Changing Patterns

Changing Patterns

2/24/18

We would like to believe that all things that originate from God and are available to our lives would be a safe and natural comment.  While this statement is a correct one those issues cannot serve us well for they go totally contrary to what this world demands.  The way that God wants us to live goes completely against the way that the world deems is necessary and when these two paths come in contact only an eternal warfare battle can settle the disagreement.  This battle is won or lost by the individual choices of which path we take and while even the simplest of measures may get ignored they prove to be some of the most important battles ever fought in our lives.  We can never forget the value that our lives have and if we understand this eternal status of ours and listen to the heart of God we can overcome such devastations without even encountering them.

I know that some of you out there can do the splits but for most of the men running around, they have a difficult time in completing such a move.  Now, I believe in being as limber and in shape as possible but there are certain directions that my body and many of your bodies just cannot do.  When I was younger and was in pretty good shape, one of the stretching exercises that were popular was to sit on our rear ends spread the legs out as far as they could go and then bend forward.  This is an excellent exercise for the groin area of our bodies but for some of us the bending over portion of this exercise did not go very far because I just could not do it without hurting myself and no one even dared to ask me to try to jump up and land in the splits formation, it was not going to happen.  Don’t get me wrong, I did not say “no” to this exercise without trying it, but boy, when I did I immediately knew that it was not or this kid.

But while my body could not perform such an act, others could and it always amazed me of how they could do such a feat; that is, of course, after the phantom pain that shot through my body left.  Even though there are people out there who can safely and routinely complete this act they do have a limitation as to how far they can go and many can only stay in this position for just a few seconds before the pain begins to form in their bodies.  Our bodies are a magnificent structure that can bend and twist in many ways but even when these types of movements are common and easily maneuvered our bodies are only a certain length and width and only can reach so far.  If we overdo these positions we will pull muscles or if being forced to complete such measures can literally tear our bodies apart, a famous torture method used by many past types of regency.  It is this tearing apart that we may face if we try and stay on the spiritual fence for too long, for even the spirit has its bodily form as well and will fall apart if tried to be played on both sides.

When I arrive at work in the morning, there is a certain route that I take from the parking lot to the main hospital building and then from the hospital building to my building.  Part of this arrival procedure involves in walking some of the same terrain as I do each day and includes a great deal of the path that God speaks to me.  I have kept this identical pathway for almost seven years now and I can almost walk it with my eyes closed.  As I have mentioned before there is a portion of the path that involves a sloped ramp that the ambulances use to bring their occupants to the Emergency Room entrance and when the weather becomes bad this angled portion can become slippery.  None of us like to fall down for when we do the majority of the time it is our pride that we land on and are hurt the most.  So, why would I or anyone else take this path when the weather is bad or have adverse precipitation on it?  Like I mentioned a second ago, it is because of our pride that we follow this route.

It has become engrained in my mind to take such a path and to keep it in this manner and order.  I have taken this way for so long that it has become second nature to me, a habit that I do not even think about any longer and just complete without even thinking about it.  Many of us can relate to such paths for when we go to work, the grocery store, complete our first morning routines, and countless other patterns we tend to follow the same plan as the days and years before.  This is a common pattern that all humans take and get comfortable with for it makes our lives simpler and we all know that when we follow a routine it becomes a standard in our lives, especially when this pattern has developed for years.

A few days ago, we had a small storm come through our area and for some reason, it decided to snow on our community.  We really need the moisture this year and it was welcomed for the most part by all who witnessed its arrival.  But at the same time, it laid a thin blanket of snow on the ground which made the ground wet but icy at the same time which made a bit difficult to walk upon.  This should not present any large problems and to be honest I really did not think about it too much as my feet were slowly walking up the ramp.  I completed my main lab chores, gathered my things to make the commute across the parking lot to my building and headed for the back door. 

As I approached the door, God told me to take another path this morning and not to walk down the ramp as I would normally do.  I quickly thought I would ignore such a suggestion and do my own thing but stopped just as fast and turned right instead of left as I was leaving the lab.  A small detail one would think but enough that God for some reason did not want me to complete that trip.  So, I took the inside route for this trip and limited my exposure to the outdoors and the ramp that I would have walked down.  Now, with that being said I cannot totally say that God not wanting me to walk down the ramp was the pinpointed reason why He said to take another route, all I know is what I heard and I was obedient to God’s voice.  As I was walking through the Radiology department God spoke to me again and gave me the topic of this article and as the moments passed the contents of the article as well.  I do not know if I would have received such a topic and contents if I had done things my own way, an important item that God wants us to understand about being separate from the world even down to the slightest small voice of instruction.

The blessings that God has given us throughout our modern lives are staggering when we take a look at our past.  We cannot argue the fact that God has blessed our nation beyond belief and for those who wish to make a way of life can do so with ample supplies at their feet.  But we have reached a point in our society that we feel the need to overpower others with our personal habits and takings to the point that if we do not follow the popular culture institutions we are labeled as outsiders and are subject to ridicule.  During the lead-up to this state we missed the opportunities to correct such behavior and beliefs before they became ingrained into our hearts and now that these hideous beliefs are a part of our societies we must act upon them according to their principles.  The world would claim that you are just following its protocol and not to be worried about the deep undertones and foundational aspects of life.  A pathway to destruction is what this type of belief and living will result in but readily displayed for everyone to follow if looked upon even though our foundations tell us to go another way.

In the book of Genesis we have the foundational creative status of our existence and when God creates something it must be in perfect order and condition for that is the only pattern He can follow.  When sin entered into our lives it changed the innermost being of our lives because at that point we had to make a choice about how to live our lives and to which path we would forever take.  It was also at this point in humanity that we had to look at both paths and make that decision as we took steps going forward, for retreating was not an option.  As we tried to keep one foot on one path and our other foot on the other path and then continue forward we will very soon find ourselves feeling the pain of being stretched in a manner that is not conducive to our physical abilities.  It is this stretched position that sin has created and as a consequence, we must make this choice of which path to take, this example gives us an excellent way to understand Matthew 6:24 as well.

2 Timothy 2:15 serves as our biblical text for this article and it provides us with an excellent idea and truth concerning how God wants us to be when it comes to the world and the patterns that we follow.  There is no question that we like to get into a routine and to keep that routine as much as possible for it alone brings us some type of security when we are facing the world.  But as we confess this act or ours and the reason we complete it we are taking matters into our own hands and falling into a vicious trap for we are following the patterns of the world whether we recognize it or not.  See, the patterns that we take in order to keep our simplistic methods intact follow the way of getting around the world and its procedures but at the same time while we walk this specific path we are introducing the world into our lives by our own pattern making and it is this activity that God wants us to understand that when we follow such repetitive patterns we cannot help but become rooted in the world.  It is this verse that reminds us that we need to continually allow God to be a part of our lives in order for us to be searched well enough to rid ourselves of these worldly patterns.  When we allow God to accomplish His washing and cleaning processes we will no longer need to be on two paths of life, He will set us afoot on the one true path to righteousness again.  Ever since sin was introduced into our lives it is has been and shall always be our goal to get the world out of our lives and present ourselves as a living sacrifice to God. 

If our patterns serve the world and yet we recognize that there is a difference in the patterns from God and from the world, yet ignore the truth concerning the origins of these paths how can we honestly say or believe that we can be under the eternal covering from God and still want to be connected to our enemy?  There is a process of desensitization here that many fall into when it comes to this position in our lives.  First, it starts with a pattern that we know is bad and for a while feeling guilty about following yet continue this path.  Secondly, this pattern becomes a part of our lives and eventually, the guilt goes away and our minds and hearts are no longer concerned about the adverse effects this pattern has on our lives, still believe in a higher authority but keep Him at a distance.  The third portion of this process is where our patterns have become a way of belief and life through which humans operate, thus, giving them no reason or intention of needing any outside guidance other than what they have already received and upon reaching this stage do not even consider God or any higher authority being present.

It would seem that anything that God deems is good would be considered an abomination to so many people around the world, but if one understands what is at stake, who the kingdom leaders are, what the kingdoms are and why they are in place as they are it would not be much of a surprise.  Yet, physical passions and current acceptable trends rule our thoughts and laws which in turn become self-relevant on paper alone and serve only to function as a directional farce when time comes to respond to a true critical event or setting.  We become comfortable in the physical and superficial defenses that many accept as their foundation and ignore the original issue of disobedience to our Creator.  Disobedience is the definition of sin and when sin completely rules our lives without any heartfelt remorse it makes God uncomfortable and He must act as our eternal Father and do His best to allow us to correct the setting as soon as possible.

