Assassination

Assassination

2/5/17

This word has always intrigued many people over the millennia and when this action is completed nations mourn what could have been and live the travesties of what occurred.  There can be nothing more detailed of a state of failure when this type of event occurs, yet it is also the truth relative of selfish desires that cannot more highly be displayed.  God does not wish for this event to occur in any government for if it does it means that we have assassinated our own existence in the name of self, which is the definition of sin and the lack of knowledge about God to turn from this death wish and seek the eternal life that He offers instead.

For the last few months, this term has been steadily used in reference to the new president of this country but one must consider the truth that this type of attitude has not popped up overnight but has been a process in a birthing process for a period of time. This nation is extraordinary on many levels of her existence but we share a common thread with other nations when it comes to the usage of this word for throughout our history there has been our share of deaths sorted out through this process.  Look at what these events begin and how they tear a nation apart starting with the heartbeat of its leadership.  No one shall 100% agree with a leader but when we resort to this type of activity and carry it out even in our minds the seeds are sown and it will not be too much longer until those seeds begin producing their own life.

I recently read on a page that I receive some information concerning the attitude of the nation there have already been 12,000 calls for the assassination of the President of our nation.  During World War II a typical military division consisted of three regiments and support units that totaled approximately 10,000 personnel and look at what kind of might just one division had during that time.  What this number is saying is that there are more than a division of people who have called for the death of this president over the last few months and if this number does not frighten you then you need to re-evaluate your thought pattern because this means we have a serious problem.  We have also been blasted with many people ranting about what they would do if the candidate that they did not like became president, but as of yet none of them have lived up to their words.  This should not be of real concern on a life-giving level but when taken into account of this type of killing, the stakes are higher and more likely to be followed through with; just a pattern of human activity that cannot be denied.

It is easy for me to state the last sentence in the paragraph above because we as a society have become a bit more docile in our moving habits all the while losing our commitment levels, all the way down to our personal responsibilities.  So when someone threatens to leave over a moment that goes against them, it is not taken too seriously for all of us has had such thoughts before. However, when assassinating someone and giving serious contention to completing this type of solution one cannot hide the fact that times have changed and there are some out there who radically are charged enough to carry out this nation changing stance. But there is a unique choice taken here that differs with most other assassination attempts in human history and their possible follow through, and its underlying truth not many people recognize, especially when the subject of the assassination rumors comes from the same foundation as the ones who are calling for this event to occur.

It is feasible, plausible and easily comprehended that a small faction or minority would carry out this act against a leader of a position that they would consider against their causes.  Even though this type of process would be a logical step for these “underprivileged” groups, to resort to such a resolution is absurd, yet it has occurred many times throughout history and no doubt will occur again sometime in the future.  The warning signs from small groups that would act upon such a suggestion should be construed as dramatic enough to warrant added pressure for security but when the tactics of this nature come from the majority one must shutter to think about what will occur if the plan is actually executed as scripted.

The other day on a public website I mentioned a short blurb about this topic and at that point had a feeling that God was going to expand on that bit of wisdom He gave to me so that more people will stop and realize just what shape our nation is in and where our actions of the heart are leading us.  We cannot deny the fact that our society is consumed with death and when all else fails, suggest or carry out a death warrant for anyone who stands in our way, for this condition is demanded from abortions to political rivals with nothing or no one left out of this subject in-between.  It is this truth that has empowered the majority to issue such a threat to the President but also to our existence as a nation itself, but they cannot reason with the second half of that statement for they do not understand the foundational aspects to which they are committed.

There have always been divisive sides when it comes to politics and how people or ideas are elected.  Of course, as with any election, there will be those who win and those who lose.  But over the past few decades, the losing side of any election has become a bit more vocal in their “conciliatory” actions after the results have been handed down with this past election results continuing to rear its ugly head.  But there lies the question because is it a head that is rising or is it the heart that is being portrayed?  Also, we must take into account that it is the majority of whom are shouting these ways and words, not the minority and it is this point that we need to contend with and bring into context quickly because the result of such action will bring about this nation’s demise on a godly scale and not through a human act alone.  Yes, I know I have repeated this account more than once in this article, but it is vital that you understand this truth before I proceed with what God wants us to know.

It cannot be argued that this nation is totally consumed in itself and the products that we live by.  In no other nation that has been established before has the standard of living been so high that even in the begging countries many of the beggars will not accept certain “payments” from tourists.  It is this exact policy that we have adopted in our own society largely enough to squelch out any other belief when challenged.  It cannot be argued that this nation rationalizes its popular beliefs on pop culture and the artists that play out these schemes, actors, actresses, people in businesses and those who earn a living in any other type of entertainment.  There is no greater representation than ones who come from this type of background and to be honest it is these industries which fuel our nation and its ideas.  Yet, the talk of committing this act on a person who is of their own liking can only demonstrate that we truly do not recognize what spirit lies inside us nor do we comprehend the destructiveness that lies inside our hearts as well.  To lust after an act to destroy our own being and heartbeat represents animal-like prowess that only ends a structure and creates further divisional havoc on the streets of our hearts.

In truth, what this act demonstrates is an assassination of our own hearts and what we supposedly stand for as an individual, group, and nation for when we commit murder of our own institution nothing good can come from this action.  This is not a unique setting for many empires and democracies in the past have committed such acts against their definition with one of the more famous empires being that of the Roman kind.  When Julius Caesar was assassinated by his own it began the demise of the empire as a whole and it was not too much longer that through this inner strife the empire split and then was picked off bit by bit from the outside.  Their inner defensive mechanisms were so individualistic that no cohesive barriers could be mounted and further divisions roses from these gaps.

Another similarity to this example is that eventually, the Roman Empire turned to Christianity for stability and spirituality through its leadership.  But the prevailing winds of secularism had already been established in that world and while Christianity grew in numbers the underlying death traps of the spirit loomed largely and grew even stronger than the physical representations.  The spiritual implications of assassinating your own – especially coming from the majority – is a dangerous truth that should serve as a huge warning about the conditions of the inner conditions of a person, group, or nation.  I understand that not every person who has these territorial beliefs grasps this detail but if it occurs, the implications that this act poses to the future of a nation and/or state cannot stand as a unified union; a truth that places a new meaning to Mark 3:23-25.

Western societies and the Church have voluntarily ignored the inner spirit that lies inside our lives and more importantly the reasons as to why this nation and the Church were established in the first place, and by making this statement it means that we have recognized this evilness but have resorted to physically pacifying it instead of driving it from our lives.  It has now grown into a wandering search of happiness and generosity but even in its walking to and fro it cannot be satisfied unless the institution of blood is ignited. 

It is not difficult to understand that reveling in such magnifications reach many of the populous as standard protocol of dissension but what is most terrifying is that these people who participate in such thoughts and activities along with those who do not, fail to understand the inner and spiritual implications that drive this acceptance party to the public.  How can the Creator of the Church and of this nation stand for such devastating activities against His establishment?  Our only issue is that we have no intentions of seeing this truth and therefore shall resort to assassinating ourselves through habitual insecurities of the flesh.  It does not matter what position the leader of this nation has, ultimately it is what lies inside the hearts of the people that guide our choices of eternity.

