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

God's Timing

God's Timing

6/27/21

Humans have an ugly problem with timing, or most of us do with hardened schedules being the stable foundation of our lives.  How many times have we followed such routines and come to find out that even though our schedule may say one thing another actually takes place.  Routines become habits and habits become dependencies upon which we allow to become dictations instead of suggestions.  So, when things do not pan out as we believe or what we have been told we become angry and then doubt the further words from those sources.  The methods and calculations that we place of God and His timing are presented in the same way, we continually place God on human timelines which is a bad order to place God within.  God always sees His timeline and nothing else and it is this pattern that He wants to remind us that He is in control of everything and not you or I, another concept that humanity struggles to deal with.

For as long as I can remember, the jobs that I have had always gave a schedule out to guide when and where I would work.  Sometimes the schedule would be made for a month at a time and other times it would be made for two or three months at a time.  For the most part, this type of future knowledge is a good idea for it allows people to make plans for time off but on occasion, those time-off plans are messed up with sicknesses, deaths, or any other incident that would require schedule changes.  We can live with these short-term switcheroos and gladly help out a fellow coworker in need.  But how do we feel about the times when something that has been guaranteed to occur doesn't according to how we look at things or in a certain known pattern?  It is these times that make our minds and hearts send questions to our life processes and potentially stir up anxiety levels.

What does this type of scenario tell us about ourselves?  And if we include God and what He says to us into the equation, how do we justify things when they do not go as planned, or at least how we perceive them to be planned?  These questions if lingered long enough will definitely become doubts which will then lead to deeper issues of separation from God more likely.  Waiting upon the Lord to do what He says He will do in a society that moves faster every day will be difficult if our hearts and minds are not totally fixed in His Word. To be totally fixed upon God takes us into a different place than what the world operates in, it shapes us to leave our earthly beliefs and directs us into the truth about us not being from here but just passing through.  We see this activity in Jeremiah and when we understand that God may not always show up on our timeline, He does have His own timeline and when the time is just perfect, His presence abounds.

The passage for this article demonstrates that when God says something He will do it, but not according to what mankind believes.  Patience is not many of our strong points and this truth is evident every day.  Impatience is a deadly force that we listen to when waiting on God should be the course of action.  Our passage is Jeremiah 1:1-3, a simple yet informative passage that shows us exactly what it means to go through God's timing.

Jeremiah 1:1-3

"The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin.  To whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.  It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month."

Hebrew

"[These are] the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests in Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin.  The word of the LORD came to [Jeremiah] in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah  son of Amon king of Judah, and through the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, until the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile."

This passage seems to be just one of those chronicles of time that the Bible has been famous for, another portion where we read it but do not pay too much attention to, some may even call it boring and skip over it all together.  But it holds a key presence in how God works and how we should consider just how gracious God is in that He gives people time to repent before He must act His judgment upon them and on their land.  We cannot ignore the fact that are some serious timelines that pass through these three verses and all three of them reflect upon one theme, and that is God's Word comes forth through Jeremiah about the impending devastation of Judah.

One of the signs of impatience is that we begin to relax our hesitations and worries toward what we have heard to be true.  Right at the moment, there are prophecies about President Trump that have stirred many emotions in our lives.  Through our impatience, we have dropped off the level of intensity - further - and have publicly and loudly criticized those prophets and people who have declared the Word of the Lord in this matter as liars, or that they missed what God was "actually" saying.  This type of belief is exactly what Jeremiah faced each day of his life as a prophet.  God asks a question here: how much of our jobs do we get accomplished when we live in such an impatient state and how much are we truly waiting on God during this time?  That answer is easy, for not much to both portions of that question.

We must remember that in the days of Jeremiah there were prophets that did not have the faith in God that they needed, nor did they want to have faith in God either.  They were the popular prophets who always said good and kind things about God, and how God would protect them and never allow things to occur to the people or to the land.  These prophets were many and constantly contradicted what God was REALLY saying to the people through Jeremiah.  These other prophets were present for show only and truly acted as thieves for their words of worldly comfort served as stealing of what was coming to the people.  This setting provides us with a great picture of thievery and how if it is not dealt with adequately and quickly shall grow into a presence of great magnitude that with having the authority to destroy an entire nation.