From the looks of things in our world today, we have not recognized that God’s path and Ways are totally opposite from the world.  Instead we have followed in the footsteps of the Early Church, Middle Aged Church, and Early Modern Church and have proceeded to take matters into our own hands in order to obtain the Ways of God this means that we have adopted the theory of “my bible” instead of keeping God Word as such, His Word.  While many good deeds have been done to countless peoples the Church still has a horrific record when it comes to proclaiming the truth concerning Kingdom issues.  Many do not or refuse to understand what the core principles of Kingdom are and what they mean to our lives.  To hear the Church respond in anger and superficiality when mass events occur is appalling for they do not boldly say that the only way that these events will stop is if we turn our hearts back over to God 100%.  It is this lack of truth to the world that also makes God uncomfortable as well, for His Church is not doing what His Son commanded them to do.

The ruler of the world and the spirit that he lives within has enough obtained authority over our existence that he laughs at every discourse that our lives experience.  Our fight has become so focused on the physical aspects that we do not even consider the spiritual aspect and true origin of our issues.  Church, Jesus warned us about these events that would come to our nature if we did not study God’s Word and understand it through spiritual eyes.  We have instead boldly ignored the words of Christ and have dictated the Church’s direction based upon superficial and worldly ways and even though we proclaim that we are doing God’s work for the world we are allowing the very spirit of what Jesus warned us about so long ago spill out from our mouths and infect a dying world instead of showing the restoration process to those who need God.

We have lost the truth about who is in charge of this world and we have allowed so many lives be taken in that we are now witnessing the beginning of a new era in our lives that if not corrected immediately will usher in another dimension of existence that will be ruled by the world’s government instead of a compassionate heart of God.  The beautiful people that God looks upon each day that wander around aimlessly still fulfills the kingdom of this world that promotes their own death in the future.  This makes God uncomfortable as well for He knows that while we bask ourselves in the luxuries of His blessings our spiritual lives are drowning in a sea of sin that will one day flush us from this land and drag us to an eternal pit separated from God in a pain that is unrecognizable to our physical minds and eyes.

Many cries are being heard not only from this country but all around the world concerning the issues that we are facing.  One sentiment echoes loud and clear from each voice that is heard from with each setting and that is they want peace and security in their lives once again.  But instead of this request being fulfilled, we see more pain and agony touch lives as each sun cycle completes its rotation.  We fail to admit that the paths that we have taken and are currently taking need to be changed from the origins instead of the superficial.  If we change a pathway but fail to hear God’s voice in which pathway to take or to leave out God completely that pathway shall provide another angle of disappointment that will add to the pain and agony that societies are currently experiencing.  As a result, we find ourselves knowing what path to take but continuing to hold complete belief in the other path which allows for us to forget about the true path and go on our merry way while being stretched further.

Pastors, leaders, teachers of the Church and to those who sit in the pews of such church buildings, God calls upon you to once again show compassion to those who are sinful and need God.  God urges you to once again preach salvation and complete separation from this world and all of its lifestyles on a routine and holy basis.  Call sin for what it is, sin for we can no longer afford to play with this title as a kid’s game it is real and it is eating our spiritual lives alive.  Return to prayer on your knees before God has to place this country on its knees according to His hand and not in a voluntary motion.  God does not care about the numbers of a congregation if they are cold and indifferent from the world or the eternal status of those who consider the world their rightful place of guidance.  God wants your hearts to be renewed in His Ways again so that He can give you the truthful words of His Word to share with those who are supposed to be going out into the world and reaping the harvest. 

All of us are going to be held accountable for what we were supposed to do while living and breathing on this earth and for those of us who have been called by God it is our duty to complete the mission of Christ by telling as many people as we can that there is a true way out of this mess we are in and if we accept God into our lives He will not only give us the means to solve these issues but He will restore us back into a royal status under His Covenant as well.  We cannot complete this mission of ours if we are stuck in the comfortable patterns that we have been in for many years.  God wants us to take a different path, one that will shed His Light on the darkness of the world and to live separately from this ugliness that Satan has deemed beautiful to our eyes.  We have bound ourselves to this world and instead of understanding 2 Corinthians 3:17 and teaching this truth to others, we have pushed it aside as a lie and accepted the “truth” of the ruler of this world.  We do need a change, a spiritual change and a complete change from this world and I pray that we seek this change from God before it is too late.

DLB

Truth Embedded In A Lie

Truth Embedded In A Lie

2/17/18

How many times have we fallen for something that we truly believe was a good thing but only to find out that the other party involved lied to us sometime later?  We place this experience in our memory banks and occasionally refer to it when it is convenient and in the meantime keep this participation fiasco to ourselves.  Do we believe that the spiritual aspect of our lives does not come into the same type of setting?  It seems like we do because we would much rather trust the father of lies instead of our Creator.  Look at the patterns of lies which we have fallen for yet continue to place Satan’s kingdom ahead of God’s perfectly honest Kingdom.  It has been demonstrated all throughout the Bible that unless we place God first in our everyday lives this pattern of lies shall grow until it completely consumes us.

The opening paragraph says a lot about the human character and how it can operate in order to make a quota or to make one believe a good deal has been completed.  Many of the short-term marketplace transactions are made in good faith and really have great expectations with honesty being the strong point, but we also know from past personal experiences or from word of mouth that not all people share the same level of trustworthiness.  Our youngest daughter recently found this out the hard way and while the transaction seemed fair enough at the time after a few minutes of simple digging found out that she had been taken to the cleaners.  The car she had purchased was not in very good condition and had some dings and bumps but the lady who sold her the car stated that it was running quite nicely for the body “shape” it was in.  We were not present upon the completion of sale but it became clear as soon as she drove away that something was off and that other details about the car had been left out.

The physical condition of the car was not the only eyesore to be uncovered either.  It was a couple of days later that we were rummaging around the glove box and found the initial receipt that gave the total purchase price of the car that the lady had bought and it was no way near what my daughter had bought the car for as well.  It was this monetary detail of overpricing that became the greatest hold on everyone’s heartstrings for when the truth was revealed about how much the lady had made with this purchase with my daughter, we felt terrible.  Not all was lost, for my youngest then turned around and found a much better deal on another car and then graciously gave the first car to her sister’s husband so he could trade it for some parts.  A small token of repayment from what my youngest actually paid for the car but more importantly it was a lesson learned that none of us will ever forget.  This is the perfect example of someone presenting with a ½ truth to another all in the name of getting the upper hand in some sort of deal.  What is so appalling about this type of lie is that those who engage in such activity do not have sleepless nights over such transactions but the ones who have been lied to are the ones that struggle with things.

When our eyes and minds are skewed enough we will miss such ill tidings and write them off as being normal while being cautious next time around.  However, we must contend that if this type of setting occurred in our lives that somewhere else will probably go through or has been through a similar fate.  It is at this point where we can do something about what has occurred to us or to ignore the situation altogether and go along like nothing ever happened.  Which categorical example do you fit into?  It is much easier to allow things to pass, put it in our memory banks as suggested above and go on with our lives but if we continue to do this and do nothing about what has occurred then we allow the liars to win and the just to suffer.  We cannot ever forget that if some word, deal, setting, or condition is not 100% accurate then it is considered to be a lie and we should avoid such presentation at all costs.

One of the biggest lies that we hear today is a personal choice matter that has spiritual and eternal consequences as well which is one of the fundamental and foundational aspects of our lives.  We have been told for a long time who the father of lies is and how that we need to be aware of his presence and to watch out for his tricks.  We have forgotten to remember that he lies and that no matter what he says we need to understand that it always will be contrary to God’s Word.  Yes, his words shall be encouraging and maybe even kind and considerate but we need to remember that while some of his words are truth the remaining words are lies, which makes everything Satan says a lie.  It is this categorical lie that is the subject of this article and a message that all of us need to hear and remember including those who are stating that God loves them and He will not send me to hell for my worldly choices.

We have just learned that disobedience is sin and that death is disobedience because God cannot create anything that dies which means we invited sin into our lives and have suffered ever since.  So, if God separated Lucifer from his position in heaven and created a place for him and his angels because of their sin and agreement with Lucifer then why will God not send you away from Him eternally again?  In Genesis 3:1-6 we see that a relationship has already developed between Adam and Eve with the serpent and even though they have been warned about his presence and his ways they still have flaunted this relationship in front of God without hesitation.  All is still well up until this time for Eve believes in a ½ truth from the serpent.  Here is the ½ truth that Adam and Eve believe in and the one that initiated the truth about God’s words and not the serpent’s: And the serpent said to the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”

One can easily hear Eve say that God loves me, for through His conversations with us He has said so many times so He would never mean this death thing would ever occur to us.  One can also imagine the smile that the serpent had on his face as Eve was speaking to him about what God had said concerning the eating from the tree for he knew his time was “well spent”.  As soon as both ate from the tree their eyes were opened but it was not quite like the serpent said it would be for they instantly understood certain details about themselves that were of no importance before.  God still loved them but things had changed and they had to try and make amends before it was time for God to show up.  A question to ponder as you finish this article and go on with your life: did God love Lucifer?  That is an easy answer to give for yes He did but because Lucifer could not keep the choice of serving God and living for His Kingdom, he chose to go his own way thus God could not allow him to be in His presence again on the level that he was created.

