Loss

Loss

10/17/21

Not many of us like to lose anything or lose at anything for losing damages our pride, and it is our egos that usually take the brunt of such emotional setbacks.  Also, we know that loss can appear in our lives not just on the physical aspects, spiritual loss is one that can be lost as well and one that has far more ugly consequences.  Do you know that God never intended for us to lose anything, not even our lives?  But for some reason, the Church has forgotten this truth and has stopped teaching it to the dying world and now allows death to invade every section of our hearts without any sort of argument or fight.  This lack of life within us is a deep statement that we no longer have God within our hearts for we all know God can only teach and promote life.  We do not have to live in such a manner, we can correctly teach the world to live and to flourish again, but it shall never occur until we put God back in our hearts.

It is a commonly known truth that humans do not like to lose anything or at anything for it signals a sign of failure, for we like to keep up our appearance that everything is fine and that our prideful status is intact on all levels.  But for most of us, this plan to keep our status lifted after a loss does not work and reality sets in when we are seeing exactly what has occurred in our lives.  We also know that loss comes in a variety of forms and that it does not just have to be on the physical level.  A loss of a job, of a parent or sibling, loss of status, or overall possessions are just a few to mention for now.  Today, we see the individuals that claim to not have things of value in their lives but when our eyes watch buildings and businesses burning because of such false thoughts it is a selfish act of entitlement that has been accepted into our lives by Satan.

However, let us talk about a more generalized loss, one that is on a massive scale where almost everyone around you is placed into this loss category.  How would societies respond if such a series of catastrophes would strike the world and basically take away everything that humans believe that they deserve to live during this post-modern world?  What would our attitudes be then?  To be honest, we would not know how to act for we have become so dependent on things of this world that we have meltdowns when the internet is off for some uncontrollable reason for a few hours.  We have lost focus enough about what is truly important and have placed all our cares upon these fly-by-the-night toys that we cannot even take our eyes off these machines long enough to see the approaching waves.  This is a disastrous policy to withhold in our hearts and will only prove tumultuous when that ugly day arrives.

It has been prophesied many times throughout the Bible that there will be a day that everything shall change in some land, nation, or even the world.  Many of these prophesies have already transpired and have brought massive destruction to those involved, unfortunately, many more of these truths have yet been fulfilled which should give us a warning large enough to not complete things that would bring such desolation to our lives.  Talk about having to walk through a grave testing period, I can only imagine - for now - just what the attitudes and character of the people would be when this occurs.  We would like to think we would act civilly toward each other but given what we have witnessed over the past few years in certain cities, I do not believe our reaction to catastrophic loss will be anything good or civil at all.

However, in a world that has nothing to do with God or His Ways we cannot honestly believe that any of our actions will be on a helpful plane.  If we have no trust in God we cannot act according to His Statutes and this includes civility, peace, and calmness.  Our two verses today give testimony to such attributes of God and of humans who trust in Him in all things.  The two verses are as follows:

Psalm 56:3

"What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee."

Isaiah 41:10

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."

These two verses show us that anytime we are in trouble or dismayed for any reason that God is with us and He has not abandoned us.  However, if we do not know this status and presence of God before things become bad it will be difficult for us to live in such harmony after grotesque events arrive.  There have been many warnings that God has given us to heed, and like ancient Israel, we have ignored them all for we see is the blessings from God as our protection.  This is the big mistake that all humanity has against God, our faith resides in the things around us instead of the Life that should reside within us, so naturally, with worldly goods at our disposal, they will be turned to for answers first.  How quickly we will find out that this loss that we will experience will be overall and not just a targeted few areas, God does not operate in incomplete terms when He is trying to get our attention.

Sin has no order that can withstand any time of challenge, that is why when the Glory of God hits, it shall do so in such a manner that all things shall be disrupted.  Therefore, when these calamitous events strike all we will have to fall upon is our own belief system which is what inhabits us; if one thinks that this shall be an easy process to overcome, think again for controlled chaos already reigns in our hearts wait until it is unchallenged.  Furthermore, we will have no idea about how to overcome such events because we have been blinded from the Truth about how to survive such ordeals.  See, it shall not just be on a physical or monetary system that these failings and disasters occur, we are talking about psychological, social, spiritual, and physical ones all rolled up together at one time.  All shall crash before our eyes; this is what God has shared with us in His Word and it is what we are about to witness with our own eyes.

How can we trust in God when we have no idea anything about Him or His Ways.  Not everyone shall be in turmoil during this time there will be those that are happy as a clam even while the world is completely crumbling before their eyes.  Here lies the difference, for those of us who will not panic, we shall be once again shoved into the spotlight and placed at the wall to be stoned.  You have heard of the saying, misery loves company, well that shall be an unspoken motto of these days of turmoil and no one will be able to escape.  Sadly, a good portion of this misery shall come from those who have sat in church pews for a long time, maybe even all their lives for even while their ears heard the truth taught to them, their hearts never heard one word or syllable spoken.  Remember, no matter how many times we might say to those who recently died "rest in peace" they shall never rest in peace if they did not live a peaceful life, our physical lives are not a dress rehearsal for the afterlife.

So what happens when the leader of the free world falls?  It takes everyone who followed in our footsteps with her.  The loss that shall occur will be one that many sarcastically or facetiously refer to as "of biblical-like proportions" but in this case, it shall all be 100% true.  The only way possible to make it through these coming events is if we know how to properly and truthfully cling to the hands of God and we will only be able to do such a task if we know how to trust in Him alone.  It will be like a modern-day Noah's ark scene, there will be those who listened and a majority of those who did not and they will not have a chance to survive.  Yes, this does sound grim but it is strictly our own fault, for we have deliberately chosen to exclude God from every aspect of our lives and because of this action and choice of ours, we deserve nothing less.

Many will see the results as their eyes are opened during this process, just as many or even more shall react angrily for they shall not understand why such concerns have overtaken them.  All of this is a part of the procedure and process of loss, by the direction of God.  I am at a loss for words when it comes to the actions of the Church up until now, we have heard the Truth taught to us for centuries and have still continued to water down God to make our own selfish ideologies relevant instead of God.  This grieves me because if we have not understood this process and mission that Jesus commissioned us to complete in these days of quiet, how do we even think we will be able to complete such a journey when everything we have known has been destroyed?  It has always intrigued me to read about just how thorough God was in His methods of dealing with Israel in Scriptures and at the same time I have been just as intrigued about how He will deal with His nation that He established to represent His Light unto the world but has fallen into darkness.

It has never been the desire of God to allow His children to witness any loss, God cannot lose nor does He intentionally give out loss, He cannot for He Himself cannot lose remember He has never been defeated.  So why does God allow such happenings to occur?  He allows them to occur so that we will once again choose His Ways over the world's for He knows that as long as we choose the world as our leader our eternity shall be even darker than the current state of our hearts.  In every instance in the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, God has allowed ugliness to abide with His people because they are not following and obeying His Word.  In EVERY instance!  Once again, God reminds us that He is a consistent God and one that cannot change in any shape or form.  We must tell these lost souls that they do not have to add their eternity to the coming losses, there is good news here and it is in the form of Jesus.