There can be no argument that we are obsessed with death and how much delight it would be to watch an enemy die.  It is portrayed on every movie screen and many television screens around the globe each day and what makes things worse is that we deem this death notice as successful or not according to the number of sales it brings to such ratings.  We love to watch a car-jacking, high-speed chases, bank heists, affairs being committed, buildings being blown up, protesters and the threats that they demand and down and out flat murder then use them for public knowledge and gain for business and entertainment.  It has been the desire of this nation to earn such wages and while governance reigns over their productions their hearts burn with further indignations to release these desires to their enemies.  What difference is there now from what the Middle Ages displayed except for the modern technological advances which are in place to exacerbate these truths.  All of which are prefatory steps in a planned assassination.

In all of these fiascos that we witness today, the most ingenious of them all is the one that many demands to be taken away so that they can be happy, and that is God and His Ways.  If one is grounded in His Word and understands His truth according to His Word and not our physical whims, it is easy for one to recognize the concepts of what is occurring around us.  I find it so amazingly sad that when we proclaim to be rid of God we are actually proving God’s Word correct for it was this very attitude that the entire Bible gives us examples of what to expect when this attitude occurs.  It does not matter if one wishes to study the Old Testament or the New Testament for both give accurate details of the hearts of individuals, groups, nations, and even the Church of this truth.  It is clear that in all situations the majority ruled and it was when they chose to separate themselves from God and join the world’s views they assassinated themselves.  Sadly, when these events occurred they missed God and even missed that their enemy was hysterically laughing at them as their final heartbeat arrived.  For it gives Satan great joy to watch an individual, group, or nation chosen by God to end their existence in eternal defeat.

There are more people in this nation and in other societies in the world that have more identification through celebrities, teams or their businesses than from their parents.  That is a hard truth to swallow but it is real and it is alive which means it is growing.  The Church falls into this category as well for she has identified herself with the world and has shunned the heart of God her Creator.  We have chosen our own path by the elections that we have wanted, we have also failed to understand the inner implications that these selfish and worldly equalities have brought to our spiritual lives.  We have been warned many times throughout history and even far greater warnings in the Bible of such choices.  Therefore, we shall endure the consequences of such actions and will one day soon painfully experience these results according to our Creators establishment and holy justice.  It is amazing how we deem ourselves to be the wisest and best-educated society ever known yet we fail to recognize truth right in front of our faces.

Last night a popular television program summed up this truth of assassination of our hearts and while they were portraying it against the President of the United States they were unknowingly prophesying our own demise.  The actor was impersonating the President at his desk and performing the routine skit as planned.  Behind him was a figure that has always represented death by having a skeleton dressed in a black robe overlooking from behind.  While this skit portrayed the death of the President it really demonstrated the overall death of this country.  The children of Israel acted on this same concept when they assassinated themselves when they chose to rule God out of their lives, God was one of their own, their direct lineage and Father. 

This nation has previously elected one of its own but worked with this man in order to get things accomplished, this time the obvious is far against this mogul of our own.  Right at this moment, God has given us another “T” to examine and to act accordingly to change our course.  1 Samuel Chapters 5-8 give us a perfect example of where this nation’s heart stands as it looks at the approached “T” and I do not know if we shall have another come about again.  It is God’s way of giving His people another opportunity to change their hearts before He has to intervene.  Church, you are the key for you must return to God completely and once again spread the truth of the Gospel to the world or true assassination shall come due through our own hearts.  Since we are considered, and rightly so, the leaders of the world we must recognize that worldly standards are destructive in nature and godly wisdom is the only option for true and eternal peace and life.  It is the godly example, the true and unadulterated Word of God that we need to be displaying, not a combined lie of the world.

DLB

Idleness

Idleness

2/4/17

This is a word that many of us live within the confines of on a regular basis and it is also a word that once accepted will end up being the death of us.  Our bodies were not created to stand idle on any level for there is always a notion of work that needs to be completed in our dominion.  God established this truth in the Garden of Eden and it is still in force today yet for some reason even the Church has chosen the idle position and thus allowed the enemy to run rampant his kingdom over the people of God.  It is God’s desire for us to advance His Kingdom instead for He understands that when He wins all humanity wins as well, both spiritually and physically.

All of us enjoy having days off from our employment settings and to be honest this truth is mentioned in the Bible, even God took a day off.  Rest is a good thing for our lives and each one of us needs it no matter how we feel about this concept.  A number of years ago, I was in contact with a mechanic friend of the family who we trusted very much with our automobiles.  Even though I was a kid at the time I was always amazed at how many hours this gentleman spent at his shop working.  After some time I asked him one day how come he worked so much, not really knowing what kind of answer I would receive.  He told me in a short sentence that his body did not require much sleep and that he could not just sit at home and do nothing so he chose to work as much as possible.  That answer got me to thinking about the concept of work and how when one works a process is completed or advanced and it was this concept that God would use in my life way down the road to explain His Kingdom and it works to others.

Much of what this message will deal with has been talked about before but God has once again dropped this truth into my heart and it is His desire for us to hear this message again.  God has never been an idle God or personality that sits around demanding work from others while He sits around and does nothing.  God is alive and His Kingdom is in a constant battle for your eternal existence.  Unlike thousands of human rulers before our time God does not force anyone to submit to His authority or subject them to torturous rigor until they sign an agreement to serve Him and advance His Kingdom.  God loves His people with an undying love and a divine love that we cannot fully understand but as long as we obey His Word we can continually feel this love in our lives.  It is through this love and obedience that should protrude from our lives and through this separation from worldly goods display the truth about God and the battle for our eternity.

God has never deviated from His Word, nor can He for His Word is eternal, pure and holy on all levels and it is man’s idleness that sells His Word short and presents interpretations of the Bible to satisfy the worldly conditions that we would rather serve.  It has been proven through an infinite number of examples that God cannot be idle and through this truth, it means that His Kingdom cannot lay idle either.  Since God is eternal and so are we that means that we are a direct participant in His Kingdom; think about that for a moment and then try your best to comprehend equality without this standard in place first.

It is easy for one to believe that they have not been a good representative of God and His Kingdom but do we realize just how simple it is to advance His Kingdom?  Do we even understand or recognize the small truths of His Kingdom and how to advance it?  Our enemy has done a superb job of deceiving us into believing that we must be on the missionary field in some distant foreign land in order to be “effective” in God’s Kingdom.  Through our blindness of kingdom truths, we have failed to recognize that praying advances God’s Kingdom and that even though this act is usually short and quiet it is one of the most effective tools that we have in our lives to hear from God.  God loves communication with you!!  And there is nothing more sacred and loving for Him to hear the voice of His child’s heart speaking to Him.  Many times I have watched people that I know who claim to be Christians who do not even pray over the meals that they have been provided, and if they do not do this small thanksgiving I know they do not have a direct communication time with God either.

Praying is not being idle in any manner but it represents the single most direct communication we have to God and therefore gives God the opportunity to work trough our lives so that we may witness His Word to others.  I find myself just telling God how I am feeling at a specific moment during the day and it really does not matter where or when I do this either; to be honest, I do not care as well.  I really wish that I could claim that I have always had this desire to talk with God on a continual basis but I cannot for there was a period of time in my life that I had no communication with God on my part and reached the point where my ears and heart could not even recognize His voice.  When I look back on this time in my life I cannot help but reflect on a time of darkness that can only be compared to as the dark ages of my life.