What evidence do we now have that Satan does not care about our lives?  We do not have to look any further than Genesis Chapter 3 because it is very clear that he wants what God has given Adam and Eve to fall and to be taken, in other words becoming equal with him in many ways.  After Adam and Eve fell God did not stop loving them as His own children and prized creations, His love did not change and that is evident because at the end of Genesis Chapter 3 God shows Adam and Eve again that His Way is the only way possible to have eternal life.  If one ever has an inkling of an idea that God can change His Ways to accommodate the world they need to refer to this passage of Scripture and once again remind themselves of who lied and who told the truth.  God’s truth is eternally complete from the beginning of life until the day that all life as we know it ends and then, the beginning is completed.

John 8:44 further demonstrates the characteristic of Satan and his status: “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar and the father of it.”  There is a bunch of information in this single verse and the smaller issue here that we are going to talk about is the part about when Jesus states that Satan is the father of lies.  The words of Jesus define the origin of lying and also give reference to who originated lies.  Jesus states that the devil is the father of lies and there is a detail here that we need to remember about Satan and his kingdom.  Remember when Jesus said that no one can serve two masters?  Well, if Satan ever told the truth, the complete truth, he would be defeating his own kingdom thus divide his own kingdom; we have discussed this previously but keep this in mind.  Another tidbit to think about is this; this verse alone proves that God was present first before Lucifer was created for God would not have been in the presence of Lucifer if his lying spirit was there before Him.

Since God was present before Lucifer, this means that Lucifer at some point in time lived under entire and complete truth according to the official and holy Word of God.  So, it would be fitting for Satan to know what the truth is and what is not the truth, right?  God’s Word and His presence defines His entire existence as an eternal source of life itself, lying only represents stoppage of the truth which means it is disobedience to God’s existence which means it is sin.  Therefore, it is our responsibility to understand God well enough to know what is from Him and what is not from Him, Satan understands this fact so why don’t we do our best and continue to seek God and what He stands for as well?

The evil portion of the conversation between Adam and Eve with the serpent was the fact that what Eve said complemented the lie that the serpent wanted to project.  While a portion of what the serpent said was true the basis for obedience was left out thus establishing the groundwork for the advancement of his wicked kingdom into our lives.  Before sin entered into our existence Adam and Eve lived in complete Covenant with God and it is obvious that God had planned out everything possible for them to live in such a manner and when Adam and Eve tried to cover themselves with leaves afterward it was obvious that they could not do it themselves.  This meant that God’s Covenant is 100% intact and is 100% present at all times and therefore 100% our choice to live within its boundaries or not.  This means that we must give ourselves 100% to Christ as well for He is the ultimate sacrifice and the only way to the eternal Father; Covenant is not ½ done nor is the covering of Christ ½ done.

There is not a day that goes by that we see an example of how the world lies to our hearts but when we see such turmoil we place it on a physical level and ignore its true roots.  It is easy to figure out that when someone shoots another person, or possessions get stolen by another that it is something that does not represent the good in humanity but if we do not understand exactly why these issues occur it will be pointless to fix them for our efforts will touch only superficial limbs and not even grasp the root of the problem.  God gave us His Word as the one source of understanding how to effectively combat the lies of the devil for you see according to the Bible, everything that the devil does is a direct lie to God and to your life.  How important is it to understand and to know the Word of God in your heart?  If you do not completely understand the Word of God and strive for this wisdom then you shall NEVER understand the complete truth about anything for the world cannot tell you the truth for it is ruled by the father of lies.

One last Scripture passage before we come to the Church section of this article and it actually deals with the Early Church and it is found in 2 Timothy 2:15.  “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”  The question asked here is one of someone being able to stand upright and pure before God and if one has done what they could to tell the entire truth at all times then these people will not have any worries when it comes time to take account of their actions.  In the later portion of this verse we come across the meat of the meaning of truth and how to handle such wisdom, a setting that many of us desire to keep intact but at the same time we encounter just as many people who wish to tell their version of the truth and leave out great details in order to prove their point.

“rightly dividing the truth” is the portion that deals with how we need to deal with truth for truth can be harmful sometimes and if not told correctly just as harmful on the opposite side of the spectrum as well.  The Greek phrase here is “orthotomounta ton logon tes aletheias” which is directly translated as accurately handling the word of truth.  What can be truer concerning the Word of God, God Himself, and His Son Jesus than this descriptive phrase?  It is of the utmost importance that we tell the truth about God’s Son when we are speaking to those who do not know Christ as their eternal Savior.  It is just as important to study the Word of God so that when questions arise we will have the logical expressions to convey to those who are asking, even if they are just wishing to argue the facts, give it to them in the proper manner according to how Jesus responded to those who demanded answers from Him.  If we do not fully know and accept the Word of God as it has been written by God through human hands then we will not be able to defend ourselves when attacks come from our enemy.  Our conditions will not differ in any way as it did for Adam and Eve when they were finally challenged by the serpent.  We cannot afford to give out ½ information to those who are tired of being lied to by the world and are actually seeking truth for their lives. 

The second portion of this verse is the result of completing the first portion of this verse in 2 Timothy.  When we study to show something that means that we have an earnest desire to portray it the best we can and in this case we are presenting God as our representative to others all the while understanding that at some point in time that the roles will be reversed and it is God that we will be standing in front of while He asks us the questions.  Church, how will you stand in this day?  Will you be able to stand upright and be truthful in the ways that you have read about in God’s Word, or will you have to admit that you gave out ½ truths because you justified your actions according to selfish wants and popularity contests?  Did you accurately handle the truth that was in front of your eyes and spiritual heart or did you manipulate it for your pride and acceptance factors?  It is obvious that we have failed miserably in the truth-telling to a dying world, and to be truthful we have failed so miserably that I dare to say we have more missionaries coming into this nation than we are sending out to other nations. 

How important is it that we tell the truth and nothing but the truth?  For the past few articles, I have shared with you about how our community has been gripped by two youth suicides and how we have responded to these tragedies in general terms.  However, there is a detail that needs to be spoken about and handed down as a warning to what occurs when a ½ truth is portrayed or told without the full content being delivered.  In the last suicide that occurred here the family knew the Bible and had actually attended the church in which my father pastured years ago.  At this young man’s baptismal, he publicly spoke and said that he understood that he was not of this world and that he was only passing through and that his true home was in heaven.  While this statement of his that you just read is not a direct quote it is the words that he used and ones that are of a true and correct nature.

This young man took his life because according to him the problems of this world were too much to handle and that he wanted to be in heaven, his true home.  God does not and has not created anyone to take their own life for any reason because God cannot represent death for it was not Him that created us to die in the first place.  This testimony of this young man was read at his funeral and boldly spoken about how he was not of this world and that he was only passing through.  There was no mention that the act that he did was wrong and it was not just in God’s eyes.  Here is the ½ truth and lie that was publicly displayed to anyone who sat in that auditorium that day and heard what the people stated.  There was no mention whatsoever about how life was created for a reason and it was not to be fulfilled in this manner or by these means, only that his life was now gone and had passed as he spoke about at an earlier time.  I understand that this is a difficult time for his family, loved-ones, and close friends but an opportunity to open the suicidal doors to everyone else who was listening to that day is so eternally wrong and eternally dangerous.

Church, you have taken yourself out of this eternal equation because you have made the Word of God a poster for self-seeking achievements instead of finding methods to teach the dying world that Jesus died for their sins and that there is an answer to all of the lies that have been told to them.  Why do we remain silent when each day teen suicides, murders, and other heinous activities are committed by humans on each other and to themselves?  Don’t we see that with each story of death the kingdom that rules this world probably gains another person that will not see eternity as it was meant for them?  Does this not break your heart to know such a permanent and eternal position has been put into place?  This reality and truth that this topic covers breaks God’s heart, once again, why doesn’t it break your hearts as well?  We must come to terms with the fact that if we do not tell the truth to those who need God today that one day God will tell them the truth as He sees it and according to His Holy and Perfect Ways and what will be our response when He asks us about the so-called truth we proclaimed? 

