Podcasts about i paul

Our Redemption (1) (audio) David Eells – 6/8/25 I want to encourage you today with a teaching on Redemption because it's so important we understand what Jesus has paid to give us, and it helps us in our faith and our spiritual growth. When we consider what God has given us through knowledge of the promises and then being tried to see if we're going to really be faithful to what they provide. We are tried to see if we will act on what the redemption provides. Let's start in 1Co 6:19-20 Or know ye not that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have from God? and ye are not your own; for ye were bought with a price: glorify God therefore in your body. And some of you know that the KJV adds there, ‘and in your spirit, which are gods'.  You have nothing to do with the glorifying God in your spirit. God himself lives in your spirit. But you do have something to do, and it's a in that speaks that we should glorify God therefore in our body. This has the numeric pattern  but the added part has no numeric pattern, and it has no place in the Bible; it was added by men. He said you were bought with a price and the word bought there is agorazō and it means redeemed. You were redeemed with a price. And the word agorazō is translated in various ways in the Bible. One way is “bought”. It's translated bought because it actually means that, however, “bought” doesn't cover the whole meaning of the word agorazō or redeemed; it means to purchase a slave with an eye towards setting them free. Well, obviously from that little type and shadow, you can tell that we were all slaves. And we were slaves to sin, slaves to corruption, and slaves to the curse. We were slaves to the devil and slaves to the flesh. And redemption is all about God paying the price for us to be set free from that slavery. And so this word “bought” is the word redeemed. It's mentioned again a little further down in Chapter 7. Let's read 1Co 7:22 For he that was called in the Lord being a bondservant (or a slave), is the Lord's freedman: That's interesting. So that's a really good description of what redemption is all about. “Purchasing a slave in order to set him free.” We were a slave to the world, to the flesh, to the devil, to sin on and on and on. So, when the Lord buys you, He buys you out, and you're no longer a slave to these things. You are free in Christ! This redemption was accomplished at the cross already. It doesn't matter what you're in slavery to; whether it has to do with this world in regards to sin or the curse, or the devil, or anything else, the Lord set you free! That's what redemption was all about. He already accomplished this redemption. And of course, if you apply faith to this, it is the solution and he goes on to say in this text …likewise he that was called being free, is Christ's bondservant. Meaning, you were free in regard to righteousness. You were free in regard to serving God. You were free in regard to walking in the spirit, but now you're a slave to Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul called himself a slave to Jesus Christ. We are called to serve Him, and as we know, obedience to His word is how we build this house upon the Rock. Everything else is going to get wiped out. Every Christian who hears His Words and disobeys them is building his house on the shifting sands of man's ideas, and it just won't last, because everything that can be shaken is about to be shaken. It's all going to get wiped out. You know, there are so many churches out there that put no premium on obedience. But the Lord saved us so we could obey. In fact, they think for some reason that's works. And of course, it's the work of God. Obedience to Him is the work of God. I mean, we are walking in the steps of Jesus, and He gave us those commands so we could follow in His steps, and He redeemed us so we would have the ability to walk in His steps. And verse 23 says 1Co 7:23 Ye were bought with a price; become not bondservants of men. There's the same word agorazō also, and it means we've been delivered from slavery now. … become not bondservants of men. Does this still happen? Of course, there are many Christians who are bondservants of men. They won't obey the Word, because men told them they didn't have to, or men gave them convenient doctrines so they didn't have to obey. So this redemption is the price that has been paid. We can look in Hebrews Chapter 9 and see that the price has been paid by Jesus Christ. And it is paid through His blood. Let's read that. Heb 9:11 But Christ having come a high priest of the good things to come, through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation, 12 nor yet through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood, entered in once for all into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption. Now this word redemption comes from the Greek word lutrōsis. There's also a word apolutrōsis, which is a strengthened form of lutrōsis, and it's slightly different, but it has a really neat meaning. It means “the release on receipt of a ransom.” Well, you say, a ransom; we had to be ransomed? Yes, the devil was holding us captive legally, because of our sins. Why is that? Because God made statements all through the Bible, and the Bible says God cannot lie, and the devil holds Him to that. It's not that God wants to lie, He can't, but the devil holds Him to what He says. The Bible says, when you do such and such a sin, this is going to happen to you. This is the penalty that you pay for. Then God has spoken a legal word there that the devil will hold it up in His face. And so we had all these penalties stacked up against us for our sins. And we were being held ransom, and the Lord paid the ransom in full. He paid the price for us to be set free from the penalty for our sins. And you know, the devil loves to make sure that we pay the penalty for our sins. But the great thing is, the Lord ransomed us; He delivered us out of the power of darkness. So as we read on here, we'll see this. I'm going to back up just a little bit so you can catch this word, redemption again, verse 12 nor yet through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood, entered in once for all into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling them that have been defiled, sanctify unto the cleanness of the flesh: 14 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish unto God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? This is awesome! You know you can actually walk without sin and walk without a consciousness of sin. You couldn't do that under the law. You had to keep searching out these rules and regulations and see where you did this wrong and did that wrong. But God redeemed us from the law too. And that's what the scripture says, and we'll look at that. So look, He cleanses your conscience from dead works. You are able to have fellowship with God because you don't have a consciousness of sin. But you know, even if you do sin, you go to Him as it says in 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. And you believe the Word of God, so you know you're cleansed and you know you can have fellowship with God. So in that way, God has given us a covering and He has redeemed us. And in this case, lutrōsis; meaning, God has released us on receipt of the ransom. Jesus paid the ransom with His blood. Praise God! And Galatians chapter 4:4-5 is just awesome, like all the rest of God's words; Don't you love God's Word? Gal 4:4 but when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 that he might redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. So redemption has also provided for us adoption. We are adopted sons of God, and it also set us free from the law, or here, it set the Galatians free from the law. And you know, we don't have to go back under the law because the law was made with the Jews; it wasn't made with the Gentiles. He made the New Covenant with the Gentiles. But to know that you're not under that law is awesome because the law itself is a curse, and you can't convince a lot of people of that because they love self-righteousness. Because the righteousness that comes from the law is self-righteousness. It says, “Look what I'm doing.” “I can do this and I can do that, therefore I'm holy.” No, you're only holy because of what Jesus did when He bought you at the cross. But He says in Gal 3:10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one who continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law, to do them. So if you want to be justified by the law, you've got to keep them all, and nobody's ever been able to do it. First of all, you would have to be a pretty sharp lawyer and you have to have an awfully good memory to remember all those rules and regulations. Thank God we don't have to live like that! Saints, we can live freely by trusting in what Jesus did as far as paying that penalty, and verse 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law. That is the penalty for being contrary to the law. He redeemed us. Now this is the word exagorazō is a strengthened form of Agorazo, and it means, to buy out a slave with an eye to set him free. Exagorazō is translated redeemed. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law. That is the penalty for not keeping the law and here is what God did about it. …having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 14 that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Are you in Christ Jesus? We've talked about that; are you abiding in Jesus Christ through faith in His shed blood? Well, then you're not under the law, and that's great, because if you go back and read Deuteronomy 28 and you look at the penalties for breaking the law, these are the curses that are upon the whole world. All over the world, this curse is upon mankind, and actually the only way you can come out from under that is to exercise faith in the redemption that Jesus accomplished. This is an awesome thing, Saints! Now look, you can't get out from under a curse if you're walking in willful disobedience. There's nothing you can do about the curse because there's no sacrifice for a person who walks in willful disobedience as it says in Heb 10:26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries. In other words, if you're willfully rebellious, you need a whipping, and God will give it to you. But if you're not willfully in rebellion and you're walking by faith in Christ, then He's got a blood covering, and He has redeemed you from the curse that comes from breaking all that law. Praise God that we're under grace and not under the law! And if you, as a Christian, go back under the law, then He tells you in Gal 4:30 Howbeit what saith the scripture? Cast out the handmaid and her son: for the son of the handmaid shall not inherit with the son of the freewoman. That is, you don't inherit the same blessings, the same eternal life, and everything that goes with that. And Gal 5:1 For freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage. Speaking about going under certain parts of the law, and keeping the Feasts, somebody asked me, “Do we have to keep these Feasts?” No, they're a parable, and we do have to fulfill the feasts. For instance, we keep the Feast of the Passover by eating the Lamb, Jesus Christ and the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 5 that our Passover has already been sacrificed. It's all over. All you need to do is eat the Lamb now. And no, it doesn't make any difference whether you eat physical lamb or not. It means you have to eat the Word of God who is Jesus the Lamb of God. So we're told here in Gal 5:2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that, if ye receive circumcision, or you can add these other things in there too; all these commands of the law, such as the tithe, the Sabbath, and so forth, we have to fulfill those. These are spiritual types, and they're fulfilled spiritually. But if you go back under the law, you are going to be separated from Christ. He continues to say, Christ will profit you nothing. That's if you go back under these laws in the letter. 3 Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. You are righteous by faith in your redemption and cannot be justified by keeping the law. See if you break the law in just one point, you are a sinner. If you just break it in one point, you have broken the law. Now you are a sinner and now you cannot go to heaven. Do you understand that? So no matter what you do, you must have a redemption, and that's been accomplished by the Lord if you won't seek to be self-justified by keeping some work of the law so you can say, “Hey, I made it! I've attained to it”. No, it won't work. It's a stench in God's nostrils. Again, Paul says, 3 Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. 4 Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace. You're not seeking it by grace, you're seeking it by works and it won't work. God won't accept it, and you'll find nothing but failure in your life if you try it. Now let's go to Rom 6:17 But thanks be to God, that, whereas ye were servants of sin, ye became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto ye were delivered; (There's that obedience to the teaching, building your house on the Rock.) whereunto ye were delivered; You were servants of sin. The word there is bondservants. You were a slave; you were a slave to sin. But you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto you were delivered and being made free from sin. This is the redemption right here. 18 And being made free from sin, you became servants of righteousness. So now you are a servant of righteousness. You're a bondservant of the Lord Jesus Christ. This faith will give you power from God by grace, which is unmerited favor. Now let's go down to verse 22 But now being made free from sin and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto sanctification, and the end eternal life. Notice that not everybody who says unto the Lord, “Lord, Lord”, is going to have eternal life. It's those who are being made free from sin. They're bearing the fruit of their redemption that was given to them in Christ. When you walk by faith in Jesus, He's going to set you free. He is going to fulfill the redemption in you. You're going to be set free. There's no two ways about it. If it's not faith, it won't work. But if it is faith in Christ, it will work. Faith has fruit, right? And another good example is in Psa 49:15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol; For he will receive me. Now here He's talking only about of redemption of the soul from the power of death. He's not talking about the body, but it says “he will receive me”. The Lord receives all of those who die in Christ. And He has redeemed their soul. That means He has bought their soul from the penalty of the curse. They will be in the rapture or resurrection. Both of these fulfill the redemption that Jesus spoke about the deliverance from the curse. And Psa 56:13 For thou hast delivered my soul from death: Hast thou not delivered my feet from falling, That I may walk before God In the light of the living? Psa 25:22 Redeem Israel, O God, Out of all of his troubles. That sounds good, doesn't it? That kind of covers an awful lot, doesn't it? I like these kinds of promises. The Lord is going to redeem us from all of our troubles. How does He do that? Well, we believe that He bought us as slaves, as we were in the beginning; we were slaves to sin, slaves to the curse, slaves to the devil, and slaves to the flesh. He bought us out of all of our troubles from the curse that stems from that. But He redeemed us from all of our troubles. And Psa 130:8 And he will redeem Israel From all his iniquities. Now, the way He's speaking of Israel here, He's speaking of Israel the man, but also Israel, the body. He will redeem Israel from all his iniquities. Do we really want that? Obviously, we do have a part to play here. If we do confess our sins, we're forgiven and cleansed. If we justify our sins, we don't have any of this and there's nothing promised to us. But if we confess our sins, He says He's faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us of unrighteousness. (1Jn1:9) But He wants to deliver us from all iniquity. He wants to redeem us from being a slave to iniquities or to sin. In other words, He accomplished this at the cross. We have been redeemed at the cross, but there is also a manifestation of that redemption when we walk by faith in it. Do you really believe that the Lord took away all of your sins, all of your iniquities? Do you really believe that? How about the ones you're doing right now? You know the ones you're failing in right now; the Lord redeemed you from that. He bought you as a slave to sin, in order to set you free from all that. That's His plan and that's what He's going to do. Now let's look at Tit 2:11-14 For the grace of God hath appeared, bringing salvation to all men,… Well, that's not quite right. You know why? Because in Greek, you can get some words in front of others rather easily, and there is a perfect sequence here according to the Numerics. And what this verse actually says is, …he hath appeared to all men bringing salvation. He didn't appear, bringing salvation to all men, because then all men would have salvation, but he did appear to all men bringing salvation. That's not to say that every one of them accepts it, or can they accept it because they can't. Only those who have a gift of faith and repentance can accept it. So in other words, He's offered it and the people who can partake of it are the people who have that gift of repentance and faith. Tit 2:12 instructing us, to the intent that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly and righteously and godly in this present world; Wow! So we can really live godly or godlike. He's making a statement here that I would say most of Christianity doesn't consider possible. According to these people, “We're always going to be sinners saved by grace”, but that's not according to God's plan and not according to His redemption. His redemption has no power in the minds of these people; it has no power to save. He redeemed us! He bought us as slaves and He paid the price. He paid the ransom so that we could be set free from bondage to the devil and the curse! And His purpose was so that we should live soberly and righteously and godly in this present world. Not in the next world; in this present world. Tit 2:13 looking for the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; You know it's Christ in you, the hope of glory, (Col.1:27). So we're looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory. Where is this ‘appearing of the glory'? Well, the word there appearing is the word epiphania, and it means “a shining forth, or upon, to shine forth, the shining forth” of the glory out of God's people is what he's talking about. So we're looking for this epiphany of the glory of the great God in our savior Jesus Christ; 14 who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, Praise the Lord! What replaces “all iniquity”? The glory of God! Iniquity is your old nature, the nature of the old man, and the glory is the nature of the new man, Jesus Christ; Christ in you, the hope of glory. So, you looking for the epiphany of Jesus shining in you and from you. This is a result of the redemption that He has worked for you. Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity. And I guess some people think that God is rather foolish, that He makes a promise that He never really plans to bring to pass. That's ridiculous. He is speaking the truth here about His plan for Christians. This is the truth and what you've heard about people being “a sinner saved by grace the rest of their life” is a lie. That's an “Antichrist gospel.” This is the “Christ Gospel” here; that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a people for his own possession, zealous of good works. How about that? In other words, the people who are redeemed will be zealous of good works. They're going to love to do the works of Jesus. And no, they're not working their way to heaven. This is the fruit of their redemption. Our faith in this redemption has good works, right? This is what people who are redeemed look like. They love good works and they love to walk in righteousness. Just like it's a sport for a fool to do wrong, it's a sport for God's people to do right. They love to do right. They love to be pleasing unto God. They love the feeling they get when they're pleasing unto God. They desire to please their Father as they serve Him in His kingdom. They're not trying to earn their way to heaven. The Lord already did that. They just love to be obedient, and they love to hear the Words of God and act on those Words to build their house on the solid Rock of Jesus Christ. So His redemption was so that we would be delivered of all iniquity and if you believe it, God is big enough to do it. It's not as though we have to do it, He's already done it. And we're just believing Him. Praise God! That's the Good News! Praise God! Thank you, Father! Thank you, Jesus, for what You've done for us in delivering us and giving us your glory. And I think a good example of this is Genesis 48, where we read how Jacob is blessing Joseph and his sons. In verse Gen 48:16 the angel who hath redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them,... Think about all the stuff that Jacob went through with Laban; who plundered him and was trying to rip him off. And how he kept changing his wages time after time. Then later, when Jacob saw Esau, he was so worried. He was thinking that he was going to wipe him and his whole family out when he saw all the abundance he had gained when he had gone and worked for Leban. And just think about what he said, the angel who hath redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads… Have we been redeemed from all evil? Yes, absolutely. We are like Jacob; we were all like a supplanter. We were unsavory, really, to say the least, but he was shown the salvation of God. He was the Israel of God, and Israel means, “he shall rule as God.” Isn't that neat? He went from Jacob to Israel. “He shall rule as God” because God lives in the person who is redeemed. And He does His works through the person who is redeemed. And we are the body of Christ, Who is God. So God lives in us, and He can do His will in a person who has a renewed mind and has been redeemed from the curse. We can praise the Lord for His great plan. Now, let's go to 1Pe 1:15 but like as he who called you is holy, be ye yourselves also holy in all manner of living; 16 because it is written, Ye shall be holy; for I am holy. Now, if we are His seed through the Word in us we are to be holy too. That is, if the Word is being manifested in us, we also should be holy. Verse 17 And if ye call on him as Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to each man's work, pass the time of your sojourning in fear: 18 knowing that ye were redeemed, not with corruptible things, with silver or gold, from your vain manner of life handed down from your fathers… Let's go back and look at verse 15, he says, be ye yourselves also holy in all manner of living; So we were redeemed from that vain manner of life that was handed down from our fathers. A worthless and useless life. You can see how the world acts; there's no real eternal value in things that people think and do. The Lord is very practical; if we follow Him as disciples, we're going to be very practical too, because the things we are doing will be most valuable in that they have an eternal result. Now we're here for a very good purpose that ends up in eternal life and perfect holiness, which is separation from the world unto God. And yet we know there are a lot of fruitless things people do. For one thing, they don't redeem the time. They don't act like we have only a certain amount of time here to bear the fruit of Jesus Christ. We're running against the clock here; there is a race going on, as the apostle Paul said, and so he buffeted his body, and he brought it under submission as he served God. He was a bondservant of the Lord. He was a slave of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is quite a happy thing to be! As a slave of the Lord Jesus Christ, you receive fruit and have the joy and the peace of serving Him. So again, you're redeemed from a vain manner of life, that is, a fruitless life. It's a life of just pleasing “self”. It's a life that really doesn't have any eternal reward. You remember the things that you used to do in the world just to please yourself, to entertain yourself, to make yourself happy and to keep your mind occupied with things that have no reward. Perhaps you're caught up in sports or caught up in fishing. Now I'm not making a law that you can't do this. But I'm trying to make a point here that if these things aren't an end in themselves, and they're a big habit and distract you from serving the Lord, then you probably need to break them because there are so many more important things to do. Yeah, and a lot of this “vain manner of life” is a life that has no eternal foundation, and you receive no eternal reward for it. If you look at the life of the disciples, the apostles, and Jesus, you will see a self-sacrificial life, not a life of materialism and pleasing “self”. They lived lives of sacrifice joyfully for others. This was anything but a “vain manner of life.” Most people live, whether in peace and prosperity or not, a “vain manner of life,” given over to the corruption of the world. They strain out the gnat, and swallow the camel (Mat.23:24), making little things big and big things little. The truly important things are not important to them. Going on in verse 19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb without spot, even the blood of Christ: So we were redeemed with something that is totally and perfectly valuable. And what God is saying is, don't waste it. The Lord has redeemed us from a fruitless life, a worthless life which is quite common even for many Christians. You know, they ‘accept Jesus as a personal Savior' and then they carry on with their vain life ignoring the Great Commission that was so important to Jesus. Their life doesn't reflect being a bondservant of the Lord, serving Him in the important things. Look at Psa 106:10 And he saved them from the hand of him that hated them, And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy. 11 And the waters covered their adversaries; There was not one of them left. So, you can see here that the enemy that He has redeemed us from is the old man of the flesh that went down in the waters of the Red Sea representing our baptism. We are redeemed from the flesh and the demons that use it, and the people who make themselves our enemy. How we hate serving the flesh when we would really enjoy serving God. Well, He redeemed us out of the hand of the old man when we went down in baptism. And guess what? That old man doesn't exist anymore. You were crucified with Christ, and now the One Who lives in you is Jesus Christ. The new man is the only one left. Gal 2:20  I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me: and that life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me.  Now, there's no doubt you can use Psa 106:10-11 and apply it to our spiritual enemies who use the old man; the principalities and powers and the rulers of darkness, or even the physical enemies that are used by the devil to tempt us, and to try to bring us back into bondage to fleshly principles. There's no doubt you can use this verse to mean that too. And Psa 107:2 Let the redeemed of Jehovah say [so], Whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the adversary, Sometimes we lose track, or we forget to claim this redemption from the adversary. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so! We need to confess our redemption. We need to confess it before men. We need to confess it before the principalities and powers, otherwise they're going to take total advantage of you. We were redeemed from all of our enemies! We were set free! We need to confess that we have all of Christ. He was given to us as a gift. He now lives in us and we no longer live as in Galatians 2:20. And the devil takes on flesh sometimes. He's not just a spirit, he takes on the flesh of people around us to persecute us and to try us in our faith, and to try to drag us back into the world and do the things of the world. But the Lord has redeemed us from all of our enemies, spiritual and physical; He has set us free! (Psa.107:2) Let the redeemed of the Lord say [so]…. When we get into a situation involving a curse (something which most of Christianity considers to be quite normal), we know that the normal Christian life is a life delivered from the power of the curse of sin. The Gospel says that the Lord paid for our sins, we've been forgiven; therefore, we are no longer under the curse. Jesus bore that curse for us. We're not supposed to bear it, and it doesn't please the Father that we bear it, yet we will bear it, if we do not confess our redemption. Gal 3:13  Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:  Gal 3:14  that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.  Now let's go to Luke chapter 1. One of my favorite verses is so encouraging, where he speaks about our redemption. Verse 68 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; For he hath visited and wrought redemption for his people, It's a past tense thing; it's already accomplished. You don't even have to talk God into it, and you don't have to beg Him. He's already redeemed you from the enemy, whether it's the flesh, whether it's the devil, or whether it's sin, it makes no difference. He's redeemed you from all of your enemies, and He goes on to say, 69 And hath raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of his servant David. This is primarily Jesus Christ. And 70 (As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets that have been from of old), 71 Salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; Redemption brings salvation from our enemies. We're saved from our enemies already. 72 To show mercy towards our fathers, And to remember his holy covenant; 73 The oath which he sware unto Abraham our father, 74 To grant unto us that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies Should serve him without fear, 75 In holiness and righteousness before him all our days. So we're redeemed so that we can have a good life. Jesus said in Joh 10:10 The thief cometh not, but that he may steal, and kill, and destroy: I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly. We can serve Him without fear of our enemies because of our redemption. This is what God paid for! Oh, glory to God! Now, let's go to Hos 13:11 I have given thee a king in mine anger, and have taken him away in my wrath. 12 The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is laid up in store. God is holding something against Ephraim here. I've shared before that the Lord showed me that Ephraim is a type of the church because Ephraim was the second-born son of Joseph, whom Israel laid his right hand upon to impart the double portion inheritance. And Ephraim was called “the fullness of nations,” so Ephraim represents the church, and the church is in big trouble right now. That is, the overwhelming majority of the church are going on about their business, just like they're serving God and they're not. And they don't even know what Christianity is all about. But God is going to show mercy in these days. 12 The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is laid up in store. In other words, you don't want to reap what Ephraim has sown. You know what the church has sown; if they reap it, they're in big trouble. Well, the thing is, the Lord's going to reap it. Verse 13 The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: (You recognize that from Revelation 12?) … he is an unwise son; for it is time he should not tarry in the place of the breaking forth of children. In other words, they should have already been bearing fruit, but instead they've had a fruitless life, and they've already come up to the tribulation period, and the Man-child is born, and thank God for that, because the Man-child reformer ministries are going to lead them through the wilderness to learn faith. And he says in verse 14 I will ransom them from the power of Sheol; You've heard about their covenant with death, that God said He was going to break their covenant with death? So much of the church has a covenant with death because they're in agreement with something besides God. They've made covenants, but it's the wrong covenant and it's not under the Lord. But He says I will ransom them from the power of Sheol; I will redeem them from death: O death, where are thy plagues? O Sheol, where is thy destruction? repentance shall be hid from mine eyes. So the Lord is not going to change His mind. He is going to redeem His people. He is going to lead that woman through the wilderness and He's going to bear fruit through them. They are going to bring forth fruit in the days ahead and that is wonderful news! Oh, thank You, Father. And Psalm 103:3 and 4. You probably know it by heart. Psa 103:3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; Who healeth all thy diseases; 4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; Who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; The Lord's benefits are obviously His method of redeeming our life from destruction. God will bring to pass this redemption in our lives! This is great news! And another one of my favorite texts is in Isa 35:8-10 And a highway shall be there, (He's talking about a highway through the wilderness in verse 6, the Tribulation that's coming upon us.) and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but is shall be for the redeemed: the wayfaring men, yea fools, shall not err therein. 9 No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast go up thereon (God is showing us here that the only safe way to avoid the beast and fools is to walk in holiness to Zion. Holiness means separation from the world unto God.); they shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there: 10 and the ransomed (That is, those who believe their debt has been paid so that they can be free of their captors so..) The ransomed of Jehovah shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; This reminds you of Ephraim. God's mercy that He gave to Ephraim so that they could find this redemption. They didn't find it in religion, and now they're facing the tribulation. And it won't be as they thought and hoped, because they didn't fly away in the rapture. So basically, God is going to have mercy. Well, I'm not saying some of them won't fall away because the Bible says that many will fall away. But the Lord is going to have mercy upon His true Church, His “called out ones.”) and the ransomed of Jehovah shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads: they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. More good news! Hallelujah! Let me go on with some more scriptures of our redemption in Christ. (Col.1:14) In whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. The word “redemption” as we've seen, means “a release on payment of a ransom.” We owed a debt we couldn't pay, and Jesus paid a debt He didn't owe. A ransom is a price that is paid to release someone who is in bondage. We've been in bondage to the curse, the old man, the devil, the world, sickness and all the bad things that go along with the curse. Yet, Jesus paid the price to set us free; He paid a ransom so the devil would no longer have authority over us because we have the forgiveness of our sins. Praise God! Eph 1:5 having foreordained us unto adoption as sons through Jesus Christ unto himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 to the praise of the glory of his grace, which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved: (Notice our grace is in Christ, where we are to abide by faith in the blood.) 7 in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 12 to the end that we should be unto the praise of his glory, we who had before hoped in Christ: 13 in whom ye also, having heard the word of the truth, the gospel of your salvation,--in whom, having also believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, (All should be sealed by receiving the Holy Spirit) 14 which is an earnest of our inheritance, unto the redemption of God's own possession, unto the praise of his glory. The Holy Spirit is the down payment of the eternal Spirit filled life. God will redeem from earth those who have born His fruit. Eph 4:30 And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, in whom ye were sealed unto the day of redemption. Pro 23:10-11 Remove not the ancient landmark; And enter not into the fields of the fatherless: 11 For their Redeemer is strong; He will plead their cause against thee. Those who remove the boundaries will be judged. Isa 43:14-17 Thus saith Jehovah, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: (The true Church, the Israel of God.) For your sake I have sent to Babylon, and I will bring down all of them as fugitives, even the Chaldeans, in the ships of their rejoicing. (He is doing it.) 15 I am Jehovah, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King. 16 Thus saith Jehovah, who maketh a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters; 17 who bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the mighty man (they lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinct, they are quenched as a wick): (DS Babylon) Isa 44:21-28 Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel; for thou art my servant: I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. 22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. 23 Sing, O ye heavens, for Jehovah hath done it; shout, ye lower parts of the earth; break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for Jehovah hath redeemed Jacob, and will glorify himself in Israel. 24 Thus saith Jehovah, thy Redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb: I am Jehovah, that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth (who is with me?). 25 that frustrateth the signs of the liars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish; 26 that confirmeth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith of Jerusalem, She shall be inhabited; and of the cities of Judah, They shall be built, and I will raise up the waste places thereof; 27 that saith to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers; 28 That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure, even saying of Jerusalem, She shall be built; and of the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. (I was told our Cyrus would be Trump before he became president the first time. He is helping to restore the people of God's Kingdom at the expense of DS Babylon just as Cyrus did. He discovered the hidden treasures of darkness just as Cyrus did.) Isa 59:14-21 And justice is turned away backward, and righteousness standeth afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and uprightness cannot enter. 15 Yea, truth is lacking; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey. (A good description of the rule of DS Babylon.) And Jehovah saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice. 16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his own arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it upheld him. 17 And he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a mantle. 18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense. (Yes, He has brought down these Edomites.) 19 So shall they fear the name of Jehovah from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come as a rushing stream, which the breath of Jehovah driveth. 20 And a Redeemer will come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, (His redemption is moving among His Man-child reformers and His Bride.) saith Jehovah. 21 And as for me, this is my covenant with them, saith Jehovah: my Spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seeds seed, saith Jehovah, from henceforth and for ever. (The Word will go forth from these reformers.) Mic 4:6 In that day, saith Jehovah, will I assemble that which is lame, and I will gather that which is driven away, and that which I have afflicted; 7 and I will make that which was lame a remnant, and that which was cast far off a strong nation: and Jehovah will reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth even for ever. 8 And thou, O tower of the flock, the hill of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, yea, the former dominion shall come, (The spiritual Bride city and her David Man-childs will be redeemed.)  the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem. 9 Now why dost thou cry out aloud? Is there no king in thee, is thy counsellor perished, that pangs have taken hold of thee as of a woman in travail? (With the Man-child ministries of Rev.12.)  10 Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail; for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and shalt dwell in the field, and shalt come even unto Babylon: there shalt thou be rescued; there will Jehovah redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies. (And it will be so.) Luk 21:28 But when these things begin to come to pass, look up, and lift up your heads; because your redemption draweth nigh. Now I'd like to share a few testimonies from our site about how God is faithful to answer whatever need we may have because of the redeeming work of Christ.     A Leap of Faith Peter - 10/03/2009 For the past couple of months, I have been weighed down by many things. Through ignorance and confusion, I had neglected a lot of matters that I believe the Lord was placing in my heart. Of primary concern, one of these matters was unconfessed willful sin that I had committed at the end of July; the confusion and my passivity held me in bondage to much reasoning. For months, the conviction lingered in the background and refused to subside. I didn't know how to deal with it; praying and reading dwindled tremendously. I was depressed and discouraged to the point where I began to think I was reprobated. However, I still had the unquenchable desire to serve the Lord. After speaking with a couple of brethren and listening to some UBM teachings on authority and dealing with the cause, I came to the conclusion that the conviction in my heart was coming from the Spirit. On September 30th, I confessed my sin to the Lord and to some brethren. On that same day, I saw the Lord's “unbelievable” grace and mercy upon my grandmother and me. While listening to the Bible study, I was interrupted by my grandmother's cry for help. She had her hands clenched against her chest, trying to bear an extremely sharp, throbbing pain (the pain was coming from the right side of her stomach). The pain had travelled to the right side of her face and head, causing a lack of sensation or numbness. At this point, I didn't “feel” any power or authority to command a healing upon her. Thoughts of condemnation, for my forgiven willful sin, flooded my mind. Yet, all I could rely on was God and His Word; it's all I knew. I remember what I had recently learned about authority over the curse and demons. Having reminded my grandmother about the Gospel, I laid my hands on her chest and thanked God for forgiving me for my unconfessed sin earlier in the day. I confessed the good report and reminded my grandmother of Philippians 4:4-8 and Mark 11:24. (Php.4:4) Rejoice in the Lord always: again I will say, Rejoice (5) Let your forbearance be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. (6) In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. (7) And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus. (8) Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honorable, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. (Mar.11:24) Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. After commanding the pain to leave, I continued to praise and thank the Lord for His grace, coming against doubtful and fearful thoughts. I eventually reached a point of complete boldness. Only a few minutes later, the pain left. God is faithful and His Word is always true. All the glory to Him! I would like to mention that my grandmother has been disturbed by arthritis pain, a few times, in the middle of the night. She has called out to the Lord and every time she's been comforted.     From Death to Life Gary and Robin Florence 11/2/23 I wanted to share with you a power of prayer story. On August 3, 2022, my wife, Robin, suffered a brain aneurysm, while in the ER she fell into a coma and was flown by helicopter 62 miles away. As I was driving there I received a phone call that said, “We are in a fatal situation and are doing everything we can to keep your wife alive on the OR table.” I still had about a 45-minute drive, when something, or should I say someone (Holy Spirit) rose up on the inside of me and this authority came over me and I said out loud, “In the name of Jesus I command the spirit of death to leave that OR room now.” Through prayer and the grace of God my wife survived. The surgeon said they go by a severity chart of 1-5 with 5 being the most severe. He said your wife was at the top of a 5. The next day one of the team members came in and said, “That lady should not be lying there, it was that bad. It truly is a miracle.” She spent the next 42 days in hospitals, 23 in ICU, on and off life support, in and out of comas. I did not sit at my wife's bedside begging, pleading and making deals with God. I sat as a son co-laboring, partnering with my Father, calling those things that be not as if they are. I watched with my own eyes, my wife go from death to life. I saw miracle after miracle take place in her body. I watched all the “But God” moments, the “suddenly of God” take place in her throughout her journey. November 7th she went back to work part-time and even drove herself and then on December 1st she went back full-time. I am so proud of my wife. She never bellyached, ‘Woe is me', or ‘Why did God allow this to happen to me?' Her faith grew stronger and became more resolved. Not only is she my wife and companion but she is my best friend, and I am honored to be her husband. So we know the power of prayer. Thank you for reading this email; may it encourage everyone and lift you and stir your faith to believe in the supernatural interventions of God. Also the 700 Club did a taping that aired 7/14/2023. She had a follow-up visit with her surgeon in May and he said as bad as she was, the death rate is 90%, and in most cases, he is transitioning the individual from life to death, basically making them as comfortable as he can till they pass. He said in Robin's case it was nothing short of miraculous.     Jesus Heals the Mute I am writing to share the story that eventually led to this wonderful testimony for my son, Romeo. The backstory: Romeo had been showing “signs” of autism from around 18 months of age. He had essentially regressed in his speech, and all the words he had learnt, he slowly stopped speaking. Romeo had no understanding of social cues, was not responding to his name and from the frustration of being unable to communicate, was throwing a multitude of tantrums throughout the day. When I first noticed the speech regression, I contacted speech therapists and was quoted an awful amount of money to start him so that he could catch up and decided I would wait it out to allow him time to do his own thing. But not too long after, my close friends and in-laws began to notice and began to observe him and make comments regarding his inability to speak. Calling him a mute etc. On the same day I had spoken to my sister-in-law who had been “observing” my son since he was only sixteen months old. I received a call back from a speech therapist whom I had left a message for weeks prior. Her prices were much cheaper, and she had availability, she was very close to home, and could start Romeo immediately. I took up the opportunity, and he began his speech therapy, which he loves! In the interim, Romeo was going back and forth with hearing tests for fluid that was building up and clearing constantly for a few months straight, which was inhibiting him from hearing properly. We made the decision to book him in to have grommets inserted to clear the fluid. The date was set for 19 November 2024. On to the good news! Eventually, my husband and I decided to go down the path of obtaining a diagnosis, where Romeo received a diagnosis of level 2 Autism Spectrum Disorder, requiring “substantial support” (weekly speech therapy and occupational therapy to catch up). The night we received the diagnosis, I woke around 2:00 am to feed my baby girl, Grace and felt very strongly that the Holy Spirit was prompting me to find stories in the New Testament regarding deliverances. I spent an hour reading up on the stories where Jesus removed demons who made people mute (Mark 9:14-29 and Luke 11:14), scripture where Paul had cast out a demon (Acts 16:18), scripture about being unable to cast out a demon, where Jesus advised the disciples the demon could only be cast out by prayer and fasting (Mark 9:28-29), and also the story of where the disciples were trying to stop a person who was not in the group from casting down spirits, but Jesus advised them to leave the man alone etc. (Mark 9:38-41). After reading, I prayed, and I immediately fell into a deep sleep where the Lord gave me a prophetic dream. In the dream, it was Romeo and I looking directly into each other's eyes. I could see that behind his eyes, there was something that was not entirely him. He had been spiritually oppressed by a demon. I immediately quoted Paul and said to my son, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out!” In that moment, my son, for the first time in his life, spoke a full sentence. He said, “Mummy can you help me? There is ringing in my ears!” I knew there was more to do to help my son, and the Lord woke me from my sleep. I called my mum, Josie, after I had woken to tell her of what the Lord had shown me through the scriptures and the dream. Mum said the best thing to do was to have elders David and Michael deliver Romeo, and praise the Lord, we booked the deliverance date, which occurred around early to mid-October 2024. From there, we all stood in faith for the miracle waiting to happen. A reversal of this diagnosis. A son who was no longer mute. At the end of October/start of November, I came across a video on Instagram from a prophetess that really stuck out to me. She was discussing a 25-day fast she was doing with the ministry to remove bloodline curses, and discussed the scripture I had read about where Jesus advised that particular demons could only come out through prayer and fasting. I immediately decided to join this fast and speak to my husband about it. My husband, who is yet to commit himself fully to God, instantly agreed and stuck out the fast in its entirety (6:00 am to 3:00 pm, no food, only water, for 25 days). We began this fast on 2 November 2024. From here, it felt like everything had kicked into gear. My son began saying a few words here and there, and he began responding to his name more, and his tantrums were reducing. Here it was! Our miracle made manifest! Praise the Lord for the process!! We did decide to go ahead with the grommet insertion, which was based on my husband's decision from hearing about my dream where Romeo had said, “Mummy can you help me? There is ringing in my ears!” Romeo is saying not only one word, but up to three or four words at a time. He is responding at all times to his name. He can hear and he can speak! Before he would just stare at people, but now, even if he doesn't have the right words, he will babble nonstop. He is ALWAYS speaking, even if it doesn't make sense to us. No one will be able to call this boy of ours a mute again. He outspeaks even my niece, of the sister-in-law who made the comments regarding his development. Romeo has excelled exceptionally, and we know it will only get better from here. We stand in faith and in gratitude. Romeo is the head, and not the tail. He is ahead and never behind, in Jesus' name. Praise the Lord! Thank you for your faith and encouragement. We are grateful that where we fail, we have committed elders and a faithful God to help us along the way. Our family is very grateful.     Our Heart's Desires Doris Zambrano - April 2007 I had been telling my daughters that we were so blessed indeed, as we all had been noticing that our prayers were being answered recently, often times with just a thought and not actually praying and making a formal request to our wonderful Father. We were just so awestruck and happy that He was so faithful and loved us so much. These prayers were often just little thoughts but big in our hearts. As I was fellowshipping with the brethren in the UBBS room on Paltalk (Paltalk was an interactive platform we used at that time for the brethren to join the UBBS “live”) after communion on a Sunday in April, I felt saddened that I would not be able to spend as much time as I would like with my sisters and brothers. I look forward to communion on Sundays and to spending time with everyone in fellowship! I had so much to do since I have 3 acres of grass, with only a regular lawn mower to mow, and much glorious rain had made tall, beautiful grass everywhere. I knew that if I did not get it done that weekend, it would be even harder with the rain forecast for the whole next six days. As I walked away from the computer for a drink, I thought, “Father, do angels mow grass?” Well, I just smiled and went on about fellowshipping for a bit. Not 30 minutes passed, and I heard a knock on my door, which does not seem so strange except that my 16 acres sat 6 miles from one town and 11 from the other, and there standing at my door were three boys. I opened the door and the tallest one asked, “Would you want us to mow your grass?” “YES!” I exclaimed. I hired them on the spot. Offering praise to our wonderful Father, I ran back to my computer to tell the brethren of this awesome miracle! Everyone joined me in praising our Lord, who loves us so much that He would make a way for us to spend time with one another, just because it was a desire of the heart! YAY! I praise you, Abba, thank you soooooo much! Amen!

Faithbucks.com Colossians 1:21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 1:22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: 1:23 If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister; 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church:

Law and the Real Sabbath (1) (audio) David Eells – 5/4/25 First, let me say that we do have a Sabbath to keep in the New Covenant. If you, who have eyes to see, will be patient and hear me out, I will show you that it is the best news you have ever heard. The Sunday Sabbath folks want to bring us under the law of man, and the Saturday Sabbath folks want to bring us under the Law of the Old Covenant, which God refused to make with the Gentiles (Psa.147:19,20; Deu.7:6,11). If you hold either one of these positions, do not be afraid to examine this subject for the truth will hold up to scriptural scrutiny. The early church kept neither Sunday nor Saturday as the New Testament Sabbath until a great falling away in the third century. The Old Covenant Saturday Sabbath was a type and shadow of what is promised in the New Covenant, but as we will see, Sunday is not the fulfillment of it. (Col.2:16) Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a feast day or a new moon or a Sabbath day: (17) which are a shadow of the things to come; but the body is Christ's. As anyone knows, a shadow is not real; it is only darkness. It is created because what is real is in the light. When Christians try to keep the Old Covenant Sabbath, they are in darkness and have not yet come into the light of the real Sabbath. The Jews never knew what the real Sabbath was, only the shadow or type of the New Testament Sabbath. God never made the Law covenant with the Gentiles. For a Christian to come under part of the Law, like the old Sabbath, is to come under a curse for not keeping the whole Law. (Gal.3:10) For as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one who continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law, to do them. Christ delivered us from the curse of failing to keep any part of God's Law. (13) Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: (14) that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. We are now justified by faith, not by keeping any part of the Law. Paul then warned the Christians not to go back under the Law in observing feast days and Sabbath days. (Gal.4:9) but now that ye have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how turn ye back again to the weak and beggarly rudiments, whereunto ye desire to be in bondage over again? (10) Ye observe days, and months, and seasons, and years. (11) I am afraid of you, lest by any means I have bestowed labor upon you in vain. Paul warned by the Spirit that these believers could not be Christ-like under the Law. (19) My little children, of whom I am again in travail until Christ be formed in you. Paul then warned that the Christians who go back under the Law are sons of the bondwoman Hagar and not the freewoman Sarah. (21) Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? (22) For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, one by the handmaid, and one by the freewoman. (23) Howbeit the [son] by the handmaid is born after the flesh; but the [son] by the freewoman [is born] through promise. Here we come to a stern warning for those seeking to be justified by keeping the Old Covenant Sabbath or any other part of the shadow of the Law. (30) Howbeit what saith the scripture? Cast out the handmaid and her son: for the son of the handmaid shall not inherit with the son of the freewoman. For a Christian to go under any part of the Law is for him to go into bondage and be cut off from the benefits of Christ. (5:1) For freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage. (2) Behold, I Paul say unto you, that, if ye receive circumcision (Or any other part of the Law), Christ will profit you nothing. (3) Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision (Or any other part of the Law), that he is a debtor to do the whole law. (4) Ye are severed from Christ, ye would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace. We are “severed from Christ” when we do not follow or abide in Him, but the Law. Only under grace through faith are we united with Christ through justification and delivered from the curse. Neither Jesus nor the Apostles told us to keep the Old Covenant Sabbath. Jesus always appeared to the disciples and taught on the Lord's day after His resurrection because it was His resurrection day, the first day of the week (Luk.24:1,13; Luk.27-32; Joh.20:1,17,19, 26; Rev.1:10-13). The disciples gathered on the first day of the week (Act.20:7; 1Co.16:1,2). However, they did not make the Lord's Day into a command or law, but a custom; and they never claimed it was the Sabbath. Apostate men did that. Jesus and the disciples went to the Jews on their Sabbath to evangelize them and bring them into the New Covenant Sabbath rest through the promises. Jesus was constantly accused of breaking their shadow Sabbath (Mat.12:2; Joh.5:16-19; 9:16) because He was not under the Law. We will also be accused of this if we follow in His steps instead of being “severed from Christ” by keeping a Law that was never given to us. The Apostles and elders in Acts 15 were gathered together to see whether to bring the Gentiles under the Law. They came to a conclusion that those under the Sabbath Law need to understand. (Act.15:19) Wherefore my judgment is, that we trouble not them that from among the Gentiles turn to God; (20) but that we write unto them, that they abstain from the pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from what is strangled, and from blood. These few things he commanded so that the Jews would not consider them anathema. This was important for the Jews' sake so that they could be evangelized. (21) For Moses from generations of old hath in every city them that preach him (Law), being read in the synagogues every Sabbath. (28) For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things.... Notice that the Sabbath was not commanded of the Gentiles. Neither were a lot of other things that the legalists bring the ignorant Christians under. The Law passed away and was fulfilled in Christ, except for those whose hearts are blinded by the veil. (2Co.3:12) Having therefore such a hope, we use great boldness of speech, (13) and [are] not as Moses, [who] put a veil upon his face, that the children of Israel should not look steadfastly on the end of that which was passing away: (14) but their minds were hardened: for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remaineth, it not being revealed [to them] that it is done away in Christ. (15) But unto this day, whensoever Moses is read, a veil lieth upon their heart. (16) But whensoever it shall turn to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Don't go into bondage with the veil of Old Covenant Laws, which are just shadows or parables of what was to come. Now we, with an unveiled face see the New Covenant in Christ. (17) Now the Lord is the Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, [there] is liberty. (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, even as from the Lord the Spirit. The Law was cancelled because it could not complete or make perfect, because it was only a shadow of the good things to come in the New Covenant. (Heb.7:18) For there is a disannulling (Greek: Annulled or cancelled) of a foregoing commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness (19) (for the law made nothing perfect), and a bringing in thereupon of a better hope (The New covenant through grace), through which we draw nigh unto God. The purpose of those under the Law was to give us a shadow or parable of the great things to come. (Heb.8:5) who serve [that which is] a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, even as Moses is warned [of God] when he is about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern that was showed thee in the mount. (6) But now hath he obtained a ministry the more excellent, by so much as he is also the mediator of a better covenant, which hath been enacted upon better promises. (7) For if that first [covenant] had been faultless, then would no place have been sought for a second. (8) For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, That I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; (9) Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers ... (13) In that he saith, A new [covenant] he hath made the first old. But that which is becoming old and waxeth aged is nigh unto vanishing away. (10:1) For the law having a shadow of the good [things] to come, not the very image of the things, can never with the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make perfect them that draw nigh. The Law was always planned to be a temporary shadow. (Gal.3:19) What then is the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise hath been made... So there was an end of the Olde Covenant law. The Sabbath was eternal as the legalists will tell you (Exo.31:16). So how could it be eternal and still pass away? What they do not understand is that it changed from letter to spirit in the New Covenant (2Co.3:2-11). The letter of the type, shadow, or parable as taught in the Old Covenant is now fulfilled in the spirit of the New Covenant. Jesus said in (Mat.5:17) Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I came not to destroy, but to fulfill. (18) For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass away from the law, till all things be accomplished. So now we must fulfill the parable. Fulfilling or accomplishing the Law is not the same as being under the Old Covenant Law as Jesus went on to demonstrate. (21) Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time (Notice that the Law was spoken unto them, not us.), Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: (22) but I say unto you, that every one who is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment. Notice that Jesus changed the Law from regulations of our actions to regulations of our heart, as the prophets said would come (Jer.31:33) But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith Jehovah: I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Those who do not permit anger in their heart will fulfill the Law and not kill. (27) Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt not commit adultery: (28) but I say unto you, that every one that looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. Jesus interpreted the Law again. If we do what He says and avoid lust, we will fulfill the Law by not committing adultery. Jesus continued to demonstrate how changing the Law from outer actions to inner nature will fulfill it (Mat.5:33, 43). If God changed all these Laws in order to fulfill them, then He did the same with the Sabbath. The Sabbath was meant to be a change in our nature rather than a regulation of our actions, one day a week. If a person rests from his own works every day by believing in Christ's finished work, he will certainly fulfill the Law of resting for one day. The Law will be fulfilled in us, but not by keeping the letter, “For the letter kills but the spirit gives life”. It will be fulfilled through us as we walk in and by the Spirit. (Gal.5:16) But I say, walk by the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. (18) But if ye are led by the Spirit, ye are not under the law. When you see what's written in the shadow of the Law, you must look in the New Covenant to find out what the fulfillment is. Circumcision was necessary under penalty of death, but Paul, by the Spirit, changed it from a carnal shadow to the spiritual fulfillment of baptism. (Col.2:11) ... in the circumcision of Christ; (12) having been buried with him in baptism. Under the Old Covenant, we were 90% owners and 10% stewards but according to Jesus, we are now 100% stewards, or we are not really disciples. (Luk.14:33) So therefore whosoever he be of you that renounceth not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. To Peter, it was revealed that the Old Covenant carnal restriction on eating unclean beasts was spiritually a restriction of partaking of unclean people, which Solomon called beasts (Ecc.3:18), and the gospel solves that problem. (Act.10:11) and he beholdeth the heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending, as it were a great sheet, let down by four corners upon the earth: 12 wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts and creeping things of the earth and birds of the heaven. 13 And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill and eat. 14 But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common and unclean. 15 And a voice [came] unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, make not thou common. Then Peter was sent with the gospel to the Gentiles and got the revelation that they were the unclean beasts that God had cleansed. (28) and he said unto them, Ye yourselves know how it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to join himself or come unto one of another nation; and [yet] unto me hath God showed that I should not call any man common or unclean. As you can see, it was the habit of Jesus and the disciples to translate the shadow to the spiritual reality. It is a violation of the Spirit to bring old Covenant ceremonial laws into the New Covenant without translating them. Since this is so, we must find out what the Sabbath translates to. Let me explain the New Testament Sabbath rest. The Sabbath shadow was to cease from man's works one day a week. But we are commanded to do this every day.  We can cease from works of religious self-justification, works of the flesh, and various forms of salvation by man's works, through faith in the work that Christ has already accomplished. Jesus said, “All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive (Greek: received) them, and ye shall have them (Mar.11:24). Why believe that we have received everything? Notice in the following verses that all things have been received by us and that the only thing left is for us to believe it. Also note the past-tense of our sacrificial provision in the following verses: (Eph.2:8) For by grace have ye been saved through faith; (1Pe.2:24) Who his own self bare our sins in his body ...by whose stripes ye were healed; (Col.1:13) Who delivered us out of the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love; (2Co.5:18) ...who reconciled us to himself; (Gal.2:20) I have been crucified with Christ, and its no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me; (Gal.3:13) Christ redeemed us from the curse; (1Pe.1:3) ...the Father ...begat us again ...by the resurrection of Jesus Christ; (Heb.10:10) We ...have been sanctified ...; (14) He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified; (Eph.1:3) ...who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing, and God (2Pe.1:3) hath granted unto us all things .... Jesus told us in His day which, of course, is also in the past that “Now shall the prince of this world be cast out” (Joh.12:31); “But be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (Joh.16:33); “It is finished” (Joh.19:30). This is why we are to believe we have received. The devil and the curse were conquered. We were saved, healed, delivered, and provided for. We can rest from our own works to accomplish this when we truly believe. Let me give you an example. (1Pe.2:24) who his own self bare our sins in his body upon the tree, that we, having died unto sins, might live unto righteousness; by whose stripes ye were healed. The one who believes that Jesus already “bare our sins” considers himself delivered and can rest. He no longer has to worry about how to be delivered because he reckons himself to be “dead unto sin but alive unto God” (Rom.6:11). He reckons within himself, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me” (Gal.2:20). He can rest. Notice that the one who believes that “by whose stripes ye were healed” never has to resort to his own works to get healed. All he has to do is rest and receive it by faith. If a man continues to try to get healed when the Word says he was healed, he shows he does not believe the Word. He has not ceased from his own works to enter the rest by believing 1 Peter 2:24. All the sacrificial promises are past-tense to cause us to rest from our works every day. Redemption from the curse is truly finished! In fact, God's “works were finished from the foundation of the world” (Heb.4:3) when He spoke the plan into existence. The only thing left is for the true sons of God to enter into those works by faith, believing they have received. Since the works are finished, we should believe and rest from our own works to save, heal, and deliver ourselves. (3) For we who have believed do enter into that rest. Notice it is not the one who ceases from works on Saturday or Sunday but the one who believes who enters the New Covenant Sabbath rest every day. (9) There remaineth therefore a Sabbath rest (Greek: sabbatismos, “keeping of rest”) for the people of God. This constant “keeping of rest” every day, not one day a week, through the past-tense promises, is our spiritual Sabbath. (10) For he that is entered into his rest hath himself also rested from his works, as God did from his. This rest is to believe these past-tense promises and rest from our own works or man's works to save ourselves. Our faith in each of these promises brings us into more of the rest. We should be diligent not to leave out even one of these promises for our own good. (Heb.4:1) Let us fear therefore, lest haply, a promise being left of entering into his rest, any one of you should seem to have come short of it. (2) For indeed we have had good tidings preached unto us, even as also they: but the word of hearing did not profit them, because it was not united by faith with them that heard. This is true faith and always brings the answer. Through believing the promises, we enter into rest from our own works. For a child of God to say that they believe they have received and yet continue seeking to receive, usually through worldly methods, is to be double-minded. (Jas.1:6) But let him ask in faith, nothing doubting: for he that doubteth is like the surge of the sea driven by the wind and tossed. (7) For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord; (8) a doubleminded man, unstable in all his ways. Those who continue to work for what God has freely given believe in salvation by works. (Heb.4:10) For he that is entered into his rest, hath himself also rested from his works. (Jas.3:19) And we see that they were not able to enter in because of unbelief. Since the promises of deliverance from the curse are past-tense, when we believe them, we must stop working. It is an evil heart of unbelief to not rest. God was angry with Israel because they would not believe His Word in their trial in the wilderness (Heb.3:8-10). (Heb.3:11) As I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest (the Sabbath!). (12) Take heed, brethren, lest haply there shall be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief, in falling away from the living God .... (14) We are become partakers of Christ (His health, holiness, and blessing) if we hold fast the beginning of our confidence firm unto the end. When we believe we have received, we are put in a position of weakness because we cannot do anything to bring the desired result to pass. This weakness is rest in our wilderness experiences because there is no help from Egypt or the world there. Only God's power saves in the wilderness. God says, “My power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor.12:9). If we refuse to be weak, God refuses to be strong on our behalf. Our weapon against our enemies who try to talk us out of our covenant rights is the two-edged sword of these past-tense promises (Heb.4:11,12). Let me share with you a good example of the power of the true gospel through faith in our past provision. Several years ago, I ran across a lady who had two large, inoperable tumors. She listed for me several famous preachers she had been to, who had prayed for her to be healed. She said to me, “David, I just don't understand why I have not been healed”. I said, “You just told me why you have not been healed. You are looking in the wrong direction. Turn around and look behind you for 'by whose stripes ye were healed' (1Pe.2:24). You are looking forward to a healing that happened behind you. You have a little hope, but no faith. Faith 'calls the things that be not (in this case, healing) as though they were' (Rom.4:17). Faith looks back at what was accomplished at the cross, but hope looks forward to what will be accomplished. Jesus said, 'All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for believe that ye receive (Greek: “received”) them, and ye shall have them' (Mar.11:24). That is the gospel, sister, that you must believe”. With these few words, I saw the light come on in her eyes; and her face brighten up. I said, “Now we are going to pray one more time; but this time believe the Scriptures, and believe you have received whether you see an instant manifestation, or not”. She agreed, so I rebuked the infirmity and commanded her to be healed in Jesus' name. She instantly felt the tumors leave. We rejoiced and thanked God together. I said, “Sister, that is the first time you believed the true gospel concerning your healing. If you had done that when those other preachers prayed, you would have been healed.” Because she, through faith, entered into rest from her own works to save herself, she saw the works of Jesus. Many do not receive from God because they do not keep our Sabbath through faith. Many years ago, I had a dream about resting from my works in order to be caught up by the power of God to do His works. In scene one, my wife and I were resting in lawn chairs in front of our house. Our gaze was riveted on the power line that crossed our property because it was sagging between the power poles so much that it almost touched the ground. As we watched and rested, a tornado came over that power line and picked us up out of our chairs and carried us away. Interpretation: God helped me to understand this prophetic dream. As we cease from our works and enter into the rest (the lawn chairs), the power of man (power line) comes to an end, and the power of God (tornado or whirlwind) takes over. God only gives this power to those who cease from their own works, even religious works, to follow His Spirit because they believe the promises. In scene two, I found myself in front of a large church. I walked through the front door and standing in the foyer was an “old man” in a suit. I avoided this old man as if he were a rattlesnake and went into the sanctuary, so-called. I saw there a large double sink, full of water. In the water were babies; they were faced down and most were dead. I quickly went to the sink, picked up a baby, and held him in the air. He spoke to me saying, “Thank God, I knew he was going to send someone”. Interpretation: I was made to know that there are many carnal ministers (old man - Eph.4:22; Col.3:9,10) who are trying to wash up the people of God (babies in the sink) by using the word as the letter of the Law (which is the water in Eph.5:26) and they're killing them instead. (2Co.3:6) who also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. The letter of the Law that is taught by the Pharisees of today only gets our eyes on our own earthly ability or inability, like being face down in the water, which kills. Many are they that sit under the condemnation of the Law, which is a powerless false gospel, only to give up in their failure to please God and go back into the world or die on a church pew. We cannot pick ourselves up by our bootstraps or be saved by our own self-will. This is an understanding that is from the earth, and is face down. Seeking this is to be “ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2Ti.3:7) that sets free. Jesus purposely spoke in parables so that only those who have eyes and ears for heavenly things would understand (Mat.13:10-14). These seek a knowledge that is born from above, I.e., face up. (Mat.16:17) And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father who is in heaven. As always, those whose understanding is “face up” will be fought by those whose understanding is “face down”. The good news of the promises is the power of God given freely to save the one who believes (Rom.1:16). These promises get our eyes on God's ability and provision or face up. These promises give faith (Rom.10:17) to get grace (Eph.2:8) in order to have the power to live the Christian life and cease from our works. The Jews complained that Jesus' disciples were breaking the Sabbath by harvesting grain to eat (Mat.12:1,2), which was true according to the Law (Exo.31:14-17). Jesus replied to them; (Mat.12:5) Or have ye not read in the law, that on the Sabbath day the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are guiltless? Notice that He was proclaiming that His disciples were guiltless for profaning the old Sabbath. The priests, in order to fulfill the Sabbath, had to work in the temple. They did the work of God as we should also. Jesus was rebuked for healing on the Sabbath. Those outside the temple had to cease from their own works. (6) But I say unto you, that one greater than the temple is here. Jesus is our New Testament temple. We who abide in Him must work His works in order to fulfill the Sabbath. We must work the works of our Father, for we are the priests of God. (Rev.1:6) and he made us [to be] a kingdom, [to be] priests unto his God and Father .... Those who do not abide in Him have not ceased from their own works and are breaking the real Sabbath. Those who follow Christ as Lord are keeping the Sabbath, for He is Lord of the Sabbath. (Mat.12:8) For the Son of man is Lord of the sabbath. If we follow the Lord, then we have rested from our works to do His works. (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. If we follow the Law, we are cut off from Christ and grace and cannot be keeping the real Sabbath (Gal.5:4). Those seeking to keep the Law of the Sabbath are instead breaking it because they are not resting from the works of the Law. Those under the Law, who condemn us for following Christ on Saturday or Sunday, condemn the guiltless. (Mat.12:7) But if ye had known what this meaneth, I desire mercy, and not sacrifice; ye would not have condemned the guiltless. We are to work and do good on our Sabbath. All good is legal on our Sabbath, every day, but our old works are not. (12) ...Wherefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath day. Good, of course, is God's works. (Joh.5:16) And for this cause the Jews persecuted Jesus, because he did these things on the sabbath. (17) But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh even until now, and I work. Notice that Jesus worked His Father's works even on their shadow Sabbath. Then Jesus specified what works are legal on our Sabbath. (19) ...The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father doing: for what things soever he doeth, these the Son also doeth in like manner. We see here that works that come from self are illegal on our Sabbath, but works that our Father does through us are not. (30) I can of myself do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is righteous; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. As sons seeking the will of God, we also may work the works of God on our spiritual Sabbath but not the works of self. Even the Old Covenant gives us clues to this principle. (Isa.58:13) If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, [and] the holy of Jehovah honorable; and shalt honor it, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking [thine own] words: (14) then shalt thou delight thyself in Jehovah; and I will make thee to ride upon the high places of the earth; and I will feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken it. Jesus said that He always did the will of His Father. Therefore He always rested from His own works, and those who follow Him do also. God gives the same Spirit that Jesus had to those who wish to be empowered to follow Him and so keep the real Sabbath. (Isa.28:11) Nay, but by [men of] strange lips and with another tongue will he speak to this people; (12) to whom he said, This is the rest, give ye rest to him that is weary; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. Paul declared this verse to be a promise to those who are filled with the Holy Spirit and speak in tongues in the New Covenant (1 Cor.14:21). Jews and Christians who refuse this Spirit to rest from the works of the Law, including the old Sabbath, are said to be those who “would not hear”. If we receive and follow the Spirit, we are not under the Sabbath or any of the Law. (Gal.5:18) But if ye are led by the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Those who receive the Spirit are empowered to live in Christ, which is the rest from the works and curse of the old Law. (Rom.8:2) For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death. We are under the Law of the Spirit. Except for prophets and kings, Israel did not have this Spirit to guide and empower them, and therefore needed rules and regulations on their external conduct. Those who live by the Spirit of life in Christ naturally fulfill the Law, which has been written in their hearts. Those who live in Christ by the Spirit cease from their own works every day. (Gal.5:16) But I say, walk by the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Jesus said that those who received the Spirit would be witnesses of Him to the world (Acts 1:8). Jesus and His apostles never commanded to cease from work on a day. (Mat.11:28) Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden (with the Law [Mat.23:4]), and I will give you rest. The problem is that we are in and out of the rest like we are in and out of Christ. Abiding in Christ is resting in our promised benefits. Some say God gave us the gift of eternal life so he can't take it back. In Gal.3:16 we are told “to Abraham were the promises spoken, and to his seed. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many, but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ”. You see, the promises were given to Christ, not to you. The only way the promises are yours is if you abide in Christ. Abiding in Christ is: bearing His fruit (Joh.15:1-6), walking as he walked (1Jn.2:3-6), believing the same teachings given by Jesus and the apostles without adding or subtracting (1Jn.2:24 / Jude 3 / Mat.28:20 / Rev.22,18,19), not walking in willful sin (1Jn.3:5,6), keeping his commandments (1Jn.3:24). 1Jn.5:11 says that “God gave unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son” and that is the only place we can claim this gift. God doesn't have to take it back, his people walk out of it. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body (1Co.6:18). If we walk in willful sin, we are not abiding in his body, for there is “no sin in him” (1Jn.3:5,6). Sins of ignorance or failure are covered by the blood (Rom.7:15-8:2) but willful sin is always judged. (Heb.10:26) For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins, (27) but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries. The Spirit of life in Christ empowers us to walk in Him by faith in His promises. (Heb.4:9) There remaineth therefore a Sabbath rest (Greek: sabbatismos, “keeping of rest”) for the people of God. This constant “keeping of rest” is every day, not one day a week. Paul, comparing the weak in faith with those who are mature, said, (Rom.14:5) One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day [alike]. In our Covenant, every day is the Sabbath rest. As he said in Gal.4:9,10, “how turn ye back again to the weak and beggarly rudiments, whereunto ye desire to be in bondage over again? Ye observe days”. Our Sabbath is freedom from bondage to the works of the Law. Since Jesus took away our sins, it is freedom from fleshly works too. (Psa.118:24) This is the day which Jehovah hath made; We will rejoice and be glad in it. Old Jerusalem ruled over God's physical Old Testament people just as New Jerusalem rules over God's spiritual New Testament people. Paul declared that we have come to this spiritual city. He showed us that it is not a physical city that can be touched. (Heb.12:18) For ye are not come unto [a mount] that might be touched ... (22) but ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem ... (23) to the general assembly and church of the firstborn.... Jesus' called-out ones come to this mountain. This is the place of God's continual rest. (Psa.132:13) For Jehovah hath chosen Zion... (14) This is my resting-place for ever: Here will I dwell; for I have desired it. Unlike those under the Law, we are not to dwell outside the temple and go there occasionally, nor are we to dwell outside the rest six days and only dwell in it one. Those who dwell in this spiritual Jerusalem remain in God's resting place. There is only one day in the New Testament Jerusalem, the spiritual city of God. That day is the real Sabbath. (Rev.21:25) And the gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there). Notice that there is one day and no night in the city of God where the Lamb is the light (23). There is no darkness to break up the one day of God's work for those who abide in Christ. (1Jn.1:5) And this is the message which we have heard from him and announce unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. Those who abide in God continue in the light of day doing His works. (6) If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: (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. Those who walk in the light of our day are always in the presence of the sun (Son). Night is to have the earth between you and the sun (Son). Our flesh came from the earth (Gen.2:7) and symbolizes the earth. When the works of our flesh come between us and the Son, we are living in the darkness of night. If we are in this idolatry with the world, whether this means our flesh or the things of the world (1Jn.2:15,16), we live in the night. Walking in the light of our one Sabbath day, the works of man are destroyed. I want to remind you that the Law is a shadow, and if you are under a shadow you are not in the light. The saints live in the lighted day of ceasing from their own works, especially the works of the Law, while the wicked live in the dark night of their own works. (1Th.5:5) For ye are all sons of light, and sons of the day (the Sabbath): we are not of the night, nor of darkness; (6) so then let us not sleep (Having their eyes closed to the light of the Son), as do the rest, but let us watch and be sober. (7) For they that sleep sleep in the night: and they that are drunken are drunken in the night. (8) But let us, since we are of the day (the Sabbath), be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation. As long as Jesus has been in this world, either in His first body or His second corporate body, it has been day. (Joh.9:5) When I am in the world, I am the light of the world. (Mat.5:14) Ye are the light of the world. That only makes one day as long as the saints are here. (Joh.9:4) We must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day (When we are ceasing from our works to do His, it is the Sabbath day.): the night cometh, when no man can work. Our works in Christ for this world are over when the Lord comes for us and then night comes for the judgment of the world. (1Th.5:2) For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. (3) When they are saying, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them... After the tribulation, the light of the world will be gone! (Mat.24:29) But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven (This is the falling away and reprobation of 1/3 of the stars, representing the spiritual seed of Abraham [Rev.6:12-14; Gen.22:17]). The darkening of the light of this world here is physical as well as spiritual. Joseph shared a dream that clearly showed that the people of God spiritually are the sun, moon, and stars, “the light of this world”. (Gen.37:9) ...behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars made obeisance to me. (10) And he told it to his father, and to his brethren; and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? Starting as a star glory, Joseph went to his cross in Egypt and was promoted in glory above his brethren, the children of Israel. We grow from star glory to moon glory and then to sun glory as we continue to walk in the light that God gives us (2Co.3:18). Paul agreed that the saints manifest these three glories in 1Co.15:41,42. Now we can see that when the Lord comes and takes His sun, moon, and star glory saints, the world will be left in the darkness of night. (Mat.24:29) But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven. (30) ...and they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (31) And he shall send forth his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect...Glory to God! Jesus taught that the whole Christian New Covenant era on earth is only one day. (Joh.11:9) Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If a man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world. (10) But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because the light is not in him. Those who walk in this continual Sabbath day walk in the light. This spiritual day lasts until the judgment. (Mat.20:1) For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that was a householder, who went out early in the morning to hire laborers into his vineyard. Jesus started hiring laborers for His vineyard first thing in the morning, which was almost 2000 years ago. Then He gives examples of going out to hire all during the day, the third hour (verse 6), the sixth and ninth hour (verse 5), and the eleventh hour (verses 6-9). Of the eleventh hour people it was said, “These last have spent [but] one hour” (12). Then at the twelfth hour He called in all of His servants to give them their reward. (8) And when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the laborers, and pay them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. Jesus calls in all of His servants to face Him and receive their reward at His coming. (Rev.22:12) Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to render to each man according as his work is. Midnight is the twelfth hour when the Lord comes for the virgins (Mat.25:6) and also the time when the saints leave the Egypt of this world (Exo.29:12-31). At this time, even though it is midnight for the world, the saints are walking with lamps full of Holy Spirit light (Mat.25:4). From Jesus' first coming to His second coming is one day. This one day incorporates the whole Christian New Covenant era on earth. It should not surprise us that God could change something as important as the Sabbath from many carnal days to one spiritual day. He changed something much more important, our sacrifice, from many carnal sacrifices to one spiritual sacrifice, our Lord Jesus. The Lord again defines our rest as a corporate day that covers every day. (Heb.4:6) Seeing therefore it remaineth that some should enter thereinto, and they to whom the good tidings (the promises) were before preached failed to enter in (Even though they kept the Saturday Sabbath) because of disobedience (Greek: “apeitheia” also means unbelief), (7) he again defineth a certain day, To-day, saying in David so long a time afterward (even as hath been said before), To-day if ye shall hear his voice (the promises), Harden not your hearts. (Today is any day that you are presently in. Since this verse was written to all saints throughout the New Covenant, then “today” is every day that they live in. God was telling us that when you hear His promises, do not harden your heart as Israel did, but believe to enter the rest in the day that you live in.) (8) For if Joshua had given them rest, he would not have spoken afterward of another day. Today is that day saints, not Saturday or Sunday. Five times in this text, God uses the term “To-day” to define the rest. (3:13) but exhort one another day by day, so long as it is called To-day; lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. “Day by day” it has been “called To-day” for almost 2000 years. (4:9) There remaineth therefore a Sabbath rest (Greek: sabbatismos, “keeping of rest”) for the people of God. God has been merciful to our ignorance of this true Sabbath, but judgment will now be seen the world over because we have come to a second spiritual type of the Sabbath. (2Pe.3:8) But forget not this one thing, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. Having read the writings of the early church fathers, I can tell you that they commonly believed in the one thousand-year prophetic day and that after six of these days from the beginning, the end time judgment would come. The Hindus, Muslims, and the Jews also believed this. Gibbon in The Rise And Fall of The Roman Empire said that the early Christians believed this. The Bible is laid out in seven prophetic one-thousand-year days. These days are numbered from the creation of Adam. There were four thousand years or four days between Adam and Jesus. Since the days of Jesus, the calendar has been tampered with extensively, but most researchers believe we are close to traversing two more days and coming to the beginning of the seventh, thousand-year period from Adam. Besides the regular spiritual Sabbath that we have already spoken of, this seventh, thousand-year day is a second spiritual Sabbath. When the body of Christ was crucified, it was a high Sabbath (Joh.19:31). That means it was a regular Sabbath and a second Passover Sabbath. This second spiritual Sabbath will also be a Passover Sabbath for those who have eaten the Lamb and are about to leave the Egypt of this world. This will also be a crucifixion to the fleshly works of the body of Christ. According to the shadow, when this end-time second spiritual Sabbath begins, God will judge those who go on in their own works. (Exo.31:12) And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, 13 Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily ye shall keep my sabbaths: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am Jehovah who sanctifieth you. Christians who try to keep the Sabbath in the “letter” don't understand this because they don't see that this is a “sign”. (15) Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a sabbath of solemn rest, holy to Jehovah: whosoever doeth any work on the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. This is also the time when He finishes His creative work. (Gen.2:2) And on the seventh day God finished his work, which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work, which he had made. According to this type, God is about to finish His new creation work during this morning of the seventh day and rest. Every man's work will be proven by the fiery trial on the one day Sabbath. (1Co.3:12) But if any man buildeth on the foundation (of Christ) gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, stubble; (13) each man's work shall be made manifest: for the day (one Sabbath) shall declare it, because it is revealed in fire; and the fire itself shall prove each man's work of what sort it is. The wood, hay, and stubble of man's works will burn up on God's Sabbath day because, according to the shadow, there is judgment against man's work on the Sabbath. (Exo.31:14) Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that profaneth it shall surely be put to death; for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Since there is only one Sabbath day, we have to rest every day from our own works, as the rest of the New Testament also teaches. (Rev.2:23) ... I am he that searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto each one of you according to your works. (25) And he that overcometh, and he that keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give authority over the nations. (Exo.31:15) Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a sabbath of solemn rest, holy to Jehovah: whosoever doeth any work on the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. 16 Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. 17 It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days Jehovah made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed. Let's look again at this verse about the refreshing in Isa 28:11 Nay, but by men of strange lips and with another tongue will he speak to this people; 12 to whom he said, This is the rest, give ye rest to him that is weary; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. This refreshing is coming again on the morning of the 3rd day (which is the Sabbath). There's going to be a change in the way God will deal with man when this millennium begins. There must be a ceasing from a Christian's own works and enter into the rest. Man's works have been going on in the church for six days (six thousand years). The church has been falling away from keeping the true Sabbath and we're coming to a time where if you don't cease from your own works, you will be cut off from the Body of Christ. There are many Sabbaths. There's the 7th day Sabbath, the 49th year Sabbath, there's the 50th year Sabbath, and there's the 7th millennium Sabbath. There's a Sabbath called the Jubilee. A Jubilee is a year. There are 120 Jubilees every 50 years. 120 Jubilees till Noah and another 120 till the next Noah. Noah means rest. So, 120 Jubilee years until the beginning of the Sabbath. 120 Jubilee Sabbaths bring us to the actual year 6000. We are entering into the prophetic Sabbath or the millennial Sabbath.   Reconciled to God Php 4:19  And my God shall supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.  (“Every need”, not greed. “Every” would include Spiritual, physical, emotional needs.)   What is faith? Heb 11:1  Now faith is assurance [substance?] of things hoped for, a conviction of things not seen. When you believe for something that is not yet seen, that is faith. How do we have God's faith to receive every need? Mar 11:22  And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have God's faith. (This is according to the numeric pattern proof.)  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. 24  Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye received (Numeric) them, and ye shall have them. (This is exactly what Quantum Physics, or Quantum Mechanics has proven, Jesus said it first. And here is an important condition to receiving. 25  And whensoever ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against any one; that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.  Col 1:19  For it was the good pleasure of the Father that in him should all the fulness dwell; 20  and through him to reconcile (The Greek: kattallasso means “exchange” of Jesus' life for ours) all things(not Numeric) unto himself, having made peace through the blood of his cross; through him, I say, whether things upon the earth, or things those (Numeric) in the heavens. (Notice: He is not speaking of things but His people) 21  And you, being in time past alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil works, 22  yet now hath he reconciled (exchanged) in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and unreproveable before him: 23  if so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister.  First the sons and daughters of God are exchanged and then Christ in them can deliver the creation. Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creation waiteth for the revealing of the sons of God. 20  For the creation was subjected to vanity, not of its own will, but by reason of him who subjected it, in hope 21  that the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God. 22  For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. The Lord told me that he bore the symbol of the cursed creation upon the cross. It was the crown of thorns. As we manifest our sonship we have authority over the cursed creation. We can pray for our grass, dogs, cows, bugs, trees, neighbors, etc.  Gal 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:.. 2Co 5:14  For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that one died for all, therefore all died; 15  and he died for all, that they that live should no longer live unto themselves, but unto him who for their sakes died and rose again. 16  Wherefore we henceforth know no man after the flesh: even though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now we know him so no more. 17  Wherefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature: the old things (not Numeric) are passed away; behold, they are become new. 18  But all things (not Numeric) are of God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and gave unto us the ministry of reconciliation; 19  to wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not reckoning unto them their trespasses, and having committed unto us the word of reconciliation. (We reconcile others by showing them the exchange.) 20  We are ambassadors therefore on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating by us: we beseech you on behalf of Christ, be ye reconciled to God. 21  Him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; that we might become the righteousness of God in him.    Believe You Received and Rest Suani Guzman - 01/09/2010 I want to share a quick dream that helped me a lot. We all know that we must abide in the Sabbath Rest and boldly speak the good confession, but we don't always do it. So the Lord has to remind us sometimes. I have been going through some hard trials with caring for my elderly parents. I don't want to impose my faith on them but at the same time I'm trying to stand for their spiritual and physical salvation. The Lord impressed upon me that I must abide in the rest or the enormity of the problem will overwhelm me. In the dream, my husband and I had a truck in which we went sightseeing. We parked it and left for a walk. When we came back, the truck was a wreck -- another car had hit it really badly, and it was ruined. My husband, Raul, and another man tried to fix it. I went to help. I stood there and said something like, “Jesus had fixed it”. When those words left my mouth, the truck was immediately transformed into being whole again. I was so on fire and praised God and started to witness boldly to everyone about what Jesus had just done. We then left and, as we went, the truck started to stall and I said, “Oh no, it's healed”, and immediately it got power again. That happened twice. Then we got on a freeway full of cars. We were on the outer lane and struggling up a very, very steep hill. We were driving with two tires on the road and two in a ditch. The car couldn't go up like that, so it flipped over about two times and landed away from the road. So we stopped to consider the hill. By sight, it looked almost impossible to climb. We tried to figure out another way, but could see no other way. I thought that it was going to take all my strength to do it, and still it would not be enough. End of dream. (What is impossible with men is possible with God. We must trust His promises not our works.) Mar.11:24 Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye received (Greek) them, and ye shall have them. Heb.4:2 For indeed we have had good tidings preached unto us, even as also they: but the word of hearing did not profit them, because it was not united by faith with them that heard. (3) For we who have believed do enter into that rest; even as he hath said, As I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. (9) There remaineth therefore a sabbath (Greek: Sabatismos -- a continual rest) rest for the people of God. (10) For he that is entered into his rest hath himself also rested from his works, as God did from his. (11) Let us therefore give diligence to enter into that rest, that no man fall after the same example of disobedience. Building the “Resting” Church  Eve Brast - 08/11/2012 (David's notes in red) | (Deb Horton's notes in green)  I dreamed I was driving east (faceing toward the coming of the Son) toward Dallas on a large highway with very sparse traffic on it. (The highway of holiness going to Dallas, which means “meadow dwelling”.) (A place of feeding with the flock.) It was dark but I could see a little light on the horizon in the east. (Near to the coming of the Lord in the Man-child on the morning of the seventh thousand year-day.) I was going to an eight-story hospital building that was under construction (the true Church of the called-out ones is being built), where my husband (representing Jesus) had instructed me to meet him. The building was oval-shaped and not square. (The building was eternal without beginning or end because of its shape and eight floors. (An “8” lying down is the sign for infinity or eternity and “8” is the number of Jesus. Since it's lying down, it could mean resting in Jesus. A hospital is a place for healing the sick, spiritually and physically, which the Church is supposed to be.)  I pulled into the parking garage and parked my old, gray (indicating mixture of good and evil, white and black), five-speed (grace received to get to this point) manual (not automatic, works by self), 1980 Toyota Corolla that had been my first car when I learned to drive. (Our first car represents our first ways of rest in the Lord. To park is a sign of coming into maturity through rest.) I went inside the building with my son's blue backpack containing surgical instruments and food my husband had asked me to bring to him. (Man's burdens and works we bear until we reach the seventh floor of rest and give them over to Jesus. Mat.11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.) I went into the ground floor lobby with a recently laid, highly polished wood floor (the human nature is under our feet to serve the spiritual man).   I waited at the only elevator (there's only one Way to God) to go up to the seventh floor (entering into the rest) (The first six floors represent the first six days of the different levels of man's works we do until we rest on the seventh spiritual day). I had to wait a bit because it was the only elevator. I was the only one waiting to go up. (The Bride will be the first to fully enter into the seventh-day rest.)  When the door opened, A black sister from UBM was the elevator attendant, but she was white and looked like me. (The white represents holiness.) She greeted me and began telling me how old the elevator was. (2000 years) She was an expert on this elevator. It was her assigned job in the building, and she knew everything about it. She told me that currently, the elevator only reaches the seventh floor, but when the construction is complete, it will go all the way up to the top, which is the eighth floor. (The eighth floor is Jesus and Heaven and new beginnings. When the building representing the Church is finished, we will go to the top, the eighth, heavenly floor.)  When I got off the elevator on the seventh floor, my husband passed by me wearing metal leg braces supported by a blue, padded waistband that girded his waist and metal crutches that braced around his forearms. (Our husband Jesus was strengthened by the Father to finish His pilgrimage as a type of the body.) (This reminds me of the command in Deuteronomy to bind the phylacteries, which are Scripture verses, on the forehead and hand, because the phylacteries are bound on the hand and are laced on from the forearm.) (David had a similar revelation where he was wearing leg braces. They strengthened his walk and helped him to stand.) (God's power is made perfect in our weakness.) He looked at me as he passed by with a knowing look (seeing eye to eye) and a smile, as if we shared a common understanding of something. (A common understanding of faith in the same promises brings people to the seventh floor of rest.) (Amo.3:3) Shall two walk together, except they have agreed?  Suddenly, I realized that I left my backpack on the elevator, or I thought I had, but it wasn't over my shoulder anymore. (We can't take our own provision or burdens to the seventh floor of the rest but we can give it all to Jesus there.) I became concerned (we will lose the rest if we think on our burdens) and turned around to push the button to go back down (A warning not to fall away from the rest).   While waiting for the elevator doors to open, I overheard an accountant from the hospital discussing a debt of $20 that they said I owed with another employee. (A warning that If we leave the rest of faith, we begin to bear the debt of sin again. The first mention of 20 in the Bible is Gen.6:3 And Jehovah said, My spirit shall not strive with man for ever, for that he also is flesh: yet shall his days be a hundred and twenty years.) They said they had tried to call my cell phone to give me this report, but I wouldn't answer because I knew it was not really my debt and that I wasn't required to pay it. (The accuser will always try to convince you that you still owe the debt that Christ already paid for you.) (If one leaves the rest, they will be tempted even more so.)  When the elevator doors finally opened, a horde of people out of nowhere rushed into the elevator, as if desperate to get out of the building. (They were in their flesh and leaving the rest.) I calmly walked in but there was barely enough room. When the doors shut, we were warned that the ride down was much scarier than the ride up because the elevator went down really fast, and it did (Because this represents the falling away. We have seen people lose all the gain of years in moments.). But it slowed down midway for safety precautions (this could represent those who are neither hot nor cold -- the fence-sitters in the middle) (also, God makes a way for His people to change their mind and Return unto thy rest, O my soul Psa.116:7) and then it sped back up until it reached the ground floor.  As I got off the elevator, the morning sunshine streamed through the lobby windows (Jesus in the Man-child is manifesting). A surgeon from the hospital who was going up said, “Isn't it exciting that the building construction will be completed in a week?!” (After the seven years of the 70th week of the tribulation, the Church will be complete, and I believe this week will start very soon.) I turned around and said, “Yeah”. But the importance of what he had just announced didn't register with me. I was concerned about finding the backpack because my husband needed me to bring it to the hospital (to give that burden to him).  I hoped I would find the backpack in my car in the parking garage, since it had not been left in the elevator. I ran out to the car and found it (the burden was in the car, representing immaturity) and brought it back into the lobby and pushed the elevator button again.   When the doors opened, my sons Noah and Elijah came out of the elevator and passed me as I went in. They were eight-foot-tall, grown men! (Their “8” size indicates they have grown up in Jesus.) They gave me the same knowing look of common understanding and smile that my husband had given me. (The faith that brings relief from our burdens and works.) They said, “Don't worry, Mom. We have everything under control”. (Jesus in the Man-child ministry beginning to reign [having given their burdens to God].) Then I woke up.  Why would we bear the burdens of the curse if we believe what Jesus said? 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. 24 Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Mat.18:18 Verily I say unto 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. 19 Again I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father who is in heaven.  When we pray and believe, we rest from all the curse. Gal.3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 14 that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Abraham was blessed in all things. Not entering the rest or keeping the spiritual Sabbath is because of unbelief. Heb.3:11 As I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest. 12 Take heed, brethren, lest haply there shall be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief, in falling away from the living God: 13 but exhort one another day by day, so long as it is called To-day; lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin: 14 for we are become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our confidence firm unto the end:...  18 And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that were disobedient? 19 And we see that they were not able to enter in because of unbelief.

CD 1710 Finding Freedom Series Week 1Are you: "Born-Again but Bound"? "Saved but stuck"?And this year of 2025 the Lord has promised to reveal to those who are hungry His secrets. This morning we're going to start a series on the secret success in finding freedom.There are many steps from the reality of the freedom God has spoken in our lives to learning how to walk it out. Moses told the children of Israel that the Lord was going to set them free from the bondage in Egypt. It was easier for the Lord to deliver them from Pharaoh than to deliver them from their old lifestyles and mindsets.Jesus sets us free from our self-centeredness. He frees us from the power of sin in our lives. He frees us from the captivity that Satan has upon us, and he frees us from cultural or  society captivity. Ultimately setting us free to be in union with Him.*Series Text Galatians 5:1-9 (KJV) Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. 2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. 3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. 4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. 6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.7 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? 8 This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you. 9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.Many people think that being born again is all there is to living God's abundant life. But being made spiritually alive is just the beginning.Do you know someone who is spiritually alive in Christ but still bound in their daily life?After Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, the Bible says that Lazarus was still bound hand and foot by graveclothes. Many Christians who have been raised from the dead spiritually still live in bondage and need the help of others to be loosed and let go.“Loose him and let him go,” were the words spoken by the Lord Jesus Christ at the tomb of Lazarus, a friend who had been dead for four days. John 11:43-44, “And when he had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes; and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus said unto His disciples, Loose him and let him go.”Many people are familiar with the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. I believe this story is a type, or picture, of a person being raised from spiritual death. Ephesians 2:1 says, “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” The word “quickened” means “made alive.” Only God can give life to the dead. I cannot quicken a man's spirit. I can give him the life-quickening Word of God, but I cannot save a man. Jesus is the Savior. I can preach the saving message, but Jesus is the only one who can spiritually raise people from the dead.Notice that even though Lazarus was alive, because he was raised from the dead, he was still bound. There are a lot of people who have been raised from the dead, spiritually speaking, who are still bound in some areas. Lazarus was still bound by graveclothes and even had a napkin covering his face. Jesus said to His disciples, “Loose him and let him go.” Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, and His disciples loosed him from the graveclothes that still had him bound.You see, Jesus raised people from thSupport the show

"And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister" Colossians 1:21-23

Be an Image of Jesus (audio) David Eells 2/19/25 (Note: I have been concentrating my teachings for months in the area of sanctification, or Christ in you, to prepare you for your high calling of God. As the Lord has led, some are being prepared to be in the Man-child body, some in the Bride body, some in the virgin body, and some will just get their toe in the door. I want the best for you. Concentrate on your holiness and be ready to meet and recognize the Lord in the anointed Man-child as we head towards the wilderness.) Let's start with Paul's exhortation to the Corinthians in (1Co.15:1) Now I make known unto you brethren, the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye received (So he's definitely talking to Christians here.), wherein also ye stand, (2) by which also ye are saved (The Greek word there is sózó and it is grammatically in the active voice; this should correctly read “being saved.”), if ye hold fast… Well, that's a condition: “ye are being saved, if.” You are being saved if, and only if, you hold fast the Word. That means all those churches out there preaching unconditional eternal security, or ultimate reconciliation, or any other such doctrine, have cut all the “ifs” out of their Bibles. That also means they've been lying to you. (1Co.15:1) Now I make known unto you brethren, the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye received, wherein also ye stand, (2) by which also ye are being saved, if ye hold fast the word which I preached unto you, except ye believed in vain. Sadly, there are people who believe, and are Christians, but they don't “hold fast” to the Word and so they end up believing in vain. It's important what you believe about the Word. It's important that you believe only what “thus saith the Lord,” because these are the Words of eternal life (John 6:68). And there's only one “Seed” according to Galatians 3:16, which is Christ, the Word, the Seed of the Scriptures that can recreate in you the living, true Christ, which God considers to be your “fruit.” The Parable of the Sower explains how very important it is that we “hold fast” the original Word which the first disciples preached (1John 2:7,24,3:11; 2 John 1:6), otherwise, you're just wasting your time. Many people have “another Jesus” (2 Corinthians 11:4) because the men that are leading them don't hold fast to the Word. There's only one Word that will bring forth the fruit of Christ, and that is the Seed, which is Jesus Christ, the Sower. That's the Seed which brought forth, in one out of the four types of people, thirty-, sixty-, and a hundred-fold fruit of Jesus Christ. Now if we want to know what the “fruit” looks like, we look at Jesus. If we say that we abide in Him, we must walk as He walked (1 John 2:6) because He is our demonstration of what our Father wants. We can't look to our modern-day preachers; many of whom are all fallen-away from the Truth. So we are told in (Heb.10:23) let us hold fast the confession of our hope that it waver not; for he is faithful that promised. We have to be those “that endureth to the end” to be saved according to Jesus in Matthew 10:22. Colossians somewhat repeats this in (Col.1:21) And you, being in time past alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil works (Obviously, again he's speaking to Christians.), (22) yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death… “Reconciled” is the word apokatallasso and it means “to exchange completely.” This exchange includes Jesus' righteousness for our sins, His blessing for our curse, His health for our sickness, His provision for our lack, etc., etc. Gal.3:13-14 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 14 that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. And Abraham was said to be blessed in all things. And we are responsible for making this exchange by our positive confessions of these blessings. We are also the ministers of this reconciliation to ourselves and others. For instance, our confession in (Gal.2:20) … it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me… brings this truth into the physical realm. We cause the reconciliation, the exchange, to come to pass and we do that by our faith and our confession, since we see in (Jas.2:17) … faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself. When we have faith, we walk it and talk it out; in other words, our actions agree with our faith. That's what causes the reconciliation to continue. We understand that the exchange, of course, is the life of Christ for our life, because “fruit” is according to (Col.1:27) … Christ in you, the hope of glory. Fruit is the 30-, 60-, and 100-fold fruit of the Word sown in the heart, as the Parable of the Sower shows us, and by our faith we consider it done. Jesus said in (Mar.11:24) … All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye received them, and ye shall have them. Believing here is manifested in our words and feet. When we believe we have received something, we can confess it with confidence, and that agrees with (Col.1:22) yet now (That is the Greek word nuni and it means “at this instant; immediately.”) hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and unreproveable before him: (23) if so be that ye continue in the faith… Not just any faith will bring the reconciliation to pass, only lasting faith in the Gospel, faith in the true Word and the true Promises will cause us to bring forth fruit. Religions have fallen far short of this and that's the reason they're not producing people who walk in the steps of Jesus. They only produce people who are (2Ti.3:5) holding a form of godliness, but having denied the power thereof. From these also turn away. The apostle certainly knew what was going to happen, and so he said to turn away from them and hold fast to the Word. (Col.1:23) If so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel (“Hope” is the Greek word elpis meaning a “firm expectation or confidence in what is sure.”) which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister. We are not to be “moved away” from the original Good News because the salvation of our soul, the reconciliation, is not the beginning of our faith, it's a product of the end of our faith according to 1 Peter 1:9. (Gal.3:16) Now (This word “now” is not in the original text. It was added by the translators.) to Abraham were the promises spoken, and to his seed. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. So the promises were spoken to Abraham and his One Seed. The promises were not spoken to us outside of Christ; they were spoken to us as we abide in the One seed of Christ. (17) Now this I say: A covenant confirmed beforehand by God, the law, which came four hundred and thirty years after, doth not disannul (“Disannul” is how the KJV and the ASV translated the Greek word akuroó that actually means “I annul, make of no effect, cancel, invalidate.”), so as to make the promise of no effect. So, the promise to Abraham and to Jesus are still in effect. It's the Law that's not still in effect. (18) For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no more of promise: but God hath granted it to Abraham by promise. (19) What then is the law? It was added because of transgressions (You see, the main Covenant was the promise to Abraham. Then the Law was added afterward “because of transgressions.”), till the seed (Jesus) should come to whom the promise hath been made; [and it was] ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator. According to this the Old Testament Law is over; it has vanished. It was meant as a temporary measure to help keep people from parábasis, from “transgressing, overstepping, deviating” beyond the boundaries set by God. The Law was in effect only until “the seed,” Who is Christ, “should come to whom the promise hath been made.” It's simply a type and a shadow, as the Bible clearly says, of the greater things which are to come and the greater Covenant, which took its place. (Heb.8:13) In that he saith, A new covenant he hath made the first old. But that which is becoming old and waxeth aged is nigh unto vanishing away. 2Co 3:14 but their minds were hardened: for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remaineth, it not being revealed to them that it is done away in Christ.  Well, if the promise was to Abraham and to Christ His Seed, how do we appropriate this blessing? We have to be “in Christ”. If you're not in Christ, you don't have the covenant blessing. Let's look some more at what it means to be “in Christ” so the promises can be ours. (1Jn.5:10) He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in him… The word “witness” here is the same word as “testimony” in both the Hebrew and the Greek. In the Greek New Testament, “witness” is from the word marturia, meaning “witness, evidence, testimony, reputation.” In the Old Testament, the two tables of “testimony” is the same word as “witness” (Exo 31:18). Moses the man-child brought the two witnesses to the people of God in (Deu 9:11) and they broke them in (Exodus 32:19). Those tables of testimony were the written Word of God; His testimony. Jesus also brought us the two witnesses; His disciples who went out two by two. The Bible says in (Joh.7:38) He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, from within him shall flow rivers of living water. (39) But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believed on him were to receive: for the Spirit was not yet [given]; because Jesus was not yet glorified. There's the “witness” or “testimony”: It's the Spirit of the Word that all believers should receive in (Rom.8:9 But ye are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you. But if any man hath not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.) Meaning, if you do not have the born again Spirit of Christ you are not saved. But the Holy Spirit empowers you to walk in the Spirit. And notice, we must believe on Him “as the Scripture hath said,” not adding to, or taking away, from it. (1Jn.5:10) He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in him: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he hath not believed in the witness that God hath borne concerning his Son. Notice that if the preachers are changing any part of the witness, the testimony, concerning the Son, concerning the Word of what He came to do, concerning His sacrifice, concerning the provision that He left us as heirs, if they're changing any of this, then they're making God a liar. And you can tell they're making God a liar because they're not turning-out people that look like Jesus Christ. And since they're not turning out people that look like Jesus Christ, they're not sowing the right seed. It's their seed, not God's Seed. God's Seed is His Witness, His Testimony that He bore concerning His Son (1 John 5:9). (1Jn.5:11) And the witness is this, that God gave unto us eternal life (Yes, He did, but He adds a condition to that gift.), and this life is in his Son. He didn't put the gift of eternal life in your hand. Eternal life is in Christ; that's where He put the gift. (Gal.3:16) … To Abraham were the promises spoken, and to his seed … which is Christ. The promise was made to Christ, not to us. It is only to us if we abide in His Son. The Bible says, (1Co.15:22) For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. Life comes from abiding in Jesus Christ. I've had people say to me, “God's given me eternal life, David, and He can't take it back. I have unconditional eternal security.” No, people who say that are deceived because God did not do that. He gave eternal life to Christ, so if you don't abide in Christ through repentance and faith, you don't have it. That's one reason why people fall away; they think all they need to do is shake a preacher's hand and “accept” Jesus, and they've received everything. No, you have to continue to abide in Christ. If you're in Christ, you will be doing what Christ does. We are called the “Body of Christ.” Who lives in the Body of Christ? He does! Now, it's a word of faith, I understand, but so many people who call themselves “Christian” don't abide in Christ. They don't abide in His Body, respecting His Word, doing His works, thinking His thoughts, doing His deeds, appropriating His blessings, and so on. “God gave unto us eternal life, and this life is in His Son,” therefore, we have to abide in His Son to have it. (1Jn.5:12) He that hath the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life. And in (2Jn.1:9) Whosoever goeth onward and abideth not (“Abide” is the Greek word menó and it's also translated “remain, stay, wait, endure, continue, live.”) (2Jn.1:9) Whosoever goeth onward (I.e., continues to walk with the Lord) and abideth not in the teaching of Christ, hath not God… You can get saved and you can have a born-again spirit, but then you can walk on believing some other word than the teaching of Christ or His apostles, and then you don't have God. You've lost Him. Go back, get into the Word of God for yourself, and once again confirm what He says so you know what to believe. There are over 40,000 denominations today and they can't all be right. Only the Word of God is God. (Jn 1:1) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Again in (2Jn.1:9) Whosoever goeth onward and abideth not in the teaching of Christ, hath not God: he that abideth in the teaching (We abide in the teaching so we can have God in us.), the same hath both the Father and the Son. (10) If any one cometh unto you, and bringeth not this teaching, receive him not into [your] house, and give him no greeting: (11) for he that giveth him greeting partaketh in his evil works. You better pay attention to this if you don't want to put yourself under the same curse that those “evil works” have brought on them. So in Christ is the only place you can claim the gift of eternal life, because your eternal life IS Jesus Christ. It's His nature in you: That is eternal life. (1Jn.2:4) He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar… Only those who keep His Word know Him. Obviously this is a progression of receiving His life as we learn His Word but we must stay on the road. It's true that people make all kinds of excuses for not keeping His commandments, and the doctrine of “unconditional eternal security” is one of the main excuses. It teaches that you can't be lost, even though you don't keep His commandments, but if you were keeping His commandments, you would not be in a dead church that teaches lies in the first place. You wouldn't be in a dead church that doesn't have the power of God and isn't filled with the Holy Spirit and His gifts. (1Jn.2:4) He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; (5) but whoso keepeth his word, in him verily hath the love of God been perfected. Hereby we know that we are in him (Listen carefully.): (6) he that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked. We have to believe exactly what God said, the Witness that God gave, concerning His Son. We don't have to believe anything else. Anybody who teaches anything else, we're not to receive from them. Now, didn't Jesus say the exact same thing here? (Joh.15:1) I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. (2) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit (Notice that you can get in Him to begin with, but what He's watching for is to see if you're going to bear His fruit.) (2) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh it away… We're watching this happen even now with the faction movement that's going on around the world. He is snatching rebellious people out of the body. It says in (Mat.13:41) The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things (Not in the Greek) that cause stumbling, and them that do iniquity. God turns them over to faction, they become offended over nothing and then, suddenly, they're gone. Then they are gathered “in bundles to burn them,” just like He said He'd do with the tares at the end of time in (Matthew 13:30). Then (Mat.13:43) … shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father… (Joh.15:2) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh it away… And this is a “falling-away”. If you were in Him and then you're out of Him, that's a falling-away. The “fruit” that is ultimately left is the fruit of Christ. Remember, the fruit was the fruit of the Seed that Jesus, the Sower, sowed into hearts in Mathew 13, while the other three out of four fell away. The fruit is not you going out and saving another 30, 60, or 100 souls, as some teach. That's ridiculous, it's plain that the “fruit” is the fruit of the Seed that Jesus sowed, which is the Word of God in us. The most important thing you can do is put the Word of God in your heart. If you don't do that, you're going to fall away. You have to feed the spiritual man, Who is Jesus Christ in you. You have to feed Him, and He only lives and grows on the Word of God and the breath of the Holy Spirit. Again, (Joh.15:2) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh it away… The Greek word kathairó translated there as “taketh it away” means “pruned (purged); eliminating what is fruitless by purifying.” Of course, pruning can be painful, but if you're sapping the strength that comes through the vine of Jesus Christ by getting into too many other things, it's like burying your talent in the earth (Matthew 25:25). If you're doing that, He's going to cut some things off from you. Some people have idols and those idols are sapping their strength. Notice that all through the Bible, God judged people's idols (Deu 31:16-17; Judges 10:6-7; 1 Kings 11:9-11; etc.) Be careful not to make an idol of your wife, your husband, your mom, your dad, any of your family, or your church, or your preacher, or your job, or even some hobby. Whatever it may be, don't put them before God and His Word. Anything that you make an idol can be cut off because it is sapping your strength that belongs only to the Son. (Joh.15:2) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he pruneth it (Some versions say “taketh it away.”): and every branch that beareth fruit, he pruneth (This is also translated “cleanseth.”) it that it may bear more fruit. You don't want to lose a husband or wife because you've made a god out of them and they're ruling your life and your time. Of course, we have rules in the Scriptures. The head of the woman is the man and the head of the man is Christ (1 Corinthians 11:2-16). That's obeying Christ. That's abiding in Christ. But you don't want to make a god out of your spouse to the point where everything revolves around them. You have a relationship with the Lord, and the most important thing for you to do is to obey His Word or else you don't abide in Him, just as we saw. And you can obey His Word when you walk by faith and you have the good confession, which brings reconciliation. We are ministers of this reconciliation. (2Co.5:17) Wherefore if any man is in Christ, [he is] a new creature: the old things are passed away; behold, they are become new. (18) But all things are of God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and gave unto us the ministry of reconciliation; (19) to wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not reckoning unto them their trespasses, and having committed unto us the word of reconciliation. (20) We are ambassadors therefore on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating by us: we beseech [you] on behalf of Christ, be ye reconciled to God. We make this exchange happen in ourselves as we “trust and obey for there is no other way”. First comes the born-again Spirit of Jesus Christ and then, as you obey that Spirit, the born again Soul (i.e., mind, will, emotions) of Jesus Christ, and if you've obeyed in your soul, you will have a new body. And when we preach the Gospel to other people, we make this exchange of our life for His, happen in them. They repent of the old man and the new man begins to come forth. So He prunes His people to help them bear more fruit. If you waste your time by not bearing fruit, you are thrown out, “spewed” out, rejected from the body of Christ (Revelation 3:16). You have fallen away. (Joh.15:3) Already ye are clean because of the word which I have spoken unto you. The Word cleans you up. The Word transforms you by the “renewing of your mind.” (Rom.12:2) And be not fashioned according to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. What are you transformed into? Christ. The Word creates (Col.1:27) … Christ in you, the hope of glory. You're coming into His Image. He's recreating the body of Christ in the earth, and the true body of Christ does not look like many modern Christians today so that's not yet the body of Christ. In Hosea 5:7 they are called “strange children” because they do not look like the Father. (2Co.6:17) Wherefore Come ye out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, And touch no unclean thing; And I will receive you. Back to (Joh.15:4) Abide in me (If you don't abide in Christ through faith in the promises, you're cast forth as a branch.), and I in you… How do you put Jesus in you? First, you accept that He took away your sins and nailed them to the cross. Then you accept by faith that Christ lives in you. 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, even as from the Lord the Spirit. Then you begin to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind with the Word.” You put Jesus in you through the Word because He is the Word made flesh (John 1:14). He is the manna that came down out of heaven that gives life to the world (John 6:51). This Word is the Manna. Eat the Word. If you want to bear fruit quickly, eat more of the Word as you repent of your old life. There has to be a reconciliation, an exchange. You have to lose your life to gain your life, as Jesus said (Matthew 16:25). That's a most ignored condition. If you want more of Jesus' life, then there has to be less of your life because they occupy the same territory. (2Co.4:16) Wherefore we faint not; but though our outward man is decaying, yet our inward man is renewed day by day. (Joh.15:4) Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself… That just makes good sense. If it's not connected to the trunk or the vine, a branch is not going to receive the life-giving sap of Jesus to bear fruit; it's going to die. If you don't stay connected to the Lord because you're refusing to bear the fruit and act on the Word, well, you're broken off. You might be sitting on a pew, but it won't make any difference; you're still broken off. (Joh.15:4) Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. (5) I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing. Do you want to bear even more fruit? Then put the Word of God in your heart and abide in Him by keeping His commandments. You can keep His commandments because God will give you grace for faith. Do you believe the reconciliation? It happened at the Cross. He gave all of His Son for all of our old life. (Rom.6:11) Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. This will empower you to forsake sin. (12) Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey the lusts thereof. If you believe it's done, God will empower you to bear fruit, “for apart from me ye can do nothing.” If we don't abide in Him, we can do nothing. (Joh.15:6) If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch… So, even though he was in you to begin with, you may not have abided in Him and here you are cast forth as a branch. Some people say that if a person falls away, then he never was saved in the first place. We're seeing that's not true because this whole text is saying that's a lie. (Joh.15:6) If a man abide not (meaning does not continue to stay) in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. (7) If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you (There it is two more times again.), ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Do you know a lot of people who don't get any of their prayers answered? What's the problem? They are not abiding and eating the Word. In other words, if this happens, your will is changed to His will. Your will is in agreement with God and His Word. (Amo.3:3) Shall two walk together, except they have agreed? We read the Scriptures in order to come into agreement with Him, so that everything we ask is according to His Will and, therefore, we receive it. He wants us to bear fruit like this. “Ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” People who come into agreement with God are people with power! These are people whose prayer has power to deliver, to save, to provide. If you don't have enough power, maybe you should spend more time putting His Word in you, because faith comes through hearing and hearing by the Word (Rom.10:17). Spend more time putting the Word in you. There's an uncertainty when you don't know God's Will. It's hard to have faith if you don't know something is God's Will, but you'll become convinced what God's Will is by reading about Jesus and His disciples. You'll see it's obvious that God's Will is to save, to heal, to deliver, and to provide for His people. When you put the Word in you, according to the Parable of the Sower, you can bear the fruit of Jesus Christ, 30-, 60-, and 100-fold. He said, “Ask whatsoever you will” and “believe you have received” (Mark 11:24). What happens when you put the Word in your mind is that it changes your will. (Php.2:13) … it is God who worketh in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure. The Contemporary English Version says, “God is working in you to make you willing and able to obey him.” That's how you get set free. (Joh.8:36) If therefore the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. He gives you His Will, and when you have His Will, you're free, because everything you want to do is what He wants to do, and He gets what He wants. So freedom comes from putting the Word in you, abiding in Him, and Him abiding in you. This really is Good News! (Joh.15:8) Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and so shall ye be my disciples… Notice that a “disciple,” a mathétés, is “a learner and a follower.” If you can't learn from Jesus and you can't follow Him and you're all caught-up in an idolatrous institution, with an idolatrous leader in the Nicolaitan error, who thinks he's the head of the church, then you're not going to bear fruit and you're not going to be a disciple. Preachers are not to make disciples of themselves; they're to make disciples of Jesus. They're to point you to the Word, to show you how you should be a disciple, a learner and a follower, of Jesus. Praise the Lord! Everything we need is in Christ. (Eph.1:3) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places] in Christ… Notice! Every spiritual blessing has already been given to us in Christ. A spiritual blessing can also be a physical blessing. It's a spiritual blessing: a blessing from the Spirit and in the Spirit. God wants you to have all of your needs met. (Php.4:19) And my God shall supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. He wants your needs met: spiritual, physical, and emotional. And as you see, if you abide in Him and put the Word in your heart, you can ask whatever you want and it will be done because what you want is what He wants. Well, since every spiritual blessing is in the “heavenly [places],” where are the “heavenly [places]”? They are “in Christ.” Note again it says, “He hath (That's past tense.) blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places],” which is in Christ. When you abide in Christ, you have every spiritual blessing and you have your needs met. God has put all of your provision there. You must go there to get it, and ask in faith. The flesh wants to live and walk outside of Christ and think outside of Christ, and then men wonder why in the world God does not do for them these things that He says in His Word He will do. It's because these things are in the heavenly places. You can't “walk on the earth,” spiritually speaking, and “walk in heavenly places” at the same time. Either you're walking worldly and earthly, or you're walking heavenly. If you're in Christ, you're walking in heavenly places because He is the heavenly place. And when you abide in Him, you can have what you need, because that's where it's provided. It's not provided outside of Him. He hasn't given it to you. Remember, (Gal.3:16) Now to Abraham were the promises spoken, and to his seed. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. So those people who say that if God gives you a gift, He can't take it back, they don't understand that He doesn't have to take it back, because when you step out of Him, you lose it. Who moved? You're abiding in Him, first of all, through your faith in the reconciliation, and second of all, through your actions since faith without works is dead (James 2:17,20,26). If you walk by faith in Him, you have all these promises, because that's abiding in Him, too. Then you have all of these promises; they're yours. However, if you're in willful rebellion, know that the only promise you have is this: (Heb.10:26) For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins, (27) but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries. There's your promise. If you're walking outside of Him, the promise you have is that God's going to whip you. That's His promise. Again, in (Eph.1:3) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places] in Christ: (4) even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blemish before him in love. You see, you weren't an after-thought at all. He had you in Mind before Adam ever fell. Did He know Adam was going to fall? Yes, but He chose you in Him, meaning that He knew you needed a Savior, and He provided that Savior before Adam ever fell. Why did God go on with the process? He did that because fallen people who are saved have a great appreciation for God and they know what's wrong with walking according to the world. They've tried it, they failed, and they understand that God has provided better. God doesn't want ignorant people; He wants people who are trying, and let me tell you, the “fall” is a training (Genesis Chapter 3). Yes, He knew about the “fall.” We're not in plan B, we're still in plan A. God doesn't make plan B's. (Eph.1:4) Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be (He wants us to be something.) holy and without blemish before him in love. The reason we abide in Him is to have His holiness and to be without blemish, and if you put the Word in you, the Word will empower you to walk “holy and without blemish before him in love.” If you starve your spiritual man, you will spiritually die. He needs the Word of God to be fed. He's created out of the Word of God.

