Once Upon A Time Isaac. Sabbath afternoon 06/05/2021

Proverbs 1:28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me.

29 For that they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord.

30 They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.

31 Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way and be filled with their own devices.

It seems as if the direct answers to prayers together with the unusually clear guidance God gave in times past are now more the exception than the rule. We pray long and hard, and often, but it seems as if the answers become stalled for some reason, or there is no definite clarity by which we can conclude a “Thus saith The Lord” was given.

In times past those who truly believed in God would pray, and God would answer in ways that were not fuzzy or shrouded in uncertainty. Joshua prayed for an interference of the sun and moon, so that he and the Hebrews could finish their due diligence and the answer came right away.

Samuel called for thunder and hail, when he sought to impress upon the conscience of the people God’s displeasure in them asking for a king, and he did not have to wait long for it thundered and rained hail all that day.

Gideon prayed for a sign, so that he could be clear in his mind about the grave mission he was about to undertake, and lo and behold, The Lord answered him immediately, not two weeks or one month later as too often occurs with us at times.

This doesn’t mean to say that there were not times when folks had to wait but God usually would come through with an answer in ways that would bring a clarity and certainty to the request, in so much that the petitioner would be quite confident beyond the shadow of a doubt that God had heard them and He answered their prayers.

The reason for this, in many cases, was that in the other areas of their lives, believers back then were in the habit of acknowledging God in all their ways, and in this way He could direct their paths aright. It isn’t genuine faith which claims the promises of God on the one hand, while excluding Him from another area where we choose man’s counsel above God’s.

In the case of Isaac, when he was about to embark upon his life’s journey, with the girl of his dreams, we find His father praying, he himself praying, and the servant Eliezer praying. And lo and behold, the servant was not finished praying, before the direct answer came.

How is it, that when persons pray for similar issues, that in so many cases, there isn’t the clarity, definite guidance, and certainty that was manifested in days of yore? How is it that we might often pray for years and we still do not have an answer; or if any answer comes persons are not certain if it was God or satan who answered? Let’s read:

Isaiah 65:24 And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

Genesis 24:12 And he said O Lord God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.

13 Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water.

14 And let it come to pass that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master.

15 And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.

16 And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her.

To better understand why God answered so soon, and with such distinctiveness we will have to back up a bit, to observe the tenor of Isaac’s life, prior to this incident, for his life contains important lessons in faith and obedience which paved the way for God to answer so directly.

Isaac had been trained from childhood to yield that implicit obedience to his God-fearing parents, which the Bible stipulates. Abraham and Sarah had done their due diligence in training Isaac, they both had cooperated with God, and the early years of Isaac’s life incorporated precept and example, principles and methods that are found in the scriptures.

The most striking evidence of this was manifested when Abraham was commanded by God to offer his only son on Mt Moriah. At this time, God did not reveal His purposes to Isaac up front so that he, at the very least would have prior notice. He left the jurisdiction of the father to handle the matter, and his son Isaac to obey.

Lessons of a very serious nature were given in this episode, so that all parents and children who would come after would understand the close relationship between faith, obedience, and answered prayer. It is therefore of critical importance for us to learn of God in a humble frame of mind, so that our prayers and requests won’t hit the ceiling and fall.

It is also very important to remember, that in this single instance, a revelation concerning the Lamb of God, who was to come to save the world, is what God was giving to Abraham in kindergarten form. It wasn’t Abraham who came up with the idea, it was God who gave direction, and as such it was a one-time command, designed to teach a sacred truth.

God-fearing parents are never to teach, or request of their kids anything other than that which is in the scriptures, except God should require something in particular, or in situations where sound judgment and godly discretion are warranted.

Yet, the episode contains crucial lessons in faith and obedience that we should not lightly pass over. The relationship between father and son, as manifested in this experience, demonstrates in several ways the training, obedience, love, respect and the deference that should characterize interactions between kids and their parents. Let’s read:

Genesis 22:2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

3 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son.

7 And Isaac spoke unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?

8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

Lesson [1] It’s not every time that parents will be able to give a scriptural answer to questions that are asked by their kids, pertaining to obedience. In this instance if Abraham were to reference the law it would say “thou shalt not kill” and thus, any other son might have refused to go along with that which the father said God had told him to do.

But Isaac was not so, for he was trained by Abraham to yield an unquestioning obedience from childhood and even though Isaac might have had several valid questions and concerns, and even though he would have known what the law says on this or that point, with him, that was not the most important issue.

God said to obey your parents in The Lord, and his father Abraham was a god-fearing man; thus, as the father revealed to Isaac what God commanded him, in this unique situation, that was all that he needed to obey.

In fact, if Isaac had followed what the letter of the law states on the taking of life, he could’ve possibly been in violation of another law that says Honor thy father and thy mother. Thus, the question is asked: Which one of those two laws carried more weight in Isaac’s case? The one which says “Thou shalt not kill” or the one which says to honor thy father and thy mother?

The issue at hand is not one that deals merely with law, it has more to do with the chain of command, which God has put into place, for whatsoever might be our understanding of God’s written law the chain of command is of great importance, to the smooth running of families, churches, and governments.

Children are instructed to obey their parents in The Lord, for this is right, but this will, at times include gray areas where there isn’t any clear scriptural law pertaining to the issue at hand. Parents are granted the authority to exercise discretion in matters that pertain to the training of children, even though this will at times include issues that are not salvific.

For instance, parents can exercise discretion when it comes to the issue of coming home late at nights. The father in conjunction with the mother, can lay down the time when the kids are to be home. There isn’t any scripture that stipulates any specific time.

Some parents may agree on 10:00 pm, others may say 11:00, while others may stipulate 9:00 pm. The fact is that it is a matter where parental discretion is to be exercised, an area where there is no specific scripture to say there you go!

Again, parents could instruct their children not to wear their pants half-way down their buttocks, and the parents do not have to quote any scripture for such things, for they are granted jurisdiction as well as discretion over their kids by God until they come to the age of maturity.

When God grants jurisdiction to persons, they are to carry out His will, even if there is a question with discretion, for some persons might run the risk of being sticklers for the letter, if and when the God-ordained authority might override something, at God’s direction.

This is the gravely important lesson Christ sought to impress upon the Jews, when the letter of the law was brought into question, pertaining to a violation of the Sabbath. At that time the disciples were on a mission, travelling through the fields on the sabbath day, and being hungry, they began to pluck the ears of corn.

This caused an upset in the minds of the Jews who interpreted this action of the disciples as a flagrant violation of the Sabbath. But Jesus replied to their concerns by stating unequivocally, that He is Lord of the Sabbath, meaning that whatsoever might be the written law, if He was okay with what the disciples were doing, that settles the matter. Let’s read:

Mark 2:23 And it came to pass that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn.

24 And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?

25 And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungered, he, and they that were with him?

26 How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him?

28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.

It is a matter of maintaining the authority invested in the chain of command which God Himself has put into place. Thus, in Isaac’s case, the most important consideration, after learning from his father what God had commanded, was to honor that chain of command, even if there were valid questions and reservations as per the request.

From the time that sin entered our world, satan has sought to disrupt the chain of command which God saw fit to put in place. Devils have sought to mix up the roles and genders of mothers and fathers, and the children have sought to pry the reins of control from parents in so much that some parents indeed, have become subservient to their kids.

Aaron and Miriam had sought to disrupt the chain of command when they proposed that God had not only spoken through Moses. Korah, Dathan, and Abiram sought to disrupt the chain of command when they accused Moses and Aaron of leading the Hebrews according to their own fancy.

And throughout history, God’s order has been to a large extent disrupted for various reasons too many to mention. If Isaac had refused to obey based upon what is written in the Bible, he would not have been an icon of faith and obedience, and this in turn may have affected the speed with which his prayer was answered.

The question for Isaac would obviously be: “If God has put my parents in charge of me, and they were to ask me to do something that does not have any scriptural backing, should I obey them strictly based on the chain of command God has put in place?”

The answer to this critically important question can be found in the way The Lord has set up His chain of command, for families, churches and governments, very much like that of one of the bedrock American institutions. Let’s read:

[1] President of the United States

[2] Secretary of Defense

[3] Secretary of the Army

[4] Army Chief of Staff

[5] Sergeant Major of the Army

[6] Army Commands

[7] Component Commands

[8] Direct Reporting Units

Now, although the secretary of defense, and army chief of staff, both have the freedom of choice and intelligence, just like everyone else, they fall under the jurisdiction of the president, who can at times, in his capacity as president, override some formats, protocols, and laws that are written in the books.

In capturing the former Bin Laden, the president at that time gave the command to violate Pakistan’s airspace, and carry out the raid on foreign soil even though Pakistan is a sovereign nation. Those under the president could have pointed to international laws on sovereign airspace as reasons why the raid could not legally go forward.

That might be true, but at the end of the day, the pecking order in the chain of command gives to the commander in chief the right to tell his underlings what they must or must not do, even if it may not be written in stone, or, may violate some law on the books.

If any real or phantom violations do occur then the president bears the responsibility, but those under his jurisdiction are, while following written laws, to always bear in mind that there’s authority invested in the chain of command, or else there would be a breakdown in smooth operations.

The same is true with God’s chain of command. The persons to whom God has delegated authority are to follow it is written, unless God gives a different command in a particular instance, for whenever He establishes a given order, it has to be followed, even if individuals under the jurisdiction of those God has put in charge may disagree or may have serious and valid questions. Let’s read:

Exodus 4:14 Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he sees thee he will be glad in his heart.

15 And thou shalt speak unto him and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.

16 And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God.

Exodus 7:1 And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.

2 Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land.

Numbers 12:1 And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married, for he had married an Ethiopian woman.

2 And they said, Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the Lord heard it.

4 And the Lord spoke suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out.

6 And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.

7 My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house.

8 With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?

9 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against them; and he departed.

1st Corinthians 12:27 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

28 And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.

When God originally created Adam and Eve, He did not do so at the same time, for Adam was created first, and after that Eve. When we read the Biblical account we will see where God gave them dominion over the earth, with Adam taking the lead, and Eve at his side, not be above him, nor below him, but at his side; just about where the ribs are located.

But after sin entered, God had to stipulate a specific pecking order, and from that time until now, it has not changed one iota, even though society may beg to differ.

For the record, the Biblical chain of command puts the father at the head of the home, the wife is next, the children come in third place, with grandparents and extended family members in their respective place. This does not make the wife inferior by any means, for in the God-head you have the first, second, and third Persons, yet they are all one. It all has to do with position and role. Let’s read:

[P&P 308] Parents are entitled to a degree of love and respect which is due to no other person. God Himself, who has placed upon them a responsibility for the souls committed to their charge has ordained that during the earlier years of life parents shall stand in the place of God to their children. And he who rejects the rightful authority of his parents is rejecting the authority of God.

After man sinned God did not call Eve first, nor did He even call the devil first because as far as God is concerned, He never put the devil in charge. God referred to His original pecking order in pursuit of accountability, a pattern which He always follows, even to this day. Let’s read:

Genesis 3:8 And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day:

9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?

10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?

12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

13 And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

Another stunning example of how God observes the chain of command He established can be observed in the way He called Ahab to account, after Naboth was slain by the devices of Jezebel. Ahab’s wife was the instigator, she hatched the plot, forged Ahab’s signature, and set the diabolical plan into motion to relieve Naboth of his vineyard.

Yet, when it comes to accountability Jezebel’s name is mentioned secondarily by the prophet, because as far as God is concerned, the buck stops at Ahab’s door first, then his wife. Similarly, even though Eli’s sons were profane the Bible does not even mention the name of Eli’s wife. Let’s read:

1st Kings 21:15 And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money.

17 And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,

18 Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it.

19 And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? Thus, saith the Lord, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine.

21 Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity, and will cut off from Ahab him that pisses against the wall.

23 And of Jezebel also spake the Lord, saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel.

[2] The commands parents give to their children do not always have to make sense to them, because if obeying God was to be based on commands making sense, Isaac would never have obeyed. Let’s read:

Genesis 22:2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah.

To any logical thinking mind such a command as the one God gave to Abraham could never make sense, for it specified that Isaac was his only son, and since through Isaac the promise of a great nation was to be fulfilled then how could it make sense to take his life, let alone asking Isaac to obey willingly?

Let it be known this day that if we are to obey God only when His commands make sense to us, we will never enter the kingdom of heaven, because man’s relation to God is based on faith not on logic.

In fact, if we were to closely examine those heroes of faith in the Bible, we would discover that obeying God in their particular situation almost never made sense up front.

It was only after obeying implicitly the commands of God that they turned out to be real heroes of faith. In one instance, Peter is told to go to the sea and to catch the first fish that comes up. Then he is told to open its mouth and there he would find a chunk of change.

The feeding of the five thousand in Christ’s day was in obedience to the command which He had given to His disciples, that they should distribute the fish and bread that He would miraculously multiply.

It is worthy of note that the multiplication of the food did not take place all at once, with piles of Sardine sandwiches all over the place. It was as they obeyed that the multiplication took effect.

In another instance, God commands Gideon to go fight against an immense army of several hundred thousand soldiers, with only three hundred men, armed with pitchers and bull horns. In yet another instance God pits David against a giant with only a slingshot and a few stones.

In another instance, The Lord commands Moses to speak to a rock, and fresh water will gush out. And we can go on and on, for there was another episode where God commanded that a church choir should lead the charge in a specific battle, armed only with their hymnals.

Therefore, if children were to obey their parents only when the command makes sense, they would, like so many other persons today, be disrupting that chain of command which God put in place. It is nice to give children explanations where warranted, but obedience to parents cannot be tethered solely to instructions that make sense to them.

Thus, “Once upon a time Isaac” refers to his faith, obedience, and the accompanying quick answers to prayer that are the sure result. This type of faith in God seems to be in short supply in our day, and the secular concepts, and philosophies of the day are threatening to bring the experience of Isaac to near extinction.

Fathers, you will experience push-back at times, but you must stand your ground in the fear and love of God, and in due time He will answer your prayers in behalf of your children. Mothers, you also would be tempted severely because of your tendencies to place your emotions over principle.

Yet your kindness must be balanced with firmness, or else there would be a breakdown in the chain of command. And children, it is your duty to obey your parents in The Lord, giving them the respect and the honor that is due to them, just like faithful Isaac did in days of yore.

We’ll end with a passage that will help us to restore and maintain the pecking order as was manifested in “once upon a time Isaac.” Let’s read:

Ephesians 5:17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church.

33 Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.

God Bless!

Overcoming Alcohol Permanently. Sabbath afternoon 05/29/2021

Proverbs 20:1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.

Sooner or later every person who has espoused the name of Christ will have to decide whether we will live according to every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God, or whether we’ll live by a hybrid between God’s will and humanistic philosophies and concepts.

The faith God is looking for in these last days is not the type that believes the Bible, only after scientific discoveries, and research confirms what God has been saying all along. That sort of belief is not faith that is based on scriptural utterances, but rather on science.

The faith God is looking for is that which will believe His word, and act upon His instructions, even before any science may come along to confirm, or deny the teachings of the Bible. When this brand of faith is cultivated and exercised, it renders the doers of the word impregnable to the assaults of devils, who are often engaged in making science to counteract that which is written in the Bible.

In other words, if God says it, we should believe it, and that should settle it for us permanently in our minds, so that when the stormy rain comes and the winds blow, we will not be swept off our feet, since our faith was founded on The Rock, even Jesus, who alone can keep our minds from drifting into the web of concepts and ideologies that often pit the human against the Divine.

As it pertains to the use of alcoholic beverages, the word of God is abundantly clear as to mind of God on this matter. It is not fit for human consumption, for it sets in motion a train of evils that do damage to its users. The habitual use of alcohol triggers a host of other latent tendencies and evil propensities which, if they are not addressed and overcome will cause havoc downstream.

When we take The God of heaven at His word, and when we study with a humble heart and teachable spirit His assessments, knowledge and instructions, then we would not have to depend on, or wait for science to confirm what He has stated. God always knows what He is doing, and He has never made a single mistake in His instructions to us on alcohol.

The following therefore is a detailed analysis of what effects the use of alcoholic beverages has on persons and with these revelations will come warnings, and encouragements for us to choose wisely, and to live soberly and righteously in this generation. Let’s read:

Proverbs 23:20 Be not among wine-bibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh.

[1] We must avoid associating with individuals who are consuming alcohol because in some cases they would exert a gravitational pull on us, especially if we are already prone to such indulgences. We are all social beings and thus, the naturally tendency for one who is drinking is to offer his or her friend a drink.

Proverbs 23:21 For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.

[2] One who indulges freely in the use of alcohol runs the risk of eventually losing all material blessings by becoming addicted to it. Satan only needs one weak link in order to destroy the entire man, and if wrong habits are not overcome they will cause increasing bleeding of funds and resources until one is brought to poverty.

Proverbs 23:29 Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?

30 They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.

[3] Unnecessary troubles, sadness, and depressions are just a few of the adverse results of drinking, and these often lead to financial ruin, through the need to spend on rehabilitation and treatment, because alcohol is a gateway to a thousand more evils. It’s a solemn statement of fact that there are some doors which should never be opened because it can be quite difficult to put the genie back in the bottle.

Proverbs 23:31 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his color in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.

32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.

[4] The true effects of alcohol are not immediately, felt, and because of this it is delusionary in nature, being sweet in the mouth but bitter in the belly just as it was when Eve ate of the forbidden fruit. Those adverse effects upon the human race we read about which came after man sinned were not immediately felt.

As a general rule of thumb, sin in many cases, needs a gestation period of sorts, or an elapsed period of time from when the first commission of the sin took place, to the time when the full, adverse effects will be realized.

Hence the reason why after one’s first indulgence, and the adverse consequences may not kick in right away, persons are drawn further, and further into the net until the bad habit locks them in an iron grip from which it becomes very difficult to escape. Let’s read:

James 1:14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Proverbs 23:33 Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.

[5] The use of alcohol opens the gates to adultery and pornography, and it also leads to cursing and the use of inappropriate language on several fronts. There’s a valid reason why it is referred to as spirits.

Very closely associated with flirting and impromptu adultery is the use of spiritous liquors, for it clouds one’s better judgment and inhibits to a great extent our ability to differentiate between right and wrong, as can be observed at bars, carnivals, clubs and such venues at which alcohol is freely indulged.

Proverbs 23:34 Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.

35 They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not.

[6] Drinking alcohol adveresly affects the brain and one’s nervous system, and the body itself reaps the fruit thereof in a host of unfortunate side effects ranging from dizzy spells to lethargy, to the lack of morale, and the feeling that other people are trying to harm you.

Proverbs 23: When shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.

[7] Worst of all God says that alcohol is addictive in nature, and causes those who use it to eventually become hooked for life if the habit is not overcome.

After Adam and Eve first ate of the forbidden tree, they had erroneously thought that that would be the last time, but since then, the human family has become hooked, and we continue to eat of the tree of good and evil, even in our day, almost 6000 years later.

The problem is that scientific research done by one of the prominent Ivy league universities suggests to us that God was incorrect in His instructions to us on the issue of drunkenness, and in His assessments of the use of alcohol.

Researchers from Harvard had studied the effects of drinking several glasses of red wine per week, and believe it or not, they found it beneficial because of resveratrol, and therefore, according to finite man, The God of heaven had apparently made a mistake. Let’s read:

From Harvard Men’s Health Watch June 17, 2020

Researchers in Seattle collected information about many factors that might influence the risk of prostate cancer in men between ages 40 and 64, including alcohol consumption.

At first the results for alcohol consumption seemed similar to the findings of many earlier studies. There was no relationship between overall consumption and risk. But the scientists went one step further by evaluating each type of alcoholic beverage independently.

Here the news was surprising—wine drinking was linked to a reduced risk of prostate cancer. And when white wine was compared with red, red had the most benefit. Even low amounts seemed to help, and for every additional glass of red wine per week, the relative risk declined by 6%.

But as every member of the human family will soon discover, all the instructions, laws, and restrictions God has given to us as it pertains to food and drink, have always been given with our best good in mind. One day, after all of those conspiracy theories have been laid bare, after all of the fake news, parading under the veneer of science has been exposed, it’ll be seen by all, that God was, and is, always right.

By Amy Woodyatt, CNN, Updated 4:54 AM ET, Thursday May 20, 2021

There is no such thing as a "safe" level of drinking, with increased consumption of alcohol associated with poorer brain health, according to a new study.

In an observational study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, researchers from the University of Oxford studied the relationship between the self-reported alcohol intake of some 25,000 people in the UK, and their brain scans.

The researchers noted that drinking had an effect on the brain's gray matter, regions in the brain that make up "important bits where information is processed," according to lead the author Anya Topiwala, a senior clinical researcher at Oxford.

"The more people drank, the less the volume of their gray matter," Topiwala said via email. "Brain volume reduces with age and more severely with dementia. Smaller brain volume also predicts worse performance on memory testing," she explained.

They found that there was no "safe" level of drinking -- meaning that consuming any amount of alcohol was worse than not drinking it. "So many people drink 'moderately,' and think this is either harmless or even protective," Topiwala told CNN via email.

Alcohol was the leading risk factor for disease and premature death in men and women between the ages of 15 and 49 worldwide in 2016, accounting for nearly one in 10 deaths, according to a study published in The Lancet in 2018.

"We also shouldn't forget alcohol affects all parts of the body and there are multiple health risks," said Boniface, who was not associated with the Oxford study.

"Previous research has found that subtle changes which demonstrate damage to the brain can present in ways that aren’t immediately detectable in routine testing of intellectual function and can progress unchecked until they present with more noticeable changes in memory," he said.

"Even at levels of low-risk drinking," he said, "there is evidence that alcohol consumption plays a larger role in damage to the brain than previously thought. The (Oxford) study found that this role was greater than many other modifiable risk factors, such as smoking."

It’s good that science has at least begun to concede that The God of heaven was right all along but there is only one problem remaining: Should we wait for Oxford or Harvard to confirm God’s word before we believe, and if so, would we be following God or the so-called experts?

The following therefore is the scriptural way to kick the habit of drinking alcohol permanently. Persons need to remember, that in all things, there are two ways to accomplish that which needs to be done. There is a God-version of victory and there’s a man- version of victory.

We can include the God factor, and thus make the victory permanent, or we can choose to go with the secular version of victory, and be faced with the real possibility of playing whackamole for life.

[1] We will need to take full responsibility for our actions. Blaming other folks, circumstances, or peer pressure will do us no good, for unless we confront the man in the mirror, we will become the sport of circumstances. No one can force us to drink alcohol. We will have to buy the liquor, or the Bud and then use our own hands to put it to our mouths.

[The Desire Of Ages pp 125] While Satan can solicit, he cannot compel to sin. He said to Jesus, “Cast Thyself down,” knowing that he could not cast Him down; for God would interpose to deliver Him. Nor could Satan force Jesus to cast Himself down. Unless Christ should consent to temptation, He could not be overcome. Not all the power of earth or hell could force Him in the slightest degree to depart from the will of His Father.

The tempter can never compel us to do evil. He cannot control minds unless they are yielded to his control. The will must consent, faith must let go its hold upon Christ, before Satan can exercise his power upon us. But every sinful desire we cherish affords him a foothold. Every point in which we fail of meeting the divine standard is an open door by which he can enter to tempt and destroy us.

Confession of sin includes taking full responsibility for our actions, and whenever this is done, God can cleanse us from all unrighteousness. But if we offer up excuses, valid or invalid, we take the ball out of our own court and make others or circumstance the reason for our failures. Let’s read:

1st John 1: 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1st John 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

Jude 1:24 Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,

25 To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever.

[2] An integral aspect of overcoming is self-denial by which persons will be pitted against their ownselves as latent tendencies, and dormant propensities may strive for the mastery. Neither is there any easy way to overcome. It takes time to indulge and it will take time and well-directed effort to reverse many years of such indulgence. Let’s read:

Matthew 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

1st Corinthians 9:25 And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.

26 I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air.

27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

[3] Another important aspect of overcoming alcohol is that we need power from God to live victoriously from day to day. But like with everything else, the world offers up a type of victory that excludes the God factor from the efforts made, and some folks, having adopted such a strategy have sometimes kicked the habit.

But whilst any victory is good, the one that Christ approves, and the one that will endure for eternity is the one that includes the God-factor with persons cooperating with God continually being replenished with Holy Ghost power on a daily basis.

God grants to all who desire to overcome the power to resist the urge to drink. This does not mean that the temptations would not present themselves from time to time, but with the urge will come the power from Christ to resist. Every heaven-born victory will involve a fight, for there is no easy way to win the battles of life. Let’s read:

John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.

13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Deuteronomy 33:25 Thy shoes shall be iron and brass; and as thy days, so shall thy strength be.

26 There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun, who rideth upon the heaven in thy help, and in his excellency on the sky.

27 The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.

Isaiah 40:29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

[4] Cooperation with God is a must, for as with any God-centered victory, there will be things for us to do, and there will be places for us to void. We must never needlessly place ourselves in the way of the temptation and then expect God to deliver. This is presumption and effectively negates the working of The Holy Spirit.

Venues which serve up alcohol, and all such places where drinkers do congregate to indulge should be strictly avoided, because the gravitational pull will pose a greater risk, than if we had avoided such a place. Clubs, bars, and every place where alcohol is consumed regularly, have a convergence of devils present, always.

There are specific reasons for their presence where spiritous liquors are being consumed for they aren’t there merely to ensure folks have a good time; they are present to tempt persons to commit grave sins, after a person’s ability to reason rationally has been

compromised by alcohol. Let’s read:

Daniel 5:1 Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand.

2 Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein.

3 Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them.

4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

Mark 6:21 And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee;

22 And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.

23 And he swore unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom.

24 And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.

25 And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist.

Revelation 18:2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. 3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.

[5] Continual prayer is a must for by doing so we are connected to the source of power in Christ. There is no such thing as bad habits that can’t be overcome, for the scriptures teach us that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all unrighteousness.

Thus, persons are to exercise faith in God, that He is well able to accomplish that which He has promised if the necessary cooperation on our part is put into place. The power to cooperate with God also comes from God, but it is triggered through the prayer of faith, by which we show our total dependence on Him. Let’s read:

Ephesians 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.

Let us therefore zip up our boots, and shake off the blues and let us rather take hold of the arm of God’s omnipotence, for there is nothing impossible with God. We therefore end with a passage of scripture which reminds us to check in with the only source of life and power daily, for it is by so doing that folks will be enabled to overcome alchol, and every other sin, permanently Let’s read:

Zechariah 4: 6 Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.

God Bless!

Who's On The Lord's Side? Sabbath afternoon 05/22/2021

1st Corinthians 1:26 For ye see your calling brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.

The way that God chooses leaders is quite different to how we as mortals may go about selecting those who are to bear sacred responsibilities. Mortal man often gives consideration to external qualifications, dispositions, intellect, expertise, and seniority. With God, even though those things have their place they are secondary to one’s willingness to obey.

In fact, God would often choose those who may not have great intellectual appeal but who are willing to be taught by Him and He outfits them for their work if they be ready and willing to do His every will.

The Lord will have us understand that education or specialized training in institutions of higher learning may have their place but are not considered as the most important prerequisites for sacred service.

A teachable spirit, one’s willingness to be led, and a disposition to obey God, even when it goes against our own grain, are just a few of the characteristics He looks for. In addition, it is much more important to be imbued with The Spirit of God than to have a long list of titles from literary institutions. These do have their place, but they can only furnish external qualifications. Let’s read:

Isaiah 66:2 For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembles at my word.

Micah 6:8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Aaron was an eloquent person, and he possessed a loving disposition and dignified mien that appealed to people naturally, but for some reason, The Lord hesitated greatly in making him the spokesperson for Moses, for in such a capacity, he would often be speaking in Moses’ stead.

God had seen him coming to visit his brother, long before He mentioned that fact to Moses, but it was only after Moses kept making all those excuses, that God finally mentioned Aaron, in a last-ditch effort to get His will done. If Moses had readily stepped up to the plate, Aaron would never have been chosen, as the following scriptures disclose. Let’s read:

Exodus 4:10 And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.

11 And the Lord said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who makes the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord?

12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.

13 And he said, O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send.

14 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he sees thee, he will be glad in his heart.

15 And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.

16 And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God.

We keep saying that God is a Spirit, and by this we mean that very often, His pleasure or displeasure is clearly discerned by what He does or what He says or His eagerness or reluctance to go a certain route. In this instance, Aaron was obviously not His first choice, but a sort of plan “B” when His efforts with Moses failed.

When Christ was on earth He walked by the seaside and called to Himself, Peter, James and John, and all three responded readily. But when Judas’ turn came Jesus for some reason became unusually cool in His reception. This obvious reluctance baffled the other disciples, who had great respect for Judas, and his qualifications as a certified accountant.