Church, the issue lies within our hearts to believe that either the world is telling us the truth or that God is telling us the truth, there can be no other options available.  We witness so many atrocities each day both in person and around the world that this decision really should not be a difficult one to make.  However, our enemy has done a pretty good job at convincing us that the world is an acceptable place with rules that make everyone safe and comfortable.  With what our eyes and hearts see each day we know that this statement from the world is a lie and should be avoided at all costs, yet the Church has fallen for these lies as well and her status as the bride of Christ lays in jeopardy.  It has become clear that she believes that God can live 2^nd in her life and still function as the Jesus’ promised and the pure bride, a lie that Satan has convincingly sold without any visible challenges to speak about.  The Bride of Christ will suffer greatly from the world which means that she cannot be a part of it in any way, how much do you believe it shall cost for this true status?  Are you willing to pay this high cost?

God has never lied to His children, from the time of our creation until this very moment.  God has been so consistent with His Word and His promises, on both sides of the issues.  Why should we forget His Ways when He is the one that has faithfully shown us the way for such a long time?  Pride will convince you that you know everything you need to know about God’s Word and that you do not need to spend time studying it any longer, that is a lie!!  We need to bury our hearts in the Bible so that God will show us how to walk in His footsteps each day, to show us who to talk with about His love and His salvation and to be separated from this world so that we may be the true example of a light unto the darkness.  Seek the Bible and then listen with your spiritual heart for it is that communication pathway that God will show you the answers to His Word, and be ready for when this process occurs a huge river will begin to flow from your life and it cannot be hidden on any level.

We have lost this truth factor from our hearts and through this loss, we have jaded the truth that God wants us to share with His people.  We have lost the concept of holy truth from our lips and daily actions by accepting provocative appearances and worldly touches, God is calling for us to drop these sinful wants and rants and to return to Him and His Ways.  The only way that this is possible is for our hearts to be buried in the Word of God and to repent of our wicked ways.  If we teach a ½ truth on any level it is a lie and we have adopted such an example and then portrayed to those who need God.  Repent, Church and begin once again to teach the entire truth about God not only by speaking the Word to those that need it but also to show them through physical appearances and speech.  God’s Word contains no ½ truths and neither should your heart as it speaks and shares the Gospel of His Word with others.

DLB

Death Is Disobedience

Death is Disobedience

2/13/18

This seems like it is profound statement since everyone has to see this process pass our eyes at some point in our lives and more intimately experience it for us as well.  This phrase strikes fear in all lives for we have no real concept of what occurs after we die and even though we may have an idea the reality of such future actions are not known.  So, since death has to be experienced by everyone why then is it considered disobedience and since this is the case who are we being disobedient to when we take our last breath?  For some it can be an easy assessment as to why this process occurs but to others it may come as a surprise to know that we were never created to die in any manner but it was our choice to surface this fixed wage and thus establish our spiritual journey as the only way to know eternal life.  Do not worry, we have an option to choose once again that will guarantee our eternal life as we know it and also to further our knowledge of God which is the eternal unknown.

I have mentioned once before about the first funeral that I attended when I was in the 4^th grade.  I was in Salinas, California and it was an elderly gentleman who I looked up to when I was at this age.  My words to him I really did not understand for I was a young lad but whatever I said to him on those numerous occasions must have meant a great deal to him for one phrase I used he had placed on his wreath over his casket.  This specific memory about this portion of my life I do not think about very often but when I do I remember how my father and mother kept me close to their sides as I approached the gentleman’s body for the first time after he left this world.  Both of my parents did a fabulous job in consoling my fears while at the same time explaining to me, on my level, why this event had occurred.  Most importantly they shared with me that he was now with Jesus and that I would see him again one day.  To be honest, I am glad that I did not fully understand death that day because what my eyes, heart, and spirit are subject to today burn deep within my spirit and it pains me greatly on a daily basis.

The story of our death does not begin with the day that sin actually entered into our lives but on the day that Lucifer rebelled against God and was thrown down to the earth as a punishment for his disobedience.  It is stated in the Bible that Lucifer was the most beautifully created angel that God made and that he was the “#2” created being in heaven.  This is a status that many of us would love to have in our lives but if we ever obtained such a position and appearance it is easily known that we would certainly fall and disgrace our existence by our selfish wants based upon the ultimate nature of our existence.  Yet, at the same time it is also difficult for our finite minds to completely understand why Lucifer would do such an idiotic maneuver to but whatever the cause it did occur and now he had his eyes set on a new target of God’s and that is where our article comes into play with why death is a disobedience.

It has been said many times in God’s Word that no one can serve two masters which means that whichever side one chooses to represent they must follow that leader in order to be true to their cause and ultimately their existence.  God has followed this truth for as long as He has been around which once again is a period of “time” that we cannot understand for spirit has no time and it knows no time thus deeming the definition of eternity.  If God had no choice but to cast Lucifer down to the earth for his greed and selfishness then that means that unity, peace, love, harmony, and truth are all part of God and His creative purposes.  When something goes wrong and since God cannot serve another master because of His Holy status then that means someone else must have done something wrong to rock the eternal boat.  This is not news to some of us but it needs to be said to set the foundation for the next portion of this article.

So, when did death occur?  It first occurred when Lucifer fell from Heaven and when he could not live up to his wanted potential God spiritually slapped him in the face by creating humans.  Humans had the consciousness of choice yet we were created in such a manner that spirit came last and physical first, placing a unique order intact but at the same time continued to keep the eternal settings as a choice.  This process we have already discussed and it is a brilliant design plan by God and it proves again that His thoughts are not like ours and they are definitely not like any angel either.  Satan then went to work on our eternal existence and it is here where Adam and Eve gave into the earthly relationship that they had with the serpent, thus proving sin was real and that God’s words about death were, in fact, true and not a lie as the serpent suggested.

Anything that has to do with disobedience represents sin and to narrow it down a bit more sin equals disobedience.  Sin and disobedience coincide with each other and they define each other which are why death is disobedience because death is a sin against God’s Kingdom.  If these two words define each other that means that no matter how they are used or in which position they present first they mean the same.  One can place any type of condition in this position and equate it with the word sin and it will interpose with each other.  This means that no matter what word one uses to describe sin it is on the same level as the word sin; therefore, sin is anything that goes against God’s Kingdom and the advancement thereof.  So, in short, since God does not represent death that means that death is disobedience to God and therefore considered a sin to which we ourselves cannot change on any level.

In Genesis 2:15-17 states as follow: “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.  And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 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.”

How powerful are the arts and the acts of sin and how important are they that we do not harbor such activity in our lives?  This passage gives us the entire truth about how separating sin is and how far the boundaries of such devastation are wide.  As stated above it is hard to imagine why Lucifer wanted to disobey God but it is just as hard and maybe even harder to fathom why Adam and Eve wanted to disobey God because while Lucifer set the precedence for sin God did not hide this meaning from Adam and Eve.  So, the question is why did they purposefully disobey them and allow death into our lives?  We will find that this question plagues our inner and deepest thoughts on a routine basis and haunts every one of us as each day passes and we come another day closer to this eternal destiny.  God did not create Lucifer to be separated from Him nor did He create us to die either.  God cannot create something to automatically die for it does not represent a characteristic of God.  While Lucifer’s will against God was ugly and spiritually violent it kept true to form the battle for Daniel’s answer did, no one died for spirit is created only on one level; however, Lucifer did sin and God cast him down and one day Satan’s reign over this earth will end and he too shall be eternally separated from God which can only mean one thing, eternal death.

When medical researchers look at the human body they cannot help but be amazed at how organized and specific the human body is designed.  They offer no answers as to why the body one-day functions with the utmost functions of vitality and then the next day is found to be in a chaotic form and disarray so engulfing that its integrated systems are collapsing and shutting down with each passing minute.  The reason for this sudden turn of destruction is a process that only two humans did not completely experience but only for a certain amount of time, another portion of the sin equation that confounds our thinking because as soon as our developing body inside our mother’s womb reaches the fifth cell of maturation the physical death process begins and then increases over time, so you see we do not need any other types of death help in the initial stages of our lives for all of us who are lucky to open our eyes outside the womb shall meet an untimely death anyway.  Sin takes its toll on our lives from the initial moments after our conception and with the definition of sin being disobedience and vice versa we fall into this disobedience category pretty young.  It is this fact about our growth pattern that also gives credentials to Scripture where it states that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

We really do not know exactly how much time passed from when Adam and Eve were cast from the Garden of Eden until the time their son Cain killed his brother Abel.  But we can see that the process of sin was still alive and working through the human heart even though it was already known what consequences it brought.  A logical question that can be raised is if Adam and Eve knew that death could not only originate from their minds about their own lives but could it originate and then be executed from one human to another?  The depths of sin and the effects it has on a human are complete and whole which cannot be eradicated from our lives for as science tells us death begins at an early stage and continues until we draw our last breath no matter how that last breath is taken.  The world portrays death as a true alternative to the problems that one has while on this earth and it is a gross abnormality to believe any such other offer.  This is why it is so important that we understand and then teach our children about the vitality and truth about life and how important it is that we respect life on all levels.