God established the definition and origin of “we” a very long time ago and since it is a known truth that God is not idle in any way it means that His existence cannot be altered in such a manner either.  When “we” were created it meant that God expected our lives to be in constant motion and since the pure and holy state of our existence was present first in our lives it means that when “we” is implemented His Kingdom is advanced.  God gave Adam dominion over the Garden of Eden and expected Him to take care of it, this is mentioned in Genesis.  God and his beloved creations talked on a daily basis and one can only imagine what those sessions contained but I guarantee you that a part of those sessions included of how Adam should keep up the Garden and the reasons why he should do so.  God gave His instructions to Adam and Eve on a continual basis and it is through this direct communication it provided for an active manner of life and not idleness.  Even when the lives of Adam and Eve were without sin there could not be any place for idleness, for God had already witnessed what occurs when an eternal heart fades into this state.

Today, we see many church denominations fall into the idleness category and while some find it difficult to accept, just look at the number of people coming to this nation for ministries TO this nation.  There cannot be any more detailed explanation and definition of idleness than having people coming into this country to witness to the people that God has ordained to be the eternal beacon of hope to the dying world.  When a candle fades away and then extinguishes itself all of the air is gone and the major fuel source is used up.  I ask you this: why is it that people from around the world are hearing the voice of God to come to this country and to reignite the candle flame of God’s Word into the hearts of those who He gave that candle to in the first place?  It is because the people of the Church have become idle and have forgotten what it means to be a child of God and what our responsibility is as such.

It is not hard to imagine that Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Moses, Obadiah, Solomon, Jonathan, Ruth, Esther, Sarah and the countless other names mentioned in Old Testament Scriptures were not idle nor is it hard to believe that Jesus and His disciples were not idle either.  So what makes us believe that we can do otherwise?  We have instilled one lie in our hearts that is crippling the people that are hungry for God and who in turn are witnessing a great farce when it comes to the truth about God.  It is so great of an example of idleness and one that is so large in the heart of the Church, yet we fail to recognize it.  You know what, we have even sung about this truth too, for as long as I can remember we have sung about this truth yet we have abandoned the real truth about it and made this song of deceit.

The definition of being idle cannot be described in any better detail than to just define its meaning in one word, Lucifer.  It was Lucifer’s heart that was idle enough to want to disobey God and to have more power than the One who created him.  If Lucifer was doing what he was created to do he would not have had the eternal time to complete such a heresy against God and then would not be considered the father of lies.  For idleness is a lie against God and His Kingdom, period!  The song that is in question here is titled “Just As I Am” and it is a wonderful old hymn that I still love and hold dear to my heart today.  For if this song and its meaning were not true our lives and everything that God stands for would be a lie, a categorical sham to the heart of humanity.  But it is not for it shouts the truth that no matter what one has done in their life they can always find truth in God and eternal salvation through His Son’s blood.

The song “Just As I Am” as mentioned above is a great truth, but it is immediately after the last word in that title that we along with our enemy turn this ancient hymn into a lie, for as the title ends so does our belief that we will not continue to change after we accept God in our lives and Christ as our Savior.  God is not an idle Creator, He never has been and He never shall be either which means when He is allowed to truly enter into our lives He shall expose His Kingdom through our lives and advance His Kingdom towards others at the same time.  His presence will change our lives completely and place a desire to separate ourselves from the world according to His Divine Word, ANY other belief is a lie and a grievous lie that the Church has embraced and placed it up as a banner of constant display.

In no way can we accept God into our hearts and then sit back and not change our hearts to accept His ways yet still want to harbor the ways of the world.  The Church preaches salvation but has a tie on this concept by saying you can keep your worldly efforts and live in and as the Body of Christ at the same time.  Physically this statement is a truth but more importantly and eternally it is a lie from Satan himself one that will destroy you and the Church if allowed to continue.  God’s Kingdom cannot cohabitate or even work with the kingdom of Satan.  Satan’s kingdom is a result of idleness which is not in the vocabulary of the Living God.  How easy is it to hear the voice and heart of God when we have spiritually deaf ears?  I thank God every day that He accepted me just as I am but more importantly when I look back on my life I can honestly say that He has not kept me in the position that I was at when that time came.  He changed me and advanced my life as a testimony to His Kingdom and as a witness to the dying world.

There is no such thing of an idle Church but there is such a thing as an idle church and with the influx of ministers flooding into this country to witness to this nation we can easily define which state we inhabit.  When Jesus gave us His command to go into the world and preach the Gospel His words were representative of a living command and not one that is idle by any means. When God established His Covenant with Abraham He meant it as one that would reach into eternity which means it is alive and well and not idle by any practice.  So, why do we believe that our salvation can be based on any other principle or truth?  It cannot, for God is alive, His Son’s blood is alive and His Church should be a direct reflection of these two eternal live beings. God wants His children to act like a living Church according to the authority of His Word, not as some idle temple who accepts any belief the world presents.  We must never forget that what the world offers can only be an idleness in God’s eyes which means that when we accept the world into our lives we become an idleness to God’s Kingdom.

Church, think about this truth and word from God.  For it should hit home to our hearts like no other description that God has used to show us before.  Look at what our country is facing at this moment.  We are reaping the seeds of idleness and unless we change this pattern our idleness shall be the one seed that will grow quickly enough to provoke God on our lives in a devastating way that no man has ever witnessed in history.  God seeks an active and holy Church for His Son, one that has done her duty to reach a dying world.  Once we re-grasp the truth about the meaning and definition of “dying” and recognize that it too is an active word, we as the Church will shake off the sinful idleness and then rise up and complete this command that Jesus gave us and once again become alive in Him.

It does not matter what your portion of being a Church that is alive that you are called, for it is your obedience that counts when it comes to the Church doing what it needs to do.  Pray, seek God’s heart and acquire a longing to hear His voice in your life. Praying may be the only part you play, but what an extraordinary part that would be.  Writing, singing, leading, teaching, and many other areas are needed to change the status of the church to bring it back to being a Church.  How much work needs to be done?  Jesus said it is a dying world and the verb used here is an active one.

DLB

Sincerity

Sincerity

2/1/17

The definition of this word can become as categorical as any other word in a language bank.  When it is taken in truth it becomes a sign of what lies inside our hearts and thus can produce a simple explanation when looking at the overall heart of a nation.  God wants nothing less than a sincere heart when it comes to having a relationship with Him for an honest and pure pattern is what He gives in His foundation.  It is evident through our actions of how sincere we are when we are in situations and it is through these situations that can be noticed.  This nation has been given many gifts of wisdom throughout its existence yet we have become one of the most selfish nations ever created and it is all due to the lack of sincerity we have in our hearts to the One who first instilled these gifts to our lives.

Has anyone ever apologized for an act in which they have been caught?  Have you heard the old expression that the only reason that these people (maybe you) are apologizing is because they got caught and were told to do such an act but in fact had no real repentance or intentions of true restitution coming from the heart?  I know that my parents made me apologize for some things that I did wrong when I was little that after the truth was found out and that I really did not enjoy that moment nor did I really mean the apology, but as I look back now I wish I had really meant those words for if I did maybe I would have saved me a whole bunch of ridiculous situations down the road.  Besides being embarrassed that whatever I did went wrong enough to get caught, I had no real intentions of making things right, I just wanted the problem to go away as quickly as possible.  Oh, how to turn back the clock and make things right with others the correct way.