They saw in him one who would be an asset to the kingdom, but Jesus, who reads the heart, observed quite the opposite in the same person, and to His disciples, Christ’s unexplained coolness to Judas was not only unwarranted, but ill-advised in their minds. But God never makes a mistake in His assessment of persons as Judas’ after history revealed. Let’s read:

Matthew 4:18 And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.

19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.

20 And they straightway left their nets and followed him.

21 And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother in a ship with Zebedee their father mending their nets; and he called them.

22 And they immediately left the ship and their father and followed him.

Matthew 8:19 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.

20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath nowhere to lay his head.

That was definitely not a warm welcoming tone as was the case with those other disciples, to whom Christ made no mention of not having a fixed place of abode. In fact, Christ’s words to Judas may have bordered on discouraging him from his bid to join the inner circle, but because God gives opportunity to all, He permitted Judas to join the group.

Therefore, even though Aaron could speak well, and although he displayed a mild, amicable disposition, yet he had serious flaws in his character that would be of greater liability than an asset, when he would be severely tested in the heat of the furnace. That disposition to please others, and not ruffle feathers, would cause him to compromise truth, and sacred trusts in emergency situations.

Persons who are anointed as elders and deacons of the church ought to be men of sterling worth, men who will not be bought or sold, or be pressured into countenancing wrong, just because the majority of the congregation may clamor for it. God’s form of government is not democratic in nature, where it is government by the people, and for the people.

God’s government is theocratic in nature, with Jesus Christ as the head, and we His servants, to do all His pleasure and biddings even when we may not agree with His directives, or when we may have different, personal opinions as to what is right or wrong in any given situation. Thus, those who are chosen to fill a sacred office should not curry favor with the masses but instead should be found faithful in all things.

Aaron was good when things went smoothly, where there was no backlash, or remonstrance from those whom he served. But when the heat was turned up several notches and he saw the unruly congregation as an existential threat to himself, he capitulated to them and buckled under pressure. This is not good, for in our day it causes preachers to water down the truth to please the popular majority. Let’s read:

Exodus 32:1 And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.

Aaron’s response to this clamor should have been “Absolutely not or under no circumstances” and he then should have cautioned and encouraged those under his care to be patient in waiting for Moses, especially since the cloud of glory still hovered over Mt. Sinai.

But the people persisted, and they became more irate when they saw his feeble remonstrance. Thus, they came to believe that if they would push him a bit further, they would eventually break his morale, and they were correct in their assessments, as the following scriptures show. Let’s read:

Exodus 32:2 And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me.

3 And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears and brought them unto Aaron.

4 And he received them at their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord.

When Aaron observed the favor with which the calf was received, he became even more motivated to please and instead of putting on the brakes he went even further by announcing a grand festival in what he advertised as a feast to The Lord.

Thus, he would blend the sacred and the common in order to please, not because it was right, and that grave pattern of conduct that would also bear fruit in the behavior of his sons, who later on would also be found mingling that which is holy with the vile.

Therefore, the people, who now had the sanction of Aaron, would be all too eager to pull out all of the stops, for in their minds, if the spiritual leader is in agreement, and goes so far as to approve idolatry, then they would respond in the positive, and give vent to latent desires, which sought an opportune moment to converge. Let’s read:

Exodus 32:6 And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

21 And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?

22 And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord wax hot: thou knowest the people, that they are set on mischief.

23 For they said unto me, Make us gods, which shall go before us: for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.

26 Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the Lord's side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.

What followed next was a turning point for many of the people, for there were those who saw their guilt and repented, but there were others who remained defiant, and therefore, the Levites were bidden by God to execute justice impartially, without fear and without favor, even if it came very close to home.

This was obviously something very difficult for them to do but there comes a time when our relationship with friends and families would have to take a back-seat to serving God, if the latter conflicts with the former, as Christ later pointed out when speaking about the seriousness of our commitment to Him. Let’s read:

Matthew 10:32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.

33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.

39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

Exodus 32:28 And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men.

29 For Moses had said, Consecrate yourselves today to the Lord, even every man upon his son, and upon his brother; that he may bestow upon you a blessing this day.

That word “Consecrate” as used in verse 29 raises a lot of serious questions as it pertains to the extent a person is expected to go in demonstrating loyalty to Christ, especially in cases where a definite stand for the right is required.

[1] Would Aaron be protected by God if he braved the consequences and refused to budge on that ungodly request made by the masses?

[2] Does God guaranty protection to those who may defend the truth in volatile situations?

[3] Is our allegiance to God to be based on guaranty of protection, or is it to be based on whatsoever the cost may be?

[4] How would the Levites be viewed from that time forward by the rest of the congregation?

Before we proceed, it’s important for us to read an excerpt from the pen of inspiration as it pertains to this incident, because some of us may not be fully aware of what is involved in serving God.

Over the years self-indulgence and self-preservation and self-serving have imperceptibly eaten away at the fabric of Christianity, thus producing a plethora of fair-weather Christians, who serve and obey God only when it is easy and convenient to do so.

But because the crisis on the horizon will call for us to take a definite stand for the truth, in the face of existential threats from the beast system, and in the face of desertion and discouragements from friends and foes alike, we must read the following excerpts, considering what we would or ought to do in similar circumstances. Let’s read:

[P&P, pp 316] Such a crisis demanded a man of firmness, decision, and unflinching courage; one who held the honor of God above popular favor, personal safety, or life itself. A few who ventured to denounce the proposed image making as idolatry, were set upon and roughly treated, and in the confusion and excitement they finally lost their lives.

God would have His servants prove their loyalty by faithfully rebuking transgression, however painful the act may be. Those who are honored with the divine commission are not to be weak, pliant time-servers. They are not to aim at self-exaltation, nor to shun disagreeable duties, but to perform God's work with unswerving fidelity.

As the outpouring of the latter rain begins to gain momentum the trumpet would need to be given a certain sound by those who will be chosen to give the final warning before the close of probation, with the prospect of economic sanctions, boycotts, and tremendous push back from one’s family members, friends, and associates.

The 144,000 would be giving God’s last message of mercy against the backdrop of deep skepticism, and backlash from the religious and secular segments of society and science will be arrayed against the truth in so much that former church members will join in the fray to discredit the message, just as it was in the days of Noah prior to the worldwide deluge.

Yet they are required by God to stand firm for the right, to deliver the unvarnished truth, and God will strengthen them to tow the line, in spite of them being hedged in with difficulties, scorn and threats on every side. Unlike Aaron, those that are chosen are not to be concerned with consequences or the fallout that will certainly result.

Instead, they must give the trumpet a certain sound so that all who so desire may find refuge in Christ by keeping all of His commandments, before the final verdict is delivered. And therefore, there’s only one question remaining to be answered by each person individually: Who Is on The Lord’s side? Let’s read:

Joel 2:1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.

11 And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executes his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.

28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.

29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.

32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call.

Those amongst us who have been entrusted with the goods, and have been taught the truths for this generation are called to preach a plain “Thus saith The Lord”. When preparing sermons for the people, we need to be careful that the Aaron syndrome will not taint the presentations.

The desire to please, to palliate, to soothe, or to be funny, must not cause any preacher elder or deacon to water down the truth, even if family members or friends may have their toes stepped on. While every sermon must be given in love, the content must not be altered, just because it may potentially rub some persons the wrong way.

It is the disposition not to ruffle any feathers that has turned many would be preachers into soothe- sayers, a syndrome which has already infected the remnant church of God to a large extent. As a general rule of thumb, when the unadulterated word of God is being delivered, you would scarcely find persons sleeping or yawning, for the presence and power of The Holy Ghost is present to drive the truth home.

But when most of the congregation is nodding away while others are sleeping or snoring during sermons it means that something is not quite right. Thus, we have reached the point in earth’s history where the average sermon won’t do anymore.

If we are really on The Lord’s side let us deliver the goods just as God gives it; let preachers and elders not be afraid to call sin by its right name, and when the masses come clamoring for smooth things, let them be given what they need to hear and not what they want to hear.

In this way The Lord will work with our efforts, and He will send forth His Spirit to prick the conscience, and many conversions to the truth will be seen in places where previously folks were hesitant to make a firm stand for Christ and His righteousness.

In harmony with the urgency of the moment we will end with a passage of scripture which Paul wrote to the young Timothy, at a time when some persons may have been disposed to question his ordination as a preacher. Let’s read:

2nd Timothy 4:1 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;

2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.

3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.

God Bless!

Living By The Word Of God. Sabbath Afternoon 05/15/2021

Matthew 4:3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

The word of God is not subject to the changes we so often see legislatures making in our day in response to changes in culture and demographics. When folks clamor for change, based upon personal opinions or preferences, politicians often respond by giving the people what they desire, even though they may not be convinced about the morality of such moves, but because it may be politically expedient to do so.

Thus, amendments and changes are often made not because of principle, but because of those societal pressures which goad lawmakers to change from a right course to wrong, for fear of retribution at the ballot box. Whenever there’s an insatiable desire to cling to power, politicians would often do any, and everything just to retain their standing among the people.

This is what caused Pilate to put Christ to death on Calvary, even though there was no valid accusation against him, and even though he himself was very convinced that a deep-laid plot had been made by the religious leaders who hated Christ. Thus, Pilate violated his own conscience, went against his grain, held his nose and gave the multitude what they had clamored for, even though he knew it was wrong.

God will have us understand that He will not ever be pressured into making changes in His law, just because the popular majorities may clamor for it. Instead, God bids us observe and do everything He has instructed and commanded us to, because the principles of His kingdom never change with the passage of time.

Living by the word of God alone, means bringing all suggestions, all philosophies, all personal opinions, every private interpretation, every preference, and bias and every cultural practice, to be first checked by the Bible. For the Christian if the aforementioned pass the smell test of God’s word, fine, but if not, it must be rejected and thrown out the window.

Thus, living by the word of God, means to have the scriptures in preeminence when evaluating ideas or when making decisions to act. But when persons begin to make changes, additions and amendments which God did not authorize, then we place opinion over truth, and that mode of thought and action will cascade downhill, until we make void His law. Let’s read:

Psalms 119:126 It is time for thee, Lord, to work: for they have made void thy law.

Case in point is how as a country, we have allowed societal pressures to do violence to the institution of marriage which God had originally set as the gold standard in Eden for all future generations. Back in those days it was one man for one female woman, and for many years that model was embraced and practiced here in this country.

But gradually, there was a clamor for changes, and the groundswell became so great, and the pressure so intense that the legislature capitulated, and gave the people what the majority clamored for. Some of the legislature were not convinced in their heart of hearts, but because the pressure was mounting on all sides, and because Rome approved it, God’s law on marriage was eventually thrown out.

According to the dictionary, an amendment to the constitution is a change, or an addition designed to improve a text, or a piece of legislation. But, once we start down that path it then becomes a slippery slope, being subjected to the winds of change and societal pressures, that blow in different directions.

Therefore, on June 26, 2013 the Supreme Court of the United States issued its final decision in United States v. Windsor, then ruling that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional on equal protection grounds.

The Court ruled that DOMA, which excludes a same-sex partner from the definition of “spouse”, as that term is used in federal statutes, is unconstitutional, as a deprivation of the equal liberty of persons that is protected by the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. That ruling occurred on June 26, 2013.

But, because the diabolical enemy of God and man often employs the proven principle of gradualism in the implementation of his schemes, it would be just a matter of time before societal pressures pushed the envelope even further.

And on June, 26, 2015 the Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the 14th Amendment to the constitution requires states to license marriages between two people of the same sex, and also to recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex when their marriage was lawfully licensed and performed out-of-State, thus legalizing same-sex marriage in the United States.

The problem is that from that time to now, many other variations, designations, and identities have emerged, in so much that some are now identifying themselves in the plural such as “They” and others as being non-binary among other identities.

Gender-queer people typically reject any notion of static categories of gender and embrace a fluidity of gender identity and sexual orientation. People who identify as "gender-queer" often see themselves as being both male and female, neither male or female, or as falling completely outside these categories.

Thus, it is just a matter of time before the Supreme court will have to go back to the drawing board, and alter that which has been already amended to cater for the ever emerging clamors of society, which are in direct opposition to God’s written word. And for this reason, we must now explain in graphic detail, what it really means to live by every word of God in our day.

But before we do so, we must let the Bible speak for itself concerning the issues of change, for millennia, culture, lobbying, Bitcoin, or even popular demand can never alter what God has spoken, in any way, form or fashion.

To put it plainly, The God of heaven would never accept gay marriage, alternative lifestyles, or any other substitute day of rest, no matter who or what may clamor for change. Let’s read:

Proverbs 30:5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. 6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.

Deuteronomy 12:32 What thing so-ever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.

Psalms 119:89 Forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven.

2nd Timothy 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

2nd Peter 1:19 We have also a more-sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.

20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

Revelation 22:18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book.

19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

The following therefore are some examples of how we are to live by the word of God alone, especially when the winds of unwarranted change are blowing in the opposite direction. It will not be easy, and we may face economic and social media boycotts, but if we desire to live in harmony with “It is written” all other considerations and pressures must be borne down and made subject to the word.

In the days of Nehemiah, there was a great need of reformation because the people of God had strayed very far from His ideal. God’s instructions, His laws, His statutes, and His principles were being violated in high and low places, and thus, when Nehemiah was raised up to bring the people back from their national apostasy, certain critically important areas needed to be addressed.

[1] The issue of ungodly influences.

Nehemiah 13:1 On that day they read in the book of Moses in the audience of the people; and therein was found written, that the Ammonite and the Moabite should not come into the congregation of God forever.

2 Because they met not the children of Israel with bread and with water, but hired Balaam against them, that he should curse them: howbeit our God turned the curse into a blessing.

3 Now it came to pass, when they had heard the law, that they separated from Israel all the mixed multitude.

23 In those days also saw I Jews that had married wives of Ashdod, of Ammon, and of Moab.

Over a period of time, many idolaters seeped into the congregation, bringing their pagan influences with them, and even though the gospel is given to all people, and should be made applicable to every person, yet, as a general rule of thumb, those who are only half-converted to the truth will inevitably end up exerting a gravitational pull on others.

Through intermarriage with the ammonites and the Moabites, unscriptural practices began to take root, for wherever two persons of different persuasions unite in marriage, there would be compromise on principle on some level, some more, some less.

Those influences will be manifest in their offspring too, who in most instances are exposed to dueling concepts of right and wrong. Children of secular folk are in many instances trained differently than those who are brought up in god-fearing homes and if two individuals from entirely different backgrounds are united in marriage, these differences will begin to appear sooner or later.

Therefore, any proliferation of such influences will ultimately put increasing downward pressure on the righteousness that is stipulated in God’s word, and there would be a gradual watering down of those truths that are essential to the soul.

A person’s faith determines what they will do, and if erroneous concepts and philosophies are co-mingled with truth, the dire effects will be seen in practice. If one lives by the word of God, that mode of thought and action will conflict with secular perspectives for one savors of faith, while the other is controlled by humanistic philosophies and views.

Thus, Nehemiah was moved by God to remove the ungodly influences that were causing His people to countenance and practice things that are contrary to sound doctrine. Similarly, in our day, the issue of influence must be addressed, because over a period of time, many pagan influences have been gradually entering the church.

And because so many have been baptized into the church without proper prior indoctrination, truth has fallen in the street, and pagan practices and its philosophies have been countenanced for years, in so much that if one was to raise these issues, there would be tremendous push-back from those who do not live by the word of God alone.

For instance tattoos have become quite fashionable in Christian circles, whereas in times past this never used to be the case. Not only is it forbidden in the Bible but it is of pagan origin and even though it has become the norm for the most part in society, yet it in an unscriptural practice and God calls on persons to utterly reject it as such.

According to Google, the practice of tattooing came from pagans and was used to appease false gods, to ward off demonic forces, and for a plethora of other reasons, too many to mention. In our day currently, it has been adopted by gangs, by models, by those in the sporting industry, and by many Christians.

But just because it has become popular does not mean that we should ever adopt or countenance it, because living by the word alone, would move us to signally reject any and everything that isn’t Biblically sound. Getting a tattoo of Christ on the cross does not make it acceptable either, for what He prohibits in His word, remains as such. Let’s read:

1st Corinthians 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

Leviticus 19:28 Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord.

Persons who have been previously tattooed may in some cases be able to remove them after baptism, but in other cases, persons may be scarred for life. Jesus accepts us as we are, but He doesn’t leave us where we are, and therefore, wherever it’s possible, those who desire to live by the word of God alone can, and should make the necessary changes.

[2] Proper Sabbath Keeping.

Nehemiah 13:15 In those days saw I in Judah some treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day: and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold victuals.

16 There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem.

17 Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day?

19 And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day.

20 So the merchants and sellers of all kind of ware lodged without Jerusalem once or twice.

21 Then I testified against them and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall? if ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath.

Many persons among the remnant are now keeping the Sabbath like persons keep Sunday, because the views, and perspectives held by the majority in the Christian world as it pertains to Sunday have indeed invaded our minds and practice.

Many Christians who observe Sunday would attend church service in the morning but in the afternoon, many go to movies, games or do secular work. Thus, Sunday keeping for many persons consists of part church service and part secular activity. That model has also been adopted by some in our churches, for they attend services in the morning, but are missing in action in the evening.

But here’s just a gentle reminder that it’s the entire Sabbath day that is holy, and all secular works and activities should be suspended during the sacred hours. If some churches remain closed because of the pandemic, individual church members can, and should do some missionary work in their neck of the woods.

Some can offer to study the Bible with neighbors or friends, others can distribute religious material to the public, some can do street evangelism with a bull horn, while others can visit the sick and shut in. But whatever is done, secular activities on Sabbath afternoon is nowhere to be found in the scriptures.

When He was on earth, a typical Sabbath day for Jesus would begin with regular, in-person church services in the morning, where He would attend and sometimes preach in the synagogue. Then, He would turn His attention to ministry, where the sick would be healed, or He would pay a visit to some place where the gospel needed to be disseminated.

There was also time for personal prayer and praise which, coupled together with corporate worship, rounded out a typical Sabbath for Christ. But there was nothing on His agenda that savored of secular work or any self-serving interest, which in too many cases have become the norm in our day. Let’s read:

Luke 4:15 And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all.

16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.

17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,

18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down.

31 And He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days.

32 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.

38 And he arose out of the synagogue and entered into Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her.

39 And he stood over her and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them.

40 Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.

Thus, a typical Sabbath day for Christ consisted of good deeds, preaching, teaching, ministering, and healing the sick and suffering. But nowhere do we find Him sitting at home with popcorn, watching some secular movie, or doing anything that would minister to self.

Regularly using the Sabbath day as a time to catch up on much needed sleep is indeed a violation of the fourth commandment because the “rest” which God originally intended over the sabbath hours had never focused on sleep. Instead, it was a time when the relationship between man and His maker was to be nurtured, encouraged, and solidified.

Thus, the restorers of the breach will need to begin the work of restoration in their own homes. We will need to evaluate our concepts of proper Sabbath keeping, to ensure that they are in line with what is written. Self-serving in any form must be put away, and ministering to the needs of fallen humanity is to be front and center of all proper Sabbath keeping, wherever possible. Let’s read:

Isaiah 58:7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

12 And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.

13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:

14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

Let us then step up to the plate and do what has for too long been neglected. The volatile situations that are occurring across the globe, the devastation from the current virus, and the utter intransigence that has gripped politicians, tell us that we are living on borrowed time.

In addition to this the final conflict between the law of God and the commandments of men looms large on the horizon, and it won’t be long before we will have to take a definite stand, either for truth or for error.

Thus, it is incumbent upon the remnant people of God to implement those much needed reforms, just as it was in the days of Nehemiah, for it’s not what we say, but what we do that will matter in the long run. We therefore end with a passage of scripture that will encourage us to make all necessary change where warranted, for God is now calling all persons to repentance. Let’s read:

Romans 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.

12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.

God Bless!

The Issue Of Disrespect. Sabbath Afternoon 05/08/2021

2nd Timothy 3:1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy.

The history of disrespect can be traced right back to Cain, who introduced the habit of answering back in an inappropriate manner to the world. Not only did he introduce disrespect, he also introduced murder, rebellion, alienation, jealousy, family feuds between siblings, atheism, city dwelling, and his children who were born unto him stand at the head of alternative marriage, by introducing the practice of polygamy.

Since that time, disrespect to parents, to God, to all governments, preachers, elders, teachers and police and those to whom God has delegated authority is shown, indulged, encouraged and in some instances the disrespect has even gone viral.

Thus, Cain stands at the head of all disrespect that we see taking place today, for like every other sin, it produces a trickle-down effect in all who choose to walk in his footsteps. Let’s read:

Genesis 4:3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering.

5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

6 And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?

7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.

8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

9 And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?

Not only did Cain introduce all the aforementioned evils, he is the one who introduced the disposition to accuse God of unfair punishment, of injustice, of malpractice, a disposition which is too often echoed in our day by those who in their heart of hearts may hate God, or, who may otherwise disagree with His assessments and judgments.

Whenever the question is asked, “Where was God in such and such tragedy” there you have echoes of the past in which Cain declared that the results of his actions were unfair and there are reverberations even in our day to that mode of thought. Let’s read:

Genesis 4:12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.

13 And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear.

14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that finds me shall slay me.

Thus, Cain set into motion a host of evils that have haunted the human family for centuries, and as we approach earth’s final climax, the problems will only become more severe and difficult to deal with, in so much that God saw fit to include the issue of godly training as one of the areas we will need to address, as His coming draws near. Let’s read:

Malachi 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.

6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

The following are just a few examples given in the scripture so that folks may understand the nature, and the seriousness of the problem. It’s not an issue pertaining only to the secular and godless, it is one that affects the remnant people of God too because throughout history and even in our day Cain’s ways, words, ideologies and perspectives have permeated all echelons of our society.

The following examples of disrespect will be given in various categories because as we have previously shown, the problem is not only restricted to that of answering back parents in inappropriate ways. The issue includes a blatant disregard for God-ordained authority, including secular governments, school teachers, pastors and elders.

[1] Cursing out God, parents, teachers, pastors, elders, or anyone in authority.

Cursing, and using foul language and expletives are bad enough on their own, but to use them against one’s parents is strictly forbidden, and in the event that it ever takes place, there should be very serious consequences for the child. There are red lines that should never be crossed and if kids cross those lines it is our sacred duty as Christian parents to address the matter seriously.

If cursing at parents goes unpunished, the children will soon lose respect for all God-ordained authority and the practice would morph into situations which cause tremendous embarrassment, and harm, both to themselves and others. Furthermore, any parent who condones such behaviors would find that their prayers for their children would fall on deaf ears, if a definite change in training does not take place.

The commandment which says to honor thy father and thy mother is far reaching in its scope, and also includes the use of courtesy and respect when kids are addressing their parents and seniors. Disrespect has gone viral in our day, but God’s law has not lost its binding force especially for those who may know better. Let’s read:

Leviticus 24:11 And the Israelitish woman's son blasphemed the name of the Lord and cursed. And they brought him unto Moses.

12 And they put him in ward, that the mind of the Lord might be shewed them.

13 And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

14 Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lay their hands upon his head and let all the congregation stone him.

15 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Whosoever curses his God shall bear his sin.

16 And he that blasphemes the name of the Lord, shall surely be put to death and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well as the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemes the name of the Lord, shall be put to death.

Exodus 21: 17 And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.

[2] Blatant disregard for God’s commands.

Any deliberate and blatant disregard of God’s laws and instructions is a form of disrespect. When we understand clearly what God requires, and then we deliberately choose to do otherwise, we manifest a contempt for The Lord, and thereby place ourselves in antagonism against Him.

The words: “Them that honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed” means that the lives of such persons who show a blatant disregard for God and His instructions would have little value in His sight. This is what took place with the sons of Aaron who because of an indulgent father, had gone on from their disrespect of Aaron to disrespecting the clear instructions from God.

But if parents shirk their unpalatable duties when it comes time to correct their children the time comes when God will take the matter in hand and what He did and how He did it with Aaron’s sons, shows us a grave truth, that God will not be trifled with. God is love, but the apostle Paul warns us to observe both the mercy and the severity of God so that we won’t be brainwashed by secular philosophies. Let’s read:

Leviticus 10:1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not.

2 And there went out fire from the Lord, and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.

3 Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the Lord spoke, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.

5 So they went near and carried them in their coats out of the camp; as Moses had said.

6 And Moses said unto Aaron, and unto Eleazar and unto Ithamar, his sons, Uncover not your heads, neither rend your clothes; lest ye die, and lest wrath come upon all the people: but let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the Lord hath kindled.

7 And ye shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: for the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you. And they did according to the word of Moses.

8 And the Lord spoke unto Aaron, saying,

9 Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations.

10 And that ye may put difference between holy and unholy and between unclean and clean;

11 And that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses.

Several critically important points must be noted in the above scriptures, for they contain lessons, and instructions the results of which would have eternal consequences. We begin with verse 6, in which God commanded Aaron and his family not to even cry or show sorrow at the demise of his sons. Why would God command them not to cry?

Folks should have clear concepts of what it means to obey God, for in our day, a watered down form of obedience, where persons choose the smooth and the easy over the true and unpalatable is being peddled by false prophets, and teachers, and those philosophies are being imbibed, and practiced even in our churches, to an alarming extent.

For the record, God means exactly what He says, and no modification, alteration, subtraction or any additions would ever be acceptable in His sight. The disposition to change God’s instructions to make them more pleasing to the multitudes is one of the reasons why school teachers are having increasing difficulty in managing the students under their care.

In this instance, Aaron must not even appear to be in sympathy with his sons, nor should he manifest a disapproval at the Divine correction because, as the 2nd prominent leader in Israel he would by so doing convey to the congregation the feeling that God had been unfair in His intervention, and that God went overboard by consuming his two sons during divine hour.

Then the multitudes who would be prone to indulge in false sympathy would join Aaron, and before you know it, the entire congregation will conclude that God was wrong in what He had done. Therefore, by partaking of the spirit of Cain who first accused God of heavy-handedness the congregation would make themselves ripe for destruction.

Parenting children often involves unpalatable duties such as administering correction when it is due. And in some instances, the gravity of the offence would call for a harsher response than in others. Speaking to kids at first is a must, but if over a period of time the desired results are not realized then parents are required to take it up at increasing notches.

Again, one parent should never weaken the hands of the other by undue sympathy to the child, when it is known that the child is in the wrong, because doing so will cause the child to view one parent as Christ and the other as satan.

Some parents are by their very nature more tender and sympathizing than others, and they might not have the guts to administer correction when it may be due. But at the very least, they should act as a cheerleader, meaning that they should confirm the correction and not weaken the hands of the other parent.

Another point that was made in the discourse that followed the demise of Aaron’s sons is that Aaron was not to abandon his post because of resentment or displeasure at what God had done, for doing so would also constitute a passive form of rebellion. In addition, a concise instruction against the free use of intoxicating wine was given to the priests, so that their powers of discernment would not become too severely distorted.

In our day our sense of right and wrong has become very blunted, so like Aaron’s sons, folks keep putting light for darkness, truth for error, bitter for sweet, and right for wrong. This condition of the churches in our day has been highlighted by God Himself with the intent that we would take all necessary steps to correct the stated evils. Let’s read:

Revelation 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.

18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye-salve, that thou mayest see.

Isaiah 5:21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! 22 Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink.

Parents who are indulgent with their children not only do great harm to their kids, but also to future generations which are likely to mimic the ideology. The hope that over a period of time the kids would outgrow evils is a vain and empty hope that is built upon wishful thinking. It would never happen on its own, but will instead deepen even more, with the passage of time.

[3] Making a mockery of parents, or those in God-ordained authority.

There’s another type of disrespect that makes fun of, or mocks the counsels of parents, teachers, and persons in authority. This form is often more subtle than the overt type manifested by Aaron’s and Eli’s sons. Some children think they know better than their parents who have walked this road before and they might actually know more.

However, to make fun of the counsels of parents is a form of disrespect, and mocking them, as if they are fools, produces adverse results, for when such persons pray, there usually is no answer, for at the ground level they have mocked at God indirectly.

This disposition to make fun of parents is what led the sons in law of Lot, and his daughters, to make light of the final warning given to them and because of this, they perished in the fires of Sodom, just like everyone else, because God is no respecter of any persons.

The same issue of disrespect reared its ugly head just after Elisha received his Divine ordination, and the kids who were brought up without restraint and regard for parental authority mocked the servant of God as he passed by.

What followed next was an intervention by the Holy Ghost and it constitutes a very stark warning for our generation, for God shows us again in this instance that He will not be trifled with, by anyone whether they be big or small. Let’s read:

2nd KINGS 2: 23 And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head.

24 And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them.

[P.K. pp 235>236] Elisha was a man of mild and kindly spirit; but that he could also be stern is shown by his course when, on the way to Bethel, he was mocked by ungodly youth who had come out of the city. At the sound of their mocking words the prophet turned back, and under the inspiration of the Almighty he pronounced a curse upon them. The awful judgment that followed was of God.