We have no authority to take a life and it does not matter in what stage of life we are talking about either.  Yes, we have that choice and through the mind and heart of humans, we have developed a vast array of systems to enable us to kill even though we do not have the eternal authority to complete such a measure.  People who believe in God should in no way entertain the idea that death is okay and should be explored as an option for our hearts.  We only know about life and how to operate through such a condition but we believe the rumors (lies) from our friends and other settings around us that say there is nothing wrong with death and that if we find a way to escape such a condition we should take it.  Death comes from Satan who is the ruler of this world and is no friend of yours or mine.  His goal is to seek you out and to terminate your life in any way possible and if we open any door to such activity he will grab a hold of your heart and try to convince you that death is a good thing.

When we choose death over life it is always a clear indication of what our hearts deem as 1# in our lives, or I should say which kingdom we have chosen to be #1 in our lives.  There is an eternal war for our lives and it does not matter how hard we may think we have things on earth if we take our own lives there will be nothing for us to stand on for suicide is a voluntary death sentence and the most selfish act one can do against yourself and to God.  There is nothing glamorous about death or the way one approaches it and then succumbs to it for it is the highest form of sin against how you were created and to our Creator.  All I know if life and while most days I do not even think about how lucky I am to be able to open my eyes every day I am reminded of how things are meant to me as soon as I realize that I have taken another breath in the midst of another day that God has made.

You ask as to why does one wish to choose death for it would not seem to be a logical option?  But the ruler of this world has bombarded us with so much false information concerning the matter that unless one knows the eternal Word of God and what it truly means we really have no choice but to believe in what the lies tell us.  On every level, humans have willingly and voluntarily taken God (life) out of all public content and conversation and as long as this trend continues the more life will be drained from our spiritual existence that at some point in the near future we shall collapse and not be able to return to our spiritual feet.  This process will not stop with the spiritual but will include the physical identities as well and if you have been paying attention to what is occurring around us you will know that this process has already begun in the physical which means the spiritual is already on the ground.  No wonder it is an important detail for God to be out of our lives for when this occurs we have no defense against the enemy thus creating an environment of a turkey shoot and a so-called hiding place without any walls to mention either.  One cannot correct measures for protection unless all aspects of obedience (truth) has been taken into consideration and then applied for if it is not in place Satan will be able to drive legions of demons through what we believe is our adequate heart’s beliefs and the resulting battle will come as a complete annihilation of our lives. 

For the past few articles, I have mentioned that this small community of mine has been “rocked” by two youth suicides three weeks apart.  While it has been a tumultuous time in this valley there is still a ray of hope that we can cling to and look towards.  Touchy words and quick popping remarks have ripped the airwaves of this area and then combine these two tragedies with other expected and unexpected deaths and you have the perfect ingredients for an explosive dialog between different sides.  While there is a time and a place to send and hand out condolences the time for responsible truth never goes away.  It is important that when addressing such matters that it is done in a loving manner and yet a truthful one for lies at a funeral are still lies and shall only infect (doors) others in the sanctuary to entertain the idea of death at some point down the road.

All voluntary deaths are ugly and cannot be hidden from the public eye for an extended period of time.  Youth suicides are extremely devastating on the entire community especially hitting hard in the schools.  It is enough of a tragedy that these events occur and that acquaintances, friends, and family are left wondering why and left to grieve without any true resolution or answers.  School counselors are under enough pressure as it is to oversee that each student receives the highest quality of education demanded but when such a tragedy occurs a greater pressure accrues at a breakneck pace.  All types of informational gatherings occur, support groups form, and grief sessions occur and while all of these contributions are important and are necessary there is One ingredient that is not mentioned or even welcomed in this healing process and that is God.  We must take into consideration a very important detail here and that is this: if a person cannot cope with their world and their worldly surroundings enough to end their life, then what makes us believe that we can provide the necessary help through otherworldly and human alone provisions?  This makes no sense and will do no good for not too further down the road we shall read about another close tragedy, thus the pattern continues without end.  It is our duty to teach the truth about God and to share with them that God does not represent death and that He has provided a way of eternal restoration.

Which brings us to the cure for those who wish to not die and for that way out there is only one way possible.  It is evident that the Church has voluntarily turned her authority over to the world for she has been weakened when it comes to the truth and her effectiveness in times of need and trouble.  When issues arise she does the instinctive thing to sound the alarm and to inquire help but is quickly told to go sit back down in the corner until the current issue is improperly dealt with according to those who now are in charge.  Church, take a hard and long look at the conditions that this nation and all others are facing for it is your lack of truth and responsibility that has led us to such a disastrous setting.  Jesus commanded us to go and teach the gospel to the world for a reason, for He understood that if we did not do it according to His authority things would end up in a manner such as we see today.  The world is doing its job how come we are not doing what Jesus told us to do?  You want to see these horrific suicides and unnecessary deaths cease, then turn back to God and proclaim the truth about life again.  There can be no hope if we accept voluntary death as a standard amongst which we deem normal.

Do you understand that if you do not proclaim Jesus’ Will and follow the Ways of God that you automatically promote death?  There is no sitting on the fence when it comes to any issue concerning God and our eternity and since we cannot serve two masters then if we are not doing what God has told us to do then we must fall into the other side of things.  Death is disobedience which is sin and can thus only represent the world and its defeated fallen ruler, so we need to stop defending it and once again expose it by the eternal light.  It is our duty and our loving obligation to tell the world about Jesus and the good news of life.  Church we can no longer defend death on any level but we must promote life as God created it.  Repent, Church and follow through completely with the command that Jesus gave us to do, throw away the sin of the world and put on the armor of God so that we may fight our true enemy and recognize exactly what is going on around us.  God loves each one of His children and it is our responsibility to tell them and then show them that God is different than the world.

DLB

A Comfortable Separation

A Comfortable Separation

2/11/18

Do we have the courage to ask ourselves how many times we have become comfortable with being away from family members or some other close relationship, to the point where we do not even place these figures into our hearts on a regular basis?  And when we ask ourselves this question do we recognize exactly what is transpiring while these ways of ours are parted?  It is easy to pose modern life as the characteristic placement that serves as such a boundary but in truth, it really is the shading of the heart that lies as the foundation of such horror.  A greater tragedy occurs when we step into this state with our Creator pushing Him aside for the more physical and suitable replacement all the while deepening our lives from the One who can give us all the answers we need in order to survive this wicked place we call the world.  It is vital that we recognize such a separation for if we do not our enemy gains a great advantage when the battle for our eternity flares.

Over the past month, the community that I live in has been “rocked” by two youth suicides.  Any suicide is considered abhorrent to God and should be placed in the same category in our hearts as well, yet somehow we tend to dismiss these issues as minute details that slipped through the cracks and once the immediate effects of such activities have passed we return to our mindless ways until the next tragedy strikes.  It is these “minute” details that completely define the attitude of a holy representative that has gone to sleep or if awake only concerns about keeping the spiritual peace long enough for her to return to sleep.  See, both of these young people were born and raised in church and knew what it meant to be alive and how important it was for them to have a relationship with Jesus.  But, somehow we lost that important Truth and allowed these precious lives to slip into eternity through a very selfish and careless act of personal violence.  Are these harsh words?  Yes, they are, but we need to understand that eternity is NOT a game to be played with and that it is now more than ever important to understand this truth.

I cannot escape nor am I immune to this type of sinful state.  A few days back I was coming into work and about to enter my building for the first time for the day when an uneasy yet familiar feeling and a thought came across my heart.  At first, I believed that something was going to occur but it soon came to me that I had not prayed that morning for some ridiculous reason, and as I was about to open the door to my work area I realized this error and almost immediately God placed this topic into my heart.  I realized that I was not as close as I needed to be to God and that when I do not consider His Ways at all times my comfort level with the world becomes greater and that my sinful separation status from God also increases at the same time; a Kingdom principle that we miss so often.  I was horrified that I had allowed myself to become in such a manner that it did not seem to matter if I prayed and talked to God or not that morning.  I know it is a tad far stretched but at the same time it is this beginning that continues its course, if allowed, to where we do not talk to God at all, placing Him in the back of our minds and continued out of our hearts.  This is the perfect setting for our enemy and the ultimate definition of a comfortable separation.

