WHO ARE THE 144,000?
I get a little crazy when people teach the book of Revelation and give out their interpretation as though it's facts but it's not scriptural. Several people on Youtube keep bringing up the question of "Who are the 144,000?" But, the Word clearly tells us exactly who they are.
#1 They are the firstfruits. What's a firstfruit? Wouldn't it be the first fruit of the faith? Wouldn't these be the Old Testament believers who had a relationship with God, people like King David? People like David's mighty men? Men who went several rounds with the devil in hand-to-hand combat? These guys got physical with their enemies and some of these "Mighty Men" would kill 200 men in one battle with swords, spears and axes or whatnot.
#2 They were called out from the tribes of Israel.
#3 They are already in heaven with Jesus and come down with Jesus and on the way down to the earth, an angel of God seals them in their forehead. Jesus also has an identifying mark on his leg.
#4 They descend from Heaven during the Wrath of God. Timing here is all-important. And it's all laid out in Revelation if you just read it. There's no need for long-winded discussions, debates and interpretations. It's all right in the Word.
The reason why I believe this needs to be addressed is because it's sort of a pet doctrine that people are starting to spread around making believers feel like they're going to get a "special calling" for this period of time and get a special seal of God in their foreheads. But that's NOT going to happen. If you are a servant of God, you will have departed the earth BEFORE the wrath of God gets poured out on His enemies. YOU WON'T BE HERE FOR THE WRATH OR THE BATTLE OF ARMEGGEDON, BROTHERS AND SISTERS.
For heaven's sake, please, please, please read Revelation and ask God to show you what it says. Don't go blindly believing heresay and false doctrines. Some people are so confused, one minute they'll tell you you're going up in the Rapture BEFORE the tribulation. (The Tribulation happens before the Wrath and yes, some of us will be here for that. You will be here for it if you're still alive then. And, so will I. Which is one good reason for STUDYING THE WORD AND GETTING A STRONG RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS !! Amen?)
Then, in the next breath, they're trying to tell you that God is going to select 144,000 followers on the earth to preach the Gospel. What? All of a sudden you're going to get the urge to preach the Gospel? Well, if you're not doing it now, why would you be doing it DURING THE WRATH OF GOD? By VIRTUE of the word "Wrath", doesn't that sort of indicate that there's a whole new ERA opening up?
The Wrath happens when God finally finishes DEALING with humanity and only the most stubborn, rebellious, unrepentent Satan-worshippers are left. These are the Gentiles who attack Jerusalem and burn her with fire. So, God has to come and rescue his backslidden bride from the hands of His enemies. Why? Because He vowed a vow to Israel. And for Jacob's sake, He'll come to rescue her. Then, a remnant will repent. (I'm not talking about the ones who repent before the Wrath. THEY will go UP in the Rapture with all the rest of the believers.)
All that to say, I just hope that you don't get deceived like I once was that believers would be receiving some sort of special mark in their forehead from the angel before going into the Tribulation. It's not going to happen. We have the Holy Spirit and it's up to us to operate in FAITH and in communication with the Lord to be prepared for whatever God has planned out for us.
Some of us will be martyrs. Some of us will be prisoners. Some will be called before leaders and powerful people to give an account of our faith. And we'll love not our lives to the end. We'll give God all the glory. And God will protect us, pour out great grace and provision for us and anoint us to do the job. We'll witness and preach the Gospel and die in faith as a testimony to the love of Jesus Christ. We'll lay down our lives because He laid down His life for us. And, just when it looks totally hopeless, JESUS WILL RETURN IN THE CLOUDS and we will RISE UP TO MEET HIM in the air! And so shall we ever be with the Lord! Hallelujah!
And THEN the 144,000 will join Jesus on their horses to go BACK to the earth and deliver God's wrath. Meanwhile, giant hail stones will be flying around, terrible insects and huge earthquakes but, not to worry because the servants of God on their horses who have some kind of physical bodies will be SEALED in their foreheads so that the angels know where they are at all times.
Does that make sense to you? Not really probably. But, I'm not interpreting AT ALL. I'm relating the events as I have read them in my Bible. It's not confusing. It's not hard to see what's going on scene by scene.
Simply put: The FIRST 5 SEALS concern us on the earth. The 6th SEAL happens AFTER WE ARE GONE. You'll notice it's accompanied by a "GREAT EARTHQUAKE". We won't be here.
The VIALS are the WRATH OF GOD. VIALS=WRATH. Sure, it's interesting reading and all that, but it doesn't concern us except as spectators. We may be allowed to WATCH from our heavenly vantage point. We may have the "best seats in the house" but WE WON'T BE ON THE EARTH. WE ARE NOT APPOINTED TO WRATH.
However, if you have not received Jesus as your personal Savior, NOW is the time for salvation. Ask Jesus to come into your heart and you will be saved from the WRATH to come. We serve a merciful and loving God Who DIED to save you from all your sins and mistakes, sorrows, suffering, and HELL! And you get all that for FREE! Where else can you get a deal like that? I'll tell you where. Nowhere. Everything Satan has to offer will cost you dearly. Misery now and hell hereafter. That's his bargain basement offer.
Why not let go of all of your preconceived ideas of what you thought God was like and just try Jesus? He's way better than you could possibly imagine. He's HEAVENLY. And, you're going to need Him!
Saturday, January 27, 2018
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
"I Surrender All" Again
As we near the age of retirement, our lives slow down and we have a little more time to think, if we allow ourselves to. In this age of rush and stress, thinking can almost be considered a luxury. Who has time to think? I mean on a large scale timewise.
Ever notice when you go into someone's house that they usually have some kind of sound going on? Either the TV is blaring or music or else they're on the computer. It seems that we instinctively fill the air waves with sound so that we don't have to be alone with our own thoughts.
I have this thing about going into the bathroom. It seems whenever I'm in the bathroom, I get hit with memories from the past. I think it was Bill Johnson that said we should never go into the past without Jesus. We are forgiven and we have to remember that. But, there's that temptation to go into the past to fix all the past mistakes we've made. If only we hadn't done this, then this other thing wouldn't have happened. We have messed up so badly in the past that it's a huge temptation to want to go back and change it all. Only, we can't.
But, today, as I was taking time with my thoughts and thinking about my habits and my relationship with the Lord, it occurred to me that our lives are about "coming to the end of ourselves".
We usually think about that in terms of getting "born again". We think of lost souls that way. When they finally come to the end of themselves, they'll turn to the Lord and find out that He was there all the time. And, it's true, we all have to come to the end of ourselves, our own way, our own solutions and our own ideas and interpretations of God in order to find Jesus.
But, today, I realized, it's something we do many, many times throughout our lives. It doesn't just happen once. Maybe the snake shedding his skin is an illustration of that concept. We have to continually put off the old and shed the dead, dry old habits and fears. Drop them like a torn skin.
We have to come to the end of ourself in order to want Jesus so badly we're willing to carve out some time for Him. We say He's in charge of our life. He's in control. That's what we tell ourselves. But, what do we do with our spare time? Do we really ask the Lord to run our schedule?
Or, do we wait until we're drained, depressed, discouraged and running out of spiritual fuel before we finally come to the end of our own resources and decide it's time to turn to God as a last resort? (Believe me, I'm not pointing fingers here.) I'm just starting to realize after 45 years that it's not until I finally surrender and come to the end of myself that I'm ready to throw myself on the Lord and let Him take over. Only then do I let go and let Him step in for a little while.
Yes, people, we have to get out of the way. That's the only way God's going to get anything done through us. He's a lot smarter than we are. He's the Boss. He knows what needs to get done. He knows what the priorities are.
Did you ever notice that the things you judge other people for are the things you feel "need" to be judged? They're the things in your life that you emphasize or place great importance on. Right? We let a lot of "little" things slip by and don't blink an eye. But, those certain things, we get affected by. They jump out and hit us between the eyes. They rub us the wrong way and we just have to make a judgement call on the person who is guilty of them.