As time went along and some of these patterns continued inside my heart I gained more selfish desires which overpowered the good heart that God first saw in me before I was born.   I am amazed that God stuck with me for so long before truly opening my eyes and heart to His Word and how He wants me to minister to people.  When I look back at some of the settings of my life my heart cannot help but immediately ache for he knows what he did was utterly horrid to the people involved in those issues.  No, those issues were not harmful enough to cause the death of a life but many of those times the events involved could have affected how people had relations with others in the future, so in truth, yes, it could have been life-threatening to others.  We must never forget that any single selfish act that is made public will have consequences not only upon you but it will have some type of long lasting effect on others as well.  While my “apology” might have gotten me passed that particular moment, it did not attain restitution with God for my wrongdoing and it is that portion of my “apology” that defined my sincerity.

As much as possible I do my best, with God’s help to guard my heart from ever giving the appearance or ever becoming deceitful to anyone for the truth cannot be fully received after deceit has been initially rendered.  It is this pattern of deceit that follows a person if it is allowed to be manifested for any sequence of time and if accepted long enough that deceptive pattern can be found in a nation as well.  It will grow until that lie becomes the truth and administered as such without hesitation, in effect becoming a law of the heart in which a body governs itself.  We have an excellent example of this in God’s Word concerning this type of sincerity of the people and it also serves as an example of how this nation’s heart has become; then it provides a perfect pattern of what will occur in our future as well.

A few weeks ago God shared with us a series of articles that dealt with the children of Israel and the fate of Eli and his household.  God showed us how important it was to listen to His voice no matter if it was a good word from Him or not.  God also showed us what occurs when we try and lower Him to our status and place Him alongside our gods.  God explained to us that no matter where we try to put Him, He is always first, He has no rival and that even in such human “captivity” He is in control.  God also provided in this study of 1 Samuel a lesson that when you handle God according to human standards and actions, He will always have a righteous and pure response to your finite decision.  This article will deal with a setting after the Ark of the Covenant was returned to Israel and what Samuel said to the people of Israel in accordance with what God had been telling them all along and how their words said one thing but their hearts told God another.  And it was the next phase of this heart condition of Israel that led to their changed status that has lasted until this day.

1 Samuel 7 is the text and passage that we will be covering here and it begins with the final movements of the Ark upon its return to Israel after being in the hands of the Philistines for an extended period of time.  The Ark was brought to a specific place and Samuel immediately called for every person in Israel to congregate in one area to receive instructions from God and it also serves as the setting of the sincerity that Israel claimed to have to do right in the eyes of God.  But we quickly see that over time this attitude really was not in place in their hearts but in mouth only.  1 Samuel 7:2-3 states: “And it came to pass, while the Ark abode in Kirjathjearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.  And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying If ye do return unto the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the Lord, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”

It is known through this passage that a specific timeframe of twenty years passed while the Ark was sanctified in Kirjathjearim and while the Ark was returned from the Philistines Israel still lived under their control.  For twenty years after the debacle that Israel endured, the Ark was steadfast in a sanctioned place, yet after all that Israel had gone through they still considered the Ark to be a “toy” or “mantle piece” and did not place the true representation of the Ark in its intended place, their hearts.  It is true that the physicality of the Ark was amongst their land but evidently the children of Israel continued their “gifting” of the Ark’s presence instead of realizing that while the Ark and the presence of God was with them, God did not wish to stand idly around them but desired a relationship with them, a personal relationship that only two hearts that are in communication with each other can understand.  It is this specific detail as to why Eli and his houses lost their lives for even Eli did not align the Ark as an instrument of relationship.

The devastating loss of any battle or war, especially when the advantage needed is in your court, comes about there can only be one explanation of why things went south and that is whoever was in contact with that advantage did not fully understand the reason that it was in place.  There is no excuse as to why Israel did not figure this truth out for their own eyes had witnessed that loss and then had to live under Philistine control even though the Ark had been returned, but twenty years, really?  How sincere were the Israelites about having the Ark back in their possession?  Did they realize what a blessing it was especially after all the stories that they must have heard concerning the turmoil that the philistines had?  It is easy to believe that Israel through their own actions had no concern of the personal representation that the Ark represented in their lives; how do we know this to be true?  There are a couple of parts to this truth and these parts should have spoken volumes to Israel and it should speak the same amount to our lives today.

The first part occurs in 1 Samuel 7:3-6 it says that Samuel spoke to the entire house of Israel concerning what God wanted from their lives concerning the idols that they still had in their lives.  What?!??  You mean to tell me that after the children of Israel heard that God who was residing in the Ark tipped over the god of the Philistines’ statue that they still could not figure out what God should have meant to their hearts and where He desired to live?  Samuel has to once again reinforce what God had previously shown Israel about how to live and that God wanted to be first in every aspect of their lives at all times.  This was not a new concept to their ears for they had heard the same message all the way back to the days of Abraham.  God had not changed His plan for His people one bit yet the people of Israel could not figure this out for some reason.  It seems like the children of Israel finally get it when they proclaim that they wish to drop all of their idols and worship God alone.  In verse 5 Samuel says to gather all of Israel to one place and after they had congregated in the designated place they made the proclamation that they had given up all their gods and admitted that they had sinned against God and immediately after those words Samuel did what God had instructed him to complete.  But wait, there’s more to follow. 

The second part of this truth comes in 1 Samuel 7:7-8 where it talks about the realization and response to their gathering in a certain place.  This passage states that when all Israel was gathered in one place that the Philistines approached and threatened to destroy Israel.  For an enemy who did not understand who God was and where He should be dwelling it would seem like they were sitting ducks and were about to have their existence wiped out entirely.  But once again, Samuel reminds them that God is in control and to turn their crying towards God and allow Him to rule the day instead of the enemy around them.  WHY!??!!?  Why did Samuel have to do this again?  It is this point here that God wants us to understand about Him because if we continue to live with God as a shelved item or a person who we turn to when times are bad we shall not be sincere in our lives in God.  We will not be able to have an intimate relationship with Him because what Israel is demonstrating here is a Sunday and Wednesday going to church pattern and one that does not communicate with God each and every day.  It also represents why God says that He cannot stand religion because religion is not sincere only a true committed and continual relationship can claim this truth.

Israel had been in existence for some time by this passage’s words, long enough to have developed physical enemies that wished them to be annihilated and an eternal enemy that wished for the same ending.  How difficult was it for Israel to accept and to acknowledge that their existence was based solely on being separate from all other individuals, cultures, groups, and nations?  Countless times God had demonstrated His divine love for them through His many blessings and His protection over their steps.  Continuing, we find that after Samuel told the children of God to cry to Him again he made holy sacrifice to God and prayed for God’s protection over them while they had gathered in His name.  Why did Samuel have to tell the people to cry unto God, this should have been a given and if they had been sincere in their commitment to a relationship with God they would have already been on top of the sacrificial and holy ceremony that Samuel had to complete as well.  Israel is proof positive that if we are really seeking a relationship with God our sincerity shall never come into question with the important parties involved in such relationship.  Sincerity should never take a period of twenty years to engage, twenty years and even a lifetime to grow but never to begin.

Even after a major defeat in a battle, a long time under another rule, specific displays of God’s authority in their lives and they still missed the truth about God only wanting a relationship and to live in their hearts and not just in their land.  God performs another miracle in the land where the Israelites are all gathered and the Philistines are defeated and subdued so much that they never reached certain parts of Israel again.  Samuel then places a stone in a specific spot to serve as a reminder of what the sincerity of God did for Israel so that they would never forget who God is and where He longs to dwell.  In a very short time, we see that Israel’s sincerity was not very sincere at all for they eventually wished to join the ranks of the common and wanted a physical and earthly king instead of God being their total guidance and presence of separation.