Right at the moment, we have a volcano that erupted almost a month ago, it is still spewing lava from that day until now.  It is acting like no other volcano has ever done, not only is it continuing its eruption but it is gaining in intensity each day, it is not slowing down or subsiding at all.  It is this volcano that has prophecies attached to it and from what I have been noticing, things around the world could change at any moment.  How can we, the Church, stand by in amazement at this phenomenon knowing what we do about its future, and be totally silent?  Yes, it is beautiful to watch, but we cannot place worldly beauty ahead of God.  Church it is time we shout to the world that they need Jesus, forget about your public standing or worldly priorities.  The time is now that we proclaim God and prepare our hearts for the coming challenges very soon.  Speak to the world with the boldness of God at all times and rejoice in the fruits of God and His righteousness.

DLB

Glimpse of Hell

Glimpse of Hell

10/13/21

The title of this article may take some of you by surprise, but it is one that is dead on and presenting itself today.  Not much is spoken in the Christian realm about Hell, nor are its characteristics given on a regular basis so that people can see the Kingdom warfare that currently whips around us.  God is absolutely correct to state that Hell was created for the devil and his angels; however, because of our willingness to disobey we now fall into this grievous process.  We have allowed ourselves to become so numb concerning Hell that we are almost to the point where we no longer believe in its presence.  There are many signs and symptoms of Hell that our eyes behold every day, and God wants us to take a few looks sees into this truth. 

Once a culture finds out that something that has been taught as evil or something one does not want to accept as normal is "not so bad" the inhabitants tend to back off from the lethality of said chambers.  When I was a kid, my parents would occasionally yet consistently tell me things about what Hell stood for and what it was, and who would inhabit such a tumultuous place, and how Jesus conquered Hell when He was in the grave.  They also told me that individual people can express hellish traits and that if one understands Kingdom principles that recognizing these ugly measures would be able to correctly fight off those tricks of the devil.  It is possible that people can recognize these attributes of the worldly kingdom and not have to face its consequences or control over a person's life, they can be defeated right from the introduction and they will go no further.

Sadly, many people who identify as Christians do not wish to understand such spiritual truths; therefore, cannot fully win the battles that continually advance on their lives for they wish to fight physically and not spiritually.  Also, this lack of understanding concerning the spirit realm weakens them for the enemy fights both spiritually and physically and if you only are able to fight in the physical you have already lost half the battle, the important half.  A while back, God shared with us about being whole and it is vital that we witness to people and through that process, we become fully whole but if we cannot tell people about the entire Gospel, then we will not win very many people to Christ.  

Look at how we deal with those who approach us in an argumentative manner, look at how we respond to them as they throw a tantrum for the beliefs that we stand for that do not agree with theirs.  It is sickening that we have no true offensive motion toward the ones who use vile profanity and hurl vicious insults our way.  Many of us return the favor and begin a yelling match with them, trying to take this approach will only raise up further and deeper anger towards you and most importantly, God.  Another time in the past, I was commenting on a specific social media post and one of the responses that I received was a tirade filled with profanities along with a few physical suggestions that are impossible to achieve.  Anyway, I asked this person if it was necessary to use such colorful metaphors and he replied with a long list of them and said that it was important enough to him so I had better get used to it.

As time has gone along, I have noticed that those types of words and phrases have become more easily stated and are being used as part of normal grammatical sentence structures.  I find it repulsive and embarrassing at the same time that the younger generations cannot dissect a sentence but they can add such filth without batting an eye.  It is this type of word usage that God wants us to think about today and our Scripture text for this article is as follows:

Matthew 25: 29-30

"For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.  And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

It is frightening to hear some of the spoken words and phrases that come from our hearts that are directed toward another human being or group of people.  Yet, today it is acceptable to use such degradations against each other and what is more devastating is that this word usage can be spoken in two forms, both of which are harmful to the recipient.  If you sit down on a public bench downtown or just walk up and down a school hallway, you will hear these phrases coming from every type of kid or adult on a regular basis; no repentance at all, they just shout it out loud some even use them as to get one's attention a few steps away.  What we do not realize is that our language is taught to us and we learn it according to how our hearts receive and accept it.  Slang is almost always an issue for many people and times, it can be a derogatory statement that we pick up and then use as the common language of that day.

Look at how people act today, and if one really studies this behavior of the population they will see that those words and phrases are constantly being used in all sorts of references.  Moreover, it is the aspect of anger that is transmitted to many who differ from other opinions, why is that?  It is a Kingdom issue and principle that should be understood and dealt with appropriately but obviously, it is not.  The problematic aspect of this is that it does not matter what context one says or directs those phrases to they have a derogatory catch tune with them and when they have been relayed to others, the content of said words or phrases enters into the spirit of the listener.  This allows those meanings to next and then grow in that environment and it is not too much longer than those words and phrases can be used against someone else.  This is an evil method of spreading the kingdom of Satan, thus creating a newfound hatred for those who disagree with the new "life" and opinion within.

Soon all opposition to your individual program will be accompanied by anger and when you look into the eyes of these people, there is nothing but anger present.  This is where the gnashing of teeth comes into play and it does not paint a very good picture or outcome.  In this passage, we find the word "gnashing" and it comes from the Greek word "brygmos" which means grinding or a grating.  In the English dictionary, the word gnashing means grinding one's teeth together, having one's teeth set on edge, or biting down in pain, anguish, or anger.  In whichever definition one wishes to attend, there is nothing sweet, kind, or innocent about the definition or action of this word.  This verse also says that darkness will be present in these people's lives which is why the gnashing of teeth is granted permission to live and thrive.  This scene plays out when the treasure (worldly) that many have stored up and savored enough to bury is attacked; therefore, when attacked it is counted as a loss and will be defended appropriately (worldly) according to their defenses.  But, Christians do not see this fight, nor do they comprehend exactly what is being fought over.  Many of us have watched such encounters between people with opposing opinions and at some point, it seems like things are going to subside and the parties involved part in separate ways, but for some reason arguments and anger flare again and the entire scene is compromised again.

What we are witnessing in these examples is people of God confronted with those who do not believe in God or the Ways of His Word.  I believe that this is pretty obvious to some with many not figuring out what is actually transpiring.  The people who are angry and refuse to listen to the Truth are fighting against just that, the Truth.  If people are fighting against Truth then that means they have no Truth within their spiritual confines and that means they can only act like those involved with Hell.  In other words, what you are witnessing and seeing is a glimpse of Hell.  This is how people in Hell shall act but in Hell, it shall be far worse because while this is only a glimpse God is still present here and in control of all situations.  In Hell, God shall not be present, their wish granted to them for eternity.  Jesus gives us a pretty good idea of what one characteristic of what Hell will be like and from this example alone it is not going to be anything fun at all.