It's because we see ourselves in that person. But, we don't recognize ourselves. We think it's the furthest thing from our minds to do such a thing. When, in reality, it's something we would like to do but have forbidden ourselves from doing. So, we feel all lifted up in self-righteousness, thinking we would never do that.
Yes, it's easier in some ways to avoid interaction with people. That way, you're not tempted to judge anyone. But, on the other hand, it's this interaction that brings things to the surface. It forces us to face our fears, to face our weaknesses. We get to see our own faults in the light of someone else's faults or so-called faults.
But, don't get discouraged when you spot the faults of others. Recognize it for what it is. It's humanity. And YOU and I are human. Our flesh is always causing us to sin. No? Well, mine is. Maybe you have the victory over your flesh. The funny things is that, the things we do have the victory over are the things we don't bother judging others for anymore. We have more compassion in those areas.
So, when you feel discouraged with the world and humanity the way they are, it's time to come to the end of yourself AGAIN and fall on your face to Jesus. Amen?
Ever notice when you go into someone's house that they usually have some kind of sound going on? Either the TV is blaring or music or else they're on the computer. It seems that we instinctively fill the air waves with sound so that we don't have to be alone with our own thoughts.
I have this thing about going into the bathroom. It seems whenever I'm in the bathroom, I get hit with memories from the past. I think it was Bill Johnson that said we should never go into the past without Jesus. We are forgiven and we have to remember that. But, there's that temptation to go into the past to fix all the past mistakes we've made. If only we hadn't done this, then this other thing wouldn't have happened. We have messed up so badly in the past that it's a huge temptation to want to go back and change it all. Only, we can't.
But, today, as I was taking time with my thoughts and thinking about my habits and my relationship with the Lord, it occurred to me that our lives are about "coming to the end of ourselves".
We usually think about that in terms of getting "born again". We think of lost souls that way. When they finally come to the end of themselves, they'll turn to the Lord and find out that He was there all the time. And, it's true, we all have to come to the end of ourselves, our own way, our own solutions and our own ideas and interpretations of God in order to find Jesus.
But, today, I realized, it's something we do many, many times throughout our lives. It doesn't just happen once. Maybe the snake shedding his skin is an illustration of that concept. We have to continually put off the old and shed the dead, dry old habits and fears. Drop them like a torn skin.
We have to come to the end of ourself in order to want Jesus so badly we're willing to carve out some time for Him. We say He's in charge of our life. He's in control. That's what we tell ourselves. But, what do we do with our spare time? Do we really ask the Lord to run our schedule?
Or, do we wait until we're drained, depressed, discouraged and running out of spiritual fuel before we finally come to the end of our own resources and decide it's time to turn to God as a last resort? (Believe me, I'm not pointing fingers here.) I'm just starting to realize after 45 years that it's not until I finally surrender and come to the end of myself that I'm ready to throw myself on the Lord and let Him take over. Only then do I let go and let Him step in for a little while.
Yes, people, we have to get out of the way. That's the only way God's going to get anything done through us. He's a lot smarter than we are. He's the Boss. He knows what needs to get done. He knows what the priorities are.
Did you ever notice that the things you judge other people for are the things you feel "need" to be judged? They're the things in your life that you emphasize or place great importance on. Right? We let a lot of "little" things slip by and don't blink an eye. But, those certain things, we get affected by. They jump out and hit us between the eyes. They rub us the wrong way and we just have to make a judgement call on the person who is guilty of them.
It's because we see ourselves in that person. But, we don't recognize ourselves. We think it's the furthest thing from our minds to do such a thing. When, in reality, it's something we would like to do but have forbidden ourselves from doing. So, we feel all lifted up in self-righteousness, thinking we would never do that.
Yes, it's easier in some ways to avoid interaction with people. That way, you're not tempted to judge anyone. But, on the other hand, it's this interaction that brings things to the surface. It forces us to face our fears, to face our weaknesses. We get to see our own faults in the light of someone else's faults or so-called faults.
But, don't get discouraged when you spot the faults of others. Recognize it for what it is. It's humanity. And YOU and I are human. Our flesh is always causing us to sin. No? Well, mine is. Maybe you have the victory over your flesh. The funny things is that, the things we do have the victory over are the things we don't bother judging others for anymore. We have more compassion in those areas.
So, when you feel discouraged with the world and humanity the way they are, it's time to come to the end of yourself AGAIN and fall on your face to Jesus. Amen?
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
WE'RE ALWAYS ON THE BATTLE FIELD
The war is raging all around us. From the moment we open our eyes in the morning until we close them again at night, we are in a war zone. Don't think for a moment that the devil is ever idle. He never stops. His attack is continuous.
BUT, he has to follow the rules. When we command him in the name of Jesus, he must obey. He might TRY to sneak around it, drag his feet or bluff you. But, he MUST obey orders from the Lord. He is bound. His power is limited and restricted by OUR PRAYERS. Every word we speak has spiritual power against the attacks of the enemy.
So, wield the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God and pierce through the flimsy armour of Satan. Don't let him get away with murder. In fact, you can just ignore everything he has to say. That's what Jesus did. He never gave the Devil a platform to preach. He told him to keep quiet.
Just don't be surprised if the Devil changes his tactics and comes at you from another angle, trying to make you think it's somebody else or something else. He camouflages himself in the bushes.
There are very few of us humans on this earth that will actually worship Satan. That takes a whole lot of stupidity which, thank God, most of us just don't have. Most of us are smarter than that. So, knowing that, Satan demands fear. Fear, as he knows, is pretty much the same as worship. Because, when you fear him, you listen and OBEY. Out of fear. That's the Devil's control over you!
Now, that doesn't sound like he's going to smirk at you and slowly drag his feet as he reluctantly starts to walk away, does it? No. He's going to RUN! He's going to flee! Like most dogs, the devil is more afraid of you than you are of him. Did you know that? He's afraid of the light! He can't stand the light. He freaks out because he knows that his end is near. His punishment is near! He is going to suffer for all his evil works.
But, not us. Jesus knows we can't possibly suffer enough to "pay" for our sins. So, He took all that payment on His own sinless back. What a gift! What a precious gift He gave to us. We are no longer slaves of fear. We are children of God!
God sent Jesus to suffer and die in our place. How can we possibly pay back such a gift? Well, we can't. It's a gift. That means we can only accept it. And, it's rude not to accept a gift. Didn't your mamma teach you that? It's rude when someone hands you a gift for you to not accept it. That's like slapping the giver on the face. It's like when a sword-fighter slaps his opponent across the face with a white glove. That means he intends to duel to the DEATH with him.
So, don't reject or refuse God's GIFT. It's the most precious Gift in the universe. In fact, if you receive this Gift, it's every gift you will ever need all wrapped up in one miraculous Gift. Did you get your Gift? It's got your name on it! If you didn't get it yet, CLAIM IT NOW.
It's free! Who wouldn't want a free gift? No, we don't deserve it. Most of us didn't even have the common sense to ask for it. We really didn't expect it. In fact, a lot of us thought we might have to spend eternity in hell to try to pay for our sins.
Some people think they have to pay for their sins while they're on this earth so that they won't have to suffer in the world to come. But, it's not possible to suffer in the flesh for our sins. Because, that suffering would be selfish and selfishness is a sin.
Only the pure blood of Jesus Christ can wash our sins away. He died not for Himself, but for us. His was a pure, unselfish sacrifice of Love. And, all we need to do is RECEIVE it. How easy is that? Don't question the Giver. Don't argue that you're not worthy to receive it because you definitely are not worthy. None of us is.
Most of all, don't allow the lies of Satan to rob you of this eternally brilliant Gift. Like your mamma taught you, "Take it! And, say 'Thank You.'" Can you do that? Just accept Jesus and the free gift of eternal life. And have a wonderful new life, born again into freedom. We are no longer slaves of fear or Satan. We are God's kids. And He is the best Father you could ever ask for!