Had Elisha allowed the mockery to pass unnoticed, he would have continued to be ridiculed and reviled by the rabble, and his mission to instruct and save in a time of grave national peril might have been defeated. This one instance of terrible severity was sufficient to command respect throughout his life.

For fifty years he went in and out of the gate of Bethel, and to and fro in the land, from city to city, passing through the crowds of idle, rude, dissolute youth, but none mocked him or made light of his qualifications as the prophet of the Most High.

Even kindness should have its limits. Authority must be maintained by firm severity or it will be received by many with mockery and contempt. The so-called tenderness the coaxing and indulgence used toward youth by parents and guardians, is one of the worst evils which can come upon them. In every family, firmness, decision, positive requirements are essential.

Proverbs 29:15 The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.

[4] Our last example is known as the Caribbean version of Georgie Porgy.

There were three basic problems we ran into one day, as we played that song. [1] I happened to be Georgie Porgy. [2] One of the girls happened to be my Dad’s student. [3] Georgie Porgy couldn’t run away.

Even now, I can clearly recall that day. School was over, we began playing table tennis, and before you know it, “the girl” and myself began playing Georgie Porgy. But after kissing the girl, she didn’t follow the script, and my Dad, who was the school Principal at the time was made aware of what had taken place.

“Then”

I was then called to the Principal’s office and asked a direct question: Is it true that you kissed one of my students? After sweating a ton of bricks I finally said yes, and he then told me to go home and wait until he came home. To make a long story short, the episode that followed was weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth.

My father did his parental duty, even though it was unpalatable, and therefore, when it came time for him and my mom to intercede for me, God heard and answered their prayers, and that’s why I stand before you today, giving Bible studies.

Many people wonder at the phenomenon of mass shootings that have overspread the land, and others are perplexed, and dismayed by the wanton taking of human life, often by young adults and even those in their teens. The reasons for this are simple: “Our chickens are now coming home to roost”.

When through secular philosophies and practices we weaken the hands of parents, when the kids are encouraged to call the cops on their parents, when correction was indeed due, and when parents are found cowering in fear because they prefer to avoid unpalatable duties then we will have a toxic mix on our hands.

Unwarranted leniency, and unbridled evil tendency in kids who should have been corrected when there was opportunity to do so, have contributed greatly to the over 178 mass shootings across the U.S so far for this year alone.

But the phenomena does not stop there, for as the human agent loses respect for parents, man, and all duly appointed leaders, they go a step further in the total disregard for God Himself, and thus, we’ve had many mass shootings in churches, synagogues, and mosques, phenomena that was almost unheard of in the not too distant past.

The seeds of these rebellions and the manifestation of such disrespect can in many cases be traced right back to parents who shirked their duties when they had opportunity to correct the evils in their children which they knew of, but whom like Eli, had turned a blind eye, hoping somehow that the church, or the school or even God Himself would take up the slack.

And now my dear friends, some parents may have a Georgie Porgy at home, and others may have the girls on their hands. Whatever our situation may be and whatsoever might be the issue to be addressed, one thing is certain, if folks expect God to fulfill His promise of saving our children, we will have to roll up our sleeves and do our parental duties.

At times, this won’t be easy, and many tears will be shed in the process, but if we persevere in the right direction, trusting in God and cooperating with Him, He will bless our efforts, because, at the end of life’s journey, nothing else will matter more, than to see ourselves and our children saved eternally in God’s kingdom.

In harmony with the spirit of this presentation, we now exhort every parent to be faithful. Let not our feelings get in the way of doing God’s bidding; let’s not weaken the hands of the other when there are unpalatable issues to be addressed, as Zipporah did when she did not agree with God’s requirements.

Instead, let us ask God for grace and strength to do His good will, for it is the salvation of parents and kids alike that are at stake. We therefore end with a passage of scripture which should encourage us, as we continue the bitter/sweet journey of raising our children for God’s kingdom. Let’s read:

Hebrews 12:4 Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.

5 And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaks unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him.

6 For whom the Lord loves he chastens and scourges every son whom he receives.

7 If ye endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chastens not?

8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.

9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence. shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?

11 Now no chastening for the present seems to be joyous but grievous, nevertheless afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.

12 Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;

13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.

15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.

God Bless!

Christ, Our Greatest Treasure. Sabbath afternoon 05/01/2021

Isaiah 53: 3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

It is true that God has given to the human family the greatest of all gifts through His Son Jesus Christ, and even though some individuals may not be aware of it, that sacrifice on Calvary is what gives us the great value we now enjoy. A jewel, or a work of art is only as valuable as the price paid for it, and therefore, it is because of the price paid for us that we have now become so precious in God’s sight.

This doesn’t mean to say that we were not precious before, in our fallen state, but the entrance of sin into our world had greatly depreciated our original value. Persons should understand that if God were to correctly value us after Adam sinned, we would not be worth much, because a dying Adam could only hold his value for so long.

The new Mercedes s550 bi-turbo is worth north of a hundred grand, as it sits gleaming in the showroom, fresh off of the assembly line. But as it is driven off the lot, depreciation takes a large swipe at it, to the tune of ten to fifteen thousand, and it continues to lose value yearly, until one can purchase it after ten years for around twenty-five thousand, even though the original value stood at around 130,000.

When God had originally created man, he then had tremendous value, and as Adam and Eve then stood in the showroom of Eden, gleaming in the image of God, even The Lord was moved to comment that they were very good. But then we were sold, sold under sin, and from then on out man lost much of his original value.

In other words, when because of sin, Adam and Eve were driven off “the lot” (in this case the garden of Eden) they began to depreciate, and were it not for the intervention of Christ they would’ve continued to lose value, until the cold fingers of death would render them fit for the junkyard, even the grave.

In our day there is a great deal of self-importance manifested in some persons, and others walk and talk in pride, not being aware that were it not for Jesus Christ, the value and importance we place on ourselves would be non-existent. Here is what the Bible says about human beings, and our planet, as put into the right perspective. Let’s read:

Isaiah 40:15 Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance.

17 All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.

But Christ stepped in, and determined to purchase us back to Himself because of what He knew He can do in us, but in the process of doing so, He would pay the ultimate, and the highest price that could ever be paid. It is this intervention that now gives to the human family its extreme worth, and that’s why the Bible cautions us never to under value the price paid for our redemption, nor the cost of human life. Let’s read:

Hebrews 2:3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?

Hebrews 10:29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden underfoot the Son of God, and has counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

The book of Hebrews takes on an entirely different tone from all the rest of Paul’s writings. It is a book filled with clear-cut and sobering truths which bring the seriousness and assurance of our salvation into full view and then it exhorts us not to undervalue or take for granted that which was accomplished for us on Calvary.

The book of Hebrews begins with establishing the fact that The Person who was to lay down His life for the human family, was and still is the greatest gift that can be bestowed on us. Jesus Christ who paid the highest price for our redemption is not merely a good man, or a secondary God, He is the fullness of the God-head bodily. Let’s read:

Colossians 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.

It is important for Paul to establish this fact up-front so that as he proceeds with describing what Jesus went through to save us, we would understand that it is The God of heaven who by His sacrifice has now given to the human family royal status, and because of this, Christ is our greatest treasure. Let’s read:

Hebrews 1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;

3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.

8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom.

Thus, after establishing the fact that it is The Person of God who came to purchase us back, the very next chapter of Hebrews begins with the word therefore, a word which means based upon the foregoing facts or, for that reason. Let’s read:

Therefore, we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

2 For if the word spoken by angels was steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward;

3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?

That the Son of God should leave the bliss of His heavenly home and come to this earth to die for our sins, that we may have eternal life should cause us to rejoice with trembling, because without Christ’s intervention in our behalf, we would be gazing into a deep abyss, a black hole from which there would be no escape.

Therefore, any and everyone who has been granted that privilege, and the opportunity to be called the sons and daughters of God, should never take such a relationship lightly, for at the end of life’s journey, it makes all the difference between eternal life and death, as we will explain later on in our study.

If all there is to life is to work, pay bills, have some fleeting fun, only to die after a few short years of existence then life would lack purpose and meaning and folks would be driven to despair whenever the transient things of earth do not pan out, as they too often don’t.

But in Christ, we have much more to live for, and to look forward to, and because He has granted to us hope and assurance through His death for us, we’re energized to live with expectancy. Those who live in this world without God and Christ would often have their bubbles popped whenever there is upheaval, disturbance, or when other unsettling events occur.

But the peace of God which passes understanding comes from the knowledge that in Christ, life is now worth the living, and this very fact spawns energy, resilience, and joy, even in the midst of our troubled waters. Hence the reason why the apostle penned the following words, putting into precis form, the two perspectives that face all humanity. Let’s read:

1st John 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

Thus, in the book of Hebrews, we are told of God’s purposes in sending Jesus to redeem us, and we are reminded of what the incarnation has accomplished permanently for the human family.

Several passages confirm our status as royalty, as a direct result of Christ’s intervention, and there are other passages which show us why we should value ourselves and all other people in harmony with the greatest work that has been accomplished on our behalf.

[1] Through Christ, all those who believe have now become partakers of His own Divine nature. Let’s read:

Hebrews 2: 11 For both he that sanctifies, and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren.

12 Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.

That word “Brethren” is a very sobering word as it pertains to Christ as our greatest treasure, because it must be understood in the context of what came before in Hebrews chapter 1. Remember what Paul says in the first chapter of Hebrews, that Christ is God indeed. But now, he refers to Jesus, and those who believe in Him as brethren. Let’s read again:

Hebrews 1:8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom.

Hebrews 2:11 For both he that sanctifies, and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren.

Therefore, the very next logical question is: How did we become “Brethren”? What on earth could have possibly taken place for the God of the universe to have brethren on this planet. It has to do with Christ being our greatest treasure, for the term “Brethren” was not a fanciful designation given us by God just to make us feel good.

It’s a designation that’s the result of the most literal combination of the two; that’s the only legal way to arrive at that terminology. For instance, when the Bible speaks of Jesus as “God with us” that means much more than God associating with us. God did not merely mingle with us, He actually became one of us, and that is the only reason why that term brethren is justified in the context. Let’s read:

Hebrews 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham.

17 Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.

Matthew 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Luke 24:38 And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?

39 Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.

[2] Because of our new status as “Brethren” we can be assured of victory, because our Elder brother, Christ has never lost a battle, and as brethren we should never lose any battle too.

1st John 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.

Romans 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.

30 I and my Father are one.

One of the reasons why we often sputter and fail as Christians is because we may not have understood fully the implication of that term brethren, and as a result, our approach to all of life’s difficulties and its problems, often savors of humanistic perspectives.

As Christians we will encounter hurdles, problems, and challenges like everyone else, but the mere fact that we have Christ with us, and in us, should be the game-changer as it pertains to outcomes. Christians are not to handle difficulties the same way that the secular world does, for that term “Brethren” should be ringing in our ears constantly, driving, energizing, and motivating us to trust, obey, believe, and win.

That’s why Paul declares that believers are more than conquerors, for to conquer is one thing, but to be more than a conqueror means that such an one would have the confidence and assurance that the battle is already won. In fact, whenever God would send His people into battle in times past, you would often hear Him say, “Behold, I have given such and such into your hands”.

Thus, being more than a conqueror meant that His people only had to take the victory that was already given to them by cooperating with God and obeying His every word. This understanding of victory tends to develop in us a rugged, bare-knuckled approach to devils and their devices, for in Christ, the battle is not ours, but the Lord’s. Let’s read:

2nd Chronicles 20:1 It came to pass after this also, that the children of Moab, and the children of Ammon, and with them other beside the Ammonites, came against Jehoshaphat to battle.

4 And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the Lord: even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.

13 And all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.

14 Then upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, came the Spirit of the Lord in the midst of the congregation;

15 And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's.

17 Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.

20 And they rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.

22 And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.

23 For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, everyone helped to destroy another.

24 And when Judah came toward the watch tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the multitude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none escaped.

Deuteronomy 2:4 Rise ye up, take your journey, and pass over the river Arnon: behold, I have given into thine hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land: begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle.

25 This day will I begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble and be in anguish because of thee.

Joshua 6:2 And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor.

Joshua 8:1 And the Lord said unto Joshua, Fear not, neither be thou dismayed: take all the people of war with thee, and arise, go up to Ai: see, I have given into thy hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land:

[3] In Christ, we have the seeds of immortality sown already sown in our mortal bodies, which will spring up into everlasting life if we stay the course with Him.

When we become united to Christ on the brethren level, we become partakers of the immortality that is His, and this fact renders us impregnable to such dissolution that’s permanent in nature. The physical body may be laid in the dust, but then the brethren factor comes into play, for just as the grave couldn’t prevent Jesus, the grave cannot prevent “brethren”.

In an age of Covid where so many have died and are still dying, the “brethren” factor would make all the difference and hence the reason why the urgency of the moment, for persons who have already become brethren to seek to make more brethren. Thus, the following passages must be read and understood from the perspective of “Brethren”. Let’s read:

1st Corinthians 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead and become the first-fruits of them that slept.

21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.

22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

23 But every man in his own order: Christ the first-fruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.

42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption.

43 It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:

44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.

51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

And now “Brethren”let’s fast forward to the future: Christ has come, the world has been decimated by the brightness of His coming, those who in this life have rejected Christ, our greatest treasure, have been slain, the 1000 years of sabbatical rest have expired, and for the very first time in earth’s history, every human being that was ever born on planet earth is alive contemporaneously.

According to the apostle John, the final conflict of the ages when God will finally put an end to sin, is to be accomplished only after those one thousand years have elapsed. The “Brethren” who have been saved eternally have seen with their own two eyes the extensive efforts made by God to save their lost relatives and friends and the tears have been wiped away from their eyes as a result. Let’s read:

Revelation 20:1 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.

2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,

3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall reign with him a thousand years.

7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,

8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog, and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.

9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city.

As Lot, and Abraham stand upon the walls of the New Jerusalem, there in the distance they see Lot’s wife and daughters, with their husbands, coming to fight against God. Some who for years have known the truth, yet have not permitted themselves to be brethren are on the other side of the fence because they knew not that Christ is our greatest treasure.

Heaven will be a place of surprises, for persons who should be there won’t be there and others who may have seemed to be the most unlikely candidates for heaven would be present. The men of Nineveh, and Nebuchadnezzar, will be there, but some who have preached to others are nowhere to be found. Let’s read:

Matthew 7:21 Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

1st Corinthians 9:26 I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beats the air. 27 But I keep under my body and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

Close relatives, aunts, mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers might make it, while family members may be missing. Persons, who once rejoiced in the truth, behold with remorse and anguish the results of their decisions and choices in this life.

And yes, there would be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, when it is finally realized that our greatest treasure, even The Lord Jesus Christ, was right at our fingertips, but now, is out of reach. And now brethren we beseech you by the mercy of God, to make your calling and election sure.

Those golden opportunities that God has granted us to become brethren, those providences He allows, which speak volumes to our consciences, and the waves of death and despair that have gripped the United States, Brazil, India and Europe, all tell us that it won’t be long before the final irrevocable decisions of the judgement will come down.

Let us then be wise, and not spend our few years on this planet chasing after things which do not satisfy, but let us rather seek to become one with Christ, who indeed is our greatest treasure, for at the end of life’s journey being brethren would have made all the difference.

We therefore end with a passage of scripture which exhorts us to choose wisely, live soberly and to walk humbly with God. Let’s read:

Romans 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.

12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armor of light.

13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

God Bless!

Remember Lot's Kids. Sabbath afternoon 04/24/2021

2nd Timothy 3:1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy.

It is a solemn statement that we make, that many of our kids who have grown up in church, listening to sermons, attending Sabbath school and pathfinders, will be found destitute of salvation, if great changes in their thinking aren’t made. The story of Lot’s kids is another graphic reminder that we are not saved by families, but everyone who has reached the age of accountability would have to answer to God for themselves.

It is true that God has given us promises in the Bible that we can hang on to, even when things may not seem too promising in the children’s spirituality, but as was stated in a previous Bible study, Jesus could only do so much for persons. He does not force the will of any, but He does everything else that can be done, to bring the kids to a realization of their need of Him. Let’s read:

Isaiah 49:24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered?

25 But thus saith the Lord, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contends with thee, and I will save thy children.

God sets in motion opportunities and experiences that will favor repentance and will bring children to a place where they can appreciate the blessings of salvation. In addition to the well-directed efforts of parents, God often sends His angels on missions of mercy to woo and encourage the wayward child.

God does this proactively for He knows that the kids do not naturally have it within themselves to turn to Him, and therefore He takes steps that will bring to their minds, the value and meaning of what Jesus has done for them on Calvary. But parents have a definite part to play in the matter, for the salvation of the kids, has a lot to do with parents working in harmony with the instructions God has given.

However, it’s a sad fact that too many parents have come up short in one way or another, for different reasons, and even though we know that there is no such thing as a perfect parent, we must do our best by God’s grace to foster spiritual growth in the kids by precept and example.

In this, the father should take the lead in union with the mother because a good example in two is better than a good example in one, and when both parents are on the same page spiritually, they can present a united front, in love, to their kids, without worrying whether each other will give contradictory precepts to the kids. Let’s read:

Ephesians 6:4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Lot was partially responsible for the ultimate loss of his kids because of that one selfish decision to move to the city, which had more economic privileges and opportunities than the hill country which he had left for his uncle Abraham. That one decision became a game-changer, not only for himself, but for his entire household.

When parents make the decision to move from one location to the next, for purely economic reasons, without giving due consideration to what effect the new environment will have on their children a grave mistake could be made, and in some cases it would affect the modes of thought and action that the kids will ultimately adopt for life.

The spiritual advantages of any location should be of paramount importance when planning to make a move, for if the new location is rife with immorality, crime, and drugs, the kids will be exposed to evils of no ordinary character, that they will encounter on a daily basis.

And since it is a law of the mind that by beholding, we become changed, the gravitational pull of evils could eventually suck them into a vacuum and leave them in a very dark place spiritually.

This is exactly what happened to Lot’s kids because as they attended public schools in Sodom, they had to intermingle with the students and teachers, who were teaching and practicing gender neutrality and alternative lifestyles. Day in and day out their young minds were bombarded with philosophies that set off conflicts within their minds, and it became too difficult for them to swim upstream.

We should never be deluded as to the long-lasting effects of educational systems which do incorporate anti-Christ philosophies and teachings into all their curriculums, for the kids are brainwashed with evils on a daily basis and evil is likely to be reproduced in their overall outlook on life. Just as iron sharpeneth iron, the influence of others often rubs off on kids without their knowing or being aware it.

Thus, Lot’s kids gradually came to question all that they had been taught in Sabbath school, at the only church in Sodom where Lot was an elder.

According to the scriptures, many of the children in Sodom and Gomorrah’s schools, from elementary to university, had already adopted the gay lifestyles of the adults of their towns, and over a period of time, Lot’s kids began to view the activities of their peers as being the norm, and thus their consciences became blunted as to the gravity of the evils. Let’s read:

Genesis 19:4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter.

5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.

Not even the Sabbath school quarterly Lot used for worship could counteract the teachings dispensed in Sodom’s schools, for whereas the family worship in Lot’s home might have lasted for only a few brief moments, the education of his kids in Sodom lasted for several hours, in so much that those lessons in their quarterly were overwhelmed with unscriptural philosophies from their teachers and professors.

It’s worthy of note that satan is a diligent protracted and deliberate worker, who will often employ those tools such as gradualism, peer pressure, seniority, censure, applause, and heckling to achieve his goals and thus, in the environment of Sodom’s schools, it would have been practically insane for Lot’s kids to even mention anything religious, for sheer fear of embarrassment, or even retribution.

When children are brought up in those educational environments where the name of Jesus is anathema they often become too scared to stand up for right, for fear of isolation, and heckling from those other students who are going with the flow. Thus, just as it was in Lot’s day, many of our kids have gradually come to see nothing wrong with those alternative lifestyles peddled in high and low places.

But just because Lot failed to do his job as a father doesn’t mean that such an excuse will hold water when it came time for his kids to give an account to God for after coming to the age of reason they were required like everyone else, to search the scriptures for themselves, to find out whether those things are so.

God made several attempts to reach them in former years, but they had become so ingratiated in Sodom that their mode of thought and action reflected the very fabric of the twin cities. Just as those men of Sodom refused to listen to Lot, when he reproved them for their unnatural behaviors, just so Lot’s kids refused to listen to him when the final warning was given.

The men of Sodom made fun of Lot, and the same attitudes were found in his children, for they also made fun of him. One of the spinoffs of education in unscriptural philosophies is that persons develop an attitude of skepticism, and with the passage of time they too often come to think of themselves as being more knowledgeable than God and also their parents.

When educational systems teach unscriptural things or refute what God has given to the human family, a pride of opinion usually takes root in the heart, and the humble attitudes encouraged in God’s word are often exchanged for a “know it all attitude”, which often tends to look down on religion as something for the uneducated.

Thus, when Lot was sent with the final warning to his kids, he was met with scorn and rebuttal at what they considered as uneducated, unfounded fears. It is true that in our day, some kids who have grown up among the remnant people of God, now come to view the second coming of Christ as something not worth their consideration.

But little did Lot’s children know that this would be the last time they would see their father. Nor did it dawn upon them that mercy’s doors would forever be closed, as they made fun of that lone elder, who preached that last sermon.

One of the reasons for Lot’s utter failure is because his daughters had become unequally yoked with the men of Sodom, and they exerted such an influence upon them that it caused them to make light of any religious matters.

When persons become unequally yoked with folks of different persuasions, the things of eternal value are not usually held in preeminence, and there is a tendency to lessen the importance of those great truths which point to eternal realities. Thus, it was that the husbands of Lot’s children took the lead in unbelief, and the wives followed in their footsteps. Let’s read:

Genesis 19:14 And Lot went out, and spoke unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.

[Patriarchs & Prophets pp 160] The strangers whom Lot had endeavored to protect, now promised to protect him, and to save also all the members of his family who would flee with him from the wicked city. Lot went out to warn his children. He repeated the words of the angels, “Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city.”

But he seemed to them as one that mocked. They laughed at what they called his superstitious fears. His daughters were influenced by their husbands. They were well enough off where they were. They could see no evidence of danger. Everything was just as it had been. They had great possessions, and they could not believe it possible that beautiful Sodom would be destroyed.

Another reason for the utter failure of Lot’s sermon is that he did not really believe what he preached as was evidenced by his delay and many excuses when it came time for him leave. One of the reasons why some fail to reach the kids in our day is that some of the parents do not really believe the three angels’ messages.

They may talk it, they preach it, or they may be able to explain those graphic charts, depicting the 2300- day prophecy, but by their lifestyles, behaviors, and choices of entertainment, some parents show that they really do not believe. If parents really desire to impress upon the minds of our kids, the urgency of the moment, we would need to act like it.

The laissez-faire attitudes concerning religion, the worldly-mindedness, and our infatuation with the material things of this life, the latest fashions, and the movies of the day, reveal, that like Lot, many do not really believe. And that hesitancy, and a lack of conviction often spawns an attitude of skepticism, scorn, and ridicule, just as it was with Lot’s kids. Let’s read:

Genesis 19:15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.

16 And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.

17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.

18 And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord:

19 Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die.

20 Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.

But even though God had succeeded in pulling Lot’s children out of Sodom, He did not succeed in pulling Sodom out of them, for their minds had become so brainwashed by the prevailing immorality in those twin cities, that their consciences were permanently damaged and blunted, so that it was quite difficult for them to distinguish between right and wrong.

Their sad after-history teaches us, in graphic terms, the dangers of becoming too ingratiated in the life, teachings, and philosophies of the godless, for it is a fact that long after we have been removed from the adverse effects of such influences, the fallout could still linger on in the mind, only awaiting the right set of circumstances to converge, and to produce more evil. Let’s read:

Genesis 19:30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters.

31 And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth.

32 Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.

33 And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.

34 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.

35 And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.

37 And the first born bare a son and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day.

38 And the younger, she also bore a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.

Some parents focus primarily on leaving a material inheritance for their children, however the far more exceeding eternal weight of glory and the immortal inheritance is not given such priority, and thus, in all of the decisions and transactions made, materialism figures prominently, but spirituality and religion is found to be languishing.

We must now speak directly to the kids in our day, who are being inundated with false narratives, as it pertains to sexuality, gender neutrality, alternative lifestyles, neutral bathrooms, and the whole nine yards of distorted immorality which threatens to severely and permanently impair their discernment between right and wrong.

There still remains something such as absolute truth which is to be found in God’s word and even if there has been a dereliction of duty on the part of parents it is your God-given right, and sacred duty to search the scriptures for yourself, so that your relationship with God won’t be tethered through your parents.

Lot was saved, but his kids were lost, and in our day the same could be true, but it does not have to be so. If children were to ask God for a mind to study, understand, and obey His word, He will respond in the positive, and grant such a request, because this movement was started by young people, and God is willing to use them again to finish his work.

Daniel and the three Hebrew boys were quite young when they entered the universities of Babylon, yet they did not allow false teachings to compromise their understanding of truth. Through a study and practice of God’s word, they kept their consciences tender and sensitive, so that they were able to read between the lines when faced with temptation.

Similarly, the children in our day do not have to succumb to prevailing views on morality, where the right and wrong have become subjective. Personal opinion must be made to answer to it is written and relativism, and all the other isms should conform to a thus saith The lord.

Therefore, be not afraid dear youth to stand up for right; be not intimidated by professors who might teach error, and do not be scared to challenge their philosophies on gender neutrality. If we become afraid to stand for something, we’ll fall for anything, but God has promised to give us a strong mind that could both discern and decide, in matters pertaining to truth and duty.

We therefore end with two passages of scripture that should encourage Lot and his kids in our day so that the fatal mistakes made in days of old would not be repeated in our experiences. If parents and children would fortify their minds with the word of God, we would have an active reference point to guide our feet through the maze of unscriptural ideologies that have permeated society. Let’s read:

Titus 2:6 Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.

7 In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity,

8 Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.

2nd Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

God Bless!

Evolution Versus Creation. Sabbath afternoon 04/17/2021

Revelation 14:6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

The theory of evolution began gaining traction just around the same time that the first angel’s message began to sound in the eighteenth century, which is to point the inhabitants of the earth to worship God in His capacity as Creator. At that time, Darwin was chosen as the primary human vector, to spread the theory and its suppositions even though it had been in existence before Darwin.

It was a deliberate and systematic effort by the enemy of God and man to counter the truth about creation, and since that time, many scientists have studied and utterly dismantled, both the big bang theory and evolution yet they continue to be taught in the most prominent universities, and schools of higher learning around the world.

As the first angel’s message began to sound in the 18th century, it would draw the attention of persons to the great facts of creation, and thus, the Sabbath, which is a celebration of God’s creative power, was to be observed in commemoration of what God has done through creation, and continues to do through redemption.

Thus, the atheistic concepts which had found fertile ground in persons for centuries, began to take deep root in Darwin’s mind, and his so-called discoveries and his subsequent theories represent the counter- narrative to what is plainly stated in the scriptures, concerning the origin of species, and the creation of our world.

However, when the core principles of evolutionary theories are observed, it would be discovered that they did not originate with Darwin. Instead, they’re the culmination of centuries of rebellion and hatred against The Most-High, by the most-low.

Some of the core principles that evolution espouses clearly exposes the real author behind the theories, and undoubtedly demonstrate the reasons why the embrace of that school of thought would ultimately mean ruin for the human family.

For instance, one tenet of Darwin's theory supposes that more offspring are born than can survive, and that only the survivors of competition for resources will reproduce. Furthermore, Darwin states that the variations in species ultimately give some members the advantage in their competition to survive, and thus reproduce, and that those advantageous traits are passed on to the next generation.

There are several important points about evolution for us to note, and as we observe the great contrast in creation, we hope that our minds will forever be freed from that delusion which has taken the world captive, for the most part. The following are a few observations coming from The Holy Ghost.

[1] Evolution has inherent selfishness at its core, for it pits persons and species against each other in the mad rush to survive.

The principle of survival of the fittest will ultimately mean that some persons would get crushed in the process, and whereas all individuals are on a level playing field at the foot of the cross, evolutionists state that the less fortunate won’t stand a chance in the battle to survive.

From this principle of survival of the fittest, springs the principle of competition which is what drives all major league sports. The thinking that folks have to beat someone else in order to be the best is entirely contrary to Biblical principles, and anything that is contrary to scripture, is by default, antichrist in its nature, to a greater or lesser degree.

In the Bible, all human beings get a chance to win, and all will receive the prize, if the stated conditions are met. The strongest, the biggest, the richest, the baddest, and the best, are never allowed to bully, or buy their way into God’s kingdom, at the expense of the weaker and, less fortunate, as is too often the case in Darwinian modes of thought.