It is this place where this nation stands today and it has become clear that we wish nothing to do with God and anything that He wishes for our lives.  We have decided to become independent through the means of self-guidance yet cannot seem to break the standard of the world through our worldly laws.  We scream and protest over not getting our way yet fail to see the underlying truth as to why our nation is in the state that it is in.  It is obvious that we do not want a leader who is protective of the Word of God nor do we want to ensure the safety of our lives on a continual basis.  Freedom to live as is a disastrous bill and declaration for we do not understand what authority we are giving to the king of this world over our lives.  God’s separation for His people from the world is the only way that we shall live in peace and harmony with others, but for some reason, we believe we can change the eternal order of death that rules this kingdom.

Israel came to this exact standstill and accepted the same action as we are currently, a grave mistake of greed and selfish acceptance that had millennia of consequences that are still aching the nation of Israel today.  The sincerity of Israel obviously was directed towards the world and the acceptance of their ideas that if they were like all others that they could manipulate their enemies into a friendly status, this was not the case then and it definitely is not the case today.  God and the sincerity of His existence inside our hearts provide the only way that one can achieve peace lasting long enough to make a difference in the lives of others.  Until we figure out that the separation of our lives needs to be from the world and not God our nations will be subject to divine destruction due to our choice of sincerity. 

No longer can we afford to believe that the world is more sincere in its efforts than God and there is no way that we can contend that by aligning with the world our sincerity can line up with God either.  Church it is a farce to believe that we can keep one hand holding on to God and the other holding onto the world.  As God’s Word declares He cannot inhabit sin and as long as we hold the hands of the world we are tied to sin.  God wants us to let go of the world and to trust Him for He is the origins of truth and love and the only way that we shall ever understand this way of life is to grab hold of both of His hands and turn our eyes towards Him.  This is the meaning of repentance and the understanding of sincerity through the restoration process that God provides.

DLB

Where Is Your Faith?

Where Is Your Faith?

1/29/17

Faith is usually deemed as an entity that applies to religion or some type of religious organization and on occasion, this word refers to God Himself.  But it is important to understand that there are two kinds of faith and all of us possess both of these types in our lives.  What we fail to understand is that one faith represents life and the other faith represents death.  In other words, each type of faith represents a kingdom and which kingdom a person accepts into their lives is the one that they recognize.  Which is where the title of this message originates and it is a vital question that will define our eternal positioning and one that should be understood on all angles.  For if we do not we shall have no faith in true life and only in a representation of doom.

It is common to support some kind of team or cause during our time on earth.  There is nothing wrong with this and most people around the world share this action of humanity.  Ever since I was a kid I have enjoyed soccer, American football, basketball, etc and while doing so I developed a favorite team in each of these sports.  When a person finds a team to support we have a tendency to place all faith in that team and expect them to overcome all obstacles to beat their opponent.  If we did not have this type of faith in a favorite team we could not truthfully acknowledge that we supported said, team.  A person who has complete faith in a team or organization will endure bad years just as faithful ass they will during good years and take on any other opinion that differs from theirs.  But what type of faith is this and will it have any overall life bearing qualities that will last?  The answer to that is easy to retain, yet it seems like more and more our world demands that we keep this type of finite faith in tow and throw out all other long lasting holdings.

When I was a kid the football team that I liked the most was the Miami Dolphins.  I had never lived in Miami nor had I ever been to that city but for whatever reason, I liked and supported that team.  My parents bought me Dolphins jackets, hats, and shirts when they could and I wore them proudly as often as I could.  But at some point in my young life, my loyalties changed from the Dolphins to the Dallas Cowboys and that team I stayed loyal to for decades and did not waiver any longer.  As my heart continued to beat over the years I found myself falling away from professional American football altogether and began to embrace soccer.  Did this change in my worldly faith in sports or teams serve any eternal purpose in my life? The quick and easy answer to this question would be “no” for it has no bearing on my eternal life according to what God has given me – life, but it defines the type of faith that comes from the world and not the type of faith that represents life itself which is what God sees as faith that lives within us.

There are a number of examples in the Bible that give us what it means to have a living faith and one that God recognizes.  As we have noticed over the past few years in the messages that God has shared with us He uses Adam and Eve from the beginning as examples of those who have lost their true living faith in God (living) and placed it on the worldly issues and ideas instead.  That was followed by one of their sons (Cain) and he ended up murdering his brother due to the conflicting faith issues when it came time for sacrifices.  Did the children of Israel not learn of why they roamed the desert for 40 years?  The children of Israel provide us with ample amounts of examples of this type of worldly faith and they had direct communication with God and witnessed miracle after miracle during these times.  It was through the choices of secularism and not godly relationship as the sole reason God allowed such travesties to occur and since God is a consistent God and cannot change His Ways in any shape or form, we really need to watch our steps.

Their worldly faith became so prevalent in their lives that it eventually cost them their freedom because their eyes had become focused on earthly ideas and deemed them more important that God and His Ways, and at a specific time in their lives they were taken captive into Babylon after their temple was completely destroyed.  God allowed these horrific events to occur due to the choices that each individual or group made and trough these choices that were made defined which type of faith each setting had at that time.  Of course, there are many other instances in the Bible where people trusted fully in God and had complete faith in God and it was through this type of living faith of the living God that their lives took a different path.  That does not mean that their ways and steps were easy, but their stories tell a different ending; just ask Job.

In Matthew 14:22-33 we have a perfect example of the living faith that God recognizes as life and this type of faith is demonstrated when Jesus asks Peter to get out of the boat and come to Him on the waters.  Jesus was giving the perfect example of faith when He asked Peter to step out because Peter understood that if Jesus could walk on water so could he for Peter asked Jesus to allow him to do the same.  When Peter asked Jesus this question Peter had to be looking at Jesus which meant his eyes were strictly on Jesus and not on others or the conditions around him.  It is written that as long as Peter kept His full attention on Jesus he was doing the physically impossible and the laws of gravity did not apply to him at that moment.

But there is a huge example here of what will occur if we take our eyes off of Jesus (God) and begin to notice our surroundings.  See, as long as we are looking at God then our attention is not on us or the world but the moment we turn away and notice our surroundings, we shall not be in the same living faith as God.  As soon as Peter looked around and took his eyes off of Jesus he sank like a rock and was automatically reunited with the physical laws of gravity, in other words when you take your eyes off of God and focus them on the world we are immediately subject to every worldly condition that surrounds us.  This is why it is important that we hide the Word of God in our hearts and to know His Word as much as possible for if we do not our eyes will focus on other things.

Matthew 17:20 also provides us with another great example of living faith through the talk that Jesus was giving to His disciples about them not being able to cast out a demon from a man.  It was obvious that the disciples had no real faith in what Jesus had taught them for the faith that they had was not alive for anything that the devil occupies cannot represent life and the Kingdom which Jesus represents cannot offer anything but life.  Jesus uses the example of a mustard seed and when a seed is planted into the correct soil it shall grow into the plant or tree from which it originally came.  God created us in His image which means that we are a part of Him, more intimately since God breathed into us His spirit and we became a living soul.  We represent life and so we have a living faith that is a part of us but if we do not believe in this faith (God) it becomes a dormant faith and cannot be a part of God.