BUT, he has to follow the rules. When we command him in the name of Jesus, he must obey. He might TRY to sneak around it, drag his feet or bluff you. But, he MUST obey orders from the Lord. He is bound. His power is limited and restricted by OUR PRAYERS. Every word we speak has spiritual power against the attacks of the enemy.
So, wield the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God and pierce through the flimsy armour of Satan. Don't let him get away with murder. In fact, you can just ignore everything he has to say. That's what Jesus did. He never gave the Devil a platform to preach. He told him to keep quiet.
Just don't be surprised if the Devil changes his tactics and comes at you from another angle, trying to make you think it's somebody else or something else. He camouflages himself in the bushes.
The Main Message of Satan
The underlying message that Satan/the Devil is trying to get across is: "FEAR ME." He wants us to fear him because our fear is a form of worship. If Satan can get us to FEAR, he has achieved his goal. In a sense, it doesn't even matter then if we believe and worship Jesus or not. When we are in fear, we are bowing to the Father of Fear, the Author of Confusion and Panic, the Father of LIES, Satan.
There are very few of us humans on this earth that will actually worship Satan. That takes a whole lot of stupidity which, thank God, most of us just don't have. Most of us are smarter than that. So, knowing that, Satan demands fear. Fear, as he knows, is pretty much the same as worship. Because, when you fear him, you listen and OBEY. Out of fear. That's the Devil's control over you!
Resist Fear!
The Bible says, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you."
Now, that doesn't sound like he's going to smirk at you and slowly drag his feet as he reluctantly starts to walk away, does it? No. He's going to RUN! He's going to flee! Like most dogs, the devil is more afraid of you than you are of him. Did you know that? He's afraid of the light! He can't stand the light. He freaks out because he knows that his end is near. His punishment is near! He is going to suffer for all his evil works.
But, not us. Jesus knows we can't possibly suffer enough to "pay" for our sins. So, He took all that payment on His own sinless back. What a gift! What a precious gift He gave to us. We are no longer slaves of fear. We are children of God!
God sent Jesus to suffer and die in our place. How can we possibly pay back such a gift? Well, we can't. It's a gift. That means we can only accept it. And, it's rude not to accept a gift. Didn't your mamma teach you that? It's rude when someone hands you a gift for you to not accept it. That's like slapping the giver on the face. It's like when a sword-fighter slaps his opponent across the face with a white glove. That means he intends to duel to the DEATH with him.
So, don't reject or refuse God's GIFT. It's the most precious Gift in the universe. In fact, if you receive this Gift, it's every gift you will ever need all wrapped up in one miraculous Gift. Did you get your Gift? It's got your name on it! If you didn't get it yet, CLAIM IT NOW.
It's free! Who wouldn't want a free gift? No, we don't deserve it. Most of us didn't even have the common sense to ask for it. We really didn't expect it. In fact, a lot of us thought we might have to spend eternity in hell to try to pay for our sins.
Some people think they have to pay for their sins while they're on this earth so that they won't have to suffer in the world to come. But, it's not possible to suffer in the flesh for our sins. Because, that suffering would be selfish and selfishness is a sin.
Only the pure blood of Jesus Christ can wash our sins away. He died not for Himself, but for us. His was a pure, unselfish sacrifice of Love. And, all we need to do is RECEIVE it. How easy is that? Don't question the Giver. Don't argue that you're not worthy to receive it because you definitely are not worthy. None of us is.
Most of all, don't allow the lies of Satan to rob you of this eternally brilliant Gift. Like your mamma taught you, "Take it! And, say 'Thank You.'" Can you do that? Just accept Jesus and the free gift of eternal life. And have a wonderful new life, born again into freedom. We are no longer slaves of fear or Satan. We are God's kids. And He is the best Father you could ever ask for!
Sunday, July 30, 2017
Don't Argue with the Devil
This is a mistake we all have made. We need to be reminded that we should NEVER go into battle with the enemy in our own strength. Our own carnal mind, reasoning and the "wisdom of men" is no match for the devil. Believe me. You can get torn to bits, spiritually.
The enemy (Satan, the devil or who used to be Lucifer) loves to get us off-guard and involved in hand-to-hand combat with him. He knows how weak we are without the Lord's anointing, without the Holy Spirit. That's the only way Satan has a chance to beat us down, get us discouraged, drained and totally useless.
So, he starts off seemingly innocently with a question. You're face-to-face with a relative, a close buddy or a respected member of your society when, before you know it, the conversation escalates. It usually begins with a little question or doubt or remark. Often, it's about YOU.
We're sensitive. Let's face it. Nobody likes to be put down or criticized. We want to believe we are the chosen ones, the ones who have found the Truth and are walking in "the way", bla-bla-blah. But then someone comes along and ribs us or jabs us or (heaven forbid) full-on hits us where it hurts most. (Don't underestimate Satan's ability to know exactly where your Achilles' heel is.)
So, Satan, or the devil ---usually it's one of his minions-- uses a person that is close to us. Relatives are his first choice because there's an unwritten law concerning our relationship with relatives. We listen to our relatives and try to respect them since they have some of the same genes as us. Forget genes!
What did Jesus say about relatives? Plain and simple He warned us that they are our ENEMIES.
Some of us have found this out the hard way. And, when I say hard, I mean the way of arguing. The simple truth is that, some people love to argue. They will go out of their way to pick a fight. It doesn't even matter what they argue about or with whom. Their object is to put you down.
Why?
So they can put themselves up. Or, at least, they feel they can put themselves up by beating you down, walking all over you, pointing out all your faults and making you look like an idiot in front of others. So, as I was saying, they start off with a simple little question. From there, it's pick-pick-pick. Usually attacking your personal qualities, pointing out that you have no qualifications, no expertise, no abilities whatsoever, so who do you think you are, anyway, trying to tell me about God?
I am the one who should be telling you about my concept of God and the meaning of the universe. But, I won't. You should ask me whatever you need to know. I know everything. I'm a well-spring of knowledge. You should respect me for the giant of knowledge and experience that I am.
They love to see you get emotionally involved. As soon as the blood rises in your cheeks or your nostrils start to flare, they know they have you! You're a goner. Now you're taking it personally. You are on the hook and going down. And they love to watch you struggle, wiggle, squirm and jerk on the line. You are being played for a sucker. And how the devil's own loves the game.
Being the humans that they are, most relatives will use their so-called "support" or "help" as an advantage over you, making you feel obligated to them in some way. In some cases, even when you owe them nothing, they'll bring up the past or remind you of how they're doing something for you that you are dependent on them for. (And, by the way, it's not God that you're depending on. It's them.)
To the unsaved, unbelieving, and sometimes, reprobate relative, you are the oddball. They somehow believe that being related to you by blood gives them the privilege to disrespect, ignore and belittle you. (I'm talking about relatives who are not born-again and not Spirit-filled, those who do not love Jesus and have obviously chosen a different path.)
What we're doing here is we're exposing one of the enemy's tactics that he has used billions of times down throughout history. And, why does he tend to use this same tactic over and over? Because it works.
Oh, yes, it works.
The thing is that most of us believers feel it's our "duty" to "deliver our soul" and to get the message out to our relatives and everyone else. So, we feel all righteous and used of the Lord when we're preaching the Gospel, standing up for Jesus and speaking the Word. That makes us feel like we're dutifully obeying the Lord and fully in God's will. ---And sometimes, we are.
But, sometimes we're just not. Sometimes we're going into a battle that was never God's will. He never told us to go into that battle. He never put the words in our mouth. We're simply not anointed, we're not being led of the Lord and therefore we do not have the power or the strength for that battle.
How do you tell the difference?
