Podcasts about his will

In today's episode, Pastor Todd shares from our Sunday PM service (10/27/25) about faith and how we should use our faith in the life of a believer.God has given EVERYONE a measure of faith, but what you do with that faith is completely up to you. It is impossible to please God without faith, but when we place our faith in His Word, His ability, & His Will for your life, NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE. Get a faith injection today with this POWERFUL message! NEW EPISODES every Monday & Friday @ Noon.https://www.facebook.com/TheRiverOfTriCities/https://www.youtube.com/@TheRiverofTriCitiesChurchhttps://www.instagram.com/rivertcchurch/?hl=enhttps://www.instagram.com/thelastdayspodcast/?hl=en

In today's episode, Pastor Todd & Katie Holmes share from our Sunday AM service (10/27/25) about faith and how we should use our faith in the life of a believer.God has given EVERYONE a measure of faith, but what you do with that faith is completely up to you. It is impossible to please God without faith, but when we place our faith in His Word, His ability, & His Will for your life, NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE. Get a faith injection today with this POWERFUL message! NEW EPISODES every Monday & Friday @ Noon.https://www.facebook.com/TheRiverOfTriCities/https://www.youtube.com/@TheRiverofTriCitiesChurchhttps://www.instagram.com/rivertcchurch/?hl=enhttps://www.instagram.com/thelastdayspodcast/?hl=en

1. Knowing Our Spiritual Blessings2. Knowing the Riches of His Grace3. Knowing the Mystery of His WillToday's sermon explored the incredible spiritual wealth that belongs to every believer in Christ. We discovered that before the foundation of the world, God chose us and predestined us for adoption as His sons and daughters. Through the riches of His grace, we have been given everything pertaining to life and godliness—not based on our merit, but according to His kind intention and will. This has profound implications for our spiritual life: we are not spiritual paupers scraping by, but heirs of God, joint-heirs with Christ, possessing every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Understanding this transforms how we view ourselves, how we face challenges, and how we extend grace to others.Takeaways:- We possess every spiritual blessing in Christ—our past is forgiven, Christ lives in us presently, and our future is secure in Heaven. God equipped each of us equally with everything we need to fulfill His purposes for our lives.- Salvation is both a divine mystery and a divine gift—God chose us before the foundation of the world, and we respond by receiving Christ. This wasn't earned through our effort but lavished upon us according to the riches of His grace.- We are called to live thankfully, not trying to earn what has already been freely given, but responding in gratitude by living holy and blameless lives that reflect His grace to a world desperately in need of it.As we go forward this week, let us remember that we are not slaves to sin but sons and daughters of the Most High God. May we embrace the fullness of what He has given us and live lives worthy of the calling we have received—not to earn His favor, but because we already have it.

Start straightening up areas where you've been disobeying God and fighting His Will – you will be spiritually motivated. The voltage level in your soul will be turned up and you will begin to shine for God. Broadcast #6928To help support this podcast, please visit walkwiththeking.org/donate and select "Podcast" from the dropdown menuA transcript of this broadcast is available on our website here. To hear more from Bob Cook, you can find Walk With The King on Facebook or Instagram.

Our Dominion in Christ (1) (audio) David Eells – 10/22/25 The sovereignty of God is manifested through those who believe the Gospel and let Jesus in them exercise dominion over this fallen creation. Some say that Jesus had dominion because He was the Son of God; therefore we cannot hope to do the same. That is not what Jesus said. It is true that Jesus was the Son of God (the spiritual man) dwelling in and empowering the son of man (the natural man, as in Rom.1:3). Jesus usually called Himself “the son of man.” They did not have the New Testament when Jesus was administering God's salvation; they had the Old Testament. Jesus always did things to fulfill the Old Testament so “the scripture might be fulfilled.” He called Himself “the son of man.” I am sure that the Jews caught on to what He was saying. They had heard that phrase, “the son of man,” in the Old Testament. Jesus said of Himself, and he gave him authority to execute judgment, because he is a son of man (Joh.5:27). Jesus did not have authority to execute judgment because He was the Son of God, but because He was a son of man. This authority was given to man. Adam and his children were given this authority, but he gave it up through sin. (Gen.1:26) And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. (27) And God created man in his own image… (28)… God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it… Meaning to have dominion over it. Adam was created in the image of God, which included having dominion. Adam and his children were to have dominion over all the earth. Adam lost that dominion for himself and his children. He actually gave it away. (Rom.6:16) Know ye not, that to whom ye present yourself [as] servants unto obedience, his servants ye are whom ye obey? Adam, through Eve, obeyed the devil and gave to him his own dominion. Adam obeyed and became the servant of sin and the devil. The devil ruled over him, the curse ruled over him, and the devil, through the curse, ruled over him. But the first Adam failed when tempted, and the last one did not. Speaking of Jesus, Paul said, The last Adam [became] a life-giving spirit (1Co.15:45). Jesus said, “The words that I have spoken unto you are spirit, and are life.” His words recreate His spirit in us who believe them. Jesus, Who is called the last Adam, is the spiritual father of the spiritual man creation. The last Adam did not fall when tempted of the devil and so took back dominion for Himself and His children. (Heb.2:5) For not unto angels did he subject the world to come (Greek: “inhabited earth”) … (6)…What is man, that thou art mindful of him? He did not put the inhabited earth under the authority of the angels, but man. Jesus came down here and took on the likeness of sinful flesh. Any angel had power and ability unlimited by flesh. Jesus was limited by flesh. The Bible says that He got tired, He hungered, and He thirsted. He was “in all points tempted like as [we]” but did not give in to sin. One reason that Jesus had to come in the likeness of sinful flesh and become a man is that God wanted Him to have this dominion and pass it on to His spiritual children. (Psa.115:16) The heavens are the heavens of the Lord; But the earth hath he given to the children of men. (1Co.15:22)… As in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. When Adam died, all the seed of mankind was in his loins; and they died, too. When the last Adam died and was resurrected, all the seed of the sons of God were in Him because He is the Word of God, the seed (Greek: sperma) that the sower went forth and sowed. So the seed of all His children was in Him when He was resurrected. Everyone who abides in Christ, or the Word, is resurrected above sin and the curse. What we are finding out through tribulation is who among the many called were chosen in Him before the foundation of the world. His children are His seed, the Word. They are the Word in flesh. (Rom.5:17) For if, by the trespass of the one (Adam), death reigned through the one; much more shall they that receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one, [even] Jesus Christ (last Adam). Adam put us under the dominion of death and the curse, but Jesus restored us. Those who have the gift of grace and righteousness are to “reign in life” through Christ. (Heb.2:6) (Quoting Psalm 8) … one hath somewhere testified saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? Or the son of man, that thou visitest him? When Jesus kept relating to the Jews that He was the son of man, a few of them had to catch on that He was applying Psalm 8 to Himself. This was spoken to both Adams and those who were in them. God gave authority to Adam and to his children. Man and the son of man are mentioned here. (Gen.1:26) … Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion… Adam lost it for himself and for his children when he fell under the dominion of the devil. The last Adam overcame and took back dominion. Jesus passed on His same authority to His disciples, who were sons of man and sons of God. They were not born sons of God; they had to be reborn sons of God through receiving the living Word. The Son of God was living in and empowering the sons of men. (Heb.2:7) (Quoting Psalm 8) Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; Thou crownedst him with glory and honor, And didst set him over the works of thy hands: (8) Thou didst put all things in subjection under his feet… This clearly means that man was meant to be a prince on this earth and rule for God over His creation. This address is to the Hebrew Christians, children of the new creation Adam. The works of God's hands here mean the elements, not just things that occur in nature. Even the things that man makes are made of God's elements. By God's grace, I have commanded cars, washing machines, refrigerators, air conditioners, microwaves, boat motors, lawnmowers, pumps, motors, and many other things to be repaired and seen it happen. Yet it was “not I, but Christ” (KJV) living in me through the Word. The reason that many do without this dominion is that they refuse to accept the Word. Proof, that the authority, that the last Adam had was passed on to His children is seen in such statements as the following: “As the Father hath sent me, even so send I you”; “what things soever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and what things soever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”; “I have given you authority… over all the power of the enemy”; “All things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive”; and “Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou taken up and cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart… he shall have it.” This is the kind of authority that Jesus passed on to all of His disciples until this day. (Heb.2:8) Thou didst put all things in subjection under his feet. (Everything was put under the feet of Jesus and His body, for we are in Him.) For in that, he subjected all things unto him, he left nothing that is not subject to him… This statement puts all things under the dominion of “man” and “the son of man” in Hebrews 2:6. Compare this statement, that all is under His feet, with another witness given in Ephesians. Jesus was promoted in (Eph.1:21) Far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: (22) and he put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church, (23) which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. Notice that Jesus is the head of the body, the Church; but God put all things under the feet of the body. We can see that even if we are the lowest members of the body, the feet, we have dominion over all things. This dominion is ours when we are abiding in the body, submitted to the head. (Joh.15:7) If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you. (8) Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and [so] shall ye be my disciples. Disciples are those who bear fruit through answered prayer because the Word abides in them. Christians who do not abide in the body in this way, and the lost who have not yet come into the body of the resurrected Christ, lost their dominion when the first Adam lost his. We have this dominion only because we abide in Him and His Word lives in us. Again in (Eph.1:22) And he put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church, (23) which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. Not only is everything put under the authority of the lowest member of the body, the feet, but also there is a historic view to this verse. In Daniel 2:31-45, we see a vision of the antichrist kingdom from the time of Daniel to today. This image was of a man whose head, breast and arms, belly, thighs, legs, and feet represented different world-ruling empires. The head was said to be the Babylonian Empire in (verses 37-38) of Daniel's day. The feet represent the last world empire of antichrist in our day. The feet of Christ or “historic view” also represent the end-time body of Christ. In other words, the feet of antichrist will do battle in these days with the feet of Christ. What Daniel knew, but most do not, is that we win! (Dan.2:34) Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon its feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them in pieces. (45) Forasmuch as thou sawest that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands…The mountain here is the kingdom of God. The stone made of it is Christ in His end time faithful remnant, which is not made with hands, meaning they are not the work of men or religion but God. This stone will smite the end-time antichrist body or feet and destroy it. Daniel declares this to be true in another vision of the end-time antichrist system. (Dan.7:26) But the judgment shall be set, and they (end-time saints) shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. (27) And the kingdom and the dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High…The kingdom of antichrist was destroyed in Egypt in order to bring God's people out of that type of the world. Pharaoh was told, Knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed? (Exo.10:7) The same judgments are spoken in Revelation for the same reason. As always, these judgments are spoken through the saints. Returning to Hebrews: (Heb.2:8) Thou didst put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he subjected all things unto him, he left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we see not yet all things subjected to him. All things have now been made subject, though we do not see this authority manifested except in small ways in a few who believe the Word in this regard. Soon, because of the latter rain and because their lives will depend upon it, saints will begin to stretch forth their faith for signs and wonders. Soon a wilderness experience is going to thrust many into a position of need where they are going to be fellowshipping with disciples with different revelations and experiences. God is going to destroy man-made religion by bringing His people into fellowship with others who have exercised their faith in these areas. Dominion will come forth because the need will be so great, God will pour out His Spirit. The saints (sanctified ones) are going to believe the Word. However, we do not have to wait because God said that He did not leave anything that was not subject to the lowest member of the body now. We can be among God's first fruits like Moses, Aaron, Joseph, Elijah, Jesus, or the man-child and saints of the end time in Revelation 12. (Joh.15:7) If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Many believe we cannot act in faith when we do not know the Will of God. If the Word is in us and we abide in Christ through faith, then “ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done.” God's Word is His Will. When the Word is in us, we know His Will and should act on it. God gave us this dominion to use it to glorify Him. (8) Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and [so] shall ye be my disciples. Answered prayer, signs and wonders, healings, deliverances, and provisions all glorify God; this is how we are disciples (Greek: “learners and followers”) of Jesus. Those who exercise this dominion over their flesh and the world are perfect by faith. We walk by faith in Jesus and are counted righteous. We are sons of God through Jesus and sons of man through Adam. We have no authority outside of God but through believing Jesus Christ. (Joh.14:12) Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater [works] than these shall he do; because I go unto the Father. (13) And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. True believers do the works of Jesus according to His Word. The condition to exercise dominion over everything is faith, not maturity. Baby Christians have simple yet powerful faith. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou taken up and cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that what he saith cometh to pass; he shall have it (Mar.11:23). The word “whosoever” includes you and me. We are called to exercise dominion through the spoken word of faith. When we exercise dominion in ministry, it is by command as Jesus and His disciples did. Did you ever notice that when they ministered to others, they did not ask God to heal, deliver, or provide for them? They commanded these things because they knew that God already guaranteed them to His covenant people. (Php.4:19) And my God shall supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. They saw these things as already accomplished at the cross and God's promises as our authority to minister them. (2Pe.1:3) Seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own glory and virtue; (4) whereby he hath granted unto us his precious and exceeding great promises; that through these ye may become partakers of the divine nature… The Lord still reigns through those who have renewed their minds with the Word. (Rev.5:9)… Worthy art thou to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and didst purchase unto God with thy blood [men] of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation, (10) and madest them [to be] unto our God a kingdom and priests; and they reign upon the earth. Before the judgment seals of the Tribulation are opened, the saints of God are said to be reigning on earth. We have the authority to reign as Jesus reigned because He lives in us through the Word that we put in our hearts. The more of His Word we accept, the more He can live through us because He is the Word. He says, “They reign upon the earth.” Jesus gave us an example of the dominion that the Son of God could manifest through the son of man. He gave us an example of what man was sent to do with God's Word and Spirit in him. Then He equipped the early disciples with these and sent them out to repeat this process. (Mat.28:19) Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations… (20) teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. The apostles were to make disciples and give them the same authority and commands that they had received, and in turn, those disciples were to do the same right on down to us. We all should have received from our teachers the same authority, commands, and gifts given to the first disciples. What happened? The apostate religious traditions of men happened! Obedience to Jesus' command would have made a geometric progression from His day to our day that would have shaken the world. Jesus said that He would be with the disciples in this endeavor “unto the end of the world.” Since the first disciples were not around that long, He, obviously, was talking to us, also. Jesus commanded us to walk in His steps. (Joh.20:21)… As the Father hath sent me, even so send I you. (Mat.10:8) Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons, freely ye received, freely give. We have received the same authority as Jesus and the early disciples to do the same work. (Joh.14:12) He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater [works] than these shall he do; because I go unto the Father. Those who believe will be vessels of God's sovereign dominion in the earth. We have to obey all these commands that Jesus gave them. The great commission has been passed on to us from the Lord. When we make disciples, we must also pass on the command to do these things. (Mar.16:15) And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to the whole creation. Again, this could not have been spoken to only the first disciples because they neither went into the entire world nor preached to the whole creation. Disciples will finish this work in our day. Please notice that in the following verse Jesus is telling His apostles how to identify those who believed their Gospel. (16) He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned. (17) And these signs shall accompany them that believe (believers have signs): in my name shall they cast out demons; they shall speak with new tongues; (18) they shall take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall in no wise hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. These signs were not spoken of the first disciples but of those who came after and believed their Gospel. So the doctrine that all these signs passed away with the apostles is clearly a lie that has made many of God's people powerless against the devil and the curse. (2Ti.3:1) But know this, that in the last days grievous times shall come. (2) For men shall be… (5) holding a form of godliness, but having denied the power thereof: from these also turn away. We are commanded to leave the powerless, unscriptural, religious institutions of men. Some think that these things only happen for people with gifts of healings or miracles, or faith. Jesus said in (Mar.11:23) Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou taken up and cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that what he saith cometh to pass; he shall have it.  Whosoever commands without doubt shall have it. This obviously includes every believer in the true Gospel. The apostle Paul said that he preached in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Holy Spirit; so that from Jerusalem, and round about even unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the Gospel of Christ (Rom.15:19). Fully preaching the Gospel is demonstrating its power to deliver from the curse. The world is tired of hearing that Jesus saves. They want to see it. Some think that these things only happen for the super mature saints. Maturity is to become as a child, simply accepting the Word of our Father. Young faith is powerful. (Psa.8:2) Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou established strength, Because of thine adversaries, That thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. God uses the spoken words of babes to still His enemies and ours. Both spiritual and physical little children with a little knowledge will see signs and wonders and put the principalities and powers in their place. Jesus told His grown disciples, Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven (Mat.18:3-4). Only the childlike will enter and partake of the kingdom, but what is the kingdom? The kingdom is where God's will is perfectly done and there is no curse. (Mat.6:10) Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth. He uses our prayers to bring the kingdom of heaven on earth. There is no curse in heaven. (Mat.10:7) And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand (Greek: “near”). (8) Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons: freely ye received, freely give. So we see that being near those who exercise dominion over the curse, we are near the kingdom. (Luk.11:20) But if I by the finger of God cast out demons, then is the kingdom of God come upon you. The Kingdom is where God rules, even through His people. Having been delivered from the curse, the kingdom has come upon us and we can partake of the kingdom, passing it on to others who believe. Once my wife complained to me that the washer had stopped working. I turned to my children and told them to go lay their hands on it and command it to run. They obeyed with childlike faith and immediately it started. Several times, while driving in a rainstorm, I told them to point their fingers at the sky and command the rain to stop. Children are not proud and do not mind looking foolish to others. They commanded, God honored their faith and the rain stopped, sometimes immediately. When we first moved to Florida, my children found a squirrel in the road with a broken back. They came to me wanting to keep it and take care of it. I told them that we were not going to mess with that squirrel; they should just go command it to be healed. They did, and it ran up a tree. A couple of years later, they did the same thing for another squirrel that had fallen from an oak tree in our yard. They prayed for Mary and me many times with power. One hot day, I got the mower out to cut the grass. I pulled and pulled trying to start it until I was sweating profusely. Then I checked the spark and found none. I did not feel up to looking for the problem, so I called my boys over to agree with me. We commanded the mower to run. I do not know if that mower ever got any spark, but it did run to cut the grass. Once, when I noticed a lone shoe on my front porch, I called the children together to scold them. I said, “I told you not to leave your shoes on the porch because a dog can pack one of them off and the other one won't be worth anything.” I realized later that I got exactly what I had loosed with my tongue. The children and I scoured the yard and the neighbor's yard with no success. I said, “Let's pray and agree that God will put it in that dog to bring the shoe back.” Children always have faith so easily. So we joined hands and agreed. The next day, we were looking out of the picture window, and what do you think we saw? A stray dog came across the yard with that shoe in his mouth and dropped it right in front of the porch. Hallelujah! Teach your children simple faith, and do not let any theologians around them. In spite of our own failures and weaknesses, we should receive this authority from our Lord like little children. Only by the grace of God, I have commanded eyes restored, bones mended, cancers gone, diseases gone, bleeding stopped, blood pressure normal, demons out, dead resurrected, those in comas to come out, water pumps to stop leaking, alternators to have new bearings, smoking engines to stop using oil, hurricanes to stop or change directions, property protected, storms to stop and back up, moles to get out of my yard, mole crickets to die, gas in my tank, engines to start, to name a few. None of the above was without witnesses. Yet it was “not I, but Christ” (KJV) living in me through the Word. God has not left us without help. We have left Him without help. He desires to use us as vessels to do His work. (Php.4:13) I can do all things in Him that strengtheneth me. We need to know the effect imagination has on our faith. Real faith is acted upon by the whole man. (Rom.10:10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. It is fruitless for the heart to believe and the body to not react or for the body to act and the heart to not believe. The part of man that God designed to effectually connect the heart of man with his actions is the imagination. Our imagination should be renewed so that faith may have unhindered flow through us. Evil imaginations must be cast down if we want to win our battle with the flesh, and the devil, and to do the works of Jesus. (2Co.10:4) For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the casting down of strongholds, (5) casting down imaginations, and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Cast down imaginations must be replaced with Biblical ones. For instance: (2Co.3:18) But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory… Notice that this renewed imagination of seeing Jesus in the mirror completes our faith, enabling us to come into His image and to do His works. This is the same faithful imagination that Paul had. (Gal.2:20) I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me… We are to believe, imagine and confess that Jesus lives in us. Jesus said that if we believe, we will do His works and greater. (Joh.14:12)… He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater [works] than these shall he do; because I go unto the Father. After teaching on imagination once, we were given the opportunity to put this to work. At the very next Bible study, Pauline asked for prayer for Jacqui, whom she said would not be coming because her whole face was swollen with an abscessed tooth. My suggestion was that we would see Jacqui's swollen face in our imagination. Then we would speak to it, commanding her tooth to be healed and the swelling to go down. Then we would imagine her face returning to normal with a smile. With everyone's agreement, we proceeded to act on this suggestion, and I vocalized our common command for her healing. This was a Biblical imagination because Jesus lives in Jacqui, and He is not abscessed or swollen. We are to accept the resurrected life of Christ. (1Jn.4:17)… As he is, even so are we in this world. The Lord taught us to pray thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth (Mat.6:10). There is no sickness in God's kingdom. Jacqui was healed by the stripes of Jesus 2,000 years ago. The next morning, Jacqui called me and gave me the good report. She said that the night before, at about the time when we normally pray, the swelling suddenly went out of her face and her tooth was healed. We rejoiced and thanked the Lord together. God quickly gave us several more opportunities to exercise our faith in this way. In a following Bible study, Bob Aicardi related that the water level in his swimming pool was dropping at about four to five inches a week. He inspected the liner and tested the plumbing for leaks and found none. The water bill was sizable. In frustration, Bob cried out to God, “Lord, there is no reason for this to be happening to this pool or to me. I belong to you, and I am not under the curse.” When Bob asked for the prayer of agreement. I told Bob to put a mark where the water was presently so he did. We then visualized the pool leaking and commanded it to stop. I said, “I command you pool not to leak one more drop in the name of Jesus.” We then visualized the pool as repaired. The next day Bob watched the water level, expecting God to act on his behalf, and noticed that the leak had completely stopped. Then a pool man came to look at Bob's pump and asked him, “Did you know there is a hole in your liner behind the pool ladder?” Sure enough there was about a one inch hole where the ladder brace pad had punched a hole in it and get this: It hadn't leaked for many days since we commanded it to stop! Isn't God awesome? Bob then brought another prayer request to the study. He related that when he first moved into his house, he walked around the property and asked God to put a hedge around it and his family. For 3½ years there had been no roaches, bugs, or rodents. Now he faced mole crickets marching across his front lawn, devouring the roots of his grass. You could see clearly where they were because the grass was dead and it was spongy when you walked on it. His neighbor was worried that they would get their lawn, too, so they suggested Bob use some poison. Bob wanted to exercise his faith instead, but he knew something had to happen quickly. When Bob asked for prayer, we visualized his lawn from his front porch with the mole crickets wiping it out. Bob prayed, “They would be turned into fertilizer.” I commanded them to die and not take one more inch of that property in Jesus' name. In our various ways, we then visualized the crickets as dead. I suggested to Bob that he get a point of reference on his porch so that he could tell where the mole crickets were. They were wiping it out from right to left and were about fifteen feet into the yard. Bob reported back later at a later study that he had done that, and not only had they not taken another inch, but not even a sign of a single living mole cricket remained. They were all fertilizer. Glory to God! He gives authority to believers, and He wants to use us to continue to destroy the curse for His glory. Bob's place turned into a great testimony. He later had a problem with red ant piles, and every time he commanded a pile to die, it did. We were all doing this. I suggest you think on these verses that show our dominion to get it down in your soul.