Once again, we have the picture and related question of: Are our hearts fully committed to what God has ordained for our lives, or are we distracted from what we are waiting for in the first place?  In this passage, we should clearly see that Judah's heart was waiting on what the popular prophets were saying and not what God was telling them, a situation that is so attractive in our lives today as well.  These suitable words reassured the people of Judah that they could continue their ways without the fear of any retribution from God and that what Jeremiah was saying while true, was not completely accurate.  They placed their hopes and trusts on the enemies around them to be easy on them and to shy away from them, you know, be on their same level of existence.

Jeremiah never waivered from what God shared with him to say to Judah.  This process was not an overnight Word from God, it too was the original Word and stayed the same as time went along.  How long did Jeremiah proclaim such a message?  I am glad you asked because it is the focal point of what God wants us to hear today.  As you read these three verses there are some kings mentioned, all of them were sons of Josiah.  One may believe that this might not be a long period of time but in reality, it was.  When you add all of the reigns of these kings together, it comes up to 53 1/2 years forty of which were actual days of Jeremiah's speaking, and when you put it in these terms his preaching of what God said was longer than the Children of Israel were in the wilderness.  This should also tell us something, that the Children of Israel did not learn much while they were walking in the wilderness for all that time because if they had learned anything it had been put aside again for this time around it was a longer period of time before God had to step in and do something about the direction of their hearts.

The end of verse three gives us the ultimate plan of God upon Judah.  There is no way possible that anyone could say that God did not give Judah plenty of time to change their hearts for there was an incredible amount of time for this process to occur, but one should also recognize that when God says something He already knows what the possibilities will be, a truth that should strike fear into every heart.  Also, when we look at the timeframe in these three verses, we must consider that this amount of time was approximately an entire life span of a person, some lived to be what we would consider being as old folks but not the majority.  God allowed over half a century to pass until He fulfilled His Word, Jeremiah never stopped preaching the truth and doing his best to get the people of Judah to turn from their ways.

Today, the Church has fallen to the wayside through listening to what is popular instead of what is Truth, and for those who are spiritually watching and listening they understand these two statements to be correct.  Today, just as in the time of Jeremiah, many people label unpopular prophets as liars, scoundrels, trouble makers, or any other derogatory labels in order to "put them in their place".  This concept now being presented by the Church is a result of laziness in believing in the Word of God and fulfilling its promises and truths concerning God's Son.  Judah portrayed the exact same sin and over a period of time began to apostatize God and form their own futile and weak, feeble religion with their own personalities their deities.  What is the difference today?  Of course, we would expect this type of activity from the world but from the commissioned Church of Jesus?  Man, humans are so predictable sometimes.

How do we view those people who are visibly on fire for God?  How many of us shy away from them when they approach us or how about, we turn and tell others around us that they are crazy and not to be taken literally?  I believe that a great number of us fall into that category.  It is this type of acting that proves God is alive and will show anyone who wishes how things will become when His prized creations do not live for Him or believe in His Word.  Church, stop for a moment and take a look at our heart, it is sick and dark in color with a disease that pours out from our lives with an eternal stench that no one can deny.  God shall strike us due to the fact that we have chosen the ways of the world instead of HIm, and this striking shall be more difficult and thorough than what the world shall receive for a wicked servant God cannot stand.

I have no idea when this strike shall occur, nor do I understand what kind of method God shall use in order to crumble our selfish temple; however, I DO know that He shall do this someday soon.  No, I am not saying that it shall occur tomorrow, next week, or even next year but it could be, for God's timing is His business and in that moment of reckoning we shall all face the music.  Humans have an absurd image of control when it comes to God and life abundantly, we believe that we should constantly use the gifts of God for ourselves and shun those who need them a gross injustice when it comes to the law of sowing and reaping.  The portion we forget about is that if we do not share what God gives us then we place our lives and eternal placement in danger according to the judgment of God.  Jeremiah preached this truth to Judah, they ignored it.  Many preachers and prophets today have preached the exact same thing, and we too have ignored it.  So, yes, God's timing is on His watch and only He shall know the time and place to set our destruction in motion and just how severe "Jerusalem" shall fall.