1. Do you feel like banging your head against the wall and screaming?
2. Is the person you are "talking" to (possibly arguing with) listening at all?
3. Is the conversation going around in circles and making you dizzy?
4. Has anything you said resonated with the person? Any dent?
5. Is the conversation focused on the Word or is it mostly focused on pride, vanity, materialism and nonsense?
6. Finally, does the altercation or conversation leave you feeling hopeless, despondent, discouraged, drained and almost suicidal?
When you come away from a conversation or argument feeling wounded, bruised, angry and fed up, it's exactly Satan's cup of tea. His mission has been accomplished. He hit you below the belt several times, had you gasping for air and pretty much won the attack on your dignity and inspiration.
Hopefully, we'll learn our lesson after one or two of these altercations. Sadly, some of us never learn.
Why not?
I'd call it pride. There's no other reasonable explanation for why we would want to enter into a counter-productive, time-wasting, draining argument with a "goat" or "reprobate". If we're honest, we have to admit our pride makes us do it. We feel we have something to prove.
But, not for the Lord. Oh yes, we tell ourselves it's all for the glory of God. We tell ourselves it's our duty to prove that our God is the One and Only true God. So, we argue.
At first, we pull out a verse or two and brandish the Word, deftly enough. But, as soon as it gets personal, our defenses go up. Then it becomes a battle ---not for the Lord but to defend our pride. True or not?
So, when we are faced with this kind of battle, what should we do?
1. Pray. Ask the Lord what to do.
2. Do what God tells you to do no matter what anybody else says or does.
3. If the Lord tells you to walk away, walk away. If He tells you to stand and do battle, put on the whole armor of God. Don't try to fight the enemy in your own strength.
4. Remember that our God is Love. Speak every word in love. Don't allow yourself to become angry.
5. Don't get drawn into an argument. Be very wary of arguing even if it's for the Lord. God is able to defend Himself. He doesn't need us to defend Him.
6. Your greatest witness may be your silence.
7. Don't be judgmental. Only God knows man's/woman's heart.
8. If there is one appropriate scripture that the Lord gives you for the situation, quote it in love. Quote it several times, if possible, because the Word will sink in and take hold of his/her heart even if at a later date. The Word of God does not return void.
9. Remember that often actions can speak louder than words. Your generosity, kindness and consideration put into action is a great testimony of God's love.
10. If it's obvious that the person is in a bad mood or angry, avoid communication. Excuse yourself.
You'll notice that Jesus didn't waste words with the devil. He would say, "Hold your peace and come out of him." Or, "Get thee hence, Satan." Jesus didn't have long conversations with the devil or let him do all the talking. He certainly never argued with him.
During His greatest temptation, he simply told the devil, "It is written..." then quoted the Word to contradict him. He didn't bother getting into dialogue or refuting his accusations. He didn't try to prove to the devil who He was. He knew Who He was and He knew that God knew.
We are affected by other people around us. You can be all alone in your room enjoying sweet fellowship with the Lord and come out radiant with the Spirit of God, only to be thrust into a dark cloud that's been hanging over someone else's head all day long. Suddenly, you become involved in their dark cloud. Yuck.
How much easier is it to walk away? But that's when it takes discernment and hearing from the Lord as to what to do because, sometimes that person really needs a boost up. You may be the only one who can give it to them. After all, you're on a higher level, vibrating at heaven's beat, happy and full of faith. So you have the power to encourage them and lift them up to your level. Why not?
Just be ware of deep dark bottomless pits ---people who want to do nothing else but drag you down into the depths of despair with them to wallow in their misery. Avoid them like the plague.
The enemy (Satan, the devil or who used to be Lucifer) loves to get us off-guard and involved in hand-to-hand combat with him. He knows how weak we are without the Lord's anointing, without the Holy Spirit. That's the only way Satan has a chance to beat us down, get us discouraged, drained and totally useless.
So, he starts off seemingly innocently with a question. You're face-to-face with a relative, a close buddy or a respected member of your society when, before you know it, the conversation escalates. It usually begins with a little question or doubt or remark. Often, it's about YOU.
We're sensitive. Let's face it. Nobody likes to be put down or criticized. We want to believe we are the chosen ones, the ones who have found the Truth and are walking in "the way", bla-bla-blah. But then someone comes along and ribs us or jabs us or (heaven forbid) full-on hits us where it hurts most. (Don't underestimate Satan's ability to know exactly where your Achilles' heel is.)
So, Satan, or the devil ---usually it's one of his minions-- uses a person that is close to us. Relatives are his first choice because there's an unwritten law concerning our relationship with relatives. We listen to our relatives and try to respect them since they have some of the same genes as us. Forget genes!
What did Jesus say about relatives? Plain and simple He warned us that they are our ENEMIES.
Matthew 10:36, "And a man's foes shall be they of his own household."What did he say about your brother? And even your children?
Matthew 10:21, "And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death."
Some of us have found this out the hard way. And, when I say hard, I mean the way of arguing. The simple truth is that, some people love to argue. They will go out of their way to pick a fight. It doesn't even matter what they argue about or with whom. Their object is to put you down.
Why?
So they can put themselves up. Or, at least, they feel they can put themselves up by beating you down, walking all over you, pointing out all your faults and making you look like an idiot in front of others. So, as I was saying, they start off with a simple little question. From there, it's pick-pick-pick. Usually attacking your personal qualities, pointing out that you have no qualifications, no expertise, no abilities whatsoever, so who do you think you are, anyway, trying to tell me about God?
I am the one who should be telling you about my concept of God and the meaning of the universe. But, I won't. You should ask me whatever you need to know. I know everything. I'm a well-spring of knowledge. You should respect me for the giant of knowledge and experience that I am.
They love to see you get emotionally involved. As soon as the blood rises in your cheeks or your nostrils start to flare, they know they have you! You're a goner. Now you're taking it personally. You are on the hook and going down. And they love to watch you struggle, wiggle, squirm and jerk on the line. You are being played for a sucker. And how the devil's own loves the game.
Being the humans that they are, most relatives will use their so-called "support" or "help" as an advantage over you, making you feel obligated to them in some way. In some cases, even when you owe them nothing, they'll bring up the past or remind you of how they're doing something for you that you are dependent on them for. (And, by the way, it's not God that you're depending on. It's them.)
To the unsaved, unbelieving, and sometimes, reprobate relative, you are the oddball. They somehow believe that being related to you by blood gives them the privilege to disrespect, ignore and belittle you. (I'm talking about relatives who are not born-again and not Spirit-filled, those who do not love Jesus and have obviously chosen a different path.)
What we're doing here is we're exposing one of the enemy's tactics that he has used billions of times down throughout history. And, why does he tend to use this same tactic over and over? Because it works.
Oh, yes, it works.
The thing is that most of us believers feel it's our "duty" to "deliver our soul" and to get the message out to our relatives and everyone else. So, we feel all righteous and used of the Lord when we're preaching the Gospel, standing up for Jesus and speaking the Word. That makes us feel like we're dutifully obeying the Lord and fully in God's will. ---And sometimes, we are.
But, sometimes we're just not. Sometimes we're going into a battle that was never God's will. He never told us to go into that battle. He never put the words in our mouth. We're simply not anointed, we're not being led of the Lord and therefore we do not have the power or the strength for that battle.
How do you tell the difference?
1. Do you feel like banging your head against the wall and screaming?
2. Is the person you are "talking" to (possibly arguing with) listening at all?
3. Is the conversation going around in circles and making you dizzy?
4. Has anything you said resonated with the person? Any dent?
5. Is the conversation focused on the Word or is it mostly focused on pride, vanity, materialism and nonsense?
6. Finally, does the altercation or conversation leave you feeling hopeless, despondent, discouraged, drained and almost suicidal?
When you come away from a conversation or argument feeling wounded, bruised, angry and fed up, it's exactly Satan's cup of tea. His mission has been accomplished. He hit you below the belt several times, had you gasping for air and pretty much won the attack on your dignity and inspiration.