This is where God struggles with the direction of the heart of the Church, it is not fully understanding her mission and the importance of her mission.  How many of us have actually thought about this passage in such a manner?  I know I had never looked at it in this way, but it was a tad unnerving to me when God showed me this fact, the fact that this is a glimpse of what people shall do in Hell, live in tormenting conditions but the difference is that they have the option and choice to change now but not in Hell.  They will have a life but without any hope of productivity or profitability, which is a key ingredient and example that God is nowhere to be found.  

Another interesting portion of this article is that its verses come directly following the Parable of the Talents, which accurately depicts what occurs when we are given something to take care of and multiply but sit on it and build an unstable existence.  How much more defined of anger and selfish inner content can one display from the heart toward any other person?  Growing to the point where the wickedness of the heart becomes so blackened that it goes to the extreme of gnashing its spiritual teeth, not to mention the physical teeth as well.  Once again turn back to the thoughts of how people act around you that do not agree with your opinion, can you see a similarity?  It is right in front of us folks, Jesus gave us this picture thousands of years ago and its presence still lives amongst us.  This should tell us that we have not gained much ground in the knowledge of the spirit realm.

It also means that we better start putting our hearts back into the Bible and study its every letter for if it cost people their lives back when these verses were written you can be sure that this legacy has not changed at all.  Do you doubt this concept?  If so, go read the story of Cain and Abel, and then think about his action toward his brother and then revisit this passage again; it is very clear folks.  We have reached the point that we would rather film such a gnashing of teeth episode on our phones than try to mediate the situation's end.  God cannot operate on any level when peace and truth are not present, it is spiritually and physically impossible.  So, yes, if God is not present on any level then what you encounter as a result is a glimpse of Hell.  God says this type of setting is a glimpse of Hell, only a glimpse or small or quick portion.

Church, we have given away so much spiritual ground (your lives) that it is difficult to see exactly what damage has been done.  But this state of life does not have to be this way, God can repair and restore our lives back to where He intended us to be but we must first repent and set our hearts back to spiritually beating again.  If we do not stand up and fight for our eternity and to share the Truth about eternity to others, this glimpse of Hell that we are witnessing today shall continue to grow and a progression of sin like we have never watched develop before, an enveloping to be honest.  It takes guts to stand up to the world, but if we do not do it now, how can we stand when times become really tough?  God loves each and every one of us and it is our responsibility to tell those who are lost of the salvation plan for eternal life, for if we do not and continue in silence this glimpse of Hell shall increase unabated and all Hell will be released upon us.

DLB

Losing The War

Losing The War

10/11/21

Losing something to a friend or family member is bad enough, but losing something precious to an enemy is totally unacceptable.  How many of us have lost a battle that we should have easily won, or how many of us have made choices bad enough to lose said battle or war?  We were not created to lose anything for we are Created in the likeness of God.  Yet, we chose to give all that up for supposedly personal gain, an act that all of us still contend with on a minute-by-minute basis.  If we do not follow our Creator's instructions there shall come a time when a "given" victory will end in our defeat; however, we do not have to live in such defeat there is a way we can avoid it.  But we need to turn back to our Creator in order to live in such victory, for if not those stinging small defeats will one day catch up with us and will give all our enemies victory over our lives.

For many years, I have heard on several informational platforms that this nation shall lose a war that we have been engaged in.  It is hard to fathom such a thought but no matter how one feels it must be put into place a contingency plan if such a thing would develop.  The United States was created on a different level and designed to lead all other nations in freedom and democracy through God's example.  But our selfishness and self-centeredness have cost us dearly and because of this behavior, we have lost not just one war but many of them over the past few decades.  No, not all of them have been physical losses but it is the spiritual ones that count the most for they influence the physical aspect of things enough to include their losses as well.

What is most disturbing about this topic is the fact that most people do not care about losing these battles and wars.  They fail to admit that our stomach for toughness and defending the innocent no longer lives within our borders thus signifying to all others that our God-given fighting strength no longer exists.  But why is this?  What have we done to lose such power and stability?  These questions and more are easily explained, but the answers to these questions and many more to are not wished for, for it would require the truth of status, and currently we have no real leader to bring about this spiritual audit.  I guess we have not lost enough yet or lost something important enough to warrant such a new detail.

There are many examples in the Bible of how important it is to understand that our spiritual lives dictate how our physical will see and that one can have the strongest army yet lose to a very minuscule battalion.  God shows us this possibility in the passage of Scripture today.  It is one that comes off of a great victory and a battle that really should not have been fought at all due to the sizes of the armies involved; however, it was fought and it was no contest in favor of the enemy, not Israel.  The passage is as follows:

Joshua 7:1-8

"But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed this: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the Lord was kindled against the Children of Israel.  And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Bethaven, on the east of Bethel, and spake unto them, saying, Go up and view the country.  And the men went up and viewed Ai.  And they returned to Joshua, and said unto him, Let not all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai; and make not all the people to labor thither; for they are but few.  So there went up thither of the people about three thousand men: and they fled before the men of Ai.  And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men: for they chased them from before the gate even unto Shebarim, and smote them in the going down: wherefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water.  And Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of the Lord until the eventide, he and the elders of Israel, and put dust upon their heads.  And Joshua said, Alas, O Lord God, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us?  would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side Jorda!  O Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies!"

Many people who do not study war or its properties have a tendency to not know that the fighting itself is not all that occurs during these times.  It is this passage that brings us to this attention and until we understand that we do not fight the physical alone but should rely on spiritual guidance in such tense times.  We have a scenario where Joshua was completing what God had commanded him and Israel to do concerning their enemies in the area.  Joshua sent spies out to the land of Ai this was a smart tactical process, the spies came back and told of a small army and that Joshua should only send a portion of Israel's army to fight, for the resistance would be minor.  Joshua and Israel did just that but were turned back by the warriors of Ai before they reached the gates of the town.  Israel literally turned their backs in fear and running away, total defiance to what God had previously ordained from the nation.

How could God go back on His Word of victory and allow the enemy to force Israel to turn their backs in defeat?  Our passage states the answer for losing that war and it had prior inoculations of sin hidden within the camp.  God cannot in any way turn His back upon His people and leave them defenseless during times of trouble; however, if God sees that sin rules the hearts of those He has entrusted to keep His Word pure then God has no choice but to halt His Word until the matter is corrected.  Many nations would chalk up this loss as being underprepared for the enemy but Joshua knew that something was amiss for God would not allow a defeat upon giving His Word.  Disobedience had occurred and was brought into camp, even if the objects of disobedience would not have penetrated the camp the guilty party's heart did which intensified the condition of Israel.

We cannot ever forget that our individual actions while we may feel are insignificant are not hidden from God.  Achan believed that he had done a pretty good job of hiding things from Israel and from God.  He was only half correct and in anyone's book 50% still chalks up a grade of "F".  It does not matter if just one person selfishly defies God during a scenario or in some type of action, disobedience has occurred and God cannot be called God if He allowed such secrecy and disobedience to thrive.  At that moment Joshua and all of Israel had no idea of what occurred previously but they knew something was not right and that Joshua would hear from God and know the truth.  The root of this defeat had to be found and it had to be done in a precise manner leaving no family or person out of the looking.  We see a few verses later the reason that Israel lost the battle that day, and it was not a pretty ending for that family but it was necessary that dealings had to be finished.