One of the major projects of restoration from God is the restoration of living faith.  There is no question that each disciple witnessed countless miracles when Jesus walked the earth and no doubt they heard endless teaching sessions about why He was here on earth and how important it was for them and their futures to tell of such faith origins.  It is also known that all of Jesus’ disciples had doubts from time to time and one disciple never understood living faith.  So if the ones who walked, talked and ate with Jesus had problems with living faith how much more difficult is it for those of us who did not have the opportunity to live during Jesus’ earthly years to harbor living faith?  Could we be just as the Israelites were in their captivity and begin to write their own individual Torahs and thus create their own religious beliefs instead of fulfilling the truth about having the Word of God hidden in their hearts?  In their captivity, they even created another ethnic group which Jesus dealt with and mended centuries later.

We must also never forget that there are two kingdoms that are vying for our eternal placement and through this truth, we must accept that there are two types of faith that we can populate and we cannot mistake the one from this world as the true faith.  If we continue to harbor the wrong faith we will end up in the same setting as Judas and see no opportunity to seek restoration, which is a complete lie from Satan and his defeated kingdom.  Judas came to the point in his dead faith that he could no longer recognize Jesus for who He was and why He was on the earth even though he was with Jesus almost every day.  It is this dead faith that the world feeds us and it is this dead faith that if we as a nation continue to invite in our hearts shall force God to do the unthinkable to this land.

So far the greatest disaster that this planet has witnessed occurred when water completely covered the earth as a source of restoration process due to the wickedness of dead faith that humanity had chosen.  We have accounts of similar tragedies in the Bible and in secular history of these phenomenon occurring without seemingly provocation, but there was an underlying dead faith in the hearts of those nations that gave nothing in defense when trials arrived.  This nation has adopted the same dead faith today and if we do not stop and allow God to change our faith into a Job-like faith that continually lives inside us, this nation shall reap the dead as it indwells dead faith.  Why does it take such travesties for humanity to understand that they are not in control over their existence, then at some point down the road turn away from our Creator again; the cycle does not end unless they choose to continue to have living faith instead of dead faith.

The point that God is making here is that in order for us to understand what He is saying to His people relies on the fact that the faith that He authorizes should be one that is alive and will have nothing in common with dormancy.  In every example that the Bible gives concerning faith, it places a person’s desires and motives in the forefront and is eventually called out when the time arises for faith to be shown.  It is easy for us to lose sight of God’s faith in our lives, and while this is a dangerous opportunity that many take it is a common one.  I have to include myself in this equation because at times my faith diminishes enough that I doubt what god has called me to do.  Then when things come together and another message is delivered, I spend a specific amount of time kicking myself for lacking the faith in what God is saying to me to help others.  I pray that one day my faith shall be consistent and strong enough to never question or doubt God and His words, for it is His Life that all of us need in order live eternally.

As the children of Israel found out many times in the Old Testament, when faith in God dwindles enough to have eyes shift to the world it is not just a single group that is affected, it is the entire nation that eventually is included in the disobedience.  While it is tough for us to understand why God does such things in this manner we must understand that if He does not include all, then He would be considered biased and therefore not just.  It is this pattern that this nation faces if we do not change our hearts and return to Him.  It does not matter who is in charge of this nation because when our hearts rely on earthly faith we shall ignore God and His ways and then we have to feel the consequences of this choice of ours.  Now is the time that we repent and return God to our hearts and then we can once again understand and know the correct security that shall bring true protection and eternal covering to this nation, both individually and nationally.

For quite a while now it has been made clear that the majority of the people in this country have chosen to ignore God and to keep their faith based solely on ourselves.  God beckons us to drop this limited knowledge and return to the One who can give us extraordinary faith when tough times occur.  It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that this nation is going through a continuous stress period and from all indications, it does not look like it shall end anytime soon.  This can only mean one thing, that our faith has been placed on mankind and not God.  As stated above about faith and how is it does not matter who is in charge of the country because if we do not choose God first and place His living faith in our hearts at all times it shall not matter who is in charge for all shall fail and a deepening division shall soon follow.  God is the ONLY answer and His Ways are the true ways that we need to have in our hearts.  What will be your legacy of faith?  Will it be a living one or one that is limited to selfish means?

DLB

The Roof Over Your Head

The Roof Over Your Head

1/28/17

Many of us have heard this phrase being used in various ways and when we hear it always refers to our house and the covering that we usually take for granted.  A roof is a provision which stands for covering and the top which keeps the elements from falling directly on our lives.  God’s Word provides us with a perfect example of this covering and just like the physical a covering that many of us take for granted and one that we ignore on a constant basis.  Until we return to this covering our existence in the world’s perils shall rise and present horrific challenges that can be skipped.  If we return to God and His Ways and live completely under this roof our lives shall be full of joy and happiness as the world continues to follow its path of destruction.

When I was growing up I lived in many houses due to the profession of being a pastor’s kid.  While moving had some disadvantages, the majority of my growing up life has great memories and some of these great memories came in the form of the houses which we lived.  I never had a lack of a roof over my head even when I lived in a town where danger literally surrounded my every move.  I never was cold at night and unless I was camping with the church kids group I never had the opportunity to have raindrops land on my head.  I guess I could say that I am one of the lucky ones who grew up not knowing homelessness or lacking a proper house and I am so grateful for that even though I never really gave thanks to God and to my parents for this basic covering.  Even with this little bit of new information, the appreciation of what my parents did and still continue to do today thrills me beyond belief and I want both of them to know that I love them and that I am so proud of them for not only providing for me all those years but also showing me the truth about God’s Word every day of my life.

This morning I was reading one of my overdue library books about the Medieval Church world and as I was reading I also had one of my distractions up on the computer, a social website.  A movement on the screen caught my peripheral eye and I turned my head and saw a picture of a house, more specifically a roof of a house and it was at this point where God gave me the message of this article.  I did not hesitate one bit and began to jot down the words that He gave me and immediately began to open the program on which I write.  As I sat there staring at this picture of a simple roof, I could not believe that I had missed this concept all this time but for whatever reason God kept this message title and subject until this moment for a reason; however, to be honest, right at this moment I cannot even remember seeing another reference of this obscure page on this website before.  It is a beautiful message and one that once again proves that the Word of God is current, living in the present and specific for each one of our lives.

Building items is not an uncommon theme in the Bible for its references start in Genesis and mentioned all the way to the end of Revelation so one must believe that building items and more specifically a house is of a vital importance.  Of course, the Bible days did not have all of the modern technological advantages that we do today, but the concept of a covering over a place of residence was already in place during those times.  Stop and think about it for a moment, why would anyone build a flood underneath them and walls around them but have no covering from the things that could fall from above them?  It is a concept most simple yet when one sees pictures of old church buildings, houses, and stores it is the roof that is missing while the walls and flooring are the objects still present.  Even in the ancient deserts of the Middle East, it is the walls of the stone buildings and fortresses that remain, the roofs are gone.  Could this be a sign of how important it is for humans to have a sound roof over their heads and what occurs if one does not uphold its integrity?

In Genesis, we have the beginnings of how marriages in Jewish life unfolded.  It was a specific process which placed covenant at the forefront of the process and which required the male involved to build an adequate house for the bride to be.  The house had to be completely finished and inspected by the father of the bride and approved before the marriage was allowed to finalize.  Many other aspects of the wedding vows had to be completed during this time but if the house was not properly made, no wedding would take place until such a time of adequate house conditions.  Even back in those days a roof was an important part of the completion of this process and necessary in order for the couple to be married.  This process continues today for a contractor, landowner, or any other development company or bank cannot say that a house is ready until all inspections have been completed and approved.  Since a marriage is imminent in our family, this concept and truth cannot be of greater importance because when God is at the center of such a building nothing can stand against it.