This message is by Bill Parker and taken from Galatians 5. Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. 2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. 3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. 4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. 6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. 7 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? 8 This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you. 9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. 11 And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased. 12 I would they were even cut off which trouble you. 13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another. 16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell go over the latest batch of preview updates for January 2025, including KB5050094! The big story of the week revolves around DeepSeek and its noticeable effects on the modern AI world. Sinofsky even wrote a big piece on the latest AI assistant! Windows 11 Preview updates for Windows 11, 10 arrive ahead of February Patch Tuesday Windows 11 - Taskbar preview improvements, Windows Studio Effects in the system tray, many File Explorer fixes, more Windows 10 - New Outlook replaces Mail, Calendar, People New Dev and Beta channel builds - Overdue battery icon updates in Dev, Snap Layout experiments in Beta New Canary build today with new File Explorer home view tab Microsoft to remove Dev Home from Windows - This never made sense, so that's fine, but its most important features will live on Microsoft Edge for Windows now has a Scareware blocker in preview AI DeepSeek explodes out of the gate, sends Big Tech/AI stock reeling and opening up questions about how much money these companies are spending on AI Nadella, Altman, Nvidia all react to this change in interesting ways Steve Sinofsky - This was inevitable, disruption always comes from outside Ahead of this blockbuster development, a look at how the Microsoft/OpenAI relationship is changing - and now we need another look OpenAI announces Operator agent for ChatGPT in preview Google is bringing new Gemini features to Android and Pixel Google is also bringing NotebookLM to almost every Workspace tier, including the cheap one I (Paul) use, NotebookLM Plus to WS Standard and better Microsoft Microsoft preps smaller Surface Pro and Laptop models with Snapdragon chips for some reason Microsoft is closing its UK-based "experience center" Xbox Thanks to Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is the biggest game publisher in the world Phil Spencer: Xbox Series S a "real advantage" for coming portable gaming product Phil Spencer says hardware still "critical" to Xbox. More like "critical condition," am I right? No surprises at Xbox Developer_Direct, but a solid collection of games, including the new DOOM Tips and Picks Tip of the week: It's time to start watching Dave's Garage App pick of the week: PowerToys, now with Zoomit RunAs Radio this week: Querying for Breaches with Mark Morowcyznski Brown liquor pick of the week: Blair Athol 12 Floral & Fauna Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsor: Melissa.com/twit

Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell go over the latest batch of preview updates for January 2025, including KB5050094! The big story of the week revolves around DeepSeek and its noticeable effects on the modern AI world. Sinofsky even wrote a big piece on the latest AI assistant! Windows 11 Preview updates for Windows 11, 10 arrive ahead of February Patch Tuesday Windows 11 - Taskbar preview improvements, Windows Studio Effects in the system tray, many File Explorer fixes, more Windows 10 - New Outlook replaces Mail, Calendar, People New Dev and Beta channel builds - Overdue battery icon updates in Dev, Snap Layout experiments in Beta New Canary build today with new File Explorer home view tab Microsoft to remove Dev Home from Windows - This never made sense, so that's fine, but its most important features will live on Microsoft Edge for Windows now has a Scareware blocker in preview AI DeepSeek explodes out of the gate, sends Big Tech/AI stock reeling and opening up questions about how much money these companies are spending on AI Nadella, Altman, Nvidia all react to this change in interesting ways Steve Sinofsky - This was inevitable, disruption always comes from outside Ahead of this blockbuster development, a look at how the Microsoft/OpenAI relationship is changing - and now we need another look OpenAI announces Operator agent for ChatGPT in preview Google is bringing new Gemini features to Android and Pixel Google is also bringing NotebookLM to almost every Workspace tier, including the cheap one I (Paul) use, NotebookLM Plus to WS Standard and better Microsoft Microsoft preps smaller Surface Pro and Laptop models with Snapdragon chips for some reason Microsoft is closing its UK-based "experience center" Xbox Thanks to Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is the biggest game publisher in the world Phil Spencer: Xbox Series S a "real advantage" for coming portable gaming product Phil Spencer says hardware still "critical" to Xbox. More like "critical condition," am I right? No surprises at Xbox Developer_Direct, but a solid collection of games, including the new DOOM Tips and Picks Tip of the week: It's time to start watching Dave's Garage App pick of the week: PowerToys, now with Zoomit RunAs Radio this week: Querying for Breaches with Mark Morowcyznski Brown liquor pick of the week: Blair Athol 12 Floral & Fauna Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsor: Melissa.com/twit

Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell go over the latest batch of preview updates for January 2025, including KB5050094! The big story of the week revolves around DeepSeek and its noticeable effects on the modern AI world. Sinofsky even wrote a big piece on the latest AI assistant! Windows 11 Preview updates for Windows 11, 10 arrive ahead of February Patch Tuesday Windows 11 - Taskbar preview improvements, Windows Studio Effects in the system tray, many File Explorer fixes, more Windows 10 - New Outlook replaces Mail, Calendar, People New Dev and Beta channel builds - Overdue battery icon updates in Dev, Snap Layout experiments in Beta New Canary build today with new File Explorer home view tab Microsoft to remove Dev Home from Windows - This never made sense, so that's fine, but its most important features will live on Microsoft Edge for Windows now has a Scareware blocker in preview AI DeepSeek explodes out of the gate, sends Big Tech/AI stock reeling and opening up questions about how much money these companies are spending on AI Nadella, Altman, Nvidia all react to this change in interesting ways Steve Sinofsky - This was inevitable, disruption always comes from outside Ahead of this blockbuster development, a look at how the Microsoft/OpenAI relationship is changing - and now we need another look OpenAI announces Operator agent for ChatGPT in preview Google is bringing new Gemini features to Android and Pixel Google is also bringing NotebookLM to almost every Workspace tier, including the cheap one I (Paul) use, NotebookLM Plus to WS Standard and better Microsoft Microsoft preps smaller Surface Pro and Laptop models with Snapdragon chips for some reason Microsoft is closing its UK-based "experience center" Xbox Thanks to Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is the biggest game publisher in the world Phil Spencer: Xbox Series S a "real advantage" for coming portable gaming product Phil Spencer says hardware still "critical" to Xbox. More like "critical condition," am I right? No surprises at Xbox Developer_Direct, but a solid collection of games, including the new DOOM Tips and Picks Tip of the week: It's time to start watching Dave's Garage App pick of the week: PowerToys, now with Zoomit RunAs Radio this week: Querying for Breaches with Mark Morowcyznski Brown liquor pick of the week: Blair Athol 12 Floral & Fauna Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsor: Melissa.com/twit

Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell go over the latest batch of preview updates for January 2025, including KB5050094! The big story of the week revolves around DeepSeek and its noticeable effects on the modern AI world. Sinofsky even wrote a big piece on the latest AI assistant! Windows 11 Preview updates for Windows 11, 10 arrive ahead of February Patch Tuesday Windows 11 - Taskbar preview improvements, Windows Studio Effects in the system tray, many File Explorer fixes, more Windows 10 - New Outlook replaces Mail, Calendar, People New Dev and Beta channel builds - Overdue battery icon updates in Dev, Snap Layout experiments in Beta New Canary build today with new File Explorer home view tab Microsoft to remove Dev Home from Windows - This never made sense, so that's fine, but its most important features will live on Microsoft Edge for Windows now has a Scareware blocker in preview AI DeepSeek explodes out of the gate, sends Big Tech/AI stock reeling and opening up questions about how much money these companies are spending on AI Nadella, Altman, Nvidia all react to this change in interesting ways Steve Sinofsky - This was inevitable, disruption always comes from outside Ahead of this blockbuster development, a look at how the Microsoft/OpenAI relationship is changing - and now we need another look OpenAI announces Operator agent for ChatGPT in preview Google is bringing new Gemini features to Android and Pixel Google is also bringing NotebookLM to almost every Workspace tier, including the cheap one I (Paul) use, NotebookLM Plus to WS Standard and better Microsoft Microsoft preps smaller Surface Pro and Laptop models with Snapdragon chips for some reason Microsoft is closing its UK-based "experience center" Xbox Thanks to Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is the biggest game publisher in the world Phil Spencer: Xbox Series S a "real advantage" for coming portable gaming product Phil Spencer says hardware still "critical" to Xbox. More like "critical condition," am I right? No surprises at Xbox Developer_Direct, but a solid collection of games, including the new DOOM Tips and Picks Tip of the week: It's time to start watching Dave's Garage App pick of the week: PowerToys, now with Zoomit RunAs Radio this week: Querying for Breaches with Mark Morowcyznski Brown liquor pick of the week: Blair Athol 12 Floral & Fauna Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsor: Melissa.com/twit

Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell go over the latest batch of preview updates for January 2025, including KB5050094! The big story of the week revolves around DeepSeek and its noticeable effects on the modern AI world. Sinofsky even wrote a big piece on the latest AI assistant! Windows 11 Preview updates for Windows 11, 10 arrive ahead of February Patch Tuesday Windows 11 - Taskbar preview improvements, Windows Studio Effects in the system tray, many File Explorer fixes, more Windows 10 - New Outlook replaces Mail, Calendar, People New Dev and Beta channel builds - Overdue battery icon updates in Dev, Snap Layout experiments in Beta New Canary build today with new File Explorer home view tab Microsoft to remove Dev Home from Windows - This never made sense, so that's fine, but its most important features will live on Microsoft Edge for Windows now has a Scareware blocker in preview AI DeepSeek explodes out of the gate, sends Big Tech/AI stock reeling and opening up questions about how much money these companies are spending on AI Nadella, Altman, Nvidia all react to this change in interesting ways Steve Sinofsky - This was inevitable, disruption always comes from outside Ahead of this blockbuster development, a look at how the Microsoft/OpenAI relationship is changing - and now we need another look OpenAI announces Operator agent for ChatGPT in preview Google is bringing new Gemini features to Android and Pixel Google is also bringing NotebookLM to almost every Workspace tier, including the cheap one I (Paul) use, NotebookLM Plus to WS Standard and better Microsoft Microsoft preps smaller Surface Pro and Laptop models with Snapdragon chips for some reason Microsoft is closing its UK-based "experience center" Xbox Thanks to Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is the biggest game publisher in the world Phil Spencer: Xbox Series S a "real advantage" for coming portable gaming product Phil Spencer says hardware still "critical" to Xbox. More like "critical condition," am I right? No surprises at Xbox Developer_Direct, but a solid collection of games, including the new DOOM Tips and Picks Tip of the week: It's time to start watching Dave's Garage App pick of the week: PowerToys, now with Zoomit RunAs Radio this week: Querying for Breaches with Mark Morowcyznski Brown liquor pick of the week: Blair Athol 12 Floral & Fauna Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsor: Melissa.com/twit

Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell go over the latest batch of preview updates for January 2025, including KB5050094! The big story of the week revolves around DeepSeek and its noticeable effects on the modern AI world. Sinofsky even wrote a big piece on the latest AI assistant! Windows 11 Preview updates for Windows 11, 10 arrive ahead of February Patch Tuesday Windows 11 - Taskbar preview improvements, Windows Studio Effects in the system tray, many File Explorer fixes, more Windows 10 - New Outlook replaces Mail, Calendar, People New Dev and Beta channel builds - Overdue battery icon updates in Dev, Snap Layout experiments in Beta New Canary build today with new File Explorer home view tab Microsoft to remove Dev Home from Windows - This never made sense, so that's fine, but its most important features will live on Microsoft Edge for Windows now has a Scareware blocker in preview AI DeepSeek explodes out of the gate, sends Big Tech/AI stock reeling and opening up questions about how much money these companies are spending on AI Nadella, Altman, Nvidia all react to this change in interesting ways Steve Sinofsky - This was inevitable, disruption always comes from outside Ahead of this blockbuster development, a look at how the Microsoft/OpenAI relationship is changing - and now we need another look OpenAI announces Operator agent for ChatGPT in preview Google is bringing new Gemini features to Android and Pixel Google is also bringing NotebookLM to almost every Workspace tier, including the cheap one I (Paul) use, NotebookLM Plus to WS Standard and better Microsoft Microsoft preps smaller Surface Pro and Laptop models with Snapdragon chips for some reason Microsoft is closing its UK-based "experience center" Xbox Thanks to Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is the biggest game publisher in the world Phil Spencer: Xbox Series S a "real advantage" for coming portable gaming product Phil Spencer says hardware still "critical" to Xbox. More like "critical condition," am I right? No surprises at Xbox Developer_Direct, but a solid collection of games, including the new DOOM Tips and Picks Tip of the week: It's time to start watching Dave's Garage App pick of the week: PowerToys, now with Zoomit RunAs Radio this week: Querying for Breaches with Mark Morowcyznski Brown liquor pick of the week: Blair Athol 12 Floral & Fauna Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsor: Melissa.com/twit

2:17 But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavoured the more abundantly to see your face with great desire. 2:18 Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us. 2:19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? 2:20 For ye are our glory and joy. 3:1 Wherefore when we could no longer forbear, we thought it good to be left at Athens alone; 3:2 And sent Timotheus, our brother, and minister of God, and our fellowlabourer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith: 3:3 That no man should be moved by these afflictions: for yourselves know that we are appointed thereunto. 3:4 For verily, when we were with you, we told you before that we should suffer tribulation; even as it came to pass, and ye know. 3:5 For this cause, when I could no longer forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter have tempted you, and our labour be in vain. 3:6 But now when Timotheus came from you unto us, and brought us good tidings of your faith and charity, and that ye have good remembrance of us always, desiring greatly to see us, as we also to see you: 3:7 Therefore, brethren, we were comforted over you in all our affliction and distress by your faith: 3:8 For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord. 3:9 For what thanks can we render to God again for you, for all the joy wherewith we joy for your sakes before our God; 3:10 Night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith? 3:11 Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you. 3:12 And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: 3:13 To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.

Remember that Paul went through the ultimate change in identity. Before he was Paul, who was he?  Saul. Before he was Paul building up Christian believers in the faith, he was Saul the Pharisee, approving the execution of the earliest Christian believers. So even these two words, “I Paul,” which seem like they are just kind of thrown in randomly here, they actually have tremendously rich meaning. But it's because they call to remembrance for us this man, Paul, who was once alienated, who was once hostile in mind, who was once engaged in evil deeds. But then we remember what he became: The greatest Christian to ever live. That is what we were also, but if we have trusted Christ we have great potential to do mighty things for God too.   Mark 8:36 "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?              John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. Have you trusted Him as your Savior? He can Save you if You ask Him based on His death, burial, and resurrection for your sins. Believe in Him for forgiveness of your sins today.               “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”  -John 8:32             Our mission is to spread the gospel and to go to the least of these with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ; We reach out to those the World has forgotten.              hisloveministries.podbean.com #HLMSocial hisloveministries.net https://www.instagram.com/hisloveministries1/?hl=en His Love Ministries on Itunes Don't go for all the gusto you can get, go for all the God (Jesus Christ) you can get. The gusto will get you, Jesus can save you. https://www.facebook.com/His-Love-Ministries-246606668725869/?tn-str=k*F             The world is trying to solve earthly problems that can only be solved with heavenly solutions

The Epiphany The Collect O God, by the leading of a star you manifested your only Son to the peoples of the earth: Lead us, who know you now by faith, to your presence, where we may see your glory face to face; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Old Testament Isaiah 60:1-6 Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you. Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far away, and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses' arms. Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice, because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you. A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah;  all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord. The Psalm Psalm 72:1-7,10-14 Deus, judicium 1 Give the King your justice, O God, * and your righteousness to the King's Son; 2 That he may rule your people righteously * and the poor with justice; 3 That the mountains may bring prosperity to the people, * and the little hills bring righteousness. 4 He shall defend the needy among the people; * he shall rescue the poor and crush the oppressor. 5 He shall live as long as the sun and moon endure, * from one generation to another. 6 He shall come down like rain upon the mown field, * like showers that water the earth. 7 In his time shall the righteous flourish; * there shall be abundance of peace till the moon shall be no more. 10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall pay tribute, * and the kings of Arabia and Saba offer gifts. 11 All kings shall bow down before him, * and all the nations do him service. 12 For he shall deliver the poor who cries out in distress, * and the oppressed who has no helper. 13 He shall have pity on the lowly and poor; * he shall preserve the lives of the needy. 14 He shall redeem their lives from oppression and violence, * and dear shall their blood be in his sight. The New Testament Ephesians 3:1-12 This is the reason that I Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles-- for surely you have already heard of the commission of God's grace that was given me for you, and how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, a reading of which will enable you to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ. In former generations this mystery was not made known to humankind, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: that is, the Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. Of this gospel I have become a servant according to the gift of God's grace that was given me by the working of his power. Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, and to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; so that through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was in accordance with the eternal purpose that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have access to God in boldness and confidence through faith in him. The Gospel Matthew 2:1-12 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage." When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: `And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.'" Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage." When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

I don't normally do this, but content warning, this episode talks at length about death and funerals and, while I continue to approach everything with an inappropriate degree of levity, if that's something you're not game to listen to right now, go ahead and skip the first hour of this one. Recommend me your favorite show or video game at podcast@searls.co and I will either play/watch it or lie and say I did. Thanks! Now: links and transcript: Kirkland Signature, Organic Non-Dairy Oat Beverage Die with Zero book The "Prefer tabs when opening documents" setting Aaron's puns, ranked Amazon hoped more people would quit BoldVoice Accent Oracle Cab drivers get Alzheimer's less Video Games Can't Afford to Look This Good LG announces Bachelor's Only TV Can the rich world escape its baby crisis? Why aren't we talking about the real reason male college enrollment is dropping? The Diplomat The Penguin It's in the Game Madden documentary Like a Dragon / Yakuza 7 Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Transcript: [00:00:29] It is our first new year together in this relationship. [00:00:36] Breaking Change survived season one. [00:00:39] We are now in season two. [00:00:43] I don't know what, you know, how seasons should translate to a show about nothing. [00:00:51] I like to talk about how, you know, in different stages of life, we go through different seasons, right? [00:00:58] You know, like maybe, you know, after, you know, the seasonal life when maybe you get married or you have a kid, your first kid and all the changes that kind of go with that. [00:01:08] And if you play multiplayer competitive games, you might go through different seasons. [00:01:15] You know, like if you play Diablo four or Call of Duty, you might be in a particular eight week or 12 week season. [00:01:24] Now, as you grind your battle pass, that's similar in in scale and scope to having a child or having some big life event, because it turns out none of this fucking matters. [00:01:35] Hello, welcome. [00:01:36] This is a this is your kind and friendly host, Justin Searles, son of Fred Searles, son of Fred Searles himself, son of a Fred Searles. [00:01:48] That's yeah, there were there were, I think, three Fred's before me and then my dad was like combo breaker and he named me Justin. [00:02:02] Uh, thank you for subscribing to the advertisement free version of the podcast. [00:02:08] Uh, if you, if you think that there should be an advertisement version of the podcast, feel free to write in a podcast at Searles.co and then pay me money to read about your shit. [00:02:20] And I will do that. [00:02:21] Uh, and, and, you know, I'm happy to have all the conflicts of interest in the world because, uh, if your product sucks and I use it, I can't help myself. [00:02:32] I'm just, I'm just going to say it's bad. [00:02:34] So, uh, that's a real, you know, I, I, if you can't tell, I also run the ad sales department of this journalistic outfit and, uh, that might have something to do with the total lack of, uh, corporate funding. [00:02:48] Well, anyway, this is version 28 of the program. [00:02:54] This, this, this episode's breaking change titled, do you regret it yet? [00:02:59] And that'll make sense, uh, momentarily. [00:03:03] Uh, so, um, it's a big one in a sense, you know, it's something that, uh, there's very little in life that I'm not comfortable talking about. [00:03:14] And that's because, you know, well, I'll just dive right in. [00:03:20] So, so I read it, uh, I read an article, uh, uh, some number of years ago that explained that part of the reason why foot fetishes are so common in men is like part of the brain that identifies feet. [00:03:38] And part of the brain that is like erogenous in its, you know, there's different parts of the brain. [00:03:46] They do different things, but if you got to pick which neuron cluster you lived in as a part of the brain, erogenous zone, that would be sweet. [00:03:53] That'd be a lot more fun than the, um, whatever the, the part of the brain is that gets scared easily, which, uh, because I get stressed and anxious, [00:04:04] even just talking into a microphone with zero stakes on a recording that I could stop. [00:04:08] That makes me no money. [00:04:10] I'm too nervous to remember the fear part of the amygdala. [00:04:13] There it is. [00:04:14] You see, and if it just, and, and that gets back to my point in my particular fucked up brain soup, [00:04:22] the, uh, the, uh, the part of my brain that talks out my mouth hole is right next to the part of my brain that critically reasons through things. [00:04:37] So for me, it is very difficult to process something without talking it, talking it through. [00:04:47] And the idea that something is taboo has always been really uncomfortable for me. [00:04:52] And you can just sort of see the pained look on my face as I try to hold it in like a, like a burp or something. [00:04:57] Like I, I, I got to let it out somehow. [00:05:00] And so I'm, I, you know, I'm glad, I'm glad I get to be here with you. [00:05:05] I hope you find it kind of entertaining. [00:05:06] Unfortunately, the thing to talk about first thing, as I get into the section of this to-do list, that is this podcast titled life is that the big thing that happened since the last major breaking change, uh, uh, back in version 26, which is, I, I, I understand two numbers away from 28. [00:05:30] Uh, the big thing that changed, uh, is, uh, my father, Fred, he of a, a long and proud line of Fred's, uh, he passed away, uh, uh, uh, December 15th. [00:05:45] So just, just shortly after, uh, the previous, the previous version aired and, uh, pretty much every it's January 4th today and we're still working through it. [00:05:59] Um, he had a heart attack. [00:06:02] I think that's fair to say at this point, there's no, you know, no way to be a thousand percent sure, but all the signs suggest that's what it was. [00:06:11] And, uh, you know, without getting into, uh, the, the details, my side of the story is like, I was at Epcot with my brother, Jeremy. [00:06:26] So at least we were together. [00:06:28] Um, Jeremy gets the call and, uh, you know, we were, we were in that little tequila bar, uh, hanging out with a friend of ours who works there. [00:06:40] And, uh, the tequila bar inside of the Mexican pavilion pyramid. [00:06:44] And, uh, he had just brought us out the three kind of specialty cocktails that they got going on right now. [00:06:53] Uh, which is, uh, you know, wasn't, we are in a great time. [00:06:57] It was a lot of fun. [00:06:58] And, uh, Jeremy gets the call. [00:07:00] We process a little bit. [00:07:02] We realized like, we got to get home. [00:07:04] We got to figure this shit out. [00:07:06] You know, he's, he's a, he was a former emergency responder. [00:07:09] So he's really good at, uh, at thinking through the logistical things that you have to do with a relatively cool head. [00:07:16] It, you know, he comes across as like, you know, not drill sergeanty, but somebody who's like, you know, part of being calm and collected in an urgent situation is you have to be very direct. [00:07:28] And boom, boom, boom, boom. [00:07:30] So that was as soon as he knew what was happening. [00:07:35] That's the mode he flipped on. [00:07:37] And the mode that I flipped on was intense, uh, metabolization is the best word I can think of it. [00:07:44] Cause like you have like, like, like, like the saves take four shots of liquor, right? [00:07:48] You will metabolize that at whatever speed you do, and it'll hit you really hard and maybe you'll black out and maybe you'll, uh, you're a slower burn. [00:07:56] But for me, I feel, I feel things, whether they're chemical toxicology report showing up things or emotions, I tend to feel them extremely intensely and, and, and, and, and in a relatively brief burst, you know, uh, if you ever lit in a strip of magnesium on fire, which for some reason I did several times. [00:08:19] I was in, in, in different science lab classes as a kid, it brights, it burns real bright and real hot, but not for very long. [00:08:27] So while, while Jeremy was in his, you know, we got to figure out what to do mode. [00:08:33] Uh, we got to get out of here. [00:08:35] Uh, we gotta, you gotta, you know, we gotta book the next flight to Michigan to take care of this shit. [00:08:43] I was in, I'm going to, I'm going to just take a little, I'm going to pop a little deep squat here in Epcot, uh, right outside this bar. [00:08:56] And I'm going to just allow my vision to get blurry, which it did. [00:09:04] Um, my heart to race, my stomach to turn. [00:09:08] And I just needed that, you know, you lose track of time when something big and, and, and, and, and earth shaken happens. [00:09:20] I [00:09:22] snapped out of it is, you know, it's, it's crude way. [00:09:31] Words don't, words that you use for everyday things end up getting used for big life-changing things. [00:09:40] And it makes it feel smaller. [00:09:43] So even though I'm verbally processing every time I tell the story or think through it and, and talk it out. [00:09:53] I, I, I, I kind of came to my normal Justin senses pretty quickly, uh, where normal Justin senses means, you know, back in the bar, you know, everyone's, you know, who'd heard was upset and immediately like they're in their own kind of sense of shock, even not knowing my dad. [00:10:14] And I, I was, you know, uh, comforting them immediately and, you know, just asking our host, Hey, you know, because as a, as a staff member, he, he's able to get us out of the park a little bit more expeditiously, uh, than having to go all the way out and do this big, you know, what would have felt like a 15 minute walk of shame out of a theme park. [00:10:39] And, uh, yeah, anyway, so he got us out of there, we got home, booked flight, got, went up to Michigan the next day, uh, pretty much immediately. [00:10:50] And, and, and, and, and, and kudos to my brother for, for having that serious first response. [00:10:56] Cause like my first response after asking for, Hey, get us out of here was to see those three specialty cocktails on the table and be like, well, that, that would be a waste and B I could probably use a drink. [00:11:08] And so I, you know, one of them was a sake and, uh, mezcal infusion. [00:11:13] And I was like, well, they'd already poured it. [00:11:16] So I just threw that back on, on my way out the door. [00:11:18] That was probably a good move. [00:11:21] Uh, so we got up to Michigan, right? [00:11:25] And I don't want to tell anyone else's story about how, how they work through stuff and families. [00:11:31] Everyone processes things differently. [00:11:34] Uh, uh, so I'll skip all that shit. [00:11:36] I'll just say that like pretty quickly, the service planning, like that takes over, you know, the, uh, this is the first time I've had an immediate family member pass, but pretty quickly you're like, all right, well, there is this kind of, you know, process. [00:11:53] It's like not dissimilar from wedding planning, but instead of having six months, a year, or if you're an elder millennial, like eight years to plan, you have, uh, a few days. [00:12:07] And fortunately, uh, uh, dad had just by coincidence of, of, of another, uh, person we know passing had found a funeral home that he really liked. [00:12:18] And he, he said he wanted to do that one. [00:12:20] So that, that was off the table. [00:12:21] That was, that worked out. [00:12:23] But, uh, then, you know, even, and that was helpful. [00:12:28] That was really helpful to sit down and, and, and, you know, of course you go to the funeral home, you talk to the funeral home director and super sympathetic there. [00:12:35] It takes a certain kind, right? [00:12:38] A person, you know, you gotta have the strategically placed tissue boxes all over the place and then know when to stop talking and when to hand it and when to back away. [00:12:46] And, you know, dude is an absolute champ, but he's also done this before and he knows the questions to ask. [00:12:55] And it's not to like boil it down into a questionnaire, but it, it's a questionnaire. [00:13:00] It's like, Hey, what do you want? [00:13:01] How do you got to do this? [00:13:02] You know, you're being bang, boom. [00:13:04] What? [00:13:04] And fortunately, uh, collectively we came to the table with a lot of answers to a lot of those stock questions at the ready. [00:13:15] Um, but the thing that stood out to me was, you know, there's going to be a service we're going to have to write an obituary. [00:13:22] They gave us a start and, um, a start is actually the perfect thing to give me when it, when it comes to writing, you know, if you give me a blank page, it could take me all week. [00:13:32] But if you give me something I don't like and like me not writing in a hurry would result in the thing I don't like going out, then all of a sudden I get the motivation to go and write some shit. [00:13:46] So we, we, we, we, we worked together and we cleaned up the eulogy or the, excuse me, the obituary, all these terms you only use sparingly. [00:13:55] Occasionally, uh, got the obituary out, had a tremendous response, maybe from some of you because it was up on the website. [00:14:05] Had a tremendous response from people. [00:14:07] Everyone was shocked. [00:14:08] You know, no one expected that, uh, dad had a tremendously large social network being a dentist for 45 plus years in a community of people who loved him. [00:14:20] And he was genuinely, you know, an incredibly kind and friendly guy everywhere he went. [00:14:26] Uh, so, so that was good. [00:14:29] And you re and, and it was the obituary that made me realize like, well, I, you know, I knew this intellectually, but be like, oh yeah, like next few days here are for them. [00:14:37] It's for everybody else to understand process grief. [00:14:42] And so as soon as the obituary out, I was like, all right, next eulogy time. [00:14:48] So I, uh, I approached it as soon as I knew it's a, when I know something's for me, I let it be for me. [00:14:58] I'm not, I've, I accept myself. [00:15:00] I love myself and take care of myself as best I can. [00:15:03] I don't, I'm not a martyr, right? [00:15:06] Like I don't push down my needs and interests for the sake of other people. [00:15:12] To the point of other people's viewing it as selfish sometimes. [00:15:15] And increasingly over the years, I'm viewing it as like, maybe you, maybe it's the children who are wrong. [00:15:21] Maybe this is just the way to be, because it turns out that when you take good care of yourself, you can show up for other people. [00:15:26] Well, right. [00:15:26] So anyway, I, I, as soon as I knew that like the point of the service wasn't for me, the point of the service was, uh, the other people in the room who, who, some of whom drove hours and stayed overnight in hotels to come be there. [00:15:42] It was, it was to give them something. [00:15:46] So as soon as that bit flipped in my brain, it became very easy to write a eulogy because I, I approached it like work. [00:15:56] I approached it like a conference talk or yeah, like it, I didn't actually open keynote, but I thought about it because that's how, that's how I tend to storyboard and work out conference talks. [00:16:09] And I, I thought about like, well, maybe I just do that and I just don't show the slides, you know, because I think it would be possibly inappropriate to, to have a PowerPoint presentation at your, I, at a funeral. [00:16:23] I don't know. [00:16:24] I guess I had to make one anyway. [00:16:26] We'll talk about that. [00:16:29] So anyway, writing, the eulogy took over. [00:16:31] It went smoothly. [00:16:33] It, I liked how it turned out. [00:16:35] If you subscribe to the newsletter, you'll get a copy of it. [00:16:38] So, so justin.searles.co slash newsletter. [00:16:41] It's called Searles of Wisdom, which of course, you know, me making that sound kitschy right now in this rather grave moment might sound inappropriate to, to, to shill, but you will get a copy of the eulogy. [00:16:53] I'm happy with it, how it turned out. [00:16:56] I, uh, as soon as I wrote it then, of course, and this is what I'm trying to illustrate is like everything just became task A. [00:17:03] Like, okay, task A is complete, task B, no real time in there for processing and thinking through things through. [00:17:11] Uh, so the eulogy took over, wrote it, and as soon as I'd written it, I was now task C, I gotta deliver it, you know. [00:17:21] I don't typically read a script when I speak, uh, but I had to write it all out as if it was being spoken. [00:17:32] And I had to even practice and rehearse it as if I was reading it because I knew that in an emotionally, you know, the best way that people seem to talk about this is like, it's, your emotions are close to the surface as if like any little tiny thing could just break the surface tension and, and, and spill over. [00:17:51] Right. [00:17:52] I knew that out of my control, I might, I might tear up. [00:17:56] I might cry. [00:17:57] I might need a minute. [00:18:01] While delivering this. [00:18:02] And so I, uh, I, I practiced it to be read, but I knew like, man, there's just a, there's a, I call it a 5%, 10% chance that I just have a fucking breakdown and I can't get through this thing. [00:18:18] And the anxiety in the day and a half leading up to the service worrying that I would fail as a public speaker outside the context of, you know, sure. [00:18:32] Everyone would give you a break if your dad just died. [00:18:35] Right. [00:18:35] But this is like the last thing I'm doing for him, you know, in a, in a publicly meaningful way. [00:18:40] And it's also a skill that I've spent a lot of time working on. [00:18:45] And so I wouldn't for me to fail at that by, by breaking or by even, even just failing to deliver it successfully and in a, in an impactful way would have been hard for me. [00:19:05] And it would have been something I probably would be ruminating on here. [00:19:08] We are a couple of weeks later. [00:19:10] And as a result, what happened is the same thing that happens before I give a conference talk in front of a bunch of people at a conference or whatever. [00:19:18] It's the, the, the, the, uh, stress hormone gets released, the adrenaline and the cortisol starts coming out. [00:19:26] And so the morning of the funeral, everyone else is kind of approaching it their own way. [00:19:31] And I'm like, it's game time, you know, like I, I'm dialed in my, you know, all of my instincts are about just getting through that five to seven minute speech. [00:19:47] And no emotional response before then. [00:19:50] And afterwards, to be honest, the biggest emotional response afterwards was the relief of successfully. [00:19:57] And I did successfully deliver it. [00:19:59] And, uh, and then as soon as task C of delivering it is done, then task D starts of now it's the end of a funeral service. [00:20:08] And you've got a receiving line of all these guests coming up and they, you know, they're, they're approaching the open casket and they're, they're coming to, you know, hug you, talk to you. [00:20:17] See how you are. [00:20:18] And there's a performative aspect to that, right? [00:20:22] Like you gotta be like, all right, who's ready for lunch? [00:20:24] That would be inappropriate. [00:20:25] Right. [00:20:26] But the, you know, also talking about how, like, oh, I'm actually mostly focused on how I did a good job. [00:20:32] Giving this speech would separately be maybe, you know, off color, but these are the things that go through our brains in the, in these high impact moments. [00:20:43] When you just have to, when, when, whenever a situation dictates that your behavior be misaligned or the statements about oneself be at all discordant with what's really going on inside you in that literal moment. [00:21:08] And so, so I did my best, uh, of course, to make it about other people and see how they're doing and answer their questions in as, uh, productive a way as possible. [00:21:20] Right. [00:21:20] Give them answers about myself that gave them the things that they needed was my primary response all through. [00:21:29] And then, and then through that, and then task E, the wake. [00:21:32] Right. [00:21:33] And, and, uh, you do, you, you do that. [00:21:35] And then suddenly, uh, well, now you have task F after, after all that stuff of like, okay, well, we've got all this leftover food we got to take home. [00:21:42] So it's like load up the car and, and, and, and help everyone out and see everyone on their way safely. [00:21:48] And then, you know, you're exhausted and you want to just go back and, and, you know, get out of this fucking suit that barely fits. [00:21:58] Nope. [00:21:59] Task G is you got to go turn around, drive 20 minutes in the opposite direction to go back to the funeral home, to pick up all of these flowers. [00:22:05] Cause you, you tell people not to send flowers. [00:22:07] Uh, you, you say, you know, in dad's case, donate to the humane society, but people send flowers. [00:22:14] And then, you know, what do you fucking do with them? [00:22:16] Right. [00:22:17] It's like, well, here's look, if you or someone you're affiliated with sent flowers to this particular funeral, I'm deeply grateful. [00:22:25] And I had a moving moment, actually looking at all the flowers of friends of mine, people who never met dad. [00:22:31] Most of the time, a couple of our neighbors, right. [00:22:35] Who we don't really know well, but they're just really lovely people. [00:22:38] They, they did a bouquet and it was really nice. [00:22:40] You know, flowers are beautiful, but. [00:22:49] Like a cigarette can be really, really nice, but a carton can be a lot. [00:22:53] Uh, you know, a cocktail can be really nice, but drinking a whole fifth is problematic. [00:23:00] When you have so many bouquets that you can't fit them into your vehicle and also the people in the vehicle. [00:23:06] It's all it's, it, it just, it, it becomes a work. [00:23:10] Right. [00:23:11] And so that's what, you know, that's one of the ways in which having this service like this become sort of, you know, like less about the immediate family and more about the surrounding, you know, network of people that somebody knows. [00:23:24] And maybe this is all common sense and, and I should have been more conscientious of this going into the experience, but looking back on it, uh, I was just sort of like, all right, well, here's next task is figure out how to cram all these flowers. [00:23:39] And then you get home and it's like, where'd all these flowers go? [00:23:43] And so you just kind of scatter them throughout the house. [00:23:48] Uh, but they're all, you know, like they're not invasives or they're not like going to survive the long winter. [00:23:53] Like they're, they're now all on their own separate week to two week timer of themselves dying and needing to be dealt with, which is like, you know, a, let's just say an echo or a reverberation of like kind of what you're thinking about. [00:24:07] So maybe, okay, look, I don't want to spend this whole fucking podcast talking about a funeral. [00:24:15] I realize it's like maybe a bit of a downer, but you know, there's other stuff going on to like, I skipped a whole fucking half day activity. [00:24:25] Actually is wedge a task in there between B and C if you're for anyone playing the home game and keeping track of this, not that it's that complicated, uh, you got to come up with a slideshow, right? [00:24:39] So you've got the visitation before the service and we also had it the night before for anyone who couldn't make it or, you know, maybe acquaintances and whatnot, who didn't feel like going to the whole service, whatever it is. [00:24:57] You got to come up with a slideshow, which is theoretically easy these days because there's so many goddamn pictures of all of us. [00:25:04] It's theoretically easy because you have tools like, uh, shared iCloud photo libraries, uh, and shared albums, which, you know, as soon as somebody suggested a shared album, I went into my like pre canned speech. [00:25:20] And I think of, well, actually shared albums predate, you know, modern ways of sharing photos in the photos app. [00:25:25] And so whenever you put anything in a shared album, Apple compresses it pretty badly. [00:25:30] It, it downscales the resolution. [00:25:32] It also, you know, adjusts downward, the quality of the image. [00:25:39] And I got halfway through that spiel and being like, you know, this is going to go up on a 10 ADP TV in the back of a room. [00:25:45] Like it's fine. [00:25:46] That's not the issue. [00:25:47] But then the next issue is, you know, everyone goes in the people and pets and photo library, sees all the pictures of dad that aren't bad. [00:25:56] And we all dump them into the same shared library, shared photo album, which is like, like, that's no one's fault, but mine. [00:26:02] I told people just do that and I'll clear them out. [00:26:04] But then you wind up with, and it turns out, this is how that stupid fucking system works. [00:26:09] The shared photo album will treat all of those duplicates as distinct. [00:26:14] And there's, even though there's duplicate deduping now in the photos app, it does not apply to shared library, shared photo albums. [00:26:21] And on top of that, if somebody adds something to a shared photo album, they can remove it. [00:26:27] But for somebody else, like, like, let's say I added a photo of dad that Becky didn't want in there. [00:26:33] Well, Becky can't go in and remove it. [00:26:35] Only the organizer can remove it or the person who posted it. [00:26:39] So then I had to be the person going through and, like, servicing any requests people had for photos to, like, ban from the slideshow. [00:26:46] Because for whatever reason, you know, it's a sensitive time. [00:26:49] And then after it was all done, you realize the slideshow tools don't work correctly. [00:26:56] Like, just the play button and all the different options in the Mac, like, just don't work correctly in a shared album. [00:27:01] Because, of course, they don't. [00:27:02] So then you've got to copy them all. [00:27:07] You thought I was talking about feelings, but it all comes back. [00:27:11] All comes back to Apple shit. [00:27:13] So you've got to copy them all into your photo library, whoever is going to be running the slideshow. [00:27:17] Create a new slideshow project from there. [00:27:20] Dump them all in there. [00:27:22] And then realize there's no, once you've dumped shit into a slideshow project, there is no way to reorder them. [00:27:27] Short of manually drag dropping extremely slowly in a left-right horizontal scroll dingus. [00:27:34] And you've got 500 pictures or something, just fucking forget about it. [00:27:37] And on top of that, I had all these dupes. [00:27:40] Like, I had manually de-duped as best as I could before. [00:27:43] But first question I get half an hour into the visitation is like, yeah, it just seems weird. [00:27:48] Because, like, there's this one picture of me that's going to come up, like, four times. [00:27:52] I was like, I'm sorry, bud. [00:27:54] I said, oh, it's randomized or whatever, you know. [00:28:01] So after you get all of those into a photo slideshow project, and successfully, I installed amphetamine, which will keep your screen awake. [00:28:11] And you plug that into HDMI, and you know how to put a fucking Mac on a TV. [00:28:15] I don't need to tell you that. [00:28:16] After all of it was done and I got home, the two days later I realized, oh, yeah, shit. [00:28:24] Because now my photo library is full, all of the most recent photos are just shit that was copied, that was already initially in my photo library anyway. [00:28:32] And none of them are showing up in the little dupes thing, of course, because it needs days to analyze on Wi-Fi. [00:28:39] So I went to the recent imports or recently saved tab, and then I had to manually go through and delete, like, 1,400 pictures of my dad. [00:28:50] And then hope that, like, I wasn't deleting one that wasn't a dupe. [00:28:55] So I had to go through and, like, manually tease these out. [00:28:59] It took me a fucking hour and a half. [00:29:02] And, yeah, so then I deleted all those to kind of dedupe it, because I was confident I had copies of all those pictures already somewhere else in the library. [00:29:11] That could have been smoother, is the short version of this story. [00:29:16] And, of course, there's no goddamn good software that does this. [00:29:20] There are two people who have made apps that simply shuffle photos in a slideshow. [00:29:26] And they're bad apps. [00:29:27] So they look old. [00:29:28] It's like they basically had to reinvent slideshow stuff, including the software and the shuffling and the crossfades and the Ken Burns effect and the music and all the stuff that the Apple product does. [00:29:38] They had to reinvent all that just to have a shuffle button, which is what you probably want, especially if you've got a mix of scanned photos and, you know, contemporaneous photos. [00:29:50] Because there's no way you're going to make the timeline actually contiguous. [00:29:54] So instead, like, well, here's, like, a bunch of photos between, like, 2003 and 2017, because that's the digital photography era. [00:30:05] And then in 2018, when we scanned all of our photo albums, suddenly it's just all of the photo albums in random order. [00:30:12] And then you have 2019 to 2024. [00:30:15] Like, it's not a cohesive experience. [00:30:20] Now, I would say, well, you know, it's a visitation. [00:30:23] People are coming and going. [00:30:24] They go in, they visit the casket, and they spend time chatting. [00:30:28] But, like, they don't, though. [00:30:30] All the chairs are pointing at this TV, and people just sat there for more than an hour. [00:30:36] They'd watch multiple. [00:30:37] Like, I thought that having a 45-minute long slideshow, that pacing would be okay. [00:30:43] People watched it two or three times while they chatted, you know, just the state of, the lack of kinetic energy throughout the entire experience of somebody passing. [00:30:54] You know, the phrase sit Shiva from Judaism. [00:30:58] Like, I am somebody who is relatively uncomfortable just sitting around, around other people. [00:31:06] I'm happy to sit around by myself. [00:31:08] I'm doing it right now. [00:31:09] I'm actually pretty good at it. [00:31:10] Ask anybody. [00:31:11] But to not have an activity with other people, and also not to have, like, interesting conversation to have with other people, [00:31:20] to just have to be around and with other people, is really goddamn hard. [00:31:25] And I suspect I'm not the only one who feels that way. [00:31:28] Hence, everyone just staring at the slideshow and making a comment here and there. [00:31:32] So, a couple things did jump out at me about that service and about the visitation, though, that were interesting. [00:31:40] One was, Dad had mentored a couple of younger dentists in his last couple years practicing. [00:31:48] People who had intended to take over the practice. [00:31:51] That's his own long story. [00:31:52] But they were, my age or younger, probably younger, definitely younger, come to think of it. [00:31:59] Splendid people. [00:32:00] Like, super upbeat, super duper energetic, just, like, fun. [00:32:05] They forced my dad to do stuff like go fishing and get out and do things that he normally wouldn't do. [00:32:13] And they blew me away by just saying, like, you know, dad was 72. [00:32:18] He was like, this guy, most dentists, when they get older, the hands get shaky. [00:32:25] Their craft gets sloppy. [00:32:28] But your dad was, he, he, I think he said, he set the standard. [00:32:33] He was just a beast. [00:32:34] He was, and I was like, what do you mean? [00:32:36] Like, actually, I've never really talked to anyone about his craft, right? [00:32:41] Because he didn't want to talk about it. [00:32:44] He was like, his prep work and, and, and how he prepped for each procedure was meticulous and perfect every single time. [00:32:53] And his technique while doing things was, was like, like phenomenal. [00:33:00] And they went into a handful of specifics for me. [00:33:02] And that was really special to me because I, like, I, I know that about myself that I'm chasing this asymptotic goal of perfection, but I didn't have evidence that my dad was as well outside of just stuff around the house. [00:33:16] And you can say that, well, that's perfectionism and that's OCD. [00:33:19] And we both have like, you know, traits of that too. [00:33:20] But the, that was really interesting because everyone had only ever experienced my dad as a patient or somebody who's like really, really gregarious and friendly and good at comforting patients. [00:33:33] But yeah, their stories were really, really encouraging. [00:33:39] And that was, that was one where it's like, I was glad to be able to walk away from that series of experiences and learn new stuff about my dad, uh, new stuff that rounded out the story of him in my mind. [00:33:54] Uh, so I'm really thankful to those guys, uh, because they were able to dive in and baby bird for me, explain like I'm five, like the ways in which he was a great dentist, which is just a thing that like, you know, everyone. [00:34:08] How do you rate your dentist, right? [00:34:10] Well, he's good at comforting me. [00:34:12] He's good at explaining things. [00:34:13] He doesn't upsell me a lot. [00:34:15] You know, I'm not afraid when I'm in the chair with him. [00:34:17] And then afterwards things seem to go pretty well, but like, really like the, the work is a black box. [00:34:22] You can't see what's going on in your fucking mouth. [00:34:24] You're, you're conscious. [00:34:25] You know how you feel before and how you feel after, but it's, uh, that was really cool. [00:34:31] Uh, the other, uh, another dentist that worked for him earlier in, in, in, uh, his career, uh, she, she had previously lost her dad and she said, you know, she said something that felt at the time, extremely true. [00:34:47] That a funeral is like having to host the worst party ever. [00:34:51] Uh, so that just to put a cap on it, that's, uh, accurate. [00:35:00] It felt like a party because I got to see a whole lot of people, friends from college, you know, Mark Van Holstein, the president or former president, but co-founder, founder of, uh, mutually human software in Grand Rapids. [00:35:10] You had my former housemate. [00:35:11] He came out, uh, uh, other kid, uh, other friends from, from middle school, high school made the trick, trick, trick, trick, Jeff and Dan. [00:35:21] It was really great to see so many people under, you know, suboptimal circumstances. [00:35:28] And then of course the whole set of extended family where it's like weddings and funerals, huh? [00:35:33] And then like the obligatory, like, yeah, we should really figure out a way to see each other more. [00:35:37] And it's like true. [00:35:38] And no one doesn't feel that way. [00:35:40] It's just like structurally unlikely the way people's lives work. [00:35:44] Uh, and so there's a sort of, uh, uh, nihilism is definitely the wrong word. [00:35:52] There's a sort of resignation that one has about what even are weddings and funerals and why is it that there's this whole cast of characters in your life that are important or close to you and via affiliation or history in some way. [00:36:12] But that you only see at these really like, like, like, like loud life events where it's a big, the background sound is a huge gong going off that distracts from actually getting to know the people. [00:36:26] If you just, you know, picked them on a random Tuesday and went to lunch, you'd probably learn a lot about the person. [00:36:31] But if it's just in the context of like, you know, like looking at, you know, a tray of sandwiches and having to find something to say, it's all going to be sucked in by the event. [00:36:41] And that's too bad, but that's, that's life, I guess, uh, tasks, you know, H through Z day after I, I had intentionally put off any sort of like looking at stuff, like, like thinking about the logistics, uh, the finances, the legal side, the, all that stuff, life insurance, yada, yada. [00:37:06] Uh, but then, you know, it was a lot of that, right. [00:37:09] For, for the rest of our trip, we were there for, for, for 11 days. [00:37:12] I would say skipping a lot of the minutiae because I, of course, you know, when the, when the, when, when a, when a household had a household or breadwinner passes and they didn't leave instructions, like you got to go and do the forensic analysis to figure out like, what are all the, where is everything? [00:37:32] Right. [00:37:32] That's, that's what it was. [00:37:34] It's all fine. [00:37:36] But the, uh, the tech support son, which is like my, you know, uh, it's not an official designation, but, uh, you know, it's a, it's a role I've stepped into and I feel like I've grown into pretty well. [00:37:48] One of the things that jumped is, all right, so we got a couple of things going on. [00:37:54] One, my mom is in an Apple family organized to buy my dad's Apple ID. [00:37:59] Now what? [00:38:00] All the purchases have been made in general on dad's Apple ID, including their Apple one premiere subscription. [00:38:06] Okay. [00:38:07] Well, you know, next eight, you can imagine my next eight Google searches or coggy searches. [00:38:13] All right. [00:38:14] Well, how do you change head of house or organizer of a family answer? [00:38:19] You cannot. [00:38:19] Okay. [00:38:20] Well, how can I transfer the purchases from an organizer to somebody else in the family? [00:38:28] You cannot. [00:38:28] Okay. [00:38:29] Is there a process by which I can make somebody sort of like a legacy page on Facebook, a legacy [00:38:35] human Apple ID? [00:38:37] No. [00:38:39] Okay. [00:38:40] So what do I do? [00:38:41] And they're like, well, you can call Apple support and they may need a death certificate, [00:38:45] but then you can call them and then they can do some amount of stuff, but some, but you don't [00:38:52] get to know what. [00:38:52] And once you kind of go through that process, the Apple ID gets like locked out or that's a, [00:38:57] that's a risk. [00:38:58] And all the sort of, you know, contingent, other things related to that. [00:39:02] I was like, all right, well, I don't necessarily want to do that as a first resort, but I do got [00:39:09] to figure this out because having just like this extra Apple, having this whole like digital [00:39:14] twin to borrow a, an industry term, continue to be a part of a, you know, an Apple family, [00:39:22] a one password family or all this for years into years, just because the software companies [00:39:27] don't make it logistically possible to die. [00:39:30] Uh, that seems great, you know, like, like, so working through that, you know, like I, I still [00:39:38] don't quite have a solution to that. [00:39:39] I'm just going to get through a couple of billing cycles on all the other stuff first, [00:39:43] before I think too hard about it. [00:39:44] Just kidding. [00:39:45] I've thought really hard about it and I've got a 15 step, you know, uh, set of to do's, [00:39:50] but they're just gonna, I gracefully, mercifully, I mercifully punted them two weeks into the [00:39:56] future. [00:39:56] Uh, I, one of the biggest things other than the Apple family stuff was my, my dad had just [00:40:09] bought a new iPhone 16. [00:40:12] I, and he set it up and all that stuff, but my mom was on an older one, like a 12 pro or a 12 mini or a 13 mini. [00:40:19] And it didn't make sense to leave her with the old phone and the new 16, just like in a drawer, [00:40:30] it made sense to give her the new phone. [00:40:33] Right. [00:40:34] Otherwise that the other phone's old enough. [00:40:36] It's like, I'll just be back in six months or, or, or, you know, like we'll, you'll be wasting [00:40:39] money. [00:40:40] So, and that, you know, just like deleting photos of your dad because of a stupid duplication bug, [00:40:45] having to go through a whole bunch of hoops to, to migrate one phone to the other was like the [00:40:50] next challenge. [00:40:52] Cause here was why it was thorny, right? [00:40:54] If, if all of the bank accounts and multi-factor authentication against banks is almost exclusively [00:41:03] SMS, right? [00:41:04] Cause they didn't get on the bandwagon for a, a T O T P or, you know, like you scan the QR code and you [00:41:11] get an authenticator app to, to show it. [00:41:13] And because they, they certainly don't support pass keys. [00:41:16] Uh, we can't just turn off dad's cellular line until we work through all the financial stuff. [00:41:22] But at the same time, okay. [00:41:25] So like if I'm resetting dad's phone and moving mom's stuff onto dad's phone, then how do I [00:41:30] transfer, how do I get these, how do I make it so that dad's SIM doesn't just disappear? [00:41:35] Cause like last thing I want to do is have to call T-Mobile and explain, and then set up the [00:41:41] old phone from scratch and then have them like, I guess, restart the e-SIM process over the phone [00:41:46] on Christmas, you know, Christmas Eve or whatever. [00:41:51] So I, um, I came up with like a towers of Hanoi solution that I actually kind of liked. [00:41:56] What I did was I transferred dad's SIM from the 16 to mom's 13, call it. [00:42:03] So now she had two SIMs on her phone. [00:42:05] She had her primary SIM and dad's SIM, uh, e-SIM. [00:42:09] Uh, uh, and then I, oh, and the 13 or the 12, whatever has one physical and one e-SIM. [00:42:17] And she fortunately had a physical SIM in there. [00:42:19] So she was able to, to, to receive dad's old e-SIM. [00:42:22] So now the 13 of that stage has a physical, a physical nano SIM and an e-SIM. [00:42:27] And then that allowed me to go to dad's phone, back it up, of course, and all that, and then [00:42:32] wipe it. [00:42:33] Cause it had no cellular plan on it. [00:42:35] And then you set it up new, you set it up for mom. [00:42:40] And during that wizard, you know, you do the direct transfer, they're connected via, you [00:42:45] know, USB cables or whatever. [00:42:46] You set it up for mom. [00:42:49] And she has to, she, it says, Hey, you're ready to transfer your cellular plans. [00:42:56] I'm like, yes. [00:42:56] And then I, it's, I realized it's not, you click, you tap one in it and a check box goes [00:43:02] up next to that number. [00:43:03] And then you check the other one and the check box, the check mark moves. [00:43:07] It's clearly like it doesn't support actually initializing a phone with two SIMs, which means [00:43:14] now it's like, okay, so I'll move for a primary SIM first as part of this direct transfer. [00:43:20] And then the direct transfer, because her router was simultaneously and coincidentally failing, [00:43:25] the direct transfer failed because the wifi timed out. [00:43:30] And when you're in the direct transfer mode between two phones in that setting, you can't [00:43:36] like get to control center and turn off the wifi nick. [00:43:39] So then I've got these two phones that I can clearly tell are timing out in the activation [00:43:43] process while the SIM is moving. [00:43:45] And I'm like, fuck sake. [00:43:47] But it's also like a mesh router and there's three mesh access points throughout the house [00:43:52] and I don't know where they are. [00:43:53] So I, I can't just unplug them and make the SSID go away. [00:43:57] So then I would like throw on my winter coat, it's fucking freezing outside and I start marching [00:44:03] down the street until I can get to like far enough away that they both lose the wifi signal [00:44:09] so that the transfer doesn't fail. [00:44:11] So I, it took 15 houses. [00:44:14] I'm, you know, in, in, in, in, uh, uh, my winter coat, 15 houses, they finally get onto [00:44:21] five G and then the, the, the transfer starts succeeding. [00:44:23] And then I start walking back and then it's just instantly says failed. [00:44:26] So then I get back to the house, start the whole thing over again. [00:44:30] And now of course, mom's primary SIM is like trapped on the first phone or the second, the [00:44:36] new 16, but in setting it up again, it doesn't see it anymore because like it was just at that [00:44:41] perfect moment when all the e-sim juice lands in the 16 or whatever. [00:44:48] So I started the whole process over again. [00:44:50] I, I, I set it up fair and square and then I, I, uh, uh, it all went fine after a few hours. [00:44:59] And then the last thing it does is the 13 or whatever says, Hey, okay, time to delete [00:45:04] me. [00:45:04] And then it's like a, basically two taps and you've deleted the phone that just was the [00:45:08] sender or the old phone in the transfer process. [00:45:11] And I almost habitually clicked it. [00:45:13] And I was like, wait, no, that will delete the SIM, the e-sim. [00:45:16] So click, no, cancel out of that, restart the phone. [00:45:20] And then, and then you can transfer that second SIM back to the first one. [00:45:23] So like when that was just two phones, just moving to e-sims, like again, you know, note [00:45:28] to Apple, like this could probably be made easier. [00:45:31] Uh, it's just, it's edge cases like this, that all software companies are really, really bad [00:45:37] at, uh, especially ones that don't have a great track record of automated testing and stuff [00:45:43] like, so I get it. [00:45:45] I know why it happened. [00:45:47] The other thing that sucked was a dad had an Apple card and if we're not going to have [00:45:52] a phone with dad on it, you don't want, there's no other fucking way to cancel an Apple card. [00:45:57] You have to be on the phone that has the Apple card to cancel it. [00:46:01] But if there's no phone with Fred on it, like that meant I, that forced the issue. [00:46:05] Like I'm not, I'm putting off all the financial stuff, right? [00:46:07] But I had to cancel the Apple card, but I had a balance. [00:46:10] So now I've got to like pay a balance on this Apple card. [00:46:13] And of course the banking connection, he didn't like, like it expired or something. [00:46:18] So I have to go and find the banking information. [00:46:21] I log in, whatever I hit cancel. [00:46:23] And it's, you can cancel the card. [00:46:25] It wants you to pay the balance first. [00:46:27] I tried to pay the exact balance. [00:46:30] It was $218 and 17 cents. [00:46:32] I, and I tried 15 goddamn times. [00:46:35] Uh, I changed to a different bank and it said insufficient balance. [00:46:41] And I was like, does that mean like the checking accounts overdrawn? [00:46:45] So then I'm panicking. [00:46:45] It's like, so I go into the bank account. [00:46:47] I'm like, is it easy overdrawn or what? [00:46:50] Hour of, you know, me retrying and doing this only to realize that there's a fucking bug, [00:46:58] a rounding bug of sub decimal sense. [00:47:02] Because when it said $218 and 17 cents as being the balance owed, it was probably a floating [00:47:09] point under there of $218 and call it 16.51 cents. [00:47:16] Because when I tried to do $218 and 17 cents, it failed. [00:47:21] It's an insufficient balance, which made me think insufficient funds. [00:47:25] But then I had the bright idea to try just one penny less than that. [00:47:28] And it cleared. [00:47:30] It meant that you can't make a payment on the card that is in excess of what is owed on the [00:47:35] card. [00:47:35] And it saw that fraction of a penny as being, oh, hey now, a little too generous. [00:47:40] So an Apple, you know, be good guy, Apple, making sure people can't overpay. [00:47:44] Also, the bad guy, Apple doesn't write tests or use, you know, appropriate data structures [00:47:50] for storing goddamn dollars. [00:47:52] Results in, I can't close this card out. [00:47:56] So eventually, so I got it down to one penny. [00:47:58] And then when it was down to one penny, it let me pay one penny, which is separately hilarious. [00:48:02] So I close the Apple card and then the Apple card says, all right, you're closed now. [00:48:09] The card is removed from all your devices. [00:48:14] Now monitor for the next few months and make payments against anything that shows up in [00:48:18] the statement, right? [00:48:19] Because like, that's how credit cards work. [00:48:20] Things don't post immediately. [00:48:22] I was like, well, I have no idea what was getting charged onto this thing. [00:48:26] What might hit it? [00:48:28] I'd scrolled through a statement. [00:48:31] I had a feeling it wouldn't be bad. [00:48:32] But then of course, like as soon as I wipe that phone, I even restored it. [00:48:36] I restored dad's Apple ID onto another phone because I had a burner phone back when I got [00:48:42] home just to see like, would it, would it, would it, would the, would it, the iCloud sync [00:48:47] work, you know, where your wallet shit just shows up in the new phone just magically after [00:48:52] setup. [00:48:52] And the answer is no, because the Apple card is closed. [00:48:55] So there's no reason to put the Apple card on the new phone. [00:48:58] People would be confused, even though it's just in this removed state of like, watch the [00:49:01] balance, which means now that once the phone gets wiped, there's actually no way to pay [00:49:06] a balance. [00:49:06] If one were to materialize, I guess it would just go to collections. [00:49:10] So now, you know, like, please don't post any transactions to my dad's defunct Apple card. [00:49:16] Cause like, I don't have any fucking way to pay it. [00:49:18] There's card.apple.com. [00:49:19] But like, that's just for downloading statements. [00:49:22] So great job, Apple, like you should really make it easier to die. [00:49:26] Like, fuck, fuck it's sake. [00:49:27] This is a, I realized this has been a lot. [00:49:33] I'm going to move right along. [00:49:37] While we were up, we wanted to just, we needed a break. [00:49:42] It'd been like day after day of the same, you know, emotional and logistical tumult. [00:49:48] Just a real grind. [00:49:49] So we want to go see a movie and like, like, uh, uh, Jeremy had expressed interest in seeing [00:49:53] wicked, which is an autobiography about Ariana Grande as a person, as best I can tell. [00:50:00] Real just, she seems like a piece of shit in real life, but also she got to play one in [00:50:08] a movie. [00:50:08] And so like, uh, it's like one of those things where it's like, well, that Bill Murray just [00:50:12] like plays himself. [00:50:13] And it just so happens that he is such a delightful and interesting person that everything he's [00:50:18] in is always amazing. [00:50:19] So I'm glad she got to play herself. [00:50:21] It seemed well acted, but I knew it was probably just who she is. [00:50:27] Uh, huge fan. [00:50:31] Uh, so anyway, we went to see wicked and all of a sudden, you know, we joked about it beforehand, [00:50:37] but like, I can't, I don't understand lyrics. [00:50:39] I have a thing I've got a, uh, a worm lives inside my brain. [00:50:43] And whenever there's a song playing, uh, that worm starts humming and I can't hear the lyrics [00:50:49] to the song. [00:50:50] I can't understand or discriminate where the words are starting and stopping. [00:50:53] I can't tell what is being said. [00:50:56] And if I can barely make it out, then I'm so overwrought and focusing on what's being said. [00:51:01] Then, then I kind of lose the thread. [00:51:02] Like I'll hear the individual words if I really focus, but then not understand what is being [00:51:08] communicated through lyrics. [00:51:10] At the same time, you go to a musical, you go to like, when I went to Hamilton, this was [00:51:15] like extremely clear. [00:51:16] It's like, Oh, I, I put, we went to Hamilton, uh, when, when Hamilton was still cool and not [00:51:21] seen as some sort of, you know, uh, uh, white supremacist whitewashing by putting BIPOC [00:51:27] people in, in these roles and whatnot, 2020 was a hell of a year, uh, when we went to [00:51:33] Hamilton, I got, they got through the first number and I was like, that was very impressive. [00:51:38] I, I appreciate the, this tonal, you know, interesting take. [00:51:43] This is like very like, like skillfully and artfully, uh, done. [00:51:47] Uh, and then, uh, you know, then they go straight into another song and I turned to Becky. [00:51:54] He was like, is there, is there no talking in this one? [00:51:56] Is there zero spoken dialogue in this? [00:52:00] And it turned out that the answer was yes. [00:52:02] And I was like, I don't understand anything. [00:52:04] And so, uh, when we went to Hamilton, which I'd paid a lot of money to go to, uh, I walked [00:52:09] to the lobby in the middle of the show. [00:52:12] And then I ordered like two thingies of wine, uh, which I paid a lot of money for the wine. [00:52:20] And then I got back to the seat, threw back both wines and fell asleep. [00:52:23] So that was Hamilton for me. [00:52:26] So here I am at wicked and we're in the first little ditty. [00:52:28] And I'm like, I don't understand any of these fucking words. [00:52:33] I don't, I don't know what's happening. [00:52:35] And I've got to worry that this is going to be a song heavy movie, which it was. [00:52:40] So I was like, you know what, like normally I'd be embarrassed to do this, [00:52:44] but I'm going to go to the front and say, like, I'm hard of hearing. [00:52:49] Can I have a subtitle machine dingus? [00:52:52] I knew that theaters had them. [00:52:55] I didn't really know how they worked or what they were, if they were any good. [00:52:58] But I was like, you know, for the sake of science and technology, I'm going to try the [00:53:02] subtitle dingus. [00:53:04] So I went to the front, I went to the little, like, you know, whatever ticket booth, and [00:53:08] they handed me a gooseneck snake thing where the bottom is like, it's like a, a drill that [00:53:17] would bore a tunnel, but it goes in the cup holder. [00:53:20] So it's like a cup holder drill and it screws in. [00:53:23] So it goes in the cup holder. [00:53:25] You screw it in to secure it. [00:53:27] And then there's a long gooseneck, a too long, in my opinion, gooseneck. [00:53:31] It's like probably two feet. [00:53:34] If you don't know the term gooseneck, like, like, like, like bendy, like, like, you know, [00:53:42] relatively thick, not a cable, but like a, like a pole that is pliable. [00:53:48] So you can bend it in all sorts of different directions to kind of adjust it. [00:53:53] And then on the top, it was a, a device that had a blinder on the top so that other people [00:53:59] weren't getting a whole bunch of illumination and seeing subtitles and a radio system in [00:54:05] the center, as well as like a kind of internal projector unit. [00:54:08] And so it was very interesting to see how these worked. [00:54:11] You would, and, and, and honestly, because I was uninterested in the Ariana Grande story, [00:54:16] I was mostly just futzing with, and it gave me something to do for the three and a half [00:54:23] hours. [00:54:23] By the way, I had been told that there was an intermission and I was told that because somebody [00:54:29] had in the game of telephone and said they broke it up into two parts. [00:54:32] So like I went in expecting an intermission and then we're like three hours in, it's almost [00:54:37] like 11 fucking o'clock. [00:54:38] And I'm like, I got to pee, but like, I hear there's an intermission. [00:54:41] How late are we going to be here? [00:54:44] So that was, that kept me busy too. [00:54:46] I had something else to do, but anyway, the, the, the subtitle machine was really interesting [00:54:50] because as you look at it and once you get it configured, right, you realize like while [00:55:00] I was walking down the, the, the corridor, it just said, Hey, you know, go inside the theater [00:55:06] or whatever. [00:55:07] When you go in the side of theater, it'll just start showing up. [00:55:09] And when I looked inside the theater, just at the, at the edge of the theater, it was like, [00:55:14] malfunctioning. [00:55:15] It said like something about an, a reader. [00:55:16] And then I realized, Oh, what's happening here is, and this is really one of those kind [00:55:20] of old school, cool technology, you know, innovations where they couldn't just use a digital system [00:55:27] for this per se. [00:55:28] Like a protocol, right? [00:55:30] Like if you were to build this today, these would be like lithium ion battery devices that [00:55:34] would have some charging dock and some kind of software that ran on, like on top of some [00:55:38] minimal Linux stack. [00:55:40] And then it would use the, the, the theater's wifi to send subtitles, which would require [00:55:46] all of this configuration, right? [00:55:47] Like, okay, now punch in on the touch screen on your subtitle device, like which theater, [00:55:52] which theater you're in and which movie time. [00:55:54] And we'll play it. [00:55:55] Right. [00:55:55] But instead, this was just like a short wave radio system. [00:55:58] So you'd be inside the theater and every theater you, you've never even noticed this. [00:56:03] Probably you're in the theater and you're watching a movie. [00:56:06] And the subtitle machine is just receiving these waves that you can't see because the projector [00:56:13] area, I presume is just always blasting out radio waves of the current line of dialogue. [00:56:20] You just didn't have the device to see it. [00:56:22] And so I got the thing screwed in with Jeremy's help because I'm not very handy and I got to [00:56:29] actually follow along the rest of the movie, which makes me an authority on, on, on being [00:56:34] able to say not that great. [00:56:35] Not very interesting. [00:56:37] I I'm on the Kinsey scale. [00:56:40] I'm all the way to hetero male, which means musical theater is not, doesn't come naturally [00:56:48] to me in terms of being like something that gets me real excited deep down there. [00:56:53] Uh, sorry if that's you, I'm just saying it's not it anyway. [00:57:02] Uh, yeah. [00:57:03] So that was, that was pretty cool. [00:57:05] Uh, other life stuff. [00:57:13] Well, the, the version, I guess tying a bow around the, uh, the trip up there and all [00:57:21] that realizing I've gone an hour on it now. [00:57:25] People, when you move from the Midwest United States to Florida and you do it because you [00:57:35] feel like the Midwest kind of sucks, you know, it's cold. [00:57:38] A lot of the time, uh, a lot of the rest belt States are, well, they're called rust belt. [00:57:45] They're dying economically. [00:57:46] There's less economic activity. [00:57:48] There's less new stuff. [00:57:50] There's less vibrancy. [00:57:51] Uh, when you move from the Midwest to Florida and you have a great setup there and lots of sunshine [00:58:00] and, and, and, and stuff to do people react in very different ways. [00:58:08] No one just says, Oh my God, that's so great for you. [00:58:10] I'm really, really happy for you. [00:58:11] Wow. [00:58:12] That sounds awesome. [00:58:12] I mean, some people kind of do, uh, a lot of people are either jealous or in some state [00:58:20] of denial or, or frustration by it, you know, like you feel abandoned or whatnot. [00:58:27] I think, I think the people who genuinely think the Midwest is better and the people who are [00:58:34] jealous, both end up asking the same question of us Midwestern expats. [00:58:41] And that, that question is, do you regret it yet? [00:58:44] God, I've been down here for four years. [00:58:48] Right. [00:58:49] And here I am. [00:58:50] My dad just died. [00:58:52] Just put on a funeral, you know, staying at a Hampton Inn. [00:58:57] Huh? [00:58:59] A Hampton Inn where like, it was a great experience. [00:59:02] The staff were really great, but like they had a desk in the laundry room that was never screwed [00:59:07] in or, or, or secured properly. [00:59:08] So I set down my brand new MacBook pro and a Coke, a can of Coke. [00:59:13] And then it just collapsed all of it all at once to the floor. [00:59:17] So my MacBook got soaking wet and Coke. [00:59:19] And also the, the unibody enclosure got super scraped up. [00:59:23] And, uh, the, the day before the funeral, I was all, you know, in a lot of neck pain from, [00:59:29] from the fall and the general manager still hasn't gotten back to me. [00:59:33] It was gray outside. [00:59:35] It was cold. [00:59:37] You know, and I, and I was struggling like for activities and things we could do as a [00:59:42] family and, and settled. [00:59:43] Uh, and the best, most entertaining thing to do was the Ariana Grande story. [00:59:50] And they ask, do you regret it yet? [00:59:52] Like totally just straight. [00:59:56] Every time we go back, I thought like, this is going to be the trip. [01:00:00] I go back and I don't have a single person ask me that, but then it came up relative at the [01:00:06] wake. [01:00:09] And I was like, man, thank you for asking. [01:00:11] You know, I think about it a lot. [01:00:14] I love Michigan. [01:00:14] Michigan's beautiful in the summers, but inside I'm like, come on. [01:00:17] No, I don't regret it. [01:00:19] Yes. [01:00:20] I'm already homesick. [01:00:21] Uh, it's fucking awesome here. [01:00:23] I'm not going to lie. [01:00:24] Like I live in goddamn paradise. [01:00:26] I don't know why more people don't do it. [01:00:28] I don't, you know, politics are part of the equation for a lot of folks, uh, politics and [01:00:35] policies. [01:00:36] Uh, and I, and I get it, but man, like I am so much fucking happier here just on a [01:00:42] day-to-day basis. [01:00:43] Like you, you blind out all of the sort of like metal layer stuff and just like my meat [01:00:48] bag gets a lot more sun and a lot more movement and a lot more just stuff going on down here. [01:00:53] And so, no, I don't regret it yet. [01:00:54] Uh, but if I ever do, I'll let you know, I've got a podcast, so I definitely will. [01:01:02] Uh, one thing I do regret is eating so, or is, uh, uh, drinking so little dairy in my [01:01:07] twenties because I have become extremely lactose intolerant. [01:01:12] Uh, so I don't have any lactase to the point where even if I drink lactaid, like, like what [01:01:19] they call like lactose free milk, but, but actually is lactose full milk with also lactase enzyme [01:01:25] added to it so that your tummy will process it. [01:01:28] Even when I drink that, I drank 20 grams two nights ago and the whole next day I was [01:01:33] wrecked. [01:01:33] That's not a lot of fucking milk. [01:01:35] Uh, now you call that an allergy or an intolerance. [01:01:39] Um, but like if I want cereal, like it's going to happen. [01:01:42] So sure you can pathologize it, but I was like, I, I am making a trade with my future self. [01:01:48] Like I'm going to put up with some indigestion so that I can have this deal. [01:01:52] Okay. [01:01:53] We're in, uh, if I had a peanut allergy to the point of like anaphylactic shock, I'd be [01:02:01] having the same negotiation. [01:02:03] I would just probably not take the deal most of the time. [01:02:07] Uh, anyway, I finally caved. [01:02:11] Cause like I talking about politics, I am politically, um, unaccepting intolerant of, [01:02:19] uh, milk alternatives. [01:02:22] Cause it's not milk. [01:02:24] People call almond milk, milk. [01:02:26] That's not milk. [01:02:27] That's just squeezed almond. [01:02:29] And like the amount of water that goes into making an almond is insane. [01:02:32] And so the, whatever almond milk is must be not, not really great from a sustainability [01:02:37] perspective. [01:02:38] And it's just, it's not, it's not what it says on the 10. [01:02:41] It shouldn't be allowed to be called milk. [01:02:43] It's like that fake egg product called just egg. [01:02:45] I was like, that's no, it's unjust egg. [01:02:48] This is not an egg. [01:02:49] Uh, so I, I, I caved and I bought Kirkland dairy-free oat beverage is what it says in the [01:03:00] box and oat milk. [01:03:02] And I had that last night and I'm still mad at myself about it, but here we are. [01:03:08] I'm going to say that's, I'm going to cap it at an hour of life updates. [01:03:16] I knew it would be life heavy. [01:03:18] Um, but, and because it's a heavy period of life right now, but if you're curious after all [01:03:24] of this shit and all the storytelling and all me getting stuff off my chest, I'm actually [01:03:28] doing great. [01:03:29] I'm processing things. [01:03:30] Love my dad dearly. [01:03:31] Um, I, I've taken the moments, you know, to be quiet and still and to spend effort and [01:03:44] time genuinely reflecting and going through old things and, you know, letting feelings happen [01:03:51] and letting those memories come by and doing other