So, how does this passage of Scripture relevant to our lives and situations today?  Some of you may have already figured things out but probably most have not.  In NO way is God saying that you are dumb and should not be written off but He is saying that we have a heart problem and that unless we begin to seek Him for true answers our Achan is going to get found out and we shall not have a pretty outcome.  It has become obvious that we have no intentions of digging past the superficial layers of our hearts in order to expose what really lies underneath and within the depths of our hearts.  By not doing such a task God shall quickly take control of the situation His Way and expose all whether or not we want Him to or not.  Achan had plenty of time in-between battles and fights to turn himself in and confess his dealings, but his pride did not allow him to do this.  It was his selfish and prideful gains that proved more lucrative instead of obedience to God.

General George Patton once said: "Fixed fortifications are monuments to man's stupidity."  A controversial statement to say the least but it is one that rings loud and clear when you place this truth around a heart.  We are so quick and comfortable about placing mortar around our hearts to hide what is inside them and do not think about the consequences of our activity of defense.  This nation has built so many fortifications of hiding that they have become the number one hindrance to our advancement.  Almost every day when we wake up we hear about another problem, scandal, heartache, etc. flash across our screen yet as each one unfolds our resources and answers dwindle to ashes many times even before we finish our explanation.  There is a reason for this, we have become our own personal and nation Achan against God.

Church, you were created by Jesus to be the light of the world and to guide the world back to God.  But along the way, you have kept personal treasures from the world and hid them within your heart.  You may have not shown those treasures verbally or "publicly" to others but in all truth, you did for whether you know it or not your heart shines to the world along with its contents.  Through this action of ours, the world sees no problem with carrying its own treasures within their hearts either, see they recognize those worldly treasures we carry and since they know from where we got them it says to them that we carry the world inside our hearts so why would they possibly give up what they already have?  Because of those fixed fortifications around our hearts, the world becomes an equal instead of an enemy, and our presence here along with the mission Jesus commanded us to complete, null and void.

And, like Achan, we hide our sins underneath the blackened walls of those fortifications instead of tearing them down and correcting our hearts before God without His hand being our provocating stick.  The world is in enough trouble that we have no business adding to their woes.  It is obvious that our word to the world has been dulled and almost on the brink of being shut out completely; in some areas of the world, this has already happened.  Sadly, we flaunt our gifts and benefits to a mute and blind world through mute and blind words they are no longer alive but dead.  So how do we believe that we are doing any true and eternal good to the dead when we too are dead?  We may be completely shaken in the coming days but it does not mean we have to wait until our hearts are broken to start repenting and setting things right with God.  Repent, Church! And begin winning the lost for God.  God guarantees total victory when we go into battle with a pure and sinless heart and we shall never lose another war with His Standard.

DLB

Being Whole

Being Whole

10/5/21

Humans love to be complete and have enough security about themselves to function in confidence each and every day.  But as each day arrives, we find ourselves fighting the status of the world that claims piece after piece of our peace and security.  Soon we find ourselves hunkered down and not moving, waiting for the next attack, whether it be physically or spiritually, not to mention on the mental aspects of our lives.  God never intended for us to live in such a manner of defeat or in sickness but because of our choices He sent His Son into the world to show us the true way of survival.  However, the world does not like to give up its home-field advantage easily so it fights back just as hard.  This is why it is so hard for us to understand that God shows us how to heal and how to live abundantly in all ways, most importantly eternally.  Church, it is our responsibility to be different and to provide the light of wholeness to those who are seeking to live in such a manner.

Each one of us has had some time in our lives of sickness and most of us have huge attitude changes when these illnesses are upon us.  It is not fun being sick and our reputations go down the tubes quickly when we do not feel good.  Some want to be pampered and babied all the time, others moan and whine constantly and then there are those of us who just want to be left alone so we can "die" in peace.  Whatever the case may be, we usually become basketcases that are wretchedly pathetic and this state does not change until we are completely healed of what ailed us.  This begs the question: how many of us seek a doctor during this time?  The percentages will vary of course but a good majority ride out these conditions on our own, tempting fate at times.  No matter what, doctors should be contacted so that true remedies can be given or at least to tell us that we are doing what we are supposed to be for this process.

I have always stated that why should people go to the doctor if everything is functioning right and flowing correctly?  Some might agree with this but many will not, for even though your eyes may not see changes in your overall appearance the physician will and hopefully will avert any type of future condition that could sideline you for weeks or even months.  With a good report in hand, doctors will always give you further guidance in order for you to maintain your health standing which gives you the confidence that what you are doing or the way you are living is good for your life and systematically provides a healthy outlook for your existence.  This is why I go to the doctor, kind of like bringing a report card home from school to your parents, others like to hear of your good status, it eases their minds as well.

Jesus did the exact same type of examination of those around Him, but He did so in such a manner of the eternal and spiritual manner combining the physical to the spiritual through various ways and sayings so that everyone could understand what His purpose was to them.  He looked into each one of their spirits and He knew what to say about their condition and how to allow them to figure out that they needed healing.  So ask yourself this question: how do I appear to others?  It does not matter who the "others" may be either because you should look different from those who live according to worldly (sickly) ways and means, for this is how Jesus looked at those who He walked with and how He continues to look at us today, which brings us to the passage of Scripture for this article and it is very fitting for today and how our society looks:

Matthew 9: 12-13

"But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.  But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

Here we have the Pharisees being Pharisees again, in that they were complaining about the company Jesus kept even down to whom He ate with on a regular basis.  We all know that the Pharisees would never have been caught eating or even socializing with those who they deemed as unclean or dirty in life, for their presence with them would be a disgrace to their own personal appearance instead of a lifting up of those who differ.  Jesus knew this about the Pharisees and spoke directly to them in this passage in the manner in which they should have been mentioning and acting.  In other words, Jesus was informing the Pharisees that through their immediate behavior at that moment, that they were just as sick and dirty with sin as the ones that He sat and ate with that day.

We cannot help but get a glimpse of how the words and actions of the Pharisees had on the people of their day; yes, they were different and separate from the common people but at the same time the Pharisees had no respect for those that needed God which gave the common people every reason not to have anything to do with God.  This is the way people of all levels of societies looked and acted toward each other it did not matter if they represented God or not.  This is not the way to win the world for God nor is it a way to live in harmony and peace with your neighbor either.  Jesus always had an appearance of forgiveness and healing wherever He went and this is the way we should look to others at all times.  We should always have a look of health with true energy to spare for those who need it  THe Pharisees may have been the religious sect of the Jewish community but they were far from being healthy and whole.

However, Jesus takes a turn for the deeper here with what He says to the Pharisees as well.  Not only did Jesus recognize that these people needed God but He also made it very clear that He intended to ensure His message was perceived correctly to them as well.  You can be the "holiest" person on the earth but have no clue how to articulate God to those who are in your contact which makes you ineffective and actually sick.  Not only do people that are sick look at your appearance, but they seek your advice and words as well; you can be the greatest physician in the world but if your bedside manner lacks on all levels, your reputation will diminish quickly and so will the trust your patients have in you.  It is this terrible "bedside" manner of the Pharisees that conflicted with Jesus on a regular basis, one would expect this type of clash to occur but this behavior clashed with those in need too which cause irreparable wounds in the hearts of many.