An insatiable desire for the highest place is what led satan to attempt an overthrow of God’s established order in heaven, and even though he turned out not to be the fittest in that episode, that same mindset has pervaded the human family for the most part. In the mad rush to survive, some will inevitably get hurt, and alienation, discord and strife would be the ultimate result.

Survival of the fittest led us into the cold war where nations scrambled to produce and possess the most dangerous nuclear weapons. As the infamous Cuba missile crisis unfolded in the 1960’s, the two nations came to view the other as an existential threat, and as the showdown gained momentum the concept of survival of the fittest brought us to the brink of war.

But what we are yet to discover is that when folks adopt the survival of the fittest in war, there are no real winners, for the desire to conquer often does more harm to the conqueror than the conquered. That is why we now find it necessary to withdraw from Afghanistan because with thousands of deaths and being more than two trillion dollars in the hole, we do not have any real gains to show for the effort made.

The desire for the best and highest place is actually an outgrowth from survival of the fittest, and even with the twelve disciples, the same principle led the mother of James and John to ask Jesus for the best positions in the kingdom and were it not for Christ’s intervention there could have been a confrontation, a Cuban missile crisis of sorts, on a miniature scale. Let’s read:

Matthew 20:20 Then came to him the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him.

21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.

24 And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren.

25 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.

26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;

27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.

28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

In this instance, Christ sought to establish service as the core operating principle of His kingdom, which is diametrically opposed to evolution. In Darwin’s world persons view others as obstacles, or stepping stones, in their mad rush to survive, that is why the other ten disciples became angry. Thus it is that the source of most discord in our world comes from the principle of survival of the fittest.

Many of our activities and purposes, as humans are currently driven by evolutionary principles. From capitalism, to the Superbowl, and from wrestling to boxing, and all major league sports, all of them have at their core, to a lesser or greater degree, the same principle of survival of the fittest.

From the philosophy of survival of the fittest comes outgrowths such as the last man standing, we beat any advertised price, shark tank, inequity in justice systems, gentrification, higher insurance rates for the lower income neighborhoods, hoarding, bidding wars, and quid pro quo, caste systems, and the list goes on and on.

Thus, the advancement of oneself above others and at the expense of others becomes the driving force in whatever is done in most cases. And in Darwinian schools of thought, where the survival of the fittest is the core operating principle, the big fish desire to eat up the smaller fish, superior races emerge, and the ultimate enslavement of any who are deemed inferior becomes inevitable.

When one race is treated with disdain and another is treated with respect, or where one is granted an advantage or favor that is withheld from others, for no other reason than skin color, there you have the same Darwinian principles of survival of the fittest, which continue to spawn deadly tentacles in every nook and cranny of our society.

Hostile takeover bids by large companies are also based on survival of the fittest. Major corporations often flex their financial muscles and scoop up small companies that may lack the resources to thrive in a fiercely competitive environment. Thus, long before Darwin came on the scene, God found it necessary to address the under-girding principle of survival of the fittest.

He gave us laws, and instructions that were meant to prevent persons from thinking of themselves as being superior to others, and in several passages in the Bible God instructs us to track a different course than that of survival of the fittest. Let’s read:

Exodus 22:21 Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

Exodus 23:6 Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.

8 And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blinds the wise, and perverts the words of the righteous.

Leviticus 19:14 Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the Lord.

15 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment. thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbor.

Acts 17:24 God that made the world and all things therein, is Lord of heaven and earth.

26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth.

Then Christ sums it up in a brief statement that we would do well to consider. Let’s read:

Matthew 19:30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

[2] As it pertains to the beginning of life, and the origin of species the big bang theory, has no intelligence or planning in it, for it is commonly believed and taught in schools that the world came about by an explosion.

Therefore, when intelligence is excluded from the origin of species it becomes impossible to have any planning, and without a plan you cannot have order purpose, or hope. Furthermore, without intelligence you cannot have compassion, because love must of necessity have a level of intelligence for it to exist.

Hence the reason why the godless, the unbeliever, and the skeptic have an entirely different view of the world, because, as persons are taught in schools and universities, we all came about by an accident. This in itself is one of the main drivers of fear, and hopelessness in our world, because if we came by accident, who knows, we might go by an accident, a pretty scary concept.

In contrast, the Bible teaches us that our world was created by The God who cares. When considered, His creative works show great planning, a depth of thought, purpose, and compassion. That is why the evolutionist and the believer in Christ would always have a different outlook on life because intelligence is not an afterthought in creation, as it is in the theory of evolution. Let’s read:

Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.

Psalms 104:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honor and majesty.

2 Who covers thyself with light as with a garment: who stretches out the heavens like a curtain.

3 Who lays the beams of his chambers in the waters: who makes the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind.

4 Who makes his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire.

5 Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed forever.

6 Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains.

7 At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.

8 They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys unto the place which thou hast founded for them.

9 Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over; that they turn not again to cover the earth.

10 He sends the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills.

11 They give drink to every beast of the field: the wild asses quench their thirst.

12 By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches.

13 He waters the hills from his chambers: the earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works.

14 He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth.

16 The trees of the Lord are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted.

17 Where the birds make their nests: as for the stork, the fir trees are her house.

18 The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats; and the rocks for the conies.

19 He appointed the moon for seasons: the sun knows his going down.

20 Thou makest darkness, and it is night: wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth.

21 The young lions roar after their prey and seek their meat from God.

22 The sun arises, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens.

23 Man goes forth unto his work and to his labor until the evening.

24 O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.

25 So is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts.

26 There go the ships: there is that leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein.

27 These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season.

28 That thou givest them they gather: thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good.

Psalms 19: The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shews his handywork.

2 Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night shews knowledge.

3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.

4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,

5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber and rejoices as a strong man to run a race.

6 His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.

These passages all bring the question of purpose into sharp focus, for any reasonable person must ask the question: For what purpose was all of this work, this activity, and planning done.

If one were to see his or her neighbor buying tons of materials from Home Depot, and many workmen bustling about with tools, and constructing a host of different things, the question would be, what is the purpose of all this construction, and what is that neighbor trying to accomplish. The same is true of all the many things God has created. The question is: what was His ultimate purpose in doing so? Let’s read:

Isaiah 45:18 For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else.

Evolution has no purpose whatsoever, for as science supposes, man’s origins start off with an unplanned, unexplained explosion, and things come together by proxy, and somehow morph into being intelligent. It is both the craziest, and the scariest theory to have ever existed, as the Bible clearly states.

Psalms 14:1 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.

2 The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.

Isaiah 40: 25 To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.

26 Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one fails.

[3] Sadly, Darwinian theories have begun to invade the minds of the remnant, so that many of us have come to think of the age of this world in terms of millions of years, instead of in thousands, as the Bible clearly teaches.

If the Bible teaches six thousand, and the prophet of God for our day says six thousand, then if we refuse the veracity of the sacred statements, then we have been invaded by Darwin. The chronological order of persons in Genesis chapter 5 and 11, together with the 2300-year prophecy, when compiled and added to the genealogies given by Matthew and Luke, can never come even close to a million.

The world was not in existence for millions of years, before God brought order out of chaos. He brought order out of chaos on the first day of the week, the very same day in which the creation of the world took place. Anything that suggests otherwise would destroy the very reason why the commandment on the Sabbath was given. Let’s read:

Exodus 20: 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it.

In closing, we must reiterate again, that the theory of evolution and the core principle of survival of the fittest are fundamentally flawed, for they state that a person’s survival is tethered to their fitness. There are some of us listening today who may not be fit.

There was a time when Arnold Scwharzenegger was the fittest in his class, but now he is recovering from multiple surgeries. Once upon a time, Tiger Woods was the fittest in golf, but now, he too is facing the daunting reality that he won’t always be the fittest.

The same holds true for Alexander the great, who conquered many nations and Nebuchadnezzar who ruled Babylon, and then Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome and yes, The United States. Those individuals and nations of former years were the “Fittest” in their class in their day, but they did not remain the fittest, nor will we always remain the fittest.

God is now offering survival on a permanent basis through Christ, for His work for the human family is both creative and redemptive in nature. Thus, any person who may not be fit today could still survive through Christ.

One may not be the best in his or class, persons may not be the strongest, the most talented, the richest or the brightest, yet, in Christ alone there is to be found hope and survival, not merely for the here and now, but most importantly, for eternity.

We beseech you therefore, by the mercies of God, to choose Christ over Darwin for when the dust has finally settled, it will be discovered that it’s not the fittest, but the meekest that will inherit the earth. Let’s read:

Psalms 37:1 Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.

2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.

4 Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

5 Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.

6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.

9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.

10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.

11 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

God Bless!

The Shaking Part [1] Sabbath afternoon 04/10/2021

Haggai 2:6 For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;

7 And I will shake all nations.

The time is soon coming when there’ll be a terrible shaking among the professed people of God, and it will result in a mass exodus from the church and the truth. This is not a hypothesis nor an idle conjecture for it is the culmination of a plethora of factors that would converge as the end of earth’s history draws near.

Furthermore, it is predicted in the Bible, to result in the overwhelming majority of whom we now know as Christians to join ranks with the enemy of souls. Indeed, the shaking might have already begun, yet some may not be the wiser. It begins gradually and will pick up steam until it reaches a crescendo that topples all who have not built upon The Rock, Christ Jesus.

There isn’t any one single reason why this will take place, but it will take place, and God is now putting us on notice, so that deep soul-searching would be the result, and so that we can make our calling and election sure. To put it plainly, now is a bad time to play church, for we are heading for prime time, the period of earth’s history that will usher in the final conflict of the ages.

During this time, all the stops will be pulled out, and the bare bones, and foundations of our faith will be exposed, and therefore, if we have been superficial in our relationship and walk with God, the time will soon come when all that folks have ever learned in Sabbath or Sunday school, or in Pathfinders, would leak out of our souls, just as if it were a dream. Let’s read:

Matthew 10:32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.

33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

36 And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.

37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.

39 He that finds his life shall lose it and he that loses his life for my sake shall find it.

Question: How is it that we can be attending church for many years, praying, singing together, reasoning from the scriptures from week to week, and yet not be grounded in Christ? How is it, that some could be expositors of the scriptures, and yet, when crunch time comes around, so many persons would join the ranks of the enemy?

There are several answers to these questions, which we will address one by one, with the hope that the sincere-hearted, as well as the light and frivolous would be aware of what God desires in His people. This is not the time for the minds of the remnant people of God to be engrossed in movies, money-making or in fashion-mongering.

Instead, it is a time for deep soul-searching, where we examine ourselves closely in the light of God’s word; a time, when, like the Psalmist David, we are to ask God to search us and try us, to see if there be any wicked way in us, and if so, to lead us in those paths of righteousness outlined by God. Let’s read:

Psalms 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts.

24 And see if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.

Leviticus 23:27 Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord.

28 And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the Lord your God.

29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people.

We are currently living in the closing scenes of the antitypical day of atonement, when the names of all those who have professed Christ are being put into one of two books, the book of life or the book of death. With all of the ongoing issues to distract our attention from this all-important truth, we should never forget that it is occurring even as we speak.

The following therefore, are some of the reasons why many will be shaken out from among God’s remnant people, and it is our hope and prayer that the needed reforms and changes in our habits and lifestyles would take place in co-partnership with God who stands ready to forgive us, to heal us and restore.

[1] Some will be shaken, because of not being grounded in Christ and the truth.

As the shaking intensifies, there are those who have indulged a sort of tag-along relationship with God, in which their names have been registered on church books, and they have gone through the formalities of religion for years. Yet, some have never brought the eternal truths and principles of the Bible to bear directly on their everyday experiences.

A superficial, intellectual knowledge of the scripture is all that some will allow but when the word of God conflicts with habits and practice, some folks recoil from the self-denial that is necessary in order to facilitate the working of God’s Holy Spirit upon our hearts.

Thus, instead of synthesizing the written word with our everyday experiences, some persons keep the word at bay, not allowing it to sink its roots deep into the conscience to uproot, known and unknown tendencies and propensities to evil. As a result, the syndrome known as “dormant evil” just awaits the right set of circumstances to converge so that it can break out into open sin.

Again, some of us have been content with a sort of parasitic relationship with Jesus Christ, by which our knowledge of Him is threaded through another. In other words, some persons come to church merely because their spouses do, and some children attend church because they are forced to, yet there might not be any real, or earnest desire to give their life over completely to Christ.

Now, while it is good for all husbands and wives to attend church, and while it is so cute to sit together while listening to the word, our relationships with Christ have to go much deeper than that, for when our names come up in the judgment, married folks are not judged in pairs, nor would the spirituality of one, offset the lack thereof in another.

It would be cute if we could be saved by families or married persons could be saved in pairs. However, in reality, this is not the case. Lot and his wife made it ever so far out of Sodom, but after that they both parted ways, and even though they had lived in a God-fearing, monogamous marriage for years, yet, when the dust settles on resurrection morning, one will be found on the other side of the fence.

This brings a very sobering truth to the forefront of our minds, of which we ought to be cognizant as we consider the shaking, that is scheduled to intensify: The righteousness of one never atones for another, and sons and daughters are not permitted to hitch a free ride to glory on the backs of their God-fearing parents. Every person who has reached the age of accountability must answer for themselves. Let’s read:

Ezekiel 14:12 The word of the Lord came again to me, saying,

13 Son of man, when the land sins against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it.

20 Though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, as I live, saith the Lord God, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.

In the days of the antediluvians, God saved Noah and his immediate family from the deluge, and the reason given by God was: “For thee only have I seen righteous before me in this generation”. What folks must never forget in that episode is that all of his children, as well as Noah’s wife, obeyed, by going into the ark as God had commanded.

Thus, they partook of Noah’s salvation, because they partook of his obedience. In other words, if Noah had been married to Lot’s wife at that time, the narrative would have turned out differently. If Lot’s wife had partook of Lot’s obedience, she too would have been saved, just like Noah’s wife.

Even though parental faithfulness is always honored by God, and even though He desires that husbands and wives help each other, in their journey towards the kingdom let none be deceived into thinking that the righteousness of one will atone for the other for it is a solemn statement that is made, that everyone who enters the kingdom of God will enter in single file.

Thus, saith The Holy Ghost and thus, we reiterate again, husbands and wives are not saved in pairs, nor are families saved as complete units, and as the shaking intensifies, our individual relationship with God would be laid bare and severely shaken to the core. Let’s read:

2nd Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that everyone may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.

Revelation 22:12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.

Jeremiah 3:14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion.

[2] Some will be shaken out of comfort zones.

Some of us will be shaken out of our comfort zones to the point where difficulties and trials will shake our confidence in God. As it stands currently, it does not take much to profess belief in Christ, and those peculiar doctrines and teachings we advocate as the remnant people of God, do not generally trigger a lot of intolerance.

That’s because we still have freedom of speech and freedom of religion as pillars of our democracy, and the laws of The United States still offer protection from those who differ in persuasion. But according to Revelation, all of that will come to an end, and a mandated form of religion will be forced upon the masses of people.

As the laws of the land will certainly change as the Bible says they would, difficulties will surface, and the comforts we have become accustomed to, will become a thing of the past. Serving God when it is comfortable to do so, is quite different from serving Him in the times of relentless hardship and thus, we reiterate again, we’ll be shaken out of our comfort zones which we have become accustomed to.

Lot and his wife were doing quite well, serving God when it was comfortable to do so. In fact, according to the record, they manifested great kindness when they invited the angel strangers to their home to protect and feed them, thus fulfilling the scriptural mandate to entertain strangers unawares.

But manifesting great kindness is only one of the Christian virtues, persons are to develop. Enduring hardness and trial as a good soldier of the cross and that with a cheerful spirit is quite another matter as many of us as believers will discover in the not too distant future.

As Covid began to spread its deadly tentacles across the globe, unforeseen difficulties began to arise and as the hard lock-downs went into effect, persons had to grapple with the new abnormal. But instead of us viewing the situation as an incentive to spread the gospel, some retreated into self-preservation mode, and church attendance literally fell off a cliff.

Even now, as things gradually begin to get back to some sort of normalcy, many are finding it difficult to return to church, because zoom and his brothers have gotten us accustomed to doing church from a distance, where we can lie in bed watching sermons or even catch a snack during Divine hour, things we never did previously, and as a result, some persons may never come back to church.

Back in the days of old, Elkanah and his wife Hannah did continue to attend church at a time when it was very difficult and questionable to do so. At that time it wasn’t an epidemic of diseases, it was a pandemic of sin that had shaken the confidence of the people, and as a result most of them had stopped attending church.

Eli’s two sons had made a mockery of religion, and stop and frisk was daily practiced at the door of the sanctuary as folks would come with their sacrifices and offerings. But finally, it reached a boiling point where even the sincere-hearted had become utterly discouraged. Yet, Elkanah and Hannah still went to church. Let’s read:

1st Samuel 2:15 Also before they burnt the fat, the priest's servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw.

16 And if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desires; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force.

1st Samuel 1: Now there was a certain man of mount Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of an Ephrathite.

3 And this man went up out of his city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the Lord of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli Hophni and Phinehas the priests of the Lord were there.

Hebrews 10:24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.

25 Not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

To face trials, hardships, accusations, persecutions and heckling together with the loss of our economic freedom, while at the same time having to dispense with the comforts of life, is going to put an entirely different spin on life as we know it as Christians.

Thus, the shaking will develop two distinct classes of believers, those who serve God only when things are going smooth, and those who continue to serve Him when the going gets rough. When searching our souls, it is necessary for us to accurately assess if our attitudes and temperaments change and/or fluctuate when we do not have things our way.

There were times when Christ was on earth, when His disciples thought it an honor to be with Him and their striving for the highest place was often the result of high expectation that He would soon take the throne. But when Christ was disdained by the masses of people and proscribed by the authorities it was hard for them to be associated with Him.

Therefore, the difficulties and trials which thickened around them brought out the best in some, and also brought out the worst in others. Some who sang the praises of Jesus Christ, as He rode triumphantly into Jerusalem turned their backs and fled when the tide of popular sentiment turned against Him, and trials and imminent danger began to shake them out of their comfort zones.

If persons are truly grounded in Christ, difficulties or trials should only drive them closer to Him but if our relationship with God is superficial, then, when the going gets rough folks will recoil. Thus, persecutions and difficulties will either make or break persons.

Therefore, whenever true Christians are shaken out of their comfort zone, the result ought to be a much closer walk with God. In fact, true conversion would cause us to look at trials from the perspective which Christ outlines in the scriptures, for trials should energize, and incentivize, not discourage. Let’s read:

Matthew 5:11 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.

Acts 5:40 And when they had called the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus and let them go.

41 And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.

42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.

Acts 8:1 And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles.

3 As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering into every house, and hauling men and women committed them to prison.

4 Therefore, they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word.

5 Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.

[3] Some will be shaken because of such science that conflicts with God’s word.

True science and scriptural teachings are never in disagreement, for as we have stated on numerous occasions, the word “Omniscience” which has to do with God knowing everything, is made up of two words: Omni and Science. But in our day, science has in some instances taken a u-turn from the word and whenever it does, the true Christian must stick with the Bible.

Back in the days of yore, most men thought that the world was flat, and they planned, sailed, and taught their students in school along those lines. In various schools of thought, ranging from the Hellenistic and Egyptian, to the Mesopotamian and Gupta, people believed the world to be a flat disk, and some of the great philosophers taught this theory in universities of the day.

But right there in the book of Isaiah, the scriptures were saying something completely different, and it was only with the passing of the centuries that men came to understand their error. Thus, for very many centuries, what was considered acceptable science, later turned out to be fake news. Let’s read:

Isaiah 40:21 Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?

22 It is he that sits upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretches out the heavens as a curtain and spreads them out as a tent to dwell in.

In our day, modern science has been teaching folks that our world is billions of years old, and that man was slowly developed through evolutionary changes from lower lifeforms. The embrace of the Darwinian theories such as “Survival of the fittest” have also spawned a tsunami of self-centered ideologies, in which only the strongest and the richest, the best and the brightest should have a shot at survival.

It was the mentality of survival of the fittest which had prevented the crippled man in Christ’s day from accessing the pool when the waters were troubled. In the mad rush to survive, the biggest, the baddest and the strongest pushed their way up-front to be the first in line to receive healing, while the weakest and the neediest were left for last.

As Covid vaccines become available to the general public a similar rush for the door is unfolding in that the richest countries of the world have being buying up most of the available supplies, while the poorer, and less fortunate countries have been left behind. Thus the neediest and the greediest are sometimes scrambling to be first in line.

Some of the rich and famous who could’ve afforded to pay $1,000 a pop on the dark web, were in some instances able to get their shots first, while your everyday John Doe had to wait for hours standing in line, and in some instances was turned away. It all hearkens back to the same evolutionary concept of survival of the fittest.

Thus, man, in his efforts to “Survive” tramples the rights of the poor, others view the less fortunate as mere steppingstones to gain a vantage ground, and test-tube and designer babies are being engineered for the best possible chances of surviving in our day.

Evolution is also responsible for the concept of race superiority where some persons are viewed as sub-human and are considered as a threat or liability to others on account of the color of their skin. Those misconceptions are outgrowths from the theory of evolution which has survival of the fittest at its core.

And just as in the days of old, ivy league universities and colleges have hunkered down with evolutionary theory, and research and conclusions are done from that perspective. Thus, there are several questions we would have to confront in our generation, as the shaking comes to a head.

If science says something, and the Bible differs on that very point, which would we believe? Especially, if science purports to bring evidence that is contrary to God’s word, some would find themselves having to choose in principle between Christ and Darwin or between man’s science and the scriptures, as could be observed with evolution versus creation.

According to research done at Harvard university, several glasses of wine are recommended weekly because of the benefits of antioxidants contained in in. The scriptures declare that we can benefit from those antioxidants, but without the alcohol, if folks were to drink the un-fermented juice of the grapes. Let’s read:

Isaiah 65:8 Thus saith the Lord, As the new wine is found in the cluster, one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it.

In addition, the Bible teaches that fermented wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging, and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. So, who should folks believe, the researchers at Harvard, or the God of the Bible?

Again, there are well-known doctors who have touted the benefits of marijuana and have pointed to scientific research showing that a medicinal and recreational use of the drug produces great relief from pain and other disorders. That may be true to some extent, but it savors very much of the tree of good and evil.

As a result, we have many states legalizing the use of ganja, which has become a gateway drug, and in reality, would open up the floodgates to different hallucinations, addictions and delusions of all sorts.

The conflict of the ages, as it pertains to the human family basically consists of a battle for the mind and whatsoever will impede, interfere with, and damage the sensitive machinery in the brain, would be best left alone, according to the scriptures. And that will include everything that we might ingest via the five senses.

Therefore, folks are finding themselves in a tenuous situation where science is often being pitted against the word of God. Thus, as the shaking continues to intensify, we would have to make definite choices between that science which is not approved by the Bible, and that which is stated and commanded in God’s word, for our best good. Let’s read:

1st Corinthians 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

1st Timothy 6:20 O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called.

21 Which some professing have erred concerning the faith.

1st Corinthians 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seems to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.

When we are disposed to put man-made research above what the Bible teaches, that mentality begins to taint all of our perspectives and every other issue downstream of that mode of thought is inevitably affected.

There is no reason for any of us to be shaken to the point where we lose our faith in God, for everything that pertains to life, to godliness, prosperity, health and immortality is to be found in God’s revealed will and are to be accessed through faith in the Lord Jesus.

Thus, as we close off this first segment, we implore everyone to make certain that we know what, and whom we believe in, and we hope that knowledge will translate into a deep, abiding relationship with Christ, so that when the stormy winds blow and the rain descends, we will not be shaken out of Christ. We end with a passage of scripture which echoes the same sentiment. Let’s read:

Matthew 7:24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.

25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

26 And everyone that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand.

27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine.

God Bless!

God Saves To The Uttermost. Sabbath Afternoon 04/03/2021

Hebrews 7:25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever lives to make intercession for them.

When the Bibles teaches us that God saves to the uttermost, it basically means that He will not leave any means untried to reach the human agent. God does not give up in despair as man often does nor is His patience worn thin in a hurry. Instead, the Bible teaches us that Jesus is long-suffering, kind, and He takes no pleasure in the death of any.

God engages us in different ways to try and reach us to save us, and He employs various agencies that are set in motion to try to bring man to a realization of our need of Him. Loving-kindness and mercy are His favorite methods of reaching us, but when these fail, He is driven to employ other means that we may respond to.

Then, when all else fails He would initiate extreme measures to save, some of which He much prefers not to use, but which often become necessary, on account of the hardness and stubbornness of our hearts. And finally, if it becomes impossible to save persons, He finally throws in the towel, and leaves us to the choices we have made.

This is what became of the tribe of Ephraim, after every method was employed, with blessings, and entreaties and disciplines. Yet for all this, Ephraim would not hear, but rather entrenched himself even further in the wrong course of action he insisted on pursuing. God tried to save the tribe in every way possible, but His gracious overtures were spurned time and time again. Let’s read:

Hosea 7:8 Ephraim, he hath mixed himself among the people; Ephraim is a cake not turned.

9 Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knows it not: yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knows it not.

10 And the pride of Israel testifies to his face: and they do not return to the Lord their God, nor seek him for all this.

11 Ephraim also is like a silly dove without heart.

Then, when every possible method God can use had been thoroughly exhausted, the solemn declaration was made. This declaration is not made hastily, nor is it ever uttered spontaneously, on the spur of the moment. It is a culmination of years of resistance to God’s grace which results in the following. Let’s read:

Hosea 4:17 Ephraim is joined to idols: let him alone.

Even though some may not know it, the human agent can actually choose the methods God uses to reach him or her. If we respond to His overtures via His grace and loving-kindness, then he would not be moved to take it to the next level. In fact, God much prefers that folks respond in the positive, when He speaks kindly to us in our consciences.

This method is productive of the greatest good and sets the stage for an ongoing relationship with God that is not based on fear, but on that Parent/child model that Christ often referenced in His sermons. Several passages of scripture dwell on God’s love in His dealing with us, and it would be well if we didn’t take His kindness for granted. Let’s read:

Jeremiah 31:3 The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore, with loving-kindness have I drawn thee.

Romans 2:4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and long-suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

2nd Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long—suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

However, the same hand that is often outstretched in mercy is the same hand that would finally deal to the impenitent sinner, the full measure of justice, if every method God has employed in reaching us has failed. This sacred truth is embosomed in several passages of scripture, so that we may cultivate the correct balance between justice and mercy. Let’s read:

Romans 11:21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.

22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.

23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again.

Exodus 34: 6 And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,

7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children unto the third and fourth generation.

Jude 1:21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

22 And of some have compassion, making a difference.

23 And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire.

Hebrews 10:26 For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins,

27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries.

Now that we have a balanced view of the goodness and the justice of God let us examine with a humble heart, the ways in which God saves to the uttermost. The following therefore are three of the primary ways God employs in His efforts to save us. Remember, God does not leave any stone unturned and He exhausts every method in trying to save us from ourselves.

[1] God saves to the uttermost by speaking to us in the language of His love, kindness, grace, and mercy.

Psalms 103:2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.

3 Who forgives all thine iniquities; who heals all thy diseases;

4 Who redeems thy life from destruction; who crowns thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies;

5 Who satisfies thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

13 Like as a father pities his children, so the Lord pities them that fear him.

17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children;

18 To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.

That is not to say that God deals in any different currency with those who do not keep His laws, or who may rebel against Him. God is love, and His grace and tender mercies are extended to all men, whether they keep His commandments or not. The undergirding principle in all of God’s dealings with us is always love. Always!

Now, it is true that the laws of cause and effect may often trigger adverse consequences in persons, but that does not in any way take away from the basic fact that God is good to all peoples. Those who are believers today were not always Christians and thus it is God’s goodness that has brought us to where we are. Thus, the scriptures teach us that God tries to reach all persons with His love. Let’s read:

Romans 5:7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.

8 But God commends his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

Psalms 68:18 Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the Lord God might dwell among them.

19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits, even the God of our salvation.

Mark 2:16 And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eats and drinks with publicans and sinners?

17 When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

Genesis 4:13 And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear.

14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that

finds me shall slay me.

15 And the Lord said to him, Therefore, whosoever slays Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.

Let no one say or conclude that God is not merciful and kind to those who do not fear Him, for here we have someone who God knows would never repent, and yet He grants Cain special protection, to the extent that if anybody dares to slay Cain, God would personally take vengeance on that person, not once but seven times over.

[2] God saves to the uttermost by dragging some persons to repentance, for with some folks, that’s the only method that works for them.

After exhausting methods of loving-kindness, grace and entreaty, and yet persons still will not respond, then God has to move to the next level in His efforts to save to the uttermost. A firefighter pleads with someone to leave a burning building, but for some reason or another that person refuses to respond. Then, in an act of desperation, the fire fighter leaps into the building and drags the person to safety.