Daily Anglican Prayer – Sunday Holy Eucharist at home – 5th January 2025 Readings. Samuel 2. 18-20, 26; Psalm 148; Colossians 3. 12-17; Matthew 2. 1-12. Led by Felicity Scott, a Liturgical Assistant with the Anglican Church, QLD, Australia. The full prayer transcript is available by going to this episode on the Podcast website. https://dailyprayeranglicanprayerbookforaustralia.podbean.com   Welcome to Sunday Holy Eucharist for you at home from the Anglican a prayer book for Australia.   Preparing for this Eucharist: During this service you can minister Eucharist to yourself and your gathered family members. Place on your table if you have them, a Bible, a small glass of red wine or grape juice, pieces of bread or wafers, one piece for each participant, a lighted candle and a cross. Gather all who are to partake in the Eucharist around the table.   The majority of the words of this eucharist are available from page 119 in the Anglican a prayer book for Australia or use the episode link to view the words.   We gather together to celebrate God. The Good News We proclaim the Good News of our Lord Jesus Christ: GOD in his infinite mercy, forgives all sins, and through our baptism in the name of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, we are given a rebirth into new life, free from the burden of all sin. ALLELUIA With faithfulness we respond to the good news: We acknowledge Christ as our saviour and accept with gratitude, that we are forgiven for all wrong doings, past and present. To honour the gift of forgiveness, we release our burden of guilt and rise up to live in the glory of God forever more. Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God forever. Let us Pray.   The greeting The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. And also with you.   The prayer of preparation. Let us pray. Almighty God, To whom all hearts are open, All desires known, And from whom no secrets are hidden, cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name, through Christ our Lord.  Amen   Hear O Israel, the Lord our God the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. Jesus said: ‘This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: you shall love your neighbour as yourself.' The Confession Our Lord Jesus Christ said: Lord, have mercy on us, and write your law in our hearts by your Holy Spirit. Let us confess our sins in penitence and faith confident in God's forgiveness.   Merciful God, our maker and our judge, we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed; And in what we have failed to do: we have not loved you with our whole heart, we have not loved our neighbours as ourselves; we repent and are sorry for all our sins. Father, forgive us. Strengthen us to love and obey you  in newness of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. The Assurance of Forgiveness Almighty God, who has promised forgiveness to all who turn to him in faith, pardon you and set you free from all your sins, strengthen you in all goodness and keep you in eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Lord have mercy Christ have mercy God have mercy The Gloria, we say together Glory to God in the highest and peace to God's people on earth. Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks,  we praise you for your glory. Lord Jesus Christ, only son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world:  have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer. For you alone are the Holy One; you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.     The Collect of the Day – Year B Collect for the celebration of Epiphany. Lord God of the nations, we have seen the star of your glory rising in splendour: may the brightness of your incarnate Word pierce the night that covers the earth, signal the dawn of justice and peace, and beckon all nations to walk as one in your light. We ask this through Jesus Christ, your Word made flesh, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, in the splendour of eternal light, God for ever and ever. Amen. The Prayer of the Week Second Sunday after Christmas O God, by the leading of a star you manifested your only begotten Son to the gentiles: mercifully grant, that we who know you now by faith, may after this life be led to the vision of your glorious Godhead; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen The Old Testament, Scripture Reading 1 Isaiah 60:1-6. 1 Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. 2 For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you. 3 Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. 4 Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far away, and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses' arms. 5 Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice, because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you. 6 A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord. Hear the word of the Lord Thanks be to God. The Psalm Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14. 1 Give the king your judgement, O God: and your righteousness to the son of a king, 2 That he may judge your people rightly: and the poor of the land with equity. 3 Let the mountains be laden with peace because of his righteousness: and the hills also with prosperity for his people. 4 May he give justice to the poor among the people: and rescue the children of the needy, and crush the oppressor. 35 May he live while the sun endures: and while the moon gives light, throughout all generations. 6 May he come down like rain upon the new-mown fields: and as showers that water the earth. 7 In his time shall righteousness flourish: and abundance of peace, till the moon shall be no more. 10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring tribute: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. 11 All kings shall fall down before him: and all nations do him service. 12 He will deliver the needy when they cry: and the poor that have no helper. 13 He will pity the helpless and the needy: and save the lives of the poor. 14 He will redeem them from oppression and violence: and their blood shall be precious in his sight.   The New Testament, Scripture Reading 2 The Second Reading, from the New Testament, Ephesians 3:1-12. 1 This is the reason that I Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles -2 for surely you have already heard of the commission of God's grace that was given to me for you, 3 and how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, 4 a reading of which will enable you 4to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ. 5 In former generations this mystery was not made known to humankind, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: 6 that is, the Gentiles have become fellow-heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 7 Of this gospel I have become a servant according to the gift of God's grace that was given to me by the working of his power. 8 Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, 9 and to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; 10so that through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was in accordance with the eternal purpose that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have access to God in boldness and confidence through faith in him.   The lord be with you. And also with you.   We welcome the gospel: Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia. The Gospel reading. The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew 2:1-12   As you make a small cross signs on your own forehead, left cheek and upper chest, we say together ‘Glory to you Lord Jesus Christ'.   Glory to you Lord Jesus Christ.   1 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.' 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 6 “And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.”' 7 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.' 9 When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.   This is the gospel of the Lord, Praise to You Lord Jesus Christ.           A short homily on Matthew 2: 1-12 Our lack of knowledge is still, keeping the truth at bay, of the connection between the galaxy of stars in the sky and the people on earth. How great a truth it would be if each person had their own star that arose at their awakening, whether at birth like in case of Jesus or later in life. To know that there is a named star out in the galaxy reflecting the bright light that Jesus depicted during His short life brings us closer to the revelation that we can all be bright stars shining in the dark night. To brightly shine our star is to believe in God and have faith in His saving grace despite our trespasses towards each other and ourselves. Today shine your light to bring the bright light of God to the people still in darkness.   Let us pause for a moment to reflect.   The belief and principle is said I believe in God, creator of heaven and earth, whose love and merciful forgiveness endures everlasting. I believe in Christ the saviour, whose example of love and compassion, taught us a restored way to live, in collaborative unity with all people. I believe in the Holy Spirit, whose divine guidance brings us together to be one with the Holy Trinity. The Nicene Creed We believe in God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in Jesus Christ, Son of God, God from God, Light from Light, of one Being with the Father. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried.  On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father in glory and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. Who has spoken through the Prophets. We acknowledge the forgiveness of sins and the life of the world to come. Amen. The Prayers Let us pray for the world and for the church. God, we give you thanks for opening our eyes to witness your hand at work in the gifts that surround us. Thank you for your continued love and blessings in abundance throughout our lives. Bless us with your generous nature good Lord, as we answer your call to minister to your will. Guide us to walk before you in faithfulness, in righteousness and in upright honour towards you. God of Love we ask you.      Hear our Prayer   God, we offer thanks for your blessing of peace across all countries and continents. Give all your servants an understanding mind, able to recognise between good and evil. Give us all wise and discerning minds, that we might know how to honour God in our life. God of Love we ask you.      Hear our Prayer   God, we thank you for the church leaders in Australia, teach them to refresh us through their leadership. Guide our bishops, ministers and lay people and renew our courage to proclaim the good news of Christ in our schools, workplaces, and homes. God of Love we ask you.      Hear our Prayer   God, we pray thanks that with your guidance we live in your light and go out in your name to help others who are less fortunate. We pray that through our reverence in the name of Christ, we become new and maintain our light even when surrounded by darkness. God of Love we ask you.      Hear our Prayer   Heavenly Father, we thank you that through your Son Jesus Christ, you have shown us the way to live and breathe in your righteousness. Give us the strength to remain in your presence in all we do. Help us to be willing advocates of your work, guiding our actions to a better life for all. God of Love we ask you.      Hear our Prayer   We pause for a moment for you to pray for your own petitions.     Almighty God you have promised to hear our prayers. Grant that what we have asked in faith  we may by your grace receive, through Jesus Christ our lord. Amen   The greeting of peace: We are the body of Christ. His spirit is with us.   The peace of the lord be always with you And also, with you.   Let us all exchange a sign of peace. The Preparation for the Lord's Supper We do not presume to come to your table, merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in your manifold and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under your table. But you are the same Lord whose nature is always to have mercy. Grant us, therefore gracious Lord, so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his blood, that we may evermore dwell in him, and he is us. Amen. The thanksgiving: Lift up your hearts. We lift them to the Lord. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right to give Him thanks and praise. All glory and honour be yours always and everywhere mighty creator ever living God. We give you thanks and praise for our saviour Jesus Christ who by the power of your spirit was born of Mary and lived as one of us. By his death on the cross and rising to new life he offered the one true sacrifice for sin and obtained an eternal deliverance for his people. Therefore, with angels and archangels, and with the whole company of heaven, we proclaim your great and glorious name, forever praising you, and saying: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, Heaven and earth are full of your glory.  Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he that comes in the name of the LORD. Hosanna in the highest. Merciful God we thank you for these gifts of your creation, this bread and wine, and we pray that by your word and Holy Spirit we who eat and drink them may be partakers of Christ body and blood. On the night he was betrayed Jesus took bread and when he had given you thanks he broke it and gave it to his disciples saying ‘take eat. This is my body given for you do this in remembrance of me.' After supper he took the cup and again giving you thanks he gave it to his disciples saying drink from this all of you this is my blood of the new covenant shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me. The memorial acclamation: Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again. Therefore, we do as our saviour has commanded proclaiming his offering of himself made once for all upon the cross his mighty resurrection and glorious ascension and looking for his coming again we celebrate with this bread and this cup his one perfect and sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the whole world.   Renew us by your Holy Spirit, unite us in the body of your son and bring us with all your people into the joy of your eternal Kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord with whom and in whom, in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, we worship you father in songs of never ending praise. Blessing and honour and glory and power are yours for ever and ever.  Amen. The Lord's Prayer As our saviour Christ has taught us, we are confident to pray, Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your Name your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.  For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and for ever. Amen. We break this bread to share in the body of Christ. We who are many are one body, for we all share in the one bread. Jesus Lamb of God, have mercy on us. Jesus bearer of our sins, have mercy on us. Jesus redeemer of the world, grant us your peace. The gifts of God for the people of God. Come, let us take this holy sacrament of the body and blood of Christ in remembrance that He died for us, and feed on Him in our hearts by faith, with thanksgiving. As we minister the bread to each of the people gathered, we say: ‘The body of Christ, keep you in eternal life', and they respond with: ‘Amen'. As we minister the cup to each of the people gathered, we say: ‘The blood of Christ, the cup of salvation, keep you in eternal life'; and they respond with: ‘Amen'. Please pause the recording while you minister the gifts and offer personal prayers of gratitude. On Continuing: Living God, in this holy meal you fill us with NewHope. May the power of your love, which we have known in word and sacrament, continue your saving work among us, give us courage for our pilgrimage, and bring us to the joys, you promise.   We say together: Most loving God, you send us into the world you love. Give us grace to go thankfully and with courage, in the power of your holy spirit. The Final Blessing The peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you, and remain with you always. Amen. The Dismissal We have today proclaimed the message of Christ in our homes, go forth and proclaim the message of Christ in your streets, towns, cities and countries, that all are saved by the death and resurrection of our saviour. Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. In the name of Christ, Amen.  Music by John Keys – Anglican Chant Canticle organ accompaniments. A reminder disclaimer to the listener. The readings in the podcast may include ancient and old-fashioned sayings and instructions that we do not in any way condone as in use or to be used in today's modern world. The readings have not been modernised to reflect todays thinking, instead the readings remain from the old version of the NRSV bible. The podcast owners explicitly declare that each listener is responsible for their own actions in response to the bible readings and the podcast owners bare no responsibility in this sense.   End.

1:1 Paul, a prisoner of Jesus Christ, and Timothy our brother, unto Philemon our dearly beloved, and fellowlabourer, 1:2 And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellowsoldier, and to the church in thy house: 1:3 Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 1:4 I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers, 1:5 Hearing of thy love and faith, which thou hast toward the Lord Jesus, and toward all saints; 1:6 That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus. 1:7 For we have great joy and consolation in thy love, because the bowels of the saints are refreshed by thee, brother. 1:8 Wherefore, though I might be much bold in Christ to enjoin thee that which is convenient, 1:9 Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ. 1:10 I beseech thee for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my bonds: 1:11 Which in time past was to thee unprofitable, but now profitable to thee and to me: 1:12 Whom I have sent again: thou therefore receive him, that is, mine own bowels: 1:13 Whom I would have retained with me, that in thy stead he might have ministered unto me in the bonds of the gospel: 1:14 But without thy mind would I do nothing; that thy benefit should not be as it were of necessity, but willingly. 1:15 For perhaps he therefore departed for a season, that thou shouldest receive him for ever; 1:16 Not now as a servant, but above a servant, a brother beloved, specially to me, but how much more unto thee, both in the flesh, and in the Lord? 1:17 If thou count me therefore a partner, receive him as myself. 1:18 If he hath wronged thee, or oweth thee ought, put that on mine account; 1:19 I Paul have written it with mine own hand, I will repay it: albeit I do not say to thee how thou owest unto me even thine own self besides. 1:20 Yea, brother, let me have joy of thee in the Lord: refresh my bowels in the Lord. 1:21 Having confidence in thy obedience I wrote unto thee, knowing that thou wilt also do more than I say. 1:22 But withal prepare me also a lodging: for I trust that through your prayers I shall be given unto you. 1:23 There salute thee Epaphras, my fellowprisoner in Christ Jesus; 1:24 Marcus, Aristarchus, Demas, Lucas, my fellowlabourers. 1:25 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 1:16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 1:17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 1:19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; 1:20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. 1:21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 1:22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: 1:23 If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;

PODCAST Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭27‬-‭32‬ ‭KJV‬‬ “and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.” ——- Galatians‬ ‭5‬:‭1‬-‭26‬ ‭KJV‬‬ “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased. I would they were even cut off which trouble you. For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.” ——- John‬ ‭15‬:‭2‬-‭5‬ ‭KJV‬‬ “Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” ——- Matthew‬ ‭3‬:‭7‬-‭10‬ ‭KJV‬‬ “But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: and think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.” Sent from my iPhone

Confess Your Promises (audio) David Eells 8/28/24     Keeping God's commandment is not too hard if we understand the keys. Deu 30:11 For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not too hard for thee, neither is it far off… 14 But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it. 5 See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil. The key here is, if the Word is in our mouth and heart, we can do it. Pro.18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue; And they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. The tongue has the power to give life, which makes it easy to keep His commandments. Speaking them into existence and agreeing with Him is the key.   Confirming the words so we can do them is the key. Deu 27:26 Cursed be he that confirmeth not the words of this law to do them. And all the people shall say, Amen. He goes on to talk about the blessings in Deuteronomy 28:1-14 and the curses in Deuteronomy 28:15-68. The blessings come to those who confirm the word. We are called to speak in agreement with God's Word, not add to it or take away from it, under penalty of a curse. Rev 22:18 I testify unto every man that heareth the words of this book, If any man shall add unto them, God shall add unto him the plagues which are written in this book: 19 and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the tree of life, and out of the holy city, which are written in this book.   In James, we're told that the man is a perfect man who has control over the tongue. (Jas 3:2) For in many things we all stumble. If any stumbleth not in word, the same is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body also. Now we see that, if a person can speak in agreement with God's Word, he will be able to obey because he will be able to bridle the whole body also. Speaking is a manifestation of faith. Faith without works is dead; it's unfruitful according to Jas 2:17. When we speak in agreement with the Word, we bring the power of God into the situation; otherwise, it is just dead religion. So, since our words can bring blessings and curses, we must, therefore, come into agreement with God's precious Word that we may receive the blessings.  Read it, speak it, and live.  Psa 107:2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say [so], Whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the adversary. We've been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. It's absolutely necessary that our faith be completed with works, according to James 2. The tongue and what we say are the most common way that we fulfill our faith. Faith that is not spoken or acted upon is faith that will not bring you anything. So, if we say we've been redeemed, we had better be talking that way. Many people destroy the works of God with their tongue. Out of one side of their mouth they claim that they believe that they were redeemed, but out of the other side they speak against it and they destroy it.    Col 1:14 In whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. The word “redemption” means “a release on payment of a ransom.” We owed a debt we couldn't pay and Jesus paid a debt He didn't owe. A ransom is a price that is paid to release someone who is under a curse or in bondage. We've been in bondage to the curse, the old man, the devil, the world, sickness and all the bad things that go along with that.   Yet, Jesus paid the price to set us free; He paid a ransom so the devil would no longer have authority over us because we have the forgiveness of our sins. A ransom, according to Scripture, is something that must be confessed according to Psalm 107:2 Let the redeemed of Jehovah say so... We have many opportunities to confess Him before men according to Matthew 10:32 so that He, as the High Priest of our confession, can have an offering and confess us before the Father and we in turn receive the promises.    It's not good enough to just loosely say, “I've been redeemed.” When we have the opportunity to profess and confess that redemption in the midst of our trials and don't do it, we are negating what we say we believe. We are not bringing the benefits of the Kingdom to bear upon our life or our circumstances. Redemption covers all of the curse. Gal 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 14 that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.   The curse of the Law in Deuteronomy 28 includes all of those negative things that happen to sinners. We see the curse all around us and even in our own life, until we exercise the authority that we have been given to come out from under it. Jesus paid the price, the penalty, for the curse that we would normally bear. We were redeemed. If we fail in our confession, we can renounce this, confess it to the Lord, and begin again.  Psa 107:2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say [so]…. Why? Because faith without works is dead according to Jas 2:17. When we get into a situation that involves a curse (something which most of Christianity considers to be quite normal), we should know that the normal Christian life is a life delivered from the power of the curse of sin.     We understand the truth of the Gospel, that the Lord paid for our sins and we've been forgiven of our sins; therefore, we are no longer under the curse. Jesus bore that curse for us. We're not supposed to bear it and it doesn't please the Father that we bear it because His Son suffered and died to bear it, and for nothing in most lives. But we will bear it, if we do not confess our redemption.    When you read the Bible confess those things you see you lack, as yours. Jesus said, According to your faith be it done unto you in Mat 8:13; 9:29. When we agree with God's Word, when we watch our heart and tongue, and even ask the Lord to keep our tongue, then God is able to help us confess in the midst of the situations and trials that we are redeemed. Psa 141:3 Set a watch, O Jehovah, before my mouth; Keep the door of my lips.  It doesn't matter what the curse is; we have been redeemed from it. Jesus paid the penalty and we don't have to live under it. We are supposed to agree with this and speak our redemption, which is that we've been redeemed from the power of sin and its curse according to Romans 6:18, 22. According to this Jesus “made you free from sin.” So He solved this problem. Do you confess that you still have a problem with sin after you have confessed it to him?   Or do you know that the Lamb of God took away the sins of the world in John 1:29? Do you know that God made reconciliation already and sin is not a problem for you any longer, since He's taken care of it? Now you are to reckon yourself dead unto sin, as the Lord commanded. Rom 6:11 Reckon (Consider it done) ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. (What will this do if we believe it?) 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey the lusts thereof:   Are you going to “let the redeemed of the Lord say so”? Are you going to confess your sins and then confess that you have been delivered and redeemed from the power of sin? Most Christians don't believe this because they have been taught otherwise. There are many aspects of our redemption that we need to confess before the Savior and High Priest of our confession (Hebrews 3:1; 4:14). Who then offers them as our sacrifice (Hebrews 13:15) before the Father. He has redeemed us out of all trouble. Psa 25:22 Redeem Israel, O God, Out of all his troubles. He has delivered us from the curse. How many troubles would we get out of, if we would just turn to God and confess His redemption? He has delivered us from all evil.    Gen 48:16 The angel who hath redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads... Jacob blessed Joseph's sons and this is our blessing, too. The apostle Paul said, The Lord will deliver me from every evil work, in 2Ti 4:18. Do you believe that this is God's plan? Most Christians believe their old life, which is their human nature. They believe that the normal Christian life is just to wait on the Lord to come and save them, but there is a battle to be won before this happens. A few believe in divine healing and a few in deliverance, yet redemption is deliverance from all evil and all of our enemies.   What can we identify as enemies? The flesh, the lusts of the flesh, the devil, principalities and powers, the world, the curse and so on. Luk 1:68 Blessed [be] the Lord, the God of Israel; For he hath visited and wrought redemption for his people, 69 And hath raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of his servant David 70 (As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets that have been from of old), 71 Salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; 72 To show mercy towards our fathers, And to remember his holy covenant; 73 The oath which he sware unto Abraham our father, 74 To grant unto us that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies Should serve him without fear, 75 In holiness and righteousness before him all our days.   That's what redemption paid for! Glory to God! Most Christians never receive the fullness of what's been paid for by Jesus Christ because they don't confess their full redemption shown in many promises. He has redeemed us from a life of vanity, foolishness and failure. 1Pe 1:18 Knowing that ye were redeemed, not with corruptible things, with silver or gold, from your vain manner of life handed down from your fathers. We have been redeemed from our “vain manner of life,” a worthless and useless life. If you look at the life of the disciples, the apostles and Jesus, you will see a self-sacrificial life, not a life of materialism and pleasing self. They lived lives of sacrifice for others.    This was anything but a “vain manner of life.” Most people live, whether in peace and prosperity or not, a “vain manner of life,” given over to the corruption of the world. They ...strain out the gnat, and swallow the camel (Mat 23:24), making little things big and big things little. Important things are not important to them. What we need to do is confess that we have all of Christ. He was given to us as a gift. He now lives in us and we no longer live according to Paul's confession in Gal 2:20. We need to confess this before men, although I know it's a very unpopular thing to do, even before Christians.   But the Father has given us the life of Jesus through the reconciliation. Col 1:22 Yet now hath he reconciled (Or “exchanged”, meaning His life for ours.) in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and unreprovable before him: 23 if so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister. God gave the life of Jesus to us and took our lives and nailed them to the Cross.    Psa 103:4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; Who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies. We've been redeemed from destruction. If you look up the word “redeemed” or “redemption” in your Bible concordance, you will see how much has been provided.   The Lord Jesus has bought us out of bondage from the devil. The devil had his rights over us because we had sinned and we had no sacrifice, but now that we have a sacrifice, we must believe and confess the redemption that the Lord has given us so we can receive it. If we hold redemption only as a religious dogma and do not confess it with our mouth and accept it in our mind, then it's worthless.   Num 14:1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. 2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3 And wherefore doth the Lord bring us unto this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will be a prey: were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And God replied… 28  Say unto them, As I live, saith Jehovah, surely as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you:  29  your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, that have murmured against me.   The Israelites spoke this against the promises of God because the spies had come back from spying out the land and told of the giants there and spoke of themselves as grasshoppers before these great giants. These giants represent our flesh that most don't believe they can conquer. Also, we must not speak what destroys others faith. They saw the Land of the promises, milk and honey and luscious fruit for 40 days but all they thought and spoke of were the giants.   Now get this: We have a refuge land of promise given to us by promises in dreams, visions, Words, types etc. And also we have received the promises for all of our needs to be met. And it is all free to you… We are each individually responsible to exorcise faith to take the Land of promises so it is not “revoked” and we are “disinherited” and “die in the wilderness” as we shall see. (Beware you do not go to this land for selfish purposes as some have and died in sin there.) I asked the Lord why many have not received this already. He said, “because too many are not exorcising their own faith to receive these things.” I also have known people who were counting on my faith to be enough. We will see that God wants your faith to count for you and yours. I have done my job up to this point. I have consistently claimed Father would supply the funds “abundantly above all we can ask or think”. Father has shown that the Soloman anointed Man-child will soon take possession to build the Latter Rain kingdom. Now everyone has to believe for their piece of the pie and the Lord will decide for faith just as He did for the Jews.    Please let us agree in prayer and confess our faith for God's complete provision.    Father, we who know we are called to this and ask that you make the wilderness provision for our needs that is already provided be ours in Jesus name. We commit to think and speak in agreement with this fact now just as the Israelites were expected to do when they went to take their land of the promised provisions. In accordance with your command in Mar 11:23-24 we believe we have received this provision. We know that the double minded man will not receive from you. We ask that you keep our thoughts and tongue in agreement with this because of the reconciliation which gave us the mind of Christ when the mind of the flesh was crucified. We ask that if we ever waver you will give us a mind to repent and begin again our confession. Fill us with your Holy Spirit to empower us to hold fast to the confession of our hope that it waver not. Amen!     Also we represent the land and the giants represent the old man of the flesh resisting us, which most preachers say are unconquerable destroying the faith of many. They say that we should accept that we are only “sinners saved by grace,” but we were sinners and now we are saved by grace. And the truth is the Lord said we can take the giants down and in fact, He has already accomplished this. He has taken down the giants of doubt and unbelief too. He was righteously offended that they spoke against His promises but He gave them what they confessed.     Num 14:11 And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people despise me? and how long will they not believe in me, for all the signs which I have wrought among them? 12 I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a nation greater and mightier than they. God can disinherit us from the promises He has given us if we do not personally believe, just as He did with them.   Num 14:23 Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that despised me see it. Notice that He swore to give them the land but changed His mind because they did not keep their part of the covenant, which was faith. Jesus said, “Be it unto you according to your faith”, and “As you have believed so shall it be unto you.” Notice that He put the responsibility on you and your individual faith.   This can be more than just missing out on some benefits; it can also bring death! Remember their children didn't die and were not held responsible but they were. Num 14:28 Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord, surely as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you:    29 your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, that have murmured against me. They spoke against the Lord and He was highly offended. When Jesus was on this earth and He heard a word of faith from anyone, He was so pleased that He gave the person their request and so it is now.   Only believers will take possession of their land and promises. Num14:30 Surely ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware that I would make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. (Both faithful confessing believers) 34 After the number of the days in which ye spied out the land, even forty days (The number of tribulation, which they had to go through because they did not believe.), for every day a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my alienation. So God said they had rejected His covenant and had come to know His “alienation,” which literally means “the revoking of His promise.” Why? It was because they refused to confess their redemption. In the midst of the fiery trial, they refused to say what God had done for them.    We must watch in our daily trials that we do not think and say the very opposite of what we should believe as Christians, which is that Jesus has provided everything for us and we received this for us by faith.   Isa 43:1-5 But now thus saith Jehovah that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed thee; I have called thee by thy name, thou art mine. 2 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. 3 For I am Jehovah thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour; I have given Egypt as thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in thy stead. 4 Since thou hast been precious in my sight, and honorable, and I have loved thee; therefore will I give men in thy stead, and peoples instead of thy life.   Luk 1:67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying, 68 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; For he hath visited and wrought redemption for his people, 69 And hath raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of his servant David 70 (As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets that have been from of old), 71 Salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; 72 To show mercy towards our fathers, And to remember his holy covenant; 73 The oath which he sware unto Abraham our father, 74 To grant unto us that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies Should serve him without fear, 75 In holiness and righteousness before him all our days.   Jesus gave us the key to meet all our needs in Mar 11:23-24 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall say unto this mountain (of resistance), 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. (Jesus commanded every miracle before they happened.) 24 Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye received them, and ye shall have them. “Received” is past tense in the original text because we are shown to believe we received everything at the Cross.     Notice we are to speak it and believe we have received the promises. In this text Jesus was preaching long before what science has discovered in Quantum Mechanics or Physics. That is that the smallest particle is able to transform into whatever we receive by faith, good or bad. Faith cannot be seen but it is described in the KJV as the “substance” of what you need.   Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. I.e. While you have no evidence of what you need faith is the smallest particle or substance of it. Give God the substance. The whole creation was not made of physical things, but the spoken Word of God. Heb 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds have been framed by the word of God, so that what is seen hath not been made out of things which appear. And we are sons and daughters of God to walk in His steps.   Jesus showed us that the tiniest particle or seed of faith can turn into the largest tree of support for His people. Mat 17:19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast it out? 20 And he saith unto them, Because of your little faith: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.   Mat 13:31 …The kingdom of heaven is like unto a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: 32 which indeed is less than all seeds; but when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the heaven come and lodge in the branches thereof. We are likened to birds by Jesus so He is saying this that starts out as the “smallest particle” will grow huge to support His people.    Believe and speak what the promises of our future say. Jesus made you free from sin, as Romans 6:18 says. He set you free from the curse, as Galatians 3:13 says. He delivered you out of the power of darkness, as Colossians 1:13 says. He “will supply your every need” as Php 4:19 says. We individually need to speak and confess these needs as ours now in order to receive them.   I am reminded of a dream my wife had about getting rid of bad words that curse our fruit of Jesus in us. She was praying for a friend and had this very vivid dream; she saw her friend inspecting her own fruit tree, which represented herself. She saw fruit on the tree but there were worms in the fruit. She had a can of spray and was broadly spraying the entire tree; however, my wife told her friend that this wouldn't work.    Then my wife walked over to her and told her to spray each worm right in the mouth. She took the can from her friend and noticed that it now wasn't worms in the fruit, but little serpents, so my wife sprayed the can into each serpent's mouth to kill them. The thing that is ruining our fruit is the “little serpents” or demons that speak through our carnal nature, – those negative thoughts and words that come out of our mouth. The spray is speaking the good news of the promises which is the power to save us from these thoughts and words.    I remember when I had gathered my kids together and lectured them on why they shouldn't leave their shoes out on the front porch. I said, “I told you, if you leave your shoes out on the front porch, a dog can come and take one of those shoes off and then the other shoe is good for nothing.” Well, that is exactly what happened. A dog came and took one of their shoes and I realized that I was the one who made it happen. I had given the dog permission to come and take one of their shoes. To make a long story short, I told them to go out and look for the shoe but they couldn't find it.     So then I said, “Here's what we're going to do,” as I looked out the front window at the porch. “We're going to command that dog to bring back that shoe and put it back where he got it,” and that's just what we did. We didn't think about it anymore. The next day we just happened to be standing right by that window and I think it was my son who yelled out, “Look!” We all looked out the window and here comes this dog from around the back of the neighbor's house with the shoe in his mouth, and he dropped it on the porch. Of course, the kids and I were amazed. I spoke that thing and God brought it to pass. We have the power of destruction or creation in our mouth. We're sons of God and the Lord Jesus Christ lives in us.   He has given us authority in our words. Mat 18:18 Verily I say unto 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. We need to pay attention to what we say and be careful to agree with the promises of God. We are constantly binding and loosing by our words, which could be for good or bad. We don't want to bind God and loose the devil. Jesus “could not do many mighty works because of their unbelief.”     We each need to watch our thoughts and mouth because, in so many ways, we can bring a curse upon our life, upon our children and upon the people around us. Mar 11:12 And on the morrow, when they were come out from Bethany, he hungered. 13 And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find anything thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for it was not the season of figs. 14 And he answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit from thee henceforward forever.    And his disciples heard it. What do you think Jesus was talking about in this parable? Well, God's people are the fig tree and the next verses seem to imply that God was reprobating people even before they bore fruit because of unbelief, just like the actual fig tree. We have seen this happen to the faction in Jesus' day and ours. Faction and witchcraft took away all knowledge or respect of scripture which leaves them with no conscience. They are now dying in unbelief without fruit.    We have our opportunity to bear fruit and it has everything to do with what we say and do with the Word of God. We pray the prayer of faith for our children, and we should chasten them as the Word commands to cause them to fear judgment for their sin. If they don't fear your judgment, they will not fear God's judgment. Many times we get caught up with frustration and fear when we see them running after their flesh. We should, instead, be walking by faith for them and confessing their salvation by faith.     We need to not just broadly “spray the whole tree.” If we speak a word against our redemption, we need to deny that word and come against it. I think a good example of this is in Numbers. It speaks of a husband having the authority to disallow the words of his wife and children when they say things that bind their own soul, which the Bible calls a “rash utterance of her lips.”    Num 30:6 And if she be [married] to a husband, while her vows are upon her, or the rash utterance of her lips, wherewith she hath bound her soul (this is speaking things that bind our soul; the very opposite of our redemption), 7 and her husband hear it, and hold his peace at her in the day that he heareth it; then her vows shall stand, and her bonds wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand. 8 But if her husband disallow her in the day that he heareth it, then he shall make void her vow which is upon her, and the rash utterance of her lips, wherewith she hath bound her soul: and Lord will forgive her.    The same is said here of a father for his daughter. The father can deny and disallow what he sees and hears from his children, or he can just let it go and the Lord can hold them accountable for that. The one in authority here has the authority to let these words stand or to say no to things contrary to the Word. “No, we're not believing that for our child, or about our situation, or about our health. We're not accepting that.” Of course, it always has to be done with kindness, since it could cause some friction. God said, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you (Num 14:28).   It came quite naturally to them to say that they were afraid of the giants because they were not believing what God said and He was offended. We are in the same situation. Mar 11:22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God (according to the Numeric pattern it is, “Have God's faith”.  This is because in the exchange He traded His faith for our unbelief. We see here that He is not talking about having faith in God, but about having God's faith inside of you. Some people may say that they don't have enough faith. First, they should stop saying that because it's not the truth and it can only hurt their faith. God has given to every one of us a measure of faith according to Romans 12:3. He also made reconciliation or exchange at the Cross, which gives us everything we need, including His faith.     Faith can be positive or faith can be negative. Pro 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue; And they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. Most people, when they are not lying, are saying what they believe. We have to exercise faith for some things, while for other things we exercise faith quite naturally because it is our belief and it does come to pass.    Gal 6:7 … Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. How do we sow things in the New Testament? When the sower went forth to sow, how did he sow his seed? He sowed the spoken Word. He sowed a seed called “the Word” in the hearts of men. How did Jesus know if the centurion had faith? He wanted Jesus to heal his servant who was sick of the palsy and grievously tormented. Jesus said in Mat 8:7 ... I will come and heal him. 8 And the centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed. How many times do you hear people say such a thing? Jesus knew by the fruit of the centurion's lips that he had faith. Jesus knew by his confession and then Jesus gave the centurion what he had confessed.    Do you think it is any different today? Jesus is waiting for us to confess our redemption, our reconciliation, and He is going to render to every man according to his works. Faith without works is dead. Jas.2:14 What doth it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but have not works? can that faith save him? 17 Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself. 18 Yea, a man will say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith apart from [thy] works, and I by my works will show thee [my] faith.  