This manner of appearances from the leaders of the Jewish community did not develop overnight, it took a long time for this to grow enough to become the standard and not just a spot occurrence.  This treatment of the sick was totally missed by these leaders and was the main reason Jesus' presence and His miracles of healing offended the Pharisees greatly.  Our responsibility has not changed from the time Jesus walked the earth either, it is our job to heal these folks who need help but just as our appearance is similar to the Pharisees, we cannot complete this measure in our current standard.  We too are sick and need the help of the Great Physician again to make us whole.  Of course, we are going to fall at times but all humans do but we need to minimize these trippings as much as possible; that is why we go for a check-up to God on a regular (daily) basis.  Not for sanctimonious reasons but so that He may show us issues in our lives that need to be gone and for us to hear His instructions on how to steer clear of these issues.

Church, we have done the eternally sick a vast disservice of the truth and it is time we turn our heart around and seek God once again.  Jesus walked on this earth during a tumultuous period in human history and for over two thousand years we have done our best to continue its demise; not only the demise of the nations and Church but humans as well.  Clumping the Church into this demise is exactly how the Pharisees saw those around them who did not live and believe as they did and we have continued their work in this area.  We have not been the Church that Jesus came to establish, for Jesus fought for every individual that needed help both night and day. Jesus was in constant communication with His Father, we might have a true prayer once a week but most likely only once a month.

The Pharisees were not complete or whole in the eyes and heart of God and neither are we Church.  These verses are examples or supposed to be examples of being whole in Christ to the world, by witnessing to the ones who need God and need help on all levels.  Food banks and homeless shelters and their funding and support are great ideas but go eat with them and share Jesus with them.  It is through this type of witnessing that we should exhibit every day of our lives, it should not be a burden to show but a gift to others.  One cannot be whole until Jesus is shared with others and one cannot be whole unless Jesus is present in your life every day, not just at certain times.  I believe it is correct to assume what our standard of Christ is today.  

The only way that any one of us can share this attribute of Christ with others is to dive into the Word of God and to put on the entire Word of God around us.  Jesus makes it clear that one can have an entire lifetime of studying God but unless you have a relationship with Him you are as sick as one who has never stepped foot in a church building or has ever heard the mention of Jesus.  When a person moves or has their physician retire or just changes doctors for any reason there is a period of time that getting acquainted with the new influence is required.  God is calling for us to get re-acquainted with Him today so that we can be whole in Him and then go honestly and fully into the world and to show them the Healer of eternal sickness.

DLB

The Great What If

The Great What-If

8/10/21

Do we know just how far the extensions of God's Covenant go, or to what lengths it covers, and is it even possible to understand it fully?  Covenant is a concept that cannot be understood overnight, nor can it be fully known with a finite mind but it is a concept that we can learn about and live under, growing in it as each day passes by.  Covenant is a major part of the definition of God so it is our responsibility to know Him as much as possible, thus knowing Covenant as well.  God has no "what if" categories within His definition, all is black and white, it is our doubts that create such an abomination.  It is our responsibility to understand this eternal "promise" enough to guide us to tell others about God's Son and how His blood provides us this all-encompassing protection and substance.  Do we fulfill this Truth about God, Church?  Or do we play simple games to entice people enough for them to sit in our pews?  It is time we change this policy of ours and begin doing what God wants us to do, share God's Will and not worldly lies.

The title of this article shares the same with a movie that was produced a few years back.  While this movie is a good one and I recommend it's seeing, it has nothing to do with what this article topic is about, nor will it be used in any type of reference concerning the said movie.  This article deals with Covenant how it should mean to our lives on a daily basis and how Covenant defines us if we allow God to inhabit our lives.  Covenant is continually dealt with in the entire Bible but somehow we have systematically and superficially applied it to our lives.  It takes time and effort to understand this principle and for some reason, we fail to spend the time in order to "get it".  

One of the most important sessions in some denominations uses the procedure of confession as a means to go about the telling of wrongs in order to correct their standing with God.  While this is a noble gesture it means nothing to God unless our hearts change when these sessions are confessed.  I am not here to knock the procedure of confession either; however, you might be interested to know that Confession and Covenant are the same which truly explains why those who go to confession tend to take it superficially and not seriously.  See, we are all in this together and all of us fail to meet God's qualifications for eternal living, and as long as we do not take the Word of God seriously and live its contents within our hearts moment-by-moment all of our deeds are not even recognized by God.

We will be referring to two verses in this article, one in the Old Testament and the other in the New Testament, remember all of God's Word is needed in order to understand what God is saying to His people, not just one Testament or the other.  By no means is this the entire definition and explanation of Covenant, this topic merely touches the surface of the issue and requires us to study deeper into the Bible to find out more.  This information shall help you face the coming trials in our lives and it shall most importantly help us to effectively witness to those who need God.  The two verses are as follows:

Psalm 33:4

"For the word of the LORD is right; and all his works are done in truth."

1 John 1:9

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

The entire process of Covenant boils down to the first word in the second verse of this article, "If".  This two-letter word appears numerous times within the confines of the Word of God and it starts a process into each life that accepts its vulnerability and directness.  One of the most understudied or forgotten portions of Covenant is about the promises that it carries with it.  The word "if" is a choice word, for a person makes a choice to either acknowledge it or deny its conditions, whatever those conditions may entail.  Covenant is about promises, and in a day and age of continual broken promises, it is readily difficult to place our trust in another, especially a Being that we must rely upon through faith and not always through the physical.   

The placement of our lives into this Covenant of God separates us from the world, without exception.  God is not a part of this world, He never has, He is not now, nor shall He ever be connected.  God cannot be around sin and when He sees sin He must rid that sin from His presence.  This policy has never changed and it never shall either, ask Satan.  Holiness can have no part with sin, it is a spiritual and eternal line that cannot be crossed, if one tries to only devastation and destruction can result; in your devastation and destruction only.  It is for this purpose of protection and coverage that God set into motion His promises to us, to keep us safe and pure before Him.  No matter how hard the world tells you that you can be pure through its pleasures, it is a lie.  If you live in the world your setting of both these verses shall return empty, if you surrender yourself to God your return shall never be void but full of life.

Remember back in Genesis when God established Covenant with Abram and in completing this ceremony He outlined what would occur to our lives if we ever violated it.  The verse in Psalm 33 reminds us that once God brings anything into being it must be done completely and accurately, without blemish or sin.  It is us who violate this eternal setting, not God.  See the Genesis verses say that if anyone curses you that God will curse them and if anyone blesses you then He will bless them, there is that "if" word again.  When God uses such a term it means that He has ordained such a process and He cannot break such Word.  God's promises always contain caveats on both sides, He wants us to always remember that He shall never violate such oath, nor can He forget about it either.  This word "if" then becomes the great "what if" for everything that we live for depends on our living through this word.