LESSON 292A Happy Outcome To All Things Is Sure.God's promises make no exceptions. And He guarantees that only joy can be the final outcome found for everything. Yet it is up to us when this is reached; how long we let an alien will appear to be opposing His. And while we think this will is real, we will not find the end He has appointed as the outcome of all problems we perceive, all trials we see, and every situation that we meet. Yet is the ending certain. For God's Will is done in earth and Heaven. We will seek and we will find according to His Will, which guarantees that our will is done.We thank You, Father, for Your guarantee of only happy outcomes in the end. Help us not interfere, and so delay the happy endings You have promised us for every problem that we can perceive; for every trial we think we still must meet.-Jesus Christ in ACIM

In this series of messages, Pastor will help us examine what God's Word says about God's Will for us and how we can know the plans and purposes God has for us.  Today, we will look more specifically at how God can speak to us in some unique ways to reveal His Will to us. #fsbccoalinga #coalinga #fsbcsermon Contact us at TheWordInfusion@gmail.com with your comments, questions or praises.  Let us know how our podcast has blessed, encouraged or helped you.  Join us on our Facebook pages at http://www.facebook.com/fsbccoalinga & http://www.facebook.com/..  Help us to grow a community that infuses the Word of God into their lives each day.  Follow us on Twitter @TheWordInfusion or @fsbccoalinga .  To support this ministry click on: https://giving.myamplify.io//app/giving/fsbccoalinga or copy and paste it into your web browser.

Send me a text!John 15:2 KJV & AMP.____________________You want to grow for The Most High? You want to be pleasing to Him? You want to be used by Him? You want to be like Him? You want to fulfill His Will?!You will be PRUNED: this is His equation. In order to get these things, you must be PRUNED. In this video, I will go over the following:*What Is Pruning?*Why It's Important?*7 In-depth Reasons to Why He PRUNES His ChildrenGet ready for some clarity and revelation...and maybe even some joy for your day.Reference (Blog Post):———————-“138-Why Pruning Matters: Principles, Recommendations and Tips from the Pruner's Bible” (The Joe Gardner Show) : https://joegardener.com/podcast/138-why-pruning-matters-principles-recommendations-and-tips-from-the-pruners-bible/#:~:text=Any%20species%20which%20flowers%20between,buds%20for%20the%20following%20year.———————-Timestamps:0:00-2:38 Introduction2:39-4:29 Focal Scripture4:30-10:07 Cause and Effect10:08-13:02 “What Is Pruning?!”13:03-20:34 Priorities for REMOVAL: The 4 D's20:35-21:33 7 IN-DEPTH Reasons To PRUNE!21:34-28:56 1 Training 28:57-30:15 2 Balancing Growth30:16-31:37 3 Controlling Flower & Fruit Quality31:38-36:29 4 Creating a Pattern of Growth36:30-39:25 5 Maintaining Plant Health39:26-41:56 6 Restricting Growth 41:57-43:07 7 Remedial Pruning43:08-45:29 Ending Rema (Spoken Word)#bearfruit #pruning #tamarstestimony #refinement

This sermon focuses on the being dead to sin and coming alive through Christ by choosing His love as opposed to death out of His Will.

Pastor Marie Myers    To learn more about becoming a partner with our international ministry, joining us on our next missions trip, or visiting one of our weekly services; please visit: LifeFamilyChurch.net

 Get ready for God to do a new thing in your life!  Continue to have hope for new things in our lives.  Do not fear your capacity being stretched.  Regarding capacity, you want to temper any distractions that take you out of God's presence. Dedicate specific time to the Lord to center your mind and heart on His Will. Be spiritually attentive. Focus wholeheartedly on the Word – it will help you stay prioritized.

 Get ready for God to do a new thing in your life!  Continue to have hope for new things in our lives.  Do not fear your capacity being stretched.  Regarding capacity, you want to temper any distractions that take you out of God's presence. Dedicate specific time to the Lord to center your mind and heart on His Will. Be spiritually attentive. Focus wholeheartedly on the Word – it will help you stay prioritized.

God and His Will are the most important things in all of the universe for you. Broadcast #6902To help support this podcast, please visit walkwiththeking.org/donate and select "Podcast" from the dropdown menuA transcript of this broadcast is available on our website here. To hear more from Bob Cook, you can find Walk With The King on Facebook or Instagram.

“Brain washing” #3 by Pastor George Lehman   If you don't change your direction, you'll end up where you're headed. (You are either heading in victory or defeat)   Last 2 weeks #1 Realize where the WAR is. (ITS IN THE MIND) #2 Get a grip on your mind, get a grip on your life.   It's in the application, NOT only the information!!! That the success & breakthrough comes #3 Removing stumbling blocks that prevent your destiny Stumbling blocks cause us to lose direction. Take a look around where you're sitting and find five things that have the color blue in them.  In the same way, you've probably noticed that after you buy a new bike or car, you promptly see that make of bike or car everywhere.  That's because people find what they are looking for. At times in our lives, God seems strangely absent, but the problem is not that God has disappeared. We simply lack a “God” mindset”.  The devil wants you to focus on the negative things that will distract you. When we develop a Holy Spirit sensitivity by “Brainwashing our minds” with the Word of God.  We soon begin to see His work everywhere.  You only see what you look for. What we PERCEIVE [begryp] what we allow in our minds (our thought life); and that Determines what we RECEIVE, it's either what God's word says about the situation OR a deceptive lie form the devil; Determines what we ACHIEVE. It's either God's successful thoughts and plans for your life … OR a failure mentality and never really fulfilling God's best for your life. You have a destiny and it's related to God's prophecy to what He has written and spoken about you in His Word. The devil knows this – he will do all he can to infiltrate your mind to upset God's destiny for you.  He will try find your weaknesses or cracks in your Spiritual Armour. 1 Corinthians 2:8(Amp) – None of the rulers of this age or world perceived and recognized and understood this, for if they had, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory. 1 Peter 1:13 – “Prepare your minds for action” The devil's idea is to get you and I to think thoughts contrary to God's Word concerning His Will and Plan for us. All you need is a good brainwashing – Change your mind to what God's Word says. Proverbs 23:7 (KJV) - “For as (a man) thinketh in his heart, so is he.” No matter what situation you find yourself in today, let it be known that God wants you to prosper and has ordained you to have an abundant life.   Ephesians 1:4-5 (Amp) - 4Even as [in His love] He chose us [actually picked us out for Himself as His own] in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy (consecrated and set apart for Him) and blameless in His sight, even above reproach, before Him in love.  5For He foreordained us (destined us, planned in love for us) to be adopted (revealed) as His own children through Jesus Christ, in accordance with the purpose of His will [because it pleased Him and was His kind intent]   Ephesians 3:20 (Amp) - Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams] This is the truth - it's up to us to limit that power OR allow it to set us free.  It all goes back to the battle in the mind - what you know and believe, that you will ACHIEVE. 2 Peter 1:3 (Amp) - For His divine power has bestowed upon us all things that [are requisite (necessary for success) and suited] to life and godliness, through the [full, personal] knowledge of Him Who called us by and to His own glory and excellence (virtue). The work is complete – don't let the devil lie to you. Quite often we become discouraged because we don't understand that: - God has empowered us with supernatural strength. - Not just to endure, but to overcome. Enduring is good but man it's about time you overcome now too!! Because we haven't grasped this, we often use our problems, our faults or weaknesses to make excuses FOR NOT fulfilling our God-given destiny. Here's some advice:  If you feel weak or your situation seems hopeless - Stop saying so! Stop confessing it! That song that says: I will say (SPEAK IT OUT) “IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL” Joel 3:10 - “Let the weak say, I am strong” If you say what the enemy presented to you, he wins.  Confess God's word and you WIN. Get a grip on your MIND, you get a grip on your LIFE. Our words have so much power, Jesus said Matthew 12:36-37 (NIV) - But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.  For by your words, you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned. Your thoughts establish your circumstances. Proverbs 12:14 (Amp) - From the *fruit of his WORDS a man shall be satisfied with good…” *fruit = in other words, what's growing in you; comes out of your mouth – either good or bad. Whatever God says He will do for you, HE WILL DO! Psalm 89:34 (NIV) - My covenant will I not break or profane (disregard), nor alter the thing that is gone out of My lips.                                 If you don't read the Word of God, you can't know the Word of God. It's that simple. If you don't know the Word of God, you can't speak the Word of God. If you can't speak the truths of God's Word, you'll speak your own ideas out of Ignorance and destroy God's destiny for you. This will lead to stumbling blocks the enemy uses to derail your destiny. Our theme –#3 “removing stumbling blocks, that prevent your destiny”.  The stumbling blocks are rooted in the heart.  If you let these stumbling blocks become rooted in the heart, they become serious issues to deal with and repent of. Some of these stumbling blocks are: #1 IGNORANCE (you are only as ignorant as what you are allowing yourself to be.) It's one of the most subtle stumbling blocks, because it keeps people from realizing or correcting their lives. You see revelation knowledge is the key to this mental battle.  (Feed the mind with ammunition.) Hosea 4:6 (Amp) - “my people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge” = IGNORANCE. #2 LOW SELF-ESTEEM God created you so HE knows your capabilities and your potential.  A poor self-image will prevent you from receiving God's best for your life.  God's work is always superior not inferior – “God don't make no junk”. Example in Numbers 13 – 12 spies sent out by Moses.  10 had a low self-image.  2 (Joshua and Caleb) knew their God and who they were: Daniel 11:32 (Amp) - … but the people who know their God shall prove themselves strong and shall stand firm and do *exploits [for God]. *exploits = bold and daring #3 LAZINESS This is a big stumbling block, because it prevents you from wholeheartedly pursuing God.  Laziness will always find excuses not to do anything. Or to do the bare minimum. Proverbs 13:4 (Amp) - The appetite of the sluggard (LAZY one) craves and gets nothing, but the appetite of the diligent is abundantly supplied. Lazy people also want, but get zippo, Nothing. #4 MEDIOCRITY [Middelmatig] (It's the top of the bottom but the bottom of the top) It's a real stumbling block, because people don't strive to produce excellence in their lives. Good enough is okay Average is well enough. Well God is an excellent God and He expects us to serve Him in excellence.  In our prayer life, our praise and worship, our Bible study, in our relationships. Mediocrity and laziness will cause you to miss your blessings. #5 DISOBEDIENCE It's more than just a stumbling block; disobedience is a SIN. Deuteronomy 11:26-28 (NIV) - 26See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse – 27the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; 28the curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known. God makes it clear:  The choice to obey is always ours - obedient MIND = obedient LIFE. We don't have time to discuss major stumbling blocks like: Pride/ Anger/ Un forgiveness/ Bitterness Don't be unwilling to change – if God's word says, “one thing” and you're doing another, “THEN CHANGE!” Romans 12:11 (Amp) - Never lag in zeal and in earnest endeavor; be aglow and burning with the Spirit, serving the Lord.                                       God will empower you, but you need to “Remove the stumbling blocks”.  Change the attitude of your mind and pursue the destiny God has already planned for you. If you don't change your direction, you'll end up where you're headed.

Grace & Truth: God Reigns Above All!Pastor Steve PooleTEXT - Daniel 4:28-37TRUTH - God's sovereignty and kingdom > man's sovereignty and kingdom“...for his dominion is an everlasting dominion,  and his kingdom endures from generation to generation;  …all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand…” Daniel 4:34-35GRACE - God paid the price that allows us citizenship in His eternal Kingdom through faith alone in Jesus.Daniel 7:13-14Mark 10:45GRACE - God's kingdom is for people from ALL nations and languages.Daniel 4:1Daniel 7:14Revelation 7:9-10NEXT STEPS1. Join God's kingdom by believing in Jesus.2. Be humbled by the example of Nebuchadnezzar and recognize that your “kingdom” is not for your glory, but God's.3. Find hope and comfort in the truth that God's kingdom will come and His Will will be done, even when life looks its darkest.GO DEEPERA Brief Guide to Apocalyptic ProphecyBooks like Ezekiel, Daniel, and Revelation are filled with weird symbols and visions. The authors reveal divine truths through imagery that invites us to pay attention to several layers. Remember this:1. Focus on the historical context. The first layer is always the message the author wanted the immediate audience to grasp.2. Next study the symbols and imagery as they are used throughout the Bible. The meaning of these symbols remains consistent throughout the Bible. 3. The next layer is to understand what these passages teach us about God. And in particular, how these prophecies are fulfilled in Jesus. 4. The final layer asks how these prophecies might be fulfilled again today or in the future.Be Careful:1. Don't lose the big picture of the battle between good and evil and God's ultimate victory over evil.2. Avoid over-interpreting every detail; instead, focus on the prophetic themes of hope and the establishment of God's kingdom. 3. Do not interpret symbolic language literally. The authors describe complex ideas in terms that would have been understandable to the original audience. 4. Resist the temptation to get carried away by elaborate schemes that assign a specific modern meaning to every symbol. When we read these books we take the authors at their word when they explain what they hope to tell us. Ezekiel is clear in chapter 1 verse 1: “I saw visions of God.” John is clear in Revelations 1:1 “The revelation of Jesus.”

  PRESENCE PRAYER AT HOME WITH GOD  We discussed last week that Jesus said in my Father's house there are many mansions (mone – at home with God). I go to prepare a place for you. (John 14:2). There is a unique individual mone for every person ever born – no two people build the same house for God. And remember the mansions were not only prepared for Heaven but for here on earth as we become the dwelling (mone) for God here. Jesus said My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make our home (mansion – mone) with him. (John 14:23). The more we dwell with the Father and Jesus and the Holy Spirit – at home with God here on earth the more they unveil who they are to us, whether we are here on earth or in Heaven, because faith and hope and love are eternal and will remain from age to age for people to come to know and love God more and more. How do we travel that journey of living a life at home with God in all the difficulties and problems? Paul tells us that staying connected to God is the key. He said pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:16). Praying without ceasing would seem to be an impossible task but what is meant here is that we can maintain a mindset of connection with God at all times so that what we do and how we feel whether positively or negatively is a ‘God with us' conversation. And the Holy Spirit is praying for us without ceasing! John 16:7  – Jesus said he would be sent into the world to convince everybody that they have missed the mark of being aligned with his purpose for their lives – that's your next door neighbour as well as people going to church. - He is also wanting us all to know that he has overcome the power of darkness that they have been slaves to in their fears and anxieties.  The process of becoming still is a prayer that Paul teaches us in our sufferings and problems.  Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called (those invited) to live according to His purpose.  Those who are the called according to is purpose are those who desire to live according to his purpose and to respond to that invitation. And we know that all things work together for good - in other words but I know  you do it Father the way you always do, and we only find out how great you are when you show us what you've done according to your Will - Because we dont see that but we dont know it at the time… this is our walk all the time growing in faith and promise.    to those who love God, to those who are the called (those invited) to live according to His purpose. As we learn to become actively connected and still with God, we can grow in the practice of being at peace, trusting that he is always working behind the scenes on our behalf. Job complained about his affliction and sufferings to God (Job 30:20) and God said he accepted Job's prayer, but he rebuked Job's friends. Job had come to know God in his suffering, but his friends only found judgement in their hearts for Job (Job 42:8).  I cry to you for help and you do not answer me; I stand, and you only look at me. You have turned cruel to me; with the might of your hand you persecute me. You lift me up on the wind; you make me ride on it, and you toss me about in the roar of the storm. For I know that you will bring me to deathand to the house appointed for all living. House- MANSIONS!  and God said he accepted Job, but he rebuked Job's friends.  But God wasn't angry with Job because he complained. God was pleased with him for simply having a conversation. Even through the most awful trials, and countless sufferings.    But God said to Job's friend Eliphaz “My anger burns against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. (Job 42:7). Jesus also spoke to God in the midst of his suffering in the Garden of gethsemane and asked if the cu of suffering could be taken from  him, and was there another way but then said – nevertheless not my will but thine be done. As we learn to become actively connected and still with God, we can grow in the practice of being at peace, trusting that he is always working behind the scenes on our behalf, being still and knowing God As an act of faith and thanksgiving. So the Holy Spirit is also praying unceasingly FOR us! And we Maintain a connection/conversation whether it is positive and faithful or even when it is negative and perplexed. We learn t believe and say ‘God you re aways right but not so with me And being connected it brings the blessing of peace, or agreement with God.. Phil 4.6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Even when it doesn't feel like it. In times of trials we might say Lord, this is a bit beyond me… but I'm going to accept it. I know you're there with me. Why didn't I get that job, or why are my relationships struggling.  We don't get to see what God is doing in the here and now, but if we are open to receiving what God has to show us, we will be surprised by how things get reordered in an incredible way you could have never imagined. Have faith that God is always working behind the scenes in the supernatural, working all things together for good for those who respond to the invitation to be living in His purpose. That's what Paul meant by praying without ceasing. And that's God's will for you. People are always saying what is God's will!? It's as simple as that. Staying connected - that is praying without ceasing. Not letting your own stuff get in the way all the time. What you think you know better about or can do or understand better. Expect that He sees everything we need, and He wants to provide it for us as a father does. We can now stay connected in a presence prayer with God 1 Thessalonians 5:18 pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. This becomes the practice of Presence Prayer which we will be discussing furher as we go on. -you're in His Will. You have been found in him, you're praying without ceasing, and He refines your faith into constantly saying thank you no matter what is happening.  Paul OSullivan  - pauloss@me.com      

What is Sin?Sin is insanity. It is the means by which the mind is driven mad, and seeks to let illusions take the place of truth. And being mad, it sees illusions where the truth should be, and where it really is. Sin gave the body eyes, for what is there the sinless would behold? What need have they of sights or sounds or touch? What would they hear or reach to grasp? What would they sense at all? To sense is not to know. And truth can be but filled with knowledge, and with nothing else.The body is the instrument the mind made in its efforts to deceive itself. Its purpose is to strive. Yet can the goal of striving change. And now the body serves a different aim for striving. What it seeks for now is chosen by the aim the mind has taken as replacement for the goal of self-deception. Truth can be its aim as well as lies. The senses then will seek instead for witnesses to what is true.Sin is the home of all illusions, which but stand for things imagined, issuing from thoughts that are untrue. They are the “proof” that what has no reality is real. Sin “proves” God's Son is evil; timelessness must have an end; eternal life must die. And God Himself has lost the Son He loves, with but corruption to complete Himself, His Will forever overcome by death, love slain by hate, and peace to be no more.A madman's dreams are frightening, and sin appears indeed to terrify. And yet what sin perceives is but a childish game. The Son of God may play he has become a body, prey to evil and to guilt, with but a little life that ends in death. But all the while his Father shines on him, and loves him with an everlasting Love which his pretenses cannot change at all.How long, O Son of God, will you maintain the game of sin? Shall we not put away these sharp-edged children's toys? How soon will you be ready to come home? Perhaps today? There is no sin. Creation is unchanged. Would you still hold return to Heaven back? How long, O holy Son of God, how long?LESSON 251I Am In Need Of Nothing But The Truth.I sought for many things, and found despair. Now do I seek but one, for in that one is all I need, and only what I need. All that I sought before I needed not, and did not even want. My only need I did not recognize. But now I see that I need only truth. In that all needs are satisfied, all cravings end, all hopes are finally fulfilled and dreams are gone. Now have I everything that I could need. Now have I everything that I could want. And now at last I find myself at peace.And for that peace, our Father, we give thanks. What we denied ourselves You have restored, and only that is what we really want.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

All the promises of God are managed by His Will. Not one will escape what He has decreded. Gpys Bible in a Year: Psalms 140-142 & 1 Corinthians 14:1-20 

All the promises of God are managed by His Will. If it were any other way we would would be headed for Hell still. Gpys. Bible in a Year: Psalms 140-142 & 1 Corithians 14:1-20   

His Will, His Way - One-Off Series

When a lifeguard saves someone from drowning, it's necessary for that person to completely submit his or her life into the hands of the lifeguard. It makes it nearly impossible for a lifeguard to rescue someone who is thrashing and flailing and just altogether uncooperative. Pastor Malcolm urges you in today's message to submit your life fully to God. How will God work His Will in your life if you're just thrashing and flailing? The key is to submit to Him and cooperate with the work of the Holy Spirit.

At the end of the Book of Acts, the Apostle Paul is facing what seems like insurmountable obstacles. Between his arrest, shipwreck, and imprisonment in Rome, it certainly seems like this is the end of the road. Lock him up and throw away the key. And yet, that's not at all what happens. God works through these obstacles to bring about His Will so that His Word would be proclaimed before kings and emperors. What about the obstacles in your life? Do they feel insurmountable? Is it possible that you could see how God is working even in the midst of it? We hope you hear us speak about something in this conversation that will inspire you to start another conversation with someone else. We hope you enjoy it! 