DLB

No Combat Presence

No Combat Presence

6/22/21

Why is it vital to make sure we know how to fight properly when it comes time to defend what is correct?  More importantly, why is it that we have such a fear of being in battle, do we think that we will win this eternal fight through our names alone?  God has stated many times in His Word that what we face each day is a battle and that we need to make sure we understand our enemy well enough to outmaneuver his attacks; but, we cannot do this if we do not fight the enemy face to face and gain experience while these battles occur.  We cannot be defenseless or any type of pacifist for what we face each day is a war for our lives and if we do not listen to God and understand His Words of victory we shall eternally die.  Combat experience on the battlefield means the difference between life and death and God has provided us with the battle plan for eternal living, not eternal death.

There are not too many people in the world that actually prepare themselves for war every day, not even the active-duty military personnel do this on a continual basis.  Not many people admire taking aim at another human being in anger or as a means to defend themselves from an attacker or combatant enemy.  However, when the person aiming at another has proper training it should be too difficult to make sure that the situation is handled quickly and accurately without any large foul-ups.  Sometimes, however, even though nothing is done incorrectly, human armies realize that they are outnumbered or have been tactically outmaneuvered and must surrender.  It is at this time that many continue to hold their heads high and silently say that one day they will fight again, somewhere and somehow.

Some of you may remember the series "Band Of Brothers" and how towards the end of the final episode a scene took place where a German General gave a final speech to his troops.  In this scene, he commends them for a good fight and how proud he was of them due to their bravery for such a long time.  He also stated that they should be proud of their accomplishments and how they also should be proud of their fellow brothers that they lived with day and night.  They formed a bond with each other that even though in defeat would continue to hold true and firm for as long as they live.  This scene was one of the more somber and sobering settings of the series but was necessary in order to ensure that all aspects of the series were properly covered.

The experiences that each one of the soldiers took back with them to their families would remain in their hearts and minds until the day they drew their last breath.  It changed their lives in a certain way that is hard to explain to those who have not been in combat, sometimes one that can never be properly told.  When people who experience combat and continually are on the losing end of battles and skirmishes, they tend to become bewildered and even approach the suicidal point of aggression to the extreme where they turn on each other and take their frustrations out on their own comrades.  Soldiers should be trained well enough and have enough battle experience to recognize such conditions and avert such problems through recognition before it arrives and takes over the front lines.  The same type of atmosphere can occur when the fight is heated and the majority of the troops involved have little or no combat experience, a sad sight to watch unfold but occurs more often than one thinks.  

It is the lack of experience of combat that God wants us to talk about here, for even though we are supposedly tired of fighting these days, the true battle has not hit our lives just yet.  The reason that the battle has not reached us yet is that we have been sitting around in our pews playing video games instead of being out in the streets (spiritual) conducting war against our enemy, and it is this lack of experience that is going to cost many people's eternities when the battle is brought to us.  God has made His battle plan quite clear to those who have been in His places of worship and just as Job experienced it shall be God who allows such things to occur in our lives very soon.  Unless we figure out that a devastating attack is imminent, the future for many will end soon.  This fact is a huge issue here and it is being portrayed in the Church as something that will not occur at all; a false sense of security.

It is difficult for me to believe that any church member (body of Christ, The Church) does not have any spiritual combat experience.  I mean, look around and it does not take very long to notice all of the attacks that the Church is undergoing, yes, even in this nation.  But the question remains is: how come not many are talking about their experiences, strengthening others through these times of combat?  The answer is quite clear, we walk around such opportunities or turn our heads the other way when they approach which nullifies any time of the spiritual head-to-head battle that should be taken.  Also, this lack of spiritual battle positioning is not being addressed in the church buildings either, which means that this assessment about no battle experience is correct.  Talk about a divided state when considering the mission of the Church, no wonder our time is spent more in front of the television or computer screens than in the Word of God.  We should be ashamed of ourselves and rightfully embarrassed to call ourselves Christians or followers of Christ.