Hopefully, we'll learn our lesson after one or two of these altercations. Sadly, some of us never learn.
Why not?
I'd call it pride. There's no other reasonable explanation for why we would want to enter into a counter-productive, time-wasting, draining argument with a "goat" or "reprobate". If we're honest, we have to admit our pride makes us do it. We feel we have something to prove.
But, not for the Lord. Oh yes, we tell ourselves it's all for the glory of God. We tell ourselves it's our duty to prove that our God is the One and Only true God. So, we argue.
At first, we pull out a verse or two and brandish the Word, deftly enough. But, as soon as it gets personal, our defenses go up. Then it becomes a battle ---not for the Lord but to defend our pride. True or not?
So, when we are faced with this kind of battle, what should we do?
1. Pray. Ask the Lord what to do.
2. Do what God tells you to do no matter what anybody else says or does.
3. If the Lord tells you to walk away, walk away. If He tells you to stand and do battle, put on the whole armor of God. Don't try to fight the enemy in your own strength.
4. Remember that our God is Love. Speak every word in love. Don't allow yourself to become angry.
5. Don't get drawn into an argument. Be very wary of arguing even if it's for the Lord. God is able to defend Himself. He doesn't need us to defend Him.
6. Your greatest witness may be your silence.
7. Don't be judgmental. Only God knows man's/woman's heart.
8. If there is one appropriate scripture that the Lord gives you for the situation, quote it in love. Quote it several times, if possible, because the Word will sink in and take hold of his/her heart even if at a later date. The Word of God does not return void.
9. Remember that often actions can speak louder than words. Your generosity, kindness and consideration put into action is a great testimony of God's love.
10. If it's obvious that the person is in a bad mood or angry, avoid communication. Excuse yourself.
You'll notice that Jesus didn't waste words with the devil. He would say, "Hold your peace and come out of him." Or, "Get thee hence, Satan." Jesus didn't have long conversations with the devil or let him do all the talking. He certainly never argued with him.
During His greatest temptation, he simply told the devil, "It is written..." then quoted the Word to contradict him. He didn't bother getting into dialogue or refuting his accusations. He didn't try to prove to the devil who He was. He knew Who He was and He knew that God knew.
We are affected by other people around us. You can be all alone in your room enjoying sweet fellowship with the Lord and come out radiant with the Spirit of God, only to be thrust into a dark cloud that's been hanging over someone else's head all day long. Suddenly, you become involved in their dark cloud. Yuck.
How much easier is it to walk away? But that's when it takes discernment and hearing from the Lord as to what to do because, sometimes that person really needs a boost up. You may be the only one who can give it to them. After all, you're on a higher level, vibrating at heaven's beat, happy and full of faith. So you have the power to encourage them and lift them up to your level. Why not?
Just be ware of deep dark bottomless pits ---people who want to do nothing else but drag you down into the depths of despair with them to wallow in their misery. Avoid them like the plague.
Sunday, May 21, 2017
CHRISTIANS ARE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL
THERE'S NO DENYING IT
There's no getting away from it. Those who believe in and receive Jesus Christ as their personal savior are the children of Israel. We sprung from the roots of the tribe of Israel who was the son of Isaac, who was the son of Abraham.
And, Abraham, as we know, is the Father of Faith.
Now, you may look at this and think, "But, that's just the flesh." And, honestly, that's the way I thought for years. I knew that "the flesh profits nothing" and I couldn't consolidate the fact that God used fleshly people to carry forth His covenant.
So, what changed my mind?
I guess you'd have to say, God did. One day I was thinking and started moving from thinking to praying. (Thinking doesn't always get you where you want to go. You can start off with a thought but it's a dead end if it's not carried into prayer and communing with the Lord.) Anyway, I was thinking, "WHY did you choose the nation of Israel above all others when they turned their backs on You?"
The obvious answer is, "NOT ALL of them turned their backs on God." Even though their famous king, King Solomon backslid and began to do evil in the sight of the Lord, that didn't renounce the children of Israel's claim to the Kingdom of God because God made a way for them to be saved from their sins: Jesus.
A PHYSICAL PEOPLE GAVE BIRTH TO A PHYSICAL GOD
Part of the answer I got was: "God needed a physical people to give BIRTH to a physical God." That's why God protected, provided for, and blessed Israel down throughout history. If God had not commanded Israel to go forth into battle to utterly destroy the nations that were inhabiting the Promised Land, those nations would have destroyed Israel.
Worse: those nations would have corrupted Israel and led them astray to worship their false gods. ---Woops! That's exactly what happened! Over and over and over again, Israel turned to worship idols.
Why? Because they hadn't utterly destroyed the nations God sent them to destroy. Over and over, they allowed certain of their enemies to co-exist with them, intermarrying with them and allowing them to continue in their own wicked traditions and religious worship ---idolatry.
Maybe Israel was curious to see what the strange gods had to offer. Maybe they admired them.
HOW GOD SEES UNSAVED ISRAEL
Ezekiel talks about two adulterous sisters in Ezekiel, chapter 23. They committed whoredoms in Egypt and Assyria. Their names were Aholah and Aholibah. Aholah is Samariah and Aholibah is Jerusalem.
"And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours,
Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.
Thus she committed her whoredoms with them, with all them that were the chosen men of Assyria, and with all on whom she doted: with all their idols she defiled herself." - Ezekiel 23: 5-7
This is all to prove to us that flesh cannot save us. We cannot look to Israel in the flesh to save us. In the flesh, Israel is just as wicked as the nations she went awhoring after. There is not purity in Israel in the flesh. Physically, Israel is a whore. The Bible tells us this many times.
The Old Testament is a warning to us not to follow after Israel.
ISRAEL'S FLESH DIDN'T SAVE US
Nevertheless, salvation came through Israel, as we know because Jesus was the son of King David. So, although King David gave birth to King Solomon who did evil in the sight of the Lord, King David's lineage also gave birth to King Jesus Who died to wash away all that evil.
However, many children of Israel chose to remain in their sins. And, this breaks God's heart. Jesus said,
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gatthered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings and ye would not!" - Matthew 23:37
There's an exclamation mark after that verse. That shows the anguish Jesus felt in crying out to Jerusalem for her waywardness.
ISRAEL NEEDED A SAVIOUR
Yet, as terrible as it is, if Israel had not backslidden and turned her back on God, she would not have needed a Saviour. AND, if Israel didn't need a saviour, she could have saved us all! But, she did need a messiah as do all of us.
The next question I have is this: "Many of the children of Israel backslide but what about their religion? Is the Jewish religion still viable?" And the answer I get is a resounding, "NO."
The Ten Commandments were laws to govern the flesh. Jesus gave us a law of love that requires us to go much further than to "not do" things. The law of love requires us to control our evil thoughts, our selfish actions, even if it's "legal", to take the extra step of acting out of love and unselfishness towards our neighbor and to love our enemy!
THE LAW OF LOVE GOVERNS US WHO ARE SAVED
Jesus showed us that it just wasn't all that important anymore to "keep the Sabbath" as it was to heal the lame and show mercy and love to our fellow man. We shouldn't be bound to the law when there's a choice between doing the loving, kind, merciful thing or sticking to the rigid, imperfect law.
WHAT? Am I saying that the law that God gave to Moses is imperfect? YES. I AM.
"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:" - Romans 8:3
So then, where do we get our law from now? How do we know what's right and wrong?
THE HOLY SPIRIT
Let's try to wrap our head around this one. He said He wrote His law in our hearts, right? In that case, we can depend on the Holy Spirit in our hearts to lead us into all righteousness.
"For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." - Romans 8:13 & 14
Here's the real kicker for me. I'm really struggling with this one because it's so outrageous. The whole reason we are living on this planet and we didn't just fly into heaven the minute after we got saved is here. It's such a shock to actually receive this word of truth into one's heart. But, it can't be received into the mind. It's supernatural. It's going to take a miracle.