How many times can we look back on our lives and remember when supposedly good friends or even family members abandon us when we need them the most?  It is disheartening to think about those times and ponder how lonely we were begging for someone to talk with while things in our lives were being decimated.  It does not matter if it was things we had done or not done, those times hurt and it seemed like no one cared any longer.  God understands that we shall make mistakes, some of which hurt others quite extensively and that we need to serve our consequences for those, but that does not mean He leaves us.  It is this time that He wants so much for us to cry out to Him for help, for it is the perfect setting in which for Him to enter and to help.  Also, when one accepts God's Covenant over their lives, they voluntarily give up the burden of self and allow God to guide them in all areas.  Imagine, not having any care in the world about what is going on in the world around except for those who need God.

1 John 1 also tells us that God shall be faithful to us.  This word "faithful" is the Greek word "pistos" which means trustworthy, faithful, believing.  How many times during a single day do we see unfaithfulness beat?  Those numbers sometimes hit directly home and these settings too hurt and cut deeply.  From my own experiences, I could have saved myself a bunch of hurt and heartache if I would have consulted God instead of my friends for they just wanted to be a part of a ceremony to look important when the ceremony itself was a violation of Covenant.  Even this action by friends who hurt, steal, or kill are curses against you.  Why don't we teach the faithfulness of God comes when we obey Him and His Ways?  Many times we are quick to make cuts into people's lives without understanding that they need help and not condemnation.  These acts toward them are curses not blessings and thus we shall reap such what we have sown.

Another detail we tend to forget about Covenant and that is when God states something all of it must come to pass.  We have a tendency to study or to claim only the blessings portion of God's Covenant with mankind and minimize the so-called or believed "negative" portion of His statement.  Remember, whatever God proclaims is true and alive and must be fulfilled, it may be fulfilled tomorrow, next week, next year, or next decade but it shall come to pass.  God's Word is not always comforting to hear or to go through just ask all of the people He allowed to die in Scripture due to their disobedience.  Please keep this aspect of promises close to your heart as well, for if you can teach someone to remember such Truth before they act, times might be a tad better.

The connection between these two verses is that the word "confess" that is used in 1 John 1 is a Greek word that is defined as "homologomen" which means assent, Covenant, acknowledge.  It does not matter which of these three descriptive words for this Greek word is used they all describe the character of God and what He means when He displays Covenant terms.  When we confess something it means we did it or we live by it, or unfortunately, we deny it.  I become overjoyed when both Testaments come together and act as one Word.  The Psalm 33 passage tells us that the Word of God is true on all levels including being right and He is right 100% of the time.  The Bible could not make this statement if it was not true, for God is the origin and definition of truth and when we combine this verse in Psalm to the one in 1 John we have two pieces about God (Covenant) that remind us who we live for and who we were Created for.  It also means that when we live under Covenant that our lives will be subject to God both physically and spiritually.

God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness if we only confess (Covenant) with Him.  We actually live out Covenant with God when we do what is right in His eyes, and we move His Kingdom forward while we Covenant with HIm as well.  Church, we need more Covenant understanding and teaching in our hearts.  There is no way possible for us to live like Jesus if we do not understand what Covenant is and what it means to our lives.  We have a lot of work to do in a very short amount of time but we can do it.  All we have to do is to repent and truly confess God in our lives every single second of every single day.  Covenant cannot be hidden, it can be ignored and brushed off by the world but if Covenant lives within you, your light will so ever shine brightly to the dark world, and the great what-if shall reach to the heavens as it was meant to be when it was Created.

DLB

Confession

Confession

7/31/21

What concept comes to mind when we hear this word being used?  Usually, it has reference to having to do with someone telling the truth about what occurred or what was being planned.  For the most part, this word means to tell or to share with others a specific event or happening that we did sometime in the past.  But what we forget or do not realize is that it is a word that represents so much more, a good thing and testament one that can actually bring about eternal life.  It should be taken into consideration that this word means astonishingly more and in this context taken more seriously.  In this sense, God confesses to us every day His faithfulness and mercies which is a part of His definition.  So when we use this word, we need to look at its meaning in this context, Covenant for it is this expression that brings us together with God.  So, weekly or even daily comings to God with meaningless confessions are just that, meaningless, and is a waste of time because our heart has no intention of changing, a state which shall cost us eternity.

For those who have been associated with the church, the word confession is one that prominently comes into the forefront of our lives so much that it has the everyday opportunity of becoming an idol within our spiritual definition.  Yet, this word has been taken out of its true meaning, the one that we should be willing to surrender our lives to and to live under no matter what comes our way.  Instead, we have cheapened its covering and how it lives inside our hearts; furthermore, we have no intentions of studying this word's meaning and turn it into a vital and life-sustaining part of our existence.  We have watered this word down into a "telling things" to someone else with no remorse needed or wanted, a short sad prayer and lyrical verse a couple of times, and "bam" all is okay until the next hour or day when our confessed sin returns without any hesitation.  

One may think that these words only apply to one or two denominations but God says we need to think again for this type of mentality that forgiveness is a revolving door and can be applied each time we have a guilty thought or execution of sin.  One does not have to be a member of a certain denomination to practice such antics, look at yourself and take a close examination of what lies within your heart, and what you shall see is a darkened or blackened heart that has not true blood supply left.  Telling someone that is in a position of pastoral care does not make that person any more worthy of providing sound salvation for what you have done over the past few weeks or months.  Telling is totally different from confession, for telling someone just allows your mind to ease and to relax with something you know is wrong; you know, it is the identical setting of showing the public that you are the dutiful religious type who wants everyone to believe you are living correctly and what you are doing is sanctioned by God.  Through this superficial lying state, the livelihood of the word confession has become an abomination before God, because we have no intentions of living according to its Ways.

The verses for this article tell another story about the deepness of the meaning of the word confession, the True and biblical meaning of such an important word.  Confession should be taken as a holy word, one that when spoken, comes strictly from the depths of the sinful heart for help in receiving restoration into holiness.  When we study these two passages, we will find that each one contains a specific and unique setting that God uses to grab our attention about the distinct importance of this word in our lives.  There are two passages for this article, one in the Old Testament and the other in the New Testament, and are as follows:

Genesis 15:17-18

"And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp passed between those pieces.  In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:"

1 John 1:9

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

It is well known that the outline for Covenant is written here in this passage of Scripture, and while it is a familiar passage, it is not really taken very seriously because few ministers teach on this subject.  Why is this?  Why would the most important item and definition of God be misaligned and ignored, I believe that the answer to that question lies within what Satan has done to establish enough deep interest in this subject in our hearts long enough that we have deemed it a minor topic and not really worthy of our time.  The New Testament passage also deals with this word but since Greek is a very specific language we should know that what this verse states are of vital importance and that it deals with the exact same topic and subject as our Old Testament passage does.