When Jesus walked the earth, houses were present along with many other types of buildings that proudly bore elaborate rooftops.  We still have some examples of these buildings that stand today and serve proof that an adequate roof is part of the successful building project.  So, why would God leave out this portion of our eternal completeness?  How could He warrant our lives special if He did to provide such a vital piece of our Creation?  He did even from the beginning God has provided His children with every aspect of safety that we need but it has always been our choice to either live under this protection or not and as we study His Word we have plenty opportunities to learn about what occurs in our lives when we do not choose His Ways.

The covering began in the Garden of Eden and then increased when God made an eternal Covenant with mankind, another example of being separated from this world and living under the protection of God at all times.  Israel missed the importance of this truth and while they understood its meaning and ways they never fully understood its eternal and spiritual guidance that are needed to incorporate God’s full protection and covering.  That is ok, for today we are still following in their footsteps because we have lost sight of how important it is that we live under the roof of God’s protection as well.  Just as the children of Israel did so long ago, we have chosen not even to live in the house that God has built for us and instead chose to live in a cardboard shanty that we call “home”.  What is so sad is that while we are lying in our shanties, we look out and see the real buildings that God has provided for us and scream and shake our fists at them, a human trait that I find most intriguing.

I have heard people say that they struggle with some of the truths that are in the Bible and how they do not pertain to them today.  God’s Word is all about you and I and how God has provided a way for us to be separated from this world.  Some of these processes that we study can be kind of harsh and unrealistic at first glance but when studied those aspects can be applied to our lives so that we may avoid those consequences and live differently according to what history reveals.  God does not do anything without a purpose, He cannot for if He did He would not be able to consider Himself an able God, but only an idol god.  Each spiritual second of God’s eternal existence has had a direct purpose of fulfillment and He shall never change this truth.  This means that His Word serves us as a guide about how He shall protect us and how important it is for us to heed His housing ways and the reasons as to why He has these specifics.

The roof is the most important aspect of the house of covering for it covers the occupants’ heads from the incoming elements and from the enemy’s lobbing objects.  The roof that God built also serves as the living cover that He ordained as the final step in having a completed house for His children.  Because of our limited scope and finite minds, there is no way possible that we could ever construct any facility that would be worthy of living in God’s eyes and heart.  That is why it makes perfect sense that the final covering would come from both God and the human to serve as the roof covering of completion.  This also proves that God has only one way to Him and that there can be no other way to complete the house in which He provided for our protection and separation.

In the Old Testament, we have many mentions of one who would come and save the world and provide a covering so that we may have access to God once again.  In the Gospels of the New Testament, we have God’s Son who walked the earth and had a tremendous ministry while His days commenced.  We also have in these letters the truth about how He was betrayed and sent to be slain according to the requests of mankind, but what is missed by many is that it was through this act that when His blood was shed He completed the roof of the house of protection and separation that is required by God.  It is the blood of Christ that covers us and allows God’s eyes to see nothing but perfection even though we do not possess one ounce of such element in our lives.  This truth is an act of living faith that we hold in our hearts as the ultimate source of eternal life and choose to live under at all times.

In the epistles of the New Testament, we find that humanity and our reasoning of interpretation had come into play and it is through these letters we see that the authors are dealing with the  Church and trying to subdue the interpretations that the people chose to accept instead of the truth about God.  While I find it very interesting to see people trying to interpret the covering of Jesus’ blood, what I find more concerning is that they fail to realize that they cannot complete such activity but only voluntarily move out from under that protection through such actions.  The path to God has been completed and the roof of covering was perfectly provided by God which cannot be changed or altered.  The roof that God has provided is simple, true, pure and holy in all ways and serves to finalize our separation from the world according to God and His eyes.  The completeness of the Word of God continues with this magnificent fact and gives those who doubt another piece of truth (completeness) that they can rely on when times become hard.  This aspect and truth should also embolden the Church to proclaim the witness of God to mankind and solidify how important God’s provisions are for our existence.  It is not for us to change the settings of this truth and if we try to change such truth the only result that we can expect will be a disaster. 

It is vital that we understand that the reason why God has completed this living space for our lives is that there is an eternal war that is raging for our existence.  The enemy sees his opportunity when he notices that we are peering out from underneath our protection.  His enticements conceal his true meaning and when we expose ourselves enough and for long enough, he shall strike with a convincing blow that can eternally damn us with his type of separation instead of God’s type.  The most defenseless position a person in combat can have is from above for we cannot stop any incoming projectiles unless we have an adequate roof of protection overhead.  The walls of our house and the foundation under our feet along with the protective headgear of the Armor of God is of the most importance, but unless we continually have the blood of Christ covering our lives our defense shall be flawed and we will succumb to the enemy sure as shooting.

This is why it is so important to have the entire Armor of God on and in our lives.  And most important that we claim the blood of Christ for what it represents and not what we can make it according to our wants.  The blood of Christ completes the roof that is over our head and serves as the key in God’s eyes to His holiness in our lives.  We can no longer afford to believe that we understand everything there is to know about the blood of Christ.  We must study its divine covering in its everlasting and living capacity for when we understand that Jesus’ blood is alive we will understand that we do not need to have preventative maintenance on it for it is constant and adequate at all times, ever since its Creation and establishment by God.

Church stop trying to accommodate the world by using the blood of Christ as a catch-all covering, this is not what why Jesus died for our sins.  Jesus died to serve as the final protection to separate us from the world and not to join its earthly societal admissions.  When we allow Jesus’ blood to cover us it provides the ultimate covering that we need in order for God to know that our hearts are still under His authority.  When God sees our sin first that means we have stepped out from under His house and when more hearts are out from under the blood roof covering, God also understands who our hearts trust and believe.  It is time for us to return to the blood covering without hesitation and interpretations.  Submit our lives completely to God and lose all selfish wants from His Word and God has promised to heal our land when we have His son’s blood over our heads.  In the end, no matter how we look at what God has provided, it is always about the cross.

DLB

Fast Food Churches

Fast Food Churches

1/24/17

What a topic to have as a message from God, eh.  But this topic is one that has direct communication issues with God and the founder of the Church His Son Jesus.  How can one claim to belong to such an organization that is in and out so fast that everything has a time limit so that they can beat the lunch line at the local cafeteria?  When we worship God we should be completely involved where time is not a factor, for when we rush through services we place God in a box, a building if you please instead of allowing Him to minister to our hearts.  This is one of the major issues that our stomachs have for God and when serving Him in this capacity, it literally turns His stomach.

As one can tell by the title the subject of fast food will be on the menu; I know, bad joke.  I am in no way attacking these establishments nor am I against them for I patron these places from time to time.  It is a convenient matter that sometimes our lives demand that we have a fast and ready meal instead of a meal that takes longer to prepare and then eat.  I do not know about your house but almost every time we eat at a fast food place our stomachs and subsequently our digestive tracts suffer, not from the food itself but how it is prepared and the difference from the home cooked meals that we usually have.  It passes quickly but it is what remains in our minds when the thought of returning to such of an establishment that has the more resounding effect on our future.  And in keeping with the pattern, while the majority of the time the food at fast food places is acceptable, there is always one experience of bad taste that always is kept in the back of our minds.