"That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." - Romans 8:4
Somehow, God is going to fulfill His righteousness through these earthbound clods of clay, ---us. You and me are going to fulfill the righteousness of God by grabbing onto the Holy Spirit and being led of that wonderful, powerful Spirit of God... riding on His coat-tails, so-to-speak and just doing whatever He tells us to do.
It's going to be going above and beyond the call of the duty of the law. It's going to be following in the footsteps of Jesus. And Jesus said,
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father." - John 14:12
Why didn't Jesus just write his law in stone so we would know exactly what we were allowed to do? Because, for one reason, we are to apply the Law of Love to every given situation. It's not a "One Size Fits All" law, like the Ten Commandments were. That's because, we are meant to live by faith. We're supposed to be hearing from God every step of the way. And that's another reason He didn't carve it in stone, is because Holy Spirit wants to go with us every step of the way!
We have Israel to thank for Jesus' physical birth. Israel birthed the Saviour of the World. But, he had to be nailed to a cross and his flesh made cursed in the eyes of God so that God turned His back on Jesus just like Israel turned her back on God.
In other words, the physical Israel was crucified, died and hidden behind a rock. It's no longer a matter of Israel vs the Gentiles. We can no longer look at Israel in the flesh for leadership. Gentiles are now anyone who does not believe in Jesus, particularly those who have rejected Jesus Christ as their Messiah. That means, many children of Israel are Gentiles or "Goyem".
The traditions and ceremonies of the Jewish religion are shadows of a dead law. To partake of those religious ceremonies is to deny Christ.
"Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter." - Romans 7: 4 & 6
If you have the faith to do something, you have permission from God to do it. What does your heart tell you? What is written on your heart? That's where you find the "law" to guide you. We don't even need the dear Apostle Paul to tell us the "law" because the guidelines he gave to his church in his day do not necessarily apply to us. In fact, there is no law anymore except the Law of Love.
In the flesh, in the courts, the Ten Commandments apply to those who are not walking in the Spirit. That's why Paul told his church not to take their brother to the law. The Law of Love supersedes the law of the land. Jesus gave us the example that if you get sued for your robe, give it and give even more just to show that person the love and generosity of God's Spirit in you.
Love is greater than the law. There are no longer any laws, ceremonies or rules that can lead us to perfection. Only the Blood of Jesus Christ can do that. Are YOU covered in the blood?
There's no getting away from it. Those who believe in and receive Jesus Christ as their personal savior are the children of Israel. We sprung from the roots of the tribe of Israel who was the son of Isaac, who was the son of Abraham.
And, Abraham, as we know, is the Father of Faith.
Now, you may look at this and think, "But, that's just the flesh." And, honestly, that's the way I thought for years. I knew that "the flesh profits nothing" and I couldn't consolidate the fact that God used fleshly people to carry forth His covenant.
So, what changed my mind?
I guess you'd have to say, God did. One day I was thinking and started moving from thinking to praying. (Thinking doesn't always get you where you want to go. You can start off with a thought but it's a dead end if it's not carried into prayer and communing with the Lord.) Anyway, I was thinking, "WHY did you choose the nation of Israel above all others when they turned their backs on You?"
The obvious answer is, "NOT ALL of them turned their backs on God." Even though their famous king, King Solomon backslid and began to do evil in the sight of the Lord, that didn't renounce the children of Israel's claim to the Kingdom of God because God made a way for them to be saved from their sins: Jesus.
A PHYSICAL PEOPLE GAVE BIRTH TO A PHYSICAL GOD
Part of the answer I got was: "God needed a physical people to give BIRTH to a physical God." That's why God protected, provided for, and blessed Israel down throughout history. If God had not commanded Israel to go forth into battle to utterly destroy the nations that were inhabiting the Promised Land, those nations would have destroyed Israel.
Worse: those nations would have corrupted Israel and led them astray to worship their false gods. ---Woops! That's exactly what happened! Over and over and over again, Israel turned to worship idols.
Why? Because they hadn't utterly destroyed the nations God sent them to destroy. Over and over, they allowed certain of their enemies to co-exist with them, intermarrying with them and allowing them to continue in their own wicked traditions and religious worship ---idolatry.
Maybe Israel was curious to see what the strange gods had to offer. Maybe they admired them.
HOW GOD SEES UNSAVED ISRAEL
Ezekiel talks about two adulterous sisters in Ezekiel, chapter 23. They committed whoredoms in Egypt and Assyria. Their names were Aholah and Aholibah. Aholah is Samariah and Aholibah is Jerusalem.
"And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours,
Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.
Thus she committed her whoredoms with them, with all them that were the chosen men of Assyria, and with all on whom she doted: with all their idols she defiled herself." - Ezekiel 23: 5-7
This is all to prove to us that flesh cannot save us. We cannot look to Israel in the flesh to save us. In the flesh, Israel is just as wicked as the nations she went awhoring after. There is not purity in Israel in the flesh. Physically, Israel is a whore. The Bible tells us this many times.
The Old Testament is a warning to us not to follow after Israel.
ISRAEL'S FLESH DIDN'T SAVE US
Nevertheless, salvation came through Israel, as we know because Jesus was the son of King David. So, although King David gave birth to King Solomon who did evil in the sight of the Lord, King David's lineage also gave birth to King Jesus Who died to wash away all that evil.
However, many children of Israel chose to remain in their sins. And, this breaks God's heart. Jesus said,
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gatthered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings and ye would not!" - Matthew 23:37
There's an exclamation mark after that verse. That shows the anguish Jesus felt in crying out to Jerusalem for her waywardness.
ISRAEL NEEDED A SAVIOUR
Yet, as terrible as it is, if Israel had not backslidden and turned her back on God, she would not have needed a Saviour. AND, if Israel didn't need a saviour, she could have saved us all! But, she did need a messiah as do all of us.
The next question I have is this: "Many of the children of Israel backslide but what about their religion? Is the Jewish religion still viable?" And the answer I get is a resounding, "NO."
The Ten Commandments were laws to govern the flesh. Jesus gave us a law of love that requires us to go much further than to "not do" things. The law of love requires us to control our evil thoughts, our selfish actions, even if it's "legal", to take the extra step of acting out of love and unselfishness towards our neighbor and to love our enemy!
THE LAW OF LOVE GOVERNS US WHO ARE SAVED
Jesus showed us that it just wasn't all that important anymore to "keep the Sabbath" as it was to heal the lame and show mercy and love to our fellow man. We shouldn't be bound to the law when there's a choice between doing the loving, kind, merciful thing or sticking to the rigid, imperfect law.
WHAT? Am I saying that the law that God gave to Moses is imperfect? YES. I AM.
"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:" - Romans 8:3
So then, where do we get our law from now? How do we know what's right and wrong?
THE HOLY SPIRIT
Let's try to wrap our head around this one. He said He wrote His law in our hearts, right? In that case, we can depend on the Holy Spirit in our hearts to lead us into all righteousness.
"For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." - Romans 8:13 & 14
Here's the real kicker for me. I'm really struggling with this one because it's so outrageous. The whole reason we are living on this planet and we didn't just fly into heaven the minute after we got saved is here. It's such a shock to actually receive this word of truth into one's heart. But, it can't be received into the mind. It's supernatural. It's going to take a miracle.
"That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." - Romans 8:4
Somehow, God is going to fulfill His righteousness through these earthbound clods of clay, ---us. You and me are going to fulfill the righteousness of God by grabbing onto the Holy Spirit and being led of that wonderful, powerful Spirit of God... riding on His coat-tails, so-to-speak and just doing whatever He tells us to do.