In Genesis, God makes it clear that He is establishing a covenant between Him and mankind.  How can God do such a thing and it be long-lasting enough and endure all tests?  God does not just tell Abram about this covenant, or try to explain it with words alone; no, He demonstrates His seriousness with specific instructions about a few certain animals a few verses previously.  It should be understood that when God says something and speaks it into existence it cannot be undone or changed from its original definition.  The word "covenant" that is used in Genesis comes from the Hebrew word "berit" and means covenant, alliance, pledge, constitution, ordinance, and league.  All of these descriptions of the word "berit" are defining terms and can be used in order to allow for understanding about how God works when it comes to His commitment to humans.  God is giving Abram a verbal and descriptive definition of Himself, one that will set into motion a partnership that cannot be broken.  We all know that God cannot change so through this truth concerning the originator of the covenant this agreement can only be violated by the other party involved; remember, if one party cannot move then any agreement cannot be actually broken.  

In the 1 John 1:9 verse, we see the word "confess" being used.  The Greek definition of this word comes from "homologomen" which is the first-person plural in nature and it means to assent, Covenant, and acknowledge.  When one assents to something it means they agree to it or to the principles to which the agreement contains.  Another part of its definition is the word for Covenant, and we all know what that word means and how specific its meaning is.  It is this directive that God wants us to understand, that when we confess anything it comes from our heart and is a statement of application, an application that has eternal meanings to it.  See, ever since God physically made Covenant with mankind He has not violated such pact, it has been mankind that has been the one to test the limitations of God's mercy and grace.  God confessed His grace and mercy to us through His Covenant with us and even though He knows we are sinners He expects the same level of confession to Him on a continual basis.

It is a known fact that God already knows we are sinners and that our hearts are eternally evil, but this is where Covenant begins its extension, not its ending.  It is here that God wants us to confess to Him our sins so that He can forgive them and wash them away like they had never been an issue before.  Confession is a choice, a decision that means we shall not ever do that particular sin again and that it is our will to please God in every way concerning such iniquity.  Unfortunately, we have watered-down this confession of faith into a telling of our events so that we may have no guilt or corrective action besides a few words in prayer in order to be forgiven; or at least that is what we have been taught to believe and do.  Believe God folks when He says there is a huge difference between a telling of sins and confession of sins, one is lovingly and voluntarily done and the other is done at the time of judgment.  Ironically, all you are doing when you tell of your sins is just preparing yourself for those words to come back to you again some time down the road.

If a confession becomes continual telling there is no confession present or meant at all.  Nor should this tactic or procedure be used in such a manner to be thought of as a replacement for the confession itself.  When the practice of confession becomes a ritual, it automatically becomes part of a physical or human institutional procession that only can claim bells and whistles in a church service; in other words, just noise.  God is an alive God and One who wants a total relationship with on a minute-by-minute basis.  This can only be achieved by having our lives raised up to His level, not having God lower Himself to ours.  Confession amounts to being completely open and honest when it comes to allowing God to intervene in places where we need correction.  This is where confession becomes the centerpiece of Covenant for it remarkably and wholly extends itself over our lives to cover us in our sinful ugliness.

It is this process that begins to grow within our lives and our desires change to please God, not disappoint Him.  The desire to become a mature servant for Christ becomes our objective and we continually look to how we can improve on this measure and draw closer to God during this process.  It is not a popular move where the world is concerned, the world shall fight you on many levels and try to make you return back to your telling of ways.  Furthermore, it is this defined status of this word that places us in a separate category from the world, for confession cannot align itself with the world which means it cannot be broken only violated; once again, Covenant.

Confession should be taught in every church building and in every heart of the Church.  It is an eternal word and it needs to be understood properly.  It is not a whimsical word that can be used to rid of our guilt in the world, but one that should draw us closer to God every day that we walk this planet.  It should also serve as the foundation of the mission that we must follow when we witness to those who do not know God or have any type of relationship with Christ.  Confession is not a simple two or three-minute conversation with someone in secret, but it is a public change of life that should be recognized by all who come into contact with us.  Repentance comes not through any simple or superficial prayer either, but it comes from the heart and it should be meant when said.  Yes, the words of the prayer can be simple and easy to come up with, but its meaning must come from the heart, and a complete stoppage and about-face must accompany it or it means nothing but for show.  For the season that is about to be upon us shall expose the superficial chaff of religion and it shall be blown away with the spiritual wind of God according to His Word.  None shall escape such a storm and if we are not truly grounding in Covenant our lives shall be so shaken we may never recover.

Church it is time we stop skimming the surface of the Word of God and begin to study its true meaning, we have played around with the Bible for centuries and look at where it has gotten us.  We have no spiritual strength, nor do we even know how to draw spiritual food from this eternal source of eternal life.  This word in 1 John follows the same pattern as in Genesis 15, nothing has changed from the Scripture in Genesis until 1 John in the seriousness of confession and covenant.  Also, we cannot forget the remaining chapters and verses that fall outside of our text confinement, for the entire Bible is the definition of God and it is our responsibility to witness to the dying world through His Word.  We have had plenty of time to prepare our lives for the witnessing of the world, it is time now to face it with the Covenant we have and go forward and be an eternal confession of Truth.

DLB

I Don't Believe It

I Don't Believe It

7/18/21

How deep do humans believe in a subject or in people?  From history, we have learned that some beliefs may lead to death while others for the most part have little or no consequences to them.  However, when it comes a time when a challenge will arise and we must take a stand for what we believe, it is a common human action.  Many people believe this strongly against God and His presence in our lives, for how can someone so good allow such hideous activities to occur?  God does not always show up when mankind expects Him to, nor does He always grant our wishes in the manner to which we expect.  But God has never left us nor will He ever as long as we continue to believe in Him and allow Him to be the existing part of our lives.  God proves Himself correct as every day passes but in order for us to understand His Ways, we must first take a step of faith and trust His presence and leave all doubt behind.

There have been numerous times that I have heard this phrase from those around me expressing how they do not believe in God or that He ever existed in the first place.  They become very intense and emotional when someone brings up or mentions God's name and they are quick to point out that they do not want to talk about Him at all.  Many times they then go on a rant about why they do not believe in God and why they believe that anyone who does is lunatics, idiots, or candidates for insane asylums.  They will argue and call people names when they try to have a debate or conversation about God with them, usually ending up with an argument and leaving mad at each other.  What they do not want to understand is that they can believe what they wish for it is their choice to do so, but this choice not to believe in God does not make them correct.

It is a bold statement from someone who says they have been around for all eternity, that they are present today and that they shall always be around for the future of eternity.  Being convinced of something is a human gift that serves its purpose on its own and for its own.  Once again, that does not mean that you are automatically correct.  Do you remember a fellow in history called Galileo Galilei?  He was a 16th-century Italian astronomer, physicist, and engineer who lived in Pisa.  His searching led to the understanding that the earth revolved around the sun and not vice versa as the Church and some astronomers believed it did.  It caused enough rift between both the religious and scientific communities that Galileo was shunned by both sides and basically exiled from all society.  So much so that he was placed on trial and found guilty resulting in a grossly amount of punishment for these beliefs.  Even years later, when Galileo was on his deathbed, it was approved that he could be buried in the church courtyard, but that decision was overturned by the current pope and all plans for his burial had to be made elsewhere.