Thus, it has been throughout sacred history, where in some cases, God had to drag some of us to safety because entreaty failed to accomplish the work of saving to the uttermost. After repeatedly rejecting God’s gracious overtures to him, Manasseh had to be dragged to repentance.

Years of grace and mercy had been spurned and the Lord had sent various prophets and different people to speak to Manasseh about the evils he had been indulging, yet for all this he would not hear, but dug himself deeper into the pit. But there was hope for Manasseh, because some persons only respond to dragging, even though God prefers not to employ this method. Let’s read:

2nd Chronicles 33:1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem.

2 But did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, like unto the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.

3 For he built again the high places which Hezekiah his father had broken down, and he reared up altars for Baalim, and made groves, and worshiped all the host of heaven, and served them.

4 Also he built altars in the house of the Lord, whereof the Lord had said, In Jerusalem shall my name be forever.

5 And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord.

6 And he caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom: also he observed times, and used enchantments, and used witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirit, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger.

10 And the Lord spoke to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken.

11 Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manasseh among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon.

12 And when he was in affliction, he besought the Lord his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers,

13 And prayed unto him: and he was intreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord he was God.

God also had to drag Nebuchadnezzar after Daniel had shown him the error of his ways. If the king of Babylon had responded appropriately to the dream which God had given him, within the following year, then God would not have had to take His efforts up a notch, but like so many of us, the king of Babylon did not respond to lovingkindness, and the rest is history. Let’s read:

Daniel 4:19 Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonied for one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. The king spoke, and said, Belteshazzar, let not the dream, or the interpretation thereof, trouble thee. Belteshazzar answered and said, My lord, the dream be to them that hate thee, and the interpretation thereof to thine enemies.

20 The tree that you saw, which grew, and was strong, whose height reached unto the heaven, and the sight thereof to all the earth;

21 Whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the fowls of the heaven had their habitation:

22 It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong: for thy greatness is grown, and reaches unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth.

23 And whereas the king saw a watcher and an holy one coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew the tree down, and destroy it; yet leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him;

24 This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the Most-High, which is come upon my lord the king:

25 That they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most High rules in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.

27 Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility.

28 All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar.

29 At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon.

30 The king spoke, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?

31 While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.

32 And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most High rules in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.

33 The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws.

34 And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honored him that lives forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation.

35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

36 At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honor and brightness returned unto me; and my counselors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.

37 Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

God also had to drag Lot and his wife in the process of trying to save them, but the sad truth is that even dragging doesn’t work with some folks, as was seen in the untimely demise of Lot’s wife. The angels of God had pleaded multiple times with Lot and his wife to leave the doomed city, but for reasons that we will discuss later they just wouldn’t leave.

Then when entreaty and pleading had signally failed the angels, like the firefighter we spoke of earlier, had to grab them and drag them to safety, lest they be destroyed in the coming destruction. And it was only because of that last act of desperation on the part of the angels, why Lot was saved. Let’s read:

Genesis 19:12 And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place:

13 For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it.

15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.

16 And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.

17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.

18 And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord.

[3] God saves to the uttermost by issuing a threat or an ultimatum.

With some persons, loving-kindness does not work, and as we have seen with Mrs. Lot, even dragging failed to accomplish God’s work of saving her to the uttermost. Thus, after these two former methods have been thoroughly exhausted, then God issues a decisive threat or an ultimatum, to shake persons out of their comfort zone, if haply through fear they might repent.

God often reserves this method of salvation for the very last, for it is not His ideal will that persons turn to Him because of a threat. Yet, for all His delay in issuing them, there are times when threats do work and if that’s the only language we understand, then God will finally have to use it in a last-ditch effort to save to the uttermost.

This is what took place with the men of Nineveh who were on the brink of closing their probation, because of sins and violence that were occurring in the city. God had spoken through His providence on numerous occasions previously, but entreaty and dragging did not work. Then in a final, desperate act to save them, God issued an ominous threat, and believe it or not, it worked. Let’s read:

Jonah 3:1 And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying,

2 Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.

3 So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days' journey.

4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet, forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.

6 For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water.

8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.

9 Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?

10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

Matthew 12:41 The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.

In our current generation, God has been using His loving-kindness for a very long time. Blessings have been bestowed, opportunities given, and grace for grace has been granted through His overtures. Yet, for all His goodness, it has not worked, for we have dug in even further by throwing God’s marriage institution out the window.

Persons cannot turn on the news anymore, without seeing those advertisements of gay and alternative lifestyles being showcased to the multitudes. And as if to poke their fingers in God’s eye, more and more corporations and businesses are employing brazen examples of what God has plainly proscribed in the men of Sodom.

Thus, evil is made to strengthen in the minds of the people, the young and restless are becoming more desensitized, the lines of distinction between good and evil are becoming increasingly blurred, and the devil continues to ramp up his indoctrination of the masses in rebellion against God, through the media television, and other agencies.

In response, God had no other choice but to take it up several notches by permitting disasters, diseases and pandemics to bring us to our knees. Economies of the world were severely shaken, and the fallout has yet to be fully assessed as millions of lives are being lost, and the bleeding continues. Yet for all of this, we seem not to be getting the message.

Finally, when everything else has failed, after every means has been utterly exhausted, God will issue a decisive threat to our generation, with the intent that sincere-hearted individuals will respond in the positive. As was demonstrated before, this is not His preferred method, but it is the only one which remains in His arsenal. Let’s read:

Revelation 14:9 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,

10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:

11 And the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receives the mark of his name.

12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

[The Great Controversy pp 449>450] The most fearful threatening ever addressed to mortals is contained in the third angel's message. That must be a terrible sin which calls down the wrath of God unmingled with mercy.

Men are not to be left in darkness concerning this important matter; the warning against this sin is to be given to the world before the visitation of God's judgments, that all may know why they are to be inflicted, and have opportunity to escape them.

The God of heaven much prefers that folks respond to His gracious overtures, rather than employ those methods of dragging and threats we read about in the examples given. Therefore, the appeal to us is quite simple: Let it not be said of us that God had to use dragging and threats to bring us to our knees.

Instead, when Christ comes knocking on the door of our hearts, let us open up readily to Him for He isn’t coming to condemn, but to save. In harmony with His gracious purposes to save us we implore each of us to observe the closing passages of scripture and be ready and willing to follow where God leads the way. Let’s read:

Hebrews 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 15 While it is said, Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Revelation 22: 17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

God Bless!

The Guarantee Of Our Resurrection. Sabbath afternoon 03/13/2021

1st John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Because Covid has now taken the lives of millions of people, and many more will yet be deceased by its deadly sting, it is befitting and well that we set our sights not on the here and now, but on the great hereafter, when Jesus will make all things new.

Indeed, it is a very sad time that we are all passing through, where persons cannot spend their final moments surrounded by loved ones, and where the in-person encouragements, and support of friends and families at the graveside has been replaced by virtual zoom funerals from a distance.

Therefore, because there are other waves of viruses and diseases yet to come The God of heaven desires that we should look beyond that which is seen, to that which is eternal. The promise and guarantee of our resurrection sit at the core of the blessed hope and it is the will of God that we should now turn our attention to Jesus Christ who is the resurrection and the life.

According to what is written in the scriptures, if we believe and obey we should not mourn as do others because Christ has guaranteed our resurrection by His death for us on Calvary. Now, as we get closer to the coming of Christ, the outpouring of The Spirit of God through the latter rain will cause difficulties we encountered previously, to be made plain.

For starters, the life, death and resurrection of Jesus was not an afterthought which God had to scramble together in response to the fall of man. Instead, it is a strategic and highly intelligent move, designed to save souls and baffle devils at the same time. God is not into last minute planning, for all His doings are always well-thought out.

We’re indeed humbled when we think of the extent and depth of thought that went into the planning and fulfillment of Christ’s incarnation and ultimately His resurrection. Thus, as we examine the following important points about the blessed hope, let us all believe, understand, and obey, so that we all may be present at the first resurrection.

Pointer # [1]: The guarantee of our resurrection lies in the unique blend of humanity and divinity which is centered in Christ.

If we find The Lord speaking very confidently in the garden of Eden, after the fall of man, and essentially stating unequivocally that Jesus would be victorious in the conflict against death it’s because God knows what He is doing, and because He always knows the end from the beginning, He could plan strategically with perfect success every time. Let’s read:

Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my

Father's hand.

30 I and my Father are one.

Even though there might be inherent risks involved, the fact that God can see the outcome of those risks means that He can plan, promise, and deliver. Thus, as the first promise was made to Adam and Eve, it was with perfect assurance that God offered hope beyond the grave to fallen man.

Having Divinity blended with humanity guarantees the mitigation of all inherent risks to incarnation of Christ, for although He would retain His freedom of choice like any man, and though He would be sorely tempted to deviate from the plan, and even though men and demons would tempt Him to the core, yet, the basic fact of the blend brings positive outcomes into all seemingly negative situations.

The blending of human and Divine nature is the way in which our salvation, and ultimate resurrection is accomplished. Jesus united His Divinity with fallen humanity so that the humanity could be rendered impregnable to all the assaults of our unseen foes, including death, by choosing, believing and obeying through faith. Let’s read:

Hebrews 2: 14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

1st John 5: 11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

12 He that has the Son has life; and he that has not the Son of God has not life.

John 5:21 For as the Father raises up the dead and quickens them; even so the Son quickens whom he will.

24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

Pointer # [2] The power in the blend comes from the presence of The Third person of The Godhead, and that is why all who desire to come up at the first resurrection must have partaken of The Holy Ghost during their lifetime.

Whatever a person’s profession of being a Christian might be, if he/she does not have the Holy Spirit on the inside, they cannot be raised to immortality at the first resurrection. That is why it is so important for us not to play church, for doing so sets persons up for the greatest of disappointments.

In other words, the work of The Holy Ghost in our hearts is essentially to produce replicas of the blend which is found in Christ. Through freedom of choice we must invite God to do, and continue this work in our hearts, and if we stay the course with Jesus, the blend will be brought to the point where it cannot be reversed or dismantled. Let’s read:

1st John 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.

John 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he

cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man has not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Pointer # [3] Divinity cannot die, for immortality is naturally inherent in Divinity.

When we accept Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives, we also accept the very source of life, because in Christ there is immortal life, unborrowed and underived. One can’t offer what One does not have, hence the reason why Christ is able to grant us the gift of immortality. Let’s read:

John 17:1 These words spoke Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee.

2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.

3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

Colossians 2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him.

8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.

Hebrews 1:1 God (?) who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things by whom also he made the worlds.

7 And of the angels he saith, Who makes his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.

8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom.

1st Timothy 6:13 I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickens all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;

14 That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:

15 Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;

16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto….

Revelation 17:4 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

Revelation 19:13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.

16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King Of Kings, And Lord Of Lords.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2 The same was in the beginning with God.

3 All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.

4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

Therefore, now that the Bible has pinpointed Christ as The Lamb, The Potentate, King of kings, Lord of lords, and now that the scripture certifies that Jesus has naturally inherent immortality, then those who teach the doctrine of natural immortality, are doing violence to the very person of Christ, and they will have to pay a very heavy price if they do not repent.

Not only does the doctrine of natural immortality give to the multitudes a false sense of hope, it robs the gospel of the power of God to save, and places mortal man on the same level with God, essentially rendering us independent of The Life-giver. This is why the proponents of this false doctrine would be overthrown in a signal manner, if repentance is not made. Let’s read:

Pointer # [4] The Divine nature is imparted as a gift through The Lord Christ Jesus.

Just as how the Divine and human were uniquely blended in Christ, Christians who are called little christs will also partake of that unique blend. The promise of eternal life was based on the blend that God was going to do in Christ which was kept secret through eternal ages in times past. Let’s read:

2nd Peter 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Pointer # [5] Even though the Divine and human are blended in the person of Christ, yet the two natures remain distinct.

This is one of the most important points to grasp in the study of the resurrection. How the two natures could be blended in the Person of Christ and yet remain distinct baffles science, angels, and devils.

In fact, when satan began his temptations of Christ by saying “If thou be the Son of God” it was not only to insinuate doubt; he also had some valid concerns as to the science behind the incarnation.

Again, the angel who announced the birth of Christ seemed to be lost for words, for, after telling Mary of what The Holy Ghost was about to do through the incarnation, he concludes by declaring “That Holy Thing” will be called the Son of God, obviously not knowing how else to describe the blend and the distinctiveness that would occur at the same time.

Many years ago, when I was into street-racing I got an antique Jaguar which was to be restored. But the six-cylinder engine it came with could not deliver the horsepower desired, so I removed it and instead built and installed a competition Chevy engine with transmission, complete with a set of flow masters, and a stall converter.

The finished product was a hybrid between a Chevy and a Jaguar, and as the engine rumbled because of the rough idle camshaft, and horsepower, persons would often inquire as to what was under the hood.

I then had to explain that although both products were blended together, yet, the powerful Chevrolet engine remained distinct, even as it sat in the body of the jaguar. After a while the body of the Jaguar began to gather rust, and eventually it was sold to the junk yard, but we before doing so, we removed the Chevy engine, which remained and existed as a distinct, separate, and powerful entity.

On a much more comprehensive and in-depth scale is the blend between divinity and humanity. As we have shown before, Divinity remains distinct, as the perpetual undying powerhouse, yet it sits within the human body, through the indwelling of God’s Holy Spirit, delivering tons of horsepower for believers to live, die, and then be resurrected at the call of God. Let’s read:

John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.

13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

1st Corinthians 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

[Desire of Ages pp 388] Christ became one flesh with us, in order that we might become one spirit with Him. It is by virtue of this union that we are to come forth from the grave not merely as a manifestation of the power of Christ, but because, through faith, His life has become ours.

The eleventh chapter of John contains a wealth of valuable information pertaining to the guarantee of our resurrection. Questions are asked, answers are given, and corrections are made so that those of us who are living in the age of Covid, would have our faith in God streamlined with an understanding of what God has promised through Christ.

As we read and study the discourse between Jesus, Martha, and Mary, let us do so with a humble and teachable spirit so that our faith would rest securely on what God has done, and what He has promised to do. Lazarus was sick and Lazarus died, and like so many of us, his sisters thought Jesus had taken too long.

But in reality, Jesus’ delay was deliberate and well thought out, for as we stated before, God does not do anything on the spur of the moment, without first thinking it through, a pattern of thought and action that we mortals would do well to adopt. A few days pass by, decomposition sets in, and Jesus shows up while worms are doing lunch. Let’s read:

John 11:20 Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him: but Mary sat still in the house.

21 Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou had been here, my brother had not died.

There are certain things which do not take place in the presence of Jesus, for He is the source of life. If Jesus had showed up before Lazarus passed, then the truths and corrections about the resurrection, which needed to be made may not have occurred. If one has electricity in the house, the lights won’t go out because of a lack of current. She continues:

John 11: 22 But I know that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.

23 Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again.

24 Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.

At this point, Martha’s faith reaches forward to that great day when Christ will call all the righteous dead from their graves. But Jesus is now about to make a clear statement on the foundation of the promise of eternal life, for as yet, many, including Martha, did not fully grasp the true meaning of the incarnation of Christ.

In her previous statement Martha said she believed that whatsoever Jesus asked of The Father would be granted Him. But she didn’t fully grasp that the very fullness of God was standing in front of her, in the person of Jesus, and for this reason Christ sought to give clearer direction to her faith. Let’s read:

John 11:25 Jesus said unto her I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.

26 And whosoever lives and believeth in me shall never die. Do you believe thou this?

27 She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.

It is worthy of note that Martha did not answer the question Jesus posed to her and it’s understandable because it was a loaded question. In her answer she says she believes that Jesus is The Son of God, but on the question of those who believe in Him never dying, Martha was silent, as many of us in our day would also be, seeing that there are important facts about the resurrection that we need to understand.

Because the unique blend of Divinity and humanity remains distinct as we explained earlier, when the body of Christ was laid in the tomb, only the human body expired. Divinity, which cannot die, and which is distinct from humanity, hovered over the body of Christ, only awaiting the command from the Father to energize humanity into life once more.

Hence the reason why Christ made that statement of fact to Martha, that “He who believes in me shall never die”. Christ was there referring to His Divine nature of which we have become partakers through faith, and which remains alive, intact, and distinct, even when, like Christ, our mortal bodies are laid in the tomb.

This is the reason why Jesus had made the following statement earlier, declaring that He had power to lay down His life and power to take it again. Thus, it is the mere fact that Divinity cannot die, and that all who believe have become partakers of the Divine nature, which gives us the guarantee that we would conquer the grave, even as Christ did. Let’s read:

John 10:17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.

18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.

1st Thessalonians 4:14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.

15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.

16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.

17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

[That I may Know Him pp 71] He who had said, “I lay down my life, that I might take it again” came forth from the grave to life that was in Himself. Humanity died; divinity did not die. In His divinity Christ possessed the power to break the bonds of death. He declares that He has life in Himself to quicken whom He will.

[FHL pp 522] When the voice of the mighty angel was heard at Christ's tomb, saying, Thy Father calls Thee, the Savior came forth from the grave by the life that was in Himself. Christ had proclaimed in triumph, “I am the resurrection and the life.”

These words could be spoken only by the Deity. All created beings are dependent recipients of the life of God. Only He who is one with God could say, I have power to lay down My life, and I have power to take it again.

God had also given us this same assurance back in the days of yore, but it was not made as plain as when Jesus gave us those explanations in the book of John. Previously, a singular incident had hinted at the very same truth, but it was probably dismissed as a mystery beyond comprehension. Let’s read:

2nd Kings 13:20 And Elisha died, and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year.

21 And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men; and they cast the man into the sepulcher of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.

As we look out across the landscape of our world today there is a dark cloud of death hanging in the atmosphere. In addition, there are new diseases, viruses, cancers, and sicknesses of all sorts, and to add to the mix, there is turmoil and unrest among nations and governments.

Yet, through it all, God has given us the assurance of immortality in Christ, and whatsoever our situation may be, this one thing we know, that if we stay the course with Christ, and if we’re found faithful to the end, the unique blend of Divinity and humanity that is found in Christ, which guided our steps during this life, will one day fulfill the promise of the gospel, so that the blend would nevermore be dismantled.

Thus, we close our study with a bright ray of hope, that even though there are still many to be laid to rest in this life, yet, one day soon, Jesus will make all things new, and as such, we encourage everyone to not give up, but to have hope. Let’s read:

Hebrews 10:35 Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward.

36 For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

37 For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.

38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.

39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

God Bless!

It Is Spoken. Sabbath Afternoon 03/06/2021

Hebrews 8:11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

Christians are to be in a relationship with a Person, not merely a book, for the purpose of the written word is to lead us to the Living Word. God’s written does not have any more authority than His spoken word, because ultimately, if persons become set in a rigid written reference point, then if God speaks something that is not written, we will recoil from it.

It is good that we have the Bible at our fingertips in our day, but there were times when the very same Bible was chained to monasteries, and people were prevented from reading it. Thus, with the onslaught of secularism, and the breaking down of scriptural foundations it becomes all the more important that the written word lead us to The Living Word.

Law does not have to be written for it to be law; in a written format, it becomes a reference point which is to be accessed for purposes of streamlining that which is right, and in that context it is absolute. But our relationship with God must go deeper than it is written, for Jesus must be able to tell us what to do, even if it may not be written in stone.

Thus, it was in the beginning, and just as how the book of Genesis leads us to Revelation, the Bible leads us to a point in our christian experience where A Person, even The Lord Jesus Christ, can take over in directing us what to do. This does not mean that we are now free to walk contrary to what is written, because the law of God and those eternal principles will remain unchanged throughout eternity.

All it means is that our reference point is not to be so rigidly set in stone, that God cannot speak to us through His prophets, or any other means He may choose. In other words, if we restrict God to only what is written in the Bible, then, if He gives us any instruction that we cannot clearly find in His word, it may be rejected on the basis of lacking authority.

Back in the days of yore, there were not any laws written in stone before Mt Sinai, yet God’s spoken word, had just as much force as when it became etched with His finger. In fact, it is written was only meant to certify that which was spoken all along, a fact that can be observed in the way God’s law was given to the Hebrews. Let’s read:

Exodus 19:3 And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;

4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.

5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine.

8 And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord.

Exodus 20:1 And God spoke all these words, saying,

2 I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

9 Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work:

10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:

11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

12 Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

13 Thou shalt not kill.

14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.

15 Thou shalt not steal.

16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor's.

18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.

19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.

22 And the Lord said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.

Exodus 24:12 And the Lord said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them.

So, now that the Hebrews have a written reference point in their hands, they could be instructed from the written law of God, and they could always check the veracity of Moses’ instructions, if there was any doubt or question of authority. That is all well and good.

The problem is that some of the instructions God gave Moses were never written anywhere, and the people were expected to obey just as if God’s words were written. Thus, the question of authority would surface from time to time, and would also ricochet to Jesus’ day, where the question of authority arose after many of His sermons. Let’s read:

Matthew 5:21 Ye have heard that it was said of them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment.

22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery.

28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.

39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Matthew 21:23 And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?

The same question of authority arose with Moses and Aaron, when instructions were given out, which were not written. The question that would always arise is whether they should obey, as if it came from God, or may be, just may be, Moses is taking it upon himself to give out arbitrary instructions. Let’s read:

Numbers 12:1 And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman.

2 And they said, Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the Lord heard it.

4 And the Lord spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out.

5 And the Lord came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth.

6 And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.

7 My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house.

8 With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?

9 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against them; and he departed.

The question of authority also arose in the days of the early Christian church, when Paul baptized the gentiles without them being circumcised. In those instances, persons who were rigidly tethered to it is written brought scripture to back up their argument and Paul found himself having to defend what he did with only it is spoken. Let’s read:

Acts 15:1 And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.

2 When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.

5 But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.

6 And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.

7 And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.

The fact of the matter is that it took many centuries for laws to be written, because they were passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth, and those who were thus instructed were expected to obey, just as if the laws were written in stone.

Several examples are given in scripture to certify the truthfulness of the former statements, and as we study them closely we will discover that persons back then had come to view it is spoken as a valid reference point, as it pertained to what they would or wouldn’t do, just the same as if it were written in stone. Let’s read:

Genesis 4:6 And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?

7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.

Genesis 6:5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Genesis 28:20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,

21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God.

22 And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.

Genesis 14:19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth.

20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.

Genesis 39:7 And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.

8 But he refused, and said unto his master's wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;

9 There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?

Romans 4:15 For where no law is, there is no transgression.

1st John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

Why would Joseph call it sin, since there were not written laws anywhere. We are concerned about how he came to that conclusion, based solely on it is spoken, for as was stated before, the law of God was passed down through generations by the word of mouth.

Therefore, is Joseph managing his behaviors and his choices based solely on what his dad told him? And if so, are such instructions sufficient for persons to conclude that certain behaviors are indeed sinful? The answer is to be found in it is spoken, because the law of God in spoken format is just as valid as if it is written.

In fact, if we would receive it, the spoken format is even greater than the written one, for there have been instances where instructions were given that were contrary to law. But because the persons in question were tethered to a Person, and not merely law they did not run the risk of disobeying the voice of God. Let’s read:

Genesis 22:2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

3 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.

Now, it is true that the Bible emphasizes the fact that Abraham obeyed God’s voice. But a closer look at this singular occurrence reveals that Isaac also exercised a radical faith, by agreeing to obey God’s voice, even though The Lord did not speak to Him directly in this matter.

His father told him what God said, and in his young mind, that was sufficient. For himself, there was not much incentive to obey, other than he purposed to obey God’s spoken word for he must have been told of his own miraculous birth, and God’s promise of a great nation to come from his line, let alone the conflict between it is written and it is spoken. Let’s read:

Exodus 20:13 Thou shalt not kill.

[Patriarchs & Prophets pp 152] At the appointed place they built the altar and laid the wood upon it. Then, with trembling voice, Abraham unfolded to his son the divine message. It was with terror and amazement that Isaac learned his fate, but he offered no resistance.

But Isaac had been trained from childhood to ready, trusting obedience, and as the purpose of God was opened before him, he yielded a willing submission. He was a sharer in Abraham's faith, and he felt that he was honored in being called to give his life as an offering to God. And now the last words of love are spoken, the last tears are shed, the last embrace is given.

Question: If Abraham had decided to go with It is written, instead of it is spoken, would he be guilty of disobedience? Here it is again; the people are in violation of that which is spoken, before the written law of God was given. Let’s read:

Exodus 16:27 And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.

28 And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?

29 See, for that the Lord hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.

30 So the people rested on the seventh day.

There are times when God may choose to grant us additional instructions to meet the needs of some particular situation and in some instances, following the general counsels given in the Bible might not be sufficient to steer us clear of difficulty.

Especially is the instruction of God needed in those gray areas of life, where the Bible may not spell out in clear, distinct lines which course of action we are to pursue, or which specific decision to make in any given situation.

And because of this, we would need the voice of God as we endeavor to navigate the maze of voices coming at us from time to time, from so many directions.

Clear discernment, and wisdom is needed from God if we are to avoid serious errors in judgment, for the Bible gives us general principles and specific laws to cover every phase of our lives. But to have them be applied in our particular situation might be another matter altogether.

For instance, the Bible teaches us that we must not be unequally yoked with unbelievers, for there will be a disconnect between the two perspectives both spouses adopt in life. But the Bible does not tell us which particular person to marry and for this reason we will need A Person, to guide us through such an important decision.

Some folks make the mistake of taking the general information and instructions in the Bible, and they run with them, not understanding that the written word is always to lead us to The Living Word. This is one of the reasons why there are many separations in the churches of the land.

Two people, believing that the seventh day is the Sabbath, and that the three angel’s messages are in harmony with the Bible prophecy and who eat their veggies with singleness of heart are not guaranteed to be compatible. Thus, even though they may hold the same beliefs in common, persons will still need the voice of God to guide them to Mr, or Mrs right.

Thus, even as we embrace the written word of God in its entirety, yet we must leave some wiggle room for God to be able to direct us and speak to us on an ongoing basis because the essence of the Christian’s experience is with The Person, not only the book.

Now brethren it is critically important that we listen very carefully to the following, for it’s quite possible that we are beginning to enter the time of the latter rain, when the promise of copious amounts of The Holy Ghost is to be fulfilled across the entire globe, which will bring all the inhabitants of earth to their final decision to seal their eternal destiny.

The very unnatural disasters, the unprecedented diseases spreading across the globe, the infighting among political leaders, the social unrest, the pent up fires of rage and passion, and those irresolvable disputes and conspiracy theories we’re bombarded with every day, tell us that we closing in on the final events written and spoken of by Bible prophets.

To put it plainly, it is just a matter of time before there is that final conflict between the laws of God and the laws of men, because, with God-ordained marriage out the window, there is only one more shoe to drop, and according to the prophets, that final conflict will occur contemporaneously with the latter rain.

Therefore, we reiterate again that it’s quite possible we have already begun to enter the time of latter rain, the time more than ever, when we would need God’s spoken word to guide us through the many difficulties that are scheduled to converge in the not too distant future. If we become too rigidly tethered to an it is written format, then when God is ready to grant additional information and instruction we may resist it on the basis that it cannot be found anywhere in scripture.

This is what took place at the onset of the former rain, and if we do not become tethered to The Person of God, we may inadvertently rise up against His voice when He gives us pertinent instructions through His prophets, that may not be discerned in His word. Let’s read:

Joel 2:1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand;

2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.

3 A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.

8 Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded.

11 And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

The servant of The Lord commenting upon this very time referenced by Joel alludes to unorthodox ways and means that God would employ, when the latter rain is to be poured out. Whenever the gospel, in its simplicity is presented in too technical a manner so that the average John Doe cannot understand, then God will speak to and through those who are willing to listen to His voice. Let’s read:

[Last day events pp 205>206] The laborers will be qualified rather by the unction of His Spirit than by the training of literary institutions. Men of faith and prayer will be constrained to go forth with holy zeal, declaring the words which God gives them.

The truth that he speaks under the inspiration of the Spirit is so pure and remarkable and carries with it a power so indisputable that his testimony cannot be gainsaid. The Spirit is poured out upon all who will yield to its promptings and, casting off all man's machinery, his binding rules and cautious methods, they will declare the truth with the might of the Spirit's power.

Thus, the question we now have to settle is: When will the outpouring of the latter rain take place, and when will God’s voice be heard, and obeyed in the context of Joel chapter two and three? Let’s read:

Joel 3:13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe for their wickedness is great. 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.

Verse 13 of Joel chapter 3 is of grave importance for it begins by calling for the sickle, an instrument of reaping which is only called for when the harvest is ripe, according to the same verse.

So the question is: At what period in earth’s history is the sickle going to be called for? This question is so weighted that we must let the Bible answer, without any human interference or input. Let’s read:

Revelation 14: 9 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,

10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation;

12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.