Opposition will eventually come when you commit your life to serving God. Satan won't just sit by and idly watch people be saved without doing something to interfere. It might be big, it might be small, but he moves wherever God moves. Your heart needs to be ready for those times when they come. Today, Pastor Mark is going to prepare you for the times of the enemy's attacks. They usually come when it will hurt the most, but it's not the end. Make sure you soften your heart to God's Word and harden it toward sin, and keep your focus on serving God and doing His Will. He can bring good out of anything.

ਸਲੋਕੁ ਮਃ ੩ ॥ਭਰਮਿ ਭੁਲਾਈ ਸਭੁ ਜਗੁ ਫਿਰੀ ਫਾਵੀ ਹੋਈ ਭਾਲਿ ॥ ਸੋ ਸਹੁ ਸਾਂਤਿ ਨ ਦੇਵਈ ਕਿਆ ਚਲੈ ਤਿਸੁ ਨਾਲਿ ॥ ਗੁਰ ਪਰਸਾਦੀ ਹਰਿ ਧਿਆਈਐ ਅੰਤਰਿ ਰਖੀਐ ਉਰ ਧਾਰਿ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਘਰਿ ਬੈਠਿਆ ਸਹੁ ਪਾਇਆ ਜਾ ਕਿਰਪਾ ਕੀਤੀ ਕਰਤਾਰਿ ॥੧॥ ਮਃ ੩ ॥ ਧੰਧਾ ਧਾਵਤ ਦਿਨੁ ਗਇਆ ਰੈਣਿ ਗਵਾਈ ਸੋਇ ॥ ਕੂੜੁ ਬੋਲਿ ਬਿਖੁ ਖਾਇਆ ਮਨਮੁਖਿ ਚਲਿਆ ਰੋਇ ॥ ਸਿਰੈ ਉਪਰਿ ਜਮ ਡੰਡੁ ਹੈ ਦੂਜੈ ਭਾਇ ਪਤਿ ਖੋਇ ॥ ਹਰਿ ਨਾਮੁ ਕਦੇ ਨ ਚੇਤਿਓ ਫਿਰਿ ਆਵਣ ਜਾਣਾ ਹੋਇ ॥ ਗੁਰ ਪਰਸਾਦੀ ਹਰਿ ਮਨਿ ਵਸੈ ਜਮ ਡੰਡੁ ਨ ਲਾਗੈ ਕੋਇ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਸਹਜੇ ਮਿਲਿ ਰਹੈ ਕਰਮਿ ਪਰਾਪਤਿ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥ ਪਉੜੀ ॥ ਇਕਿ ਆਪਣੀ ਸਿਫਤੀ ਲਾਇਅਨੁ ਦੇ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮਤੀ ॥ ਇਕਨਾ ਨੋ ਨਾਉ ਬਖਸਿਓਨੁ ਅਸਥਿਰੁ ਹਰਿ ਸਤੀ ॥ ਪਉਣੁ ਪਾਣੀ ਬੈਸੰਤਰੋ ਹੁਕਮਿ ਕਰਹਿ ਭਗਤੀ ॥ ਏਨਾ ਨੋ ਭਉ ਅਗਲਾ ਪੂਰੀ ਬਣਤ ਬਣਤੀ ॥ ਸਭੁ ਇਕੋ ਹੁਕਮੁ ਵਰਤਦਾ ਮੰਨਿਐ ਸੁਖੁ ਪਾਈ ॥੩॥ਸ਼ੁੱਕਰਵਾਰ, ੩੧ ਸਾਵਣ (ਸੰਮਤ ੫੫੭ ਨਾਨਕਸ਼ਾਹੀ)(ਅੰਗ: ੯੪੭)ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਵਿਆਖਿਆਭੁਲੇਖੇ ਵਿਚ ਭੁੱਲੀ ਹੋਈ ਮੈਂ (ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਨੂੰ ਲੱਭਣ ਵਾਸਤੇ) ਸਾਰਾ ਜਗਤ ਭਵੀਂ ਤੇ ਢੂੰਢ ਢੂੰਢ ਕੇ ਖਪ ਗਈ, (ਪਰ ਇਸ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ) ਉਹ ਖਸਮ (ਪ੍ਰਭੂ) (ਹਿਰਦੇ ਵਿਚ) ਸ਼ਾਂਤੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਦੇਂਦਾ, ਉਹ ਨਾਲ ਕੋਈ ਜ਼ੋਰ ਨਹੀਂ ਚੱਲ ਸਕਦਾ ।(ਪਰ, ਹਾਂ) ਸਤਿਗੁਰੂ ਦੀ ਮੇਹਰ ਨਾਲ ਪ੍ਰਭੂ ਸਿਮਰਿਆ ਜਾ ਸਕਦਾ ਹੈ ਤੇ ਹਿਰਦੇ ਦੇ ਅੰਦਰ ਰੱਖਿਆ ਜਾ ਸਕਦਾ ਹੈ । ਹੇ ਨਾਨਕ! (ਗੁਰੂ ਦੀ ਮੇਹਰ ਨਾਲ) ਮੈਂ ਘਰ ਵਿਚ ਬੈਠਿਆਂ ਖਸਮ ਲੱਭ ਲਿਆ ਜਦੋਂ ਕਰਤਾਰ ਨੇ (ਮੇਰੇ ਉਤੇ) ਕਿਰਪਾ ਕੀਤੀ (ਤੇ ਗੁਰੂ ਮਿਲਾਇਆ) ।੧।ਜੋ ਮਨੁੱਖ ਆਪਣੇ ਮਨ ਦੇ ਪਿੱਛੇ ਤੁਰਦਾ ਹੈ ਉਸ ਦਾ (ਸਾਰਾ) ਦਿਨ (ਦੁਨੀਆ ਦੇ) ਧੰਧਿਆਂ ਵਿਚ ਭਟਕਦਿਆਂ ਬੀਤ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ, ਤੇ ਰਾਤ ਨੂੰ ਉਹ ਸੌਂ ਕੇ ਗੰਵਾ ਲੈਂਦਾ ਹੈ, (ਇਹਨਾਂ ਧੰਧਿਆਂ ਵਿਚ ਪਿਆ ਹੋਇਆ) ਝੂਠ ਬੋਲ ਕੇ ਜ਼ਹਿਰ ਖਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ (ਭਾਵ, ਦੁਨੀਆ ਦੇ ਪਦਾਰਥ ਮਾਣਦਾ ਹੈ) ਤੇ (ਅੰਤ ਨੂੰ ਏਥੋਂ) ਰੋ ਕੇ ਤੁਰ ਪੈਂਦਾ ਹੈ; ਉਸ ਦੇ ਸਿਰ ਉਤੇ ਮੌਤ ਦਾ ਡੰਡਾ (ਤਿਆਰ ਰਹਿੰਦਾ) ਹੈ, (ਭਾਵ, ਹਰ ਵੇਲੇ ਮੌਤ ਤੋਂ ਡਰਦਾ ਹੈ), (ਪ੍ਰਭੂ ਨੂੰ ਵਿਸਾਰ ਕੇ) ਹੋਰ ਵਿਚ ਪਿਆਰ ਦੇ ਕਾਰਣ (ਆਪਣੀ) ਇੱਜ਼ਤ ਗੰਵਾ ਲੈਂਦਾ ਹੈ; ਉਸ ਨੇ ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦਾ ਨਾਮ ਤਾਂ ਕਦੇ ਯਾਦ ਨਹੀਂ ਕੀਤਾ ਹੁੰਦਾ (ਇਸ ਲਈ) ਮੁੜ ਮੁੜ ਜਨਮ ਮਰਨ ਦਾ ਗੇੜ (ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਨਸੀਬ) ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ ।(ਪਰ ਜਿਸ ਮਨੁੱਖ ਦੇ) ਮਨ ਵਿਚ ਸਤਿਗੁਰੂ ਦੀ ਮੇਹਰ ਨਾਲ ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਵੱਸਦਾ ਹੈ ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਕੋਈ ਮੌਤ ਦਾ ਡੰਡਾ ਨਹੀਂ ਲੱਗਦਾ (ਭਾਵ, ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਮੌਤ ਡਰਾ ਨਹੀਂ ਸਕਦੀ) ਹੇ ਨਾਨਕ! ਉਹ ਅਡੋਲ ਅਵਸਥਾ ਵਿਚ ਟਿਕਿਆ ਰਹਿੰਦਾ ਹੈ (ਇਹ ਅਵਸਥਾ ਉਸ ਨੂੰ) ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦੀ ਕਿਰਪਾ ਨਾਲ ਮਿਲ ਜਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ ।੨।(ਇਸ “ਵੇਕੀ ਸ੍ਰਿਸਟਿ” ਵਿਚ, ਪ੍ਰਭੂ ਨੇ) ਕਈ ਜੀਵਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਸਤਿਗੁਰੂ ਦੀ ਮੱਤ ਦੇ ਕੇ ਆਪਣੀ ਸਿਫ਼ਤਿ-ਸਾਲਾਹ ਵਿਚ ਲਾਇਆ ਹੋਇਆ ਹੈ, ਕਈ ਜੀਵਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਸਦਾ ਕਾਇਮ ਰਹਿਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਹਰੀ ਨੇ ਆਪਣਾ ਸਦਾ-ਥਿਰ ਰਹਿਣ ਵਾਲਾ ‘ਨਾਮ' ਬਖ਼ਸ਼ਿਆ ਹੋਇਆ ਹੈ ।ਹਵਾ, ਪਾਣੀ, ਅੱਗ (ਆਦਿਕ ਤੱਤ ਭੀ) ਉਸ ਦੇ ਹੁਕਮ ਵਿਚ ਤੁਰ ਕੇ ਉਸ ਦੀ ਭਗਤੀ ਕਰ ਰਹੇ ਹਨ, ਇਹਨਾਂ (ਤੱਤਾਂ) ਨੂੰ ਉਸ ਮਾਲਕ ਦਾ ਬੜਾ ਡਰ ਰਹਿੰਦਾ ਹੈ, (ਸੋ, ਜਗਤ ਦੀ ਕਿਆ ਅਸਚਰਜ) ਮੁਕੰਮਲ ਬਣਤਰ ਬਣੀ ਹੋਈ ਹੈ, ਹਰ ਥਾਂ ਪ੍ਰਭੂ ਦਾ ਹੀ ਹੁਕਮ ਚੱਲ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ । (ਪ੍ਰਭੂ ਦੇ ਹੁਕਮ ਨੂੰ) ਮੰਨਿਆਂ (ਭਾਵ, ਹੁਕਮ ਵਿਚ ਤੁਰਿਆਂ ਹੀ) ਸੁਖ ਪਾਈਦਾ ਹੈ ।੩।English TranslationSHALOK, THIRD MEHL:Deluded by doubt, I wandered over the whole world. Searching, I became frustrated. My Husband Lord has not blessed me with peace and tranquility; what will work with Him? By Guru's Grace, I meditate on the Lord; I enshrine Him deep within my heart. O Nanak, seated in his her own home, she finds her Husband Lord, when the Creator Lord grants His Grace. || 1 || THIRD MEHL: Chasing after worldly affairs, the day is wasted, and the night passes in sleep. Speaking lies, one eats poison; the self-willed manmukh departs, crying out in pain. The Mesenger of Death holds his club over the mortal's head; in the love of duality, he loses his honor. He never even thinks of the Name of the Lord; over and over again, he comes and goes in reincarnation. But if, by Guru's Grace, the Lord's Name comes to dwell in his mind, then the Messenger of Death will not strike him down with his club. Then, O Nanak, he merges intuitively into the Lord, receiving His Grace. || 2 || PAUREE: Some are linked to His Praises, when the Lord blesses them with the Guru's Teachings. Some are blessed with the Name of the eternal, unchanging True Lord. Water, air and fire, by His Will, worship Him. They are held in the Fear of God; He has formed the perfect form. The Hukam, the Command of the One Lord is all-pervasive; accepting it, peace is found. || 3 ||

In today's episode, Pastor Todd shares from the fifth night of our UNSTOPPABLE REVIVAL about how God will use YOU!We must have an encounter with God! Not just a service, not just practice, but a genuine ENCOUNTER with God!When you do you will NEVER be the same! Encountering God means desire to know Him and His presence and when you are full of God, He will use you to see His power and His Will spread across the world! NEW EPISODES every Monday & Friday @ Noon.https://www.facebook.com/TheRiverOfTriCities/https://www.youtube.com/@TheRiverofTriCitiesChurchhttps://www.instagram.com/rivertcchurch/?hl=enhttps://www.instagram.com/thelastdayspodcast/?hl=en

I was eating oatmeal and pondering the Lord's will. God promises that His WILL will be fulfilled. Hitler's idea of nature. What we think does have consequences.The Voice in the Wilderness does not endorse any link or other material found at buzzsprout.More at https://www.thevoiceinthewilderness.org/

Ask AgainActs 9:1-6  “ Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest  and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.   As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.  “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”If you are not familiar with the story of Saul I suggest you read acts chapter 9:1-19. I did not want to take up too much of your time recounting the whole story but I will summarize it later.  When I was thinking of what to write about I got to thinking about how many people I talk to, that are worried about their children.  They are worried because their children are not attending mass, or are no longer Catholic/Christian.  They worry that they, as parents, are not making a difference in their child's faith, or that their example is not enough.  I have these same thoughts as well.  I thought I would share something that I feel God pointed out to me that has given me a lot of comfort.  People have always told me that if I pray for my children God will answer my prayers.  And that they will come back to the church in His time, not mine.  However, I still worried because I know that God gave us free will.  I always thought that meant that the boys needed to at least be open to him, or maybe the needed to be looking for him in order for them to be saved.  And I wondered if they would be open to Him.  I wondered what would happen if they weren't ever looking for Him.  However, one day God gave me a thought, “What about Saul?”  In Acts 9:1-19, we learn about Saul.  Saul was someone who was persecuting anyone who believed in Jesus.  When he was on his way to another town, with the intent of finding anyone who believed in Jesus and bringing them back to Jerusalem in chains, he was blinded by a vision of Jesus.  Jesus asked him why he was persecuting him.  Saul was instructed to go into town and wait for someone to come and visit him.   When Saul tried to open his eyes, he was blind.  A disciple of God went and cured his blindness, and he was immediately baptized.  This is, of course, the abbreviated version. I suggest you read the full version, as it is a great story.  So, if God can completely convert Saul, who was not open to Jesus, or looking for him, but was murdering and persecuting others who believed in him.  Then just think how easy it will be for God to win our children back when he decides they are ready.  I hope that this can put your mind at ease at least a little.  
A second part to this is that sometimes I think that we get tired of asking for the same thing over and over again.  We assume the answer is no because God hasn't answered our prayer yet.  However, when we read Luke 11:5-8 “And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend to whom he goes at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey and I have nothing to offer him, and he says in reply from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked and my children and I are already in bed. I cannot get up to give you anything.  I tell you, if he does not get up to give him the loaves because of their friendship, he will get up to give him whatever he needs because of his persistence.  I know I have talked to you before about the woman who was persistent in going to the judge and asking for justice. She did not receive it because he was kind; she received it because of her persistence.  We must keep asking.  God will reward our persistence.  If we need to reach out and have someone else ask on our behalf when we are weak, then we should do that.  However, we should not give up asking just because God hasn't answered yet.  He will in his time! I am going to read a piece of writing that beautifully illustrates the “Ask Again” idea.  I first heard this on the Big Life Devotional Podcast, and then I went to Facebook and found it on her page titled Tera's Online Christian Journey.  I will put a link to her page in the show notes.  To visit her Facebook Page, click here. ASK AGAIN By: Tera Elness I know, I know, you've already asked Him a million times. I see those eyes rolling.  But today, ask Him a million and one.  
Yes.   Ask Him AGAIN.   Ask him again for that child to come home.   That marriage needs to be healed.   That mountain to move.   Ask him again for that friendship to mend.   That work to begin.   That end-of-tunnel light is to appear.  
Ask Him again for the one who needs rescue, the one who needs healing, the one who needs new direction, new guidance, new focus.  Yes.   Even if that ‘one' is you.   Ask him again for what you need.   For what you want.  For joy in the sorrow.   Help in the struggle.   A sip of living-water in the heat of your schedule...and the time to just sit at the well, amen?  Ask him again.  Ask Him again to provide springs in your land; and while you're at it, give thanks for that land, no matter how dry it is now, knowing He's given it to you with good purpose.  Yes.
Ask him again.   Ask him again to dig up the soil and plant the seeds.
Ask Him again to stir up and settle, make and remake, pour out His peace that passes all understanding, because frankly, you could use a hefty dose about now.   Yes.  
And Amen.   Ask Him again for all that seems lost and all that seems nowhere, even near the city of possible...and ask Him believing He can.   Yes.  
Ask him again.   Not because you don't think He heard you the first million times, but because you are realizing the longer you {truly} live, that persistence is a pretty strong faith-builder; not to mention how close it keeps you to Him for whom all things are possible and nothing is too hard, and because faith-based strength to persevere and closeness with your Creator is what you REALLY need.   Whew. Yes. Absolutely.  
Ask him again.   With fresh eyes and a renewed spirit and a passionate resolve that He can, and if it's His Will...He will.   And if it's not, you will keep on asking.   You will keep on seeking.   You will keep on believing just like Steve Perry says.   Because persistent faith is where it's at.   It fastens its gaze on hope.  The hope that is always three steps {Father, Son, Holy Spirit} ahead, providing the perfect focal point.  Yes.   And it never disappoints.   Amen.   So today, bow low, look up, and ask Him AGAIN.Dear heavenly father, I ask that you bless all those listening to this episode today. Lord, I ask that you bring peace and comfort to all of us who are worried about our children or nieces and nephews. Lord, we worry because we know how great you are, and we want so badly for our children to know this.  Lord, reassure us that you were in charge and that you have claimed our children and that we don't have to worry about them. Lord, give us the strength and persistence to keep on asking even when we're tired. Lord, if we don't have the strength to keep asking, give us the wisdom to ask her friends to pray with us or for us. We love you, Lord, and we're going to keep asking because we have faith and hope in you every single day of our lives. Heavenly Father, we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus ' holy name, amen.  www.findingtruenorthcoaching.comCLICK HERE TO DONATECLICK HERE to sign up for Mentoring CLICK HERE to sign up for Daily "Word from the Lord" emailsCLICK HERE to sign up for my newsletter & receive a free audio training about inviting Jesus into your daily lifeCLICK HERE to buy my book Total Trust in God's Safe Embrace

In the 22nd chapter of 2nd Samuel we have David's song of deliverance. How similar it is to that of Moses' song in Deuteronomy 32. The focus is on Yahweh's steadfast love; His capacity to, and willingness to, always deliver His faithful servants. Another important theme is God's enduring and Rock-like persistent protection and power exercised consistently on the behalf of His children. The Almighty Father and our Sovereign's will shall be accomplished in the earth, unhindered.Jeremiah 25 clearly tells us that the fourth year of Jehoiakim was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar. We are told later in Jeremiah's writings that this was the year when the king of Judah burned the Bible that the Omnipotent revealed His purpose to the potentate, Nebuchadnezzar, who presided over the kingdom of men. How important it is for us to appreciate that the fulfilling of God's purpose is not dependent upon our faithfulness. If we fail God will choose another. When king Zedekiah rejected the Almighty the Omnipotent Sovereign selected to reveal His Will to a Gentile monarch: Nebuchadnezzar. When Israel failed Yahweh in His mercy offered salvation to the Gentiles. He can just as easily reject us for failing to honour God: Romans 11 verses 11-36. Those verses also establish that once the fulness of the Gentiles is reached Israel will again be regrafted into their own olive tree. Details of the Almighty's kingdom plan were revealed to Babylon's mighty ruler in Daniel 2. The 25th chapter of Jeremiah records the punishment to be inflicted on guilty Judah as Yahweh's indignation was poured out.Chapter 13 of Romans developed the extension of peaceful living by explaining the purpose and practices needed in an orderly society. This chapter teaches the disciple of Christ that he/she is subject to the rulers and magistrate God had appointed. Deterrents and disciplinary measures are essential for the preservation of peace. Paul tells the disciple how to recognise our place and demeanour in such a God ordained ordered society. We will conform to society's laws unless they are in conflict with God's principles: Acts 5 verses 27-29. Chapter 14 turns its focus from living peacefully in a broad society ordered by divine discipline to the disciple's need to fix his mind on walking in harmony and fellowship with his fellow disciples. We must avoid judging our fellow believers, and rather recognising that it is to our Lord Jesus Christ; and he alone to whom we must give account We will either stand, or fall for our own doings and not to worry too much about what anyone else does. Peripheral matters must never become a focus or basis for comparing ourselves with others. The Apostle Paul lays down the important principle designed to keep matters of conscience in perspective, that "the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness and peace, and joy in a spirit of holiness" verse 17.More here https://christadelphianvideo.org/christadelphian-daily-readings/