It's going to be going above and beyond the call of the duty of the law. It's going to be following in the footsteps of Jesus. And Jesus said,
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father." - John 14:12
Why didn't Jesus just write his law in stone so we would know exactly what we were allowed to do? Because, for one reason, we are to apply the Law of Love to every given situation. It's not a "One Size Fits All" law, like the Ten Commandments were. That's because, we are meant to live by faith. We're supposed to be hearing from God every step of the way. And that's another reason He didn't carve it in stone, is because Holy Spirit wants to go with us every step of the way!
We have Israel to thank for Jesus' physical birth. Israel birthed the Saviour of the World. But, he had to be nailed to a cross and his flesh made cursed in the eyes of God so that God turned His back on Jesus just like Israel turned her back on God.
In other words, the physical Israel was crucified, died and hidden behind a rock. It's no longer a matter of Israel vs the Gentiles. We can no longer look at Israel in the flesh for leadership. Gentiles are now anyone who does not believe in Jesus, particularly those who have rejected Jesus Christ as their Messiah. That means, many children of Israel are Gentiles or "Goyem".
The traditions and ceremonies of the Jewish religion are shadows of a dead law. To partake of those religious ceremonies is to deny Christ.
"Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter." - Romans 7: 4 & 6
If you have the faith to do something, you have permission from God to do it. What does your heart tell you? What is written on your heart? That's where you find the "law" to guide you. We don't even need the dear Apostle Paul to tell us the "law" because the guidelines he gave to his church in his day do not necessarily apply to us. In fact, there is no law anymore except the Law of Love.
In the flesh, in the courts, the Ten Commandments apply to those who are not walking in the Spirit. That's why Paul told his church not to take their brother to the law. The Law of Love supersedes the law of the land. Jesus gave us the example that if you get sued for your robe, give it and give even more just to show that person the love and generosity of God's Spirit in you.
Love is greater than the law. There are no longer any laws, ceremonies or rules that can lead us to perfection. Only the Blood of Jesus Christ can do that. Are YOU covered in the blood?
Saturday, April 29, 2017
THE POWER OF TONGUES
I read this super encouraging article by Bill Hammon and want to share it with you because it's life- changing! It's called:
"The Greatest Supernatural Gift" - Bill Hammon
Did you know that more than 600 million believers have received the gift of the Holy Spirit, yet most people do not utilize this precious gift to its full potential? It is like receiving a million dollar gift and only using a fraction of it.
Our spirit language is the major key that unlocks the door to our spirit life and all of the attributes and manifestations of the Holy Spirit. If we would dedicate at least thirty minutes a day to the Holy Spirit for praying in our spirit languages, we could begin to change our world! Tremendous power would be released in the Church worldwide, and the Kingdom of God would be demonstrated in every nation as a witness of the Lordship of Jesus.
What is "the Baptism of the Holy Spirit" or "the Gift of the Holy Spirit"?
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is for every believer to receive and practice, just as every believer in Jesus is to be water baptized. It is an experience received when God baptizes a believer's born-again spirit with the ability to pray in an intelligent language that his or her natural mind did not learn and does not understand.
Our spirit language is motivated, covered, and directed by the Holy Spirit, yet it is my spirit or your spirit that is actually doing the praying. The Holy Spirit's gift of the spirit language enables a person to communicate with God directly from spirit to Spirit. This gives the believer a private communication line direct to God's throne that cannot be understood or hindered by the devil or natural man.
It is the greatest gift a Christian can receive, for it is the giver and operator of all the other gifts and graces of God. There are so many reasons for us to pray in tongues, but the biggest reason is that Jesus paid a great price for us to use this most valuable gift.
I have found from my in-depth studies and a lifetime of experience that there are at least 70 reasons for every Christian to be praying in tongues every day. Let me share a few of those with you.
The Holy Spirit directs our spirit language to pray prayers in accordance with the will of God. Probably the only time we can be assured that we are praying 100% in the will of God is when we are praying in our spirit language. God always answers requests made in alignment with His will.
Our spirit language activates our supernatural new creation nature and sets us aflame with heavenly passion. This opens the door into God's storehouse of wisdom, power, revelation, and supernatural ministry.
Speaking in tongues does the same thing for our spirit that our heart does for our body. Our heart beats and pumps blood throughout our entire body for life and health. Speaking in tongues pumps the presence of God throughout every cell of our being.
Praying in tongues turns the light of revelation on in our minds, enabling us to hear the voice of God and see what Jesus wants to do.
As believers receive revelation and increase their faith in God and His Holy Spirit power within them, then we will begin to see the miraculous power of God manifest.
Sandy Catalano, an elder at our church, was praying in English and then switched to her spirit language. Suddenly, all the things and people that she had planned to pray for started flashing through her mind faster than the frames of an old movie reel. Sandy though, "Lord, it is going too fast. There is not time enough for me to pray about each one of these requests at this speed."
God spoke to her and said, "When you pray with your natural mind and language, it takes place at the speed of sound. But when you are praying with your God-given spirit language, you can pray and communicate at the speed of light."
All nine of the fruits of the Holy Spirit are activated and increased within us by praying in our spirit language: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. If you really want to grow in love, then invest more time praying in tongues.
Worshiping and singing praises to God in tongues causes our inner being to be filled with the presence of God. You can sense the peace of God flooding your soul as you pray in your spirit language.
Praying in our spirit language is mainly for edification of the individual. However, the remaining "gifts of the Spirit" are given to believers to meet the needs of others. They are the nine manifestations of the Spirit: word of wisdom, word of knowledge, gift of faith, gift of healing, working of miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, various tongues, and interpretation of tongues. The gifts demonstrate that our God and Savior Jesus is alive and active in the world today. Praying in tongues with our spirit language can activate the gifts of the Spirit and it is the activator that produces the faith needed to believe for the manifestation.
Speaking in tongues is the key to our victory, because faith is the victory that overcomes. The more we pray in our spirit language, the more we charge our spirit with faith and power.
Our redeemed spirit, saturated with the Holy Spirit, is like a power-generating dynamo within our being where all of Jesus' gifts, graces, power, and attributes are generated within and through us. The more that we pray in tongues the more power the dynamo generates.
We could also say our spirit language "uploads" our desires, petitions, worship, and heart longings to God's hard drive. Praying in tongues also downloads mysteries from the mind of Messiah and imparts them into the hard drive of our spirits. Praying in tongues empowers us when we are weak, comforts us when we are saddened by life's circumstances, intercedes for us according to the will of God, and is a faithful friend on whom we can always depend. When we do not know how to pray as we ought, we can just turn the praying over to our spirit language and the praying will go directly to the heart of the matter with the wisdom and power of God to meet the need.
What can 30 minutes of spirit language praying do? Our Spirit-filled psychiatrist said that if he could get his patients to pray in the spirit for at least thirty minutes every day for thirty days, then they would not need to see him anymore. Why? Because the spirit language prays from the subconscious area of man. The Holy Spirit sheds God's light on those hidden areas of the subconscious, and then the spirit language roots them up and washes them out of the soul. Praying in tongues has even been found to give a boost to our immune system!
How do you receive the Holy Spirit? The same way you received the gift of eternal life.
First, you must receive revelation and understanding that the gift is for you. Second, have confidence that what you ask the Lord for is exactly what He will give you. Third you must receive by faith. Ask for the gift of the Holy Spirit, then exercise the faith to begin speaking in other tongues.
What an awesome responsibility we have to allow the spirit language to accomplish all God's purposes, appropriate all His benefits, and empower us and demonstrate the power of God and Lordship of Messiah Jesus. Amen and Amen.
Tuesday, April 18, 2017
MOSES SPOKE OF THE END TIME TRIBULATION
Too many believers have bought into the "Pre-Tribulation Rapture" theory. Just that word "theory" should give us a clue as to how scriptural it is. It is UNSCRIPTURAL. That's right, the Pre-trib rap theory is ONLY that --a theory. And it is an unsciptural theory with NO foundation. It's an animal with NO LEGS TO STAND ON. It's FICTION.