15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.

16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.

17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.

18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.

19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great wine=press of the wrath of God.

Joel 2:23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.

28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.

29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.

32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered.

Very pertinent information has been given to the remnant people of God to help us in navigating the myriad snares that are already set for the feet of the unwary. Some of her instructions may actually seem to conflict with some directives given in the Bible.

However, the additional information is tailor-made to address the needs and crises of those of us who are living on the brink of eternity. Therefore, if we become too rigidly set in stone as it pertains to that which is written in the Bible, God might be speaking but we may not be listening, because we may have blocked out anything that is not set in stone.

Therefore, we end with a statement from the pen of inspiration, cautioning us that the manifestations which marked the beginning of the former rain, may not necessarily be repeated during the latter rain, and for this reason, the outpouring of God’s Spirit in the last days may not be recognized, or understood when it does take place. Let’s read:

[Last day Events pp 195>196] Only those who are living up to the light they have will receive greater light. Unless we are daily advancing in the exemplification of the active Christian virtues, we shall not recognize the manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the latter rain. It may be falling on hearts all around us, but we shall not discern or receive it.

God Bless!

Mercy, The Default Setting. Sabbath Afternoon 02/27/2021

Matthew 5:7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Mercy is not a naturally occurring characteristic in human nature for it is foreign to us and it is given by God as a gift to us, to be cultivated as a tender plant to the point where it becomes the default setting in our characters not merely an afterthought occurring after the fact.

While in most persons, a strict sense of justice is a preexisting condition, mercy, in stark contrast, has to be deliberately exercised in order for it to grow. In the character of God there’s to be found a unique blend of mercy and justice, but mercy will take the upper hand any day, for this is what God delights in.

There are not many television shows and movies in which mercy is highlighted, but there are a ton of them, in which the bad guys are apprehended, and made to pay for their wrongs. Such movies, where strict justice is meted out would always appeal to the multitudes, for that is where our default setting is usually set.

That is why we have such long-running series like judge Judy, judge Alex, judge Joe Brown, judge Mathis, divorce court, and You be the judge, for these shows appeal to the acute sense of justice that is found in human nature. But mercy shows, where persons are forgiven for a host of inadvertent, or deliberate acts, are in short supply and if such shows were to exist on television, we can be assured that their ratings would be at the very bottom.

It is not the will of God that His people should feed on justice too much, especially those shows where husbands and wives, friends and neighbors tear into each other on live TV.

By beholding we become changed, and if we dwell on justice, we will inevitably develop a craving for it and in consequence, anyone who crosses our path, or may do us wrong, could trigger a first response of strict justice which could be followed up by lawsuits and prosecution to the fullest extent of the law.

But the Bible teaches us a completely different way of doing things, a different approach that is more in line with the heavenly than with the earthly. It’s the will of God that His believing children should deal in a different currency than that which the world deals in.

Christians are set as lights in the world, not to do as the world does, but rather to show forth the praises of Him who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. Thus, the radiance beaming in the face of Jesus is to shine radiantly in and through His professed people, if we are to make a difference in the world.

As we have stated before, a peculiar people should have something peculiar about them, and that has to do with the espousing and practice of principles, laws, statutes, and methods that are mostly foreign to the secular world.

In a practical sense, persons should not be eager for justice even when it is due or warranted. We should avoid that mouth-watering craving to get even with persons who have done us wrong, and instead of a retaliatory spirit which is too often indulged, we are to follow in the footsteps of our Master, even Jesus Christ, who takes no pleasure in meting out justice.

Justice is something that God must do, but He does so reluctantly, all the while, hoping that there will be a change of course in those who are at odds with Him, wherever the possibility of repentance and change may exist.

This is the glory that is to be reflected through His people, and that is why, in the ancient tabernacle the mercy seat was set above the law, because law cannot save, but mercy can. Several passages of scripture reflect the above statements. Let’s read:

Psalms 103:8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

13 Like as a father pities his children, so the Lord pities them that fear him.

14 For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.

Luke 6:35 But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

36 Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

Proverbs 24:17 Rejoice not when thine enemy falls and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbles.

18 Lest the Lord see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.

Ezekiel 33:11 Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

Romans 12:17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.

18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.

21 Be not overcome of evil but overcome evil with good.

In all of these and similar passages, God is showing to us in unmistakable terms that we are to track an entirely different course from that which the world embraces, for if we do not, there would not be any noticeable difference to the observer, and therefore no incentives or valid reasons why persons should switch masters.

The general tenor of the Christian’s life should be one of redemption, not a craving to get even. When this is the case the wrongs and slights that come our way are readily forgiven and forgotten, even before the offending person may ask forgiveness or seek a reconciliation. In fact, God does not expect persons who are in the wrong to initiate reconciliation.

Forgiveness, and reconciliation are to be initiated by the one who is in Christ, and Christ in them, for it is unrealistic in many cases to expect someone who is in an offending frame of mind, to trigger anything that’s even remotely close to reconciliation.

After Adam and Eve had sinned, they did not ask for forgiveness up front, neither did they try to initiate reconciliation. Instead, fallen human nature always seeks to blame others for their shortcomings, which effectively precludes any attempt of reconciliation on our part.

But God did not wait for us to make the first move. He took the initiative and offered mercy even when it was not requested, and thus, He set in motion the practice of offering forgiveness when it isn’t sought by those who are in the wrong. Let’s read:

Genesis 3:8 And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.

9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?

10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?

21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins and clothed them.

Now, there are a few things we should know about mercy so that we could discern between the true and the spurious. There is a difference between mercy and kindness, a difference that is too often confused by the secular world. Kindness: noun; the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate.

Persons can be friendly, generous, and considerate without being merciful. Not long ago in Texas, when the deep freeze gripped the lone star state, owners of a particular grocery let the customers leave with their carts full of groceries without paying, for they had compassion on the people who were hedged in with abnormal difficulty. That’s kindness for real.

Then there are others, like Bill and Melinda Gates who have donated millions to various charities and other organizations to help the less fortunate. That work and results of such efforts have undoubtedly resulted in alleviating hardship for many, which is kindness in real time.

But mercy is an entirely different matter, because persons can manifest great kindness, while at the same time harboring an unforgiving, unmerciful spirit. And even though the two characteristics are not mutually exclusive, yet the one is too often to be found existing without the other. Let’s read:

Mercy: noun; compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm.

There are often times when persons have a right to punish those who have inadvertently or deliberately done them wrong. But, even though such persons may have exhibited great kindness in times past, yet in some instances it is difficult to forgive, especially when an acute sense of justice has been cultivated for many years.

Case in point was David, who on many occasions did exhibit real compassion and kindness. In one special instance, he braved danger, and he carried food and drink for his brothers who were then engaging with the army in facing down the philistines. In another instance, he gracefully refused to drink water which his soldiers had hazarded themselves to procure.

David even manifested mercy at times, when Saul was seeking to take his life. In a couple of instances he actually refrained himself and his soldiers from doing Saul harm, which they had opportunity to do.

But when persons are ungrateful, or when they may repay good with evil, it touches a sensitive nerve in human nature, and like David, the default setting of justice can lead persons to do strange things. Here’s what the Bible teaches us in dealing with situations of ingratitude, or instances where good is repaid with evil. Let’s read:

Luke 6:27 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you,

28 Bless them that curse you and pray for them which despitefully use you.

Therefore, even though David had manifested great kindness in some situations, yet when someone had repaid his kindness with ingratitude, David forgot all about mercy, and that strict sense of justice which is the default setting in human nature kicked in. Let’s read:

1st Samuel 25:5 And David sent out ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name.

6 And thus shall you say to him that lives in prosperity, Peace be both to thee, and peace be to thine house, and peace be unto all that thou hast.

7 And now I have heard that thou hast shearers: now thy shepherds which were with us, we hurt them not, neither was there ought missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel.

8 Ask thy young men, and they will shew thee. Wherefore let the young men find favor in thine eyes: for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand unto thy servants, and to thy son David.

9 And when David's young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased.

10 And Nabal answered David's servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there be many servants now a days that break away every man from his master.

11 Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men, whom I know not whence they be?

12 So David's young men turned their way, and went again, and came and told him all those sayings.

13 And David said unto his men, Gird ye on every man his sword. And they girded on every man his sword; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men; and two hundred abode by the stuff.

21 Now David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him: and he hath requited me evil for good.

22 So and more also do God unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall.

David was actually correct in his assessment of the person in question, and without a doubt, justice seemed warranted, for Nabal’s ingratitude was also laced with references to slavery, something which touched a sensitive nerve in David.

But David’s reaction in this instance did not come from God, and the methods he chose to resolve the ingratitude did not harmonize with God’s ways of handling similar situations. In many instances, it’s not that persons do not have a point, or a right, the problem is the reaction and methods employed in resolving the issue.

In some families of the saved, some have old axes to grind while others hold tenaciously onto grudges for many years, until the keen sense of justice has all but sapped the lifeblood and sunshine out of their countenances. In other instances, we seem unable to get over the wrongs that were deliberately and systematically done to us.

If we were to spend more time studying Calvary, we would be less prone to revert to strict justice for we would be humbled and softened by what Christ did for us on the tree. Beholding Christ on the cross for our sins tends to make us more forgiving, merciful, and patient with others, and our reactions to wrong will be in the context of how Jesus treats us. Let’s read:

Isaiah 53: 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Jesus could have actually come down from the cross when the priests dared Him to, and He could have gone back to heaven free and clear, but He chose not to repay our ingratitude with strict justice.

Therefore, in our own experience, where husbands and wives have been estranged for valid or invalid reasons, where children have been deprived of the balance that the father and mother brings, and in those situations where brethren may have axes to grind with other brethren, let’s remember that God has shown us by example, the royal methods and ways seeking reconciliation.

Let valid grievances, such as David’s be put out of the equation; let a strict sense of justice not take any precedence over mercy, and let us try by the grace of God to dwell in the light that emanates from the face of Jesus, for if we dwell in the positive, we will react in the positive.

But if we harbor darkness, ill-will, and dwell upon the hurt that has been deliberately or inadvertently done to us, then not only will reconciliation become difficult, but the effect of harboring grudges will be etched into our very countenances. When mercy is the default setting, it results in a chain of positive reactions that are redemptive in nature.

Thus, as we go about our daily activities, let us ask God for that cheerful, merciful spirit which delights in forgiveness, and the sunshine of God’s presence will radiate to others, wherever we may go. We end with a passage of scripture which will help us in cultivating mercy, as the default setting. Let’s read:

Luke 6:31 And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.

32 For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them.

33 And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same.

35 But love ye your enemies, and you shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

36 Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

God Bless!

The Priest Of The Home. Sabbath Afternoon 02/20/2021

Over the years, individuals have sought to reverse God’s order that was established in the beginning so that the family unit could be founded upon the eternal principles of righteousness. Even after the fall of man, it was never God’s will for His order to be reversed, but sadly, it has been, in too many of the families who claim Christ as our leader.

For the record, God’s established order can be seen both in the way He created Adam and Eve, and the instructions which He gave to both of them. Adam was created first, showing that He was to take the lead in the formation and running of His family, and then Eve was created from the rib which God took from the man. Let’s read:

Genesis 2:7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

8 And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.

15 And the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat.

17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

18 And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.

Obviously, the instruction pertaining to the tree of knowledge, of good and of evil was first given when Eve was not created as yet and thus, Adam, as the head of the home was expected to pass on to his wife the information God had given him, and she in turn was to believe and obey those instructions as coming not from Adam, but from God Himself.

Furthermore, The Lord instructed both of them to beware of the danger, so that the requirement of restraint as it pertained to the forbidden tree would rest upon God’s authority, not merely Adam’s own. In families where questions may arise as to where the priest of the home gets his instructions, the wife as well as the children only need double check with God’s word.

It was only after God had created Adam, put him to work, and gave him instructions, that Eve was made and because she was taken out of man, she was not to take the lead, nor to act independently of Adam. Now, we are almost certain to get into trouble for saying so, but this shows how far from God’s ideal we have fallen. Let’s read:

Genesis 2:21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;

22 And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.

23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

In our day there is a spirit of independence that has resulted in some men relinquishing their duties and responsibilities to their female wives, while on the other hand, women’s liberation movements have driven some wives to resist God’s order, and take to themselves both the position and duties that were originally delegated to the father.

While it is true that some wives have no choice but to take the lead in family and religious matters, for the lack of leadership, or absence on the part of the father, yet it was not God’s original ideal and wives would find it difficult to manage homes, where the father is culpable of a dereliction of duty.

However, there is to be a restoration of God’s ideals in those families which are called by His name, and even though there may be certain situations where better cannot be done, yet, The Lord is calling on us to do our very best to live in harmony with His wise instructions wherever possible.

Because of the numerous divorces that have done damage to so many families, God’s ideals for many now stand in disarray, but unlike humpty dumpty, Jesus is willing and able to put all the broken pieces back together again wherever humble hearts would submit to His guidance and leadership.

Thus, by observing what God did and how He did it, coupled together with His words of instruction, all can conclude that the priest, and head of the home was originally ideally intended to be the father. But with the passage of time, and with those subtle introductions of various divergent views, we have now reached a point where the priest and father in too many cases seems to be missing in action.

In our day, the various philosophies, and views on so-called freedom and liberty of the sexes has now caused many families to become discombobulated, to the point where the roles of parents and children husbands and wives, have in too many cases, been almost utterly reversed.

Thus, it is a solemn statement that we make that in the overwhelming majority of cases, the problem is with the husband, not the wife. After studying very carefully, how God holds persons responsible, we’re certain that He rests the bulk of responsibility of the family upon the man’s shoulders. This conclusion is to be observed in the following examples. Let’s read:

Genesis 3: 6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

8 And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.

9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?

10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?

Genesis 16:2 And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.

16 And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.

Genesis 17:1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.

Exodus 4:20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.

24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the Lord met him, and sought to kill him.

25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.

26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision.

1st Kings 21:2 And Ahab spoke unto Naboth, saying, Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house: and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money.

3 And Naboth said to Ahab, The Lord forbid it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.

4 And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him: for he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread.

5 But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread?

6 And he said unto her, Because I spoke unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money; or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it: and he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard.

7 And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.

8 So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth.

9 And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people.

10 And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die.

15 And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money: for Naboth is not alive, but dead.

17 And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,

18 Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it.

19 And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine.

The question is: Why does it seem as if God calls the man to account first, while the wife is addressed later? The reason is, believe it or not, regardless of what secular society thinks or teaches in the matter, God holds the husband accountable first for matters that take place under his roof. That is why Eli’s wife is not mentioned in the bad behaviors of their sons.

This is not to say that wives will be let off the hook if they do evil, but the Bible teaches that the brunt of the responsibility rests upon the shoulders of the father, to whom God originally gave the lead as the priest of the home.

Thus, as we study the pros and cons of being priest, it would be well if all of us can learn our lessons, for nothing has changed since God first instituted His established order. One of the pros of being priest is that the responsibility of training the children aright will result in blessings to households, communities, governments and nations.

Success or failures in life can often be traced back to the ground work that was done at home, where the father, as priest of his house, laid the foundation for righteousness by the faithful teaching of God’s word with an exemplary life to back it up, because actions speak louder than mere words.

Day by day, by precept and example, both parents, but especially the priest of the home should be the living embodiment of the principles and laws of the Bible, taking care to guide the young and restless in safe and wise paths.

Prayer is a vital necessity on an ongoing basis, but at the end of the day the children will generally follow where the priest took the lead, and as such, it is of critical importance that the father says and does the very best he can as far as a living breathing example goes.

On the other hand, one of the cons of being priest is that he will sometimes get pushback from the kids, or the wife, especially if both parents are not on the same page spiritually. This is one of the sources of much grief in families, where one parent says one thing and the next parent says another thing, to the utter confusion and dismay of the kids.

And children who are keen to discern the difference between the parents, will usually side with the one parent who is more lenient to their wishes. Thus, a wedge is driven between the instructions given by the priest and that of his wife, so that an unspoken uneasiness hangs in the atmosphere.

Both parents are always to present a united front to their kids, and should avoid countermanding each other in the presence of the children, because this will severely weaken their ability to demonstrate stability, unity, and authority in their households.

Furthermore, the priest is not to expect that every instruction from the word of God will go over well, without any resistance or remonstrance. Yet, he is still expected and is required by God to deliver the goods without fear or favor. Some priests will have some difficulty carrying this out in their homes, but God will grant grace and strength where needed. Let’s read:

Genesis 17:9 And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.

10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.

12 And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed.

13 He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.

Some individuals may question why some of God’s requirements may be disagreeable, and not always cool to carry out. That is because obedience, as well as one’s loyalty are primarily tested in disagreeable and negative circumstances, where persons would have to go against their own grain.

As priest of his home, Abraham could not even tell his wife of the instruction God gave him concerning the sacrifice of Isaac on mount Moriah, because he almost certainly would have run into serious trouble with Sarah. It is no guarantee, that in carrying out his duties that the children or spouse might readily agree, and in some instances, there will be definite resistance.

But the priest cannot and should never use these remonstrances and push-backs as an excuse not to faithfully carry out his God-given duties. Whenever such instances arise in the home, unceasing prayer to God must be made, peradventure the wife, and the kids may understand, but the priest of the home must never waver when it comes to right or wrong.

Even though no priest in our day will be called to do what Abraham was commanded to do, yet there are instances where disagreements between the priest and his spouse will certainly arise from time to time, as it pertains to the implementation of righteous principles and practices within the home.

Some spouses may be naturally more lenient than others, and where such disparities exist the priest of the home should be very careful not to abandon his duties for the sake of peace, such as occurred with Eli. Such fathers may seem cool to their children but in heaven, their names are written among the lost, for what may be cool with men, might not pass the smell test with The Lord.

Being priest includes the carrying out of unpleasant duties sometimes, and God must be sought in these situations to smooth out the rough edges, as far as is possible. For instance, if a proposal is made that is definitely in conflict with right principles such as the clandestine methods suggested by Jezebel, the man or priest of the home must tow the line faithfully in not succumbing to marital pressure.

When Sarah suggested an alternative route to what God stipulated, concerning the promised son, the priest of the home should have stood his ground, in love, and not yield to pressure. The same is true of Jacob when Rachel demanded “Give me children or I die”. The priest of the home may sometimes find himself faced with some unreasonable proposals.

Whenever unreasonable demands are made of the priest or whenever suggestions, contrary to God’s revealed will are made, that is a call to prayer for the priest, and God would grant both strength and wisdom to deal with the proposal in a firm, loving, and courteous manner. But if all these efforts fail, the priest of the home must not succumb to wrong.

Then there are those gray areas where satan is too often most successful in causing division, where the word of God might not spell out a definite course of action in black and white, and where decisions will need to be made through earnest prayer and sound judgment. In such instances, one spouse might not feel any need for prayer, while the other may see a potential for trouble on the horizon.

These differences in discernment should be taken to God first by the priest of the home, so that as he opens up his concerns in the matter to his wife, she peradventure may be willing to listen. More issues are solved by prayer than many Christians realize, and that is why we encourage everyone to take all matters to God in prayer first.

But, if and when things reach a boiling point where one insists on taking a certain route, without first consulting with God, then the priest of the home should lay out as best he can, the pros and cons of such actions, and he is expected to mutually bear the consequences or fallout of such an action, even if he may not participate in it.

Christ bore, and still bears in His Person, the fallout from our actions as His people, and since husbands are instructed to love their own wives even as Christ loves the church then we must expect some level of adverse fallout if differences in discernment persist.

This pertains only to the gray areas where a Biblical course of action may not be written in stone. Prayer between spouses is to be greatly encouraged, which will greatly diminish the heavy lifting the priest may find himself having to do from time to time. Let’s read:

Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;

26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Colossians 3:19 Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.

Again there might be differences of opinion that the priest of the home may encounter when it comes to the raising and training of children. Both the priest and his spouse are to raise their kids to love and to fear God, but the father, as priest of the home must take the lead. It is a responsibility that can never be shirked, without devastating consequences.

It is the solemn duty and responsibility of the father to lay out in clear, distinct lines, the laws, statutes, and principles of righteousness as is written in the Bible. The kids may not always agree, or like what is said and done but the priest must never present the word of God, and its instructions as being optional, or subject to the likes and preferences of any.

As was plainly stated before, being a faithful priest of the home will include push-back at times, but the combination of love and firmness will etch into the minds of the kids and the wife, that the priest does have the best interest of the family in mind, and all would benefit in the years to come, if the father and priest is unswerving and faithful to truth and duty. Let’s read:

Deuteronomy 6:6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart.

7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.

9 And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

There is a reading given to us by God, through His servant, that will do us well if we put into practice the lessons granted through the experience of others. Let’s read:

[Patriarchs & Prophets pp 578>579] God held Eli, as a priest and judge of Israel, accountable for the moral and religious standing of his people, and in a special sense for the character of his sons. Eli did not manage his household according to God's rules for family government.

He followed his own judgment. The fond father overlooked the faults and sins of his sons in their childhood, flattering himself that after a time they would outgrow their evil tendencies. Many are now making a similar mistake. They think they know a better way of training their children than that which God has given in His word.

Thus, wrong habits are left to strengthen until they become second nature. The children grow up without restraint, with traits of character that are a lifelong curse to them and are liable to be reproduced in others.

There is no greater curse upon households than to allow the youth to have their own way. When parents regard every wish of their children and indulge them in what they know is not for their good, the children soon lose all respect for their parents, all regard for the authority of God or man, and are led captive at the will of Satan.

The influence of an ill-regulated family is widespread and disastrous to all society. It accumulates in a tide of evil that affects families, communities, and governments.

In closing, we encourage all priests, whether they be father, or mother by default, to be faithful in the execution of duty, for it is a weighty responsibility resting upon our shoulders, the results of which will have eternal consequences. We therefore end with a passage that confirms the vital importance of the priest of the home. Let’s read:

Malachi 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.

6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

God Bless!

Fake Or Faith Healers. Sabbath Afternoon 02/13/2021

Over the years, a phenomenon of faith healing has all but engulfed Christianity, and because scriptural laws on health are being disregarded for the most part the services of these professed miracle workers have become all the more popular and in demand.

As with any violation of physical laws, there will be consequences that would follow, and rather than make the needed changes, some turn to a quick fix from the multitude of faith healers that have now overspread the land. But the question is, could it be that there are fake healers, as well as genuine faith healers?

The Bible study for this evening will seek to clear up this issue once and for all, so that those who may be sincere-hearted would be able to clearly distinguish between the true and the false, and thus, not fall a prey to the devices of devils.

To be clear, a fake healer is one who is not sent by or from God, and through whom the devil works to deceive souls. This does not necessarily mean that every miracle they do will be fake; it just means that the source of their healing is a counterfeit to that which comes from God.

This is an important point because some persons have the tendency to write off all miracles done by false prophets as being spurious. There will be times when real healing might occur through these agents but that does not make their work more authentic. The main difference between the fake, and genuine faith healers is the source of their power not merely the miracle itself.

For the record, the gospel commission includes the working of miracles for purposes of healing, when a situation might warrant God’s intervention. In such circumstances, prayer must be made according to God’s will, and if the particular individual is known to have contributed in any way to his/ her sickness, then confession of sin, and a turning away from the wrong course of action is required. Let’s read:

James 5: 14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.

15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

There are also instances in which God might move upon one of His servants to offer healing to folks in need, as He sees fit, but in such situations, those under the guidance of God never presume to take it upon themselves to decide or to single out who to heal. The Holy Spirit is The One who is to decide in such matters, never the human agent.

Thus, in harmony with the gospel commission, the disciples went out, preaching and healing, as they were led by God, and the Bible records several of these miracles as proof that the gospel includes the restoration of both the spiritual, and the physical aspects of man’s being. Let’s read:

Matthew 10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.

5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not.

6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

Acts 19:11 And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul.

12 So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.

Acts 3:2 And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple, which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;

3 Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked for alms.

4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.

5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.

6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.

7 And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.

8 And he, leaping up stood and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.

9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God.

But, because for every good thing God has given us, satan has a counterfeit, we must ask ourselves this question: Can satan work miracles too? We know from the story of Job that devils can inflict diseases but are they also able to heal? Unless we have very clear and concise answers to these questions, it will be quite difficult to tell the difference between fake and genuine faith healers.

Thus, we must let the Bible speak for itself on this point, before we proceed, so that the study may be established on the word of God alone. “Can satan work miracles?” Answer: Yes, he absolutely can. Let’s read:

Matthew 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

2nd Thessalonians 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.

9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,

10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

2nd Corinthians 11:13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.

14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

Revelation 13:13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

14 And deceives them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

These miracles referenced in the previous passages also include miracles of healing, done through the human agent, similar to how holy men of God were used as agents of healing under the auspices of The Holy Ghost. In both the genuine, and the false, the human agent becomes the vessel, through which either satan or The Holy Spirit works, and therefore it is imperative that we know the difference.

The following experience of an encounter with one fake healer is recorded in the Bible for our benefit, and it is the will of God that we should study it very closely, because as we near the close of time, it will become increasingly difficult for persons to discern between the fake and the genuine. Let’s read:

Acts 8:9 But there was a certain man, called Simon, which before-time in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one.

10 To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.

This obeah man, Simon, could not have had such a reputation among the people if he wasn’t delivering the goods. The above phrase “From the least to the greatest” means that it was not only your ordinary John Doe that went for healing.

His clientele ran the entire gamut, and included the prominent members of society, such as politicians, sheriffs, clergy and ordinary people. Apparently, this man had spent many years building his reputation among the people for being a reliable source of the miracles referenced, hence the reason why the Bible says they “all gave heed”.

But the sources he used stinks to high heavens and savors of something counterfeit, to those genuine miracles wrought by God’s servants. He’d employed witchcraft, as well as sorceries, the two branches of alternative medicine used by devils, and these two are still prevalent today, being used by those fake healers across the land. Let’s read:

Acts 8:11 And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.

Here is Strong's Concordance on the meaning of the word “Sorceries”

Pharmakeia: the use of medicine, drugs or spells

Original Word: φαρμακεία, ας, ἡ Transliteration:

Definition: The use of medicine, drugs or spells

Usage:magic, sorcery, enchantment.

pharmakeía (from pharmakeuō, "administer drugs") properly, drug-related sorcery, like the practice of magical-arts, etc.

Acts 8:12 But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.

13 Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.

Verse 13 reveals to us unmistakably that Simon, the obeah man actually joined the Christian church, and became a nominal Christian, at the very least, which then raises the prospect that there might be other

fake healers parading under the name Christian.

This is not merely a prospect, or an assumption, it is what the Bible says unequivocally in one verse that we read previously. Satan has Christian ministers as well as fake healers, who are scattered throughout Christendom teaching erroneous doctrines that are dangerous to the soul and who perform counterfeit works of healing on the masses of people.

But what is even more disturbing is that Simon had proposed to purchase The Holy Ghost, so that his diabolical combination of the powers of good and evil would render him even more potent. Thus, it is that the great adversary has always sought a hybrid of truth and error, of light and darkness, so that his work may become too difficult to detect. Let’s read:

Therefore, the following pointers from the Bible are to be used in detecting the true from the false, the fake from the real thing. Under the guidance of The Holy Spirit, and the word of God, every stone must be turned over and every fake healer exposed as we apply the litmus tests.

[1] Any healer or preacher who pushes people down to the ground is a fake, period!

You read the Bible from cover to cover, and you will not find a single instance in Christ’s ministry where He pushed down anybody to the ground. Instead, we will read often where He took persons by the hand and lifted them up.

But pushing people down on the ground, with them lying on the floor, is an unmistakable sign that the supposed healer, or preacher is a total fake. And thus, regardless of his or her claims, they are being driven by satanic forces. The general tenor of the gospel is to lift persons, up never to push down.

There is a term that has become quite popular in Christian circles: “Slain in the spirit” by which folks would be seen collapsed on the ground around some preacher or healer. This again is unmistakable evidence that a counterfeit spirit is at work because Christ did not give His Spirit to slay anyone. Let’s read:

Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

Mark 1:30 But Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever, and they tell him of her.

31 And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them.

[2] Money and materialism often stands front and center of miracles performed by fake healers. Let’s read:

Acts 8:18 And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money.

The incessant solicitation of money is in many cases a sure sign that a fake healer or preacher is at work. According to the scriptures, the miraculous works of healing, performed by false prophets, are closely associated with the love of money.

It is important for that link to be observed because in our day the same is true. It is too often the case that satanic works of healing, as done by fake these healers, are accompanied by what we describe as “stop and frisk” where congregations are too often shaken down for their personal funds.

These fake healers are often to be found badgering their congregants, and laying heavy burdens upon the conscience, so that folks are almost forced into returning their offerings, more from a sense of guilt, rather than from the willing heart, as the scriptures stipulate.