It took time after Galileo had died that scientists proved that Galileo was correct in his presentations concerning the earth orbiting the sun and not vice versa.  This opened up many further studies that eventually proved that space was a vast science that many had no idea how to study or much less comprehend.  It is safe to say that with all the technology that we have to look deep into outer space we still have little information about exactly what is located where.  The pictures we see from far away places astound us and invigorate our imaginations furthering our desires to know more, yet we quickly say that there is no God or that He ever existed?  Our passage tells us a different story, one that gives a glimpse of how things were created, not only in our lives but in other worlds as well.  Our passage today is Isaiah 44:6 and goes as follows:

Isaiah 44:6

"Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God."

Hebrew

"Thus says the LORD, the King and Redeemer of Israel, the LORD of Hosts: I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God but Me."

God asks us a question today, and the question is this: do you completely believe that I do not exist or that I have no say in your lives?  How many of us know people who really have no belief in God or that He is always around us?  I know I have some co-workers and other friends that have that thinking and belief, and I watch their lives unfold I cannot help but have a sinking feeling because almost every day I see them with gloomy eyes and sad faces, oozing their innards out with nothing filling them back up.  It amazes me that people who take countless breaths each day and create new items to improve the quality of life fail to recognize just who gave us the ability to perform such precious destinations.  This process is a pathway that all of us have within our hearts, humans by creation are curious, long to know more, and search for answers to the unknown.  There is no logical perspective or even proven point that determines we came from ooze or all of a sudden came into perfect human form in an instant alone.  If so, why haven't we perfected such imperfections over this millions of years time frame?  This is a lie from the pit of hell, in that Satan wants this type of belief to run through our lives, for doubt is the single most effective disobedient act that will separate us from the Truth about our lives and purpose for existence.

As long as Satan can fixate in our hearts that God is not the God of Isaiah 44:6 and who He says He is, then he has us on a puppet system and can control our every move until God cuts those strings of slavery.  What does this actually mean, you ask?  It simply means that this verse states that there is only one God and that is god, which means that any other "god" that is proclaimed is made up or fake in every aspect of its existence.  A made-up god can have the capability of "changing" its behavior, looks, temperament, size, shape, and color at any moment without any real reason given.  How can any stability be present in such a state?  Yes, it allows for situational changes and off-the-cuff quick law claims, but that in itself is self-serving alone and shall vary with each person believing in such a frail god.  Plus, there is an origin to it, a humanly created thing that has the capability of coming and going whenever and where ever it chooses.  This is a disaster in the making yet so many people fall for such laws and gods.  Humans creating a god that serves situational standards is not an advantage of life, it is a positional and situational idol that will fade at a moment's notice and leave you high and dry without any protection or defense.  This concocted god is whimsical at best, satisfying one's pleasures on a superficial and baseless foundation.

Are we this naive and superficial that we set our standards on a god of pleasure instead of the God of eternal wisdom and courage?  Any god who is whimsical cannot honestly claim to be any type of defender, for its contingency is based upon itself, not for you.  In the first portion of this verse, God mentions that He is the Redeemer of Israel, this means that He does not leave when times become tough or when it looks dark on the horizon.  God has always stated that He is an eternal God, one who shall never leave you.  He cannot leave you for He does not have the ability to change His positions on anything, period!  

In this passage, the time stamp is of course in the Old Testament which means that the standard of separation is Israel.  Today the example of separation is the Church both of which are called to live and to witness as a separated eternal entity from the world.  Unfortunately, the Church has fallen into the same type of living conditions as Israel did, for we have allowed so many personal gods to infect our lives that their presence has been granted access to the Church's heart with false deities and doctrines to cloud our walk in Christ and to complete His mission through us.  Just as Israel had lost her mission to be the example against the world, we have done the exact same thing; scarily, many things in an identical manner.  The ultimate lesson of proudly and boldly stating that we do not believe there is a God even though all of our foundational upbringings taught us differently.

Let's take this Truth a bit deeper, and proclaim that God has always been and shall always be no matter how long mankind may inhabit existence.  In all honesty, our sinful, limited, and finite minds cannot honestly comprehend such a state of existence; therefore, how can we honestly project that what the Bible says is incorrect, especially the details and other items about God?  If one would study the Word of God thoroughly they would find out that many of the same issues and problems that Israel faced in the Old Testament, many of the same deteriorating living conditions, and devastation occur in our societies each day today.  What is so ridiculously fascinating is that the Church of today is demonstrating the exact same attitude toward the warnings that have been given to them as Israel did so long ago.  Are we to believe that we are just as naive to the warnings from God as Israel?  It sure does seem like our attitude is the same.

The challenge of the Modern Church is to change such settings, but unfortunately, we have fallen in line with the Early Church in that we have caught ourselves up in a denomination war and have turned to the world for help in sustaining the "lead" over others.  This passage tells the truth about God and because of our silly foolishness when it comes to God, we have failed to show the world that what the Bible says about God is the truth and not some mythical god-like being that does not exist.  How come we have chosen to discredit this verse, thus the definition of God with our own selfish pride?  Many times throughout the Bible, God states that He is first, foremost, and only Living God, so why does He continually remind us of this?  It is because humans have the habit of understanding short-sided versions of life, superficial ones that do not require deep and constant learning.  

Sadly, the Church has fallen into this category and has accepted many other gods before God and has created a conundrum of failings that she no longer sees as pitfalls, but as opportunities to be closer to the world.  The advances in life should never be a hindrance to the Church or her mission that she is supposed to complete but to remind us that there is so much more to learn about God and when we learn about God He shall provide new information and knowledge to help us truly defeat our problems.  Today, we hear that there is no God at all, that He never existed or that He died a long time ago, or that He has left us hanging out to dry.  Also, their belief that God does not exist gets support from Christians who do not live according to the Ways of God, thus building up the false claim that God does not exist.  This action of ours does not make these nonbelievers correct but promotes a lie to be correct an eternal lie that all of us shall answer for one day.

Many people fail to understand what is really going on in our world, passing it off as changing of the times, climate control, a new moral standard, etc but what we miss is that God is giving us warnings for what is about to arrive.  We are being bled dry of all kinds of resources and we totally ignore the reason why this is occurring.  In our passage, Isaiah writes to the people a statement from God that he should not have to do for they should know it to be true.  Also, God should not have me writing and reiterating this verse to a people, a nation, and The Church for something that we were founded upon.  Yet, I write what God tells me to, and sometimes the subjects are hard and difficult to transfer, but I know I must be obedient and do what I am commissioned to do.  Church, we have fallen away from the standard and plumb line that God told us to be and if we do not understand this now, we shall in the very near future but not in a setting such as we have today.  Yes, times are difficult and uncertain now, but in a short time, things shall be totally out-of-control and in pieces.  Repent and return to God NOW!  Not tomorrow or next week for God does not want to see us have to confess before Him that I did not believe it.

DLB