The Importance of Baptism  (audio) David Eells (8/11/24)  There is a great disconnect in the church today concerning baptism and it is so important! If a person just looked at the Scriptures and read all the verses, you'd know this. When I first became born-again the first thing that the Lord began to impress us to look at was baptism. So we looked up every verse concerning baptism and printed them out. With them all written out on pages before us, we just knew, “Yep, we have to do it. There is no choice. We have to do this.” So we looked for a church to do it.  Well, a lot of Christians today don't read their Bible, so they just wouldn't know unless the preacher emphasized what the scripture emphasizes. We noticed in the Bible, that as soon as someone believed, the next emphasis was to be filled with the Spirit. Once in a while, being filled with the Spirit got ahead of the baptism, but baptism was right there always when someone first believed. And there's a reason for that. It's because it's important. Some churches do not even mention it, as though it's not important.   So, I thought we'd look at a few scriptures and study what the importance of baptism is. Remember, it's not just what they say about baptism, it's the emphasis they put on it and that should be our emphasis too. I mean, if it's that important to Jesus and the apostles, we don't care that others don't think it's important. It should be just as important to us as it was to Jesus and the apostles.  I'd like to start in Acts 22. Well, you remember how Paul was converted and then got himself in trouble with the religious folks and he was recounting to them about his conversion in Act 22:12-14 And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, well reported of by all the Jews that dwelt there, 13 came unto me, and standing by me said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And in that very hour I looked upon him. 14 And he said, The God of our fathers hath appointed thee to know his will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice from his mouth.  As important as Paul was to the Lord and to God's plan, he still needed to be baptized. 15 For thou shalt be a witness for him unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard. 16 And now why tarriest thou? (I.e., What are you waiting for?) arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on his name. (Amen. Do you hear that? He is saying, What are you waiting for? Get baptized and wash away your sins. That sounds very important, doesn't it?)  So baptism has a key work in doing this. People argue about what is that work. But I think we can cover that a little bit today. So yes, baptism is important in washing away thy sins. It is an act of faith that God recognizes and it's our obedience to our Lord. You know, faith without works is dead. Some people say they have faith, but they don't have works. So, obedience is important in the Kingdom.   Well, it says in 1Pe 3:19-21 in which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison, (Speaking of Jesus.) 20 that aforetime were disobedient, when the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water: 21 which also after a true likeness doth now save you, even baptism, (That sounds very important, doesn't it?) not the putting away of the filth of the flesh (In other words, it's not the water washing your skin, that makes you clean), but the interrogation of a good conscience toward God, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ; It is through the resurrection gift of Jesus Christ given to us and it is given to us through baptism, as we'll see in Romans chapter 6. When we come up out of the water, we claim His resurrection life.   So you see, baptism is very important. You know, tell your children; tell your lost loved ones, “Yeah, believing in Jesus is important, and so is baptism.” It's a command from God and any command from God is important. Sad to say, but some people don't read their Bible to find out these things and the poor preachers don't know enough either.  Another great example is in Act 16:25 But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns unto God, and the prisoners were listening to them; 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison-house were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened: and every one's bands were loosed. 27 And the jailor, being roused out of sleep and seeing the prison doors open, drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. 29 And he called for lights and sprang in, and, trembling for fear, fell down before Paul and Silas, 30 and brought them out and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?   31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be saved, thou and thy house. 32 And they spake the word of the Lord unto him, with all that were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night, (And that's just how important it was. Most people today would make excuses; they would say, “Well, wait till the preacher preaches on baptism. Next month I think we're going to have a baptism…”, and so on. Well, they thought it was so important that in the middle of the night, they were going to go and baptize this person because you have to start your Christian walk with baptism as an act of faith. It's an act of faith that gives you the good confession that you make before Satan and before the world that now you don't live, Christ lives in you.) and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, immediately. This shows how important baptism is. I've done the same thing in the middle of the night. When people believed, we started looking for a pool in the middle of the night. And it's just that important to God. Our emphasis needs to be God's emphasis in this regard. Jesus said in Mar.16:16  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned. Now it says in 1Co 10:1 For I would not, brethren, have you ignorant, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; Look at that, “all of them” It must have been important to do that right? God wants to show us through this type and shadow that it's also important to us. So what can we say? We're warned not to add to or take away from the words of the Book, or He'll take away our part in the tree of life. We're warned to obey, just as they did.  So it's important because it says in 1Co 12:12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of the body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. (We are a many membered body of Christ.) 13 For in one Spirit were we all baptized into one body, (Baptized into the body! My goodness, that makes baptism very, very important. We're talking about one body, and we're supposed to be a member of it. Some people say this is “spirit baptism”. Folks, the overwhelming majority of Christianity out there have never been spirit baptized, so none of them would be in the body. No, this is talking about being baptized into Christ, which is what the baptism verses say. It never says that about spirit baptism.   Now we all need spirit baptism too, because as we just read, Moses and the children of Israel were baptized in the cloud and in the sea. And that represents our spirit baptism and water baptism. We're just saying what the Bible says. Now some people say, “Oh, David, you're preaching baptismal regeneration.” I don't care what you call it, I'm just saying what the Bible says. It doesn't matter what you call it. Regeneration is not something you do when you step over a line somewhere. Regeneration is something that's carried out in your life as you repent and believe.)  It goes on to say, 13 For in one Spirit were we all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free; and were all made to drink of one Spirit. Wow, sounds kind of important, doesn't it! Many people are missing God on this regard here. There's a lot of people I've run into that have been Christians for a long time and yet they haven't been baptized. And God's even brought it to their attention, but they just hardened their conscience against it because nobody else around them thought to be baptized. We're not following the people around us, folks. We're following the living Word of God. We dare not follow men. They have been so foolish over the years and they've forgotten baptism and you can see how very important it is! We need to tremble before the Lord.   It sounds pretty important in Mark 16:15-16, the Great Commission. Well, if He sent them out to do this, we have to go do the same thing. If we talked to somebody about salvation, baptism is supposed to be a part of it, every time; immediately as we just read. If a person gets saved and they don't want to get baptized, well, we'll find out what the Bible has to say about that.   Here's the good word in Mar 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to the whole creation. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned. Notice, He said two things here. “He that believeth and is baptized”, So it's not just believing, it's actions that go with that believing. Baptism is the New Testament sign of the Covenant. The sealing of the Covenant. Just as circumcision was the sealing of the Covenant in the Old Testament, according to the apostle Paul. And so, He said, preach the Good News to them. And then those that believe it and are baptized shall be saved.  Well, now I'm just going to say a few words about this before we go on. I know a lot of you out there may have been sprinkled and they call it baptism. But really, not anywhere in the scriptures is there sprinkling when dealing with baptism. There is a word, rhantizō, which means sprinkling, like sprinkling of the blood. However, the word baptism is the only one that's used for baptism, and we're told in Vines, it says it's a process of immersion, which means submersion and emergence. And submersion is going under and emergence is coming up. And it comes from the word baptō, which means to dip or plunge beneath, which is exactly true. Strong's, for instance, says that to make overwhelmed. In other words, he says, fully wet. And it's from the word baptō which means to cover completely with fluid, Strong's says.   So, it's a pretty strong emphasis on being plunged beneath, the waters. There is no such thing as “sprinkling” in baptism. And there's no such thing as sprinkling babies in the scriptures, because the Bible says, repent and believe and repent and be baptized. We'll look at that in just a minute. So babies don't repent and they haven't done much that they're held guilty for. Basically, if you've only been sprinkled, you need to get baptized. Who can baptize you? Well, our examples in scripture are men who baptize. Can women baptize? The scripture doesn't say.  It has to be done. I would say in most cases people say, “Well, go find a preacher.” Well, that's a possibility to go to a church to get somebody to baptize you, but most preachers don't believe it is necessary and may put you off until they have more people who want to be baptized. Baptism is very important concerning your faith. It's an act of faith.   People think it's just joining a church. Well, it's joining the Church. It's being baptized into the body of Christ. But it's not talking about joining a local assembly. And it's not just a thing of naught, you know, it actually has an effect upon you. I've seen people that couldn't overcome certain sins until they got baptized because they just weren't obeying; they weren't washing away their sins. I mean, it's an act of faith for you, that you believe your sins are washed away when you get baptized, and we will study this.  No, there's no such thing as infant baptism or sprinkling. Because obviously sprinkling is dead wrong and even the dead church used to teach that. And if I remember correctly, it was Constantine who ordained sprinkling as baptism because on his death bed he just wanted to be baptized. He thought if he was baptized just before he died he would be okay, which was totally false. So, he got sprinkled over and over until he died. Silly stuff that people want; they want some kind of magic to make sure they can get into the Kingdom of heaven. But without repentance and faith you just get wet when you get baptized. Notice this progression: Act 2:38  And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Just obey the scriptures and you will be safe. Trust in men and you will not. Now let's look at Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name (Now listen to this. You're not baptizing someone in a name, you're baptizing them into the name. You know, when you get married, you wives out there, you took on the name, right? And thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. When you take His name, you need have faith to live up to it.  God's given principles whereby you can do that if you believe the gospel. Baptizing them literally, it says into the name, so it's not talking about using a name over someone. It's talking about baptizing you into the name of someone. Who is that? Well, this is the only place in the Bible that uses this term, so you need to understand it in regards to the other places in the Bible where it says being baptized into the name of Jesus. Because some people think these are formulas. And then they pick and choose which formula they think is the right one. But that's phony, and it's wrong. There is no scripture that contends with other scriptures. It all fits together. So therefore we need to understand how “this and that” go together.   Well, it says you baptize them into the name, that is, …baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit: Notice that if you understand your English here, there's only one name here. It's baptizing them into the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and notice also that Father is not “a name” and Son is not “a name” either, and neither is Holy Spirit “a name”. Those aren't names. He's telling you to baptize them into the Name. So what is this name?  Let me read the next verse first in Mat. 28:20 teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Notice that we not only baptize, we tell them to obey everything Scripture says. But when they baptize into the name, what is the name? Some people nowadays are very confused about what the name is. I just want to point out to you one thing that's very important to you Judaizer out there. That is, you folks who want to go back and be Jews. Now the Lord was so fed up with the Jews that He wrote the New Testament in Greek, and we have absolute proof of that. The Old Testament Hebrew has a numeric pattern that won't let you add a letter or take a letter in the original Hebrew without ruining the Hebrew pattern in the text. And we've written about that, if you'd like to go and read it. This book is available on our website, The Numeric English New Testament. Here's a link: NGNT  And here's why God put His signature in all of the scriptures. So in the Old Testament He used the Hebrew and in the New Testament, He used the Greek. That's a fact, because the New Testament Hebrew texts that are out there don't have a numeric pattern in them. And I'm talking about not just the pattern here and there, like you can find in War and Peace, which have little bits and pieces of things that accidentally come up to have a little bit of a numeric pattern with just a few letters. I'm talking about every letter of every word being a part of a numeric pattern and that's in both the Old Testament Hebrew and the New Testament Greek. So when you talk about “name” in the New Testament, you're talking about the word, onoma and it means character, authority, and nature. In the Old Testament, it's the word Shem, it was the chosen lineage back after Noah, because he took the name. He was the name. So in the New Testament, when you're baptized into the Name, you're baptized into the nature, character and authority of Jesus. We'll see that even more as we go on. So, it's into the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit which is spoken here. These three agree it's only one name, Jesus.  Act 4:12  And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.    Also, I want to point this out to you that are caught up in the Judaizer thing. I'm going to read Jer 3:17 At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah; and all the nations (Gentiles) shall be gathered unto it, to the name of Jehovah, (Notice that the name of the Lord is synonymous here with gathering unto Jerusalem, and the apostle Paul said that “you have come unto the Heavenly City, the New Jerusalem”, meaning those Christians then who were baptized and filled with the spirit, and believe what the Word of God said. This is talking about Gentiles coming to it. Now, so this is not the Old Testament Jerusalem, but the New Testament, born-again Heavenly Jerusalem that he said we had come to. And all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord. Now we know the name of the Lord in the New Testament. That is my own new name.) We'll talk more about that in just a minute.   So going on here, … shall be gathered unto it, to the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart. (Now, so this is a born-again experience because they were certainly stubborn!) Jer 3:18 In those days the house of Judah (You know, by the way, folks, I got to tell you that just as there were 12 tribes back then, there's 12 today. Many have received that revelation from the Word. And there is a Judah; Judah was first. Judah means praise, and Judah represents the spirit-filled people.) … the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I gave for an inheritance unto your fathers.   19 But I said, How I will put thee among the children (This is the true children of God here), and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of the nations! and I said, Ye shall call me My Father, and shall not turn away from following me. Now, these Gentiles that came to the Jerusalem, he said, “you shall call me my Father.” And Jesus taught in the New Testament for us to call Him, My Father! All you need do is get out your concordance and look up the word. It'll be two pages. Father. Father. Father. Father.  This is the relationship the Lord wants us to have with Him in the New Testament. Not an Old Testament name that is not in the New Testament or covenant. The only thing you can see Jesus calling Him is, Father. Amen. He said it again in Jer 3:4 Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My Father, thou art the guide of my youth? So forget all these Jewish names. You're not Jews, at least most of you aren't. And even if you were, you've got a New Covenant and the anointing is in the Greek. The New Testament Greek has the numeric pattern, which is God's signature. So, the name of the Lord; what is the name of the Lord? Jesus. Why does He say of the Father? Because it's the same nature, character and authority in the whole family; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is the same name. You understand? We're not talking about a title, here. We're talking about the nature, character and authority that's passed on from generation to generation. Now in the natural you inherited a name from your parents and in the spiritual you inherited a name from your spiritual parent, so we have to pay attention to that. We inherited the blood of Jesus. He is called “Everlasting Father” in Isa 9:6. Neither the Father nor the Holy Spirit have blood. So if you want to see this, for instance, you look in Gen 3:22 And Jehovah, or Yahweh, as some people say, or other names they put in here. But the truth is, that was what was in the Tetragrammaton, which is YH, or VH if you hold to the Jewish, or WH if you hold to the English translation YHWH, and YHVH. Now how can you baptize somebody in the name of YHWH when you can't even pronounce it? Because that's not what it's telling you to do. It's telling you the name, the nature, character and authority. And Jehovah God, Yahweh Elohim, it is translated in this Bible. Yahweh or YHWH, Elohim; and did you know Elohim is plural, never singular?   And so He says, Behold, the man is become as one of us (So we're talking about why YHWH is plural here. Who is he talking about? “…has become as one of us.” The Lord and the Angels know, in fact all through Genesis, He uses this terminology. I'll just point this out to you. So YHWH or YHVH, if you prefer, that's plural. Yes, it is in Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, (Oh my goodness. Now you know He's talking about God, right?) after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish… so on and so forth. And we see in Genesis, by the way, we see that Jehovah God translated from YHWH, Elohim is used quite often. For instance, Gen 2:4 These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that Jehovah God (YHWH Elohim, so He's plural, the family name.) made earth and heaven.   And here's another example. Gen 2:7 And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground,… So there's the name. However, not in the New Testament, because now it was written in the New Testament as Greek, you understand? For instance, in the Greek it's something like, Iésous, and Spanish it's Jesús “hay-SOOS”. Some Jews use Yeshua, but that doesn't come from the Greek, it comes from the Hebrew. There's no numeric pattern in the Hebrew NT. It's in the Greek. Some people say, “Oh, you can't use ‘Jesus'.” Well, why not? I've been using the name of Jesus to cast out demons and see miracles for over 50 years now. And you know what? He works. He doesn't care if I use the name Jesus. So they're just trying to drag you back under the Law and into the Old Covenant, which the Bible says passed away in Christ. Now, not one jot or tittle will pass away until all is fulfilled, because the Law is the letter that has to be made spirit, and that's the fulfillment. The New Testament is a fulfillment of the Old Testament. But God didn't make the Old Testament with you, He only made it with the Jews. Psa 147:19-20  He showeth his word unto Jacob, His statutes and his ordinances unto Israel.  20  He hath not dealt so with any nation; And as for his ordinances, they have not known them. Praise ye Jehovah. So the Lord turned away from their covenant and language. All but a remnant rebelled up unto the end. We know they even crucified the Christ, and they crucified the prophets and the apostles. So does that mean they can't be saved? Nope, we're supposed to be believing for a remnant of them to come into the New Covenant and of course, the Lord will do that. Oh, praise be to God!  So we understand that the Lord accepts these names in the New Testament, the transliteration of Iésous is Jesus into English, and He certainly answers to that. And if you go to Spanish and use Jesús, He will answer to that, and if any other translation He will answer that. Because it's not the word that you're speaking over someone. Notice you're not baptizing them in a bucket of Jesus. You are baptizing them into the Name and the Name is His nature, character and authority. Praise God!  So we see that we are also to do all in the name as it says in Col 3:17 And whatsoever ye do, in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. It's not that you have to “say” the name to do it in the name. You do it in the nature, character and authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, as the scripture says. Because the Lord Jesus Christ is a name. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not a name. They have a name, they have a nature, character and authority, and it's always the same. But it's not that you speak, “the Father, Son, Holy Spirit” over someone and there's something magical about that or a particular formula of doing it. It's that they're baptized into the Name.  Now Jesus is a name and everywhere else in the Bible it uses the name Jesus because you're baptized into His death, burial, and resurrection. That's what baptism is. So if you want to say the name of Jesus, that's fine. It's still not a formula to say over someone. I hope you understand that because we are ambassadors for Christ, as it says in 2 Co 5:20. It means we are sent forth to do and to speak with authority in His name. Do you have to “say” His name every time you do anything? No, but you have to be in His name. The scripture says you “do all in the name.” In the name means, in the nature, character and authority. That's what it means. It doesn't mean, “say” the name. Now, can you say the name of Jesus? Yes, I do it all the time because I want everybody to know who Jesus is. And it's His authority, it's His power! Praise be to God. But I'm an ambassador on behalf of Christ to this world from His Kingdom and I'm coming to the Kingdom of this world. And so everything that I do in His name has authority you see. I hope you understand that.   And I'll point out something else to you in Acts chapter 2. We see here that Peter is preaching the Gospel to these Jews, and they were convicted of their sin, so we read Act 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and the rest of the apostles, Brethren, what shall we do? 38 And Peter said unto them, (This is a very important answer here. Thousands were converted here you see) Repent ye, and be baptized (Babies can't do that. Now just understand babies don't need to be baptized. Those that need to repent need to be baptized.) …Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you (Did he say, “some of you”, or “if you want to?” No. Did he say, “you need to and another doesn't?” No, every one of you.) in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.   Maybe that's why some people don't get the Holy Spirit, because they're not even being obedient unto baptism. Well, that's clear. Notice, he said “every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ.” And can you say the name of Jesus Christ? Definitely you can, you know, because it is a name; Father, Son and Holy Spirit is not a name. There's just one name there, you understand one nature, one character and one authority. And we're baptized into Jesus Christ. So if you're going to say the name, you need to say the proper name here. It is the name. It's Jesus. It means “Jehovah is salvation,” or “YHWH is salvation.”  So who was in Jesus? The Father! The Father was in Jesus. In fact, let me just read to you, Joh 5:43 I am come in my Father's name, (Oh, praise the Lord! So, what did that mean? Was the Father's name, Jesus? That's kind of the oneness doctrine. Generally it's the oneness doctrine or Trinity doctrine and neither one of them are quite right. Because if you just read the scriptures, you don't have to make up formulas that don't quite fit anything, and neither one of them do, actually.) But notice, He said, I am come in my Father's name and you received me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. Now, what did He mean by this? He came in His Father's, nature, character and authority. Another person can come in their own nature, character and authority, and they will listen to them, but they won't listen to somebody who is an ambassador of Christ. That's what He was saying. 44 How can ye believe, who receive glory one of another, and the glory that cometh from the only God ye seek not?   Let's look at Act 4:7 And when they had set them in the midst, (The Jewish were calling the apostles on the carpet. The Sanhedrin really didn't have any authority from God. They had failed and gone their own way.) they inquired, By what power, or in what name, (Not by what name, it's in what name. We have to do all in the name, in the nature, character, and authority of Jesus. You can say things using the name or “by the name” and nothing will happen. Have you ever noticed? But if you do something in the name, well then the authority of heaven is behind you because you're an ambassador for the Kingdom.) By what power, or in what name, have ye done this? 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders, (We have the same problem today.) 9 if we this day are examined concerning a good deed done to an impotent man, by what means this man is made whole; 10 be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ (In the name, not by the name) in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even in him doth this man stand here before you whole.   11 He is the stone which was set at nought of you the builders, (And this is still happening today.) which was made the head of the corner. 12 And in none other is there salvation: (Can you “say” the name of Jesus and still not have salvation? Of course, and a lot of other things you won't have if the only thing you're doing is “saying in the name of Jesus,” you'll be without a lot. But you can't do anything in the name and not see results. You're in the nature character and authority of Jesus Christ.) for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein (not “whereby”) we must be saved. (That's what it says in the original, “wherein.” Salvation is in Him.” And to have salvation, you must abide in Him. If you don't abide in Him, you're cast forth as a branch and picked up and thrown into the fire.)  Another example is in Gal 3:27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ (There it is again. We're baptized into the body. Doesn't that make it very, very important? Absolutely. So why aren't people doing this? Well, because they don't mind just filling churches up with people that tithe, then they come and listen and they become “cookie cutter Christians.) For as many of you as were baptized into Christ did put on Christ. (So when you're being baptized into the nature, character and authority of Jesus, you are putting on His acts. What you put on represents your actions, or works. Is the fruit of the Spirit those actions? Yes, of course it is. The fruit of the Spirit is the manifestation of being in Christ. We are first in Christ by faith. You accept everything that Christ gave you, and your faith is accounted as righteousness. But while you walk in that faith, God's going to be manifesting it. And if you don't see any of it manifesting, guess what? It's not faith in what the scripture has to say. Because there's definitely always going to be fruit of faith in what the scripture has to say.)   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 (man was added in there) in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye are Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, heirs according to promise. Baptism is very, very important. You see that? Glory be to God! It's the truth.  Let's read another one. Let's go to Col 2:11 in whom ye were also circumcised with a circumcision not made with hands, in the putting off of the body of the flesh, in the circumcision of Christ; (How were we circumcised? We as Gentiles don't' get circumcised as Paul said in Galatians chapter 5. If you trust in circumcision, you are separated from Christ. You're not, naturally speaking, but if you do it in order to be justified, you're separated from Christ. Circumcision has a different meaning in the New Testament.) 12 having been buried with him in baptism,… (We see here that circumcision in the New Testament is baptism. How do you fulfill Old Testament circumcision? “Having been buried with him in baptism.” Cutting off the flesh from sowing our seed has the same meaning as cutting off the flesh man in baptism.     He tells you very plainly in Galatians that seeking to be justified by the works of the Law, Christ won't profit you anything. In Gal 5:2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that, if ye receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing. 3 Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. (You're not to go back under the Law. You're supposed to be obeying what it points to.) 4 Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit by faith wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith working through love.   And all the rest of the Law is the same way. It's all a type and shadow of something in the New Testament, and all you need to do is start reading the New Testament and you'll find out what it is. In this case, circumcision equates to baptism. Now, if you were in the Old Testament and you didn't get circumcised, you were cut off. Now, if you're in the New Testament, you don't have to get circumcised because you have a New Covenant, but there is also a baptism that equates to circumcision, which is the sign of the Covenant. Let me explain that to you. Let's go back and read Genesis 17 and we'll see the type and the shadow of what baptism was, and we'll see how important it is!   Gen 17:10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee: every male among you shall be circumcised. (So, that's the sign of that Covenant. And what is the sign of the New Testament covenant? Baptism.) 11 And ye shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of a covenant betwixt me and you. 12 And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every male throughout your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any foreigner that is not of thy seed. 13 He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.   So some people say, “Oh it's everlasting!” Well, yeah but except for one thing, it's being interpreted when you come into the New Testament. You're still keeping it, but you're keeping it because you're keeping the Spirit, not the letter. You're actually fulfilling it with baptism. If you get circumcised in the New Testament and you're not fulfilling it, you're going back to keeping the Law. But if you understand that it's being translated from letter understanding to spiritual understanding, you get the real understanding. The letter kills but the spirit gives life, according to what the apostle Paul said.  Every jot and tittle of the Old Testament must be fulfilled in the New. Now continuing 14 And the uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant. So that was true about circumcision if you are under the Old Covenant. Now that you're under the New Covenant, this shows the importance of baptism! So let's look at Romans now. Rom 4:8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not reckon sin. 9 Is this blessing then pronounced upon the circumcision, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say, To Abraham his faith was reckoned for righteousness. 10 How then was it reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision: (Because he was reckoned righteous by his faith before he got circumcised. Is it same truth for baptism? Yes. He was reckoned righteous, not righteous, but reckoned righteous.  We are also reckoned as righteous when we obey the commandments on baptism. Now, I want to also say this regarding, opportunity. See, some people say, “Oh, the thief on the cross, he wasn't baptized, so we don't have to be.” No, wait a minute, the thief on the cross had no opportunity to be baptized. The Bible says also, you need to pay attention to this. Speaking of baptism Paul said, We become united with him in the likeness of his death, we shall also be of his resurrection. (Rom 6:5) Now the thief was united with him in the likeness of his death. So he fulfilled what baptism and Romans 6 says, because if he “died with Christ, we shall also be raised with him”. He died with Christ, so he fulfilled it in that way. So now, you are not like the thief on the cross. You have opportunity to obey this word. If you have faith without works, how can that faith save you? You say, “Do we have to do this? Do we have to do that?” If you're just trying to get your toe in the door, you've got nothing. You have not yet become a disciple of Jesus Christ. What do I have to do? You have to do everything He tells you. Because He bought you with a price. You are not your own. You have the privilege to do everything He and His apostles told you to do in this New Covenant.   And the proof as we read on here is in verse Rom 4:11 and he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while he was in uncircumcision: (So faith came and works came and those works of obedience sealed what he received by faith.) that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be in uncircumcision, that righteousness might be reckoned unto them; (So when you believe, righteousness is reckoned unto you, but if you don't obey, you're not getting sealed. If you believe without obedience, that's faith without works. James said, Can that faith save him? No. Why do you become a disciple of Christ and don't do what He says? “Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and not do what I say?” How can you call him Lord if you don't do what He says? It just can't be.   So their argument about the thief doesn't count for them because they have opportunity, and he didn't. Of course, if a person dies after becoming a believer, and they had no knowledge of a need for baptism and there was no opportunity, I believe their faith would be “accounted as righteousness”. But when you have opportunity, you need to do it. Notice that all through the Book of Acts, when they baptized people, they did it immediately. Why? Because it was important! It was an act of faith that washed away sin. Wow! You see, it's important!  So let's go on to look at the baptism chapter, Romans 6. It's so good, so full of power! Rom 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? (Well, there's a lot of people that believe that. A lot of dead religion out there that believes that. The “Once saved, always saved” love that. They don't understand what grace is, grace also brings obedience.) 2 God forbid. We who died to sin, how shall we any longer live therein? (That should be our attitude towards sin. We've been made free from sin. Why should we serve it anymore?) 3 Or are ye ignorant that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? (Yes, many people get baptized and they are ignorant. They don't even know what it's for. They just think it's a ceremony so they can join a church. It's a ceremony, all right. But it's one that acts by faith and causes you to enter the church. The church, not a local building.)   …we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? (So therefore if you were baptized into Jesus, you're dead. You're dead to sin. How shall you any longer live therein, he says. Do you believe that you're dead to sin? Or do you believe you're always going to be a sinner, like most preachers say? They're like the spies with the bad report. By the way, if you listen to them you won't enter the promised land. It says this very plainly. You were baptized into his death, you're dead by faith when you get baptized, you're dead to sin. You don't have to serve it anymore.)  4 We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death: (Now if you're not being buried, it's not baptism. If you're being splashed in the face, that's not baptism. It says buried and that's what baptism is. The only difference here is, he's using water instead of dirt. When a person dies they're buried in dirt. But we die when we are buried in water, representing the washing of the Word of God, which puts to death the fleshly life. Every day that you walk in the water of the Word, it washes you clean. The water of the Word is to put to death your old man. When you obey the word, the old man who wants his own way dies. This is a type of being buried in the Word of God. Being overwhelmed as we studied what Strong's says about baptism. When you're overwhelmed by the washing of the water with the word, it's washing you clean. If you're ignoring God's word, don't bother getting baptized. Don't waste God's time and yours. You're committing to the death of self when you go down into the waters of baptism and you reckon it to be done. We're told how to do this. 4 We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life. (Now why do we get baptized into death? So that we get resurrected to walk in newness of life. You can see here that it's not just a ceremony. Notice the condition.) 5 For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death, (baptism) we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection; (Notice the condition to have His resurrection life is going down in baptism by faith. Well, have you noticed there's good promises that come with baptism? Why are you tarrying? What are you waiting for? Get baptized and claim Jesus' new life and you will have it. That's why I'm sharing this with you today. What's the benefit of baptism through faith? The benefit of entering into the body of Christ. The benefit of washing away thy sins. People will try to pick this apart but I am just saying what the Bible says here. If they emphasized this and thought it was so important that they would bring people down in the middle of the night and dunk them, then you ought to do the same thing. You ought to not go on in your Christian life and not be baptized. You're taking a chance, aren't you? Yes, and you have opportunity. You're not thief on the cross.)   Rom 6:6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away, (So you see the purpose of baptism? That the body of sin is done away since the old man was crucified with Him. This is just awesome! Praise be to God!) …that so we should no longer be in bondage to sin; (The purpose of baptism is so we are no longer in bondage to sin! What about the preachers out there that say you're always going to be in bondage to sin. Well, they're separating the people from the benefits of the Kingdom! They don't know what the Bible says, and they have no faith.) 7 for he that hath died is justified from sin. (When you go down and you come up, and you believe that your old man was crucified with Christ and buried, you're justified from sin, which means accounted righteous from sin. Is there an advantage here to baptism? I'd say so. Would you like to be justified or accounted righteous from sin?)  8 But if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him; 9 knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; (So that's part of eternal life. It's part of the obedience you do with your faith to receive eternal life.) death no more hath dominion over him. (So now think about this, baptism is an act of faith which is fulfilled the rest of your Christian life. It can be just getting wet if you are not holding to faith in the purposes we have looked at. See when the Lord tells you in His Word to do something, what He's telling you is for your own good that you may prosper in the fruit of His Kingdom. Rom 8:11-13  But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you, he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give life also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth in you.  12  So then, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh:  13  for if ye live after the flesh, ye must die; but if by the Spirit ye put to death the deeds of the body, ye shall live. Your spiritual man must be obeying this word, and disobeying the flesh-man. The flesh says, “No, I don't want to do that.” And the Spirit-man says, “It doesn't matter; I'm a disciple of Jesus Christ and I will walk in His steps. I have the authority to do it because you are dead. Therefore, I can do this.”   I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. It says who strengthens me in all things. When God gives you a command to “resist not him that is evil”, for instance, and “love your enemy”, for instance and so on, and you ignore it because you think nobody else does it? Or you ignore it because you don't want to do it? Then the water of the Word is not putting to death your old man. Don't waste God's time. Don't take His name in vain. Your baptism means nothing. Do people get baptized for nothing? Yes, they do because they're not planning on walking in it. In fact, quite often “they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies”, speaking the lies of the Pharisees and dead religion.)   So going on to Rom 6:10 For the death that he died, he died unto sin once: but the life that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Amen. When you went down in those waters, friend, you died. When you came up, that's Jesus, that's not you anymore! When you go down in the water, the “old you” died under those waters. It's the same thing with the Word of God. You read this Word in order to be a disciple of Jesus, which is a learner and a follower. And it puts to death your own life in the water of the Word. You have the ability to do it because you received this by an act of faith at baptism. You're “calling the things that be not as though they were.” Jesus said, “all things whatsoever you pray and ask for believe that you received them and you shall have them”. So what happened at baptism? You believe you received it, God gives you the power to walk it out. You're walking out your baptism as you read this Word daily.   It should be the most important thing in your life, to read this Word. Do you love Jesus? Well, it'll be proven if you do. If you love Him, He said you would keep His commandments. There's no salvation if you don't love Him. The Bible says if you don't love Him, the Father won't love you. There's no salvation if you don't love Him.  Verse says 11 Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, (Which means, consider it done. This is faith. This is totally contrary to what's being taught in most churches. They're taking away your faith. They teach you to walk by sight, and that you're always going to be a sinner saved by grace. No, grace saves; it really saves so they're liars.) 11 Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. (Oh, praise God! You're alive unto God. You are now alive in Jesus! Now you can follow Him. You're baptized and your old flesh is dead. But the flesh is going to say, “No I'm not.” And the devil's going to say, “No, you're not.” But you say by faith, “Yes, I am.” When the devil tempts you, you tell him, “You can't tempt me because the one you can tempt was the one who died back there in those waters of baptism”. Jesus did that against the devil. He used the Word. He slapped the devil right in the face every time he tried tempting Him, He said, “It is written.” He was using the water of the Word. You got to fight the good fight of faith here. You need to see the “new man” Who is Christ in you, in the mirror and you will be changed into His image from glory to glory. Amen.)   Rom 6:11 Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. (What power will this faith give you?) 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey the lusts thereof: (So how do you not let sin reign? You use verse 11, you are dead to sin and alive unto God. You use your faith in this verse and you can do verse 12. Now can you see why baptism is so important and it needs to be at the beginning of your Christian walk?) 13 neither present your members unto sin as instruments of unrighteousness; (Now you don't want to go and foolishly tempt yourself either. You don't want to hang around with drug users or sit and watch T.V. and all that garbage available these days in the Media.   Don't put yourself into a position so that you're presenting your members to sin.) but present yourselves unto God, as alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. (You say, God, here I am! I'm alive from the dead and Jesus lives in me. How do you do this? Don't put yourself in a position to be tempted. When you're tempted, the first thing you feel is the old man's power. Now, if you're not doing it on purpose, you might receive grace from God, but if you're purposely going because you desire these things, you're presenting your members as instruments of unrighteousness.   Be not deceived, evil companionships corrupt good morals. (1Co.15:33) That's why when there's a little leaven in the church, you cast it out because a little leaven, leavens the whole lump. You don't want to fellowship somebody that's going to feed your soul through the devil. Ministers, you are commanded in 1Co. 5 to cast them out. You have to obey the Word of God if you want a holy church!) 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under law, but under grace. (So, if you are truly under grace through faith sin has no power over you. Grace is not permission to sin; its power over sin.  See if you're under the Law, you're going to a place where you won't receive any help from God. Remember the Old Covenant was a type and a shadow of the new. The Law was the letter, and “the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life”. The spirit is given to those who receive grace through faith.)  So he goes on to say, Rom 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under law, but under grace? God forbid. (We know that sin no longer has power over us and we don't have to sin. That wasn't true under the Law, because the Law could not make perfect. That's why God saw need for a New Covenant based on better promises. You believe and reckon yourself to be dead to sin and that He will rise up in you and He will do the work. That's what grace is, it's the unmerited favor of God.) 16 Know ye not, that to whom ye present yourselves as servants unto obedience, his servants ye are whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? (You can obey the flesh if you want, you're free! You never were free before you came into faith. You can still go back and serve your flesh if you want to. Or you can obey Jesus Christ calling upon the Lord to give you grace and His help. He wants to help you. He wants you to overcome.)  Going on in verse 17 But thanks be to God, that, whereas ye were servants of sin, (Notice: You're no longer a sinner.) ye became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto ye were delivered; (So we need to be overcome by the truth that sets free! There's no power under the Law. Faith gives power. People always want to do something so that they can feel justified. But that's self-righteousness, and that's not going to work and the Lord won't permit it.) 18 and being made free from sin, ye became servants of righteousness. (Do you believe it? Because you have to believe it before you can receive it. We no longer live in sin. We need to see it put on Jesus on the cross. Like the serpent on the pole in the wilderness. Everyone who got their eyes on the serpent on the pole were healed of the snake bite, which is sin. Now anything under the curse is the snake bite. But when we see the curse put on Jesus we can be free of it. It already happened back there at the cross.   You apply what you received at the cross at your baptism. If you haven't been baptized, you need this act of faith. There's something about humans that we're able to apply things when we do things. In other words, your faith becomes effectual when you act it out. Faith without works is dead. Now one of our works is baptism. Is that a work that saves you? It's a work of God. He saves you, His work saves you. By grace have you been saved through faith, and that's not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works; (that's your works), lest any man should boast, for in Christ Jesus, were we created for good works. (Eph 2:8-10) Oh, praise God!   Back to Rom 6:19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye presented your members as servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity, even so now present your members as servants to righteousness unto sanctification. 20 For when ye were servants of sin, ye were free in regard of righteousness. (So when you were a servant of sin, you had no ability to be righteous.) 21 What fruit then had ye at that time in the things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. (You know, if you're not ashamed, the end of those things is death; remember that.) 22 But now being made free from sin and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto sanctification,   (I will say it again, the reason you get baptized first is so you can look back at that and say, “It was done.” And every time you're tempted, you tell the devil it was done. Every time your flesh tempts you, you tell it, “It's done, you're dead. You have no authority over me anymore.”) and the end eternal life. (Notice and the end eternal life. So you're claiming eternal life by faith. How do you get manifestly eternal life? Well, he's telling you to walk in faith and because of that faith, God empowers you to walk in righteousness, and that is eternal life.) 23 For the wages of sin is death; but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (It's freely given to you, accept it by faith, stand on the Word of God. Speak faith. Don't let the devil talk you out of it, and don't walk by sight.)  Let's read next 1Ti 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil: which some reaching after have been led astray from the faith, and have pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. 12 Fight the good fight of the faith, (Obviously you can't do verse 11 unless you do verse 12. Fight the good fight of the faith; these things are yours! They've been given to you in Jesus Christ. You were baptized into His nature, character and authority. Fight the good fight of the faith.   Faith is believing you've received something that you can't yet see. He says to Christians;) lay hold on the life eternal, (Notice that you manifestly lay hold of the life eternal by fighting the good fight of faith and laying hold on these attributes. You're laying hold on Jesus Christ.) whereunto thou wast called, and didst confess the good confession in the sight of many witnesses. (Confess means “to speak the same as.” Speak what Jesus Christ says. He said, if you confess me before men, I will confess you before the Father. He says your old man is dead and the new man lives and you've been made free from sin.) 13 I charge thee in the sight of God, who giveth life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed the good confession; 14 that thou keep the commandment, without spot, without reproach, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:   He says if you love Me you will keep My commandments. Now you understand that you can keep His commandments by faith. You can't keep them as long as you don't understand. You live in Christ and the old man has passed away. You're a new creature in Christ. Remember your baptism, the one that went down under the water was you and the One that came up out of that water was Jesus Christ. When you devour this Word, it overwhelms your old man and puts him to death. The Word is Jesus Christ. Ask Him to give you a hunger for His Word. So fight the good fight of the faith and lay hold on life eternal!   You're saved from the old man. You're saved from the devil, saved from the world, saved from the curse. That's what the Bible says. It doesn't say you're saved so you can continue on in your sins. We just read Romans 6, right? Oh, this is Good News! It's the Good News that makes you holy; it separates you from this wicked world. It delivers you from the power of Satan and the power of the flesh and the power of circumstances around you. Glory be to God! So lay hold on life eternal. Lay hold on the attributes of Jesus Christ! He set you free!   Okay, let's go to 2Pe 1:2 Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; (We looked at some knowledge today that empowers people to overcome sin.) 3 seeing that his divine power (Your baptism helps you to be able to apply this.) hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life (Life here is Zoē' It's God's life.) and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own glory and virtue; (When you read the Bible, it gives you knowledge of what is yours. God knows if you think it's valuable to read the Bible and get the knowledge that gives you the power of God, godliness, and holiness.)   4 whereby he hath granted unto us (You have to see that He's already given all this to you by faith.) his precious and exceeding great promises (These will give you faith. Are they precious to you? If they are then you're going to spend time with them because they're valuable and because you like to spend time with Jesus.); that through these ye may become partakers of the divine nature (The divine nature is Jesus. Faith in your baptism just gave you His divine nature!), having escaped from the corruption that is in the world by lust. (The apostate preachers do not offer escape from lusts.) 5 Yea, and for this very cause adding on your part all diligence in your faith, (I put the coma after faith here and not behind diligence because you really don't have any power to be diligent without faith.) supply virtue; and in your virtue knowledge; (I've shared before that each one of these attributes of Christ are inside the previous one, and it's inside of faith.)   6 and in your knowledge self-control; and in your self-control patience (If you have patience in your faith, you'll lack nothing James 1:4 says.  When the answer doesn't come immediately, you have to be patient in your faith. He wants your faith to grow so He's going to try you.); and in your patience godliness; 7 and in your godliness brotherly kindness; and in your brotherly kindness love. (That's really the end result because God is love.) 8 For if these things are yours and abound, they make you to be not idle nor unfruitful unto the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Notice this, it starts with knowledge and it ends with knowledge too, because you accept the knowledge you walk by faith.   God gives you the gifts of what you read there, and it enables you to gain more knowledge. Why is that? Because we walk in the light as He is in the light. And thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. See it tells you where you're walking and where you should go. So if you will walk in the light that you have, God will put more light in front of you. The more knowledge you get, the more holiness you can have.)  9 For he that lacketh these things is blind, seeing only what is near, having forgotten the cleansing from his old sins. (Remember, that old man is dead. He has no power anymore. You don't have those sins anymore. People forget that and they can't bear this fruit that we just talked about.) 10 Wherefore, brethren, give the more diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never stumble: 11 for thus shall be richly supplied unto you the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.  (Notice that you should be leaving the kingdom of this world and entering the eternal Kingdom of God where he rules.  Oh Hallelujah! Believe in your baptism, Saints! Glory to God! Thank you, Father! 