The constant solicitation of money is a definite red flag of the fake healers in our day, for wheresoever finances and donations seem to be front and center of their activities, and appeals, there you will most likely have Simon the sorcerer, operating in real time. Let’s read:

2nd Corinthians 9:7 Every man according as he purposes in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly or of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Micah 3:11 The priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord among us?

Acts 8: 18 And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,

19 Saying, Give me also this power that on whoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.

20 But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.

21 Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.

The above verses are even more disturbing than the rest, because Simon is proposing to pay for The Holy Ghost. When Christ in the parable of the ten virgins, stated that the five foolish were found destitute of oil, which represents The Holy Spirit they went out to buy, and apparently they found some oil for sale, because they later came back and requested entry. Let’s read:

Matthew 25:1 Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.

2 And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 They that were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them.

4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.

7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.

8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.

9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.

10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.

11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.

These five virgins who became destitute of The Holy Ghost, represent Christians, who like Simon, have believed, for they also espouse the word of God, as represented by their lamps. But the truths of God’s word were never synthesized with a daily practice, and for this reason, their lamps and their oil were brought to naught.

Thus, with a noticeable void in their lives, they seek to make up the difference by paying for counterfeits too readily supplied by fake healers and preachers. That’s why in Christendom you will hear so much of the “Anointing” referring to persons having the Holy Ghost.

But persons who have The Spirit of God dwelling on the inside, do not usually brag to others about their state. Instead, they are to be found with a humble spirit that avoids the flashy and the eccentric which often characterizes the fake healers and preachers of our day.

[3] Fake healers and preachers almost never ever ask the reason for a person’s sickness. Healing is often offered en masse without any reference or mention of root causes.

If a person goes to their doctor, and he was to offer healing and medicines without him first ascertaining what the one is suffering from that doctor would be considered crazy at best and ludicrous at worst. But in the Christian world individuals are being offered healing with no reference to root causes, which will call for a change in habits and lifestyle if warranted.

Therefore, if the counsels given in the Bible are not being followed, persons will need to be very wary, lest the fake be mistaken for the true. In the days of Christ, the wealth of knowledge we now have was not available, and so the links between habits and consequences were not so clearly discernable.

But with the increase of knowledge we have, folks are required to do their homework in studying the relation of diets and foods to diseases, and where necessary, make appropriate changes in harmony with the restorative power of God. Let’s read:

James 5:14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:

15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

John 5:5 And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.

6 When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?

7 The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.

8 Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.

9 And immediately the man was made whole.

14 Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.

[4] Presenting private interpretations and other distortions of the gospel.

Closely associated with fake healers and preachers is the dissemination of false doctrines, for the word of God reproves their practice and thus, in order to avoid the needed reforms and changes, they resort to modifying the scriptures to confirm themselves in a wrong course of action, and also to quiet a seared conscience.

For instance, the very popular false doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul, seeks to accomplish two main things: [1] To remove any need for change and repentance. [2] To grant to the deceived a false sense of security outside of that which Jesus and His word require. The gospel, as taught in the Bible calls for a change of heart by the renewal of our minds, through the power of God’s Holy Spirit.

Fake preachers and healers beg to differ, and state that a change in habits and lifestyle are not needed, since God accepts persons as they are. This is the reason why, when persons go for healing by a fake healer, no mention is made of contributing factors on the part of the sick, if any.

And thus, a person who may have become sick with lung cancer because of smoking, is offered healing without addressing the root cause, only to return to their old ways which caused the problem in the first place. These offers of healing are a part and parcel of the deceptions that the Bible warns about in the last days. Let’s read:

2nd Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

4 For if he that cometh preaches another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

As we near the close of time, and diseases, cancers and pandemics of all sorts continue to proliferate across the world, these counterfeit healings offered through satanic agencies, operating under a veneer of Christianity, will seem more and more as a viable option, and will soon culminate in the ultimate fake healer taking the stage of action to heal the many diseases of the people. Let’s read:

[Maranatha pp 276] As the crowning act in the great drama of deception, Satan himself will personate Christ. The church has long professed to look to the Savior's advent as the consummation of her hopes. Now the great deceiver will make it appear that Christ has come.

In different parts of the earth, Satan will manifest himself among men as a majestic being of dazzling brightness, resembling the description of the Son of God given by John in the Revelation. The glory that surrounds him is unsurpassed by anything that mortal eyes have yet beheld.

The shout of triumph rings out upon the air: “Christ has come! Christ has come!” The people prostrate themselves in adoration before him, while he lifts up his hands and pronounces a blessing upon them, as Christ blessed His disciples when He was upon the earth.

His voice is soft and subdued, yet full of melody. In gentle, compassionate tones he presents some of the same gracious, heavenly truths which the Savior uttered; he heals the diseases of the people, and then, in his assumed character of Christ, he claims to have changed the Sabbath to Sunday, and commands all to hallow the day which he has blessed.

We are now getting dangerously close to that time, and therefore, it behooves every sincere-hearted person to be on full alert, lest they be swept away with the incoming tsunami of counterfeit miracles which will take the world by storm.

It’s not a mere knowledge of these things that will save anyone, it is the conscientious obedience and surrender to the word, and will of God that would enable persons to discern the difference, and thus, be enabled by The Holy Spirit to avoid those deadly snares that will be set for the feet of the unwary.

We therefore end with a passage of scripture that should encourage us to make thorough preparation while we still have the opportunity to do so, for God is still in the business of saving to the uttermost, if we will believe and obey His every word. Let’s read:

Romans 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.

12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armor of light.

13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

God Bless!

Laws Versus Suggestions. Sabbath Afternoon 02/06/2021

Psalms 40:8 I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.

Some persons view the instructions and laws given in the Bible as merely good suggestions, and based upon their perspective, some conclude that it is ok to pick and choose which ones will be obeyed. But, while it is true that God has given us the freedom of choice, if we desire to serve Him, He would have us understand that whatsoever is written in His word is much more than merely good ideas.

As far as we know from the scripture God has never ever given out any suggestions or good ideas to the human family. Things, such as advice, suggestions, opinions, concepts, theories and great ideas belong and pertain only to finite beings. God gives us laws instructions statutes and judgments, to which, any who serve Him must walk in obedience.

There is a right way to do good, and there are also consequences for doing both good and evil, but if a person chooses to do the good that’s in the Bible, it would have to be done God’s way, alone. The view that is currently, and commonly held by many folks in Christendom, is that the laws of God are merely good ideas, and as such strict obedience is not ever required.

Furthermore, because of viewing His laws as mere suggestions and not requirements, persons become ensnared into thinking that certain aspects, which they deem objectionable, can then be modified to suit their particular circumstance. Thus, the result is a host of man-made variations and modifications to what God has given by divine authority, which then is often watered down by culture and tradition.

From this philosophy springs the myriad strands of churches, and denominations, some subscribing to whatever they think is necessary or convenient, and others rejecting outright those portions of His word that may not rub them the right way. But Christians will soon discover that it is not always cool and easy to obey God, for doing so often involves a struggle. Let’s read:

Galatians 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

Romans 7:19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.

21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.

22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man.

23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

In the days of Christ and the apostles there was only one brand of Christianity, the one that had Christ as Lord and Savior through faith which then always led persons to obey God. Faith in God, and a deliberate, continuous rejection of His laws were also mutually exclusive, and were never espoused by those earlier believers.

Back in the days of yore, persons who espoused the Person of Christ, and the gospel would demonstrate their desire to follow Him by being fully immersed in water through baptism and from then on persons were expected to walk in newness of life, being led and empowered by His Holy Spirit.

It was only later, when the perspective of viewing God’s instructions as merely good suggestions, that the practice of sprinkling took root, and with such a modification came others, such as taking the name of Christ whilst walking directly contrary to all of His laws, statutes and instructions.

Thus, the mass confusion, and plethora of options on the table today never existed in times past, and indeed it was never the will of God to have so many divergent views and different strains of Christianity, so that persons would get lost in the maze of beliefs interpretations, and preferences that do not clearly outline the truth as God would have it.

When the Bible is understood and obeyed as plainly stated, there could only be one type of believer and only one brand of Christianity. That’s why in the last days of earth’s history, God is calling us to reject the philosophy that holds His laws, and instructions as being optional, subjective, or merely as good ideas,

as is demonstrated in the next passages. Let’s read:

Ephesians 4:4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;

5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism.

2nd Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

4 For if he that cometh preaches another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

Persons with a good understanding of God and His word will not only view God’s law as being absolute and final, they would go a step further by avoiding anything God does not like, even if it might not be written in stone. If Christ shows His displeasure for something, that should be sufficient for believers to shun it too, instead of waiting for fine print to tell us so, in no uncertain terms.

That is what is meant by being led by The Spirit, for The Holy Ghost may lead us to avoid things that are not specifically written, but which, if harbored will prove detrimental to spiritual growth. That is why the following two excerpts are so very important for they give a much wider perspective, and panoramic view, of what it means to obey God. Let’s read:

Romans 14:22 “Happy is he who condemns not himself in that thing which he allows”.

23 “For whatsoever is not of faith is sin”.

James 4:17 Therefore to him that knows to do good, and does it not, to him it is sin.

This last passage is important, for it hearkens back to the fall of man, when the system of sacrifices was first instituted. At that time, all the descendants of Adam were expected to bring a lamb as an offering to God thereby showing their faith in the promised, coming Redeemer.

And even though the Bible does not specifically say in Genesis 4 that it was given in legal format, yet it was what God had ordained, and as such it was not to be viewed as optional or a mere good suggestion. It was law, and as such, any deviation from it would be sin, because God’s law does not necessarily have to be written in stone for it to be valid or binding.

According to James, it just has to be “Good” for it to be required. It is worthy of note, that in addressing Cain God did not mention any law. Instead, He uses the word well which has a very broad connotation. Let’s read:

Genesis 4:3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering:

5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

Question: Why did The Lord not have respect unto Cain’s offering, while He clearly approved of Abel’s? Before we attempt to answer this question we must remember that Cain did in fact adopt several of the same instructions as did Abel. He built an altar, he was present for worship, and he acknowledged God in His capacity as God.

But Cain did not agree with the type of sacrifice God had specified, and because he viewed it as a mere suggestion he then presumed to modify it to suit his own convenience with the vain hope that someway, somehow God would accept what his idea. But Cain was to become very disappointed when he learned that God is not into modifications. Let’s read:

Psalms 89:34 My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.

Proverbs 30:5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.

6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.

Deuteronomy 4:2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.

Genesis 4:6 And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?

7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.

Some people may be quick to criticize Cain for what he did, but before pointing fingers, we should take a moment to examine his perspectives, for they are too often replicated in the modes of thought and action that are prevalent today.

By strictly human standards, Cain’s offering would be considered more humane, and certain animal rights activists may have balked at the command to sacrifice an innocent lamb. In other words, his view was that, in certain instances, God’s requirements are unnecessary, inconvenient, or disagreeable.

And as such, other options which Cain deems to be less objectionable or cruel should, and ought to be adopted. What is worthy of note is that the same one who seemed to be more humane, by sparing the life of an innocent animal, ended up taking the life of an innocent person, and thus his perfidy was exposed.

Now, it is true that most Christians and even secular folk would readily agree that it’s a good idea to take one day off per week from our busy schedules to be refreshed, recharged and reinvigorated. In some of the more prominent Christian circles, the concept is touted as a day for relaxation, family and removal from the mundane, temporal pursuits which have too often absorbed our best interests and energies.

That’s all well and good, but the question is, will we like Cain, modify the law God has given on this point because it is better suited to our convenience? And if so, will God accept a substitute day of rest, even if it may promulgate some of the very same aspects of rejuvenation as the seventh day Sabbath does?

God will never accept a substitute to His original 7th day Sabbath. He never has, and He never will, for if He does, then Cain would be owed an apology. A person’s good intentions never excuses him or her from the obligation of God’s law, and though it may be modified, and changed, while retaining some of the same good concepts, it falls short of God’s will, and as such it will never be accepted in His sight.

Now, there are some who have in sincerity, been in ignorance upon this point, and God sees and knows their hearts. That’s why He is now calling on folks to leave their congregations, churches, denominations and affiliations, if those organizations won’t, or do not subscribe to the entirety of His law.

The door of mercy will still be open for such persons but there would have to be definite separation from congregations and churches which continue to be in a selective and subjective mode of thought, when it comes to obeying God. Plain and simple! Let’s read:

Revelation 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

Isaiah 56:2 Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that lays hold on it; that keeps the sabbath from polluting it and keeps his hand from doing any evil.

3 Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the Lord, speak, saying, The Lord hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree.

4 For thus saith the Lord unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant;

5 Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.

6 Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord to be his servants, everyone that keeps the sabbath from polluting it, and takes hold of my covenant;

7 Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.

God is not merely looking for an acknowledgement of Himself by human beings, for while this may be a good starting point, it does not fulfill His will if folks do not follow on in willing obedience. It is worthy of note that acknowledgement is something the devils always did, when in the presence of Christ, and in this regard, they have done much better than men who refused to acknowledge Him for who He is.

Yet, for all of their acknowledgement the devils did not obey, unless forced to, which service God would never accept. Similarly, persons who acknowledge God, must go a step further by obeying His laws and instructions with a willing heart, or else they would have nothing over the devils. Let’s read:

Matthew 8:28 And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.

29 And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?

Mark 1:23 And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out,

24 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God.

James 2:19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well, the devils also believe and tremble.

20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

God is seeking those who are willing to worship Him in spirit and in truth, for that’s the only combination that is specified in His word by Jesus. Therefore, in our day, a true believer will not only be defined by an acknowledgement of God, or even one who may be baptized the correct way by immersion.

Neither will a true believer be defined by his or her affiliation with other believers. The test in our day is not even to believe in Christ, for devils also believe. The true test of a believer in our day will be his or her willingness to obey all of God’s commandments including the fourth which is the only one beginning with the word “Remember”.

Therefore, The Lord in His mercy is now calling all the inhabitants of earth to choose wisely, based on what has been made so plain in both the old and new testaments. The Sabbath points us to God in His capacity as Creator of heaven and earth, the fact which forms the basis for Him requiring obedience from those whom he has created.

In closing, the prophet Isaiah reminds us that God’s original day of rest is still binding, it has never been changed, or modified, and if any person expects, or desires to enter heaven, obedience to all of God’s commandments is required. This is the everlasting gospel and it carries everlasting consequences for those who submit and those who resist. Let’s read:

Isaiah 58:12 And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.

13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words.

14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

God Bless!

The Prosperity Gospel. Sabbath afternoon 01/30/2021

3rd John 1:2 Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospers.

In order for us to understand our first passage in its entirety, it would be necessary for us to remove far from us any preconceived ideas and personal biases or preferences for certain interpretations and allow the Bible to speak authoritatively for itself.

The gospel, which is often referred to as the good news does not push anyone down, as is so often the case when persons go for healing by false prophets, for it is designed to lift up souls, and bring out the fullest potential, and the very best in us, whenever it is properly received.

Devils will have persons believe that having Christ as Lord and Savior puts us at a disadvantage, but in reality, this is absolutely not the case, for wherever the laws of God, and the principles of His kingdom are adopted and practiced, the human agent would experience very great change for the better, not the worse.

Persons who truly receive Christ and His gospel of salvation become better persons on all fronts, for this is what the gospel is designed to accomplish in all who submit to its teachings. True Christians are to become better at whatsoever they do; they are to become better workmen, better citizens, better in health, better stewards, and better in their social relationships.

The gospel of Christ has never set a single soul on a downward trajectory in any area of life. Believers do have their struggles, and challenges like everyone else but when their lives, before and after accepting Christ are evaluated, it will always be found that the good news made persons better off, not worse.

After searching the scriptures from cover to cover, we have not discovered any evidence that the good news of salvation causes individuals to retrogress in life. On the contrary, real progress in every area of life, as well as character development is to be made for if it were otherwise then there would not be any motivating factors for persons to switch leaders.

Hence the reason why our first passage in John is so important, because it presents both the ideal, and the fine balance that should be found in those who have espoused the person of Christ. Prosperity in every aspect of life, including growth in holiness is a completely Biblical teaching, and not to be feared.

And even though it has been severely distorted by the false prophets of the day, yet we should never allow that which was meant for our good, to be so overrun by evildoers, that it causes us to go to the opposite extreme. The Bible teaches us balance in all things, which includes prosperity of the soul, the physical, and the temporal aspects of our existence. Let’s read:

Psalms 1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful.

2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law does he meditate day and night.

3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

Deuteronomy 29:9 Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do.

Job 36:10 He opens also their ear to discipline, and commands that they return from iniquity.

11 If they obey and serve him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures.

1st Chronicles 29:11 Thine, O Lord is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all.

12 Both riches and honor come of thee, and You reign over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.

When ancient Israel was to be formed into a nation, God specified that they were not to be reckoned as being an average nation, for they were not serving an average God. His peculiar people should have at the very least, something peculiar about them, and that’s why throughout the Bible, God seeks to bring about that fine balance that the gospel offers.

Indeed, it was, and it still is the will of God that His people should shine radiantly as lights in the world, not coming up short on any front so that the people and nations of earth would then be attracted to the wisdom that comes from God alone. Let’s read:

2nd Peter 1:3 According as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue.

4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;

7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Thus, in the last days of earth’s history, God desires that all the fullness of the gospel be manifested in the persons of the saints, just as He had purposed for Israel. In times past there were imbalances in some of His people, either on account of a lack of knowledge or a lack of practice.

But now, with the wealth of knowledge, the wisdom and understanding passed down through the many generations of saints; now, with the additional info granted through patriarchs and prophets, we who are living in our generation are to experience the culmination of all what it means to be a peculiar people.

The peculiar people of Christ are to be leading the charge, not only in correct scriptural interpretations but also in health and well-being, as well as in good financial management. For us to be enslaved in debt and drugs in our day, and for us to be at the mercy of lenders, after all God has taught us in His word, is to sell the good news short. Let’s read:

Deuteronomy 28:1 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth.

2 And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.

3 Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.

5 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.

6 Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

8 The Lord shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto.

9 The Lord shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in his ways.

10 And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the Lord; and they shall be afraid of thee.

11 And the Lord shall make thee plenteous in goods.

Furthermore, God would have us understand that poverty isn’t a virtue, neither is it a virtue to be rich. The prosperity that the Bible speaks of always leads us to place the eternal above the temporal, and it is when the latter is held subserviently to the former, that God can do great things through His people.

God is actually itching to bless His people, but there are things that often stand in the way, which could produce what is termed as a dangerous blessing. It is often the case that the human agent manifests a level of humility in the valley, but on the mountain- top, where God grants prosperity and success, folks too often become puffed up.

To put it plainly, we might wait for God’s directions when we believe we have no choice, but as soon as we can afford not to, we go our own way, thinking, and acting independently of His guidance. This is the most common failure in the Christian which in turn prevents God to a large extent from prospering those who are called by His name.

Thus, even though it is God’s will that folks should prosper and be in good health, even as our souls prosper, yet there are pros and cons to prosperity, of which we should be aware. There’s usually not a problem in carrying an empty cup, it’s the one that is full which needs balancing with care. Let’s read:

James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

Proverbs 23:4 Labor not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.

5 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.

Ecclesiastes 5:10 He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.

Proverbs 13:11 Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathers by labor shall increase.

Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he adds no sorrow with it.

1st Timothy 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.

10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

If when God blesses us with riches, the first thought that comes to mind is to build, purchase, or procure temporal things, then we can fall into the snare of Solomon, who became overly obsessed with adding materials and home improvements, while the cause of God and the salvation of his fellowmen were held in subservient positions.

As prosperity from God came to Solomon, he at first was humble, but bit by bit, he started to add a host of material things to his inventory, and the more he added, the more he desired, until he became quite addicted to the temporal.

Purchasing a whole lot of stuff, just because one has the wherewithal to do so is not an upright ambition, and often results in the emptiness, and frustrations experienced by Solomon who sought for joy in the abundance of things which he possessed.

In like manner, those who are now showered with financial blessings should be very careful, lest their priorities become so mixed up, that the temporal or material things of life usurp the place of the eternal. Indeed, the joy of life comes not in the abundance of material things, but in the service of God and of our fellowmen. Let’s read:

Ecclesiastes 2:4 I made me great works; I built me houses; I planted me vineyards.

5 I made me gardens and orchards, and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits.

6 I made me pools of water, to water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees.

7 I got me servants and maidens, and had servants born in my house; also I had great possessions of great and small cattle above all that were in Jerusalem before me.

8 I gathered me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces: I got me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, as musical instruments, and that of all sorts.

9 So I was great and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem.

10 And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labor: and this was my portion of all my labor.

11 Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.

What is of great interest is that Abraham was also a very prosperous man, but he never experienced the lack of fulfillment that Solomon suffered. So, what’s the difference? Solomon used wealth to please and build up self, but Abraham used wealth to build up God’s kingdom, and that is what will make the huge difference between the two schools of thought.

Solomon used God’s riches to foster the principle of pleasure, while Abraham used wealth to foster the principle of service, and anyone who God prospers, who follows in Abraham’s footsteps will never come to that low point in life where they become suicidal because of prosperity. Let’s read:

Genesis 13:1 And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south.

2 And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.

[Patriarchs and Prophets pp 141] Abraham's household comprised more than a thousand souls. Those who were led by his teachings to worship the one God, found a home in his encampment; and here, as in a school, they received such instruction as would prepare them to be representatives of the true faith. Thus, a great responsibility rested upon him. He was training heads of families, and his methods of government would be carried out in the households over which they should preside.

Solomon in contrast, started to gradually trust to his own wisdom, and every departure from God’s word and His instructions, caused him to become more entangled in the snare of self-indulgence. God had given written instructions on how any king of Israel should comport himself, so that the prosperity and wealth incident to power would not ensnare him.

But little by little Solomon disregarded one principle and instruction after the next, until he’d lost sight of his need to seek God’s wisdom. And whereas in the case of Abraham he looked to God for the most part Solomon allowed pride and riches to distort his view of the world, and the temporal allurements became his undoing. Let’s read:

Deuteronomy 17:14 When thou art come unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me;

15 Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the Lord thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee.

16 But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the Lord hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way.

2nd Chronicles 9:25 And Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; whom he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.

28 And they brought unto Solomon horses out of Egypt, and out of all lands.

Deuteronomy 17:17 Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away.

1st Kings 11: But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites.

2 Of the nations concerning which the Lord said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.

3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.

Deuteronomy 17:17 Neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.

1st Kings 10:14 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold,

17 And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pounds of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.

18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with the best gold.

21 And all king Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; none were of silver: it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon.

27 And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones.

Deuteronomy 17:18 And it shall be, when he sits upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites.

19 And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them.

20 That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.

1st Kings 11:9 And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the Lord God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice,

10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the Lord commanded.

11 Wherefore the Lord said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.

Thus, we can clearly see that the fine balance in our first passage, where the apostle John says “I wish above all things that you prosper and be in health, “Even” as thy soul prospers”, was not materialized in Solomon’s latter days, and wherever there’s such an imbalance in any of God’s people, they would be in danger of missing the ideal set forth in the text.

Solomon had much clothes and fine linen, but he became naked in his soul, he was rich as far as the material wealth goes, but he became spiritually poor, and because he lost sight of his dependence on God, he lost the ability to clearly discern right from wrong, and the rest is history.

But according to the scriptures, we who are living on the brink of eternity are in danger of becoming dizzy with the material things of this world, and like Solomon of old, some are becoming obsessed with the accumulation of wealth and material things, to the neglect of our own souls. This is not merely the opinion of “crazy”, it’s the condition of the church in our day. Let’s read:

Revelation 3: 14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.

17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched and miserable and poor and blind, and naked.

18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that thou mayest see.

19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

Thus, while prosperity is not a sin in itself, God is calling on us to track a different course to Solomon, even the course which Abraham took. There is now more than ever a great need to fund the everlasting gospel to all the world, now that so many are going down into Christ-less graves.

Efforts are to be made in reaching the less fortunate and helping to blunt the incessant blows leveled at humanity by the adversary. Should we like Solomon be consumed with houses, and lands, and material things? Or should we be using the prosperity of the gospel to further the interests of God’s kingdom as much as possible, especially as the countdown to eternity is in full gear? The Lord Himself gives us the answer. Let’s read:

Isaiah 58:6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free?

7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him;

8 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward.

9 Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am.

10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day.

11 And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

12 And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.

Let us therefore make the necessary adjustments to our priorities, wherever warranted, for if we seek to fulfill the call to service in our neck of the woods, God will be able to trust us with means, knowing that the urge to splurge will not be driving us to spend wantonly on things that do not satisfy.

We therefore end with a passage of scripture that will help us in refocusing on the commission given to us by Christ, and all those who will step up to the plate by putting the interests of God’s kingdom first, will be accounted as faithful stewards, and God can be trusted to provide all that is needed. Let’s read:

Matthew 6:31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?

32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knows that ye have need of all these things.

33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

God Bless!

Quenching All Fiery Darts. Sabbath afternoon 01/23/2021

Ephesians 6: 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

One thing we must never forget is that we are in a mortal war for our souls, and the agencies enlisted against us are not merely human. There are invisible forces of darkness working behind the scenes, in an effort to sow, trouble, calamity, sickness and death.

Very often we make the mistake of trying to solve spiritual problems with carnal solutions, and as the day of final accounts draws nearer, we will discover that nations and individuals will become more and more frustrated, as such solutions become less and less effective.

A vast number of evil angels are now spread across the globe, and mayhem, disturbances, and sickness of all sorts will be increasing both in frequency, and in severity, and that’s why we are counselled to put on the whole armor of God that we may be able to stand in the evil day, as our first passage states.

Christians should understand that God has given us different ways and means to deal with the varying issues and problems which would arise from time to time. These ways and means are often in very stark contrast to those methods employed by the secular or unbelieving mind and as such we must be careful not to have our minds invaded by secular modes of thought and action.

For instance, the current secular healthcare system is for the most part reactionary, whereas God’s way of dealing with health and well-being is proactive. In many instances man’s method of dealing with the sick is to treat symptoms, but in Christ’s healthcare system the root causes of diseases are ratted out and addressed.

Again, trillions of dollars are spent on remedies and cures, and big pharma will flood the market with a plethora of medicines and synthetic drugs which are often taken to procure temporary relief but in God’s healthcare system the focus is more on prevention, rather than on cure.

If God decides to work a miracle to save a believer, He will do so, according to His discretion, but He much prefers not to, if the disease can be avoided. In other words, His supernatural power isn’t to be summoned lightly, if God-ordained methods, and resources are available to take care of the issue in question.

With the secular mind, human science and logic are made to rule the day, in dictating, and determining what to do in difficult circumstances. The Christian, on the other hand lives by faith, meaning that God’s word reigns supreme, even if, and when it might go contrary to human science and logic, and we would often discover that the two modes of thought are at odds.

So, it is critically important, before we proceed, that we establish from the scriptures the method of faith by which any, and all difficulties and challenges are to be handled. Faith is not merely a theoretical idea that is held aloof from our everyday experience. On the contrary, it is the method for living that must be incorporated and synthesized in every aspect of life.

There’s also a practical side to faith in God, because faith without works is dead. However, the tendency of the secular, unbelieving world is to leave God out of the picture, whereas with the Christian, God is at the front and center of everything, being consulted first before decisions are taken. Let’s read:

Proverbs 3: 4 So shalt thou find favor and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord and depart from evil.

8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.

In other words, those who exercise faith in God will incorporate His word, laws, and instructions as the rule and guide of life, to navigate through the maze of complex, and difficult challenges we often face. And even when to all appearances there may seem no need to pray, yet the Christian will invite God to the driver’s seat, where He is permitted to take the lead.

But with some persons, God is relegated to sit in the passenger seat, as a mere observer, or a sort of tag-along, while the accelerator, brake pedal, and GPS are controlled by the human agent. When this is the case, God is held in a subservient role while persons take the lead.

This is not how faith in God works, because genuine faith in God will always bring the human agent into subjection to God, and as such, it will color the very fabric and fiber of our life experiences. That is why we caution against leaving God out of the equation when confronting adversities, for faith in God would move us to seek Him in every situation. Let’s read:

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

1st John 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.

Hebrews 10:38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.

Romans 14:23 For whatsoever is not of faith is sin.

Ephesians 6: 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

The words “Above all” mean most importantly, more than all the other pieces of armor mentioned in those passages of Ephesians chapter 6. Now the Bible does not say that darts wont be hurled at us, it says that they will be quenched, using the shield of faith, and thus, faith is the method by which we are to confront and survive any adverse situation.