Jesus Delivered Us (8) (audio) David Eells – 8/3/25 Saints, I'm going to continue our teaching on how Jesus delivered us and gave us authority over demons.   I want to begin by sharing this testimony with you by C.J. Set Free From Gossip and Slander by Confession The message called “Addressing Factious Criticism” is one of the best I have heard in a long time. A while ago the Lord revealed to me that I was just the person described in that message. I was controlled by a strong gossiping and slandering spirit. He also showed me that I was a user of “unjust scales.” I would repent of this over and over, but I just kept falling back into these sins. Finally, I got so frustrated that I asked the Lord, “Why can I not get free from these sins?” What He said changed my life dramatically. He said that I would not be free from the spirit of gossiping and slandering until I stood before a body of believers and asked their forgiveness. He explained to me that gossiping, slandering, and using unjust scales are sins against the entire body of Christ. Therefore, they require corporate forgiveness. I was desperate to be set free from this bondage, so I asked the Lord, “Where do I go?” I had been out of the church system since the early ‘90s and did not belong to any group. He put in my heart the name of a church here in the village where I lived. So I went to that church. At a designated open-sharing time, I stood up and confessed these sins before the body of Christ. It was interesting to watch in the spirit how the people were responding to my public confession. At first, there was an uncomfortable, tense silence. It was like they were horrified, which then gave way to condemnation and judgment, that I was confessing my sins out loud before everyone. But I was determined to get deliverance from these strongholds in my life, and I didn't care how embarrassing or humiliating it was for me. So I pressed on and shared God's words of knowledge that He had given me. I then sat down to wait upon the Lord. That pastor stood in front of the church, totally flabbergasted at what I had done, and didn't know how to respond. So he just continued on with the church's bulletin agenda. I felt hurt and disappointed because I was convinced that if I would humble myself before the Lord and His people, He would be faithful and just to forgive my sins. I asked the Lord about this in my heart when an elder in the church stood up. He politely interrupted the pastor and said, “This young woman came here today and confessed her sins before this body and asked for our forgiveness. We, as a body, need to forgive her.” So the pastor requested the assembly to stand and asked, “Do you forgive this woman of her transgressions?” As one, the church responded, “Yes.” The pastor then prayed and thanked the Lord for the example I set. As the church spoke their corporate forgiveness over me, I saw this vision coming down out of lower heaven: a black umbilical cord was attached to my stomach when I saw a huge pair of silver scissors appear and sever the cord. I felt myself literally jerk as the strongholds left. Since that day, I have been wondrously and gloriously set free! For all those out there who know you have a problem with these sins and haven't been able to break free of them, go find a corporate body of Christ and stand before the assembly and confess your sins. He will set you free! I didn't even attend this church, yet God used them. (Jas.4:7) Be subject therefore unto God: but resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (8) Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye doubleminded. (9) Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. (10) Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall exalt you. (11) Speak not one against another, brethren. He that speaketh against a brother, or judgeth his brother, speaketh against the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judgest the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge. (12) One [only] is the lawgiver and judge, [even] he who is able to save and destroy: but who art thou that judgest thy neighbor? (Joh.8:34) Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Every one that committeth sin is the bondservant of sin. (35) And the bondservant abideth not in the house for ever: the son abideth for ever. (36) If therefore the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. Praise the Lord! You know, it's a humbling thing to stand before a body of believers and confess our sins. Many do not practice this in churches today, but as we can see here in this testimony, it has its place, and this person became free from this bondage and the demons. Now, here's another testimony and a revelation I'd like to share with you about the subtle ways the devil works to deceive us.   Forgiven and Freed From Condemnation by (Name Withheld) One day not long ago, I was sitting on my couch meditating on things. I was wondering why my prayers weren't reaching the throne and seeking why I wasn't having bold power with God. Then I heard a voice say, “Your heart condemns you.” I often remembered David Eells' teaching on (Jas.5:16) Confess therefore your sins one to another, and pray one for another that you may be healed. I thought about that verse. I had confessed all my sins after I came back to God about nine months earlier, or so I thought! Then I remembered how, when I had gotten divorced, I felt a lot of anger, bitterness, and unforgiveness towards people who were involved in that process. I would take it out on God. I would curse Him. This is not a sin I'm proud of admitting. I went into an empty room, sat on the floor, and started confessing to God my sin of cursing Him with my lips. I had tears rolling down my face and I felt very ashamed. As I was kneeling down by the bed, I was permitted to hear this conversation that took place between two entities. One was the devil or a demon, saying to another person who was either Christ or His representative, “You heard him. You heard what he did and what he said.” Then, in such a kind and compassionate tone, this person replied, “Well, I forgive him.” I was so humbled! Then the angel of the Lord or His representative came over to me. I couldn't see his face, just an outline of his shape. He said to me, “He will bother you no more.” I perceived that accuser to be a demon of condemnation or guilt. After this happened, I praised the Lord, got up from the bedroom floor and felt great! All week long I have felt great. I've had no condemnation for my past sins and failures. What a merciful God we serve! I deserved all the punishment I was getting. Praise the Lord! We need to be careful not to fall for the devil's tactics. This revelation sounds so much like something we read in Zechariah, where the characters are the Angel of the Lord, Satan, and the one being condemned. (Zec.3:1) And he showed me Joshua (This is also the New Testament name for Jesus.) the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary. Satan is the accuser of the brethren, and so he's accusing Joshua, or Jesus. And I've shared with you in the past how the Lord spoke to me that Joshua here, or Jesus, represents the body of Christ. Here we see Satan accusing the body of Christ to the Angel of the Lord, standing at His right hand to be His adversary. (Zec.3:2) The Lord said unto Satan, the Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; yea, the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee… What did Jerusalem have to do with the body of Christ? The manifest body of Christ is the Bride, and according to the Book of Revelation, that's Jerusalem (Revelation 21:2); this is a parallel here that He's showing us. (Zec.3:2) The Lord said unto Satan, the Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; yea, the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? Praise the Lord that we are guiltless! We are not under the condemnation of this world. We're not under the curse of this world. We've been “plucked out of the fire.” (Zec.3:3) Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the angel. Those “filthy garments” represent our unrighteousness, our failure, our sins. They signify our not being dressed up in Jesus Christ. (Rom.13:14) Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to [fulfil] the lusts [thereof]. We come short many times, but we have a Sacrifice, an Offering: Jesus Christ. And because of His sacrifice, the Lord sees us as cleansed. Praise the Lord! (Zec.3:3) Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the angel. (4) And he answered and he spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take the filthy garments from off him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with rich apparel. Remember, that's what the Lord says; He has caused our iniquity to pass away. He will clothe us with “rich apparel,” which is putting on the Lord Jesus Christ and manifesting His Word. “Rich apparel” is the manifestation of being the Body of Christ. Praise the Lord! This is God's promise. He says it, speaking the end from the beginning, and it is so (Isaiah 46:10). We believe and stand on it. We …calleth the things that are not, as though they were (Rom.4:17). When we pray, we believe we have received (Mark 11:24). Don't forget that faith is accounted as righteousness. If you look in the mirror and see your old sinful self, there's no righteousness there, no covering, no faith. But if you look in the mirror and see Jesus, then you know that reconciliation is already made. He has taken off our filthy garments and replaced them with His rich apparel. We see it by faith, and when we see it by faith, that faith is accounted as righteousness. And we're told in (Rom.8:1) There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus. How are we in Christ? We're in Christ by faith. Praise be to God! This is God's goodness. (Zec.3:5) And I said, Let them set a clean mitre upon his head. So they set a clean mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments; and the angel of the Lord was standing by. A “clean mitre” symbolizes the renewed mind. The Lord has blessed us with the Mind of Christ. All these things that He's given us, including the Mind of Christ, we first accept by faith, and because we accept them by faith, God brings them to pass. While we're accepting them by faith, even though we haven't as yet seen them manifested, we are accounted righteous. However, if a spirit of condemnation or guilt manages to slip in, it can be a catastrophe because if you have condemnation, you don't have faith. You can't have both faith and condemnation at the same time. I want to share with you that years ago, the Lord showed me a window in my house located right over the head of my bed. It was like a window into the heavenlies, and when I looked through that window, I would see visions. Other people have had dreams about my house or me and they, too, saw that window where there is no window. It was the Lord showing us the supernatural. God said He would open the windows of heaven, giving vision into heavenly things (Isaiah 24:18; Malachi 3:10). Well, I work long hours; I don't get a whole lot of sleep. When the Lord started giving me visions, it was kind of disconcerting being awakened in the middle of the night. And as if He didn't already know, I told Him, “Lord, I need my sleep. I don't get many hours.” The Lord answered me, “Really? Why do you need your sleep? Man doesn't live by bread alone. He doesn't live by sleep alone, either, but by every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” (Deuteronomy 8:3; Matthew 4:4; Luke 4:4) For a while, I was a little frustrated because I wasn't getting sleep, but then I realized, “Wait a minute! I need what the Lord's telling me at this time of the night, too. I need to hear this.” And I began to enjoy what the Lord was showing me. He would show me revelations or visions, explanations of what was happening in the spirit. He would speak to me and show me solutions for problems, which did not necessarily involve seeing a vision. He would reveal enemy tactics and show me what to do about them. This would happen between 2:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m. The Lord had been doing that to me for a long time, when one night, He started speaking to me about demons and their functions. He told me about their doings and some of the problems they bring. He explained how certain demons will open the door for other demons and what they do in people. I jumped out of bed and grabbed a piece of paper and started writing a diagram of what the Lord was showing. He showed me how common it is for the spirit of “self-condemnation” to attack people. From there, the Lord showed me that the spirit of self-condemnation would open the door for the spirit of “rejection.” This spirit of rejection, in turn, would open the door for the spirit of “self-justification”, and this spirit of self-justification in turn, would open a door for the “spirit of retaliation”. Each of these main demons mentioned here has a subset of lesser demons, too, and the main demons open the doors for them. The very first one He showed me was the spirit of self-condemnation, and I think that was because, just a few days earlier, we had received the brother's revelation, which I just shared with you. When the Lord woke me up that morning, I started thinking and meditating on it as I was drawing a diagram. You know, the more you meditate on something, the more the Lord can show and speak to you. Now, there is a time and purpose for condemnation. It has a ministry to people who are willfully disobedient. It has a legal right to them when they're bitter and unforgiving towards their brothers because, in that case, they get turned over to the tormentors. Jesus gave us this parable in (Mat.18:33) Shouldest not thou also have had mercy on thy fellow-servant, even as I had mercy on thee? (34) And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due. Condemnation is one of those tormenters. Its job is to torment people until they learn to forgive and forget, until they give up their bitterness and anger and so on. Condemnation can come as a result of any kind of willful disobedience. (Heb.10:26) If we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins (Jesus doesn't pay the penalty for the curse that willful sin brings. You end up paying for it. You end up getting a “whipping” and these tormentor demons are the ones that carry this out.), but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries. The “adversaries” referred to here are in you. There are things in you that don't belong, things that are not friendly to God or the spiritual man, so there is a good ministry of condemnation, but condemnation has no legal right to you when you have confessed your sin to God and forsaken it. Once you put that sin under the Blood of Christ, it's under the Blood. It's a bad ministry of condemnation if you're doing your best to walk away from that sin, yet you still feel condemned, because confessing and forsaking sin has nothing to do with your emotions. It's believing what the Bible says that counts. Learn to overcome your emotions and walk by what “thus saith the Lord.” If God says He's forgiven you when you've confessed your sins, that's what you believe. Don't pay attention to any demonic spirit that says otherwise. If you do listen to some spirit, it's because you're giving in to an emotion. Remember that the devil will try to give you illegal thoughts, and if you listen to them instead of casting them down, it will affect your emotions. Our emotions are supposed to be submitted to your spiritual man and the Word of God in you. We get all out of whack when we fall into sin, and we start being ruled by our emotions, our lower nature, our old man. That's just the opposite of what is supposed to be. You're supposed to be ruled by your spirit, which is in submission to the Word of God. We need to learn not to listen to emotions that are contrary to God's Word, and condemnation is one of those feelings that can come over you. The apostle Paul said, (Rom.7:19) For the good which I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I practise. (20) But if what I would not, that I do, it is no more I that do it, but sin which dwelleth in me. In other words, “If I don't do the good that I want to do or I will to do, but instead I do the evil that I don't want to do and I don't will to do, then it's not me that does it. It's the sin that dwells in me.” God is separating you from the sin. He's saying, “You're okay, but that sin's gotta go.” This is true because you're not supposed to receive condemnation for failures. If it's failure and not a willful disobedience where you're purposely sinning against God with your will, you confess your sin, and He forgives you. As with failure, the same goes for ignorance. In the Old Testament, according to the Law, you sinned whether you knew it or not, and after you found out about it, you had to bring a sacrifice. (Lev.5:17) And if any one sin, and do any of the things which Jehovah hath commanded not to be done; though he knew it not, yet is he guilty, and shall bear his iniquity. 18 And he shall bring a ram without blemish out of the flock, according to thy estimation, for a trespass-offering, unto the priest; and the priest shall make atonement for him concerning the thing wherein he erred unwittingly and knew it not, and he shall be forgiven. But the New Testament says in (Jas.4:17) To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. This is a good deal! God is not imputing the finer points of the Bible against you, in the event that you don't understand that you're out of His Will. It's like children as they're growing up. They do a lot of things that an adult wouldn't do, but you don't really impute iniquity to them unless they do something you've told them not to do, but they're doing it anyway. They're being self-willed and insolent and arrogant, and that's when you spank them, but normally, if they do childish things, you let that go. That's just the way we train up our children, and that's the way God trains up His children. (Jas.4:17) To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. That's when God imputes sin to you. You're not supposed to be condemned for things that you've done in ignorance or in failure. You're supposed to be condemned only for things that you do wrong willfully. Remember what Paul said, (Rom.7:19) For the good which I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I practise. He did not will to do something wrong. “And the evil which I would not (or ‘willed not'), that I do!” He was lamenting the fact that he was falling victim to something he hated, and God said, “Well, then it's not you that does it, it's the sin that dwells in you. It's the old man.” What do we do with the old man? (Rom.6:11) Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. We reckon the old man's dead and gone. We account ourselves to be dead unto sin, and the Lord does, too. If you reckon it, He reckons it. As Jesus said, (Mat.9:29) … According to your faith, be it done unto you. There is a time for condemnation, but there's a time when you shouldn't receive condemnation, such as when it's a demon coming to take advantage of you because you may not understand that … I have caused your iniquity (That's the “filthy garment.”) to pass from thee… (Zec.3:4) The Lord said that it's already done. He has delivered us. Another demon that the Lord showed me is called “self-justification.” It appears that self-condemnation is almost the opposite of self-justification. With one, you're justifying yourself, and with the other, you're condemning yourself. You would think that a person couldn't have both of them at the same time, but yes, they can, and I've seen it. The Lord showed me that first, there's one other demon that has to come in the middle there; he's called “rejection.” When that demon comes in the middle, it makes it possible for a person to have both self-justification and self-condemnation. After condemnation takes hold, it can open the door to rejection. Sometimes condemnation is a spirit that speaks in your mind, but quite often, condemnation speaks through other people condemning you. If you hear enough condemning, the door can be opened to rejection. Many times, children come into this spirit of rejection when they receive enough criticism and condemnation from others. Rejection is a feeling that God has rejected you or that people have rejected you. It puts a wall between you and other people. Rejection is a nasty spirit that often companies with a spirit called “fear of rejection,” and fear of rejection, basically, is one of those spirits that pushes people around. It makes them do things because of fear, because they don't want a certain thing to happen to them; that thing is rejection. They do things, or don't do things, because they're afraid it might cause people to reject them. They're always being moved by this fear, instead of the fear of the Lord (Job 28:28; Proverbs 1:29,9:10,15:23; Revelation 15:4, etc.) You can't serve rejection or fear of rejection and the Lord at the same time; it's impossible; you just can't do it. A person having this fear of rejection receives a hatred for correction, or “reproof,” as the Bible sometimes calls it. If you try to help someone by bringing correction to them, even ever so gently, like “charming the serpent,” they'll bite you like a serpent. (Ecc.10:11) If the serpent bite before it is charmed, then is there no advantage in the charmer. Trying to get around the flesh of a person who has rejection in order to help them, without that old flesh rearing up, is very hard to do. They'll strike out at you because they've received that hatred for correction, which is common to people who have a spirit of rejection. After rejection, it's the next demon that's let in. So people with spirits of condemnation and rejection also have this hatred for correction. And boy, is that a trap! If nobody can correct you, you're in for some very big problems! (Pro.15:5) A fool despiseth his father's correction; (That “father” can be your natural parent, or that “father” can be your spiritual father on earth as in 1 Corinthians 4:15, or that “father” can be our Heavenly Father.); but he that regardeth reproof (This is somebody who pays attention to correction and takes it to heart.) getteth prudence. The Bible also says, (Eph.4:31) Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and railing, be put away from you, with all malice… “Let… anger…be put away from you.” (Ecc.7:9) Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry; for anger resteth in the bosom of fools. So, this is saying that if you have anger, you're being a fool. If you don't like correction, or somebody laughs at you, and so forth, the next thing that comes in is anger, and that means you're being a fool. So we see that one of these spirits just opens the door to the next, until it's a grievous situation. Hating reproof or correction is a very dangerous place to be. Our Father will correct us because He loves us and wants us to repent for sin. But there are many people who will become angry with God when He corrects them because they don't yet know His love. 1Jn 4:18 There is no fear in love: but perfect love casteth out fear, because fear hath punishment; and he that feareth is not made perfect in love. There's that “fear of rejection” and not being able to accept correction. But God is treating you as a son. Heb 12:6-8 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, And scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. 7 It is for chastening that ye endure; God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father chasteneth not? 8 But if ye are without chastening, whereof all have been made partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. The testimony of the brother I related to you above fell into that trap where he blamed God. In the first part of his testimony, he confessed that he had gotten angry with God, but it's a good thing that God doesn't give us our way. God stops us, putting up roadblocks here and there. He even lets demons come in to hinder us. This is to prevent us from doing something that He doesn't want us to do, or that He won't permit us to do because of our sins. And so, people will get angry. If you're going to bring any form of correction to them, you have to be very careful. You have to really charm the serpent, but even then, no matter how careful you are, sometimes they'll still bite you. You may know people like this, or you may be experiencing this happening in your life right now. You may be wrestling with these demons that are trying to bring you into an ultimate, no-escape, terrible trap of hatred for correction. Father, in Jesus name, we ask that You reveal to the brethren how the demons may be using any of these tactics against them, and as they confess their sins, we know that You hear them and are faithful to forgive them. We thank You for the Blood of Jesus and forgiveness for our sins of failure and mistakes. We command spirits of condemnation, rejection, and the fear of rejection, and fear of correction to go now! You demons no longer have authority over us because we've been forgiven and set free from all the powers of darkness and translated into the Father's Kingdom of the Son of His love! Hallelujah! A person with these spirits we've already mentioned doesn't want to hear correction because correction causes them to feel emotional pain. They read any kind of correction as rejection, which is very painful to them, and so the next thing that comes along is a spirit of self-justification. Self-justification in a person describes a person who, in their own eyes, never does anything wrong. That's another terrible trap because when self-justification is present, you can still call yourself a Christian while self-justifying practically any kind of sin. We've seen people do this. While committing terrible sins, while they're lying, cheating, stealing, slandering, holding unforgiveness, fornicating, and on and on, these people call themselves “Christian.” They consider themselves to be right in what they're doing, yet they will judge you. Their conscience has been defiled; it's been seared. And as they self-justify, they become (1Ti.4:2) … men that speak lies, branded in their own conscience as with a hot iron. Self-justification will let in a great many kinds of sin and demon spirits, such as lying, cheating, stealing, slandering, false prophesying, or, usually out of anger, even receiving false revelation. They've become completely deceived by this demon. A person can become so self-justified that they think they're not doing anything wrong, even as the demons and sins of all kinds just start flooding in and taking over. Any worldly person would look at them in this circumstance and say, “They're crazy! They say they're Christian, so how can they do that?” Well, the conscience of a self-justified person is defiled, meaning it doesn't talk to them anymore, and people with self-justification can be the biggest hypocrites around. While they sin, they'll condemn you and never give it a second thought. When a person's conscience becomes defiled, that person becomes separated from the Word of the Lord, separated from being convicted by the Word of the Lord. Someone can give that person the Word, and it just won't affect them. Of course, the Word is Jesus Christ Himself. You can't be separated from His Word without being separated from Him. Self-justification is a very vicious trap. If you are justifying yourself, the one thing that you must do in order to receive deliverance is to confess your sin. (1Jn.1:9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Unrighteousness is the foothold that demons use to take advantage of us. Remember Jesus said, (Joh.14:30) I will no more speak much with you, for the prince of the world cometh: and he hath nothing in me… There was nothing that the devil could get a grip on. Jesus didn't have unrighteousness, so these devils failed to be able to make Him do what they wanted. Ultimately, if you're caught in this terrible trap of self-justification, you're going to fall into all these sins and corruption. You're going to be a hypocrite. You're going to end up with a defiled conscience to where the Lord won't be able to convict you of sin, and all the while you'll be thinking, “I'm okay because God's on my side,” but