The world and its establishment have grown into a complex entity that believes it can thrive on its own, develop its own ways and flourish through its own laws.  This is a logical process but when the truth is set about it always proves that living on one’s own without any true guidance always results in a failure of some type of magnitude.  The ruler of the world has the job of making sure that we figure out this lie to a truth and that we do not need to have any supernatural power to hold our lives accountable.  Funny, as each day breaks we find that someone somewhere in this globe has found themselves in a setting which is not favorable to their liking because they have failed to hold themselves accountable for the truth.  We do this because of the false sense of security that this lying belief has upon our lives for no matter what the setting may be that when we live like there is no accountability but ourselves we shall surely fall to the rock bottom.  This pattern was set into motion way back in our history and it continues to be set in stone today.  Living in a comfortable position is a great quality that comes to many of us and it is an honor to live in such conditions but one cannot forget that there is always a higher power that resides over us and even in this comfortable living that the world promotes only chaos, pain, anger, and death resonate.

It has come to my attention that many of us have completely forgotten who our enemy is and what he desires from our lives.  How has this come to my attention?  Look around you and it will not be hard to understand, for even if a person does not believe in God can figure out that there is a lot of anger and trouble that swarm our eyes and ears each second of our day why can’t the people who say they know God understand and then proclaim the eternal truth of why conditions are the way they are?  The enemy of God is Satan, or if you wish to refer to him as Lucifer go right on ahead for either of the two names describe him perfectly.  Satan is the eternal and arch enemy of God which means whether or not you believe in him or not he is your enemy for he is alive and for those who do not believe in this evil entity he already has won a huge victory concerning your life.  Satan is the ruler of this world and he is confident that he can persuade humans to believe in his ways instead of God’s Ways, for as stated many times previously Satan hates God and that means he automatically hates you too.  So, it is not unusual at all for this comfortable separation process from God to be a specific instrument in the destruction process of your life.  With God, there is no such thing as separation (division) for He still looks at His prized creations in the sense of “The Definition of We”.

This title of this article presents two distinct words that we use on a regular basis, the word comfortable and the word separation but how often do we place these words together in a common tense?  The definition of comfortable says that it is a process of physical ease and relaxation mainly referring to the personal items and furnishings that we absorb into our daily lives.  The definition of separation means the action or state of moving or being apart, the division of something into constituent or distinct elements.  Both of these definitions have direct physical attributes and while the given meanings of each word do not directly refer to the spiritual aspect of our lives it is the spiritual that is most important when these two words are combined, for the physical is already been sentenced but it is the choice of the spiritual that has eternal consequences thus deemed the ripening fruit that the enemy wishes to destroy.

Who am I to believe that my single spirit can make a difference in someone else’s life?  I am a complete and true sinner and if there ever would be the absolute definition of such a sinner my picture would be right there as the visual example.  It is through this condition that I cannot change that presents me to God as a failure no matter how I look at it or try and change that status.  When Adam and Eve chose to separate themselves from God our physical existence changed permanently but the spiritual aspect of our lives was still intact, a brilliant and life-saving detail that God placed into our lives.  In Genesis 3:7 it states that Adam and Eve then knew what was going on around them concerning their physical status and through the next few actions of theirs became ashamed of this status.  Why did this occur and how come such a small single act now displays a permanent separation?  Their relationship with Satan became more important than the one they had with their Creator, a state that many of us now reside in and refer to as being comfortable.

Being human, it is easy for us to imagine the guilt and sorrow that Adam and Eve had after that terrible choice of theirs came to fruition but while their feelings rose to new heights there was absolutely nothing they could then do to change their status.  Their bodies and spirits up until that moment knew no separation from God nor could they feel the pain that this separation automatically brought with this feeling.  I can almost hear them beg for peace and mercy once again but at the same time I can also see and read about their pride being shoved into the forefront as they hid before the face and presence of God.  When God spoke to my heart that morning concerning my separation status from Him He was not angry with me but reminded me of this state of mine as any mother or father would do concerning any despairing issue with their child.  I immediately felt this separation and I knew that I had to do something about it right then for the grief that struck my heart at that moment was quick and intense.  It is also a feeling that I did not want to continue in either and while I understand that as long as I am in the physical position that I am in I cannot change this position of mine but that does not mean I cannot strive to allow God to search me and to know me so that He can drive away these separation factors from my life.

We have a great example of this type of acknowledgment from King David in Psalms Chapter 51.  The entire chapter is one that is commonly heard, taught on, and many people can say they know it by heart for its content has been presented in a common worship song.  From the initial word of this chapter to the last, David is contending that his life is a true mess in the sight of God but while he understands this state he is in he will not allow the world to overpower his life and destroy him.  David understands this separation yet more confidently knows that God wants to search his life and to make him clean before His eyes.  The specific verse that God wants us to tell us about is verses 10 & 11 that state: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.  Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not thy holy spirit from me.”

Why would anyone think that they need a clean heart?  When we realize that our lives are dirty and filthy before the Holy and True Creator of everything, it is this sight that our spiritual eyes see that deems us unclean.  It is a time for us to learn that we have been lied to and that we have been deceived well enough to believe that our physical inhabitance on this earth in some way can be shared with our spiritual.  That is a deception marker that Satan loves to use against us and it is one that was successful with Adam and Eve as well.  When we realize that our hearts are not holy, not clean, not true, and not righteous it is then that we can turn to God and ask for forgiveness and for Him to repair the damage that has been done.  When we fail to recognize this status of separation from our Creator it becomes easy to believe that we do not need Him or His Ways, another deception that will lead to our demise, and we continue to fall for this lie.  These two verses alone give us a picture that David is not comfortable with how his heart has become but at the same time, it also demonstrates that his heart has allowed the uncleanness accumulate for an extended period of time.  It is this period of time that he has become comfortable with but something triggered him to realize that his heart was not right and I can understand now how his heartfelt while he was writing this psalm to God.

When individuals or States become satisfied with their surroundings and begin the process of accepting the fact they need nothing yet want everything, they have a tendency to forget the roots of their existence and transform that foundation to their fulfilled lives.  We can see this type of belief system in the pattern of Adam and Eve and in many other peoples’ lives in the Bible.  Comfortable lifestyles are also present in the numerous kingdoms and societies that humanity has experienced throughout history and all of them have fallen when they have taken their comfort abilities to extreme levels and pushed out God of their lives at the same time.  God has no issues with living a comfortable life but He does warn us that our hearts become vulnerable to the world and its ruler if we do not keep the correct alignment in our hearts in the correct order.

Having the assurance of comfort is the most inopportune time one would believe that their heart needs a checkup.  How many of us go to the doctor when we are feeling great or how many worry about money when the bank accounts are overflowing?  It is these types of examples that draw us into a belief that we do not need guidance for when we look at ourselves and our living conditions we cannot see beyond the amounts and have no need to worry which in turn seeks a self-assurance that requires no outside help, especially from above.  It is also through this belief and practice that the knowledge of right versus wrong come into question and if left unchecked eventually becomes precedence, once again I refer you back to Adam and Eve, all of the other biblical references, and human historical references as examples.  What is most striking about this fact is that when all of these foundational truths become in question, obedience to all things moral follows suit.  Most people living in this state ignore the separation factors that are around them and learn to adapt to their environments, which serves as the dividing point between God and man with the world being the divisor itself.

Are you beginning to see a pattern developing here?  I hope so because we have arrived at such a societal belief that our comfort levels have projected us into another existence.  It does not matter if everyone in every society is well off and has no need for money, their attitudes towards such status will always be reflective of the ruler of the kingdom that they represent.  Laws do not mean much in these worldly beliefs and when challenged resistance to such authority follows.  What poses the most threat in this type of living is that those who do not understand what is occurring will be the ones who are in dire need of overall life support when things really go bad.  The world has drained them of all their spiritual ties with God who is the ONLY being that can provide sound advice when hard times occur.  When a person studies the Word of God they will find that God never hides His frustration towards His people, that He gives them multiple warnings and time to change before He must do extraordinary procedures to grab our attention.  But when people rule out God from their lives, only the anger and ugliness that they have allowed into their lives can be the response to such actions by God.

How many times do we see David asking God to clean his heart and restore his status with God in this simple passage?  This prayer of David’s is not a hard one to follow yet its meaning comes from a heartfelt truth about our physical and spiritual separation from holiness.  David understands that he is human and that this life of his cannot stand up to the perfectness of God.  It also provides us with a prayer to God that each one of us needs to have each day that we draw breath because with each cell cycle in our bodies we represent a separatist organization from the perfect condition we were created in so long ago.  David also recognizes that God is the only being that can grant such restoration and cleaning of his heart.  David recognizes that he needs to be clean at all times for he has witnessed Israel’s stability wavering as time marches along, it is this state of security that David portrays here that our hearts need to recognize.