Faith is that universal language of communication between God and man, and God has dispensed it to every inhabitable part of the globe, so that persons can exercise faith, even if they may not have access to the scriptures. In fact, faith was present, and was in active duty long before any scripture was written. Let’s read:

Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God has dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah being warned of God of things not seen as yet moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

The reason why our faith in God stands out among the rest of the pieces of armor mentioned in our 1st passage, is because our very survival as Christians depends on it, for as the passage clearly states, the shield of faith should be able to quench not some, but every fiery dart that is hurled against Christians.

Then, Paul goes on to show us in real time how it is to be employed, in fending off the fiery darts of the enemy, for there are many different types of darts, which are hurled at us from time to time. There is the dart of disease, the dart of snitching, the dart of discouragement, the dart of doubt, and the dart of existential threats against one’s life.

Then there is the dart of encountering dangerous animals, and there are also financial darts, by which devils often seek to bring persons to ruin. The Bible tells us that we must not be ignorant of his devices, but with the caution comes the system and method by which they must be overcome, and that’s always through faith, always!

Some people view the instructions given by God as mere “suggestions” to be picked and chosen by the human agent as he or she sees fit. Others view His laws and instructions as a Thus saith the Lord, and here is where faith and practice converge. So, let’s expound on faith. Let’s read:

Hebrews 11: 7 By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

11 Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.

17 By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,

18 Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called:

19 Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

22 By faith Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel; and gave commandment concerning his bones.

23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment.

24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;

27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.

28 Through faith he kept the Passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

29 By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.

30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days.

31 By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.

32 And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephtha; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:

33 Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions.

34 Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight, the armies of the aliens.

It is of great concern that we who are living in the 21st century may be permitting our faith to grow dim at a time when it should be shining radiantly, in the midst of great spiritual darkness. If we are truly a peculiar people, there must be something peculiar about us, and that’s the mode of thought and action that is based upon faith in God.

Of particular concern is one situation in which two blind men petitioned Jesus for healing. The question which Christ then asked them must be studied very closely, because the answer given is the hinge upon which the prospect of healing often hangs. Jesus is ready to do great things for them, but the question is, are they ready? Let’s read:

Matthew 9: 27 And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou son of David, have mercy on us

28 And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.

29 Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.

That phrase “According to your faith” is the weak link with too many persons, for it teaches us that the possibility for healing from God often rests with the person in question. Little faith yields little returns, but large faith results in great things.

As Christians we are to expect great things from the God whom we serve, for very often we put invisible limits on what we think He can or cannot do. This is what made the difference when David, Saul and the men of Israel were facing a grave, national threat.

It’s worthy of note that faith does not dispense with or minimize the gravity of a given situation; instead, faith rises to meet any emergency, based upon the knowledge that with God, nothing is impossible. Thus, David’s confidence was not presumptuous or boastful; it was built upon literal experiences that he had with God, to the point where the fiery darts of the devil seemed like a piece of cake to him.

When Saul questioned him about his confidence, he reflected on, and rehearsed his varying experiences with God as living examples of how he had formerly quenched fiery darts. Some of us would have to kill some bears and some lions, before we would have the confidence and assurance that’s needed to pass through the time of trouble. This is according to the scriptures. Let’s read:

1st Samuel 17:32 And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.

33 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.

34 And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:

35 And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.

36 Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.

Thus, the invaluable experiences God has given us throughout our history are to be remembered and greatly treasured, so that whenever a dire situation or dart comes by, we would have the confidence to face and surmount it.

Believers should often take the time to reflect on the lions, and bears God strengthened us to defeat in times past, so that our faith may rest upon a very practical knowledge of God, not merely a hands-off theoretical knowledge of Him. The written word is to lead us to The Living word, for at the end of the day, we are in a relationship A Person, not a book.

Thus, we must ask ourselves a direct and simple question: Is Covid 19 a fiery dart, and if so, can it be quenched using the shield of faith? Diseases of all sorts are the productions of devils in varying forms and to different degrees.

Some diseases are inflicted directly upon the human family while others are the result of disobedience to God’s instructions and laws, but when it boils down to the root cause all roads will ultimately lead to the author of disease and death. Let’s read:

Luke 13:11 And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.

12 And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.

13 And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

14 And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation;

15 The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite,

16 Ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?

Job 2:7 So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown.

8 And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes.

Matthew 4:23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

24 And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.

1st John 3:8 For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.

From the Mayo clinic: Non-suicidal self-injury, often simply called self-injury, is the act of deliberately harming your own body, such as cutting or burning yourself. It's typically not meant as a suicide attempt. Rather, this type of self-injury is a harmful way to cope with emotional pain, intense anger and frustration.

While self-injury may bring a momentary sense of calm and a release of tension, it's usually followed by guilt and shame and the return of painful emotions. Although life-threatening injuries are usually not intended, with self-injury comes the possibility of more serious and even fatal self-aggressive actions.

There are no medications to specifically treat self-injuring behavior. However, if you're diagnosed with a mental health disorder, such as depression or an anxiety disorder, your doctor may recommend antidepressants or other medications to treat the underlying disorder that's associated with self-injury. Treatment for these disorders may help you feel less compelled to hurt yourself.

Mark 5:1 And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes.

2 And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit,

3 Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains:

4 Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him.

5 And always, night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.

6 But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshiped him,

7 And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.

8 For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.

9 And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many.

10 And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country.

11 Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding.

12 And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them.

13 And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea.

[The Great Controversy pp 589>590] Satan has control of all whom God does not especially guard. While appearing to the children of men as a great physician who can heal all their maladies, he will bring disease and disaster, until populous cities are reduced to ruin and desolation.

Even now he is at work. In accidents and calamities by sea and by land, in great conflagrations, in fierce tornadoes and terrific hailstorms, in tempests, floods, cyclones, tidal waves, and earthquakes, in every place and in a thousand forms, Satan is exercising his power. He imparts to the air a deadly taint, and thousands perish by the pestilence. These visitations are to become more and more frequent and disastrous. Destruction will be upon both man and beast.

Again, we ask the haunting question: Is Covid 19 a fiery dart, and if so, can it be quenched using the shield of faith? Yes it is, and it can be quenched by using the shield of faith. Here’s how. The following are scriptural instructions to deal with diseases in the Christian, who utilizes the shield of faith, when all known and available God-ordained remedies are exhausted.

James 5:14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:

15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

And for those who have not been infected, it is of critical importance for us to follow the eight laws of health outlined in a previous study, for this is how we can cooperate with God in maintaining a strong immune system. The health message is not a mere suggestion, it’s a “Thus saith The Lord” given for the benefit of all who will survive the terrors of the last days. Let’s read:

[Counsels on diets and foods pp 73] When the third angel's message is received in its fullness, health reform will be given its place in the councils of the conference, in the work of the church, in the home, at the table, and in all the household arrangements. Then the right arm will serve and protect the body.

In closing, it is important for us to remember that it started with food and it will end with food, meaning that whatsoever we ingest into our system will be a savor of life unto life or of death unto death. The first temptation on our planet was on food, the first temptation of Christ was on food, and the very last temptation will involve food, after the 666 dust has settled in.

Therefore, we will end with a favorite psalm which will point our hearts and minds to God, who takes the health of His people seriously, and has given us mighty promises to live by whereby we may quench every fiery dart that is hurled at us. Let’s read:

Psalms 103:2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits;

3 Who forgives all thine iniquities; who heals all thy diseases;

4 Who redeems thy life from destruction; who crowns thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies;

5 Who satisfies thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

The renewal of our youth is directly tied to what we eat!

God bless!

America In Prophecy. Sabbath afternoon 01/16/2021

Revelation 13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon.

All throughout the ages, different kingdoms have come upon the stage of action, either by permission or ordination of God, but howsoever they came into power, The God of heaven was always in control of all such authorities. Most of these kingdoms fought their way into prominence, and much turbulence and bloodshed occurred, but God was, and still is in control.

The scripture tells us that the powers that be are ordained of God, and though at times it may seem as if nations are like a runaway train, yet the good purposes of God are still being worked out behind the scenes, and whenever the tenure of a kingdom is up, God installs another in its place, so that there is no earthly kingdom that will stand forever. Let’s read:

Daniel 4:17 This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High rules in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and sets up over it the basest of men.

Psalms 75:4 I said unto the fools, Deal not foolishly: and to the wicked, Lift not up the horn.

5 Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck.

6 For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.

7 But God is the judge: he puts down one, and sets up another.

The same is true of America, for this nation came into being through the direct providence of God and even though some may not give credit where credit is due, America’s prowess in the world, and all of its military might, together with advances in scientific discoveries and inventions that are upright, are the result of God’s blessings and providence.

Thus, according to our opening passage America did not come upon the stage of action by chance. It was because of God’s direct intervention, in providing a place of refuge for those pilgrims, who were fleeing religious oppression in parts of Europe, why God’s providence opened the way for the new nation to be established.

Therefore, before we proceed, it is important that we trace from the scriptures how it was prophesied that America would come upon the world stage. In all of the play and counter-play of the human agent, it was prophecy being fulfilled as the young nation was being established.

Several words and phrases would be highlighted in the following passages, and explanations will then be given, so as to establish beyond all doubt, that America is definitely mentioned in Bible prophecy. Let’s read:

Revelation 13:11 And I beheld another beast.

The two important words in this excerpt are “beast” and “another”. The Bible explains what a beast is in prophecy, for it refers to a nation or kingdom. Let’s read:

Daniel 7:2 Daniel spoke and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.

3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.

4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh.

6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it.

7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.

15 I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.

16 I came near unto one of them that stood by and asked him the truth of all this. So, he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.

17 These great beasts which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.

18 But the saints of the Most-High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even for ever and ever.

But in our excerpt from Revelation 13, John said he saw “Another” beast. “Another” is a pronoun and it can mean one of two things: (1) an additional thing or person of the same type as the one already mentioned or known about. (2) a different person or thing from one already mentioned or known about.

If a man is at a tiki bar, and after having one or two Budweisers he asked for another beer, that request could mean one out of two things; either he wants another Bud or he desires an entirely different beer.

Question: In the context of the passage, which one is it? The first or the second meaning? The Bible is clear on the interpretation, for although the second beast mentioned in the chapter arises in apparent innocence and gentleness, yet it is predicted to take on, or morph into some of the characteristics of the first beast. Let’s read:

Revelation 13: 12 And he exercises all the power of the first beast before him and causes the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

But the prophecy identifying America as the second beast has more pertinent information, so that none should have any doubts as to which nation is being referred to. Let’s read:

Revelation 13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth.

Question: What does it mean to come up out of the earth? The Bible tells us that wherever in prophecy the seas or the waters are mentioned that’s a direct reference to masses people and since the surface of the earth consists of 71% water and 29% land, then the nation that is coming up out of the earth will be arising from a sparsely populated area. Let’s read:

Revelation 17:15 And he saith unto me, The waters which you saw, where the whore sits, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

In addition, according to Revelation 13: verses 11 and 12, the nation, or second beast will arise after the first beast mentioned in the chapter, receives a deadly wound. That deadly wound was inflicted on the first beast, which must now be identified, since the second beast comes into being around the same time.

John describes the first beast in the chapter as the persecuting power that made war on the saints, and which had exercised dominion over all the nations of earth. Without a doubt, John is referring to the papacy under whose reign during the dark ages, it is estimated that between 50 and 100 million persons were put to death for their faith. Let’s read:

Revelation 13: 3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

10 He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that kills with the sword must be killed with the sword.

Therefore, the following is a brief breakdown of the identifying pointers of the second beast, according to the scriptures:

[1] It arises out of obscurity, in a sparsely populated area.

[2] It comes upon the world stage just around the time that the papacy receives its deadly wound.

[3] It exhibits gentleness initially, but later speaks like a dragon.

[4] It espouses the agenda of the first beast.

God is telling us that the nation being referred to in the passages must be America, for it came upon the stage of action just around the time that the deadly wound was inflicted on the papacy, and thus, we’ll have to look for a nation arising around 1798, the year when the French general Berthier took pope Pius captive.

No other nation on earth matches that description except The United states of America, which came into existence when congress approved the nation’s independence on July 4, 1776. It’s the one and only nation to arise in a sparsely populated area, and as we all know, it is the only super-power remaining upon the planet.

Now, we are not going to delve into the rest of the prophecy this evening for it is important for us all to understand that nations, and individuals are never bound in an iron destiny, so that they cannot free themselves of the cryptic predictions made by God. It is God’s will that the prophecy in Revelation 13 will cause America to track a different course if we are thus disposed.

The mark of the beast and its implementation which is mentioned later on in the chapter isn’t something in which our nation would have no other choice. On the contrary it is God’s will that all nations should as well as individuals should come to repentance, and if we do, God has no problem at all if the prophecy is not fulfilled as stated.

In fact, according to the scriptures, if Jesus has to choose between the exact fulfillment of prophecies, and the salvation of nations and individuals, He’ll let the prophecy fail in a heartbeat, because Jesus died to save persons, not prophecies. Let’s read:

Jonah 2:1 And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying,

2 Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.

4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.

6 For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water.

8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.

9 Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?

10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

Now that America is about to turn a corner and now that there is the expectation of a soon changing of the guards, we wish America the best, for God has not forgotten us, and He is still willing, and able to turn the tide of current difficulties for good. One of the reasons why God bears so long with individuals and nations is that He takes no delight in our many troubles. Let’s read:

Ezekiel 33:11 Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

2nd Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

His mercies are still extended over the nation, and if the incoming administration will do the right thing, if reforms are made in harmony with God’s revealed will, He will be more than pleased to help us reverse the many adversities and challenges we are facing.

The Bible makes clear which reforms and changes are necessary in order for us to have a reversal of fortunes, for just as the king and people of Nineveh took proactive steps in repentance and change, so should we as a nation, examine ourselves seriously.

And wheresoever we may discover departures from virtue, truth, and duty, if we make all the necessary changes, God would respond in the positive. Tough times scarcely occur in a vacuum, and thus, it will be well for us to reason soberly from cause to effect, because the benefits of physical and spiritual laws are contingent upon those actions and choices we make. Let’s read:

Proverbs 14:34 Righteousness exalts a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.

Proverbs 26:2 As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come.

Isaiah 59:1 Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear.

2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.

4 None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.

The following therefore are the areas that will need to be addressed, if we desire a return to God’s favor for the spiritual laws of sowing and reaping can only be reversed to some extent, if persons and nations track a righteous course. Let’s read:

Isaiah 58:4 Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness.

6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?

7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

8 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward.

9 Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;

10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day:

11 And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

As we head into unchartered waters with the new administration, there will be challenges to confront and there will be hurdles to be surmounted. There will be continuing dispersion of peoples, Covid and his brothers will still be around for many years, and the spirit of anarchy will be bubbling up from time to time.

In addition to this, the national debt will continue to spiral out of control, and the trickle-down effect is going to be seen and felt by individuals and families. Yet, in all of these things, if we keep our heads lifted to the skies and if deep soul-searching produces the needed reforms, America can still rise again.

Therefore, in the best interest of the country that is to be the last focal point of the fulfillment of Bible prophecy, we wish our incoming leaders well, and we hope and pray that all duly elected officials will be humble and willing enough to let God lead. Let us then join hands and hearts in praying for the best good of the country, for if we do, there could be a reversal of fortunes.

We therefore end with a passage of scripture which will encourage us to keep pressing forward in right lines, and those who are entrusted with the gospel are to be certain that well-directed efforts to save the lost are made in our neck of the woods, if haply, we might stave off for a while, the fulfillment of the second half of Revelation chapter 13. Let’s read:

Isaiah 1:16 Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;

17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:

20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

God Bless!

Countdown To Eternity. Sabbath Afternoon. 01/09/2021

Revelation 22:12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.

We are living at a time in earth’s history when the prophecies that were written of old, concerning the last days are now being fulfilled before our eyes. It does not take a scholar, or some great philosopher to tell us that something has gone very wrong in our world. And try as we might to get back to “Normal” we will have to get used to the new abnormal.

On every front and in every aspect of life, things are on a downward trajectory and even as governments and world leaders try to right the ship, new holes in the hull just keep springing leaks capriciously.

This is because there are forces greater than man involved in the battle for our minds, and it will do us well if we were found with The proven winner, even The Lord Jesus Christ.

First of all, we must establish from the scripture the fact that we are indeed living in the last days of this earth’s history, for when this fact is established, the countdown to eternity will be better understood. In the days of Noah, sin, evil and iniquity did not peak overnight.

It took time for the satanic principles and methods to be developed, practiced and indelibly etched into the consciences of man, until the voice of God went silent in the minds of those who had chosen sin as their master. Then the cascading effect brought the world to its lowest point and ultimately culminated in the waters of the flood.

Similarly, the unprecedented occurrences we are witnessing today did not happen overnight but are the results of years of rebellion against the word of God. Like pharaoh of old, persons have deliberately buried their heads in the sand, and when there was opportunity to correct the evils by doing the right thing, they reasoned away the voice of conscience on different grounds.

Therefore, our chickens are coming home to roost, and when they do, there will be no one to deliver, because all who have not availed themselves of the grace of God when it was available, will have no one to shelter them when the storm of trouble unfurls. The door of mercy is yet open, but like the door on Noah’s ark, it is swinging to a close.

It is a cryptic statement that we make, that all those who have truly accepted Christ as Lord and Savior of their lives will be mighty glad they did so, in the not too distant future. Therefore, before we proceed,

we beseech everyone listening to be reconciled to God while opportunity still lingers for whenever the sealing of God’s people is finished, all hell will break loose, literally. Let’s read:

Revelation 7:1 And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.

2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,

3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

The winds that would hurt the earth, the sea, and any tree are references to strife and trouble that will be coming on the earth in the last days. And for the record those winds have already begun to blow. This is the reason why it is of great importance for us to understand why the countdown to eternity has already begun.

The following are the scriptural references that tell us that we are on the last leg of the marathon of earth’s history. We will give the pointers in precis form and then the Bible will explain itself.

[1] The age of the earth.

Our planet is not even close to one million years in age, as science has purported under the auspices of Darwin and others who have used flawed methods of dating to pervert that which is written. When the approximate age of the earth is calculated using the line upon line method, starting from Adam, there is no way that one can even cross six thousand.

Adam was created in the first week of this earth’s existence, and since that time to now, it’s just a bit less than six thousand years that have elapsed. The one thousand years of sabbatical rest mentioned in Revelation 20, represent the rest that is due to this earth, on account of six thousand years of constant activity.

And, because the scripture clearly states that for every six years of labor, toil and planting, the earth is required to rest one Sabbatical year, therefore, a period of one thousand years of rest is coming due, so as to complete the cycle of seven. It is because we are approaching that threshold of six thousand, why the entire world is now descending into an era of unprecedented turmoil. Let’s read:

Exodus 23:10 And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof.

11 But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still.

Leviticus 25:1 And the Lord spoke unto Moses in mount Sinai, saying,

2 When you come into the land which I give you, then shall the land keep a sabbath unto the Lord.

3 Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof;

4 But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the Lord: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard.

Leviticus 25:34 Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate, and ye be in your enemies' land; even then shall the land rest and enjoy her sabbaths.

35 As long as it lieth desolate it shall rest; because it did not rest in your sabbaths, when ye dwelt upon it.

Revelation 20:1 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.

2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,

3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall reign with him a thousand years.

7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison.

And for those of us who really believe the servant of The Lord, she makes no mention of this earth being millions of years old. On the contrary, throughout her writings, which were inspired by The same Holy Ghost who inspired the Bible writers she repeatedly states unequivocally that this world is allotted six thousand years, and after that eternity will begin.

Like the Bible writers, nothing in the millions is ever mentioned even once, as it pertains to the age of the earth, which is clearly shown by the following screen grab of a sample of her references on the subject matter in question. Let’s read:

Conflict and Courage, p. 21.3 (Ellen G. White) (99%) ... perverted habits and has continued for six thousand years. This fact of itself is ...

Christian Temperance and Bible Hygiene, p. 7.1 (Ellen G. White) (93%) The fact that he has for six thousand years withstood the ever-increasing weight of ….

The Great Controversy 1888, p. 659.3 (Ellen G. White) (93%) For six thousand years, Satan's work of rebellion ... the house of his prisoners.” For six thousand years his prison-house has received God ...

Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, p. 138.2 (Ellen

G. White) (93%) ... perverted habits and has continued for six thousand years.

The Desire of Ages, p. 413.4 (Ellen G. White) (93%) For six thousand years, faith has built upon Christ. For six thousand years the floods and tempests of satanic wrath have beaten upon the Rock of our salvation; but it stands unmoved.

Christian Education, p. 207.1 (Ellen G. White) (82%) ... have engaged men's study for six thousand years, were opened to their minds ...

The Great Controversy 1888, p. f.1 (Ellen G. White) (82%)

For six thousand years that master-mind that once was ...

The Great Controversy 1888, p. 656.1 (Ellen G. White) (82%) For six thousand years the great controversy has been ... God. The time has come for God to vindicate the authority ...

The Great Controversy 1888, p. 673.2 (Ellen G. White) (82%)

ruin is forever ended. For six thousand years he has wrought his will ... thunderings,” is heard, saying, “Alleluia; for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.”

Counsels on Diet and Foods, p. 59.3 (Ellen G. White) (82%) .... The continual transgression of man for six thousand years has brought sickness, pain, and ... more difficult to overcome. Testimonies for the Church 3:491, 492 ...

[2] The Gospel has almost reached every inhabitable part of the globe.

With the introduction of the internet, social media, satellites, radio waves and television, the gospel has been made accessible in one form or another to the overwhelming majority of earth’s inhabitants.

Therefore, according to the Bible, whenever all have heard the good news, salvation will come to a close, for each of us would have had sufficient knowledge to make an informed choice, for or against Christ. It is therefore a sign of the countdown to eternity that the gospel has almost encircled the entire globe. Let’s read:

Matthew 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

[3] In the last days, perilous times will come.

The perilous times referenced in the Bible are not your everyday kind of peril; it is peril that would be arising on many different fronts, at the same time, thus forcing elected leaders and people alike to play peril whack-a-mole.

This is what is currently taking place, for on the one hand, Covid keeps shaking down millions, while at the same time national debts keep spiraling out of control and to add to the toxic mix, there’s constant infighting, finger-pointing, and large-scale corruption amongst elected officials.

Some are dealing with Brexit, Covid, school closures lockdowns, high unemployment, botched vaccine rollouts, and long food lines that stretch for miles, all at the same time, whilst there is sabor-rattling in the middle east and fool-hardy intransigence across the political landscape.

Therefore just as a woman in labor pain experiences bouts of painful contractions, increasing in severity, and frequency so the world has already entered the cycles of unprecedented trouble and pain, ranging from those weather-related events, to irresolvable differences among peoples, with much turmoil and adversity on a host of varying problems. Let’s read:

2nd Timothy 3:1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

4 Traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;

5 Having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof.

[4] People are losing their minds.

2nd Timothy 3:13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

When persons begin to deliberately put darkness for light and evil for good, then we may be certain that the battle for the mind is being lost. When one buries his head in the sand, in order to stymie truth, and facts, that pattern of thought and action is not easily reversed.

Pharaoh of old deliberately refused to acknowledge the truth, until he and his underlings were deceived into committing mass suicide, by entering the Red sea. Nothing that God could do would reverse the downward spiral that had been set into motion, for with every revelation of truth, pharaoh steeled his heart more, against the indisputable evidences.

This is where we are in earth’s history, and it will culminate in one of our darkest chapters, if we do not reverse course. This leads us to study the battle for the mind, as it unfolded anciently in a particular incident among the Hebrews, and which would be repeated as we enter the countdown to eternity.

Moses and Aaron were the two Divinely appointed leaders of Israel, but several prominent leaders of the nation rose up against them, and they refused to acknowledge their duly appointed authority. In the process of time, through a series of lies and a host of seditious plottings, they then succeeded in inciting the multitudes to revolt.

What followed was a frightful departure from facts and truth, to the point where it became incurable, and God was left no choice but to destroy all those who deliberately buried their heads in the sand. When God shows us in unmistakable terms that we are in the wrong, that is a golden opportunity for us to repent, and if we do, our minds can be salvaged.

But if we continue in a pharaoh frame of mind, if we choose not to believe the evidences God is pleased to give, then there is nothing else He can do for us, and it will only be a matter of time before there will be a total collapse of the mind, for we will then be bereft of any reasoning power. Let’s read:

Numbers 16:1 Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men.

2 And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown.

3 And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the Lord?

4 And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face:

5 And he spoke unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, Even tomorrow the Lord will shew who are his, and who is holy; and will cause him to come near unto him: even him whom he hath chosen will he cause to come near unto him.

6 This do; Take you censers, Korah, and all his company;

7 And put fire therein and put incense in them before the Lord tomorrow: and it shall be that the man whom the Lord doth choose, he shall be holy.

12 And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab: which said, We will not come up.

16 And Moses said unto Korah, Be thou and all thy company before the Lord, thou, and they, and Aaron, tomorrow.

18 And they took every man his censer, and put fire in them, and laid incense thereon, and stood in the door of the tabernacle of the congregation with Moses and Aaron.

19 And Korah gathered all the congregation against them unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and the glory of the Lord appeared unto all the congregation.

20 And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

21 Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.

22 And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?

23 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

24 Speak unto the congregation, saying, Get you up from about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.

25 And Moses rose up and went unto Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed him.

26 And he spoke unto the congregation, saying, Depart, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of their's, lest ye be consumed in all their sins.

27 So they got up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side: and Dathan and

Abiram came out, and stood in the door of their tents, and their wives, and their sons, and their little children.

28 And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that the Lord hath sent me to do all these works; for I have not done them of mine own mind.

29 If these men die the common death of all men, or if they be visited after the visitation of all men; then the Lord hath not sent me.

30 But if the Lord make a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit; then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the Lord.

31 And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them.

32 And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods.

33 They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation.

34 And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them: for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up also.

35 And there came out a fire from the Lord, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense.

Here was unmistakable evidence given by God that should have appealed to the reasoning powers of those who rose up in rebellion against God’s leaders and if they had responded favorably via repentance, and renouncing their wayward actions, God could, and would have still saved them.

But when persons deliberately decide to bury their heads in the sand, or when they continue to refuse facts and truth, permanent damage to their minds is often done, and the pride of opinion often prevents them from acknowledging that they were in error.

This is what we refer to as the pharaoh mentality, where it does not matter how much evidence God may give, the stubborn heart refuses to relent, and as a result, there is nothing else that God can do to reach the mind. That is why, as the countdown to eternity gathers momentum, people will begin to lose their minds, as they walk in pharaoh’s shoes.

It is also worthy of note that it is more than just a mere attitude problem, it is demon possession in real time, because satan also tracks a similar course, whenever he is confronted with undeniable truths and facts. Jesus explained the syndrome in the following excerpt from the book of John. Let’s read:

John 8:44 “He abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks it of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it”

What this means is that after concocting a lie satan goes on to actually believe it so that his mind is now detached from reality. This is what happened to the pharaoh of Egypt during the 10 plagues, this is what happened to Korah, Dathan, and Abiram and their followers during the insurrection against God’s duly appointed leaders, and this is what will take place in the minds of all who would track a similar course.

After fleeing for their own lives, and after seeing the undeniable evidences of God’s displeasure, those who had become infected with a spirit of rebellion regrouped, and the very next day, they accused the men of God’s choosing, of killing their leader. Thus, they became ripe for destruction, for there was not anything else God could do to save them. Let’s read:

Numbers 16:41 But on the morrow all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron, saying, Ye have killed the people of the Lord.

42 And it came to pass, when the congregation was gathered against Moses and against Aaron, that they looked toward the tabernacle of the congregation: and, behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared.

44 And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

45 Get you up from among this congregation, that I may consume them as in a moment. And they fell upon their faces.

46 And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the Lord; the plague is begun.

48 And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed.

True Christians are commanded in the Bible to have the fear of God ever before their faces which means that all of the instructions God has given in His word are to be faithfully obeyed. This includes being law-abiding citizens, through a recognition of God’s duly appointed leaders, whether or not we might agree with them. Let’s read:

Romans 13:1 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.

2 Whosoever therefore resists the power resists the ordinance of God, and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.

4 For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he bears not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.

5 Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake.

In cases where a secular ruler may command those under his/her jurisdiction to violate God’s law of ten commandments, Christians are commanded in the Bible not to yield obedience, but in doing so, they are never to rise up in rebellion against the rulers of God’s choosing. In His own time and way, God will deal with the matter in question, for He still rules in the kingdom of men.

Therefore, as the countdown to eternity begins to accelerate and as the prophecies of Daniel and John begin to unfurl before our eyes, we would see some strange things occurring across the land, and some of us may be tempted to jump into the fray. But let us never lose sight of Christ, for He will be directing all of earth’s events as His coming draws nearer and nearer.

We therefore end with a passage of scripture that will help us to keep our heads lifted heavenward for we are indeed living on the brink of eternity and the kingdom of God will be ushered in, sooner than we may anticipate. Let’s read:

Daniel 12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.

God Bless!