He's not. It ends in chastening or, without repentance on your part, in destruction. The sad truth is that when a person has this spirit of self-justification, they're afraid to confess sins because people might reject them, and since they also have this spirit of rejection, they can't confess their sins. I have tried and tried to get them to confess their sins, telling them, “Hey, look at this verse! Look at this awesome promise here!” (1Jn.1:9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (10) If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. But people with this spirit of self-justification will just point their finger everywhere else. “No, it's your fault! It's all your fault; you did it. It's not me. Nope, nope, nope.” This is the terrible trap of self-justification. If you continue this path and you're caught, you'll split hell wide open without God's mercy to confess and repent of your sin. Now, I want to explain to you that there is a difference between a covering and a cleansing of the Blood of Christ. The Lord says in (Psa.32:1) Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered. The Blood of the Lamb is covering the sin of this person who has faith in Him. This person's failures are covered and their ignorance is covered. They're walking as a child of God. (Psa.32:2) Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity… When a person is not walking in willful disobedience, God won't impute iniquity to them because they're walking by faith. The only thing that gives you this benefit, even in your ignorance and failures, is faith in the sacrifice of Jesus. The Blood of Jesus is the only covering that gives you this benefit, but this covering that the Lord gives us is not the end. It's a means to an end. The Lord expects there to come a time when you don't have to be covered because you have become obedient in that particular area. God covers a person until they come to the place of sanctification and obedience. Then they don't need that covering anymore. You may have other things that need to be covered, but if you've been sanctified in that particular area, you don't need a covering for something that is not sin. (1Jn.1:7) But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin. First, there's the covering of the Blood, and then there's the cleansing of the Blood. When you receive the cleansing of the Blood, you don't need the covering of the Blood because you don't have that sin anymore. You don't have that problem anymore. It's gone. We may know of places in our life where we're not tempted at all by things in which we used to be tempted. That's because we've been sanctified and we've been washed in the Blood. We don't need a covering in that area anymore, but when He says, “Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity,” it's because of a Blood covering there. He is describing somebody who's walking by faith. The sin that they did is not imputed to them because it was not willful but done in ignorance or failure. Willful sin is when you know it's wrong, but you're going to do it anyway because you're headstrong. Continuing with (Psa.32:3) When I kept silence, my bones wasted away Through my groaning all the day long. Your life comes from your bones. Your blood comes from the bone marrow. The Bible says, (Lev.17:11) For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh atonement by reason of the life. So what does he mean by “When I kept silence”? He's saying that when he didn't confess his sins, the curse was on him. I try to get to the root of a person's problem. Usually, that root is that they need to confess sins in order that they might be cleansed by the Blood from all unrighteousness. If you want to minister to people, it is helpful to find the root of the problem and deal with that, so the demon has nothing to hold on to. This way, you give people something that will actually last. There was a certain brother I had prayed with some years ago, and there had been a good change in his life, but it didn't last. Then the Lord directed us to the root of the problem, which was that he was holding on to unforgiveness. Unforgiveness kept letting the demons back in to trouble him, causing him to do things that he didn't want to do. Jesus said in (Mat.18:35) So shall also my heavenly Father do unto you, if ye forgive not every one his brother from your hearts. The good effect that came from our prayer some years before didn't last, and the problem had returned because we hadn't dealt with the root. “Self-righteousness” is another name for “self-justification.” If you can't get a person to confess their sins, it is because of this spirit of self-justification or self-righteousness. When a person considers that they're righteous, although everybody else around them can clearly see they're not, this is the spirit of self-righteousness. If they continue to “keep silence,” if they don't confess their sin, they'll live under the curse. The person in Psalm 32, the man to whom the Lord won't impute iniquity, is somebody who is confessing their sins. (Psa.32:3) When I kept silence, my bones wasted away Through my groaning all the day long. (4) For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me (God's chastening was upon him.): My moisture was changed as with the drought of summer. (He was drying up.) Selah (5) I acknowledged my sin unto thee, And mine iniquity did I not hide: I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; And thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah. The great benefit is that if He forgives you, you're no longer under the curse! You're not being chastened any longer. You're no longer seen as a foolish person who is leavening the whole lump (1 Corinthians 5:6; Galatians 5:9). We have to confess our sins. (Pro.28:13) He that covereth his transgressions shall not prosper: But whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall obtain mercy. Some people think they can have mercy without doing this. They think they can have the blessings of God and that they can be accounted as righteous without doing this, but it's a deception. A person needs to call out to the Lord for His mercy. (Psa.66:17) I cried unto him with my mouth, And he was extolled with my tongue. (18) If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear. What does “If I regard iniquity” mean? It means if you're not going to confess it, but instead, you're going to hold onto it and be led by it, then the Lord is not going to hear your prayers. (Psa.32:6) For this let everyone that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: Surely when the great waters overflow they shall not reach unto him. In other words, you can wait too long, and it will be too late. The judgment of God can catch you. You had better do it while you can because some people become so hardened in their consciences that they never come back to the Lord. If a person reaches that point, they don't deserve to come back to the Lord, yet still He is merciful. Through the prayers of others, He does things that we don't deserve, but there are many who don't ever come back to the Lord. So He says that if you will do this, if you'll pray to Him in a time when He can be found, then when the flood, the great waters of judgment, overflow, “they shall not reach unto him” because that person will be in the “Ark.” (Psa.32:7) Thou art my hiding-place; thou wilt preserve me from trouble; Thou wilt compass me about with songs of deliverance. What is it to be … in the secret place of the Most High Shall … under the shadow of the Almighty? (Psa.91:1) It is to be in a right relationship with Him because you have confessed your sins. Some people believe that they have this because of some other reason, but there is no other way to be there. If you have any sin, you have to confess it in order to be forgiven and hidden. The Lord showed me that “retaliation” is the next demon. It comes after condemnation, rejection, and self-justification. If a person is self-justified or self-righteous, hating correction and continues to walk in unforgiveness, or in any of these other sins, then the next thing that happens is retaliation against the person who has corrected or offended them. One time, I had a disagreement with a man who had some people who were taking his side in his little assembly. Two prophets from among them prophesied my death. One of the prophecies was for the next day. I said, “Okay, I'll see you tomorrow.” He prophesied that I was going to die, that I wouldn't be around the next day. I emailed him the next day and said, “I'm still here.” I knew I hadn't sinned. This other man had sinned. These people were just angry because I wasn't going to put up with it. Then there was a second man who prophesied my death in three days, but in three days, I was still there. Then he said he had meant three months, but at the end of three months, I was still there. Their anger was causing them to prophesy falsely. Retaliation can come in many forms, such as false speaking, slander, and false prophecy, or false revelations against the offending person. Retaliation's spinoffs can open the door to wrath and indignation and other negative emotions because demons can manifest as fallen, corrupt emotions. Do you know what it is in us that stirs up emotions? It's our thoughts. For example, when somebody wants to know how to not be overcome by lust, I ask, “Well, what are you thinking about? What are you looking at?” If a person is not going to quit doing that, then they're not going to give up the lust. Every other emotion works the same way: It's what you think about; it's what you look at; it's what you listen to. Every sin your carnal man, the old sinner, falls into is because you are feeding your carnal senses and being led by them. That means if you want to stop sinning, then you have to stop following your emotions, and if you want to stop the emotions, then you have to stop thinking about things that stir up your emotions. And returning to our example, in order to stop thinking about it, since your carnal senses are what feed your thoughts, don't go looking at it. If you don't want to give in to lust or let that emotion overtake you, don't look at pornography. Now let's go to (Heb.5:14) But solid food is for full-grown men (The Greek word there is teleios and it means “perfect … complete in all its parts.”), even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern good and evil. These “senses” are born-again senses that are “exercised” by the Word of God. We can look at the parable about David going through the stream to pick up his five smooth stones so that he could make war on Goliath. Those stones were “exercised” by that water. They were smoothed by that water. They were perfected by that water, which represents the Word of God. The Word of God tells us how to see, hear, and feel. It's the Word of God, not our emotions, that is supposed to be ruling in us. If your emotions are ruling you, you're going to be very unstable. If you're not going to be ruled by the Word of God, but by emotions, the devil's got you. You can't say, … the prince of the world cometh: and he hath nothing in me (Joh.14:30). We need to be fed by the spiritual senses, the born-again senses. Why does the Bible tell us in so many places, “Seeing therefore...”? It's because in the Bible, God tells us how and what He wants us to see. Here's one we can use to “exercise” our spiritual senses. (2Pe.1:2) Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord (This is knowledge of the Word.); (3) seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own glory and virtue; (4) whereby he hath granted unto us his precious and exceeding great promises; that through these ye may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in that world by lust. He tells us what to see here, which is that God has already given these things to us. He's already granted them unto us. That should give you rest. You don't have to beg God, because He's already done it for you; He just wants you to accept and believe it. He's given you His righteousness. He's given you His Son. He's given you His forgiveness. He's given you His sanctification. He's given you “all things”! And He gives it to you “through the knowledge of Him that called us by His glory and virtue.” The Word tells us how to see. The Word tells us what to hear. Jesus said, (Mar.4:9) … Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. Hear what? He's talking about hearing His Word. We've been given these born-again senses to strengthen the spiritual man. However, we also have these carnal senses that strengthen the carnal man, and if you don't want to stir up the carnal man to live in sin, stop feeding him through these carnal senses. Do you want to be holy? Don't feed your carnal man because he will conquer your spiritual man. For instance, don't sit in front of the television all day or watch a bunch of videos on the internet. We want to feed the spirit man, not the carnal man. The input from the carnal senses causes the carnal man to grow and the input from the spiritual senses causes the spiritual man to grow. When somebody is ruled by their emotions, they're all over the place, bouncing around like a pinball machine going ping-ping-ping. Instead of basing everything on the Word of God, they don't have anything stable; they have no rock. Jesus was never moved by what He saw or felt in the world. He wasn't moved by what people said or did to Him, but any person who's being ruled by their emotions is easily offended. They're not being ruled by the Word of God, and they do not forgive. We don't have any right to get offended all the time. Dead men don't have rights, and we died with Christ. We died to sin and those carnal emotions, and as we begin to get things right, we decide that we don't care about what other people say. We decide that we don't care about what's happening around us. We think, “I'm going to obey what ‘thus saith the Lord,'” which is (Joh.14:15) If ye love me, ye will keep my commandments. That makes a person secure and steadfast in the Word. You're able to turn the other cheek when they insult you. That's a good way to die-to-self quickly. God gave us these rules so that we would be able to die quickly, so that we wouldn't be in bondage to the old man, our old flesh, for the rest of our lives. (1Pe.4:1) For as much then as Christ suffered in the flesh, arm ye yourselves also with the same mind; for he that hath suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin (If your flesh is suffering, it's because you're not giving in to it. If you're not giving in to it, you are not sinning.); (2) that ye no longer should live the rest of your time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God. It shouldn't take a lifetime for us to get this right. He's saying that you have to suffer in order to get to that place, but the old flesh doesn't want to suffer through your denying it the right to be moved by the external stimuli and do whatever it wants. We're supposed to be moved by our spiritual, born-again senses that are washed with the Word of God to know what's right and wrong. Our spiritual senses, not our carnal emotions fed by fleshly stimuli, are supposed to be ruling our lives. (1Pe.4:3) For the time past may suffice to have wrought the desire of the Gentiles, and to have walked in lasciviousness (That means a license to do whatever you want to do.), lusts, winebibings, revelings, carousings, and abominable idolatries: (4) wherein they think it strange that ye run not with [them] into the same excess of riot, speaking evil of [you] (If you don't want to join in their sins with these self-justified people, you'll be the bad guy.): (5) who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the living and the dead. (6) For unto this end was the gospel preached even to the dead, that they might be judged indeed according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit. This sequence of events from condemnation to rejection to self-justification to retaliation of some sort, is quite common for a person who is trapped by the devil. There's only one way to holiness, and that's repentance and confession of sin. This person may want sanctification, but they're not willing to pay the price for it. “Repentance” means “a change of mind.” No matter what it may be that we need from God, He tells us to (Jas.5:16) Confess therefore your sins one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. No matter what kind of benefit you want from God, first you have to make sure everything is right between you and God, and between you and your brother. He tells us, (Mat.5:23) If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee, (24) leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. If you really want to deal with the cause in order to permanently change the effect, that's what you have to do. You can try and just deal with the effect, but the problem will be back because you haven't done anything eternal. You must first deal with the root cause. Otherwise, there won't be anything lasting there. If you want God's righteousness, then you have to confess your sins to be cleansed of them. Now I'm going to share with you the following true story and testimony of Pastor Daniel Ekechukwu.   In Hell for Unforgiveness by Pastor Daniel Ekechukwu This is the true story of Pastor Daniel Ekechukwu in Nigeria, who was raised from the dead in front of a multitude of witnesses. Pastor Daniel died after a traffic accident. His body was in a mortuary for three days. He came back to life when his wife convinced others that his time was not yet because of previous promises God had given her. He still has his death certificate, written by a hospital doctor. In the movie, he recounts his experiences with amazing computer-generated images of both Heaven and Hell. The angelic voices that are heard in Heaven are actual angelic voices recorded at a small church in South Africa. The actual footage of the coming back to life of Pastor Daniel is shown in the movie. Pastor Daniel is personally interviewed in the movie. The narrative that follows is a transcription of a short clip of the video, “The Lazarus Phenomenon” by Johan Sturm, Eternal Productions. You can watch “The Lazarus Phenomenon” for free online. This account begins with Daniel dying on the ground. Daniel: “Suddenly, I had some feelings for me to look up. I saw two angels.” Narrator: When Daniel saw the two angels, he wanted to let his wife know, but the angel indicated that he should keep silent. Immediately, Daniel's power of speech was taken from him. Nneka, his wife, began to cry, fearing that Daniel would die. The angels took Daniel by his shoulders and lifted him out of the ambulance. Suddenly, Daniel found himself in another place with one of the angels. Angel: “Daniel, I have a lot to show you.” Narrator: As he looked out, Daniel saw a place where a multitude of people gathered. Their appearance was like that of the angels. Their color was pure white and their bodies seemed to glow with radiance. Because of their similar appearance, Daniel thought he was seeing a gathering of the angels. Angel: “This is not the gathering of the angels, Daniel. This is the gathering of the saints.” Narrator: The differences between the saints and the angels were subtle. Their color is a pure, brilliant white from their hair down to their feet. The difference is that the angels have wings, while the saints do not. The saints were worshipping God. They worshipped God with one voice and raised their hands as they were singing. Daniel heard the sound of many instruments. The sounds were like nothing he had encountered before. He longed to join these people and moved over towards them, but the angels stopped him. Angel: “Daniel, don't go. I have a lot to show you. Take this file and record everything you see.” Narrator: The multitude that Daniel saw were all looking at a bright light that shone like the sun. It was a source of all the light there. Daniel: “A very thick, heavy light coming upon them there. Now, they were all looking at that light as if they were seeing something there. But to me, I cannot look at that light. I cannot look at that light because it's so dangerous for my eyes. So I tried to budge to look through. They were looking through, but to me I cannot look through.” Angel: “Let's visit the mansions Jesus prepared for His people.” Narrator: Immediately, Daniel was in a new place with radiant mansions as far as the eye could see. It was incomparable to anything he knew on Earth. Though the appearance resembled buildings, the structure was unusual, not made of any earthly materials. They seemed to be alive, moving. Angel: “Daniel, Jesus has finished his work. The mansions are ready, but the saints are not ready.” Narrator: There was a sound of beautiful singing and worship. It seemed to come from all around. Daniel wondered where the singing was coming from because he could see no people there. Angel: “Daniel, the worship song you're hearing is being sung by the flowers.” Narrator: As he looked, Daniel saw the flowers swinging in response to the music. It actually seemed as if they were clapping their hands, shouting and praising God. Angel: “They are waiting for the saints. We are now going to visit Hell. Can you see the gates of Hell?” Narrator: The angel raised his hand, and as he brought it down, the gates ripped open with a great noise. Daniel could hear the crying and wailing of many people, but he could not see any of them. And then a light shone from the angel's body into the darkness so that Daniel could see more clearly. There were many people there, but unlike the souls in Heaven, the appearance of these people was as it had been on Earth. They were from every race, culture and nationality. Every person seemed trapped in their own personal torment, a torment that would go on for eternity, and they could not communicate with others. The sounds of crying and wailing were almost deafening. Suddenly, they all seemed to become aware of Daniel and started crying to him for help. And they called to Daniel only, as if they could not see the angel. A Pastor in Hell: “Please, help! I'm a pastor. I stole money from the church and I lied. Help me, please! I'm ready to repent. Help!” Narrator: Immediately after the pastor made the statement, the force that was tormenting him seemed to increase. The people had flesh, but no blood. And they almost seemed to be on fire, although no flames could be seen. There was a group of people who were eating their own flesh. They would vomit what they had eaten, and their flesh grew back. This carried on in an endless cycle of torment. Angel: “Those people you see eating themselves…they practiced witchcraft while they were on Earth. They specialized in eating human flesh and now they'll eat themselves forever. They are reaping what they sowed.” Daniel: “That place is not good for any human being created by God to go. God did not make that place for human beings; He made that place for the devil and his agents. But stubborn human beings who will disobey God, like the devil, will also go there. God has no mind to put any human being in Hell. It's a dangerous and deadly place He meant for the devil and his people.” Narrator: What was to follow was an earth-shattering statement by the angel. Daniel couldn't have imagined in his wildest dreams that he would hear the judgment. Angel: “Daniel, if the book of your life were to be closed today, this would be your portion.” Daniel: “No! I'm a pastor! I'm a child of God; I'm born again. I preach all over this country I'm in, the country that I'm in. This country. No. No. This can't be!” Angel: “Enough! Daniel, on your way to the first hospital, you were asking God to forgive you. But you would not forgive your wife, and your sins have not been forgiven. It is a matter of reaping what you sow. You cannot sow unforgiveness to your wife and reap forgiveness from God.” (My note: Those who die with unforgiveness go to Hell. (Mat.6:14) For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. (15) But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Those who live with unforgiveness are delivered to tormenting spirits and go to Hell with tormenting spirits, if they do not repent. (Mat.18:32) Then his lord called him unto him, and saith to him, Thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou besoughtest me: (33) shouldest not thou also have had mercy on thy fellow-servant, even as I had mercy on thee? (34) And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due. (35) So shall also my heavenly Father do unto you, if ye forgive not every one his brother from your hearts.) Daniel: “Oh! I knew He made that statement. My spirit convinced me that what the angel told me of the judgment on me is true. So he said to me that I didn't forgive my wife, that I'm not forgiven. So while I was crying, crying, crying, shouting and shouting, I was not crying that, I will only say, see how I destroy my soul, look at how I destroy my soul. While I was shouting and crying, I was afraid. Tears were all over me. I was panicking because that place is not good for anyone. The way everything was looking, if God wanted to put me inside Hell, nothing would prevent Him, because while we were discussing, some group of people, thousands of people, were being sent into Hell.” Narrator: People started praying for him, praying for resurrection. Daniel: “Then the angel said to me that he's sending me back to the world – to go and warn this nation because this is going to be the last warning to this generation.” Nneka: “As prayers were going on, then his heart began to pant, life began to come into his heart. We continued praying and praying, we are praying. As all these things were going on, he began to breathe gradually, but his body was still stiff.” Daniel: “I saw myself being held by a lot of people. I was naked and put on my dress. I saw a crowd of people, more than 20,000 people. I looked to my left, right, everywhere. People were shouting, crying everywhere. Some were praising God, some were crying. I was looking around. I couldn't understand what was happening, because to me I was falling down. And I fell into fear, and to me, when I opened my eyes, I saw all hands were grabbing me. They said to me that I jumped up. I saw this big cathedral, a very big cathedral. I looked to my right, my left, my front and my back. Everywhere was full of people. Some people were shouting, some were saying ‘coffin;' some said ‘mortuary;' some said, ‘three days.' I couldn't understand because my experience was not more than fifteen minutes. So I don't know what they call about three days. To me there was no night, there was no day; it was only that moment I was into. By now I asked my wife, ‘What is happening?' She said I should keep quiet until we get to the house. They brought me back to my house, this place, with my wife.” (Note from Barbara Arroyo: I first heard about this many years ago. My former pastor, David Servant, went to Nigeria and met Pastor Daniel Ekechukwu. Yes, that was an incredible story! I guess this happened back in 2002. Pastor Servant went to Nigeria and investigated this story, and he even actually interviewed the doctor and mortician, and also Daniel himself! There is more information on Pastor Servant's website.) Jesus said that He was sent to proclaim release to the captives (Isaiah 61:1; Luke 4:18). He also said that if you do not make things right with your brother, you would be thrown into prison until you pay your debt. (Mat.5:23) If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee, (24) leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. (25) Agree with thine adversary quickly, while thou art with him in the way; lest haply the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. (26) Verily I say unto thee, thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou have paid the last farthing. And Jesus warned us in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant, that they (Mat.18:34) … delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due. Your debts, your sins, are what is “due.” If a person does not forgive, that person is not forgiven. (Mat.6:15) But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Can you be saved and not be forgiven? No, you cannot be saved and not be forgiven. The most dangerous sin is unforgiveness because it opens up a trap that gives a person over to demons.