While this setting can be conjured to just a physical quality of life, one can contend that church can supply the exact same setting for our spiritual lives and more likely than not will have a far longer lasting truth in our hearts than one bad experience at a fast food restaurant, even though the meals served are almost identical in nature.  Sadly, many of the modern day churches have adopted such meals to its congregants and it is through this type of placemats that are spiritually killing God’s children.  This type of adoption agency is not what God had intended for His Church and He guarantees that this type of service shall not be administered at His banquet table in heaven either.  God has never applied anything that is prepared half way or that is not good for a child of His and according to His Word, He cannot provide anything but something that is full of life.

How have we become so settled with this type of meals that we need to survive spiritually to be set before our spiritual lives?  Are we so afraid of the eternal truth that we have to sugar coat every word that we receive from God?  God’s Word is there for a reason and it was provided for us for an eternal reason and we cannot afford to lessen what the Bible states for when we do we allow our enemy to lull our spirits away from the realization of what eternity really provides.  God makes no bones about how important it is for us to follow His Word exactly and to hide His Word in our hearts so that we may follow His guide at all times.  It is this truth that we have the authority to know what God has said to His children and that we deserve better than the measly quickly prepared shortcomings that many pulpits deliver today.

A little over a month ago, our town welcomed another fast food restaurant into the confines of the city limits.  I must admit that even though this is a fast food type service setting it is a decent one and one that has a good reputation across this country and in some foreign countries as well.  It was hilarious to watch some of the comments being expressed on the local message board about how busy the place was, in fact, one of the comments said that that person believed that half the county was at the place when they drove by.  The newness of this place is what attracted many people to its grand opening with expected first days after its doors opened, and when I was reading these comments it was then that God dropped a few meaningful words about what was being served in many churches into my heart.  I must say the same type of atmosphere has been witnessed when another denominational church provides a new pastor or even opens up altogether; sad, but the truth.

There is no doubt about it that when a person eats at home it will always be cheaper and better for the family than eating out.  It does not matter if a family eats out only once a week, that specific meal, one that feeds the family adequately, will always be more expensive than feeding the family at home; even if it is the exact same menu prepared at home it will be cheaper.  It is the verse of the Lord’s Prayer that comes into play here and it serves our needs correctly both on the physical and spiritual side of our lives.  Having our daily bread requires our own effort, work needed in order to fulfill and to fill our stomachs with the necessary energy to combat the day, the same goes for the spiritual aspect of our lives as well and it is obvious that both aisles of the food encounters are making us anemic for the correct nutrients we need.  So, once again, God asks the question to His children, why do you settle for the same type of worthless food choices for your spiritual food as well?

I remember when I was a young teenager, it was popular to go to church and it was no big deal to proudly and loudly proclaim which church you attended.  Christianity was a good quality to have in the land and it was socially acceptable in almost every community; however, when some of the prominent leaders of the denominations began to fall from the glory which is of Rome, the once popular church community fell into an unsecured position of hypocrisy which she has never really recovered.  At the time I failed to recognize what actually had transpired during this time frame and once I began to study church history I realized that it was not just that time period (1980s) but that type of falling away had been present ever since the Early Church had been present.  The popular attraction of something new almost always grabs the attention from enough people to swell the masses to that establishment, and churches are no exception when it comes to this fact.  It is through this process that many good intentions fall and become shambles because the priorities of the leaders are misconstrued and can only produce a fast food service.  The people become disillusioned and settle for such a service which leads to an underserved eternal lifeline.

When a church begins to feed the attracted masses with this type of superficial food from the Word of God only bad things can result and if this fast food service of the Bible continues it shall provide shallow defenses against the enemy and spiritually starve the child of God from the nutrients that we need in order to spiritually survive.  It may seem like our spiritual stomachs are full but we are not being spiritually fed enough to maintain our stamina against our enemy much less carry the full armor of God either.  Talk about counting the cost, a superficial message may be quick and easy but in the long run, it shall cost a person their spiritual placement for eternity, so in the end which type of food is more costly?

When I was in Africa, every church service I attended including the large crusade services I witnessed hours and hours of people worshipping God and had no care in the world about anything else during that time.  Some of these same types of services here in the States would go on in this type of manner as well and then have a “family” potluck that would last until evening service time.  Services were not farmed or formed out and then quickly subverted because of varying places that the people believed that they needed to be rather than the house of God.  Ear tickling messages were not heard by those who were in the pews, a quality sermon from God’s Word for His people was delivered, a message that one could remember and count on to help them as their week rolled along.

How can a human body survive on ingesting this type of food on a regular basis?  There was a show on television not too long go that portrayed a man that would go around and eat at certain popular restaurants just to sample their menu, or to eat a portion of food that made that particular restaurant famous.  This man became overweight within a short period of time and after the series had ended he admitted that his diet needed to be changed and that he had become sluggish and continually did not feel well.  Does this sound familiar to anyone who has struggled with the quality of food service coming from pulpits?  It should because many pulpits are filled with this type of teaching and feeding and through this type of service the Church is dying spiritually and is about to be cut off at the head for she is already on her knees and it is not in front of her Creator either.

Fast food churches serve a selfish purpose and unlike a spiritually fed church, it cannot survive against the world so it follows the world instead.  A pulpit that provides this type of food does not stand in the confines and guidance of God’s Word, it cannot because, throughout the entire Bible, God made it clear that His children should be separate from the masses and not be in cahoots with the world and its provisions.  This type of pulpit strives to superficially provide lies to the church body, both the spiritual and physical included.  Yes, for the most part, a popular message will attract people and it might just might, increase the tithe a tad but most importantly the condition of the Church is deteriorating because the food provided is processed and not fresh and alive.

A good message from the Bible, one that has truth and holy meat, shall do more good to the child of God than any superficial, denominational agenda packed falsity prepared by Satan himself, for the Word of God can only provide life and the life that it provides can withstand any time frame which makes it eternal and everlasting, not weak or conflicting.  God is not a whimsical idea that is here one minute and gone the next but an eternal being that has given His Word as a source of eternal knowledge.  He can only provide the best meals according to what our bodies require, both spiritual and physical.  Home prepared meals are the best and when a stomach receives such a meal, the energy that is obtained can be seen with each step we take.  God’s Word is the exact same and the world can see what God is doing in our lives if we have studied His Word for one cannot hide the difference or the change from others around us.  It is our duty to provide a good spiritual meal to those who need it, so why do we settle for such fast food from the pulpit? 

Church, take a good look at what kind of food you are being served, for it is impossible for us to complete our mission if we are out of energy before we even step foot on the battlefield.  We can no longer afford to sit and hear fast food messages, we need the Word of God back into our hearts and if we do not begin to receive this food we shall never receive the goodness of God’s Word and fulfill His one command.  Repent Church and turn our pulpits back into lights and as a servant of God’s Word of good and healthy food delivery.  Times are about to get hard for everyone and if we are not spiritually prepared for this battle, not only will our personal lives be lost but our spiritual ones as well.  God’s Word serves as His table of life and we all need to be seated at His table which means that what our pulpits serve must be compatible with what God wants us to understand.  We must never forget that the Church is a Covenant institution and according to the origins of God's Covenant with mankind, there can never be anything superficial of "fast food like" about this process on any level.

DLB