Endure to Manifest Salvation (1) (audio) David Eells 5/29/24 This is one of the most important teachings to bearing the fruit of Salvation. Many do not understand the progression of salvation, but we must continue in real faith to bear the fruit of Christ in our soul to manifest salvation. (1Pe.1:9) receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. Notice the fullness of salvation is the end of our faith, not the beginning.  A large number of people believe that once we enter the Kingdom by faith, that's all there is to it, but the Bible says we stand by faith. That means you have to continue to stand in faith. Otherwise, according to what the Scripture says, you will be broken off. (Rom.11:19) Thou wilt say then, Branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in. (20) Well; by their unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by thy faith. Be not highminded, but fear: (21) for if God spared not the natural branches, neither will he spare thee. (22) Behold then the goodness and severity of God: toward them that fell, severity; but toward thee, God's goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.   (23) And they also, if they continue not in their unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again. You see, it's enduring in your faith to the end that manifests salvation. (Mat.24:13) But he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved. In speaking about the time when God broke off the Jews, Paul made the statement, (Rom.11:7) What then? that which Israel seeketh for, that he obtained not; but the election obtained it, and the rest were hardened. God called His children out of Egypt, but we see in (Jud.5) Now I desire to put you in remembrance, though ye know all things once for all, that the Lord, having saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.   They did not endure in their faith. He saved them, but then He broke them off when they did not believe. I'm afraid that there are a lot of Christians today who think they are saved because they stepped over some line back there somewhere and now they call themselves “Christians.” There is no line! When you step into the Kingdom, you stand by faith. You continuously stand by faith and, if you don't, you can be broken off.   At the time Jesus came, they were coming to the end of the Jewish dispensation, when God was going to open the door to the Gentiles. Do you know what God did to the Jews then? What He did was, “the election obtained it and the rest were hardened.” There are only two kinds of God's people: the “called” and the “elect.” All of the elect are called, but not all of the called are elect. “Chosen” is the Greek word eklektos, which is the same word as “elect.” (Mat.22:14) For many are called, but few chosen. You see, many receive the invitation to partake of Christ, but only those who bear fruit are going to be chosen. The Bible says the elect of the Jews obtained it and the rest were hardened.   We are now coming to the end of the Gentile dispensation in the Tribulation and God is going to do the same thing He did before, only this time the elect of the Gentiles are going to obtain salvation and the rest are going to be hardened when God turns back to the Jewish remnant. (Rom.11:8) According as it is written, God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear, unto this very day. (9) And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, And a stumblingblock, and a recompense unto them: (10) Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, And bow thou down their back always. And these same people who were hardened were the people whom God used to persecute His “elect,” His “chosen,” His “called” Gentiles.   There is a great persecution coming upon the people of God and it is going to come from what has loosely been called “the people of God.” It will come from people who have hardened hearts who have been called, but they have refused to “walk in the light” of God's Word. (1Jn.1:17) 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. They are caught up in religious spirits and in religion. They're even going to think that they're doing God a favor when they persecute those who truly follow the Lord. But we have to stand by faith. If we don't stand by faith, we can be broken off.   Do you know what faith is? (Heb.11:1) Now faith is assurance (i.e., the assurance is that you have received the substance of what you ask) of things hoped for, a conviction of things not seen. We say that we are saved and it is true that we are saved by faith. But when the Bible says you are saved by faith, it means you are receiving something that you don't yet see. You may think, “I've received God's Spirit so obviously, I'm saved!” No! You are not saved because you received God's Spirit. You are saved because you are believing in what the sacrifice of Jesus accomplished for you and you are following God's Spirit. That's why you are saved!   Some people are very deceived thinking because they received God's Spirit, they are a ‘shoo-in' for the Kingdom. Well, that's not what Scripture says. (Rom.8:14) For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. You see, receiving God's Spirit does not make you a shoo-in. There are two sides to salvation. We receive it in our spirit instantly by faith, but we receive it in our soul progressively by manifestation. What we receive by faith in the beginning is going to be manifested as we walk in it and as we stand by faith.   What's the substance that this born-again soul is made of? (Jas.1:21) Wherefore putting away all filthiness and overflowing of wickedness, receive with meekness the implanted (meaning “inborn” or “ingrafted”) word, which is able to save your souls. The born-again soul is made from obedience to the Word. That means it's made from Jesus Christ. He is the Word! Doesn't this put a lot of importance on the Word? It certainly does! (Heb.11:1 KJV) Faith is the substance (i.e., the assurance that you have what you asked for) of the thing hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Faith in the Word is important. The Word is the seed of God that brings forth the fruit, which is able to save your souls. If you take that away, where is the ability for your soul to be saved?   People are deceived about what salvation is and they are losing their souls because they are not running the race. This is a race! (1Co.9:24) Know ye not that they that run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? Even so run; that ye may attain. (2Ti.4:7) I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith. To win this race we must have “kept the faith”. We are not running against one another, but we are running against a clock and we've been given a certain amount of time to bear fruit. Father gave the fig tree three years to bear fruit, Jesus asked for one more year in Luk 13:7-9.  If we waste that time, we will be what the Bible calls “unprofitable servants.” (Luk.17:7) But who is there of you, having a servant plowing or keeping sheep, that will say unto him, when he is come in from the field, Come straightway and sit down to meat;    (8) and will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? (9) Doth he thank the servant because he did the things that were commanded? (10) Even so ye also, when ye shall have done all the things that are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants; we have done that which it was our duty to do. There are many who are content to just be running down the clock. They are not running, but the clock is running down and their time is running out.   Jesus taught us, (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. (24) Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. When you pray, believe you have received. God does everything that way! We pray for salvation and we believe we have received. But, if you don't endure in that faith until you see it manifest, do you ever receive it? No! Jesus said, (Mat.10:22) ... He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.   We say that we are saved, but too many people don't understand what the term “saved” really means. “Saved” (Greek: Sozo) is very encompassing. With scriptures it means deliverance from sin and deliverance from the curse of sin and of death. (Rom.8:2) For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death. It's pretty audacious to say “I am saved” at the very beginning, when you haven't even started walking in salvation, but that's what Jesus told us to do. (Mar.11:24) Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye received them, and ye shall have them.   Jesus in us is salvation. So at the very beginning, we claim our salvation. (Gal.2:20) I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me: and that life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me. We claim all of that at the very beginning, but we must endure in faith, standing in Christ, to see the manifestation. Many people don't understand this, so they just sit down and they don't run the race. (Gal.5:7) Ye were running well; who hindered you that ye should not obey the truth?  There is a race to be run and there is an enemy to be fought, and there is a battle to be won. If a person doesn't understand that, because of ignorance of the Word, they are not going to get very far. They're not going to bear fruit. They're going to end up with a hard heart and they'll turn away from God, especially in these days, because we are coming to the time of a spewing-out of the Gentiles who have not born fruit. God's salvation was not given to us. God's salvation, God's promise through Abraham, was given to “the seed.” (Gal.3:16) Now to Abraham were the promises spoken, and to his seed. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. The promise was spoken to Christ. Well, then how do we manifest God's salvation? Jesus said in, (Joh.15:1) I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. (2) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh it away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he cleanseth it, that it may bear more fruit. (3) Already ye are clean because of the word which I have spoken unto you. (4) Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. (5) I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing. (6) If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.   If we abide in Jesus, we bear much fruit, but if we don't abide in Him, we will wither as a branch! So, if God's salvation is in Christ, we must abide in Christ to have it. How do we abide in Christ? First of all, you abide in Christ by faith. You accept His deliverance by faith. You accept His salvation by faith and that faith is accounted to you for righteousness because you believed God. Understand, it is not manifest righteousness, but it is accounted to you, it is attributed to you, as righteousness. You are counted as “righteous” and that means “justified.” (Rom.4:5) But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is reckoned for righteousness. You are accounted as righteous because of your faith in the sacrifice of Jesus, but then, as you walk with your faith in the sacrifice of Jesus, your salvation will start being manifested by God.   It will come down into the “seeing realm,” into the “physical realm.” It's not just in the faith realm anymore. “Faith” is believing for something that you don't see and “manifestation” is when now you are seeing it and abiding in Christ. You have salvation! (1Jn.5:11) And the witness is this, that God gave unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. See where the life is? (12) He that hath the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life. This is why we must abide in Jesus. To abide in Jesus is to abide in salvation. It is to stand by faith and, if you don't stand by faith, you have no guarantee from the Word of God.   (Php.2:12) So then, my beloved, even as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. We need to be careful to seek out our own salvation with “fear and trembling.” (Mat.22:14) For many are called, but few chosen. Out of all those whom God called out of Egypt, many fell in the wilderness, but Joshua and Caleb are a “type” of all of those who enter into the Promised Land because they endured in their faith. (Num.14:28) Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord, surely as ye have spoken in mine ears (of unbelief), so will I do to you: (29) your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, that have murmured against me,   (30) surely ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware that I would make you dwell therein (some say God can't break His Word. It is unbelief that breaks the covenant.), save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. (36) And the men, whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up an evil report against the land, (37) even those men that did bring up an evil report of the land, died by the plague before Jehovah. (38) But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, remained alive of those men that went to spy out the land. Today God is bringing many sons into the Kingdom and every single one of them is enduring in their faith and walking by faith. Our faith must grow and we must continually put the Word into our hearts to know what to exercise faith in.   The point is, we have to continue in the faith. (1Co.6:18) ... Every sin that a man doeth is without the body.... When you abide in Christ, you are abiding in righteousness. God's purpose is to deliver us from walking in sin and to cause us to be “dressed up” of Jesus Christ. (Rom.13:14) But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to [fulfil] the lusts [thereof]. That is salvation! We claim salvation now, but to the extent we don't see it, to the extent we don't walk in the faith of Jesus Christ, to that extent it has not yet manifested. We are claiming something that we don't yet see.   There are many people who are resting in the flesh, but while you rest in the flesh, you don't bear fruit. And the “unprofitable servant,” the one who doesn't bear fruit, the one who doesn't do something with the “talent” that God gave him, is going to be cast forth into outer darkness. (Mat.25:14) For [it is] as [when] a man, going into another country, called his own servants, (The Lord's servants are not lost people.) and delivered unto them his goods. (15) And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one; to each according to his several ability; and he went on his journey. The first two servants of the Lord traded with their talents and doubled what their Lord entrusted to them.   (Mat.25:18) But he that received the one went away and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. (19) Now after a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and maketh a reckoning with them. And their Lord was pleased with the first two, but he wasn't pleased with the last servant. (Mat.25:24) And he also that had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art a hard man, reaping where thou didst not sow, and gathering where thou didst not scatter; (25) and I was afraid, and went away and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, thou hast thine own.   (26) But his lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I did not scatter ... (30) And cast ye out the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. It's very important for people to understand that salvation is progressive because it motivates you to go on and not to sit down and rest in the flesh.   So with that in mind, let's look at what the Bible has to say about our progressive salvation. (Act.15:11) But we believe that we shall be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in like manner as they. I dare say that there are many churches where, if you stood up and you quoted this verse, they would correct you. They would say, “No, we are saved!” They would rebuke you to your face. Well then, what's the difference between their “are saved” and Peter's “shall be saved”? The difference is that now we are talking about the manifestation of salvation in our life, not just receiving it by faith. There are as many verses in the Bible that point this out as there are verses that tell you to claim salvation by faith.   (Act.15:12) And all the multitude kept silence; and they hearkened. If you said this today in church, they wouldn't keep silent and they wouldn't listen. They would insist, “We are saved! We don't have to worry about our salvation!” These people are “resting in the flesh,” but let me tell you, we do have to “work out our own salvation with fear and trembling”. And the Bible says God can break you off, if you don't stand by faith. (Rom.11:20) Well; by their unbelief they were broken off, (How do you get broken off of the Olive Tree if you were never in it?) and thou standest by thy faith. Be not highminded, but fear: (21) for if God spared not the natural branches, neither will he spare thee. (22) Behold then the goodness and severity of God: toward them that fell, severity; but toward thee, God's goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.   Well, let's not get scared out of our faith, but let's have enough respect for God to do what we were put here for. Paul called it a “race.” We were put here to run a race and we are racing against time! (1Co.15:1) Now I make known unto you brethren, the gospel (the Good News) which I preached unto you, which also ye received, wherein also ye stand, (2) by which also ye are being saved.... That is what it says in the original and in the numeric pattern, you are “being saved.”   Now, notice this next word. You should circle this next word. It says, “If.” (1Co.15:2) By which also ye are being saved, if ye hold fast with what word which I preached unto you, except ye believed in vain. Notice it is the “word I preached unto you, except ye believed in vain.” If we do not hold fast to the original Word, we believed in vain. It can be a waste of time, unless you “hold fast” to the Word that was once preached unto the saints.   (Jud.3) Beloved, while I was giving all diligence to write unto you of our common salvation, I was constrained to write unto you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. We are to “contend earnestly for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.” Some Bible versions add “once for all,” but “for all” was not in the original and the numeric pattern verifies the correct wording here. The faith that works which we must have, is the faith that is in agreement with this Word, not the modern “faith” that we are hearing so much of. Paul says you are being saved “if" you hold fast to this Word.   Let me show you something else about this reconciliation, which was made at Calvary almost 2000 years ago. (Col.1:21) And you, being in time past alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil works, (22) yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and unreproveable before him: (23) if.... There's that conditional word “if” again! We've been told that we're the Church, the spotless and blemishless Bride ready to meet the Lord, but does it say that here? No! (Col.1:22) … to present you holy and without blemish and unreproveable before him: (23) if so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister.   He was saying, “Now you are reconciled through the body of His flesh through death, in order to present you without blemish and unreproveable, if you continue in the faith of the original Gospel.” The apostle Paul is not telling them that they are spotless and blemishless; he is telling them that this is the process, this is what God is doing. They were spotless and blemishless by faith, but they were not by manifestation. God's faith is a means to an end. What good is faith, if it doesn't change people? Faith is a means to bring you to His deliverance, His manifestation, His Christ-likeness. You've wasted your time, if you come to the end of this life with what you have called “faith” and there have been no works from it!  (Jas.2:20 KJV) But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? It's barren, it's incomplete, as the Bible says. Real faith changes you and it changes things. There is an “if” in this reconciliation and there is an “if” in this salvation. That “if” depends on our continuing in the faith of this Word. We cannot trust in the unbalanced doctrines of men! Some teach salvation by our own works and we are saved by works, but it is the works of God through us because we have faith. Some teach that salvation has all been accomplished by manifestation and that we don't have to do anything to work it out. Both errors will destroy you!   Our main purpose here, according to the Book of Acts, is to search after God. (Act.17:24) The God that made the world and all things therein, he, being Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; (25) neither is he served by men's hands, as though he needed anything, seeing he himself giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; (26) and he made of one every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, having determined [their] appointed seasons, and the bounds of their habitation; (27) that they should seek God, if haply they might feel after him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us: (28) for in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain even of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. We are to pursue after God “if perchance we might find him.”  He is the Word, not men's shortcuts, like just accept Jesus, no it's Repent and Believe the Word. (Heb.12:14) Follow after peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no man shall see the Lord. “Sanctification” is the separation from worldliness, separation from sin unto God. First, you have to be separated from sin by faith because faith is accounted as righteousness. (Rom.4:5) But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is reckoned for righteousness. We are reckoned righteous by our faith and, second, by manifestation. Being reckoned righteous by faith is the means to the end. God's purpose is not fulfilled in the reckoning; God's purpose is fulfilled in the manifestation. (1Th.5:23) And the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly (“completely”); and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved entire, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.   Do you think it's possible for God to do that? Well, it wouldn't be a very smart prayer for Paul to pray, if it were not possible. There are many people nowadays who turn the grace of God into lasciviousness because they don't want to believe that sanctification is even possible. They think you only need to be forgiven, but he says, “sanctify you completely” and “may your spirit, soul and body be preserved entire, without blame, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” You can see the progression that God wants: first spirit, then soul and then body; this is His plan. God's plan is that you have to bear fruit in the area of the soul to get the new body.   (1Co.3:16) Know ye not that ye are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? (17) If any man destroyeth the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, and such are ye. We have to take care of this temple and you will not be able to take care of it, except through faith. You can sometimes defile your body in ways that you don't even know. For example, you can't find a verse that says, “Thou shalt not smoke,” but the Bible says, if you destroy the body, God will destroy you.   (Heb.2:2) For if the word spoken through angels proved stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward; (3) how shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation? In other words, if you get cancer of the lungs because you smoked, then you destroyed your own body and what does God say He's going to do about it?  Of course we can repent and believe for healing. By the way, why do we have doctors, at least in the permissive will of God? It's because people don't believe and He doesn't always want them to die until they have every chance to believe. And He permits things in this world to happen on a natural level, in order to bring us to a spiritual understanding. God's method of salvation and healing is always through faith in what Jesus did. It's looking back at the cross, it's always in the past. For example, do you know why we are healthy? We've been given a gift of health because Jesus paid the penalty for our sins on the cross. He took the “stripes” so that we could be healthy. Jesus gave you His healthy body and He took your unhealthy body. He made an exchange.   The Greek word katallasso means an “exchange” or “reconciliation,” and it was made at the cross. Jesus gave you His blessing and took your curses. He gave you His sinlessness and took your sins. There was a total exchange made at the cross. So how do we receive His salvation? How do we come to manifest it? Salvation is only through faith in Jesus Christ, not our own works. You're not going to keep that body healthy by your wisdom about how many chemicals and how many herbs you can put into it. Your body is healthy because Jesus gave you health at the cross. If you think that by your works you can keep that body healthy, you're in for a rude awakening because it doesn't matter how many chemicals and herbs you put into it, you will fail in your witchcraft.   That's what the Bible says medicine and drugs are (Galatians 5:20; Revelation 9:21; Revelation 18:23). The Greek word is pharmakeia and it's where our word “pharmaceuticals” comes from. No, God's salvation will not be by works. God's salvation is free. If it's not free, it's not grace! It's unmerited favor and that means you cannot earn it. But you do have to earn all that money you pay for those supplements. It comes hard by the sweat of the brow, but God's salvation is all free and that's why it's through faith and not through works. Salvation for the body, salvation for the soul and salvation for the spirit comes through your faith; it's free. If it costs anything, that's not God's method.   God's salvation is also past tense, so it cannot be accomplished through your works. See, you were healed. (1Pe.2:24) Who his own self bare our sins in his body upon the tree, that we, having died unto sins, might live unto righteousness; by whose stripes ye were healed. If you were healed, then you are healed. If you are healed, then you cannot be looking for healing through any works of man. If you are looking for healing, you don't believe that you were healed. It's so simple! All the deliverance of God was done at the cross and, if you continue in your works trying to deliver yourself, you're proving that you don't believe the Bible because the Bible says it was done.   God's salvation is free for the spirit, for the soul and for the body. There's nothing but failure in our own attempts to save ourselves. It doesn't matter if you're trying to save your soul or whether you are trying to save your body. It's ultimately going to end in failure and God will make sure that it ends in failure. He's not going to let you save yourself. He's going to make sure that all of your efforts to make yourself healthy, to make yourself saved from sin or to deliver yourself from the curse, whatever it might be, He's going to make sure it fails. Not only do you have the devil against you when you try by your own works to provide your own salvation, you have God against you on that count!  All we need is faith in the promises. It's free. (Rom.13:11) And this, knowing the season, that already it is time for you to awake out of sleep: for now is salvation nearer to us than when we [first] believed. Did you notice that? In other words, “The manifestation of salvation is closer to us now than when we first believed.” If you say, “I thought we were saved,” yes, you were saved by faith, but we do not receive it by manifestation when we first believe. People who don't understand that are in a dangerous position and they're in an ignorant church, too. They should probably get out of there and start reading their Bible for themselves. (Rom.13:12) The night is far spent, and the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.   We've been given authority to do this because of what Jesus accomplished at the cross. The only thing that can stop us is unbelief. Salvation is putting on the “armor of light” and the next verse explains it this way: (Rom.13:13) Let us walk becomingly, as in the day; not in revelling and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and jealousy. (14) But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to [fulfil] the lusts [thereof]. See, “putting on the Lord Jesus Christ” is what he calls walking, according to verse 13. The closer you get to walking like that, the closer you are getting to salvation. We are here to conquer sin! We are here to overcome! There are no promises to people who do not overcome.   The promises of Revelation chapters 2 and 3 are to the overcomers, and Jesus said, (Joh.16:33) ... In the world ye have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. He has already overcome! The devil, flesh and sin have all been conquered at the cross and all we have to do is believe we have received His salvation and walk in it. Some people think that they don't have to overcome. They think, “Every time I sin, I can just ask for forgiveness and be forgiven,” but that's being an unprofitable servant. We can overcome sin because the power has been given and the sacrifice is there. (Heb.10:14) For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.   (1Co.1:18) For the word of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us who are saved it is the power of God. Some Bibles have a footnote on this one that reads, “For the word of the cross is to them that are perishing foolishness; but unto us who are being saved it is the power of God.” That's the version that should be in the text because that's the one that has the numeric pattern; the other one has no numeric pattern. We are “being saved” by faith and we are “being saved” by manifestation. It's important for us to understand that we are being saved. (2Co.2:15) For we are a sweet savor of Christ unto God, in them that are being saved, and in them that are perishing.... Most Bible versions have “are saved” and “them that perish,” but the Nestle's Text, which is made up of the three most ancient manuscripts, has “are being saved” and “them that are perishing.”  = (2Co.2:16) to the one a savor from death unto death; to the other a savor from life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things? Did you know that you can be in the process of “being saved,” but then you can end up by being “perishing”? The Bible talks about those who walk in their willfulness until they are twice-dead and plucked-up by the roots. (Jud.12) These are they who are hidden rocks in your love-feasts when they feast with you, shepherds (Has no numeric pattern) that without fear feed themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn leaves without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots. They started out in regeneration and ended up in degeneration.   See, you can reverse the process. Some people don't think that's possible, but, (Rom.8:12) So then, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh: (13) for if ye live after the flesh, ye must die; but if by the Spirit ye put to death the deeds of the body, ye shall live. (14) For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. If you walk after the flesh, you must die. Jesus came to give us life, but you go right back to death. You go right back to the old prison that you came out of. He came to set the captives free (Isaiah 61:1; Luke 4:18), but you would rather be bound! So let's continue in the faith and believe what God has provided for us in Christ! 

“If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister.” (

“If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister.” (

Is there something more than this life? This world is full of crises, conflicts, difficulties, and troubles, but this world will not last. No matter your age, your earthly life is slowly slipping away. This is why Jesus encourages us not to store up treasures on this earth but to invest in heaven. In this 250th episode of Candid Conversations, Dr. Michael Youssef joins Jonathan for a father-son conversation about his new book, Heaven Awaits. This book is written to help you understand the future promise of heaven in Christ Jesus. Explore what the Bible says about heaven and envision the wonders and glories awaiting those who believe in Christ. Heaven is real, far more real than your earthly experience right now. To ask Jonathan a question or connect with the Candid community, visit https://LTW.org/CandidFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/candidpodInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/candidpodTwitter: https://twitter.com/thecandidpodTRANSCRIPT: This transcript recounts Candid Conversations with Jonathan Youssef Episode 250: Understanding the Future Promise of Heaven: Dr. Michael Youssef[00:01] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Today, we have a very special guest in Dr. Michael Youssef. And he comes on our program because he's written another book. And we have you on quite often because you write a lot of books.[00:17] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Thank you. And I'm glad to be in your Dr. Youssef show now, Dr. Jonathan Youssef.[00:23] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: And we have to change the title.[00:24] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Congratulations.[0:25] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Thank you very much. You have written a book on heaven. This is your first book on heaven as far as I'm aware. Tell us about why.[00:39] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF I've thought of heaven since I was a young man. I've never really been away from that thought. But also I am seeing so much confusion, so much confusion—not just in the world at large, which you can understand the devil sold us a lie in order to deceive people, but the churches are now confused, pastors are confused about heaven. And the world basically entered into their hearts, into their thinking, and everything is about this life, this life, this life, which is a very tragic situation that we find ourselves in as a Church of Jesus Christ. And my biggest concern is to alert and wake up the bride of Christ as to their greatest day, and it's yet to come.Where you're going to spend eternity is so important. In fact, the very first story I open up the book with was back in 1977. In February of '77, my wife and I and two little ones came here from Australia. But we've done a lot of research finding out where we're going to live, what the country is about, what the culture is about, and so on, and this is just for a place we're going to live for two years, which we did, in Pasadena.And how much more should we be doing those same preparations and research for where we're going to be forever? I mean, just think. People can't fathom that. Because they can't fathom it, they take it out of their mind forever and ever and ever. [02:34] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: —Gives you a little bit of a buzz, doesn't it, just the thought of it. Yeah, because everything we know comes to an end. This is the only thing I think we can consider has no end.[02:44] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Exactly. And the point I make even in the early part of the book is that there is only one ticket that takes you to heaven, and that is the ticket that's stamped with the blood of Jesus. I say there are a lot of fake tickets out there. that have been handed by Satan through Hollywood, through false churches, through false teachers and false preachers. [03:12] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Or your own mind.[03:13] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Or your own mind. But those are the tickets that are not going to get you to heaven. Only the one that's stamped with the blood of Jesus Christ. On what basis do I have the confidence that I'm going to heaven? The blood of Jesus Christ, period. My ticket's stamped with that blood. [03:26] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: That leads us to the next topic, which is let's talk a little bit about the misconceptions out there, and you can blend the two—but coming from the Hollywood mentality. Are those the same as what you see in churches that have lost their way? Are they different?[03:53] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Slightly different, but they lead to the same hell.[03:57] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Right. They go to the same place. [03:58] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Because Hollywood and the New Age movement, even with this lady who supposedly died and went to heaven and came back and she was interviewed by Oprah, and she said to her, she said, “Jesus told me He's not going to judge anybody. Live any which way you want.”And then Oprah said, “Well, if I think Jesus is as cool as I think He is, He would have said that to you.”[04:21] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Contradicting Himself? [overlapping voices][04:26] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Yeah. And so the fact that everybody is going to go to heaven is absolute lie from the pit of hell. But then you go into the other side of things in some traditional churches and some mainline churches who said if you're good you go to heaven. Well, I'm good. Sure, I'm not perfect, but I'm good, so everybody sees themselves as good. [04:50] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: According to whose standard, right?[04:51] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF And they are contradicting the Bible, because the Bible said no one is good. I had an email came third-hand to me. A guy said, “I love that statement on page 47,” and I still remember it because he said, “You said only bad people in heaven. The only good person in heaven is Jesus.”And those are the redeemed people who recognize they're sinners and they cannot make it to heaven without Jesus. And that's what really I meant by it. But he said, “That just gave me such confidence and comfort to know that I'm redeemed by the blood of Christ and that's the only way I'm going to heaven.”And so I'm so glad so many people are now sending me comments and saying how much this book has encouraged them in their walk with Christ. And the whole reason—not only to refute all these falsehoods—but another reason for writing the book is I want to put people on the right track to realize that heaven is not, well, in the by and by when I die, but heaven is now. Heaven influences my thoughts, decisions, investments, and money—where I put my money. Is it in heaven or is the inflation going to eat it up? And so all these are very important decisions.C. S. Lewis made a statement years ago that impacted me, has been for nearly fifty years since I read it. He said, you know, they talk about “Oh, he's so heavenly minded, he's of no earthly good.” I've heard that so many times, even back in the sixties, seventies, and he said if you examine history, you find that only those who were heavenly minded were of any earthly good and he goes on to give examples. I mean, I think Lord Shaftesbury, who impacted the culture in England probably like very few people said, “There was not a day went by without me thinking of heaven.” And that's what caused him to be a reformist. Wilberforce fought for forty years to outlaw slavery. That's because of the thought of heaven.And so anybody who says, “Well, heaven is just going to be distracting from what you're doing now,” absolutely lies.[07:15] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: No, it's a driving force.[07:16] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Exactly. And I tell people all the time, unashamedly, I work, and I work harder at seventy-five than I did when I was forty-five or twenty-five, and simply because I live for one thing: hearing those words from Jesus's lips, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”[07:36] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: There's also the misconception that it can be earned, you can do enough good works. Not necessarily about being a good person, but that the works are sort of counterbalancing you in this either sort of a karma sense or a works righteousness from a theological mindset.[07:56] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF This is as old as my ancestors, the ancient Egyptians.[08:00] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: It might be as old as the Garden.[08:03] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Probably. But I remember even growing up in Egypt and studying Egyptian pharaonic history and seeing some of the pictures that go back five thousand years, and the scale. And the scale was held by one of the gods.[08:20] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Like a weight scale.[08:21] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF A weight scale, yeah. And you see here's your good deeds versus your bad deeds and you've got to make the good deeds outweigh the bad deeds. But again, another lie from the pit of Satan's hell. And we need to be absolutely certain that people understand that you're not going to heaven based on anything you've done, but it's based on the grace of God that He has given you through Jesus Christ. Period.Then the rewards in heaven are a whole different story. And that requires faithfulness if you want to be rewarded. There are five crowns in the Bible it talks about. Faithfulness, there's a crown for those who love His appearing. There's all kinds of crowns. And those are not crowns we will just kind of put on our heads, but the crowns that we will take and lay at the feet of Jesus in our gratitude and thanksgiving for saving us.[09:23] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: I think a lot of people like to imagine and picture what heaven looks like. Fill in some of the gaps for people who have maybe an incomplete view. There's the picture of the sitting on a cloud playing a harp, wearing a robe, singing nonstop, just being bored.[09:47] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Right. It's medieval art.[09:49] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Exactly.[09:51] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF The cherubic, fat kids—[09:53] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Yeah, we'll all be fat babies.[09:54] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF And absolutely it is absolute falsehood. And I'm not even big on these so-called heavenly tourism. Why do I listen to somebody who says they died and came back when I—Paul himself, when he was taken into heaven, he said, “I'm not allowed to even talk about it.” And when I have the real deal, I have Jesus, who tells me exactly what heaven is like.[10:23] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: That's all you need.[10:24] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF And that's what I do in the book, Heaven Awaits. I stick with the Word of God. I see people go off the rails when they deviate, and so my focus is the Word of God. I'm always having people on social media ask me, am I a Calvinist, and I Arminian, am I a dispensationalist, a postmillennialist, a premillennialist. I'm none of these. I'm a Bible-believing Christian—that is, if it's in the book of God I'm going to believe it and preach it, but not try to be a follower of a man theory. I follow Jesus and I try to focus on that until the Lord takes me home. I will not deviate from it, no matter how much the pressure is put on me.[11:14] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: All right, so let's fill in some of the pictures for people. Let's talk about our bodies. There's a lot of concepts. We can even take a step future back, the idea of soul sleep or … Fill in a little bit of those gaps for us. [11:35] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Sure. Well, this is again following some man's theory, theological theory.[11:43] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Or misinterpretation of texts.[11:46] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF But you know when you think about this, so much thing about the end times eschatology now is driven by a theory that was devised by a man in Plymouth, England, in 1825 by the name of John Nelson Darby. Most of them would not know this, but that's what they are. They are doing only following somebody, you know, chart. I follow the Bible. I stick with the Word of God. And there is no soul sleep in the Bible. The Bible talks about sleep of the believer. This is to indicate that it's temporary. Jesus died, but we sleep. He took our death so that when we die, we only sleep—it's a temporary thing because immediately our soul goes into heaven, according to 1 Corinthians chapter 15, and Paul says it's not going to be floating souls in heaven. When the disciples of Jesus were in the Mount of Transfiguration, they didn't see the soul of Elijah and the soul of Moses; they saw them in a glorified body. In fact, Peter was so ecstatic, he wanted to hang in there for a long time. [13:02] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Let's camp here for a bit.[13:03] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Yeah. And so these are glorified bodies in heaven. When we die, there is a body that's prepared for us in heaven. It's a body like Jesus's body after the resurrection. And those are bodies that are totally righteous and holy, and therefore, we would be able to see the face of God when Moses couldn't see the face of God, but we will. Because we can never see the face of God in this body.[13:34] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Those bodies are indestructible and not ravaged by the effects of the Fall and sin.[13:42] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF In fact, I think it's the mercy of God that Moses did not see the face of God. He would be incinerated because in this sinful body we can't do it. But in the glorified body that is immediately prepared for us as soon as we enter heaven in a glorified body, we will be able to see and do and have no physical limitation, no pain, no suffering. And all of those promises in the Scripture are very clear. [14:12] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: I don't remember reading it in the book, but I mean there's a sense that there will be gardening and working and building and we'll be active. We're not just sitting around.[14:25] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF No. In fact, John said in Revelation “and the servants to serve Him.” And the Bible says that we're going to reign and rule with Christ. Think of the universe, and our God is sitting on the rim of the universe right now, ruling and reigning, and we're going to be participating in that. It's mindboggling. Sometimes I let my mind soar, but then I bring myself back to reality.[14:48] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Levitate for a moment.[14:49] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF But yeah, it's incredible when you think about it. We will be working. We will be serving, and we'll be doing great things for God. We're praising Him, of course, thanking Him. I just try to imagine that moment and I get so overwhelmed I want to go.[15:05] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Let's talk a little bit about fears and perspectives, the things that can kind of creep in and the enemy can try and steal—[15:14] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF One of the things that also is prevalent, particularly among those so-called “progressive” churches or liberal churches, I'll never forget thirty-five years ago I was having a discussion with one of those so-called “liberal”—ministers in one of those churches and we were talking about heaven. And he said, “How arrogant of you to think that you're good enough to go to heaven.”I said, “That's exactly the falsehood that you believe, and that's you think a person is going to heaven based on his good, how good he is or she is.” But I only have the confidence because Jesus promised it. And that is really the most important thing that we need to emphasis. People don't think that we are just full of ourselves. We think we're better than everybody else. We're going to heaven and you're not. No, no, no, no, no. I'm only assured of heaven because Jesus said so. He promised it. And God keeps His promises.[16:16] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Despite my sinful nature, despite—[16:20] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Yeah. In fact, it's because of my acknowledging of my sinful nature and my need for salvation.[16:25] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Yeah. To your point, it's not good people in heaven; it's bad people in heaven who had the goodness of Christ because He covers us.[16:31] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF We're born again. [16:32] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Yeah. And let's move to that because you have a chapter on what does it mean to be born again and looking at Nicodemus. Talk to us a little bit about—Because the question does remain, well then, who is in heaven? And I know we talked a little bit about that earlier, but let's fill that picture out.[16:49] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Those who are born again. What does it mean to be born again? That's very important. That's the message I take to evangelistic events and when I preach. It's a very important message. Because to be born physically means you're alive physically. And so to be born spiritually, it means you are spiritually alive. How come? Because every one of us, every human being who is ever born of a woman was born spiritually dead. I mean, physically alive, running around, but spiritually dead. Not comatose, dead, dead, dead. And so when the Holy Spirit opens our eyes and then we spiritually become awake and alive, that's born again. That's when you become born of the Spirit. Jesus said you're going to be born of the Spirit of God because God has to do something on the inside of us to change us.And I remember that day like yesterday when my whole life changed. My views of everything just changed overnight. Of course, it's taken me sixty years of walking with Christ to grow in the knowledge and so forth, but that day was the beginning when I knew that it was totally transformed by the power of God and I became conscious of sin and confession of my sin and the closeness with God and the thirsting for righteousness and all of that.[18:19] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: I remember as a boy when you would preach on heaven you would always talk about that this life was like a dress rehearsal. And it's interesting because you were talking about you remember the moment when you became spiritually awake, but in the sixty-odd years, you've grown in your sanctification, you've grown in your knowledge and love for the Lord. They talk about the theological concept of the already and the not yet. Like you said, there's a concept now in my mind and an understanding of the reality of heaven, and I'm now living in preparation for that, and that's what the Christian life is preparing you for.[19:00] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Well, just as, you know, I sought to set an example for you and your siblings, I had others who set that example for me. My grandfather and my mother, they set the example of their being motivated by heaven, and therefore, they have done so much on the Earth because of their motivation of heaven. And so I am so grateful for their example, and I sought to also set an example, not just for you as my family and children, but also to congregations and people that I minister to. I told one of our pastoral care ministers one time, I said, you know, I have been privileged to teach for now fifty-two years since I was ordained to show people how to live for Christ. I don't know how the Lord is going to take me home, whether it's going to be sudden or not, that's in His sovereign will. Either way He does it is fine by me. But if He privileged me to have a slow death that I pray that I will be able to teach people how to die in Christ. I taught them how to live in Christ, now how to die in Christ is very important.[20:21] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: We can't have a conversation about heaven without having a conversation about hell. And thankfully, you do have a chapter in your book that delves into that. Let's go there.[20:40] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Okay, well, as you know, I have never preached on hell without tears. Sometimes I mean broken down completely, not just shedding a tear or two. And the reason I do that and the reason—actually it's out of my control; if it was in my control, I wouldn't cry—but the reason I do is because I know hell is real. Just as heaven is real, hell is real. It's a place, and there is going to be suffering, the Bible called that the lake of fire. The Bible talks about the worms that do not die, and the fire that would not die, and the gnashing of teeth. And the descriptions, a dark place where you feel falling all the time but there is no bottom. And it goes on and on and on. I try to put those descriptions that Jesus gave us, not—[21:27] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Not your own mind or some philosopher.[21:28] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF —or fantasies of other people. It's what Jesus said. And the Bible makes it clear: hell was prepared for Satan and his angels. That is for whom hell was prepared. Unfortunately and sadly, there are so many who follow Satan who will end up with him in that lake of fire. And I have dedicated my life and whatever years I've got left, or days, it doesn't matter, I am dedicating them to warn people why should you perish? Why should you follow Satan, who takes you straight into that eternal life of torment?You say, “How do you know that?” Well, Jesus, again. He talked about Lazarus and the rich man. This is before His own resurrection, before His own opening paradise for the believers, where they were still in a waiting, holding pattern, as it were. But even then, before Christ's resurrection, they were in two different places: one is a torment and pain and suffering and burning of the tongue, and the other one is a joy in what they used to call the bosom of Abraham. And so the conversation goes on, the man cries out from Hades to Abraham and he said, “Please send Lazarus,” the guy whom he didn't even pay a minute's notice, he said, “Send him with a drop of water in his finger to just cool my tongue and give me relief.”Had he said, “We have a huge gap between us. We cannot cross to you and you cannot cross to us.” And that is what really makes me cry and weep, because once you cross over to the other side, there is no return. No matter how much you try and say, “I repent, I change now.” No, no, it's too late. It's like the days of Noah—and Jesus said that—it's like the days of Noah. And he kept warning, 120 years he's been preaching—it's so difficult for me even to comprehend. And there's, “No, no,” and made fun of him. And then in the end, of course, when the flood came, “Okay, we'll get in.” No, no, no. God shut the door.God will shut the door one day, and so my longing, the longing of … the longing of my heart (and I do this in the book, especially that last chapter) is I'm pleading with people, come to Christ now. The opportunity is now. The moment is now. The hour is now. Don't put it off. And in the end, it's like Ezekiel says. If you warn people and they get into trouble, you're innocent. And that's what I want to be, a watchman who's innocent. But if I didn't warn them and I know danger was coming, then I have their blood on my hand, and I don't want that to happen. I don't want blood on my hand.[24:29] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Let's just sort of, as we conclude, who's the book for and why should they buy it?[24:37] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Actually, this book is for everyone. Seldom do I say that because there are some books specifically. But this is for the believer, to encourage them and uplift them; for the non-believer to be forewarned and give them a chance to turn to Christ. So really, a believer will read it and be encouraged, but then give it to somebody who needs to know about the plan of salvation and hopefully then you—[25:00] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Someone who has a false view of heaven.[25:01] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Exactly. And then you, who will give that book to somebody else, will be receiving the reward, even more than me who has written, because you have been an instrument of God of handing this warning to people and telling them to wake up while it's time.[25:21] JONATHAN YOUSSEF: Yeah, yeah. Well, the book is Heaven Awaits: Anticipate Your Future Hope, Your Eternal Home, Your Daily Reality by Dr. Michael Youssef. Dad, thank you so much for returning and gracing us once again with your presence on Candid Conversations.[25:38] DR. MICHAEL YOUSSEF Thank you Dr. Jonathan Youssef. Thank you for your ministry. I appreciate it. 

Becky and I (Paul) start the podcast by discussing the new study, including which parts are applicable, what is missing, and how to interpret the data for your goals. Next, we walk you through what we used to believe, why we changed our minds, and what we think is the best way to go through summer (including allowing some weight gain)

Prayer for The Seventh Monday of EasterSupport Common Prayer Daily @ PatreonVisit our Website for more www.commonprayerdaily.com_________________EasterChrist has entered, not into a sanctuary made with hands, a copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. ~ Hebrews 9:24 ConfessionOfficiant: Let us humbly confess our sins unto Almighty God.People: Almighty and most merciful Father, we have erred and strayed from your ways like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. We have offended against your holy laws.We have left undone those things which we ought to have done, and we have done those things which we ought not to have done; and apart from your grace, there is no health in us. O Lord, have mercy upon us. Spare all those who confess their faults. Restore all those who are penitent, according to your promises declared to all people in Christ Jesus our Lord. And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake, that we may now live a godly, righteous, and sober life, to the glory of your holy Name. Amen.Officiant: Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen. Invitatory & PsalmsOfficiant: O God, make speed to save us. People: O Lord, make haste to help us. Officiant & People: Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Christ our PassoverPascha Nostrum - BCP p. 83Alleluia.Christ our Passover has been sacrificed for us; *therefore let us keep the feast,Not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, *but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. Alleluia.Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; *death no longer has dominion over him.The death that he died, he died to sin, once for all; *but the life he lives, he lives to God.So also consider yourselves dead to sin, *and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord. Alleluia.Christ has been raised from the dead, *the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.For since by a man came death, *by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.For as in Adam all die, *so also in Christ shall all be made alive. Alleluia. Psalm 89: Part IMisericordias DominiBCP p. 713Your love, O Lord, for ever will I sing; *from age to age my mouth will proclaim your faithfulness.For I am persuaded that your love is established for ever; *you have set your faithfulness firmly in the heavens.“I have made a covenant with my chosen one; *I have sworn an oath to David my servant:‘I will establish your line for ever, *and preserve your throne for all generations.'”The heavens bear witness to your wonders, O Lord, *and to your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones;For who in the skies can be compared to the Lord? *who is like the Lord among the gods?God is much to be feared in the council of the holy ones, *great and terrible to all those round about him.Who is like you, Lord God of hosts? *O mighty Lord, your faithfulness is all around you.You rule the raging of the sea *and still the surging of its waves.You have crushed Rahab of the deep with a deadly wound; *you have scattered your enemies with your mighty arm.Yours are the heavens; the earth also is yours; *you laid the foundations of the world and all that is in it.You have made the north and the south; *Tabor and Hermon rejoice in your Name.You have a mighty arm; *strong is your hand and high is your right hand.Righteousness and justice are the foundations of your throne; *love and truth go before your face.Happy are the people who know the festal shout! *they walk, O Lord, in the light of your presence.They rejoice daily in your Name; *they are jubilant in your righteousness.For you are the glory of their strength, *and by your favor our might is exalted.Truly, the Lord is our ruler; *The Holy One of Israel is our King. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. The LessonsJoshua 1:1-9A Reading from the Book of Joshua.After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' assistant, saying, "My servant Moses is dead. Now proceed to cross the Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the Israelites. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, as I promised to Moses. From the wilderness and the Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, to the Great Sea in the west shall be your territory. No one shall be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous; for you shall put this people in possession of the land that I swore to their ancestors to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to act in accordance with all the law that my servant Moses commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, so that you may be successful wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth; you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to act in accordance with all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall be successful. I hereby command you: Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."Officiant: The Word of the LordPeople: Thanks be to God. 21. You are GodTe Deum laudamusYou are God: we praise you;You are the Lord; we acclaim you;You are the eternal Father:All creation worships you.To you all angels, all the powers of heaven,Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,heaven and earth are full of your glory.The glorious company of apostles praise you.The noble fellowship of prophets praise you.The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you;Father, of majesty unbounded,your true and only Son, worthy of all worship,and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.You, Christ, are the king of glory,the eternal Son of the Father.When you became man to set us freeyou did not shun the Virgin's womb.You overcame the sting of deathand opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.You are seated at God's right hand in glory.We believe that you will come and be our judge.Come then, Lord, and help your people,bought with the price of your own blood,and bring us with your saintsto glory everlasting. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Eph. 3:1-13A Reading from the Letter to the Ephesians.This is the reason that I Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles-- for surely you have already heard of the commission of God's grace that was given me for you, and how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, a reading of which will enable you to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ. In former generations this mystery was not made known to humankind, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: that is, the Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. Of this gospel I have become a servant according to the gift of God's grace that was given me by the working of his power. Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, and to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; so that through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was in accordance with the eternal purpose that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have access to God in boldness and confidence through faith in him. I pray therefore that you may not lose heart over my sufferings for you; they are your glory.Officiant: The Word of the LordPeople: Thanks be to God. 16. The Song of ZechariahBenedictus Dominus Deus - Luke 1: 68-79Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; *he has come to his people and set them free.He has raised up for us a mighty savior, *born of the house of his servant David.Through his holy prophets he promised of old,that he would save us from our enemies, *from the hands of all who hate us.He promised to show mercy to our fathers *and to remember his holy covenant.This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham, *to set us free from the hands of our enemies,Free to worship him without fear, *holy and righteous in his sightall the days of our life.You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, *for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,To give his people knowledge of salvation *by the forgiveness of their sins.In the tender compassion of our God *the dawn from on high shall break upon us,To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, *and to guide our feet into the way of peace. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. The CreedI believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. The PrayersOfficiant: The Lord be with you.People: And also with you.Officiant: Let us pray The Lord's PrayerOur Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen. The SuffragesShow us your mercy, O Lord;And grant us your salvation.Clothe your ministers with righteousness;Let your people sing with joy.Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;For only in you can we live in safety. Lord, keep this nation under your care;And guide us in the way of justice and truth. Let your way be known upon earth; Your saving health among all nations. Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten; Nor the hope of the poor be taken away. Create in us clean hearts, O God; And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.Take a moment at this time to reflect and pray for the needs of others. Seventh Sunday of EasterO God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.A Collect for PeaceO God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend us, your humble servants, in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.A Collect for GraceLord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought us in safety to this new day: Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.For MissionAlmighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. ThanksgivingsThe General ThanksgivingAlmighty God, Father of all mercies, we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. And, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our selves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.A Prayer of St. ChrysostomAlmighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen. ConclusionLet us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.Thanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia. Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.Ephesians 3:20,21

How should we approach, respond to and deal with personal conflict?- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Attitude (1-3), “I Paul, myself entreat you, by the meekness and gentleness of Christ…” (1)- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Artillery (4-6), “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power…” (4) *The ‘Weapons' of Truth, Love, Faith, Prayer- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Aim (7,8), “Look at what is before your eyes. If anyone if confident that He is Christ's, let him remind himself that just as he is Christ's, so also are we…” (7)

How should we approach, respond to and deal with personal conflict?- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Attitude (1-3), “I Paul, myself entreat you, by the meekness and gentleness of Christ…” (1)- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Artillery (4-6), “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power…” (4) *The ‘Weapons' of Truth, Love, Faith, Prayer- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Aim (7,8), “Look at what is before your eyes. If anyone if confident that He is Christ's, let him remind himself that just as he is Christ's, so also are we…” (7)

3:1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, 3:2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: 3:3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, 3:4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) 3:5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; 3:6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: 3:7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. 3:8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: 3:10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, 3:11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: 3:12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him. 3:13 Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.

How should we approach, respond to and deal with personal conflict?- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Attitude (1-3), “I Paul, myself entreat you, by the meekness and gentleness of Christ…” (1)- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Artillery (4-6), “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power…” (4)- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Aim (7,8), “Look at what is before your eyes. If anyone if confident that He is Christ's, let him remind himself that just as he is Christ's, so also are we…” (7)

How should we approach, respond to and deal with personal conflict?- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Attitude (1-3), “I Paul, myself entreat you, by the meekness and gentleness of Christ…” (1)- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Artillery (4-6), “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power…” (4)- Before You Do Anything…Check Your Aim (7,8), “Look at what is before your eyes. If anyone if confident that He is Christ's, let him remind himself that just as he is Christ's, so also are we…” (7)