Steve Camp wrote a song many years ago called "Run To The Battle". It was a call of duty song in which it gave us specific instructions of what to do as Christians.  When we became Christians we automatically receive our orders and it is our responsibility to run to those who need help.  We should believe in what we profess to be true and when we believe in such eternal Truth we cannot help but have the boldness and the spiritual enthusiasm to tell others about Christ.  The passage for this article explains just exactly what God wants us to share with others, but cannot if we are battle-tested.

James 2:19

"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble."

Greek

"You believe that God is one. Good for you!  Even the demons believe [that] and shudder."

This verse gives results of what the results that the Church should have, but once again we continually see that this is not the way it is at all.  I was in the military but was never involved in any of the actual fightings but was ready at any moment to leave my comfort zone and enter the said battleground.  This placement in my life created a bond between many people that otherwise I would have no opportunity to know and to build trust.  Even though I have been out of the military for almost thirty years now, I still feel a tug of bonding when I see or read military stories about those who have served or who are currently serving.  We in the Church cannot get past which denomination (division) is best, or which one is bigger, or who carries more truth and sanctity.  Really?  No wonder we are weak and feeble at best, we have no spiritual teeth to use against the world.

James tells us that the demons believe that God is one, and they should because at one point in history they shared the same living space as God.  They know, and you know what else they know?  God has not changed from the day He created them and He shall not change ever, for any reason.  This is the reason He is one and it is for this reason that the demons shudder to think about such eternal Truth.  And we do not have the guts enough to go and explain this to those who are being tormented by such evil creatures?  This means that we do not believe the first half of this verse, thus limiting our capabilities of effectively combating the spiritual entities that have their grip on so many wonderful people.  If a defeated enemy believes that God is one why can't we agree on the same thing?  This should be a no-brainer, folks.

This also gives us a very disturbing detail about the battle scenes that have been fought, are being fought today, and those that will be fought in the future.  These destructive and evil spirits know that God is one, which means that not only have they been in the presence of God they have also fought against His people as well.  If these evil spirits can come to an agreement about God, it means that they have had the decency to follow their ruler even though it is for a lost cause they have their mission to fulfill.  Um, why are we not doing the same?  How do we know this fact about demons and their activity?  Look around you, so many people are influenced by demonic activity simply because they are following the orders of their ruler, yet they are defeated.  Here lies the key, if a defeated enemy is leading successful charges against others what does this tell us about the effectiveness of the other side, you know the one that is not fighting back?

Demons are combat tough and have adequate responses that should quickly be pushed back, but are not on almost every level.  It is fact, that proves the Church has no combat experience whatsoever and unless something changes God is going to have to clean our clocks with His righteousness and holiness so that we may once again complete spiritual combat missions against the enemy.  A shuddering enemy should never be allowed to claim ANY victory over any person, period!  Church, we are sick and in need of help immediately.  It is obvious that we have lost our vision and it needs to be restored.  We cannot afford to sit back and allow such wimpy losers to take over the world and destroy people's lives.  Remember, it is okay to witness to people before they have fallen to pieces, just as it is acceptable to witness to those who have fallen to pieces, BOTH are precious in the eyes of God.

Many Christians voluntarily forget that the Bible is a sword, and this sword divides the kingdom of the world's strongholds.  It does not in any way have the authority to divide people themselves, but we have sure done a pretty good job of mowing down people over the centuries, even our own.  The standard of God has been given to the Church and we have dropped that standard to make it more "appealing" to the world.  We have done a fabulous job of lowing this standard, but we have in no way lowered the Standard of God.  As I read a quote the other day and this sums up this point, it goes like this: "The Bible does not work like Facebook, where your likes or opinions matter. God's Word is true regardless, whether you agree with it or not."  So, this verse tells us that unless we are running to the battle and taking our spiritual combat experiences with us, those shuddering, defeated demons are winning.

DLB