LESSON 210Review of Lesson 190I am not a body. I am free.For I am still as God created me.(190) I choose the joy of God instead of pain.Pain is my own idea.It is not a Thought of God,but one I thought apart from Him and from His Will.His Will is joy, and only joy for His beloved Son.And that I choose, instead of what I made.I am not a body. I am free.For I am still as God created me.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

What words do you use to speak to God? Be effective in communicating with God in your prayer life. Know that God's word has the answer to every prayer need. Ask anything, according to His Will, receive it, and rely on Holy Spirit to reveal the answer to your prayer to you.  Keep standing in faith regarding your prayer and allow Holy Spirit to work in and through you. After you have prayed, remain vigilant. We need our spirits aligned with the Holy Spirit. We must learn His voice and respond.

What words do you use to speak to God? Be effective in communicating with God in your prayer life. Know that God's word has the answer to every prayer need. Ask anything, according to His Will, receive it, and rely on Holy Spirit to reveal the answer to your prayer to you.  Keep standing in faith regarding your prayer and allow Holy Spirit to work in and through you. After you have prayed, remain vigilant. We need our spirits aligned with the Holy Spirit. We must learn His voice and respond.

Jesus Delivered Us (5) (audio) David Eells – 7/16/25 Saints, I want to point out to you that if you want deliverance from any demon, do not put the responsibility for the sin upon the demon. What did Peter say to Ananias and Sapphira? (Act.5:3) … Ananias, why hath Satan filled thy heart to lie to the Holy Spirit …? Was Peter blaming the lying spirit, or was he blaming Ananias? Some people have demons they inherited through the bloodline (Exodus 20:5, 34:7; Numbers 14:18; Deuteronomy 5:9), but we are born in sin. Psa 51:5  Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity; And in sin did my mother conceive me.  If you have a demon because of what you have done, guess what? You are still guilty. The Bible does not let you get off without being guilty. So the solution is 1Jn 1:9  If we confess our sins (not the demons sins), he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  (Pro.26:2) As the sparrow in her wandering, as the swallow in her flying, So the curse that is causeless alighteth not. See, there are people who just run from ministry to ministry looking for somebody to give them deliverance, but they will not first repent. They think all they need is deliverance, but God says they need to repent, because you can get delivered of anything and everything if you repent and believe. So there may be things you have never been delivered of yet, but God's plan is to deliver you from lusts of the flesh and demon spirits that take advantage of them. Let's look at some Old Testament types and shadows about delivering the Promised Land that show us the way God leads us from the time we come to know Him. This “house,” your body, is supposed to be ruled over by the spiritual man, and for that to happen, the carnal man who lives in your house has to be driven out and killed. This is a type of taking the Promised Land. Those Israelites represent the spiritual man, and those Canaanites represent the carnal man. God told them the Canaanites had to be driven out and killed, and the Israelites had to live in their houses. God said in (Deu.7:2) And when the Lord thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and thou shalt smite them; then thou shalt utterly destroy them: thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them. And He also commanded, (Exo.23:33) They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me; for if thou serve their gods (demons), it will surely be a snare unto thee. You see, if you leave one of the lusts of the flesh in your land, it is going to cause you to sin, so don't leave them and don't bow down to their gods. (Exo.23:20) Behold, I send an angel before thee, to keep thee by the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. By the way, you have an angel, too, as the Bible says in (Heb.1:14) Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to do service for the sake of them that shall inherit salvation? These spirits are with us to bring us into this salvation that Jesus provided. Exodus 23 is an exact parallel. (Exo.23:21) Take ye heed before him, and hearken unto his voice; provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgression: for my name is in him. God's Name, which is His Nature, Character, and Authority, is in those angels. His Nature is so strong in them that they are perfect prophets for the Lord, and when an angel speaks to you, he speaks to you with the Voice of God. In the Book of Acts, Stephen said it was an angel who spoke out of the burning bush to Moses. (Acts 7:30) And when forty years were fulfilled, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. An angel spoke to Moses with the Voice of God. (Exo.23:22) But if thou shalt indeed hearken unto his voice, and do all that I speak; (We see the Lord is speaking, but it is the angel's voice.) then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies. If you obey His Voice, He will be an enemy to your enemies. If you do not obey His Voice, He is not going to be an enemy to your enemies. You may run around everywhere looking for your deliverance from flesh and spirit, but you will fail when you are not obeying His Voice. (Exo.23:23) For mine angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: and I will cut them off. These are the original inhabitants of the land. They represent the lusts of the flesh that live in our Promised Land right here, and the Lord is going to lead us to sanctification from every one of these lusts. Each group of these original inhabitants represents the old man ruled over by demon gods with matching specialties and each of their names has a meaning. “Canaanite” means “to bend the knee, to humiliate, to subdue.” “Amorite” means “prominent,” and of course, one of the evils of the flesh is pride. “Hittite” means “terror, fear.” There are many different kinds of demons of fear, and God wants to deliver us from all kinds of fear. Your flesh fears many things; you could have a fear of rejection or a fear of heights and so on. “Perizzite” means “to separate.” Think about it; religions separate from religions and nations separate from nations. Factions separate. When religions separate from each other, it's “sectarianism,” which Paul listed among works of the flesh. (Gal.5:19) Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are [these:] fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, (20) idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, wraths, factions, divisions, parties, (21) envyings, drunkenness, revellings, and such like… Paul called them “lusts of the flesh”; we call them “denominations.” And countries naturally have a bias toward the people who live in their nation, but we are not supposed to be divided from Christians anywhere in the world. We are a holy nation (1 Peter 2:9). We are “one man in Christ Jesus.” (Gal.3:28) There can be neither Jew nor Greek, there can be neither bond nor free, there can be no male and female; for ye all are one [man] in Christ Jesus. That means a Christian over in Russia is my brother; I am not going to fight for America to kill a Christian over in Russia, or anywhere else. It is wrong! This is worldly thinking and we need to understand that Jesus said, (Joh.18:36) My kingdom is not of this world… We are one holy nation, so no matter where on earth we are living, we are supposed to be a part of (Heb.12:22) … the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. “Jebus” was the old name for Jerusalem, and it's interesting that “Jebusite” means “trodden down.” The Bible says that Jerusalem will be “trodden down.” (Luk.21:24) Jerusalem will be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. Revelation 11 talks about the outer court being trodden down. (Rev.11:2) And the court which is without the temple leave without, and measure it not; for it hath been given unto the nations: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months. Jesus told us in (Mat.5:13) Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men. It's the old Jerusalem, not the New Jerusalem, who is going to be trodden down. Old, unregenerate Jerusalem was Jebus. They were trodden down that New Jerusalem could take their place. Going on in (Exo.23:24) Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works… Notice two things in this verse: “their gods” and “their works.” If you live after the lusts of your flesh, that is your works, and if you “bow down to their gods,” then you're being ruled by demons. It says in (1Co.10:20) But [I say,] that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have communion with demons. You see, every one of the lusts of the flesh has a demon spirit that rules over it. Jesus Christ sowed a Seed in us to bring forth the fruit of the Spirit, but the demons have sown other seeds in mankind. They have sown seeds of anger, seeds of lust, and seeds of rebellion, and the flesh has been bringing forth what is called the “lusts” of the flesh, which is another way of saying “fruit” of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21; 2 Peter 2:10-19). Demons are the ones who sowed the seeds that have brought this forth. They are the gods of the lusts of the flesh and God commanded us to kill them and not to serve their gods. (Exo.23:33) They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me; for if thou serve their gods, it will surely be a snare unto thee. He is talking about marching through this Promised Land, and putting to death, one by one, the lusts of the flesh. And He is talking about not submitting, not bowing down, to their gods. If you are throwing out their “flesh,” you are throwing out the demon gods' power. If you simply throw out the demon gods and hold on to the flesh, they will be back. We are this Promised Land that has to be sanctified. The word “sanctified” means “separated from sin, separated from the curse, and separated unto God.” As God led the Israelites through their Promised Land and they put to death the original inhabitants with a physical sword, so we are led of the Holy Spirit through our promised land to put to death the lusts of the flesh with the “sword” of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. (Heb.4:12) For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and quick to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart. And it is two-edged because one edge is for you. We are commanded to Put to death therefore your members which are upon the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. (Col.3:5) The devil fears you if you know your authority and you are walking with God. Now, what about casting out demons from the lost? Are we authorized to do that? One time, I had been asking God about casting demons out of my mother. She had come to live with us in our house, but she didn't know the Lord. Most people do not know you need permission from God to cast demons out of a lost person, but it's biblical. (Luk.11:24) The unclean spirit when he is gone out of the man, passeth through waterless places, seeking rest, and finding none, he saith, I will turn back unto my house whence I came out. (25) And when he is come, he findeth it swept and garnished. (26) Then goeth he, and taketh [to him] seven other spirits more evil than himself; and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man becometh worse than the first. You see, the lost person will get them seven times worse if you cast the demons out without the person turning to God. There are “loopholes” in the Bible, and so I asked God for permission to cast the demons out of my mother on the basis that my house is not cursed, but she was in my house and bringing me under a curse. I asked, “God, I am not under the curse. Can I cast the demons out of her because she is bringing a curse upon me?” God gave my daughter Jennifer a dream that night. She saw my mother's house in the middle of my house, except it was three stories tall, sticking out of the top of my house. Out of the second floor, representing the soul, there was a plank leading out to the street. Five chickens, representing unclean spirits, were on it and they were walking the plank to the street. Well, I knew exactly what the Lord was saying. That night, Mama, full of demons, came to our bedroom door and her demons threatened us, “I am going to keep you awake all night!” I said, “Oh no you're not!” My wife and I jumped up and went into her room, and as we stood there, God gave us five spirits to cast out. We didn't even wait to see them come out. We just commanded, “Come out in the Name of Jesus!” as fast as we could name them. Then we marched out, went back to bed, and slept peacefully all night. The next day, we noticed that it was awfully quiet in that room. Not knowing what was going on, we opened the door and peeked in to see that her room was a total mess. And there was my mother, crawling out from under the bed! She had been wrestling in there with something all night long, but when she came out, she was humble, meek, and submissive. I never knew my mother to be that kind of person. She had been demon-possessed all of her life; she had been taking medication all of her life to keep those demons in subjection. Her “religion” had kept her from turning to God when she had the opportunity, but as long as she was in my house, we had peace. When the demons started drifting back, the Lord took her out of my house. As she was dying she returned to peace. There are several reasons why God will give deliverance to the lost, and we should read the Bible like a lawyer because God put loopholes in there so you can step through them sometimes. Another great loophole that the Lord showed me is that if somebody is a blessing to you, you can be a blessing to them. It does not matter if they are lost. We have the example of when Paul was shipwrecked on Melita and the natives of the island came to the rescue. They were very kind to Paul and the others who were cold and wet. The natives dried their clothes and got them out of the rain (Acts 28:1-2). (Act.28:7) Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief man of the island, named Publius, who received us, and entertained us three days courteously. (8) And it was so, that the father of Publius lay sick of fever and dysentery: unto whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laying his hands on him healed him. He never preached the Gospel to him; he just healed him. Then they brought all the sick people on the island to Paul. He prayed for them and God healed them. (Act.28:9) And when this was done, the rest also that had diseases in the island came, and were cured. You do not see this elsewhere in the Bible because “healing is the children's bread” (Matthew 15:26), so I asked, “Why is this, Lord?” The Lord answered, “They were kind to them.” God will let you pray for somebody and heal them because they were good to you. He said, (Gen.12:3) And I will bless them that bless thee, and him that curseth thee will I curse: and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed. This is talking about us; we are the “Israelites.” There's one loophole, too, that's the mercy of God. The demoniac described in the Gospels was so far gone that you could not expect the man to have faith or make a rational decision, and Jesus cast the demons out of him, knowing what kind of decision he was going to make afterward (Matthew 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39). Sometimes God does this, but He does not have to do it. Now let me share with you the following testimony: Delivered from Scoliosis by D. M. My brother-in-law once bought me a book by Henry W. Wright entitled “A More Excellent Way: A Teaching on the Spiritual Roots of Disease.” I found the book to be fascinating and, as the British say, “spot-on” in many ways. (There is definitely a connection between a sin and its curse. Quite often, a sickness can identify the sin.) I have a good friend named “A” whom I've known since I was saved. We have conversed via phone for years, since we live in different states. A couple of years ago, he mentioned that he'd had scoliosis since childhood. I didn't say anything to him, but I went to Henry Wright's book and looked up what he had to say about scoliosis. I kept this to myself because I didn't feel right bringing it up to “A.” I knew the time would come as the Lord gave me freedom to do so. Today, I received an email from “A” asking me to pray for him for deliverance from a particular sin. He did not go into detail but gave me a hint. I replied that I would pray for him in a moment. But first I wanted to know when his scoliosis had begun, and if, in fact, it had begun about the time of his traumatic incident. He replied back that it did begin right afterwards. I decided to give him a call. We talked. He made a full confession of the incident. I quoted (Jas.5:16) Confess therefore your sins one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The supplication of a righteous man availeth much in its working. And I told him that there was now nothing in the way of his deliverance. I prayed over the phone with him in agreement. Glory be to God, a hundred-pound weight came off my friend and he was delivered from the evil spirit of scoliosis and was healed! Awesome! Praise the Lord! Saints, we need to be led of the Spirit and wait for the Lord's leading so He can open the way for us to minister to others. Here's another testimony I'd like to share with you. Delivered from Lung Cancer by Linda L. (This lady was healed of a spirit of cancer when I for the brethren in our meeting rebuked it, although she was not present at that meeting. She related to us how, later that same night, what looked like smoke came out of her nose and she knew she was healed. Please note that she had faith to be healed.) My doctor's office called to tell me I had an inconsistency on my chest x-ray. I needed to go to the hospital for another x-ray. The second x-ray was not any better than the first. A CT scan was ordered. The suspicious spot was a ten-centimeter (approximately two inches) sized nodule in the upper right lobe. That night after numerous internet searches, I was devastated to learn that most nodules are malignant. My father had died of lung cancer in 1998. I am very familiar with the disease. At this point I started to do a lot of praying. Even though I knew Jesus heard my prayer, I did not have peace yet. My doctor sent me to a pulmonary specialist. The first thing Dr. Wagner told me was that I was not to worry. The surgeon would remove my lobe. I would not have to undergo chemotherapy or radiation. He started to ask questions about health, lifestyle, etc., and we talked more. He decided to wait and repeat the CT scan in two months. At this point, I told Dr. Wagner that God would heal me. He did not say anything, but I am sure he thought I was deluded. I am a very reserved person. I usually do not share information of this nature with many people. However, the Holy Spirit prompted me to tell Dr. Wagner how Jesus would heal my lung. When I saw Bob, a UBM elder, I told him my predicament. And as we talked, I asked his group to pray for my healing. Jesus would heal me. This was a Tuesday. I did not see Bob during the week, but I KNOW his prayer group prayed for me. A peace beyond all understanding came over me Saturday night. During the middle of the night, I saw an evil spirit leave my lungs! I KNEW I was healed. The next month arrived. It was time to repeat the CT scan. The doctor at the Imaging Center observed the entire scan. He reported the nodule was starting to calcify. In his opinion the nodule was now benign. Tears and praise flowed, as Jesus had healed me. Dr. Wagner told me I was one lucky lady. I reminded him that Jesus would heal me. The doctor did not acknowledge anything yet, but he knows that this healing from a deadly lung nodule was a miracle. Jesus hears our prayers and heals those who ask and have faith. He knows our pain. He honors His commitment to us when we believe Him and the works of His hands. Amen! That's so true! Praise You, Lord! Let's look at this parable in the Old Testament, how God delivers us. The Lord says in (Exo.23:27) I will send my terror before thee, and will discomfit all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee. (28) And I will send the hornet before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee. You know, it's easy to win a battle when your enemy is afraid, and making your enemy fearful is a proven strategy of warfare. There have been great battles won by very small armies against very large armies, all because fear was in the larger army. This happened to Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War when Arabs attacked them from all sides. Israel won overwhelming victories against all odds because God put fear in the hearts of their enemies. It's a quick battle when the enemy is fearful. Only God is able to do this! He did this in many places in the Scriptures, giving the Israelites tremendous victories. We have a good example where they sent spies into the Promised Land to understand their enemies' thinking. (Jos.2:1) And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men as spies secretly, saying, Go, view the land, and Jericho. And they went and came into the house of a harlot whose name was Rahab, and lay there… (8) And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; (9) and she said unto the men, I know that the Lord hath given you the land, and that the fear of you is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. (10) For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you, when ye came out of Egypt… Going through the Red Sea was their salvation experience. Guess who knows immediately about our salvation experience? Demon spirits. They know who we are, but the problem is not that they know; the problem is, do we know? This is why we need to study the Scriptures; it's important that we find out who we are. Unless we know who we are, demon spirits can, and do, take advantage of us, but when you know who you are according to Scripture, the demons are fearful. In the dream that the Lord gave my daughter, the Lord had a sense of humor because He pictured the five demons as five chickens. Our enemies know that they cannot keep us from taking our land. (Jos.2:10) For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan, unto Sihon and to Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. (11) And as soon as we had heard it, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more spirit in any man, because of you: for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above, and on earth beneath. All of these verses are types and shadows of our enemies being fearful of us. (Jos.1:5) There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee; I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. (6) Be strong and of good courage; for thou shalt cause this people to inherit the land which I sware unto their fathers to give them. (7) Only be strong and very courageous, to observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest have good success whithersoever thou goest. (8) This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate thereon day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Spiritually speaking, the Lord is talking about taking this “land” in which we live, taking this land of the soul, which is our mind, our will, and our emotions. God says, (Exo.23:29) I will not drive them out from before thee in one year, lest the land become desolate, and the beasts of the field multiply against thee. From this example, we see that it is not God's plan to purify us instantly, but almost every Christian religion teaches some form of “instantaneous sanctification.” They say all you need to do is get saved and you're sanctified. A number of them also believe that you're automatically filled with the Holy Spirit. In other words, there's a line you just step over and that's all there is to it; then you can sit down and take it easy. No, we can never sit down and take it easy because we have a land to conquer. God goes on to say, (Exo.23:30) By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land. “Little by little” is God's plan. People who have their “instantaneous sanctification” theology do not understand that sanctification is when you are delivered of all the lusts of the flesh to the point where you're not even going to be tempted anymore. The ultimate end of sanctification is when the flesh is dead. We can all think of things in our lives from which God delivered us. They do not even tempt us anymore because that flesh is dead, but God wants to continue that process until He goes through all of our “Promised Land.” God wants to lead you to your enemy, give you the Sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17), and put the fear of God in you (Psalms 111:10; Proverbs 1:7; etc.) He wants to give you understanding to know that you have victory through the Gospel and through the Blood of Jesus. So the Lord said, (Exo.23:22) But if thou shalt indeed hearken unto his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries. But He also says, (Exo.23:29) I will not drive them out from before thee in one year… and (Exo.23:30) By little and little I will drive them out from before thee… Well, the people of Israel did not “hearken unto his voice” to do all that the Lord spoke. We read in (Jdg.21:25) In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes. (Jdg.2:20) And the anger of The Lord was kindled against Israel; and he said, Because this nation have transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto my voice; (21) I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations that Joshua left when he died; (22) that by them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of The Lord to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not. (23) So the Lord left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua. If you break God's Covenant, He is not going to do a quick work of delivering your enemies into your hand. The Blood is our weapon to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. The New Testament says, (1Jn.1:7) But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (8) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. (9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. The Blood cleanses as we walk in the light and as we obey what we know to obey. We cannot do anything about what we do not know, but as we do what we know to obey, the Blood cleanses. These “lusts of the flesh” and their “gods,” which have the same names, have to be driven out. Every lust of the flesh has a “god.” It's the demon spirit, having the same name, that rules over that particular lust. God said He is not going to be in a hurry to drive out your enemies if you are going to rebel. The Bible says in (Luk.12:48) And to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required. If you do something with what God gives you, He will give you more, but if you do not do something with what He has already given you, He is not going to give you anymore. You're going to stop right in your tracks because God is a merciful God. Otherwise, you would be condemned for not doing even more, and so when you stop doing something with your Sword against your enemy, God is going to stop. God does not flood us with knowledge of our every evil. He leads us to each individual evil, step-by-step, and He expects us, at that point and time, to do something about it. If He were to just flood our minds with the knowledge of all of the evil in us, we would be overwhelmed and probably lose faith. And if we didn't do something with all that knowledge, we would be condemned. When you have a lot of knowledge, Scripture warns us, (Jas.4:17) To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. When you have a lot of knowledge, yet do nothing, you have a lot of sin. God brings these enemies up, one at a time, in front of our face. This usually occurs through temptation, through something happening around us. When He brings these enemies up in front of our face, we have an opportunity to use the Sword to come against that enemy. We can reject that lust of the flesh and command it to go in the Name of Jesus. If there is any demon spirit in our flesh, or if there is any demon spirit using that lust of the flesh to exercise authority in our soul, we can come against it, and we can win right there. We do not have to live with these demons all of our lives or go searching for some deliverance ministry, because we have authority over demon spirits and the flesh (Matthew 28:18-19; Luke 10:19; etc.) We're told, (Rom.6:11) Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. This is what we have to believe. We are dead unto sin, but alive unto God. We have total authority over the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, the Canaanites, and so forth. We have total authority over them and their gods. Every one of us can learn to exercise our Sword, the Word, against the lusts of the flesh and those spirits. We don't have to live with them anymore, but God is only going to continue this process as long as we cooperate. We are here to conquer our Promised Land, and there's no time for us to rest in the flesh. Our rest is in the Spirit. Our rest is in the promises of God. We can safely rest in His Word. The quicker we submit to him and resist the devil, the quicker we win. It says in (Psa.81:10) I am the Lord thy God, Who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt (He delivered you from the power of the old man at the Red Sea baptism.): Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it. That is, “Say what I say,” speak as an oracle of God (1 Peter 4:11). And (11) But my people hearkened not to my voice; And Israel would none of me. (12) So I let them go after the stubbornness of their heart, That they might walk in their own counsels. (13) Oh that my people would hearken unto me, That Israel would walk in my ways! (14) I would soon subdue their enemies (If we obey and fight the enemy, we will “soon” win.), And turn my hand against their adversaries. And they will be conquered. (15) The haters of the Lord should submit themselves unto him: But their time should endure for ever. (16) He would feed them also with the finest of the wheat; And with honey out of the rock would I satisfy thee. It's our obedience that brings the blessings. Remember, we are to be vigilant when we are in a trial because it's our opportunity to come against that particular enemy in our Promised Land and win. God brought us to this enemy for us to conquer it, and to do it now. This is why we are here. He has given us total authority over that enemy. There is no such thing as a “giant” in our Promised Land since even the least of us has total authority over the mightiest demon that comes into contact with us. God is walking with you. You need to realize that He wants your enemies to be conquered here and now, day by day, little by little. (Psa.81:11) But my people hearkened not to my voice; And Israel would none of me. (12) So I let them go after the stubbornness of their heart, That they might walk in their own counsels. You see, if you're resting in the flesh, rather than resting in the Spirit, then you are not doing anything. We are here to redeem the time and to win a battle. (Eph.5:15) Look therefore carefully how ye walk, not as unwise, but as wise; (16) redeeming the time, because the days are evil. (17) Wherefore be ye not foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. What is His Will for us if we walk in His ways? (Psa.81:13) Oh that my people would hearken unto me, That Israel would walk in my ways! (14) I would soon subdue their enemies, And turn my hand against their adversaries. You may say, “Well, David, that's exactly my problem, walking in His ways,” but there is always a step you can take, however small it may be. If He makes us responsible to walk in His ways, then we can walk in the light. (1Jn.1:7) But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin. We can take those steps. (Pro.4:18) But the path of the righteous is as the dawning light, That shineth more and more unto the perfect day. You can take one step at a time, and God will be with you each step.

The Bible tells us words are powerful tools that can be used for good or ill. Determine to use faith-filled words! What words do you use to speak to God? Be effective in communicating with God by being filled with the knowledge and understanding of God's Will.  A renewed mind is so beneficial! Be purposeful in seeking out God's Will for you – to truly discern and understand it. God will teach you His Will. Once He teaches you, then act upon / obey it by LIVING His Will for you!

The Bible tells us words are powerful tools that can be used for good or ill. Determine to use faith-filled words! What words do you use to speak to God? Be effective in communicating with God by being filled with the knowledge and understanding of God's Will.  A renewed mind is so beneficial! Be purposeful in seeking out God's Will for you – to truly discern and understand it. God will teach you His Will. Once He teaches you, then act upon / obey it by LIVING His Will for you!