The Word is Our New DNA (audio) David Eells – 4/14/24 Is God your Father? If so you have His DNA. Jesus is the Word made flesh as we must be. His Word manifested in you to the extent you are ruled by it is His DNA. Scientists say, “DNA contains the instructions necessary for life.” Sound familiar? Our Fathers Word is His spiritual DNA. Below are Notes by Deb Horton of an article which reports that science has finally acknowledged that words have physical power. After removing all the New Age gobbledygook, the article acknowledges that Russian scientists have discovered that spoken words alone can and do reprogram DNA. So, the tongue conquers the curse or the tongue can bring the curse. Key points quoted from the article, which is translated from German, so the terminology will sound a little strange in English (Deborah's comments in parentheses) (David's in red): DNA can be influenced and reprogrammed by words and frequencies WITHOUT cutting out and replacing single genes. (Father didn't use this method of man.) The Russian linguists found that the genetic code, especially in the apparently useless 90% (which has been (falsely) called "junk DNA"), follows the same rules as all our human languages...(and that) human languages ... are a reflection of our inherent DNA. (So changing our Words changes our DNA. At Babel languages were confused which separated people by DNA.) One can simply use words and sentences of the human language ... to influence genetic information! This, too, was experimentally proven! Living DNA substance (in living tissue, not in vitro) will always react to language-modulated laser rays and even to radio waves, if the proper frequencies are being used. This finally and scientifically explains why affirmations ... (can) repair genetic defects. (Changing our affirmations to agree with the Word changes our DNA.) ...our body is programmable by language, words and thought. This has now been scientifically proven and explained....The individual person must work on the inner processes (i.e., casting down every thought and imagination that exalts itself against the knowledge of God) and maturity in order to establish a conscious communication with the DNA. The Russian scientists also found out that our (fallen Adamic) DNA can cause disturbing patterns ....Stress, worries or a hyperactive intellect prevent (or) distort the communication (and) make it useless. (Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee.) An ordered group consciousness creates order in its whole surroundings! When a great number of people get together very closely, potentials of violence also dissolve. (Who can be closer than the true church? We are a “chosen generation”) Researchers think that if humans with full individuality would regain group consciousness (We are one in Christ if we abide in Him.), they would have a god-like power to create, alter and shape things on Earth! (That would be when two or more of you agree on the Words of Christ it shall be done by our Father. One will chase a thousand and two ten thousand.) AND humanity is collectively moving toward such a group consciousness of the new kind. (This part is new age nonsense. Little do they know that the beginning of such a movement in our time will be the corporate Man-child Body of believers and then the corporate Bride body who follows them.) They said that when "healers" were photographed during healing sessions, they appeared as fields of light. (The Word said, He was the Light that lighteth every man.) The Neuroscience Behind Our Words OPINION Posted August 8th, 2019 | Category: BRM Capability, Business Relationship Management Research, Professional Development | Contributed by Lindsey Horton     Sticks and Stones “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” This phrase is reminiscent of childhood recess when we didn't want others to know how hurtful their words truly were. However, the belief that physical injury is more painful than psychological or emotional injury is not necessarily true. Scientific studies actually show that positive and negative words not only affect us on a deep psychological level, but they have a significant impact on the outcome of our lives.     Words Can Hurt Me In their neuroscience experiment, “Do Words Hurt?”, Maria Richter and collaborating scientists monitored subjects' brain responses to auditory and imagined negative words. During this process, they discovered painful or negative words increase Implicit Processing (IMP) within the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sACC). Put frankly, their study proved that negative words release stress and anxiety-inducing hormones in subjects. Additionally, a study found increased levels of anxiety in children associated with higher rates of negative self-talk. According to the study's abstract. (Speak the promises to your children to put faith in them.) “These results suggest negative self-talk plays a role in the generation or maintenance of anxiety in normal children.” Ultimately, negative words, whether spoken, heard, or thought, not only cause situational stress, but also contribute to long-term anxiety. (And health problems.) Naturally, the recognition that holding negative thoughts in our mind is enough to induce stress and anxiety hormones begs the question, “What effect do positive thoughts have?” In their jointly written book, Words Can Change Your Brain, Dr. Andrew Newberg, a neuroscientist at Thomas Jefferson University, and Mark Robert Waldman, a communications expert state, “a single word has the power to influence the expression of genes that regulate physical and emotional stress.” Furthermore, according to these two experts in their field, exercising positive thoughts can quite literally change one's reality. “By holding a positive and optimistic [word] in your mind, you stimulate frontal lobe activity. This area includes specific language centers that connect directly to the motor cortex responsible for moving you into action. And as our research has shown, the longer you concentrate on positive words, the more you begin to affect other areas of the brain.”     ~Newburg, Waldman Over time, given sustained positive thought, functions in the parietal lobe start to change. Consequently, this changes our perception of the self and those around us. (For instance Rejection is passed on to spouses and children when one is critical and judgmental of them.) Essentially, holding a positive view of ourselves helps train our brain to see the good in others. Thus, by exercising consistent positive thoughts and speech, we not only change our self-perception, but how we perceive the world around us. Ultimately, this grants us the ability to shape our reality and change the world for the better. Evidently, as humans, our thought patterns directly shape our perception of the world and those around us. Our thoughts become our words, and therefore our language. This holds true for humans individually, as well as organizationally. A strong company culture is one derived from a shared positive language based on organizational core values. As BRMs, we know that relationships lie at the core of our role, and that language shapes our human interactions. So, how can we make a shift in the language we use in our daily work lives to reduce the negative associations with traditional “corporate lingo”? (This is true of a business or Church or individuals.)     David's Teaching When we concentrate on the Good News of the promises our DNA is changed. This happens when we think those words, hear them, or speak them. Rom 1:16-17  For I am not ashamed of the gospel: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.  17  For therein is revealed a righteousness of God from faith unto faith: as it is written, But the righteous shall live by faith. Faith has a positive effect in turning our DNA into His. That puts the power of creation in our minds and mouth. Jesus gave us the inheritance of His DNA. He is called the “Father of Eternity”. Isa. 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Everlasting Father is also translated “Father of Eternity.”) The seed He sows makes us eternal for we receive His DNA. In the parable of the sower in Mat. 13, Jesus sowed the seed of His Word in the hearts of men. In some places in the larger text the word seed is translated from “sperma”. So, we see that it is His life's blood that He is sowing in us and He is our spiritual Father. Since this is true, we have inherited His DNA. We see in that text how many fall short of this regeneration through distractions and polutions of the seed of the Word, Jesus' DNA. Mat 13:19-25  When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the evil one, and snatcheth away that which hath been sown in his heart. This is he that was sown by the way side.  20  And he that was sown upon the rocky places, this is he that heareth the word, and straightway with joy receiveth it;  21  yet hath he not root in himself, but endureth for a while; and when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, straightway he stumbleth.  22  And he that was sown among the thorns, this is he that heareth the word; and the care of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.  23  And he that was sown upon the good ground, this is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; who verily beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  24  Another parable set he before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man that sowed good seed (Greek: Sperma) in his field:  25  but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares also among the wheat, and went away. What scientists have discovered is being changed by the man-made plague is the DNA by creating an extra helix. This is creating trans-humans. Part beast and part human are like the mixed multitude who came out of Egypt with the Jews. The people who stay this way are definitely lukewarm members of the Beast body to be spewed out of Christ's body. Those who believe the Gospel will be delivered as their beastly flesh is being crucified. Through faith in God's Word we are delivered from this curse and that is what the positive affirmation in Gal. 3:13 tells us. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree. So, in effect, He exchanged our cursed life for His blessed life through us affirming His Word / DNA. This exchange is called reconciliation, translated from the Greek word, “Katallasso”. In context, this means the exchange of Christ's life (DNA) for ours. Col. 1:21-23  And you, being in time past alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil works, 22 yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and unreproveable before him (with Jesus' DNA): 23 if so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister. This reconciliation is made possible when we like Paul believe and confess the promise that we don't live anymore Christ lives in us. Gal. 2:20  I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me (Jesus' DNA): and that life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me. So, since it is Christ living in us, we have His DNA.  Paul explains how enlightened saints exchange their DNA for the Lord's through thinking, believing and speaking 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 (Jesus' DNA), even as from the Lord the Spirit. When we partake of the bread and wine at the Lord's supper, we, by faith, are partaking of His body and blood and we have His life in ourselves, which incorporates His DNA. Since Jesus is the “Word made flesh”, when we spiritually digest His Word, so that it becomes a part of our thinking and speech, we are partaking of His DNA.  Joh. 6:53-57 Jesus therefore said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, ye have not life (Jesus' DNA) in yourselves. 54 He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath (His DNA) eternal life: and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 56 He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood abideth in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father; so he that eateth me, he also shall live because of me. (Notice, eating His flesh and drinking His blood gives us His life, which incorporates His DNA.) The life of the flesh is in the blood of Jesus and His body.  Lev. 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood (Jesus' DNA); 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 (Jesus' DNA). When we were born of the flesh of our fallen parents, our DNA was corrupt and became more so as we grew in sin. When we partake of Christ's DNA through faith we begin to reverse this process. This begins with a born again spirit and continues to take over the soul through our obedience to the truth. We were told that the Lord would return in these last days as the latter rain on this morning of the third day. Hos. 6:1-3 Come, and let us return unto Jehovah; for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. 2 After two days will he revive us: on the third day he will raise us up (Jesus' DNA) and we shall live (Jesus' DNA) before him. 3 And let us know, let us follow on to know Jehovah: his going forth is sure as the morning; and he will come unto us as the rain, as the latter rain that watereth the earth. (He will on the morning of the third thousand year day from the advent of Jesus. We were promised in these last days, when the former and latter rain of the Spirit of God is poured out, there will be a restoration of all the years of degeneration. Joel 2:23-26 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in Jehovah your God; for he giveth you the former rain in just measure, and he causeth to come down for you the rain, the former rain and the latter rain, in the first month.  24 And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil. 25 And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the canker-worm, and the caterpillar, and the palmer-worm, my great army which I sent among you (Representing the curse which Jesus bore). 26 And ye shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and shall praise the name of Jehovah your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you; and my people shall never be put to shame. We had a wonderful dream that Tiannah shared with us about restored DNA. In the dream she visited us (She is coming now) and said that, “David looked so very young. ...His skin was completely clear, no wrinkles or blemishes and everything was physically perfect…I turned and looked to my other side and I saw Vanessa Weeks …she too, looked so young and ageless, with perfect skin. Her skin was more beautiful than any skin I have ever seen…Eve also looked so young and ageless. There were no wrinkles or anything, and her skin was just pure.”  The angels also told us about our DNA restoration when David asked, “What does the coming restoration involve personally? 30 years younger?” The angel Jeruel said, “Restoration on a DNA cellular level. Faith and power will be imputed to receive healing and restoration. It will be complete restoration not partial. The first fruits are first. They will be the trail blazers. There will be a mighty supernatural outpouring of spiritual restoration; of closeness to God through His Holy Spirit.” When we look in the mirror, and by faith see Jesus' reflection, we are expecting His DNA to be manifested in our bodies.  So, it's ours NOW by faith and we know that there is coming a wonderful manifestation of Christ in us. But we need to believe it now and when we realize this, it can go a long way towards overcoming the temptations to act on the symptoms of sickness that we experience. God is preparing us to be immune to the judgments of this world by filling us with His promises and renewing our minds with His Word (Jesus' DNA). (Rom. 12:2) And be not fashioned according to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.  Jesus told us in, (Luk. 21:25) And there shall be signs in the sun and moon and stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, in perplexity for the roaring of the sea and the billows. You can see the “roaring of the sea and the billows” as being the anger of the nations against one another, because the Bible tells us in Revelation 17:15 that the “waters” represent peoples, nations, and tongues.  Obviously, the things that nations are exporting around the world, such as terrorism and anarchy and so on, are making a lot of people fearful. (26) Men fainting for fear, and for expectation of the things which are coming on the world: for the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.  What is this “expectation”? Depopulation by war, disease, famine, The approach of Planet X/Nibiru will be seen. It's also in general, believing in the curse. It's believing these things are all a threat to you, and seeing in your imagination all the terrible things that could happen to you because of them. That's why we're told to cast down vain imaginations. The devil prepares us to fail through our fallen imaginations.  Again, people aren't dying because of the curse. The Lord bore the curse. Gal 3:13  Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:  They're dying because of unbelief in the sacrifice and fear, which looses the curse. Faith in the promises binds the curse. In every instance where you're put into a position of being threatened, remember that the devil and his army, his angels, see in both the spirit realm and in the physical realm. They coordinate their attacks on you to coincide with the things that you see with your eyes or the things you hear with your ears or, especially, the imaginations in your mind about the things that could happen. They will pounce on you so that you are struck, suddenly, with this temptation to fear.  You know, we think in pictures and the devil will take you over with those pictures. He will put fear in you exactly as this verse is talking about here. You need to stop immediately and make war on him when he attacks you with these things or he will just take you away, and then you will be at the mercy of the judgments that are around you. We've seen from the Scriptures, very plainly, that Jesus bore the whole curse upon Himself when He was upon the Cross (Galatians 3:13). We've also seen in, (Rom.10:10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  We need to confess Psalm 91 in the midst of the trouble, when there's an opportunity for us to give the devil authority to take us away, the Gospel is the power of God to save the one who believes it (Romans 1:16). In the midst of the trouble, you make your confession because faith without works is dead (James 2:17). Whenever your actions are totally contrary to faith, the devil takes that as his authority. Jesus told us, (Mat.18:18) Verily I say unto 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.  So, the devil is going to make war on the saints with the judgments that are coming upon the world. And most people don't know that those judgments are coming upon the world, not to hurt the saints, but to deliver the saints, because these judgments are going to separate the wheat from the tares. They will be a Passover of those with the blood, Jesus' DNA, to destroy the wicked as it was with the Egyptians. I want to share with you a revelation from Dimitru Duduman that fits exactly what we're talking about here. This vision was given to Dimitru in May of 1993 when he was living in Oregon. It describes our rights in Christ and how the Blood of Jesus' DNA is applied through casting down fear and doubt and speaking the promise, which is, of course, our Sword of the Spirit.  He said, “It was getting dark. Then, suddenly, it turned pitch black. It's interesting that we can look around us right now and see that it's starting to get dark. People are mentioning to me that they're seeing many things that they've never seen before. They're seeing Christians, lukewarm Christians, turn toward darkness, and governments that have been taken over by the beast. He said, It was as if the whole world had gone dark at that moment. We are on the verge of that darkness coming. It will be great tribulation and we need to be ready for it. We need to not waste our time and dilute or corrupt the Word as Jesus' DNA. We need to have our armor on.  Dumitru went on to say, All the people were in a frenzy. They became disoriented, and some were even screaming. That sounds exactly like the verse we just read in Luke 21. These are the recorded symptoms of the effects on the minds of those experiencing Planet X. He said, After some time, we heard the sound of an army approaching. This is talking about the devil's army, multitudes of demon spirits that make war on the saints and also inhabit men, who physically make war on the saints. We call that body the “beast.”  He said, Soon, we saw them coming out of the black mist. All were dressed in black, except for one. That one seemed to be their leader. He was dressed in a red robe with a thick, black belt over his waist. On his head, he had a sign. As I looked, I saw that in his hand, he held the same kind of sharp spear as everyone else in his army. He exclaimed, “I am Lucifer, I am the king of this world. I've come to make war against the Christians.” This war is about to start. The darkness is covering the earth.  It looked as though all the Christians were huddled together in one big group. Some began to cry when they heard this. Others began to tremble, while some just stood, without saying anything. What is this that's already happening to God's people in this revelation? It's Satan's warfare against them. They're crying, they're trembling, they're fearful because of the threat they can see. What is the devil's army? It's those spirits that attack your mind, spirits such as fear and doubt and grief and condemnation and lust and hatred and unforgiveness and rejection and addictions of different kinds and occultic things and thefts and lying and on and on… Everybody has trials with these spirits making war against them as the spirits seek to bring them under their control to destroy them.  Praise the Lord that we've been delivered of this by Jesus Christ! All the promises that are given to us in the Word of God are what we can use as our Sword to set each other free. Well, when they saw Satan's army coming in great force, many people trembled and were fearful, but some didn't do anything because they weren't moved by what they saw.  Lucifer continued to speak. “All of those that want to fight against my army, and think they can be victorious, go to the right…” Obviously, that's where Jesus put the sheep; on His right. If you're not convinced that you can be victorious against Satan's army, it's because you don't have enough of the Word of God in your mind to really do warfare with him. We have to have on that “helmet of salvation” which protects our mind in the battle (Ephesians 6:17). We have to have the knowledge of the fact that we are protected, we are delivered, it is finished, Jesus has overcome the world, and the only thing left is for us to enter into those works that were finished from the foundation of the world (Hebrews chapters 3 and 4).  How do we do that? We enter into those works by faith. Everything that Jesus did, the body of Christ is going to do. Joh 14:12-13  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. Jesus had victory, He knew he could conquer Satan. Satan trembled before Him, because Jesus knew Who He was. He was a Son of God. He is the only begotten Son of God, in Whom we, too, are sons through rebirth. Jesus said, (Joh. 20:21) … Peace be unto you: as the Father hath sent me, even so send I you. If you know who you are, and you know what God says about you, the devil trembles before you, but he can convince a lot of people who justify themselves and are not really believers of the Word of God.  So the devil said, “All of those that want to fight against my army, and think they can be victorious, go to the right, and those that fear me, go to the left.” Why does God permit this war? He is permitting this war to separate the sheep from the goats. In these end times, the Lord says that He is going to spew the lukewarm out of his mouth (Revelation 3:16). He's not going to have any fence riders; you're going to be in either one camp or the other. This warfare of the devil against the Church is going to bring the separation, and notice what he says next. Only about a quarter of the group stepped to the right. That means three-quarters of what were called “Christians” in this revelation were no threat to the devil, and he was going to conquer them.  All the others went to the left. That was three-quarters of them went to the left because of fear. Those of them who knew they would be victorious over Satan were only a quarter of the Christians, and I don't think that is really a stretch at all. Even today, there are very few people that are actually chasing Satan, and the rest are all being chased by him, which is exactly what the Bible tells us. (Luk. 11:21) When the strong [man] (Satan) fully armed guardeth his own court, his goods are in peace: (22) but when a stronger than he (Jesus) shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him his whole armor wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils. (23) He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth. So to those who know the truth Satan is a wimp. To those who don't know it he is their lord. Then, Lucifer ordered his army, “Destroy those on the right.” The army began to advance and quickly surround the Christians on the right. (Remember that's the smaller group, the one-quarter who are not afraid.) And as they began to close in on us, a powerful light appeared, and encircled us. Then, the angel of the Lord spoke, “Take out your Swords and fight! Defend yourselves! Be victorious over the enemy.” “What swords?” a man in the group asked. “The Word of the Lord is your Sword,” the angel answered. Yes, take out your Sword and fight and be victorious over the enemy. The devil can do nothing against it; there is no weapon that he can use to defend against your Sword, which is the Word of God in your heart, the DNA of Jesus. It is the true Word of God. It cannot be denied. It will fulfill the purpose that God sent it for, but we have to use our sword. Luk 1:37  For no word from God shall be void of power. Here is a word just below this one that gives power over the enemy. Luk 1:67-75 ASV  And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,  68  Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; For he hath visited and wrought redemption for his people,  69  And hath raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of his servant David  70  (As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets that have been from of old),  71  Salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;  72  To show mercy towards our fathers, And to remember his holy covenant;  73  The oath which he sware unto Abraham our father,  74  To grant unto us that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies Should serve him without fear,  75  In holiness and righteousness before him all our days. You may have all the knowledge that you need but you won't be able to even hear it in the midst of this emotion of fear that has come upon you. So stop and make war. The devil can't stand before you if you use your Sword. You don't necessarily have to quote the Word of God to conquer the devil, but you do have to agree with the Word of God to conquer the devil. You have to know what the Word of God says in order to speak in agreement with the Word of God, so if you're not sure about what the Scriptures say, you need to spend more time in the Word.)  Let's continue with Dumitru's revelation. When we understood what the angel meant, we began to quote verses from the Bible. Then, suddenly, as if we were one voice, we began to sing a song. (That's the thing about songs; they bring people into one accord, and there's power in agreement. Jesus promised us, (Mat. 18:19) Again I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father who is in heaven. (20) For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.  What happens when there are more than two or three of you in agreement? (Deu. 32:30) How should one chase a thousand, And two put ten thousand to flight, Except their Rock had sold them, And the Lord had delivered them up? One will chase a thousand and two will chase ten thousand; that's multiplied power, so it's a blessing for us to be in agreement with each other and with the Word of God. That's why God has given us His Word. Of course, it does no good if you're in agreement with a lot of apostates because no matter how large a group they might be, you still will have no power.  The devil is going to show us this in Dumitru's revelation. He's going to conquer these people. The devil wants to make war, and he wants to take out the people who are a threat to him. He'd like to take out their physical life and he'd like to take out their spiritual life, because they're doing him damage. He will make war on you but he's not able to do anything that God doesn't permit him to do. You see, God permits the devil to come try us in order to build our faith. Faith is like a muscle. If your faith isn't tried, it's not going to get stronger. We go through things to try our faith, and in the process, we also learn how to quickly pull out our Sword and use it to conquer the enemy.)  Back to Dimitru: So the smaller group began to quote verses from the Bible and they began to sing a song. Our voices thundered so loudly that the dark army began to retreat. (These are the people on the right. These are the sheep with Jesus' DNA.) The enemy did not have the courage to come against us anymore. Lucifer, filled with rage, turned to those on the left. (Those on the left are the three-quarters majority of the Christians.) “You, who all of your life have been trying to please two masters, because you could not stand against me, I have the power to destroy you.” That is true. He's been given that power to destroy people who are in unbelief and, in these end times, we have very little time left to learn to walk in the Kingdom of God.  Satan's going to be cast down. He knows he has a short time left (Revelation 12:9,12). He's going to fight furiously. He and his army and the people whom they inhabit are going to come against us with great fury, but we have a weapon that they can't resist. The problem is that far too many of God's people don't use that weapon; they don't use the promises of the Word of God. The Word is our Sword and the demons cannot stand up to that. We see here that those people who, all their life, tried to serve two masters, had no protection. They tried to serve both self and the Lord; they were double-minded (James 1:7-8). They were found to be lukewarm and there was no protection for these people (Revelation 3:16).  We need to get our armor on, we need to be on fire for God, and we need to learn to fight. (Eph. 6:10) Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of his might. (11) Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. (12) For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual [hosts] of wickedness in the heavenly [places].  (13) Wherefore take up the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and, having done all, to stand. (14) Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, (15) and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; (16) withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil [one]. (17) And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, Jesus' DNA. In this revelation, when Lucifer said, “I have the power to destroy you,” who gave him that power? The back slidden Church did. They are the ones who have been given authority on earth to bind or to loose, and here they have loosed Satan because of their unbelief, their double-mindedness, and their lukewarmness.) He then ordered his army to attack. It was a total massacre. The ones on the left could not defend themselves. (Could you imagine that three-quarters of Christianity could not defend themselves right now? It seems fairly obvious. “Many are called but few are chosen.”  One by one, they all fell. This killing seemed to go on for a long time (I believe that this killing is not just physical, but spiritual, because many of these people are going to lose their eternal life like the faction who lost both.), and after a while, we could actually smell the stench of the dead. “Why could they not be protected also?” someone asked. The angel answered, “Because all their lives, they have been lukewarm. Because of their hypocrisy, the true church has been blasphemed.” (Speaking, of course, of the quarter who went to the right, the sheep. They have been blasphemed. They have been accused by the world because of the hypocrisy of the false church, the three-quarters of the people who went to the left.) “They have brought disrespect to the Word of God.” (It's true; today we see people just scoff at the Word of God. Even “Christians” scoff at the Word of God.  In the midst of a trial, you may share the Word of God with them but they'll choose to cling to the idol, the stronghold in their mind. They'll choose their idol instead of (2Co. 10:5) 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. Satan has been able to set-up a stronghold in their mind because they're worshiping false gods. They have a false Jesus, as Paul said. (2Co. 11:4) For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we did not preach, or if ye receive a different spirit, which ye did not receive, or a different gospel, which ye did not accept, ye do well to bear with [him]. That false Jesus can't save you because he's not the Word of God.  The true Jesus is the Word of God; the true Jesus is our Sword. He can save. He will save all those who respect Him. All through the Old Testament, God warns us about the danger of worshiping idols, like religions and their preachers. It's sad that so many Christians today worship a Jesus that does not exist. Their “Jesus” is nothing more than demons (Leviticus 17:7; Deuteronomy 32:17; 1 Corinthians 10:20) that they have set up as their idols and they will not save. Satan does not cast out Satan, as Jesus told the Pharisees. (Mat. 12:26) … Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: (26) and if Satan casteth out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then shall his kingdom stand?  If you are following, worshiping, and putting your faith in a false Jesus, he will not save you. “Anti-Christ” means not only “against Christ,” but also “in the place of Christ.” The devil likes to replace the real Jesus with a false Jesus because that way, when you put your trust in him, he will fail you. And this is what's going to happen in the days to come, according to Dimitru's dream. Three-quarters of the church is going to have their false “Jesus” fail them.  God explained to me that He does not answer when you trust in a false Jesus because then you would be giving credit to your false Jesus, and other people would trust in him too. When that happens, and when their false Jesus fails to save them, people blame God. They complain, “But I believed!” No, they didn't believe because their faith was in a false Jesus who couldn't save. Satan will never cast out Satan.  The angel went on to say of those who were killed by Lucifer's army, “They were not clean.” You have no authority to swing the Sword unless you're “clean,” unless your conscience is not condemning you. (1Jn. 3:21) Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness toward God; (22) and whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight.  The devil conquers those people who are walking in sin and rebellion and defilement. Even though they intellectually know all about faith and how it works, they're not able to use faith. It takes faith to swing the Sword. If you are unholy, the devil will pick that point of uncleanness to jump on you and condemn you so that you can't have faith. You will have fear instead. This is faith in reverse and an invitation to Satan to take you down. You can give-in to the temptations of fear and doubt that the devil fires at you in the midst of the fiery trial, or you can fight. Be sure to confess your sins so that the devil can't use condemnation against you. 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.  Then you can swing your Sword with bold faith and you will win. 1Jn 3:21-22  Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness toward God;  22  and whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight. 2Ti. 1:7 For God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness; but of power and love and discipline.  The word translated as “discipline” comes from the Greek sóphrón meaning “of sound mind; self-controlled; balanced.” Any fear that comes against you is from the devil; it's not from God. Jesus told us that we should fear only God (Matthew 10:28). The fear of the Lord is good, because every child should fear that their father will spank them if they're going in the wrong direction. In that way, we should always fear God, but the Lord isn't going to lead you by fear all the time, and if you feel that way, you're probably being moved by the devil.  Scripture tells us, (Rom.8:15) For ye received not the spirit of bondage again unto fear; but ye received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. Since God's method of leading His children is not fear, whenever fear comes upon you, you need to make war against it immediately. You need to stop whatever you're doing and cast down the thoughts that the devil is putting in your mind. Cast down those pictures that the devil is putting in your mind, and make war against that spirit, because otherwise he will conquer you.  Back to Dimitru: As we continued to look, we saw the sun coming over the horizon. I think that represents the coming of the Lord. The black clouds began to break up, then they disappeared. Only one was left, the one on which Lucifer and his army stood. Lucifer looked at me, shaking his fist, and said, “I will destroy you, even if I have to throw my spear at you from here.” Then that cloud disappeared. …The first thought that came to my mind as I awoke was that this had been the last fight of the devil against the church. If we remain faithful, we will be victorious. Yes! Amen.  So get ready, saints! Put on your armor, because this battle, the last war against the Church, is coming at us right now. (Rev. 13:1) … And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns, and seven heads, and on his horns ten diadems, and upon his heads names of blasphemy. (7) And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and there was given to him authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation. The “beast” that's warring with the saints here is made up of all the fleshly vessels whom this army from the pit is going to inhabit.  This awesome revelation from Dimitru shows us very clearly that if you don't walk holy before God, your faith is going to fail you. (1Jn. 3:19) Hereby shall we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before him (You have to have this assurance in your heart if you're going to do battle with the devil. He knows everything about you.): (20) because if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. If you're condemned by what you know about yourself, just think what God knows about you (Psalm 139:1-24). However, if you're walking with the Lord by faith, it's only the things that you know about, but don't do, that He holds against you. It's not the things that you don't know. (Jas. 4:17) To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.  Of course, if you're walking in rebellion against the Lord then your sins are not covered. (Heb. 10:26) For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins, (27) but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries. In that case, you have no assurance in your heart, so the first time you get into trouble and you try to swing your Sword, the devil's going to jump on you like a mad dog. He's going to remind you of all of your sins and then you're not going to have any faith. (1Jn. 3:21) Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness toward God; (22) and whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight.  You know, we all have people who depend upon us: friends, relatives, people for whom we've prayed, children who are our responsibility. Scripture says, (Rom. 14:7) For none of us liveth to himself, and none dieth to himself. The Lord wants to use us to save others and the day is coming when God is going to need you as a vessel of honor in the midst of many people. He is going to need you to save, to deliver, to bring the Gospel, and so on.  Now, more than ever before in history, we need to repent and be sanctified. We need to walk holy before the Lord. The Bible says, (Rom. 6:11) Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. You see, the Lord has already delivered us by faith, and He uses our faith to manifestly deliver us. He uses the Word of God in our mouth (Jesus' DNA), which is our confession, to manifestly deliver us and others from the power of sin.  God is the One (Col. 1:13) who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love. It happened at the Cross, and we need to confess it, but we won't be able to confess it in the midst of the fiery trial if we're walking in willful disobedience. We won't have any faith to swing our Swords. (Psa. 91:7) A thousand shall fall at thy side, And ten thousand at thy right hand; [But] it shall not come nigh thee.  He's talking about the person who is not afraid, the person who is in the secret place of the Most High because of their faith. He's talking about the person who is confessing that faith, the faith of Psalm 91. When He says, “A thousand shall fall at thy side, And ten thousand at thy right hand,” do you suppose that some of those are Christians? Yes, I guarantee at least some of these people are what we call “Christians,” and it's sad. The Lord cries when this happens, and we do, too. A multitude of people, obviously, are not prepared for what's about to come, but God can use your witness to them. You can share the true Gospel with many people who don't know the true, full Gospel. Other people have rejected the full Gospel and they are not prepared to swing their Sword at all. Pray for them. Remember that someone in the revelation had to ask, “What swords?” Before you go to battle, you ought to know what your Sword is, you ought to know how to swing it, and you ought to be experienced in using it, because (Rom. 1:17) … the righteous shall live by faith. We don't have any choice. The devil's not going to ask us if we want to make war with him; he's already making war with us. The people who are abiding in the secret place of the Most High, which is Jesus Christ, are full of Jesus' DNA and are ready to swing the Sword. They have repented of and confessed their sins, therefore they can be bold in their faith.  I've heard people say, usually from among the non-Spirit-filled groups, that Psalm 91 is for the Millennium or something silly like that, as if it's not true for us right now. Well, if you believe that, you have no Sword. You're going to be in the three-quarters group that goes to the left and is whipped by Satan in the end times. If you don't believe in the full Gospel and the power of the Spirit of God, how can you escape?  If you don't believe in the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the promises of the Word of God, how can you escape? How can you escape “the pestilence that walketh in darkness” or “the destruction that wasteth at noonday”? Do you know enough of the Word of God, having Jesus' DNA, to know that it's your right to escape these things? If you don't, you're not going to escape.  Jesus said, (Mat.9:29) … According to your faith be it done unto you, and (Mat.8:13) … As thou hast believed, [so] be it done unto thee. Jesus saw the faith. (Mat.9:2) And behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, be of good cheer; thy sins are forgiven. (3) And behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. (4) And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? (5) For which is easier, to say, Thy sins are forgiven; or to say, Arise, and walk? (6) But that ye may know that the Son of man hath authority on earth to forgive sins (then saith he to the sick of the palsy), Arise, and take up thy bed, and go up unto thy house. (7) And he arose, and departed to his house. (8) But when the multitudes saw it, they were afraid, and glorified God, who had given such authority unto men.  He had the authority to administer the blessing when He saw the faith. The faith He saw was in actions, it wasn't just words, it wasn't just theology in somebody's head. He saw the actions, (Rom. 10:10) for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Get prepared, saints. The war is coming. It's not going to wait on you. It's not going to wait on me. It's coming. It will be on time.  If, as Joshua and Caleb, you don't believe the bad report but speak in agreement with the Word of God (Numbers 14:6-8), you will be like those people who did not worry about the giants. (Num. 14:9) Only rebel not against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land (This is speaking of the giants in the Promised Land.); for they are bread for us: their defense is removed from over them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not. You'll be among those people who make it through the wilderness. You'll be among those people who enter into the Promised Land in your body. That's what they did.  (Num.14:30) Surely ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware that I would make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. The rest did not; they died out there in that wilderness because of their murmuring, their complaining, and their unbelief (Numbers 14:28-32).  They were constantly being tried by the devil. They constantly heard his horror stories in their head about what would happen to them because they couldn't see any water or other supply around them. The devil was constantly making war in their minds and he was beating them up badly. We're going to the same place. The Lord calls it the “wilderness” but it's also called the “Tribulation.” That's where war is going to be made on the saints, and that's where a separation is going to be made.  That's where a separation of the hot from the lukewarm and the cold, the sheep from the goats, and the wheat from the tares, is going to be made. (Psa.91:7) A thousand shall fall at thy side, And ten thousand at thy right hand; [But] it shall not (Let me repeat that in case you missed what it says, it shall not. And here it is again, just to be sure you read it correctly, it shall not come nigh thee.)  What makes the difference between those who are taken out and those who remain? Well, it's something that we shouldn't leave out. (Heb. 4:1) Let us fear therefore, lest haply, a promise being left of entering into his rest, any one of you should seem to have come short of it. The Lord is telling us to fear that we're not appropriating all the promises of God, all of the Word of God, because God created this DNA to be our defense. (2) For indeed we have had good tidings preached unto us… Not just “good tidings” but awesome tidings! There are promises for any problem, and there are even promises that cover everything, such as (Mar. 11:24) Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye received them, and ye shall have them.  So, if you can't remember one that fits your particular problem, Jesus gave us those “catch-all” promises you can use. (Heb. 4:2) For indeed we have had good tidings (That's the Gospel, the Good News.) preached unto us, even as also they: but the word of hearing did not profit them, because it was not united by faith with them that heard.  It does you no good to go to Sunday school; it does you no good to read your Bible unless you're going to exercise faith in what you're reading, and it doesn't matter if your church is in agreement or not. Don't leave out one promise as your promise; take each promise as if it's been made personally to you because any promise you leave out is a Sword you're not using and its part of the DNA. That's “sitting” on your Sword. (Heb.4:3) For we who have believed do enter into that rest; even as he hath said, As I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.  The works of God have already been finished. Jesus was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8). As soon as God spoke it, it was so. He spoke the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10). He ordained a Savior before Adam ever fell. The whole plan was spoken into existence and nothing could stop it. It was so, just because God said it, and everything that we see now that's coming to pass, is coming to pass because God said it. “The works were finished from the foundation of the world.”  Whose works do you want to enter into? You can enter into God's works through faith in His promises. You can be a vessel of honor. You can be a vessel who is in that one-quarter of Christians that knows they can conquer Satan. Or, you can be in the three-quarters of Christians that are lukewarm, that have their idolatrous religion but no Sword. They don't believe in the full Gospel, which you're going to need to make it through what's coming upon the earth. They don't believe in the in-filling of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of the gifts (Romans 11:29,12:6; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11,27-29; 1 Corinthians 14:1) so they're not empowered to walk as He walked with His DNA where they need to go.  You know, when we enter into His rest, we enter into a rest from our enemies because they're dead; Jesus gave us total victory over them. Jesus said, (Mat.28:18) … All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth. That doesn't leave any authority for the devil. Then He turned to His disciples and He delegated that authority to them. (Mat.18:18) Verily I say unto 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. (19) Again I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father who is in heaven. (Joh.20:21) Jesus therefore said to them again, Peace be unto you: as the Father hath sent me, even so send I you.  Jesus had authority, and He spoke it, and the devils trembled. That same Jesus lives in you. To the extent that you humble yourself to the Word of God, and you believe the Word, and you're becoming the Word made flesh, to that extent Jesus' DNA lives in you. All you have to do is cooperate with Him. (Amo.3:3) Shall two walk together, except they have agreed? If you want that same Jesus to live in you, to conquer your enemies, to speak out of you, to swing the Sword and to do the works, then you have to come into agreement with Him. When you read the Word of God, repent, change your mind and believe what it says. We have to agree with it so that we don't restrain it from coming out of us.  If you're uncomfortable confessing anything that's in the Word of God, if you're uncomfortable repeating it, this is how you know you've been taken captive by false religion and false doctrine. If some of the Word of God is not comfortable in your mouth, then naturally you're not going to let it flow out of you, for how “shall two walk together, except they have agreed?” God warned His people about bringing forth “strange children” that don't look like their Father (Hosea 5:7).  The problem is with us, it's not with God. Being a Christian is being very peculiar, very contrary, to the world. They're total opposites. If you want to please the world, you can't be a Christian. If you don't want to be sanctified from the ways of the world, you can't be a Christian. You can call yourself a “Christian,” but you can't be one, because “Christian” means “Christ-like” and they crucified Him. We have to be willing to lose our life in order to gain our life (Luke 17:33). We have to be willing to be seen as different, even “peculiar.” (1Pe. 2:9 KJV) But ye [are] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.  Jesus said there are just two men in the earth: Christ and anti-Christ (Matthew 24:40-41). There are only two corporate bodies in this earth. There's not going to be anyone left in the middle because God calls that being “lukewarm.” (Rev. 3:16) So because thou art lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spew thee out of my mouth. You have to make up your mind. Are you going to lose your life in order to gain your life? (2Co. 4:16) Wherefore we faint not; but though our outward man is decaying, yet our inward man is renewed day by day. As you lose ground to the old man of self, you give ground to the spiritual man, (Col. 1:27) … Christ in you, the hope of glory.  Jesus is not going to have any trouble with this warfare that's coming, and Jesus in you by His DNA is not going to have any trouble, either, but how “Shall two walk together, except they have agreed?” We have to come into agreement with Him. We have to read the Word, and when we read the Word, we have to decide, “I don't care what some man says; I agree with what this says.” Then it becomes comfortable for you to speak all of the Word of God, but there are so many people, so many who can't do that. They may read the Word of God, but instead of coming into agreement, they deliberately jump over anything that makes them uncomfortable. They've been taken captive and they need to repent.  When you read the Word of God, as the Lord told me many years ago, “Don't eat like a hog; eat like a cow.” Cows are ruminants. That means a cow chews its food, then brings it back up and chews it again, brings it back up and chews it again. With a hog, it just goes right in one end and right out the other end. It doesn't even get digested. This Word has to be a part of us. We must meditate on it. (Psa.1:2) But his delight is in the law of the Lord; And on his law doth he meditate day and night. We want to be disciples of Jesus. We want to learn to walk in His steps. When that Word just comes flowing out of you like a river of living water, look out devil! There isn't anything he can do against that.  Jesus told His disciples, (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. And, (Joh. 7:38) He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, from within him shall flow rivers of living water. (39) But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believed on him were to receive: for the Spirit was not yet [given]; because Jesus was not yet glorified. He also said in (Joh. 6:63) It is the spirit that giveth life; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I have spoken unto you are spirit, and are life.  When your words agree with His words, your words are His Spirit. The Lord recreates in us His Spirit by His Words, and we're able to recreate Jesus by speaking His words. We're supposed to sow the same seed that He sowed, that His disciples sowed, that His apostles sowed because He is the Father of eternity. We're supposed to sow the Word of God. Never depart from the Word of God. God's people must learn that religion crumbles in the face of adversity. Religion is no defense against what's coming. Satan laughs at it. The leaders of it in Jesus day were from beneath and of their father the devil. Throughout history, the merely religious have crumbled before the advances of the devil. There is no defense but the Word of God. No helmet, no sword, no shield, but the Word of God. Use Psalm 91 like a Helmet, Sword, and Shield because it's a defense. It's called “The Soldier's Psalm” because so many soldiers have been saved by claiming it. You are a soldier for the Lord, so don't let anybody talk you out of Psalm 91. It's saved many lives and it's for today. It's a part of the blessings of God for the faithful.  The demons administer the curse of sin and death. (Luk. 10:17) And the seventy returned with joy, saying, Lord, even the demons are subject unto us in thy name. (Wouldn't it be great if all Christians learned that lesson?) (18) And he said unto them, I beheld Satan fallen as lightning from the heaven. He was talking about exactly what they were doing. He and His disciples were casting Satan down. (19) Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall in any wise hurt you. (20) Nevertheless in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.  Some people think Jesus used “over all the power of the enemy” a little too loosely but no, He means exactly what He says, and we have to learn to exercise this authority. “Authority” is “the right to use God's power or restrain the devil's power.” I'd rather have that kind of authority than personal fleshly power. In fact, you can even have authority to use the devil's power.  The apostle Paul did that several times (1 Corinthians 5:3-5; 1 Timothy 1:18-20). He turned people over to Satan for the destruction of their flesh so that the spirit would be saved in the day of the Lord. He used the devil's power, and the devil couldn't resist him. The devil had to do what Paul told him to do. It's the same today. Jesus said, “All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth … Go ye, therefore…” He delegated that authority to His disciples to go and to use His power. You have the authority to use God's power. That's what the Word is all about.  You can be transformed by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:2), but someone whose mind is not renewed is not trustworthy. If they had power, they would do foolish things. However, when we repent and we accept the Word of God as our Word, our thought, our belief, that puts us in agreement with Jesus. When we're in agreement with Jesus, then we can walk together and Jesus can do works through us. (Mat. 11:29) Take my yoke (That's the Greek word zugos derived from zygós and it's “something that unites or joins two elements to work together as one unit.”) upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. “Take my yoke,”  Jesus said to yoke yourself to Him. And so He says in, (Luk. 10:19) Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall in any wise hurt you. Nothing shall hurt you. Oh, praise God! Believe that! Meditate on that! Rejoice in that!

Pastor Buddy Wimberly "GROUNDED AND SETTLED" Colossians 1:15-23 Col 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: Col 1:16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: Col 1:17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. Col 1:19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; Col 1:20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. Col 1:21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled Col 1:22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: Col 1:23 If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister; --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lannieroadbaptistchurch/message

Gal 5:1-3 5 For freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage. 2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that, if ye receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing. 3 Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision, that he is a […]

Galatians 5:1-15 1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. 2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. 3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. 4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. 6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. 7 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? 8 This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you. 9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. 11 And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased. 12 I would they were even cut off which trouble you. 13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

Galatians 5:1-14 1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. 2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. 3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. 4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. 6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. 7 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? 8 This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you. 9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. 11 And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased. 12 I would they were even cut off which trouble you. 13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. 5:2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. 5:3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. 5:4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. 5:5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. 5:6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. 5:7 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? 5:8 This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you. 5:9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. 5:10 I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. 5:11 And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased. 5:12 I would they were even cut off which trouble you. 5:13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 5:15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