Please do not misunderstand what God is saying here, He will listen to any heart at any time when it cries out His name and truly asks for repentance but why does that cry have to arrive to God’s ears when we are in trouble?  This pattern of only responding to God when we are in trouble is reflective of how we believe in God and how serious we are about His Ways.  The old saying that concerns the vertical and horizontal relationships ring true here and the brokenness that results from such deviation is hard to describe because of its deepened sanctions within our hearts.  But it does not matter what type of life a person has led or what a nation has done to become comfortably separated from God for He is quick to forgive a true heart and absolutely thrilled to restore such a repentant heart.

It is a fair question to ask why David prayed such a deep meaning prayer about his heart.  The answer is because he understood the ups and down and the ins and outs of how Israel’s heart was swaying, David also understood that as the chosen leader of Israel he needed to be in constant communion and contact with God in order to lead God’s people properly.  Yes, here comes the crust folks; the reason why this nation is in such disarray and that is because the leader of the representative of God is in gross disarray herself.  Jesus made it perfectly clear what He wanted His Church to do and we have done an excellent job at failing to perform His command to us.  Ever since Constantine the Great came to the throne in Constantinople the comfort levels of the Church have been in decline.  I am not saying that the Church must always be in peril in order to be doing the work of Christ but I am saying that if the Church is doing the command of Jesus they should (shall) be in an uncomfortable position no matter what the worldly standards of living present at that moment.

So how come the Church has become comfortable with the world and accepts it as her friend instead of the kingdom of her arch enemy?  The Church has forgotten that Satan seeks to destroy people while feeding them lies and when each new human-produced cause appears for some reason the Church backs them instead of shedding light on the sin.  This is a devastating process and a sin that will cost billions of people their eternal lives if the Church does not wake up and once again start to teach the eternal Truth about God, sin, and what occurs after we draw our last breath.  The Church can no longer afford to spend ANY time trying to dictate her policies while ignoring God’s, what is so profound about this action or lack of action is that it is this policy that the Church is now following is 100% the reason why Lucifer fell and is now eternally separated from God.

I do not know if you are familiar with the worship group “Planetshakers” or not but one of their song entitled “Here’s My Life” demonstrates how we are to worship and pray to God on a daily basis.  The first portion of the song goes as follows:

                                   

Create in me
            A heart that is clean
            ‘Cause I want to be
            Who You want me to be
            The depths of my soul
            Are yours Lord to mold
            ‘Cause I want to be
            Who You want me to be

These words from this song define how we should approach God each day as we speak to Him for if we do not recognize that our hearts are continually dirty and filled with sin we will not be able to proceed in life as He created us to be.  Now, I am not saying that we must recite Psalms 51 with every prayer that we complete but God wants us to know that it is this Psalm of David that we need to have in our hearts as the foundation of our prayers for forgiveness.  I cannot tell you how many times my daily prayers have been silent on this issue and have been totally self-centered in nature, and what is more disheartening to me is that I have not thought about this action of mine until the other day when God had to remind me of my words.  As stated above He did not do this to chastise me in any way but because I do want to have a clean heart in His eyes He showed me how important it is for me to ask for forgiveness and to allow Him to search my heart so that He can draw out its sin.

If our prayer life becomes stagnant, disappointing, or even boring then we need God to remind us that prayer itself is the lifeline to our survival and that we need to continually ask for cleaning of our hearts so that this connection remains 100% intact at all times.  We cannot afford to become complacent with anything that the world has to offer for when we do it means that our prayer conversations with God have become weak and inattentive.  When God speaks to your heart or tugs at your spirit it is for a reason and we need to stop and stay still long enough for Him to show us what we need to understand for that moment. 

Church, we need to return to the uncomfortable position that is guaranteed concerning our placement in society.  We need to stand up and fight for the salvation of those who do not know Christ by being a true witness through our words of truth and our actions of kindness towards other sinners.  There is only one way to God and that is through the blood of Jesus Christ which is the ONLY separation status that we need to have in our lives.  If our lives are not fitting into an uncomfortable position when it comes to the world we shall never know or understand real eternal peace which means our lives are in serious eternal trouble.  Let us step up and proclaim the eternal call of Christ Jesus to the dying world.

DLB

Missing The Mark

Missing the Mark

2/10/18

I can no longer count the number of times I have missed my intended goals for the day or how many times I have not completed an assignment in a timely fashion, anybody else been in this position?  This great flaw of humanity serves to remind us that we are not perfect and that we need the perfect guidance counselor in our lives so that we can make sure that these missing marks are limited.  God provides us with the perfect example of this exemplary purchase but we push Him aside stating that our ideas and hopes are better.  Our world is not of God and it cannot be the true representative of perfection either and until we figure this out our lives shall remain a bunch of uneasy and divided people.  It is important to study God’s Word over and over so that we grasp every detail that He wants us to know and when we accomplish this feat, we shall be amazed at what we will know about God and His plan for our lives.

A short while ago God gave us the article that dealt with how we are to respond to others and in uneasy settings that we encounter.  That article gave us a great example that even though we may not seem to deem small circumstances a big deal they too are important in our daily lives and walk with God for it is those “little” times that show us just how prepared we are to handle a huge event such as the other example in the “Respond” article.  We must be aware of what is transpiring around us along with a continuous study pattern of God’s Word to understand what is going on in the world today and if we tune our ears out of the present tense and our history there can be no way possible to know how to properly respond when it comes time to engage the evil that approaches.  As God stated in the “Respond” article, ugly things are going to continue to escalate unless we turn our lives back to Him so as long as we refuse to return to His Ways we better hold on because we really have not witnessed anything yet.

My wife and I very rarely go to a movie and it is even further a rarity if we go see the movie again for the quality of theatre productions has really fallen off over the past few decades.  Same with a book, it usually takes me quite a bit of time in order to finish a book and when it is done I put in on my collection shelf and do not thumb through it again.  And, while I am confessing I must admit that for the good portion of my life I did the exact same procedures with the Bible as well, have read it and really did not refer to it again unless I was trying to make a point to someone else in which if God’s Word is used in this superficial manner is a BAD thing and will only cause further damage to those who do not know God.  The human mind operates in a very unique pattern, in that most of the time we can read something or look over something and get the gist of what is being said, but unless we study the entire content a few times or in some cases many more times we will not fully grasp what is being said.  All of us have fallen into this state and to be honest most of us do not even recognize this truth about our lives and that is why cramming for tests is so common.  So why do we fall into the superficial category of believing that we are biblical scholars yet do not know what the true definition of Genesis 1:1 is?  God has blown my mind and heart wide open over these last few years with the truth about His Word and what it means to His people and if you have read my blogs it will come to no surprise to you that I cannot get out of the first portion of Genesis, a book that I believed I knew many things about.

Bravely, I must admit that there are some of us that struggled with Algebra and really never understood all of its wonders as a science.  My father is a brilliant mathematician for his brain works on the level of an engineer and so math comes quite easy for him but for me my mind operates on a membrane level, one that envisions molecules passing in and out of bi-level membranes so that we as humans can live and breathe without even thinking about what is occurring in order for our bodies to complete these tasks.  How many times have we read passages in God’s Word and only finished them with a slight understanding of its content?  How damaging is this in our defense when the enemy attacks and all we can do is just superficially ask God for help?  It is of the utmost importance to understand what is going on around us in both the physical and the spiritual in order for us to properly defend against and then attack the enemy.

However, we will not be starting off with a Genesis reference but another well versed read in the Bible and it comes from 1 Kings 18:12-18 with a starting point in 1 Kings 16:27-34.  Near the end of 1 Kings Chapter 16, we see that Ahab has become King of Israel.  It is also noted that Ahab took a wife whose name was Jezebel which he and Jezebel immediately went and made worship to Baal.  Right before the chapter closes we find that Ahab continued in the wake of the kings before him by doing what was evil in the sight of the Lord, so much so that the Bible states that he did more evil than any of the fathers before him and his reign, a statement that should never be taken lightly for it places Ahab into a category that no one should wish to follow.  Yet, it also places into context of how the hearts of Israel had become and where they stood with the world and with God as well.  Sometimes we are quick to forget that Israel was born of God yet chose to leave the covering of God back in 1 Samuel.  Some see this leaving as a temporary stint but in reality, it was a process that occurred and never has returned for even today Israel with its heritage still considers itself to be a majority of secularism with God thrown in here and there to keep its traditions alive.  A mark that was made millennia ago but not fully recognized as a miss in the eyes of mankind but surely one in the heart of God.  Stick with us here, for if we have studied the Bible enough we will know that the time from 1 Samuel 8 until this moment a great deal of “progress” away from God has occurred.