So, why am I getting so riled up about it? What does it matter what people choose to believe?
Jesus got riled up about it! He made good and sure that we were warned and prepared to go through the "Great Tribulation". Any half-serious reading of Matthew 24 word-for-word will result in an exact time line of end-time events. It may not give exact "time" but it shows the sequence very clearly. All we have to do is open our eyes and read it the way it was written. (I prefer the good ol' King James Version because "tribulation" is an important word to plot the sequence. It's a key word.)
You know where else we find that word "tribulation"? It's as far back in the Old Testament as Deuteronomy. It came out of the mouth of the man who spoke to God face-to-face and led the Children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses.
Moses prophesied to the Children of Israel before he died that there would a tribulation during the "latter days" or "last days" or end time or, in other words, "these days we're living in now".
Here's what Moses said in Deuteronomy 4:30 & 31: (It's a promise for all of us believers.)
"When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;
(For the Lord thy God is a merciful God:) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them."
You might think that the word "tribulation" shows up a lot in the Bible and it doesn't necessarily mean the same tribulation Jesus prophecied about in Matthew 24.
"For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be." - Matthew 24:21
According to Cruden's Complete Concordance, there are 22 verses that include the word "tribulation" in them, at least 7 of which refer directly to the "Great Tribulation" Jesus spoke of. So, yes, the Bible talks about tribulation in other instances besides the "latter days" tribulation, but only about a dozen times.
It seems to me that this "Great Tribulation" is something that has yet to happen and has yet to happen to God's people. Here are a few reasons I believe the "Great Tribulation" is for US. You and Me.
WHAT? Are you serious?
Yes! I am! If you believe in Jesus, you have to believe what His Word tells us. He gives us plenty of advice about these situations, beloved. He wants us to be prepared.
Matthew 5: 10 - 12 says, "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."
Rejoice about being persecuted? Yes. Because, when you are under persecution, the Spirit of God falls on you. The power of God is present to anoint you as a witness. That's what that word "martyr" means. And, believe it or not, for on-fire believers and followers of Christ, their main purpose, desire and motivation is to preach the message and be a living testimony of the Love of Christ.
What greater testimony can a Christian give than to surrender his life as a witness to his faith in Jesus? What greater privilege is there than to die as a martyr? ---To look up, as Stephen did and see Jesus standing at the right hand of God? Did Stephen scream out in agony when his persecutors gnashed on him with their teeth?
Acts 7:55: "But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God."
Whether or not you will be a martyr for Jesus depends on God's will for you. Martyrs or not, our job, as believers in Christ will be to get out the message. Some of us will be alive on the earth when Jesus returns to gather together his elect. In fact, Revelation talks about the "woman" which is a representative of the (true) church.
Revelation 12:13 "And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth."
This is a scenario, not of a pre-tribulation rapture, but of a provision of protection for the bride of Christ. At least, that's how I see it. How about you? It sure looks like a picture of God's mercy and protection over his own.
Whether we go into tribulation or fly into the wilderness for the duration of the tribulation, may we be on-fire, brave, bold, Spirit-filled, powerful witnesses for Jesus in these troublesome times ahead. And, now. It's already happening. Some of us are being martyred, imprisoned, tortured and tribulated right now. I believe, personally that we are at the 5th seal: Revelation 6:9-11.
So, why am I getting so riled up about it? What does it matter what people choose to believe?
Jesus got riled up about it! He made good and sure that we were warned and prepared to go through the "Great Tribulation". Any half-serious reading of Matthew 24 word-for-word will result in an exact time line of end-time events. It may not give exact "time" but it shows the sequence very clearly. All we have to do is open our eyes and read it the way it was written. (I prefer the good ol' King James Version because "tribulation" is an important word to plot the sequence. It's a key word.)
You know where else we find that word "tribulation"? It's as far back in the Old Testament as Deuteronomy. It came out of the mouth of the man who spoke to God face-to-face and led the Children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses.
Moses prophesied to the Children of Israel before he died that there would a tribulation during the "latter days" or "last days" or end time or, in other words, "these days we're living in now".
Here's what Moses said in Deuteronomy 4:30 & 31: (It's a promise for all of us believers.)
"When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;
(For the Lord thy God is a merciful God:) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them."
You might think that the word "tribulation" shows up a lot in the Bible and it doesn't necessarily mean the same tribulation Jesus prophecied about in Matthew 24.
"For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be." - Matthew 24:21
According to Cruden's Complete Concordance, there are 22 verses that include the word "tribulation" in them, at least 7 of which refer directly to the "Great Tribulation" Jesus spoke of. So, yes, the Bible talks about tribulation in other instances besides the "latter days" tribulation, but only about a dozen times.
It seems to me that this "Great Tribulation" is something that has yet to happen and has yet to happen to God's people. Here are a few reasons I believe the "Great Tribulation" is for US. You and Me.
- In Deut. 4:30, Moses was speaking to the children of Israel as followers of God and advising them that if they would turn to the Lord thy God and be obedient to Him, when in tribulation, he would not forsake them. Honestly, does that sound like the tribulation is for the devil's crowd or the unsaved and disobedient?
- The main reason for the tribulation is to tribulate the saints. It's not designed to persecute the followers of the Antichrist. In fact, it's because they went through the tribulation that the saints were dressed in white robes. (Revelation 7:14b "...These are they which came out of great tribulation and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.")
- Revelation 14:9b and 10a says, "And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God..." By reading that verse, doesn't it sound as though there's a choice about receiving the "mark of the beast"? What happens to those who choose not to worship the beast and his image?
- Revelation 12:17 says, "And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ." This verse specifies very clearly exactly who the Devil is fighting against during the tribulation period. (Us!)
- Speaking of the Antichrist/Beast, Revelation 13:7a says, "And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them. . ." Who are the saints? We are. You and me.
- The same chapter says that everyone on the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (Rev. 13:8)
- Daniel 8 also talks about the Antichrist and exactly who he wants to destroy. Daniel 8:24 "And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people." If we are "raptured" before the Great Tribulation, who are these holy people that Daniel is speaking about? Well, I can tell you, if you'll receive it. It's US. You and me.
WHAT? Are you serious?
Yes! I am! If you believe in Jesus, you have to believe what His Word tells us. He gives us plenty of advice about these situations, beloved. He wants us to be prepared.
Matthew 5: 10 - 12 says, "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."
Rejoice about being persecuted? Yes. Because, when you are under persecution, the Spirit of God falls on you. The power of God is present to anoint you as a witness. That's what that word "martyr" means. And, believe it or not, for on-fire believers and followers of Christ, their main purpose, desire and motivation is to preach the message and be a living testimony of the Love of Christ.
What greater testimony can a Christian give than to surrender his life as a witness to his faith in Jesus? What greater privilege is there than to die as a martyr? ---To look up, as Stephen did and see Jesus standing at the right hand of God? Did Stephen scream out in agony when his persecutors gnashed on him with their teeth?
Acts 7:55: "But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God."
Whether or not you will be a martyr for Jesus depends on God's will for you. Martyrs or not, our job, as believers in Christ will be to get out the message. Some of us will be alive on the earth when Jesus returns to gather together his elect. In fact, Revelation talks about the "woman" which is a representative of the (true) church.
Revelation 12:13 "And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth."
This is a scenario, not of a pre-tribulation rapture, but of a provision of protection for the bride of Christ. At least, that's how I see it. How about you? It sure looks like a picture of God's mercy and protection over his own.
Whether we go into tribulation or fly into the wilderness for the duration of the tribulation, may we be on-fire, brave, bold, Spirit-filled, powerful witnesses for Jesus in these troublesome times ahead. And, now. It's already happening. Some of us are being martyred, imprisoned, tortured and tribulated right now. I believe, personally that we are at the 5th seal: Revelation 6:9-11.
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