LESSON 193All Things Are Lessons God Would Have Me Learn.God does not know of learning. Yet His Will extends to what He does not understand, in that He wills the happiness His Son inherited of Him be undisturbed; eternal and forever gaining scope, eternally expanding in the joy of full creation, and eternally open and wholly limitless in Him. That is His Will. And thus His Will provides the means to guarantee that it is done.God sees no contradictions. Yet His Son believes he sees them. Thus he has a need for One Who can correct his erring sight, and give him vision that will lead him back to where perception ceases. God does not perceive at all. Yet it is He Who gives the means by which perception is made true and beautiful enough to let the light of Heaven shine upon it. It is He Who answers what His Son would contradict, and keeps his sinlessness forever safe.These are the lessons God would have you learn. His Will reflects them all, and they reflect His loving kindness to the Son He loves. Each lesson has a central thought, the same in all of them. The form alone is changed, with different circumstances and events; with different characters and different themes, apparent but not real. They are the same in fundamental content. It is this:Forgive, and you will see this differently.Certain it is that all distress does not appear to be but unforgiveness. Yet that is the content underneath the form. It is this sameness which makes learning sure, because the lesson is so simple that it cannot be rejected in the end. No one can hide forever from a truth so very obvious that it appears in countless forms, and yet is recognized as easily in all of them, if one but wants to see the simple lesson there.Forgive, and you will see this differently.These are the words the Holy Spirit speaks in all your tribulations, all your pain, all suffering regardless of its form. These are the words with which temptation ends, and guilt, abandoned, is revered no more. These are the words which end the dream of sin, and rid the mind of fear. These are the words by which salvation comes to all the world.Shall we not learn to say these words when we are tempted to believe that pain is real, and death becomes our choice instead of life? Shall we not learn to say these words when we have understood their power to release all minds from bondage? These are words which give you power over all events that seem to have been given power over you. You see them rightly when you hold these words in full awareness, and do not forget these words apply to everything you see or any brother looks upon amiss.How can you tell when you are seeing wrong, or someone else is failing to perceive the lesson he should learn? Does pain seem real in the perception? If it does, be sure the lesson is not learned. And there remains an unforgiveness hiding in the mind that sees the pain through eyes the mind directs.God would not have you suffer thus. He would help you forgive yourself. His Son does not remember who he is. And God would have him not forget His Love, and all the gifts His Love brings with it. Would you now renounce your own salvation? Would you fail to learn the simple lessons Heaven's Teacher sets before you, that all pain may disappear and God may be remembered by His Son?All things are lessons God would have you learn. He would not leave an unforgiving thought without correction, nor one thorn or nail to hurt His holy Son in any way. He would ensure his holy rest remain untroubled and serene, without a care, in an eternal home which cares for him. And He would have all tears be wiped away, with none remaining yet unshed, and none but waiting their appointed time to fall. For God has willed that laughter should replace each one, and that His Son be free again.We will attempt today to overcome a thousand seeming obstacles to peace in just one day. Let mercy come to you more quickly. Do not try to hold it off another day, another minute or another instant. Time was made for this. Use it today for what its purpose is. Morning and night, devote what time you can to serve its proper aim, and do not let the time be less than meets your deepest need.Give all you can, and give a little more. For now we would arise in haste and go unto our Father's house. We have been gone too long, and we would linger here no more. And as we practice, let us think about all things we saved to settle by ourselves, and kept apart from healing. Let us give them all to Him Who knows the way to look upon them so that they will disappear. Truth is His message; truth His teaching is. His are the lessons God would have us learn.Each hour, spend a little time today, and in the days to come, in practicing the lesson in forgiveness in the form established for the day. And try to give it application to the happenings the hour brought, so that the next one is free of the one before. The chains of time are easily unloosened in this way. Let no one hour cast its shadow on the one that follows, and when that one goes, let everything that happened in its course go with it. Thus will you remain unbound, in peace eternal in the world of time.This is the lesson God would have you learn: There is a way to look on everything that lets it be to you another step to Him, and to salvation of the world. To all that speaks of terror, answer thus:I will forgive, and this will disappear.To every apprehension, every care and every form of suffering, repeat these selfsame words. And then you hold the key that opens Heaven's gate, and brings the Love of God the Father down to earth at last, to raise it up to Heaven. God will take this final step Himself. Do not deny the little steps He asks you take to Him.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

"IF THE LORD WILL". We should never boast about tomorrow nor anything that lies before us. In making goals and plans for the future, believers must always consider God and His Will. We must not act like the rich fool spoken of in Luke 12:16-21; instead, we must recognize that true happiness and a helpful life are entirely dependent on God. Blessings,Presiding Elder Barbara HayesNIV | FLSB

Unseen but Unstoppable ReCreate Church | Michael Shockley ------- EPISODE SUMMARY Are you wondering where God is in the midst of life's chaos? In this opening message of the Esther series, Pastor Michael Shockley reveals how God works behind the scenes even when He seems absent. Through Esther Chapter 1, discover how palace intrigue, royal scandals, and seemingly random events become part of God's greater plan for salvation. Learn to trust that even when God appears silent, He is orchestrating circumstances for your good and His glory. Core Message: God may be unseen, but He is never inactive - even the worst of human behavior can be woven into His redemptive plan. ------- KEY TOPICS COVERED Setting the Historical Scene - The Persian Empire under King Ahasuerus (Xerxes) 500 years before Jesus - The Jewish diaspora and those who chose to stay in Persia - God's positioning of Esther's family for future deliverance The Six-Month Party and Seven-Day Banquet - King Ahasuerus's display of wealth and power across 127 provinces - The extravagant celebration open to all social classes - How rulers used lavish parties to demonstrate unlimited resources Queen Vashti's Courageous Stand - The king's inappropriate request while intoxicated - Vashti's refusal to be objectified before the party guests - The political and social implications of defying the king The Counselors' Reactionary Response - Memucan's exaggerated fears about women's rebellion - The decree establishing male dominance in households - The contrast between pagan leadership and biblical leadership Biblical Leadership vs. Worldly Power - The difference between forced submission and sacrificial love - Ephesians 5:25 and Christ's example to husbands - Leading through integrity rather than intimidation God's Hidden Hand in Human Events - How God uses even evil behavior to advance His purposes - The positioning of circumstances for Esther's future role - Divine orchestration behind apparent chaos and coincidence The Bigger Picture of Salvation - Connecting Esther's story to the preservation of the Jewish people - How these events ultimately protected the lineage of Jesus - God's long-term plan spanning centuries ------- MEMORABLE QUOTES "Even when He's not in the spotlight, the Unseen, Unstoppable God is still running the show." "God may be unseen, but He is never inactive." "What looks like chaos and coincidence is the opening act of a salvation story." "God can even take the worst characteristics of humanity and work them out to accomplish His Will in our lives." "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose." - Romans 8:28 ------- BIBLICAL FOUNDATION - Primary Text: Esther 1 - Supporting Texts: Ephesians 5:25, Romans 8:28 - Key Theme: God's unseen but active work in human circumstances - Context: The beginning of events that would lead to Jewish preservation and ultimately the coming of Christ ------- PRACTICAL APPLICATION If You're Struggling to See God's Hand: - Remember that God often works behind the scenes - Trust that apparent chaos may be part of His greater plan - Look for His activity in unexpected places and circumstances If You're Facing Difficult People or Situations: - Recognize that God can use even challenging circumstances for good - Trust that difficult bosses, neighbors, or family members may be part of His plan - Remember that unexpected setbacks might be divine positioning If You're in a Leadership Role: - Follow Christ's example of sacrificial love, not worldly power - Lead through integrity and service rather than intimidation - Build up others rather than asserting dominance If You're Wondering About God's Timing: - Understand that God's plans often span years or decades - Trust that He is positioning you for future purposes - Remember that current circumstances may be preparation for unknown opportunities To Develop Trust in God's Hidden Work: - Study stories like Esther where God works behind the scenes - Practice looking for God's hand in everyday circumstances - Remember that His ultimate plan is always redemptive and good ------- THE ULTIMATE INVITATION Just as God used palace intrigue in ancient Persia to preserve the Jewish people and ultimately send Jesus as Savior, He can handle whatever you're going through today. Trust Him with the details of your life, knowing that He may be unseen but is never inactive. ------- CONNECT WITH RECREATE CHURCH - Website: recreatechurch.org - Support the Ministry: Give through the Tithe.ly app or offering boxes ------- Remember: Even when God seems silent, He is working all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

Ephesians 1:8-10 Paul explained that God's plan for redemption had a greater purpose. Pastor Rod Bunton teaches that God chose to reveal His will to unite all things one day for eternity. The post To the Praise of His Glory: He Revealed the Mystery of His Will appeared first on Grace Church of Tallahassee.

Teacher: Rob Zimmermann Download Sermon Notes  Watch Episode Give Online: http://westgatechapel.org/give Connect With Us: http://westgatechapel.org/connect   Chapters (00:00:01) - Singing the Lord's Prayer(00:00:21) - Let Your Kingdom Come(00:03:34) - Waldgate Chapel Connect Card(00:04:33) - Pray for 68 High School Students Going to Life Conference(00:08:46) - Don't Be Afraid!(00:18:21) - "I Know How the Story Ends..."(00:23:48) - All About It(00:26:29) - Pastor Randy's Knee Replacement Surgery(00:29:14) - Dear God, the Things Kids Pray(00:31:11) - Teach us to Pray(00:32:45) - The kingdom of God(00:42:22) - Pray According to His Will(00:50:54) - God's Prayer for the Everyday Need(01:00:08) - Prayer of Dependent God(01:00:51) - How to Trust God (Job 3)(01:07:55) - Luke 18: Will He Find Faith on the Earth?(01:15:34) - Great Is Your Faithfulness to Me(01:20:35) - Prayer for the New People

LESSON 166 I Am Entrusted With The Gifts Of God.All things are given you. God's trust in you is limitless. He knows His Son. He gives without exception, holding nothing back that can contribute to your happiness. And yet, unless your will is one with His, His gifts are not received. But what would make you think there is another will than His?Here is the paradox that underlies the making of the world. This world is not the Will of God, and so it is not real. Yet those who think it real must still believe there is another will, and one that leads to opposite effects from those He wills. Impossible indeed; but every mind that looks upon the world and judges it as certain, solid, trustworthy and true believes in two creators; or in one, himself alone. But never in one God.The gifts of God are not acceptable to anyone who holds such strange beliefs. He must believe that to accept God's gifts, however evident they may become, however urgently he may be called to claim them as his own, is to be pressed to treachery against himself. He must deny their presence, contradict the truth, and suffer to preserve the world he made.Here is the only home he thinks he knows. Here is the only safety he believes that he can find. Without the world he made is he an outcast; homeless and afraid. He does not realize that it is here he is afraid indeed, and homeless, too; an outcast wandering so far from home, so long away, he does not realize he has forgotten where he came from, where he goes, and even who he really is.Yet in his lonely, senseless wanderings, God's gifts go with him, all unknown to him. He cannot lose them. But he will not look at what is given him. He wanders on, aware of the futility he sees about him everywhere, perceiving how his little lot but dwindles, as he goes ahead to nowhere. Still he wanders on in misery and poverty, alone though God is with him, and a treasure his so great that everything the world contains is valueless before its magnitude.He seems a sorry figure; weary, worn, in threadbare clothing, and with feet that bleed a little from the rocky road he walks. No one but has identified with him, for everyone who comes here has pursued the path he follows, and has felt defeat and hopelessness as he is feeling them. Yet is he really tragic, when you see that he is following the way he chose, and need but realize Who walks with him and open up his treasures to be free?This is your chosen self, the one you made as a replacement for reality. This is the self you savagely defend against all reason, every evidence, and all the witnesses with proof to show this is not you. You heed them not. You go on your appointed way, with eyes cast down lest you might catch a glimpse of truth, and be released from self-deception and set free.You cower fearfully lest you should feel Christ's touch upon your shoulder, and perceive His gentle hand directing you to look upon your gifts. How could you then proclaim your poverty in exile? He would make you laugh at this perception of yourself. Where is self-pity then? And what becomes of all the tragedy you sought to make for him whom God intended only joy?Your ancient fear has come upon you now, and justice has caught up with you at last. Christ's hand has touched your shoulder, and you feel that you are not alone. You even think the miserable self you thought was you may not be your Identity. Perhaps God's Word is truer than your own. Perhaps His gifts to you are real. Perhaps He has not wholly been outwitted by your plan to keep His Son in deep oblivion, and go the way you chose without your Self.God's Will does not oppose. It merely is. It is not God you have imprisoned in your plan to lose your Self. He does not know about a plan so alien to His Will. There was a need He did not understand, to which He gave an Answer. That is all. And you who have this Answer given you have need no more of anything but This.Now do we live, for now we cannot die. The wish for death is answered, and the sight that looked upon it now has been replaced by vision which perceives that you are not what you pretend to be. One walks with you Who gently answers all your fears with this one merciful reply, “It is not so.” He points to all the gifts you have each time the thought of poverty oppresses you, and speaks of His Companionship when you perceive yourself as lonely and afraid.Yet He reminds you still of one thing more you had forgotten. For His touch on you has made you like Himself. The gifts you have are not for you alone. What He has come to offer you, you now must learn to give. This is the lesson that His giving holds, for He has saved you from the solitude you sought to make in which to hide from God. He has reminded you of all the gifts that God has given you. He speaks as well of what becomes your will when you accept these gifts, and recognize they are your own.The gifts are yours, entrusted to your care, to give to all who chose the lonely road you have escaped. They do not understand they but pursue their wishes. It is you who teach them now. For you have learned of Christ there is another way for them to walk. Teach them by showing them the happiness that comes to those who feel the touch of Christ, and recognize God's gifts. Let sorrow not tempt you to be unfaithful to your trust.Your sighs will now betray the hopes of those who look to you for their release. Your tears are theirs. If you are sick, you but withhold their healing. What you fear but teaches them their fears are justified. Your hand becomes the giver of Christ's touch; your change of mind becomes the proof that who accepts God's gifts can never suffer anything. You are entrusted with the world's release from pain.Betray it not. Become the living proof of what Christ's touch can offer everyone. God has entrusted all His gifts to you. Be witness in your happiness to how transformed the mind becomes which chooses to accept His gifts, and feel the touch of Christ. Such is your mission now. For God entrusts the giving of His gifts to all who have received them. He has shared His joy with you. And now you go to share it with the world.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

LESSON 165Let Not My Mind Deny The Thought Of God.What makes this world seem real except your own denial of the truth that lies beyond? What but your thoughts of misery and death obscure the perfect happiness and the eternal life your Father wills for you? And what could hide what cannot be concealed except illusion? What could keep from you what you already have except your choice to see it not, denying it is there?The Thought of God created you. It left you not, nor have you ever been apart from it an instant. It belongs to you. By it you live. It is your Source of life, holding you one with it, and everything is one with you because it left you not. The Thought of God protects you, cares for you, makes soft your resting place and smooth your way, lighting your mind with happiness and love. Eternity and everlasting life shine in your mind, because the Thought of God has left you not, and still abides with you.Who would deny his safety and his peace, his joy, his healing and his peace of mind, his quiet rest, his calm awakening, if he but recognized where they abide? Would he not instantly prepare to go where they are found, abandoning all else as worthless in comparison with them? And having found them, would he not make sure they stay with him, and he remain with them?Deny not Heaven. It is yours today, but for the asking. Nor need you perceive how great the gift, how changed your mind will be before it comes to you. Ask to receive, and it is given you. Conviction lies within it. Till you welcome it as yours, uncertainty remains. Yet God is fair. Sureness is not required to receive what only your acceptance can bestow.Ask with desire. You need not be sure that you request the only thing you want. But when you have received, you will be sure you have the treasure you have always sought. What would you then exchange for it? What would induce you now to let it fade away from your ecstatic vision? For this sight proves that you have exchanged your blindness for the seeing eyes of Christ; your mind has come to lay aside denial, and accept the Thought of God as your inheritance.Now is all doubting past, the journey's end made certain, and salvation given you. Now is Christ's power in your mind, to heal as you were healed. For now you are among the saviors of the world. Your destiny lies there and nowhere else. Would God consent to let His Son remain forever starved by his denial of the nourishment he needs to live? Abundance dwells in him, and deprivation cannot cut him off from God's sustaining Love and from his home.Practice today in hope. For hope indeed is justified. Your doubts are meaningless, for God is certain. And the Thought of Him is never absent. Sureness must abide within you who are host to Him. This course removes all doubts which you have interposed between Him and your certainty of Him.We count on God, and not upon ourselves, to give us certainty. And in His Name we practice as His Word directs we do. His sureness lies beyond our every doubt. His Love remains beyond our every fear. The Thought of Him is still beyond all dreams and in our minds, according to His Will.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

LESSON 154I Am Among The Ministers Of God.Let us today be neither arrogant nor falsely humble. We have gone beyond such foolishness. We cannot judge ourselves, nor need we do so. These are but attempts to hold decision off, and to delay commitment to our function. It is not our part to judge our worth, nor can we know what role is best for us; what we can do within a larger plan we cannot see in its entirety. Our part is cast in Heaven, not in hell. And what we think is weakness can be strength; what we believe to be our strength is often arrogance.Whatever your appointed role may be, it was selected by the Voice for God, Whose function is to speak for you as well. Seeing your strengths exactly as they are, and equally aware of where they can be best applied, for what, to whom and when, He chooses and accepts your part for you. He does not work without your own consent. But He is not deceived in what you are, and listens only to His Voice in you.It is through His ability to hear one Voice Which is His Own that you become aware at last there is one Voice in you. And that one Voice appoints your function, and relays it to you, giving you the strength to understand it, do what it entails, and to succeed in everything you do that is related to it. God has joined His Son in this, and thus His Son becomes His messenger of unity with Him.It is this joining, through the Voice for God, of Father and of Son, that sets apart salvation from the world. It is this Voice Which speaks of laws the world does not obey; Which promises salvation from all sin, with guilt abolished in the mind that God created sinless. Now this mind becomes aware again of Who created it, and of His lasting union with itself. So is its Self the one reality in Which its will and that of God are joined.A messenger is not the one who writes the message he delivers. Nor does he question the right of him who does, nor ask why he has chosen those who will receive the message that he brings. It is enough that he accept it, give it to the ones for whom it is intended, and fulfill his role in its delivery. If he determines what the messages should be, or what their purpose is, or where they should be carried, he is failing to perform his proper part as bringer of the Word.There is one major difference in the role of Heaven's messengers, which sets them off from those the world appoints. The messages that they deliver are intended first for them. And it is only as they can accept them for themselves that they become able to bring them further, and to give them everywhere that they were meant to be. Like earthly messengers, they did not write the messages they bear, but they become their first receivers in the truest sense, receiving to prepare themselves to give.An earthly messenger fulfills his role by giving all his messages away. The messengers of God perform their part by their acceptance of His messages as for themselves, and show they understand the messages by giving them away. They choose no roles that are not given them by His authority. And so they gain by every message that they give away.Would you receive the messages of God? For thus do you become His messenger. You are appointed now. And yet you wait to give the messages you have received. And so you do not know that they are yours, and do not recognize them. No one can receive and understand he has received until he gives. For in the giving is his own acceptance of what he received.You who are now the messengers of God, receive His messages. For that is part of your appointed role. God has not failed to offer what you need, nor has it been left unaccepted. Yet another part of your appointed task is yet to be accomplished. He Who has received for you the messages of God would have them be received by you as well. For thus do you identify with Him and claim your own.It is this joining that we undertake to recognize today. We will not seek to keep our minds apart from Him Who speaks for us, for it is but our voice we hear as we attend Him. He alone can speak to us and for us, joining in one Voice the getting and the giving of God's Word; the giving and receiving of His Will.We practice giving Him what He would have, that we may recognize His gifts to us. He needs our voice that He may speak through us. He needs our hands to hold His messages, and carry them to those whom He appoints. He needs our feet to bring us where He wills, that those who wait in misery may be at last delivered. And He needs our will united with His Own, that we may be the true receivers of the gifts He gives.Let us but learn this lesson for today: We will not recognize what we receive until we give it. You have heard this said a hundred ways, a hundred times, and yet belief is lacking still. But this is sure; until belief is given it, you will receive a thousand miracles and then receive a thousand more, but will not know that God Himself has left no gift beyond what you already have; nor has denied the tiniest of blessings to His Son. What can this mean to you, until you have identified with Him and with His Own?Our lesson for today is stated thus:I am among the ministers of God, and I am grateful thatI have the means by which to recognize that I am free.The world recedes as we light up our minds, and realize these holy words are true. They are the message sent to us today from our Creator. Now we demonstrate how they have changed our minds about ourselves, and what our function is. For as we prove that we accept no will we do not share, our many gifts from our Creator will spring to our sight and leap into our hands, and we will recognize what we received.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