1 Kings 18:12-18 brings us to the point of where the majority of the world stands today, and sadly a good portion of the church body stands as well.  For it is our lack of wisdom and truth when it comes to the Bible and the knowledge of God Himself, that defines this terrible exposure of ours so that we do not see what is occurring in our societies today.  A long period of drought has been in place for approximately three years and God speaks to Elijah and tells him to go to Ahab for He has a message for him.  Now, just a few verses before this text we see that Jezebel, who is not the king of Israel but holds the power as a king, ordered the prophets of God to be killed and Obadiah hid 100 of them in caves in order to protect their lives.  It was this specific act that defines how much control Jezebel and the spirits that she harbored had over the land because there is no mention that the people in Israel objected to this act of murder of hers.  In other words, it was her laws and beliefs that were in place in Israel and the people accepted it as their ways as well, with no guilt or condemnation being mentioned.

Now, Elijah had been wandering around yet listening to the voice of God during this period of drought.  When God spoke to him and told him to meet with Ahab, the human mind would automatically ask God if He was nuts because why would we want to go have a face to face meeting with the one person who deems you dead, even the one that had been chosen to be the messenger was questioning Elijah’s words.  But, God had His plan already in motion and it was time for the final display of His power to the people He gave identity to at their beginning.  Obadiah met with Ahab and Ahab agreed to the meeting with Elijah and after the appropriate amount of time the two met at the designated place.  It is here that we pick up our reference passage and it is this passage that provides a clear picture of who and what controls our establishment today.

1 Kings 18:12-18 gives us the entire conversation between Ahab, Obadiah, and Elijah and while we will focus on verses 17 & 18 of this passage we must consider this entire reference because it sets the stage for what Ahab states to Elijah and the reason why he says his words.  The meeting is set and terms are agreed upon and it is now time for the men to actually come together with the following greeting: “And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?  And Elijah answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.”

Ahab makes a strong introduction that is capped with what seems to be an inflammatory question, but a question that he really believes is an honest and truthful one.  It is also a question that states that both sides represented at this meeting has been doing their jobs.  Ahab asks if Elijah was the one troubling Israel meaning that is he the one that is providing the obstruction and objections towards how Ahab and Israel were ruling and living respectively.  It is through this question and the way that Ahab addressed it that gives us the clue about how Israel had become so comfortable with their lifestyle that they readily embraced this leader and all that he had continued throughout Israel.  Ahab had enough confidence and arrogance to ask such a question knowing full well the origins of Israel and the values that Elijah stood for and proclaimed.  It is this arrogance and belief in the establishment in place that Ahab had no reason to doubt the question at hand and the source of contentment that Israel had with their lifestyle as well.  With a bold question/statement from Ahab, wouldn’t be easy to believe that such a societal state existed and wouldn’t it be just as believable that if such a believed society existed that the people making such statements would defend its presence if attacked?

It does not make sense to defend a position if one does not believe in such position being true.  Some of the defendants may lie about such position while defending their position but the majority of those who act accordingly do believe in such measures, thus creating a platform in which to stand upon.  Ahab and his wife had taken such defensive positions and aggressively persecuted those who opposed their reign and beliefs.  In this case, the god Baal had been put in place as the reigning deity and all of his attributes were to be revered and subject to at all times.  It is this platform that Ahab was referring to when he asked Elijah this question for he believed that God was not the originator and protector of Israel but that Baal was and he saw and understood that Elijah and the God he served was the reason for all the issues that troubled Israel.  It is this mark in the belief in Baal and the sins of Ahab’s fathers that he and Israel believe is the truth for their existence but in the real truth, their lives are missing the mark for they cannot stand up to the confines of God’s Covenant that they were created under.

Verse 18 gives the response of God to Ahab through the lips of Elijah and the truth about who is the originator and Creator of Israel and who is at fault for the issues that Israel faces: “And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.”  It is this statement by Elijah (God) that sets the truth into motion and accurately defines who created Israel.  It also states the fallacies of human beliefs in ignorant beliefs in gods who do not exist yet gain access and then rule the hearts of God’s children through belief in lies from the ruler of the world.  The statement from Elijah recognizes that another ruler lives and resides over Israel and that it is NOT God the Father either.  Ahab and the nation of Israel had forgotten that God was the one that established their lives and nation and through the lies of the world that they had bought and lived under had objectified their hearts enough to this standard that they really believed that Elijah and God were the source of their issues.  

It is this mark that our societies have missed as well and this missed mark becomes more visible every day if you understand where our creation comes from but if you do not then there is nothing wrong with how the establishment is presenting itself.  Whether a person believes it or not, the individual heart is a component of a nation’s heart, and when a nation’s heart is looked at by God as a collective venture, good or evil reigns.  One may argue that this nation is not born of God, that is fine for even those who do not agree with God still have the authority to live through free will, but each life presents itself as the standard of life and the process of restoration and it is the job of our enemy to skew this truth from our lives.  It is easy for Satan to accomplish this when the ball of home court advantage rolls in your favor and it defines the reason why each human being needs God in every way possible.  It is not God who represents the problems and terrible issues that each person, county, and nation faces, it is our eternal enemy Satan.  God does not divide humans from each other Satan does.  The only thing that God wants us to be divided from is the world and its ruler for when this occurs it automatically defeats Satan again and proves that God is correct through the advancement of His Kingdom.

The passage of Scripture that is used here is leading up to a spiritual duel that proves which deity is alive and which one is dead and even nonexistent.  God shows up and proves Himself to be the only true and living God and Creator and while this act of His is the ultimate example of His true love for His prized creations, He wants us to know about the steps that occur before He must demonstrate this awesomeness of His character.  When God walked the earth in the Garden of Eden He continually talked about the dangers against humans to Adam and Eve but while they were told of these dangers they lost their faith in His words and thus fell into temptation after a period of elapsed time.  Israel did the exact same thing and followed the purposes of Satan instead of God and while Ahab believed that he and his wife controlled Israel completely they were only pawns in the death establishment of Satan.  God allowed such wickedness to occur in Israel and in all of the other nations around them but it was at a specific point down the road that God also allowed such devastation to occur to Israel and to Judah and no matter how we look at it we must contend that God is a consistent God on all levels and in all areas.

As of this moment, we have a great deal of turmoil concerning our nation’s President and how he is “attacking” all that has been proclaimed as normal around the world.  I do not care how one feels about this man or what he stands for because God has placed him in this position for a reason and that reason is to make us aware of exactly what has been going on in our establishment for decades maybe even a couple of centuries.  It is an ugliness that is evident that no other president, political leader, or even minister has had the guts enough to attack or to even address, which means they are complacent concerning these matters.  The attacks from the establishment have only produced a further exposure of our own lies and addictions which shall continue until either we ask for forgiveness and change our ways or some type of supernatural disaster occurs that resets the world’s stage.  Why does it have to occur in this way?  Why can’t we figure out exactly what is being exposed here and correct it, the true and holy way?  Why do we have to continually find out the hard way that God is the true leader and not any human governmental system?  However, on the other hand, and when one places it on this level, how would one expect the attacked establishment to respond?

God gave Israel plenty of opportunities to get it together and to see the errors of their ways before He had to intervene and take their earthly existence away.  Ahab, through the passage we have read, bluntly stated that God was the problem of their issues and proclaimed that from the leadership down they had no intentions of returning to God and to His Ways.  He also made it clear that he and his nation chose the mark of the world and not the original mark of God, so has this nation and the other nations of the world.  Ahab mocked God and God showed up not only then but in a short time later as well but the next time God showed up it was not a very pleasant sight for His own people.

Church, God does not care what your denominational pitfalls represent, forget them and return to God and to His Ways.  You are the light of the world and it is your responsibility to cease all corroboration and indulgence with the world and to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all the nations of the world.  The mark that we all need to make originates from God through Jesus Christ His Son and not placed on any human level.  When our eyes and hearts become centered around the world our goals cannot hit the intended mark that God set for our lives nor can we ever live up to the potential that our existence was created for either.  It is a guarantee that our lives shall fall when we place our hopes and dreams on a superficial and worldly mark.  Church, the reason that Jesus gave us the command to go and preach the gospel was to reemphasize the truth of which mark we need to set and then aim for.  We can no longer afford to have any other mark in our sights for we have accepted the sinful ways of the world and it will give Satan such great delight to watch this country fall to its knees and be subject to ravenous captors.  Remember, if any other source is used as the truth other than God, it is placed into the category of fiction and cannot be relied upon as a foundation of survival.

DLB