the sunrise of morn! 

The darkness takes flight 

This day, our delight! 

For Christ the world’s Savior is born!

-Peter B.

 Deo Vindice

Stand for God

"When the sons of the Kingdom retreat in even the smallest and most insignificant way from the Total Claims of Christ, such retreat enables the advance of a defeated impostor...the arch-deceiver himself. Where the sons of the Kingdom advance in terms of the Total Claims of the One whose Dominion shall never end, then the gates of hell shall be irretrievably pushed back. Rally oh saints of God to the King Who wears the Crown on His head and bears the Government of all things on His shoulder and holds the Scepter in His hand and sits securely upon His Throne and makes His enemies His footstool. To Him be glory and honor and power and dominion forever and ever!" - Mike O'Donovan

Defending Theonomy Against “Two Kingdom” Theology

This is well worth a place on the shelf of your electronic library. Nathaniel Darnell takes on the Two Kingdoms idea and shreds it.

Defending Theonomy Against “Two Kingdom” Theology

Joe Morecraft's Letter Exhorting Homeschooling Families

 I want you to know about several authors whose writings are infecting homeschools with their false teaching.

The first is a brilliant woman named  Susan Wise Bauer, an evolutionist, a revisionist of church history, with a less than biblical worldview, who is hostile toward the Reformed Faith. She has even written a novel criticizing and characterizing the distinctives of our denomination, the RPCUS, calling people who share our views “Christian Nazis.”

Mary-Elaine Swanson, author of John Locke: Philosopher of American Liberty. She attempts to make Locke’s political philosophy biblical and Christian...His philosophy was rationalistic, based on human reason rather than the word of God. When the West adopted his philosophy, it began its radical rejection of the historical Christian approach to politics that had marked it for hundreds of years.

Michael Farris, founder of Patrick Henry College. Farris paints Calvin and the Calvinists as the culprits throughout the centuries, the betrayers of true liberty. The opposite is true, however; they were instead the great defenders of liberty and justice for all. 

Michael Horton's view of the relation of church and state, called the “two kingdom view,” is especially poisonous and flawed. This view says that the Bible governs the church, but human reason, unaided by the Bible, governs the state. [He also said, "I could approve of domestic partnerships.] 

Read More:

A Letter Exhorting Homeschooling Families

Kevin Swanson's Shepherds Conference

https://generationswithvision.com/shepherds-2012/

Winners

Photo by Joni Letlow

"Instead of being losers, we are inescapable winners. Ours is a faith for victory. Thus, if you are Christ’s, stop talking about defeat. There is a world to be conquered, and we are the people called to do it." 

~ R. J. Rushdoony

Pastor John Weaver

I highly recommend Pastor John Weaver's sermon podcast. I have recently been listening to the sermons from January and February of 2012.

~Dinah

Taking the Future for Christ

"This is the most clear and eye-opening sermon on God's promises to Abraham that I have ever heard. After three listens, I'm still learning from it. Those of you who are curious (or confused) about the relevance of the OT to modern Christians, the significance of ethnic Israel, or how to think about the future will be blessed by this message. Thank you, Dr. Joe, for preaching the gospel." ~Benjamin Botkin

To download, click the small square at the end of the "Taking the Future for Christ" in the box above. :) ~Dinah

Christian Home Education is Part of a Victorious View of the Future

 Bojidar Marinov, a brilliant, warm man from communist Bulgaria, taught how one's view of the future determines his present directon.  Marx observed this in Christianity, back when Christians had an eschatology of victory, and incorporated it into Marxism.

     A highlight was Dick and Luke Otterstad, speaking by translator to the largely Russian immigrant audience.  The father-son duo have dedicated their lives for nearly ten years to discipling the Slavics.  Luke shared his vision for the 100,000 Slavics in Sacramento, asking "Has God not brought you here to win America to Christ?" Their passionate appeal was for the Slavics to home educate their children. Having fled the tyranny of the Soviet persecution of Christians and total statist education, their default is to put their children in the public schools, resulting in apostasy, shrinking families and a loss of vision.