LESSON 153In My Defenselessness My Safety Lies.You who feel threatened by this changing world, its twists of fortune and its bitter jests, its brief relationships and all the “gifts” it merely lends to take away again; attend this lesson well. The world provides no safety. It is rooted in attack, and all its “gifts” of seeming safety are illusory deceptions. It attacks, and then attacks again. No peace of mind is possible where danger threatens thus.The world gives rise but to defensiveness. For threat brings anger, anger makes attack seem reasonable, honestly provoked, and righteous in the name of self-defense. Yet is defensiveness a double threat. For it attests to weakness, and sets up a system of defense that cannot work. Now are the weak still further undermined, for there is treachery without and still a greater treachery within. The mind is now confused, and knows not where to turn to find escape from its imaginings.It is as if a circle held it fast, wherein another circle bound it and another one in that, until escape no longer can be hoped for nor obtained. Attack, defense; defense, attack, become the circles of the hours and the days that bind the mind in heavy bands of steel with iron overlaid, returning but to start again. There seems to be no break nor ending in the ever-tightening grip of the imprisonment upon the mind.Defenses are the costliest of all the prices which the ego would exact. In them lies madness in a form so grim that hope of sanity seems but to be an idle dream, beyond the possible. The sense of threat the world encourages is so much deeper, and so far beyond the frenzy and intensity of which you can conceive, that you have no idea of all the devastation it has wrought.You are its slave. You know not what you do, in fear of it. You do not understand how much you have been made to sacrifice, who feel its iron grip upon your heart. You do not realize what you have done to sabotage the holy peace of God by your defensiveness. For you behold the Son of God as but a victim to attack by fantasies, by dreams, and by illusions he has made; yet helpless in their presence, needful only of defense by still more fantasies, and dreams by which illusions of his safety comfort him.Defenselessness is strength. It testifies to recognition of the Christ in you. Perhaps you will recall the text maintains that choice is always made between Christ's strength and your own weakness, seen apart from Him. Defenselessness can never be attacked, because it recognizes strength so great attack is folly, or a silly game a tired child might play, when he becomes too sleepy to remember what he wants.Defensiveness is weakness. It proclaims you have denied the Christ and come to fear His Father's anger. What can save you now from your delusion of an angry god, whose fearful image you believe you see at work in all the evils of the world? What but illusions could defend you now, when it is but illusions that you fight?We will not play such childish games today. For our true purpose is to save the world, and we would not exchange for foolishness the endless joy our function offers us. We would not let our happiness slip by because a fragment of a senseless dream happened to cross our minds, and we mistook the figures in it for the Son of God; its tiny instant for eternity.We look past dreams today, and recognize that we need no defense because we are created unassailable, without all thought or wish or dream in which attack has any meaning. Now we cannot fear, for we have left all fearful thoughts behind. And in defenselessness we stand secure, serenely certain of our safety now, sure of salvation; sure we will fulfill our chosen purpose, as our ministry extends its holy blessing through the world.Be still a moment, and in silence think how holy is your purpose, how secure you rest, untouchable within its light. God's ministers have chosen that the truth be with them. Who is holier than they? Who could be surer that his happiness is fully guaranteed? And who could be more mightily protected? What defense could possibly be needed by the ones who are among the chosen ones of God, by His election and their own as well?It is the function of God's ministers to help their brothers choose as they have done. God has elected all, but few have come to realize His Will is but their own. And while you fail to teach what you have learned, salvation waits and darkness holds the world in grim imprisonment. Nor will you learn that light has come to you, and your escape has been accomplished. For you will not see the light, until you offer it to all your brothers. As they take it from your hands, so will you recognize it as your own.Salvation can be thought of as a game that happy children play. It was designed by One Who loves His children, and Who would replace their fearful toys with joyous games, which teach them that the game of fear is gone. His game instructs in happiness because there is no loser. Everyone who plays must win, and in his winning is the gain to everyone ensured. The game of fear is gladly laid aside, when children come to see the benefits salvation brings.You who have played that you are lost to hope, abandoned by your Father, left alone in terror in a fearful world made mad by sin and guilt; be happy now. That game is over. Now a quiet time has come, in which we put away the toys of guilt, and lock our quaint and childish thoughts of sin forever from the pure and holy minds of Heaven's children and the Son of God.We pause but for a moment more, to play our final, happy game upon this earth. And then we go to take our rightful place where truth abides and games are meaningless. So is the story ended. Let this day bring the last chapter closer to the world, that everyone may learn the tale he reads of terrifying destiny, defeat of all his hopes, his pitiful defense against a vengeance he can not escape, is but his own deluded fantasy. God's ministers have come to waken him from the dark dreams this story has evoked in his confused, bewildered memory of this distorted tale. God's Son can smile at last, on learning that it is not true.Today we practice in a form we will maintain for quite a while. We will begin each day by giving our attention to the daily thought as long as possible. Five minutes now becomes the least we give to preparation for a day in which salvation is the only goal we have. Ten would be better; fifteen better still. And as distraction ceases to arise to turn us from our purpose, we will find that half an hour is too short a time to spend with God. Nor will we willingly give less at night, in gratitude and joy.Each hour adds to our increasing peace, as we remember to be faithful to the Will we share with God. At times, perhaps, a minute, even less, will be the most that we can offer as the hour strikes. Sometimes we will forget. At other times the business of the world will close on us, and we will be unable to withdraw a little while, and turn our thoughts to God.Yet when we can, we will observe our trust as ministers of God, in hourly remembrance of our mission and His Love. And we will quietly sit by and wait on Him and listen to His Voice, and learn what He would have us do the hour that is yet to come; while thanking Him for all the gifts He gave us in the one gone by.In time, with practice, you will never cease to think of Him, and hear His loving Voice guiding your footsteps into quiet ways, where you will walk in true defenselessness. For you will know that Heaven goes with you. Nor would you keep your mind away from Him a moment, even though your time is spent in offering salvation to the world. Think you He will not make this possible, for you who chose to carry out His plan for the salvation of the world and yours?Today our theme is our defenselessness. We clothe ourselves in it, as we prepare to meet the day. We rise up strong in Christ, and let our weakness disappear, as we remember that His strength abides in us. We will remind ourselves that He remains beside us through the day, and never leaves our weakness unsupported by His strength. We call upon His strength each time we feel the threat of our defenses undermine our certainty of purpose. We will pause a moment, as He tells us, “I am here.”Your practicing will now begin to take the earnestness of love, to help you keep your mind from wandering from its intent. Be not afraid nor timid. There can be no doubt that you will reach your final goal. The ministers of God can never fail, because the love and strength and peace that shine from them to all their brothers come from Him. These are His gifts to you. Defenselessness is all you need to give Him in return. You lay aside but what was never real, to look on Christ and see His sinlessness.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

LESSON 152The Power Of Decision Is My Own.No one can suffer loss unless it be his own decision. No one suffers pain except his choice elects this state for him. No one can grieve nor fear nor think him sick unless these are the outcomes that he wants. And no one dies without his own consent. Nothing occurs but represents your wish, and nothing is omitted that you choose. Here is your world, complete in all details. Here is its whole reality for you. And it is only here salvation is.You may believe that this position is extreme, and too inclusive to be true. Yet can truth have exceptions? If you have the gift of everything, can loss be real? Can pain be part of peace, or grief of joy? Can fear and sickness enter in a mind where love and perfect holiness abide? Truth must be all-inclusive, if it be the truth at all. Accept no opposites and no exceptions, for to do so is to contradict the truth entirely.Salvation is the recognition that the truth is true, and nothing else is true. This you have heard before, but may not yet accept both parts of it. Without the first, the second has no meaning. But without the second, is the first no longer true. Truth cannot have an opposite. This cannot be too often said and thought about. For if what is not true is true as well as what is true, then part of truth is false. And truth has lost its meaning. Nothing but the truth is true, and what is false is false.This is the simplest of distinctions, yet the most obscure. But not because it is a difficult distinction to perceive. It is concealed behind a vast array of choices that do not appear to be entirely your own. And thus the truth appears to have some aspects that belie consistency, but do not seem to be but contradictions introduced by you.As God created you, you must remain unchangeable, with transitory states by definition false. And that includes all shifts in feeling, alterations in conditions of the body and the mind; in all awareness and in all response. This is the all-inclusiveness which sets the truth apart from falsehood, and the false kept separate from the truth, as what it is.Is it not strange that you believe to think you made the world you see is arrogance? God made it not. Of this you can be sure. What can He know of the ephemeral, the sinful and the guilty, the afraid, the suffering and lonely, and the mind that lives within a body that must die? You but accuse Him of insanity, to think He made a world where such things seem to have reality. He is not mad. Yet only madness makes a world like this.To think that God made chaos, contradicts His Will, invented opposites to truth, and suffers death to triumph over life; all this is arrogance. Humility would see at once these things are not of Him. And can you see what God created not? To think you can is merely to believe you can perceive what God willed not to be. And what could be more arrogant than this?Let us today be truly humble, and accept what we have made as what it is. The power of decision is our own. Decide but to accept your rightful place as cocreator of the universe, and all you think you made will disappear. What rises to awareness then will be all that there ever was, eternally as it is now. And it will take the place of self-deceptions made but to usurp the altar to the Father and the Son.Today we practice true humility, abandoning the false pretense by which the ego seeks to prove it arrogant. Only the ego can be arrogant. But truth is humble in acknowledging its mightiness, its changelessness and its eternal wholeness, all-encompassing, God's perfect gift to His beloved Son. We lay aside the arrogance which says that we are sinners, guilty and afraid, ashamed of what we are; and lift our hearts in true humility instead to Him Who has created us immaculate, like to Himself in power and in love.The power of decision is our own. And we accept of Him that which we are, and humbly recognize the Son of God. To recognize God's Son implies as well that all self-concepts have been laid aside, and recognized as false. Their arrogance has been perceived. And in humility the radiance of God's Son, his gentleness, his perfect sinlessness, his Father's Love, his right to Heaven and release from hell, are joyously accepted as our own.Now do we join in glad acknowledgment that lies are false, and only truth is true. We think of truth alone as we arise, and spend five minutes practicing its ways, encouraging our frightened minds with this:The power of decision is my own.This day I will accept myself as what my Father's Will created me to be.Then will we wait in silence, giving up all self-deceptions, as we humbly ask our Self that He reveal Himself to us. And He Who never left will come again to our awareness, grateful to restore His home to God, as it was meant to be.In patience wait for Him throughout the day, and hourly invite Him with the words with which the day began, concluding it with this same invitation to your Self. God's Voice will answer, for He speaks for you and for your Father. He will substitute the peace of God for all your frantic thoughts, the truth of God for self-deceptions, and God's Son for your illusions of yourself.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

LESSON 136Sickness Is A Defense Against The Truth.No one can heal unless he understands what purpose sickness seems to serve. For then he understands as well its purpose has no meaning. Being causeless and without a meaningful intent of any kind, it cannot be at all. When this is seen, healing is automatic. It dispels this meaningless illusion by the same approach that carries all of them to truth, and merely leaves them there to disappear.Sickness is not an accident. Like all defenses, it is an insane device for self-deception. And like all the rest, its purpose is to hide reality, attack it, change it, render it inept, distort it, twist it, or reduce it to a little pile of unassembled parts. The aim of all defenses is to keep the truth from being whole. The parts are seen as if each one were whole within itself.Defenses are not unintentional, nor are they made without awareness. They are secret, magic wands you wave when truth appears to threaten what you would believe. They seem to be unconscious but because of the rapidity with which you choose to use them. In that second, even less, in which the choice is made, you recognize exactly what you would attempt to do, and then proceed to think that it is done.Who but yourself evaluates a threat, decides escape is necessary, and sets up a series of defenses to reduce the threat that has been judged as real? All this cannot be done unconsciously. But afterwards, your plan requires that you must forget you made it, so it seems to be external to your own intent; a happening beyond your state of mind, an outcome with a real effect on you, instead of one effected by yourself.It is this quick forgetting of the part you play in making your “reality” that makes defenses seem to be beyond your own control. But what you have forgot can be remembered, given willingness to reconsider the decision which is doubly shielded by oblivion. Your not remembering is but the sign that this decision still remains in force, as far as your desires are concerned. Mistake not this for fact. Defenses must make facts unrecognizable. They aim at doing this, and it is this they do.Every defense takes fragments of the whole, assembles them without regard to all their true relationships, and thus constructs illusions of a whole that is not there. It is this process that imposes threat, and not whatever outcome may result. When parts are wrested from the whole and seen as separate and wholes within themselves, they become symbols standing for attack upon the whole; successful in effect, and never to be seen as whole again. And yet you have forgotten that they stand but for your own decision of what should be real, to take the place of what is real.Sickness is a decision. It is not a thing that happens to you, quite unsought, which makes you weak and brings you suffering. It is a choice you make, a plan you lay, when for an instant truth arises in your own deluded mind, and all your world appears to totter and prepare to fall. Now are you sick, that truth may go away and threaten your establishments no more.How do you think that sickness can succeed in shielding you from truth? Because it proves the body is not separate from you, and so you must be separate from the truth. You suffer pain because the body does, and in this pain are you made one with it. Thus is your “true” identity preserved, and the strange, haunting thought that you might be something beyond this little pile of dust silenced and stilled. For see, this dust can make you suffer, twist your limbs and stop your heart, commanding you to die and cease to be.Thus is the body stronger than the truth, which asks you live, but cannot overcome your choice to die. And so the body is more powerful than everlasting life, Heaven more frail than hell, and God's design for the salvation of His Son opposed by a decision stronger than His Will. His Son is dust, the Father incomplete, and chaos sits in triumph on His throne.Such is your planning for your own defense. And you believe that Heaven quails before such mad attacks as these, with God made blind by your illusions, truth turned into lies, and all the universe made slave to laws which your defenses would impose on it. Yet who believes illusions but the one who made them up? Who else can see them and react to them as if they were the truth?God knows not of your plans to change His Will. The universe remains unheeding of the laws by which you thought to govern it. And Heaven has not bowed to hell, nor life to death. You can but choose to think you die, or suffer sickness or distort the truth in any way. What is created is apart from all of this. Defenses are plans to defeat what cannot be attacked. What is unalterable cannot change. And what is wholly sinless cannot sin.Such is the simple truth. It does not make appeal to might nor triumph. It does not command obedience, nor seek to prove how pitiful and futile your attempts to plan defenses that would alter it. Truth merely wants to give you happiness, for such its purpose is. Perhaps it sighs a little when you throw away its gifts, and yet it knows, with perfect certainty, that what God wills for you must be received.It is this fact that demonstrates that time is an illusion. For time lets you think what God has given you is not the truth right now, as it must be. The Thoughts of God are quite apart from time. For time is but another meaningless defense you made against the truth. Yet what He wills is here, and you remain as He created you.Truth has a power far beyond defense, for no illusions can remain where truth has been allowed to enter. And it comes to any mind that would lay down its arms, and cease to play with folly. It is found at any time; today, if you will choose to practice giving welcome to the truth.This is our aim today. And we will give a quarter of an hour twice to ask the truth to come to us and set us free. And truth will come, for it has never been apart from us. It merely waits for just this invitation which we give today. We introduce it with a healing prayer, to help us rise above defensiveness, and let truth be as it has always been:Sickness is a defense against the truth.I will accept the truth of what I am, and let my mind be wholly healed today.Healing will flash across your open mind, as peace and truth arise to take the place of war and vain imaginings. There will be no dark corners sickness can conceal, and keep defended from the light of truth. There will be no dim figures from your dreams, nor their obscure and meaningless pursuits with double purposes insanely sought, remaining in your mind. It will be healed of all the sickly wishes that it tried to authorize the body to obey.Now is the body healed, because the source of sickness has been opened to relief. And you will recognize you practiced well by this: The body should not feel at all. If you have been successful, there will be no sense of feeling ill or feeling well, of pain or pleasure. No response at all is in the mind to what the body does. Its usefulness remains and nothing more.Perhaps you do not realize that this removes the limits you had placed upon the body by the purposes you gave to it. As these are laid aside, the strength the body has will always be enough to serve all truly useful purposes. The body's health is fully guaranteed, because it is not limited by time, by weather or fatigue, by food and drink, or any laws you made it serve before. You need do nothing now to make it well, for sickness has become impossible.Yet this protection needs to be preserved by careful watching. If you let your mind harbor attack thoughts, yield to judgment or make plans against uncertainties to come, you have again misplaced yourself, and made a bodily identity which will attack the body, for the mind is sick.Give instant remedy, should this occur, by not allowing your defensiveness to hurt you longer. Do not be confused about what must be healed, but tell yourself:I have forgotten what I really am, for I mistook my body for myself.Sickness is a defense against the truth.But I am not a body. And my mind cannot attack. So I cannot be sick.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

LESSON 136Sickness Is A Defense Against The Truth.No one can heal unless he understands what purpose sickness seems to serve. For then he understands as well its purpose has no meaning. Being causeless and without a meaningful intent of any kind, it cannot be at all. When this is seen, healing is automatic. It dispels this meaningless illusion by the same approach that carries all of them to truth, and merely leaves them there to disappear.Sickness is not an accident. Like all defenses, it is an insane device for self-deception. And like all the rest, its purpose is to hide reality, attack it, change it, render it inept, distort it, twist it, or reduce it to a little pile of unassembled parts. The aim of all defenses is to keep the truth from being whole. The parts are seen as if each one were whole within itself.Defenses are not unintentional, nor are they made without awareness. They are secret, magic wands you wave when truth appears to threaten what you would believe. They seem to be unconscious but because of the rapidity with which you choose to use them. In that second, even less, in which the choice is made, you recognize exactly what you would attempt to do, and then proceed to think that it is done.Who but yourself evaluates a threat, decides escape is necessary, and sets up a series of defenses to reduce the threat that has been judged as real? All this cannot be done unconsciously. But afterwards, your plan requires that you must forget you made it, so it seems to be external to your own intent; a happening beyond your state of mind, an outcome with a real effect on you, instead of one effected by yourself.It is this quick forgetting of the part you play in making your “reality” that makes defenses seem to be beyond your own control. But what you have forgot can be remembered, given willingness to reconsider the decision which is doubly shielded by oblivion. Your not remembering is but the sign that this decision still remains in force, as far as your desires are concerned. Mistake not this for fact. Defenses must make facts unrecognizable. They aim at doing this, and it is this they do.Every defense takes fragments of the whole, assembles them without regard to all their true relationships, and thus constructs illusions of a whole that is not there. It is this process that imposes threat, and not whatever outcome may result. When parts are wrested from the whole and seen as separate and wholes within themselves, they become symbols standing for attack upon the whole; successful in effect, and never to be seen as whole again. And yet you have forgotten that they stand but for your own decision of what should be real, to take the place of what is real.Sickness is a decision. It is not a thing that happens to you, quite unsought, which makes you weak and brings you suffering. It is a choice you make, a plan you lay, when for an instant truth arises in your own deluded mind, and all your world appears to totter and prepare to fall. Now are you sick, that truth may go away and threaten your establishments no more.How do you think that sickness can succeed in shielding you from truth? Because it proves the body is not separate from you, and so you must be separate from the truth. You suffer pain because the body does, and in this pain are you made one with it. Thus is your “true” identity preserved, and the strange, haunting thought that you might be something beyond this little pile of dust silenced and stilled. For see, this dust can make you suffer, twist your limbs and stop your heart, commanding you to die and cease to be.Thus is the body stronger than the truth, which asks you live, but cannot overcome your choice to die. And so the body is more powerful than everlasting life, Heaven more frail than hell, and God's design for the salvation of His Son opposed by a decision stronger than His Will. His Son is dust, the Father incomplete, and chaos sits in triumph on His throne.Such is your planning for your own defense. And you believe that Heaven quails before such mad attacks as these, with God made blind by your illusions, truth turned into lies, and all the universe made slave to laws which your defenses would impose on it. Yet who believes illusions but the one who made them up? Who else can see them and react to them as if they were the truth?God knows not of your plans to change His Will. The universe remains unheeding of the laws by which you thought to govern it. And Heaven has not bowed to hell, nor life to death. You can but choose to think you die, or suffer sickness or distort the truth in any way. What is created is apart from all of this. Defenses are plans to defeat what cannot be attacked. What is unalterable cannot change. And what is wholly sinless cannot sin.Such is the simple truth. It does not make appeal to might nor triumph. It does not command obedience, nor seek to prove how pitiful and futile your attempts to plan defenses that would alter it. Truth merely wants to give you happiness, for such its purpose is. Perhaps it sighs a little when you throw away its gifts, and yet it knows, with perfect certainty, that what God wills for you must be received.It is this fact that demonstrates that time is an illusion. For time lets you think what God has given you is not the truth right now, as it must be. The Thoughts of God are quite apart from time. For time is but another meaningless defense you made against the truth. Yet what He wills is here, and you remain as He created you.Truth has a power far beyond defense, for no illusions can remain where truth has been allowed to enter. And it comes to any mind that would lay down its arms, and cease to play with folly. It is found at any time; today, if you will choose to practice giving welcome to the truth.This is our aim today. And we will give a quarter of an hour twice to ask the truth to come to us and set us free. And truth will come, for it has never been apart from us. It merely waits for just this invitation which we give today. We introduce it with a healing prayer, to help us rise above defensiveness, and let truth be as it has always been:Sickness is a defense against the truth.I will accept the truth of what I am, and let my mind be wholly healed today.Healing will flash across your open mind, as peace and truth arise to take the place of war and vain imaginings. There will be no dark corners sickness can conceal, and keep defended from the light of truth. There will be no dim figures from your dreams, nor their obscure and meaningless pursuits with double purposes insanely sought, remaining in your mind. It will be healed of all the sickly wishes that it tried to authorize the body to obey.Now is the body healed, because the source of sickness has been opened to relief. And you will recognize you practiced well by this: The body should not feel at all. If you have been successful, there will be no sense of feeling ill or feeling well, of pain or pleasure. No response at all is in the mind to what the body does. Its usefulness remains and nothing more.Perhaps you do not realize that this removes the limits you had placed upon the body by the purposes you gave to it. As these are laid aside, the strength the body has will always be enough to serve all truly useful purposes. The body's health is fully guaranteed, because it is not limited by time, by weather or fatigue, by food and drink, or any laws you made it serve before. You need do nothing now to make it well, for sickness has become impossible.Yet this protection needs to be preserved by careful watching. If you let your mind harbor attack thoughts, yield to judgment or make plans against uncertainties to come, you have again misplaced yourself, and made a bodily identity which will attack the body, for the mind is sick.Give instant remedy, should this occur, by not allowing your defensiveness to hurt you longer. Do not be confused about what must be healed, but tell yourself:I have forgotten what I really am, for I mistook my body for myself.Sickness is a defense against the truth.But I am not a body. And my mind cannot attack. So I cannot be sick.- Jesus Christ in ACIM

God will give you your answer. He will guide in His Will and He'll always be on time, you needn't worry about God being late. Broadcast #7528To help support this podcast, please visit walkwiththeking.org/donate and select "Podcast" from the dropdown menu.A transcript of this broadcast is available on our website here. To hear more from Bob Cook, you can find Walk With The King on Facebook or Instagram.

God always protects you when you are doing His Will. Trust in His promises to see you through. Broadcast #6651To help support this podcast, please visit walkwiththeking.org/donate and select "Podcast" from the dropdown menu.A transcript of this broadcast is available on our website here. To hear more from Bob Cook, you can find Walk With The King on Facebook or Instagram.

Relax and let's sit with the Helper,with the Giver,with the Healer,the Lover,right here,not out there.When you find Him here,you'll find him out there in His Will,in His Time.You are Helped.You are Healed.You are Love(d)._________________________--Blessed Rosaries are back in stock!--Wake Up to Love, and pray the Holy Rosary, pray the LOVE with us LIVE every weekday morning at 4:44 am ET