      The Slavics are losing their children to the decadent American culture.  Dick, said, "Look at your children.  Do you see a difference between your children born in Russia and those born here?"  Citing the socialist roots of the American government school system then the Deuteronomy 6 homeschool imperative: "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." 

      He leveled this unforgettable blockbuster."This country is being judged because for 30 years the pastors of this nation have said nothing about this movement."  He warned of the Southern Baptist Convention admission of losing 85% of their children from the faith.

Does Calvary Chapel's Chuck Smith Advance Margaret Sanger's Agenda?

Some pastors appear to derive their ethics from the culture rather than the Bible. In the second century, Tertullian said that earthquakes and hurricanes are to be regarded as a remedy to control population.  Anglican pastor, Thomas Malthus taught that the poor should be exterminated because they were lazy. Francis Galtin advocated eugenics to purify the race sterilizing those with handicaps.  Malthus made evaluations based on a limited view of resources. Margret Sanger praised Malthus, as did Darwin.


Though Chuck Smith defines children as a liability, God calls them a blessing. Children are a heritage. This is a Biblical view of life. When Chuck Smith says that you need to use effective birth control, isn't he advancing Margaret Sanger's agenda?  She stated: "Birth control appeals to the advanced radical because it is calculated to undermine the authority of the Christian churches;" also, "The most serious evil of our time is that of encouraging the bringing into the world of large families."


What biblical authority does Chuck Smith have when he advocates that his followers deny the future by cutting off their descendants choosing rather to decide how many children they have rather than God. Marx viewed everything in terms of economics.


Here's Chuck Smith:  http://operationrescue.org/audio/Pastor%27sPerspective04302012.mp3
"You know it used to be that a lot of children were assets. A child coming into the home was an asset because it was an agrarian society and you all had your own farms and the more children, the more help you had on the farm, and all.

"But, you know, as time when on and we became really a - no longer an agrarian society, but, you know, one that was really sort of dependent upon manufacturing, and so forth, children no longer became an asset, but they became a liability and I think that when you figure now how much it costs to raise a child through high school and all, a lot of people, you know, they just say, "Well, who needs them?" You know, because it does just cost a huge amount of money to clothe them and feed them and all when they're not really producing or are productive at bringing back into the family, you know, financial assets and so forth, and thus they are a liability, rather than an asset today."

Calvary Chapel founder Chuck Smith says children a liability, endorses strong birth control

Calvary Chapel Founder, Pastor Chuck Smith Calls Children a Liability and Endorses Abortifacient Birth Control « Stand True Pro-life Outreach


Christians must go to God's Word to define our ethics, not economics, not the culture, not social pressures-it's the Bible which says:
His descendants will be mighty on the earth.
We see the heart of God that
Children are a blessing,
the fruit of the womb is His reward,
Like arrows in the hands of a warrior 
so are the children of one's youth;
Blessed is the man who has his quiver full of them-
they shall speak with their enemies in the gate 
and not be ashamed;
Behold children are a heritage-
the fruit of the womb is his reward.
Jesus said, Do not hinder the children.
 Let the children come to me.
Three times Christ asked: 
Do you love me Peter?
Feed my sheep.
Raise your children in the fear and the admonition of the Lord.
Women are saved [in a sanctifying process] through childbearing.

The greatest thing you can do in your entire lifetime is to raise godly children who honor the Lord.


Chuck Smith has perpetrated the myth that we are living in the end of the world. We are actually living at the end of an apathetic, lawless idea that the future doesn't matter.


We need to give our children a long term vision of obedience to God's word, by not playing God by believing that we are living at the end of the world. When God wraps up history, that is in His time. Our job is to occupy till He comes. We should not play God over the womb by saying that we need to plan how many children we will have.


God is absolutely sovereign over life, over salvation, over the culture and over the womb. Give your children a long term future plan to help them understand their father mind and the mind of God. Do not be enslaved to the escapist eschatology which has delivered nation after nation into the jaws of the enemy. We are not overpopulated. God said if you fear Him, he will keep you alive in famine. You don't have to fear global warming, climate change, governments, social pressures, overpopulation or the future. The answer is: Fear the true and living God.


God does not rapture us out of history; He plunges us into it.