Apostate Church Witchcraft (1)  (audio) David Eells - 11/26/23  Merchants of Babylon  David Eells  In the book of Revelation, only those that have the mark of the beast can buy and sell. (Rev. 13:17) No man should be able to buy or to sell, save he that hath the mark, [even] the name of the beast or the number of his name. But they will not escape God's wrath in the near future. (Isa. 24:1) Behold, Jehovah maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof. (2) And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the creditor, so with the debtor; as with the taker of interest, so with the giver of interest to him. (3) The earth shall be utterly emptied, and utterly laid waste; for Jehovah hath spoken this word.  For the true meaning in this parable of buying and selling we must look for the hidden manna. (Rev. 2:17) He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches. To him that overcometh, to him will I give of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and upon the stone a new name written, which no one knoweth but he that receiveth it. See also (Lk. 10:21). In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou didst hide these things from the wise and understanding, and didst reveal them unto babes: yea, Father; for so it was well-pleasing in thy sight.  The letter kills but the spirit gives life. (2 Cor. 3:6) who also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. Jesus spoke spirit during his ministry to the disciples. (Jn. 6:53) Jesus therefore said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, ye have not life in yourselves; (63) It is the spirit that giveth life; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I have spoken unto you are spirit, are life.   The Book of Revelation is called the testimony of Jesus. (Rev. 1:2) who bare witness of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, [even] of all things that he saw; (9) I John, your brother and partaker with you in tribulation and kingdom and patience [which are] in Jesus, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. (19:10) And I fell down before his feet to worship him. And he saith unto me, See thou do it not: I am a fellow-servant with thee and with thy brethren that hold the testimony of Jesus: worship God; for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy for which the saints are killed by the false prophets who only see the letter.   (20:4) And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and [I saw] the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, and such as worshipped not the beast, neither his image, and received not the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and they lived, and reigned with Christ a thousand years. "Revelation" means an uncovering or unveiling and it is the spirit, not the letter, that does this! It is a sign (Rev. 1:1) The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show unto his servants, [even] the things which must shortly come to pass: and he sent and signified [it] by his angel unto his servant John; (2) who bare witness of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, [even] of all things that he saw.  The ones who "bought and sold" were destroyed by the fire in Lot's day. (Lk. 17:28) Likewise even as it came to pass in the days of Lot; they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; (29) but in the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Paul taught that those who do evil are "sold under sin". (Rom. 7:14) For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. (15) For that which I do I know not: for not what I would, that do I practice; but what I hate, that I do. Ahab, a type of the beast, sold his soul to do evil at the instigation of the Harlot Jezebel. (1 Ki. 21:25) But there was none like unto Ahab, who did sell himself to do that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, Jezebel his wife stirred up. (20) And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee, because thou hast sold thyself to do that which is evil in the sight of Jehovah.  In 2 Kings 17:17 those that worshiped the Image of the beast sold themselves and caused their children to go through fire. And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, to provoke him to anger. (18) Therefore Jehovah was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.   Many in these days are like "Esau, who for one mess of meat (following after flesh) sold his own birthright" (Heb. 12:16) and was rejected. (17) For ye know that even when he afterward desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected (Greek: reprobate); for he found no place for a change of mind [in his father,] though he sought it diligently with tears.  Jesus rejected those in the temple (Christians in the New Testament) who bought and sold. (Mk. 11:15) And they come to Jerusalem: and he entered into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and them that bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money-changers, and the seats of them that sold the doves. The foolish virgins missed the Lord because they went to buy from them that sold. (Mt. 25:10) And while they went away to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage feast: and the door was shut. They obviously were used to dealing with the hirelings, the "merchants of Babylon".  Jesus told his ministers "freely you have received, freely give. Get you no gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses" (Mt. 10:8-9). They had to walk by faith, with no salaries, no corruption. You can't hire God's ministers but then you can't fire them either. Some will say "Buy the truth and sell it not" (Pr. 23:23) but the truth cannot be bought with money. (Isa. 55:1) Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. (2) Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labor for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. (3) Incline your ear, and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live: and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.   If the truth could be bought with money, the rich would have an unfair advantage, which contradicts what Jesus said: (Mt. 19:23) Verily I say unto you, It is hard for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven. (24) And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. We can only buy the truth with the cost of our own life and way. (Jn. 7:17) If any man willeth to do his will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or [whether] I speak from myself. Peter said, "Thy silver perish with thee because thou hast thought to obtain the gift of God with money." (Acts 8:20)  To buy a lie, you must sell your soul. In a way, all those who buy and sell the merchandise (teaching, thinking, actions) of Babylon (apostate religion) are the merchants of Babylon. (Rev. 18:11) And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, for no man buyeth their merchandise anymore; (15) The merchants of these things, who were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning. The rich young ruler was bribed (bought) by materialism to not follow Jesus.   Many buy convenient Babylonish doctrines like this and sell their eternal lives. (Lk. 14:18) And they all with one [consent] began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a field, and I must needs go out and see it; I pray thee have me excused. (19) And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them; I pray thee have me excused. (Mt. 13:22) And he that was sown among the thorns, this is he that heareth the word; and the care of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful. They sell their soul for the pleasures of sin for a season. The treasures of Egypt are worth more than the reproach of Christ to them. (Heb 11:25) choosing rather to share ill treatment with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; (26) accounting the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt: for he looked unto the recompense of reward.   We must sell our worldly life to buy our heavenly life, which is made possible by the sacrifice of Jesus' life. The body of Christ was sacrificed so that the corporate body of Christ would have power to sacrifice their lives. (Mt. 16:24) Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. (25) For whosoever would save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find it. (26) For what shall a man be profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his life? Riches will soon be worth nothing but wrath.   (Eze. 7:12) The time is come, the day draweth near: let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn; for wrath is upon all the multitude thereof; (19) They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be as an unclean thing; their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of Jehovah: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels; because it hath been the stumbling block of their iniquity. (20) As for the beauty of his ornament, he set it in majesty; but they made the images of their abominations [and] their detestable things therein: therefore have I made it unto them as an unclean thing. (Rev. 6:6) And I heard as it were a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, A measure of wheat for a shilling, and three measures of barley for a shilling; and the oil and the wine hurt thou not.  One reason there is such an emphasis on buying and selling is because Christians don't obey God's word and walk by faith in the area of giving and receiving. Jesus commanded us to "give and it shall be given unto you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, shall they give into your bosom" (Lk. 6:38). An opportunity to give is an opportunity to receive it back multiplied or it is an opportunity to sit on or eat the seed. God gives to us not to make us rich but to "multiply your seed for sowing" (2 Cor. 9:10). (2 Cor. 9:6) He that soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly, and he that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. God follows this with this promise: (8) And God is able to make all grace abound with you, that you having always all sufficiency in everything may abound unto every good work).  On the other hand, he that sits on or eats his seed will have to buy and sell because he is disobedient and has no faith. This is where the merchants of Babylon are. They make "the Father's house a house of merchandise" (Jn. 2:16) when they peddle the word for salaries like the world. Peddling books, tapes, trinkets, chicken dinners, tours, etc., is the way of the world and for those who have an impoverished God. They make "merchandise of the word of God" (2 Cor. 2:17 in Greek). Why would anyone who believed the above promises do this? When a person is not sent by God he does not have faith that God shall supply every need (Phl. 4:19). Where God sends, He supplies. Without God's supernatural supply, people have to resort to other tactics to support "their ministry", like buying and selling.  Another tactic these ministers use is to put God's people under the law to support them when the scripture clearly states that our giving is "not of necessity" (2 Cor. 9:7). Let each man do according as he has purposed in his heart (not according to law); not grudgingly, or of necessity (not according to law), for God loveth a cheerful giver. In the New Testament, God wants an offering from the heart from those born of His Spirit. God made the Old Covenant with the Jews, not the church. If a doctrine like tithing is not in the new covenant, then it was never made with you!   Jesus, rebuking those under the Old Covenant, said "Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye tithe mint and anise and cumin (even their seasoning), and have left undone the weightier matters of the law, Justice and mercy, and faith: but these you ought to have done (past tense in all ancient manuscripts and the Received Text) and not to have left the other undone" (Mt. 23:23). Jesus said tithing was of the law and in the past. Some say tithing was before the law. Yes, circumcision and animal sacrifice were before the law too but they were included in the law, and we are not under law to do them anymore. Paul also said tithing was of the law. (Heb. 7:5) And they indeed of the sons of Levi that receive the priest's office have commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though these have come out of the loins of Abraham: (6) but he whose genealogy is not counted from them hath taken tithes of Abraham, and hath blessed him that hath the promises.   (7) But without any dispute the less is blessed of the better. (8) And here men that die receive tithes; but there one, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. (9) And, so to say, through Abraham even Levi, who receiveth tithes, hath paid tithes; (10) for he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchizedek met him. (11) Now if there was perfection through the Levitical priesthood (for under it hath the people received the law), what further need [was there] that another priest should arise after the order of Melchizedek, and not be reckoned after the order of Aaron?   There is no New Testament command or request to tithe because we are no longer stewards of ten percent. Jesus taught that we have to renounce ownership of the other ninety percent or we cannot be his disciple. (Lk. 14:33) So therefore whosoever he be of you that renounceth not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. "All" here means all possessions, rights, and will.   We even must renounce "our" doctrine! It must be the Lord's doctrine. Since we have the Spirit we don't need a law; we are under the law of the Spirit. (Rom. 8:2) For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death. The Spirit will tell where to give and how much and to whom. If everyone gave according to the Spirit the kingdoms of men would crumble and true ministers would be supported.   A person who is under the tithing law robs God because he will disobey the Spirit's command to meet the needs of the brethren around him in order to bring his "tithes into the storehouse", which to them is usually an apostate religious system that won't meet the brethren's needs. The storehouse in the Old Covenant was in the temple. (1 Kings 7:51) Thus all the work that king Solomon wrought in the house of Jehovah was finished. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated, [even] the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, and put them in the treasuries of the house of Jehovah...   In the New Testament the storehouse is in the people, who are His temple. (Mt. 25:34) Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: (35) for I was hungry, and ye gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in; (36) naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came unto me. (37) Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, and fed thee? or athirst, and gave thee drink? (38) And when saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? (39) And when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? (40) And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my brethren, [even] these least, ye did it unto me.   (41) Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels: (42) for I was hungry, and ye did not give me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink;(43) I was a stranger, and ye took me not in; naked, and ye clothed me not; sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. (44) Then shall they also answer, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?  (45) Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, In as much as ye did it not unto one of these least, ye did it not unto me. (46) And these shall go away into eternal punishment: but the righteous into eternal life. You see we are called to meet the needs of the brethren. (1Jn. 3:16) Hereby know we love, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. (17) But whoso hath the world's goods, and beholdeth his brother in need, and shutteth up his compassion from him, how doth the love of God abide in him?   Giving according to the Spirit causes one to fulfill the law without being under the law. (Mt. 5:17) Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I came not to destroy, but to fulfil. (18) For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass away from the law, till all things be accomplished. For instance, a person who gives bountifully will fulfill the ten percent and more, but they do it from the heart and are not seeking to earn God's approval as those under the law. We are not righteous before God when we attempt to please Him by the law, whether tithes, observing the Sabbath, circumcision, abstaining from meats, etc.   (Gal. 2:16) yet knowing that a man is not justified (Greek: accounted righteous) by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we believed on Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the law: because by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified and (3:11) Now that no man is justified by the law before God, is evident: for, The righteous shall live by faith. If we rest every day from our own works we certainly fulfill the Sabbath, without being under the letter of the law.  The righteousness of the law is self-righteousness because it is powered by self but "The righteous shall live from faith" (Gal. 3:11). When ministers of Babylon put you under the law they separate you from God's righteousness and bring you under a curse. Except your righteousness shall exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees (law of tithe included), you shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven (Mt. 5:20). The law is "a yoke of bondage". (Gal. 5:1-3) For freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you, that, if ye receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing. Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision (or tithing, Sabbath, meats, etc.) that he is a debtor to do the whole law.  If you are under any part of the law you are under the curse of having to keep the whole law and since that is impossible you are separated from Christ. (Gal. 3:10) For as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse: for it is written, Cursed is everyone who continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law, to do them. (5:4) Ye are severed from Christ ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace. Notice: those who put you under the law cut you off from Christ and grace. You cannot hear the voice of Christ and the voice of the law at the same time. "You are not under the law" (5:18).   The merchants of Babylon say, "you are not under the law", when they are talking about obedience to the word, but "bring your tithes into the storehouse," when they talk of money? "In covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you" (2 Pet. 2:3). In verse one of this text we are told this is the false prophets and teachers who bring in destructive heresies (law) and deny Jesus. They deny Jesus by separating Him from His body. "Forsaking the right way, they went astray, having followed the way of Balaam... who loved the hire of wrong doing" (15).  Friends, if you know a minister, one of the few, who walks by faith and freely gives the true doctrine of God, support him as the scriptures teach. (1 Cor. 9:6) Or I only and Barnabas, have we not a right to forbear working? (7) What soldier ever serveth at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not the fruit thereof? Or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? (8) Do I speak these things after the manner of men? or saith not the law also the same? (9) For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn. Is it for the oxen that God careth,   (10) or saith he it assuredly for our sake? Yea, for our sake it was written: because he that ploweth ought to plow in hope, and he that thresheth, [to thresh] in hope of partaking. (11) If we sowed unto you spiritual things, is it a great matter if we shall reap your carnal things? (12) If others partake of [this] right over you, do not we yet more? Nevertheless we did not use this right; but we bear all things, that we may cause no hindrance to the gospel of Christ. (13) Know ye not that they that minister about sacred things eat [of] the things of the temple, [and] they that wait upon the altar have their portion with the altar? The Word will be our judge as to whether we are buying and selling with the world.   Witchcraft In Apostate Churches  Tianna Fire 12/8/22 (David's notes in red)    I dreamt that we were driving through a town, but we stopped to get paper and pens from a shop. Samuel waited in the car. There was only one shop in this town that sold items, like a general store. It looked like it used to be white, but it was now a dark and dirty white and it was very old and didn't look like it was well taken care of. The building was an 1800s style house that had been converted into a shop. (The old dirty store represents the apostate church where the true Gospel that was once given is now sold. It has been polluted by religion and false leadership.) Mat 23:27 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like whited sepulchres, which outwardly appear beautiful, but inwardly are full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.   Luk 11:39 And the Lord said unto him, Now YE the Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the platter; but your inward part is full of extortion and wickedness.)  When I got into the shop it was packed with people all standing around and there was also a very long queue. (There are many people looking for the Truth but they are not getting it from the false apostate leaders.)  They had a few items for sale in the part where everyone was waiting but most of the items were kept out in the back of the shop and also in the basement, which was blocked off to the customers. (Like Mormons and JW's they hide a lot of teachings that they know are unacceptable to other Christians. They only reveal these things after they feel they have you on the hook. The false leadership in the apostate churches merchandise very little truth which they sell to the sheep because they don't have the real Gospel to give them. Mat 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye shut the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye enter not in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering in to enter.)  (Col 1:26-27 even the mystery which hath been hid for ages and generations: but now hath it been manifested to his saints, 27 to whom God was pleased to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: 1Co 2:6-7 We speak wisdom, however, among them that are fullgrown: yet a wisdom not of this world, nor of the rulers of this world, who are coming to nought: 7 but we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, even the wisdom that hath been hidden, which God foreordained before the worlds unto our glory:)   So, to get what you wanted you had to wait in line to ask the cashier lady if they stocked it and if they did, you had to wait around until she went and got it. (Waiting around for supplies represents the Nicolaitan error.) Rev 2:14-17 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there some that hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit fornication. 15 So hast thou also some that hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans in like manner. 16 Repent therefore; or else I come to thee quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of my mouth. 17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches. To him that overcometh, to him will I give of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and upon the stone a new name written, which no one knoweth but he that receiveth it.)  There were also people in the queue who hadn't even found out if the shop stocked or even sold their item yet. (People go to the same church for years, looking for Jesus, waiting and never find what they came for and become lukewarm there just accepting what they hear.)   Everyone seemed very distressed, because it was taking such a long time and there were so many people. While I was there, I didn't see anyone receive the item they were waiting for. (Many in apostasy are in distress, continuously praying for healing and provisions and for God to answer prayer, never learning how to receive their needs by faith in prayer. No one learns how to minister to others. They expect the pastor to do everything, because “he is the one in charge” in their churches. This is a part of the Nicolaitan error.)   As I waited in line, I overheard someone talking about Jesus which made me very excited. I joined in their conversation, and they professed to love Jesus, however they seemed to be religious and not understanding spiritual things. But I was still so happy to be able to speak about Jesus and God's Word! Then many other people in there heard us talking about God and they confessed to love Jesus too. I was so happy that there were so many people who loved our Lord.  I started speaking with this married couple who had young children and I blessed and prayed for the children. I then stood closer to them on their right. As I did, I accidentally came too close to a man with his son. This man got very angry and upset with me and I apologized, and I told him that I loved him and his son and I desired God's blessings and love and joy to be upon them both. He became offended at that, and he said he was a Christian and he thought I was rude. (NENT Php 1:9-10 And this I pray, that your love abound yet more and more in knowledge and all discernment; 10 so that ye may approve the things excellent; that ye be sincere and void of offence unto Christ's day.)  (Some people are easily offended, unable to come closer to those who are full of the love of Christ. Pro 18:19 A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city; And such contentions are like the bars of a castle.)  (Pro 19:11 The discretion of a man maketh him slow to anger; And it is his glory to pass over a transgression.)  So I spoke blessings on him and moved on, speaking with other Christians and sharing The Real Good News. It turned out that every person in this shop was a professing Christian. The lady who worked there said that because everyone there were Christians that we should all discuss a topic. Someone shouted to discuss God's Glory! She then brought up a slideshow on a big giant screen that was behind her which had Bible verses related to Glory.  People started sharing their man-made doctrine that used only partial scripture, and not the sum of thy Word. (1Ti 6:3-5 If any man teacheth a different doctrine, and consenteth not to sound words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; 4 he is puffed up, knowing nothing, but doting about questionings and disputes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, 5 wranglings of men corrupted in mind and bereft of the truth, supposing that godliness is a way of gain.) (Psa 119:160 The sum of thy word is truth; And every one of thy righteous ordinances endureth for ever.) Someone said that as soon as we start believing in Jesus that we then have God's Glory and nothing else needs to be done. Someone else said that God loves everyone, and everyone will be saved. I felt love for all the people, but I knew what they were saying wasn't true and I desired for them to know the Truth.  (Mat 15:9 But in vain do they worship me, Teaching as their doctrines the precepts of men. 2Ti 4:3-4 For the time will come when they will not endure the sound doctrine; but, having itching ears, will heap to themselves teachers after their own lusts; 4 and will turn away their ears from the truth, and turn aside unto fables.)  I was sharing testimonies about what God has done for me and what He has shown me, and as much Truth I could without getting into teaching. They brought up scriptures and used them out of context to say that we are saved automatically when we start believing in Jesus and that nothing else is required. They also spoke about how we are already purified and it doesn't need to manifest on earth. That we will all be the same in Heaven. (The apostate church has very little truth and see only the letter, but error after the teachings of their leadership who are not filled with the Holy Spirit and many times aren't even saved. The “once saved always saved” is just one of their false doctrines. 1Ti 4:1 But the Spirit saith expressly, that in later times some shall fall away from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons.)   I was then reminded of these verses: NENT 1Co 15:39-44 All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fishes. There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differeth from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: it is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.)   I knew that these verses revealed what they believe wasn't correct, I wanted to quote these verses to them but then I realized it might be teaching so I didn't say anything. I stood there confused about why all these Christians who profess they love Jesus are twisting the Word and are unaware of the real meaning. I asked God why He didn't want them to know about the star, moon, sun glory and about spirit, soul, body manifesting Jesus on earth. I then heard Him clearly say, "It's not for everyone to know." (Jesus spoke in parables to keep the truth hidden from the religious leaders and those who want to be self-justified in His day and He still does it today. Mat 13:13 Therefore speak I to them in parables; because seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. But those who have ears to hear, will hear and understand.)  So, I walked out of the shop and spoke to Samuel about what happened and we both agreed that we desired for all of them to come into the Kingdom of God, so we interceded on their behalf. (Our Lord interceded for us and we are to pray for others.) 1Ti 2:1 I exhort therefore first of all to make supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings, for all men. 4 who would have all men to be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth.)  Then Samuel called David Eells to ask for advice. David Eells then physically appeared in front of us. David was a little shorter than I have seen him in videos, and his eyes were a bright blue. (Psa 8:5 For thou hast made him but little lower than God, And crownest him with glory and honor; Blue eyes represent heavenly discernment of the light of truth. Mat 6:22 The lamp of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.)  I was surprised that he appeared instantly, but I was so happy to see him and I gave him a big, long hug and I felt so much spiritual love for him and I didn't want to let go of hugging him. I felt love, peace and gentleness radiating from him. (Php 1:8 For God is my witness, how I long after you all in the tender mercies of Christ Jesus.)  He then said, "You need to go back in there and testify of the Truth." (Sharing a testimony of what a truth did for you is permissible for women. Especially when you are speaking to lost religious people. Teaching the younger women is also permissible. Tit 2:4-5 ASV  that they may train the young women to love their husbands, to love their children,  5  to be sober-minded, chaste, workers at home, kind, being in subjection to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed:  Teaching men the Word should be left to the men. 1Ti 2:12 ASV  But I permit not a woman to teach, nor to have dominion over a man, but to be in quietness.) So, I walked to go back into the shop, and I heard David and Samuel interceding and speaking the Word as I walked away. (As an example to us Jesus sent out the 12 and then the 70 men to teach the Word of the Kingdom.  They were commissioned to go to all and be bold and stand with God and His Word. Act 22:15 For thou shalt be a witness for him unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard.)   (Deu 31:6 Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be affrighted at them: for Jehovah thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Psa 118:6 Jehovah is on my side; I will not fear: What can man do unto me?)  I walked past a building that was right next to the Christian store. I looked through the door and I saw a lady lying on her back on a couch. I instantly saw in spirit that she was a witch. But in the natural she looked like an attractive woman. She wasn't selling anything in this building, but it looked like she lived there. She had dark hair and light, white-blue eyes (Dark hair represents submitted to darkness. Her eyes represent a false light, which is similar to what I have seen in people in real life who are involved in the occult.) (This woman could represent church denominations and we know that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. 1Sa 15:23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim….)  She was dressed very seductively with red lipstick, heavy eye makeup and she was wearing a crop top, a short purple skirt and long black boots. I saw into her soul and saw she was intending to do evil. (Job 15:35 They conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity, And their heart prepareth deceit. Pro 12:20 Deceit is in the heart of them that devise evil; Mar 7:21 For from within, out of the heart of men, evil thoughts proceed, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries…)  I saw that she would physically be resting in her shop but through witchcraft in the spiritual realm, she would seduce random people who walked past this building and would come into her. She wouldn't always sleep with the people, but she would give them even more demons and lead them into deeper sin. (Demons are transferred through sex and by accepting the thoughts of lies, slander, gossip, etc., and by words of agreement with the sensual desires. (Temptations of the lust of the flesh.) We have protection from all this when we obey God and keep His commandments.)  (Pro 7:5-13 That they [My commandments and wisdom] may keep thee from the strange woman, [Harlot] From the foreigner that flattereth with her words. 6 For at the window of my house I looked forth through my lattice; 7 And I beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, A young man void of understanding, 8 Passing through the street near her corner; And he went the way to her house, 9 In the twilight, in the evening of the day, In the middle of the night and in the darkness. 10 And, behold, there met him a woman With the attire of a harlot, and wily of heart. 11 She is clamorous and wilful; Her feet abide not in her house: 12 Now she is in the streets, now in the broad places, And lieth in wait at every corner. 13 So she caught him, and kissed him, … (The kiss represents her words.)   Pro 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; But the end thereof are the ways of death.)  She then tried to project witchcraft onto me and I saw the witchcraft, which kind of looked like frequencies or rays of electricity come out of her to touch me. It was blocked a few feet in front of me because there was a bubble of protection all around me in the spiritual, and nothing could get through the bubble. She was surprised at this and couldn't comprehend what happened. (Those who love the Truth will be protected from their deceptions. Eph 6:10-13 ASV  Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of his might.  11  Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  12  For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13  Wherefore take up the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and, having done all, to stand.)  I blessed her and kept walking to the Christian shop. I was wondering why they set up a shop right next to a witch. (The apostate church is compared to a harlot because they receive not the seed of her husband. This is witchcraft.)  I went back into the store and I stood at a specific corner where I could see everyone in the room. I spoke to everyone who would listen, giving my testimony of the Truth of the Word. I could see in the spirit, and through walls. I saw witchcraft projecting from the witch directly into this shop; it came out like tentacles and would wrap around a person and quickly pull them into where she was. It seemed that if the person's will and desire was to go where the woman was, they'd be taken. People were left in the shop if it wasn't their will to follow her. (1Sa 15:23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim. Because thou hast rejected the word of Jehovah,... Hos 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge…)   (2 Cor 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve in his craftiness, your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity and the purity that is toward Christ.)   I saw the long tentacle grab onto one Christian man, and he became aroused, and he ran out of the shop and into the other women's shop. I then saw it happen again, but differently. This next person was not taken by physical arousal, but they had a weak spot of coveting, and they were convinced that by going to the witch, they would get all the money they wanted. It was as if this witch knew every person's weak spot and she would attract each person using their weak spot. (The demons see and know in the spirit realm how to work in spirit groupings of seduction using the lusts of the flesh and the sin nature. But if they would submit to God's Word and resist the devil he would flee. I have seen people drawn into faction through selfish ambition, jealousy and rejection.)  I watched this lady in spirit attract each Christian out of the store one by one, like an octopus using its tentacles to draw its prey. When the witchcraft would come upon each person, they would quickly change and would run over to where the witch was, not thinking about anything else. Every time the witchcraft would come into the store, I would be supernaturally lifted up high to the roof where I could see everything. I was up so high that it couldn't touch me, nor could any human touch me. (Dwelling in heavenly places in Christ, we are protected from evil.)  I watched every person in the store get taken in the spirit into where the witch was until I was left alone in the store. (The Christians in this shop were part of the apostate church and not equipped with the Spirit and Word. Having no ability to fight against the temptations of the flesh. They were seduced by the harlot and her witchcraft, so they gave into their lusts. God sovereignly protects His elect and He will deliver them from the works of darkness at an appointed time. The enemy works to tempt people away from the Kingdom of God and cause them to fall away.)      Apostate Church Vanity   Tianna Fire 1/26/23 (David's notes in red)     I dreamt that Samuel and I were driving, and we saw this giant building to our left, sitting on a very large area of land, and it had a big cross on it. There were no cars parked outside, so it looked like no one was there. Because we saw the cross, we thought that we should leave them a Sovereign God book. So, we parked out front and went up to a window and looked inside the building. A few women were there and when they saw us, they came out quickly. We did not want to talk to them, only to just leave the book and go.   One of the women that came out, was a woman that worked at the grocery store, and she was always there when Samuel went to get groceries, so Samuel knew her. Another woman was the wife of a man that kept inviting us to his church, but we didn't want to visit his church. We now realized that this building was his church.    They urged us to come inside and we didn't want to hurt their feelings, so we said we would come in quickly just to see the place. When we went inside, it appeared 20 times bigger than what the outside looked like. (Like the megachurches.) One of the ladies told me to go to the children's section because I was carrying David. I honestly didn't want to, but I didn't want to upset her so I just did what she said. (Pro 29:25 The fear of man bringeth a snare; But whoso putteth his trust in Jehovah shall be safe.) I walked to the back of the building and entered this large colorful room that had an indoor children's playground, and many children running around and there were a couple of people watching them play.  I felt this was vanity and a distraction from Jesus. I then saw a poster listing different activities during the week for children and one of them was like child daycare. All the activities were vanity and had nothing to do with Jesus. Samuel and I prefer having David always with us, so I said, “Well there's no reason for me to be here because we aren't doing the daycare thing, and we only want to do things involving Jesus.”  So, I turned to leave and go find Samuel, but I got lost in the large building. There were so many different rooms and hallways and everything was set up weird. (The apostate church system causes confusion to ensnare people.)  Then a man came running out of a room and said something with much excitement for me to go look where he just came from. I didn't want to be rude to him, so I just followed him and he led me into a massive library, and all the walls and shelves were all sorts of bright colors. I commented on how I love all the bright colors, especially the bright yellow. (The attraction of bright colors arouse the senses and emotions to please the flesh. Pro 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; But the end thereof are the ways of death.)   There were people sitting around a table discussing a book that wasn't the Bible and there were many large shelves with thousands of books. I asked him about the books and about Jesus, and he said most books here are not really about Jesus and if they were, they contained incorrect doctrine. Which confused me because this was a church, so I expected everything to be about Jesus. (The apostate church leaders write many books about another Jesus, another Gospel and merchandise the people. It's all their works of the flesh. 2Co 11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we did not preach, or if ye receive a different spirit, which ye did not receive, or a different gospel, which ye did not accept, ye do well to bear with him. 1Ti 6:3 If any man teacheth a different doctrine, and consenteth not to sound words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; 4 he is puffed up, knowing nothing…)   I wondered what type of Bibles they had, and I couldn't find Bibles anywhere. I thought maybe I should leave a Sovereign God book here so God can lead the right person to find it. (Hos 4:1 Hear the word of Jehovah, ye children of Israel; for Jehovah hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor goodness, nor knowledge of God in the land.)   The man that led me into this room started hitting on me, and I thought this was crazy, this is a church and supposed to be brethren in Christ, and I am married. I ignored the man and ran out of there to go find Samuel, but I couldn't find him anywhere. I walked around the entire place searching for Samuel, and I saw all different types of people, supposedly Christians, although no one was talking about Jesus. I was wondering, ‘Jesus where are you? I can't find you anywhere in this place, although they say that you are here.' (Like the Shulamite in Song of Solomon: Son 5:6…I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer. 7 The watchmen that go about the city found me, They smote me, they wounded me…)  I felt this whole place which claimed to be a house of God, had all the world mixed in it and the place felt corrupted and defiled and I couldn't see or feel the presence of God anywhere or in anyone. (The apostate church is a mixed multitude; the world is Babylon, from Babel, which means confusion and includes the harlot churches.) (Mat 23:28 Thus ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but inwardly are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.)  The whole building layout was completely confusing and so easy to get lost but I finally found the way to get out. Once outside I noticed heaps of people all gathered around at a café, and others standing around. And there were about 20 different small shops set up with many people everywhere. (This is how the megachurches are set up to draw the multitudes to network, socialize and merchandising.)   I was confused as to why no one is talking about Jesus; I felt no Spirit of God there, and I wondered why Samuel is missing? At this point I was disappointed that no one here really loves Jesus. I no longer cared what anyone thought of me anymore. I didn't want to do what they all wanted me to do, or think I had to be kind to them and agree to their requests.  So, I looked up at the sky and screamed out, "Jesus!” “Jesus where are you, Jesus?!” I think everyone around me thought I was crazy but I wanted Jesus and all these people claimed to be following Jesus but clearly were not. (Some in the apostate harlot churches are looking for Jesus, but don't always find the real Jesus...  Son 3:1-4 By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. 2 I said, I will rise now, and go about the city; In the streets and in the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. 3 The watchmen that go about the city found me; To whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth? 4 It was but a little that I passed from them, When I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, Until I had brought him into my mother's house, And into the chamber of her that conceived me.)  I started walking past the shops, when this toddler ran up to me and told me that his father needed a new wife and asked me to be his new mum. I kindly told him that I already have a husband and he ran back to his father. I thought this place was so strange.     I looked into the shops as I continued to walk by. In one of the stores people were fighting and I thought this isn't how children of God are to behave. In another store they were selling cigarettes and things like that, and I was shocked as we knew those things were wrong. Another store had people looking at me strangely as if I wasn't from this world. (We are not of this world, as Jesus said in Joh 17:16 They are not of the world even as I am not of the world. To the average Christian, we appear out of place.) Then in another store, a man catcalled. At every store everything was completely overpriced and had nothing to do with Jesus, and no one was manifesting the fruit of Christ. I kept saying, “vanity, vanity, all is vanity.” (Ecc 1:2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher; vanity of vanities, all is vanity.)  Everything in this ‘supposed church' was corrupt and had nothing to do with Jesus and I couldn't understand why. I just wanted to leave but I couldn't find Samuel anywhere. I finally got through these shops and into an area where there were no people. I asked God what He wanted me to do. He told me to go back there, and I said, “Lord nothing there has anything to do with You, and it's all corrupt and I don't want to go back.” He told me to go back and tell them all about His real Son Jesus and the Truth. So, I turned around and walked back the exact same way I came.  I opened the door to the first store and shared the real gospel, and they rejected it so I went to the next store and told them, and they wanted nothing to do with it either. (Mat 10:40 He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. Luk 10:16 He that heareth you heareth me; and he that rejecteth you rejecteth me; and he that rejecteth me rejecteth him that sent me.)  I turned around and saw two police officers going around into the exact same stores I had just left. It was as if they were following my steps, however I felt they were going to the places where I shared the Truth and we're exposing the corruption and arresting the evil. (The police may be the angels. Eph 5:11 and have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather even reprove them;)  I went into each shop sharing the Truth, but they all rejected it. So, I went into the café area and shared the Truth there, but everyone just wanted to go on with what they were doing and justifying their sin and corruption. I walked back into the children's area and library and testified of Jesus. (Like Jesus taught His disciples and the apostle Paul says in Act 20:21 testifying both to Jews and to Greeks repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 … that I may accomplish my course, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. Ministering the Gospel of Christ.)  I went to every person I saw and told them the Truth which finally led me to finding Samuel who was speaking to the leaders of this church. As soon as I got next to Samuel we walked straight out to the car and left.       UBM House Sanctified And Protected  Tianna Fire 4/25/23 (David's notes in red)  I dreamed that Michael, David and other brethren and I were living in my gramps Alan's old house. (Alan means harmony, little rock, and precious. This house represents the house of God's chosen or the elect, who are built on the Rock, which is Jesus Christ. 1Co 10:4 and did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of a spiritual rock that followed them: and the rock was Christ. 1Pe 2:6-8 Because it is contained in scripture, Behold, I lay in Zion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: And he that believeth on him shall not be put to shame. 7 For you therefore that believe is the preciousness: but for such as disbelieve, The stone which the builders rejected, The same was made the head of the corner; 8 and, A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence; for they stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.)  On one side of the house was a very large lounge room where all the brethren would gather for prayer, Bible studies and fellowship. There was a long hallway that led to the other side of the house where all the bedrooms were located. David's and Michael's rooms were located upstairs on the next level. (In an upper room, as overseers, overlooking the others.) Upstairs, David and Michael had their own small living room area to seek the Lord and write up their teachings received from Jesus. I remember they spent very much time there seeking God together, and individually, praying and studying the Word; but they would share the Word with everyone in the lounge room in God's perfect timing.   The brethren who cooked meals, would sometimes bring food up to Michael and David because they were at times so focused and absorbed in the Word and Spirit of God. All the brethren had specific chores around the property, such as cleaning, cooking and gardening and other important tasks, relieving Michael and David and others, so they could spend more time with the Lord in prayer, worship and the Word. (All the members of the Body of Christ have their gifts and individual roles to serve and edify each other. (1Co Ch. 12 and 14) Act 6:2-4 And the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not fit that we should forsake the word of God, and serve tables. 3 Look ye out therefore, brethren, from among you seven men of good report, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. 4 But we will continue stedfastly in prayer, and in the ministry of the word.)  The kitchen area was in the center of the house. (Where the unleavened bread is prepared. 2Ch 7:7 Moreover Solomon hallowed the middle of the court that was before the house of Jehovah;) The house was set up on a hill (Mt Zion) on a large amount of land, approximately five acres. (grace) Outside the house was a large, covered area for gathering, and there was a lake located at the bottom of the hill. The whole property was fenced. (Protected by sanctification.) On the adjoining neighbors' side were many trees and much bush so there was decent privacy. The neighbors were not able to come over the property line even if they wanted to; it was as if there was an invisible shield or wall. (The wall is sanctification from the worldly.)   They could only come in contact with us if we were off our private property or if we gave them permission to come onto our property. (If we are “off the private property” or “giving permission” this represents giving place to the enemy by any sin of unbelief, rejection, criticism, unforgiveness, willful sin, etc. When we walk in holiness (sanctification, abiding in Christ, in heavenly places) the enemy is bound and cannot legally be on our “property” (promised land.) 1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be watchful: your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour, 9 whom withstand stedfast in your faith…)   (Isa 35:8 And a highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for the redeemed: the wayfaring men, yea fools, shall not err therein.)  One time I went into the large lounge room and towards the right of the room. Michael, David and some other brethren were there deep in prayer. On a table sat a laptop computer which was turned on. I looked at the screen and saw they were watching a live conference of satanists gathered from around the world. All the brethren in the lounge room were in intense spiritual warfare and prayer against it. (I felt the conference being live online represents all evil being brought into the light and nothing is hidden before God. Also, the Man-Child and Bride body are in spiritual warfare, praying down satan's faction, witchcraft and D-S attempts.)   As I watched, HRC (Hillary Clinton) appeared on the laptop screen and I saw the pure evil and high level fallen angels inside of her and the presence of evil was so intense, that I had to turn away from looking at it. Sometimes the evil spiritual realm is too intense for me, so I couldn't bring myself to look at the conference anymore, but I instead just sat further away, and prayed in tongues and I was in complete agreement with what the brethren prayed, and I knew that our prayers would be answered.   (We also send the angels to bring down satan and his angels dominion. We have been gaining great victories this way with much less effort as in Rev 12:7-11 ASV  And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels going forth to war with the dragon; and the dragon warred and his angels;  8  and they prevailed not, neither was their place found any more in heaven. 9  And the great dragon was cast down, the old serpent, he that is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world; he was cast down to the earth, and his angels were cast down with him.  10  And I heard a great voice in heaven, saying, Now is come the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, who accuseth them before our God day and night.  11  And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb, and because of the word of their testimony; and they loved not their life even unto death. All the brethren were in intense prayer all day until it was just David, Michael and myself and my son David, still praying at around 3am. Then I took my son David into our room at the other end of the house.   Later, some brethren had to drive somewhere, and two men that I felt were like our bodyguards (angels) came to us and said the enemy was waiting for us. From the house there was a long driveway down the hill to the main road, where we could only go right to leave, we couldn't go left, there was only one way. (The Word of God, Who is Jesus, the one way path of righteousness.) Suddenly, our eyes were opened, (anointing) and we could see through walls, bushes and everything and we were able to see on the main road where some people who were against us were hiding behind a bush waiting for us (an ambush). But because we were able to see the enemy's plans, we were able to avoid the danger, pray it down and knew what to do and what not to do. (The Lord reveals the enemy and their traps, and the hidden dangers by the spiritual gifts, in words of wisdom, words of knowledge, visions and gift of discernment and the angels also tell us of them.) When it was clear they were able to continue.  The neighbors in the house next door did not like us, and they were always devising plans of attack against us in some way, but by God's grace, their plans were exposed and always failed. (God reveals the curses and witchcraft of the factious and apostate leaders to us through dreams and visions, so we can pray it down.) I remember in the dream how one of these men repented to follow Jesus and he joined us. The wife of one these men also decided to follow Jesus and she was on fire for God. She was pregnant and would regularly fellowship with us bringing her five children with her. She didn't want to leave her unbelieving husband because she believed God would soon reveal Himself to him too so he would be saved. (1Co 7:13-14 And the woman that hath an unbelieving husband, and he is content to dwell with her, let her not leave her husband. 14 For the unbelieving husband is sanctified in the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified in the brother: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.  1Pe 3:1-2 In like manner, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, even if any obey not the word, they may without the word be gained by the behavior of their wives; 2 beholding your chaste behavior coupled with fear.)  There was another UBM camp a little further away in a wooded area (The wooded area represents the wilderness.) and the house was a large wooden cabin. We would regularly meet together for fellowship with the few brethren who lived there. I don't remember what their area of ministering was, but it was different from the one we were in. I remember they had a slide that went off the cabin deck and it went further down onto the property. (This cabin in the woods represents the many other places of refuge that God has provided that are scattered all over the world. Some of these may be part of the UBM ministry.) 

Trials of Faith Prepare Us For Battle (5)  (audio)  David Eells - 11/22/23  Personalize Your Relationship  Anonymous 3/1/23 (David's notes in red)   With a direct relationship in Christ Jesus to our Father, there is no middleman to corrupt and steal anything. He has and His Will be done through us. (I felt that the enemy tries to get in between us and God, and steal what God has for us and what we can do for Him.)  Put Me first and I will put you first forever! (I felt we need to seek Him to do our best, to give Him everything since it all belongs to Him.) (Joh 17:10 and all things that are mine are thine, and thine are mine: and I am glorified in them.)  Concentrate. I can reveal and guide you in all things. Trust in Me. I have every good gift for you. (I was reminded that the Lord can bring to our memory what I thought I had forgotten. And I also felt that when we make a mistake to never look back but to focus on the finished product.) (Psa 119:27 Make me to understand the way of thy precepts: So shall I meditate on thy wondrous works.  Joh 14:26 …he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said unto you.  Joh 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the truth:…)  Keep trying on task. (Attempt and don't worry about how, it's about why. We willingly do so as He puts it all in us.) Keep trying with desire. (Seeking Him and His Will will be done.) (Mat 6:33 But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness;…  Pro 2: 4-5 If thou seek her [Wisdom] as silver, And search for her as for hid treasures: 5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of Jehovah, And find the knowledge of God.)  Keep trying as Christ in us would so we would be refined for the Kingdom.) (Col 3:17 And whatsoever ye do, in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.)  There is much to learn and do, just concentrate on the moment. Be at peace and do not get too far ahead of the current day. (Mat 6:34 Be not therefore anxious for the morrow: for the morrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. Jas 4:14-15 whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. What is your life? For ye are a vapor that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. 15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall both live, and do this or that.)  Lay down the blocks and build for the glory of the Kingdom. We are to give our all to the Lord to build His Kingdom.) (Psa 145:12 To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, And the glory of the majesty of his kingdom.  1Th 5:11 Wherefore exhort one another, and build each other up, even as also ye do.)  (We can give nothing for God without offering our old life as a burnt offering on the altar of the fiery trial. We cannot offer to him a blemished sacrifice of a life. Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.  1Pe 2:5 …to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.)  Am I important to you? Then say so! (Let us confess God to man and Glorify Him to man.) (Mat 10:32 Every one therefore who shall confess me before men, him will I also confess before my Father who is in heaven.) Be patient and faithful. (which are fruits of the Spirit.) (Heb 6:12…but imitators of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.)  Lambs among wolves...But I went before you and made it possible for you to conquered in all trials! (He suffered before us and enables us to have a relationship with our Father.) (Luk 10:3 Go your ways; behold, I send you forth as lambs in the midst of wolves.) Nothing you are experiencing is harder than what My Son suffered and showed His Love for you. See and know by faith how close I am to you. Cherish it!  Question yourself, Is what you are doing out of love? Not how others can love you and benefit you, but what are you from their point of view? Would I approve of what you are doing to them? (1Co 16:14 Let all that ye do be done in love.   Gal 6:2 Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.)  Why do you want to do it?  In love for me? Or for self or because of fear? Or is it because I Am and love conquers all? (Php 2:3-4 doing nothing through faction or through vainglory, but in lowliness of mind each counting other better than himself; 4 not looking each of you to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others.  1Jn 4:16 And we know and have believed the love which God hath in us. God is love; and he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in him.)  Many have come before Me and failed. (I felt there have been many who thought they were righteous and deserved to be accepted into heaven, but were denied for their self-works that were not for his Glory.) (Eph 2:8-9 for by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not of works, that no man should glory.)  Rest in the promises and know why I need you. (He paid the ultimate price for us and has heavily invested into us to meet the need for those whom He has chosen.) Even a tiny light can overcome, overwhelm and destroy the pitch-black darkness! (I was reminded of a watch I wore when I was a child that I pressed a button and it was bright enough to see in the dark at night.) (Joh 1:5 And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness apprehended it not.)  Speak and be the image of My light and My Word as My Son has given you example. Be strong to never let anything change the Christ in you. (We are conquerors by His faith!) You have two ears. You can't shut your ears but you can shut your mouth! (Two ears and one mouth show that we should be quick to hear and slow to speak.) (I felt very convicted on what and when I should speak anything, or if I should say anything at all.) (Psa 141:3 Set a watch, O Jehovah, before my mouth; Keep the door of my lips.)  Be strong. Nothing can separate you from Me! Do not let the darkness be able to cover the light! (Mat 5:14  Ye are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. 15  Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under the bushel, but on the stand; and it shineth unto all that are in the house.) You are dear and nearer to Me than even the breath you have inside you. (Rom 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?...)  Reach up! Grab hold of me! Do you not see I await you, and that for an infinite eternal love relationship forever? Come, let us sup together!  (Eph 3:16-19 that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that ye may be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward man; 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be strong to apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye may be filled unto all the fulness of God.)      LED  Anonymous 1/8/23  I saw myself as an LED on a giant electronics board. There were billions of chips, transistors, diodes all sorts all linked in intricate ways and many other LEDs too. Then I saw the LED as myself, light up as a small flicker. Then it was more consistent and brighter. I felt that the power flowing through me was able to make the LED light shine, when aligned correctly to the way of the Lord, the great Designer.   Soon the LED grew so bright that nothing else of the bulb could be seen other than this intense light. Then the Lord placed His Hand on it and the LED was able to spread to other areas on the electronics board as the other LEDs were lighting up and getting brighter. NENT Joh 8:12  Again therefore Jesus spake to them, saying, I am the light of the world: who followeth me shall in no wise walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.   Mat 5:14  YE are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. Mat 5:16  Thus let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in the heavens. Eph 5:8  for ye were once darkness, but are now light in the Lord: walk as children of light .      Video Game Revelation  Anonymous 2022 (David's notes in red)  I know this revelation may seem strange, but I used to play video games and one particular video game came to me through a vision. (I used to play before I was saved, but since I have repented and have nothing to do with them ever again.)  God is like the video game designer and He is also the one playing the game. He has control over all things in the game. (God only is sovereign and in control of ALL our trials that have been specifically and personally designed for each of us, and He alone is sovereign over the devil and our enemies.)  I saw a video game that was a top-down view over a vast area of control. I saw how there were many things being done as though looking on the face of the Earth and all the people and what the Lord created. As I was watching, I saw many developments and changes occur.  The perspective then zoomed in on one particular person who was the size of an ant. The person was in a frantic state, shaking their arms about and yelling up at the sky as though to ‘the Man in charge' of the view from above. (We should not be fearful or doubtful during trials, agreeing with what we feel and see but instead only believing and speaking God's word, and casting down everything contrary to the Word. We should ask God to give us grace to have faith during a trial.)  2Co 5:7 (for we walk by faith, not by sight); 2Co 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. The people were crying and asking for help with words in bubbles of all the things they could not do. Then just as quick as they cried out and were answered, they ran off and did more of their own things. Job 35:9 By reason of the multitude of oppressions they cry out;…  I felt this had to do with the Christians who call out to God for help, and once that thing is fixed, they quickly forget the Lord and runs off to please their flesh. (Psa 106:13 They soon forgat his works; They waited not for his counsel, 14 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, And tempted God in the desert.) 1Pe 5:7 casting all your anxiety upon him, because he careth for you. Heb 4:13 And there is no creature not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and laid open before the eyes of him with whom we have to do.      Choose The Wild West Wilderness   Samuel Fire 4/17/23 (David's notes in red)  I saw a vision of a pros and cons list. First on the right was written ‘Christ' and on the left was ‘antichrist'. Written underneath the Christ column was ‘Christ is Life', and on the opposite column were the words, ‘death', and ‘fake life that has an end.'  Christ  antichrist  Christ is Life  ‘death', ‘fake life that has an end'    I then saw myself standing inside an old western-style saloon bar and I ran outside onto the dirt street into the hot sun, and I knew that, “This is life!” (Joh 10:10 …I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.) The bar doors were still flapping, and I didn't even want to look or go back into that saloon bar. (Through the trials we are given a choice to choose life or death, the spirit or flesh, Jesus or the devil.) (I.e., Leave the beast kingdom of delusion of spirits and enter the “wild west” wilderness with Christ to find real, eternal life. Jos 24:14-15 Now therefore fear Jehovah, and serve him in sincerity and in truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt; and serve ye Jehovah. 15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve Jehovah, choose you this day whom ye will serve;…)  (Col 1:9-14 For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray and make request for you, that ye may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 to walk worthily of the Lord unto all pleasing, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all power, according to the might of his glory, unto all patience and longsuffering with joy; 12 giving thanks unto the Father, who made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light; 13 who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love; 14 in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins   And Col 1:21-23  And you, being in time past alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil works, 22 yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and unreproveable before him: 23 if so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister.)      Power In The Word   Samuel Fire 4/28/23 (David's notes in red) I saw (in a vision) how fire too close will melt the fake, plasticky flesh; the carnality of vanity. (Submitting to God's Word in trials and tribulations cause the old man to die and for the spirit of Christ to shine through us even brighter.) (Psa 119:28 My soul melteth for heaviness: Strengthen thou me according unto thy word.)  Then as the length of exposure increases, the flesh will then catch fire and burn, and then (the fire will) spread to whatever is involved, like to witchcraft evil and those in the apostate corporate body. (Isa 33:14-15 The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling hath seized the godless ones: Who among us can dwell with the devouring fire? who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings? 15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from taking a bribe, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from looking upon evil:)  Judges 15:4-5 And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took firebrands, and turned tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the midst between every two tails. 5 And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing grain of the Philistines and burnt up both the shocks and the standing grain, and also the oliveyards.  (The strong man, Jesus, burned up the fruit of the old man to conquer our Promised Land.) Then I saw a soldier wielding a buckler to defend at the perfect time, without any indication of an attack. When a threat is exposed to the elders, there is then the full arsenal to be set to defend the whole body; much like a commander of an army organizing the troops (A buckler is smaller for personal close contact fighting. A shield is for a much larger attack to remain in position.) Psa 35:2 Take hold of shield and buckler, And stand up for my help. (His Word is a defence we must utilize to defend and fight for His Kingdom in unison as one Body in Christ.) Psa 91:4 He will cover thee with his pinions, And under his wings shalt thou take refuge: His truth is a shield and a buckler. (These are These are wisdom of the Word to defend against the wiles of the enemies.)      Replace The Dross    Anonymous 4/29/23 (David's notes in red)      I heard in prayer:    “Pause. Think about Me and what you are doing. Nothing in this world is perfect yet and there is brokenness everywhere. Bits and pieces fall off things all the time. (Psa 147:3  He healeth the broken in heart, And bindeth up their wounds.)  When filled with My Love and Holy Spirit and led by Christ, there can then be growth into the eternal prize I desire.    Wrestle and pin down the enemy. Raise the flag of victory. (The Lord has given us victories over our enemies on many fronts here and overseas. Isa 59:18  According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies…) The enemy has been surmising the largest possible attack to stop My Children from reaching their potential. Keep focused and look unto Me and My Promise. Remember I need you and you are indeed important to Me. How do you get rid of dirty hands? Wash them.”    (Then I saw us actually applying the Blood of Jesus by faith and washing all areas and replacing everything and thought it was with His presence and victory.)      Defeating The Dragon With Jesus Help  Marie Kelton 10/27/23 (David's notes in red) During the worship part of the meeting, the enemy was attacking my mind but I was telling him to leave me alone. I then had an open vision of me putting on a white medieval helmet that covered my nose (helmet of salvation.) I was in a cave, there was this big black dragon. I had a sword in my hand, and I knew I was supposed to kill the dragon. The dragon tried to attack by breathing fire at me, but I was able to avoid it by stepping behind a wall (representing sanctification) that was in the cave. I then stood back in front of the dragon. I was wondering how I was going to defeat it. Then I saw Jesus come behind me, and step inside my body. Then, I was able to swing the sword and cut the neck and the head of the dragon off its body. (Jesus is the Word Who lives in us. When we speak the Word, His power defeats the enemy. Php 4:13 I can do all things in him that strengtheneth me. We are in the process of casting down the Dragon of Rev 12 as the angels fight for us and we confess the blood. Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and 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,…  Act 17:28 for in him we live, and move, and have our being)      The Fiery Trials  Milt Green    Peter said, "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. Wherefore, let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to Him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator (1 Pet. 4:12, 13, 19).   The fiery trials today are the efforts of the world, the flesh, and the devil to turn our hearts away from God. Every man will either come through the fire and be like precious gold (with a divine nature), or else he will be a vessel of wood, hay, and stubble, which is burned up. When the pressures and trials come, if we strike back at others, we break God's law and give the fiery serpents ground to build strongholds and destroy us.   If anyone has a foundation built upon carnal doctrines, they have a false security. The fire will destroy all of those who walk after a form of godliness because they walk in disobedience. Anyone who stands on their carnal doctrines as a foundation is not standing on the Word of God. Their foundation is sand. They themselves are wood, hay and stubble, and in the fiery tests the fire will consume them because they have no hedge of protection from God. No other foundation except the Lord Jesus Christ can survive this fire: "But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built a house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great" (Luke 6:49).   Everyone who follows after a doctrine that does not conform them to godliness is destroyed. When you have a false security, you do not act on the Word of God.  Paul wrote, "Now if any man build upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious stone, wood, hay, stubble; every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire (powers of darkness) shall try every man's work of what sort it is. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Cor. 3:12, 13, 11).  That is why we need the true apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers: "For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (until Christ's love is perfected in us). That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine" (Eph. 4:12-14).   God has been testing the hearts of men since the day He put Adam in the garden. He offered Adam the tree of life or the tree of death. God still tests the hearts of all creation. Only the ones who love the Lord with all their hearts and put their faith and trust in Him will survive the fiery tests of this world. All others will break God's laws and be under the punishment and judgment of the law, because their hearts love idols more than God. "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished: but chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise government" (2 Pet. 2:9, 10).   We either resist the flesh and the temptations of Satan, or else we walk after the desires of the flesh in unrighteousness, in which case we stay under the judgment and punishment of God's law.   Jesus said, "I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. Be watchful (wake up!), and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect (because you are not being perfected in love) before God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard (remember the Gospel!), and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief (in judgment), and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. He that overcometh (the world, the flesh and temptations of Satan) shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life" (Rev. 3:1-3, 5).   Jesus is coming first like a thief in destruction. Jesus did not come the way the religious leaders expected him the first time. Neither will Jesus come the way the religious leaders expect Him this time. "Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see. Who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the Lord's servant? The Lord is well pleased for His righteousness' sake; He will magnify the law, and make it honorable. But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes, and they are hid in prison houses (of the powers of darkness): they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore. Who gave Jacob for a spoil, and Israel to the robbers? Did not the Lord, He against whom we have sinned? For they would not walk in his ways, neither were they obedient to his law. Therefore He hath poured upon him the fury of His anger and the strength of battle: and it hath set him on fire around about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart" (Isa. 42:18, 19, 21-25).   The sleeping church is being destroyed today and they don't even know it. They will scoff at warnings such as this. The fires of destruction are already being poured out among us. The Scriptures are not enough to lead most of these people out of darkness. That is the reason that only a remnant can hear. The others will not wake up-for them it is business as usual.   God warns us in His Word: "Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot: they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed. Whoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it…    This is how Jesus comes as a thief upon the spiritually dead congregation that will not wake up and repent in these last days. The hedge is lowered, and He no longer restrains the hordes of the powers of darkness which have been unleashed against the spiritually dead, fallen away church. If you read these Scriptures through the eyes of a carnal doctrine, you will be led to believe that the men who are taken from the bed or out of the field are raptured, rather than destroyed by the fire. This is how the deception and darkness have come upon us today. This is why people are being burned and they pay no attention. This is the fallen away church today which practices sin (lawlessness).     The remnant will love the Lord Jesus Christ with all their hearts. They will be perfected in love and holiness. No one will be able to counterfeit the love that is perfected in the remnant. You will know them by their fruits. The stumbling blocks will also be evident and they will be destroyed. "Another parable put He forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field. But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also (tares are evident because they bear the fruit of the flesh)" (Mat. 13:24-26).     "Now the works of the flesh are manifest" (Gal 5:19). When we practice the deeds of the flesh, we bear the wrong fruit and break God's law. This is how men who teach doctrines that do not conform you to godliness lead you to walk under the judgment and curse of the law. This is how the church is being destroyed in the fire today. They have no fear of God as they teach a form of godliness and become stumbling blocks to others. The blind follow the blind and never bear the fruit of love. In fact, they cannot because they are tares. "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The son of man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity (by practicing sin)" (Mat. 13:40, 41).     "So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth (hate, anger, bitterness, sickness, pain, etc.) Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear" (Matt. 13:49, 50, 43).     There are hundreds of different denominations and teachings in this country today and each one has its own form of righteousness. But there is only one true righteousness and that is walking right in God's eyes. When we establish our own righteousness, we do not submit to the righteousness of God. Israel departed from the law and righteousness of God to establish their own righteousness.     Paul said of them, "my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God" (Rom. 10:1-3).     When the wicked thinks he is righteous in his own eyes, there is no fear of God. He is blinded to the judgment of God because he has a false security. This is how millions are blinded to the judgment of the law today.     "Hearken unto Me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart is My law: fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye afraid of their revilings. For the moth (the powers of darkness) shall eat them up like a garment, and the worm shall eat them like wool: but My righteousness shall be forever" (Isa. 5 1:7, 8). The righteousness of God stands forever because only the righteous will survive. God has set up laws to destroy those who are wise in their own eyes, and will not submit to the righteousness of God.     Jesus said, "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth (remains, continues) in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit (of love): ... If a man abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned" (John 15:5,6). "Herein is My Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit (of love); so shall ye be My disciples (God's kind of agape love is the proof of discipleship)" (John 15:8).     Jesus sets us free from being slaves of sin (lawlessness) to become slaves of righteousness (a pure heart): "For as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness (a pure heart)" (Rom. 6:19).     Paul said, "What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life" (Rom. 6:2 1, 22).     Through obedience we have a pure heart and we are perfected in love to the fullness of the measure of the stature which belongs to Christ. When the Word of God and the Holy Spirit have removed the selfish nature of Satan, we no longer live for ourselves. Therefore we have the nature of God and love others as Jesus loved us. We have laid down our lives so we can walk in God's kind of love. "Charity (God's kind of love) suffereth long, and is kind; (God's kind of love) envieth not; (God's kind of love) vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own (way), is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity (God's kind of agape love) never faileth.   Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity (this God-kind of Love), I am nothing.   And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing" (1 Cor. 13:4, 5, 7, 8, 1-3). The God-kind of love is the only love which can love your neighbor as yourself: "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself' (Gal. 5:14). The ones who come through the fire will have this God-kind of love, which is the divine nature of God. 

“1) They threw aside God's commandments and made the commandments of men and traditions into doctrines. (Mark 7:7-9). (2) They were more concerned with outer purity rather than the purity of the heart. Jesus said that they cleaned the inside of the cup but inside their hearts were full of wickedness! (See Luke 11:39; Matt. 23:25, 27, 28). (3) They tithed on herbs which is good but more important matters like justice and the love for God were overlooked. (See Luke 11:32; Matt. 23:23,24). They strained out a gnat but they swallowed a camel. ((Matt 23:24) (4) They loved the highest seats and public greetings in the market because they were selfish and wanted to be seen by people, to the point of enlarging the borders of their clothes. (Luke 11:43; Matt. 23:5-10; Mark 12:38) (5) They made people fall. Jesus said that they were like hidden graves that made unsuspecting people fall in. (Luke 11:44). (6) They did not want people to be healed on the Sabbath that God made for man but yet they would take out their ox if it fell in a pit on Sabbath. (Matt. 13:11-17). (7) They burdened people with unnecessary traditions and did not raise a finger to help. (Luke 11:46; Matt. 23:4) (8) They built the sepulchers of the prophets that their own ancestors killed. (Luke 11:47, 48; Matt. 23:29-31). In fact they killed Jesus. (See Matt. 12:14; 21:33-46; Matt. 27:20-22). (9) They took away the key of knowledge. They blocked people from getting into heaven and they themselves did not get in. (Matt. 23:13, Luke 11:52; John 12:42,43) (10) They devoured widows' houses! (Matt. 23:14) (11) They said long prayers pretending that they were righteous. (Matt. 23:14) (12) They went on land and sea to convert people and they made those converts twice a child of hell as themselves! (Matt. 23:15) (13) They forbade people from swearing by the gold of the temple but they swore by the temple itself! (Matt. 23:16,17) (14) They talked and do not did not do anything. (Matt 23:3). They even praised God with their lips and their heart was far from Him. (Matt. 7:6). (15) They were fools, blind guides and hypocrites. (Matt 23:16-25; Luke 11:44,46; 12:1-3). John the Baptist called them vipers (Matt. 3:7). 16) They loved to tempt, accuse and oppose Jesus. (Matt. 16:1; 19:3; Mark 8:11; 10:2; 12:13; Luke 6:7). They continuously tried to entangle Him in His talk (Matt. 22:15). Paul, who was a Pharisee, told of his own nature before his conversion: "I (Paul) verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth." So when he came on the scene after Jesus' ascension he persecuted the Christian Church. (17) They asked for a sign to believe when many were already given. If given yet another sign they would not believe. (Luke 22:66, 67). Note that the incident mentioned in the given text was after three and a half years of Jesus working miracles, healing all types of diseases and even raising the dead! 18) There is hope even for “Pharisees”. Acts 6:7 tells us what happed after Jesus went back to Heaven and His disciples preached after being filled with the Holy Spirit. It says: “And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.” “In every religion there is love, yet love has no religion.” “My religion is, to live through Love.” “Be certain that in the religion of Love there are no believers and unbelievers. LOVE embraces all.” “I belong to no religion, my religion is love, my heart is my temple.” -Rumi quotes --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/support

Message to the Youth...by Shaunn ShaeferGalatians 51  Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.2  Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.3  For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.4  Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. 5  For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.6  For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.7  Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?8  This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.19  Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,20  Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,21  Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,Message From Emmanuel is a weekly audio ministry of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Irvine, KY. We sincerely hope God blesses you as you listen!GRANT OF LICENSE. Emmanuel Baptist Church is granted a non-exclusive, non-transferable license during the term of the agreement to publicly play, perform, and transmit via the website noted above, any musical composition controlled by one or more of the domestic Performing Rights Organizations (ASCAP, BMI and SESAC), as stated in the CCS WORSHIPcast License Terms and Conditions.

Boldness of Access.Text Ephesians 3:11-13 Paul has begun his dictation with the intention of praying for the Christians in the city of Ephesus. For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles… He fears that they have heard about his arrest in Jerusalem and that this news will unsettle them, that they will begin to ask why! So he wants to pray for them, but just as he introduces his intention in verse one, moved by the Holy Spirit, he begins this long digression, in which he talks about how he came to be the bearer of such Good News, So let's explore these final verses of the chapter…(This sermon was preached at Ballymacashon and at Templepatrick Reformed Church. it was recorded at Templepatrick, and is used here with their kind permission)Read the NOTES here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Walk In Heavenly Places By Faith (4)      (audio)  David Eells – 8/9/23  Wooly Sheep  Samuel Fire 2/16/23 (David's notes in red) I saw a sheep with very long wool. He was very proud of his wool and was showing it off to other sheep. The other sheep said to him that there is no good use for the long wool, and it only has negative aspects for sheep.   I then saw a Shepherd, preparing to sheer the wool off a long white wool sheep. This sheep was squirming and kicking and making noise. But after the wool was removed, the sheep jumped up and just walked around as though nothing was wrong. With the excess wool cut off, the heat and relief were almost instant. The sheep was much happier now that the wool had been removed.  Rom 8:17-19 ASV  and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified with him.  18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to us-ward.  19  For the earnest expectation of the creation waiteth for the revealing of the sons of God. Then I realized how that the long wool represents our flesh and self that needs to be cut off. As a sheep cannot cut off the excess wool themselves, nor can we die to self without the help and direction of the Lord. Also, like how the sheep did not enjoy the wool sheering; it's just the same as with our adjustments and procrastination in adhering to the Lord and being obedient, it takes until we realize after that the Lord has a perfect plan for all of us. (Php_3:8  Yea verily, and I count all things to be loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but refuse, that I may gain Christ.) The wool is of use for the Shepherd, not the sheep. Our lives are for Christ, not ourselves.      Leave the Old Man Behind    Raynaldo Portela (David's notes in red)  In a dream, I was in my grandmother's house, and a woman with a baby needed a ride, so I helped her. (The grandmother's house represents the original, “old” gospel and we are to help the woman (the church) in the wilderness journey to bring forth the fruit of Christ.) Jud 3 Beloved, while I was giving all diligence to write unto you of our common salvation, I was constrained to write unto you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints.   Also, Rev 12:1-2, And a great sign was seen in heaven: a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars; 2 and she was with child; and she crieth out, travailing in birth, and in pain to be delivered. 6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that there they may nourish her a thousand two hundred and threescore days.)  When we arrived at the woman's destination, (the wilderness tribulation) we saw a tall, very dark man; I couldn't see his face. He was like a shadow and very tall, like 15 or 20 Ft. (The dark man represents the old man who walks in darkness in the ways of the world. The flesh seems like a giant to conquer, but we are assured by faith that we can conquer the enemy of our souls. We believe Jesus already accomplished this for us.)  Mat 4:16 The people that sat in darkness Saw a great light, And to them that sat in the region and shadow of death, To them did light spring up.  Joh 8:12 Again therefore Jesus spake unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.  Joh 12:46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me may not abide in the darkness.    He said, “Come with me. Maybe if I go with you, he will forget me” (If we walk after the flesh we must die.)  I said, “No, I don't want to go, I'm afraid”.  He said, “Come with me”. So, I went with him. I remember it was a beautiful flat land with grass and a little house in the middle. (The small house represents losing the flesh) The tall man came off the bus with me, shouting, "Please!” As in, “forget me” (Meaning, Let me live.) Again, he said, "Please forget me.” Nobody opened the door, so he said, “I don't need you”. He departed and left me there. (When we don't feed the flesh by walking with it, it will grow weak and die. When we resist the devil, he will flee.)   After he left, Jesus opened the door. He was dressed in very bright white clothes, and he told me, “I'll always love you,” and I felt so safe with him. (We are to forget the ‘old man' and the past life and continue in our crucified walk with Christ. Gal 2:20  I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me: and that life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me. )      Fight Together    Sandy Shaw 8/5/15 (David's notes in red)  This is a parable of the brethren learning to fight together against the enemy and finding out that they have total authority through the Word of God.   I had a dream where I was an observer of a big battlefield with a war going on. It was so noisy that I couldn't hear anyone talk; people had to shout. I heard cannons and grenades going off and a lot of rapid gunfire. Flaming arrows were being shot. (Indicating the fiery darts of the evil one fired into our thoughts that must be quenched. This is also the words and actions of his duped vessels of dishonor. The zombie apocalypse is real. We have seen the walking dead who claim to be Christians but walk in all sin and war with witchcraft against their brothers and are as Esau who sold his birthright.)   And then I heard, "Man down! Man down!" Someone was shouting. (I.e. One was wounded in battle.) I then looked to my left and saw a body on the ground. And running to the body from the right side was Greg. I then noticed it was Brandy who was down. Greg put his hands on his chest, started praying in tongues and commanded Brandy to get up. Brandy started moaning and groaning and didn't open his eyes.   Then I heard another voice saying, "Get off me! I said, get off me!" (Recognizing spiritual attacks and realizing that authority must be taken over the enemy.) And I recognized that voice was Bill's. Greg ran to Bill who was holding his left leg. He put his hand on the injured leg and said, "Get up, brother; you are healed". (1Pe 2:24 ... By whose stripes you WERE healed.) They both ran back to Brandy and laid hands on him and prayed in the spirit. (Mat 18:19 Again I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father who is in heaven.)   More fiery arrows were trying to hit Brandy because he was the target. Then Greg and Bill commanded, "Off, off, off", as they used their hands like shields to block the arrows. Eph 6:13 Wherefore take up the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and, having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  2Co 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh 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.  Bill said, "Come on, Brandy, open your eyes so you can see what God is doing!" (This was back in 2015.  Brandy sees much better today than most through practice.) And he opened his eyes and got up. (We are to SEE Father has already given us the victory. 2Pe 1:2 Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. Mar 11:24 ASV  Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive(d) them, and ye shall have them. 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. And exercising the authority of our God-given "divine nature" over the enemies of our soul.)   At the same time, they said, "Come on. Let's get out of here!" Greg jumped up and shouted, "No! We can't! We are in the midst of the storm!" (We can't run from the battle that God has ordained for us to come to the end of ourselves and conquer the enemy.) "We have the victory and we are victorious!" He shouted with everything he had. (2Co 2:14 But thanks be unto God, who always leadeth us in triumph (to celebrate the victory even before we see it) in Christ (to those who have faith in His Word), and maketh manifest through us the savor of his knowledge in every place.   Luk 10:19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall in any wise hurt you.)   There was no shaking these guys. They knew that they knew that they knew. They needed each other working as one with their Commander-in-Chief. (Listening to the Word of God, Jesus Christ.)   Then, very softly in the background, I heard a song:  Jesus never fails Jesus never fails You might as well Get behind me, Satan You will not prevail For, Jesus never fails   We have these awesome promises in Psalm 91!  Psa 91: 2  I will say of Jehovah, He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in whom I trust. 3 For he will deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, And from the deadly pestilence. …5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night, Nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 6 For the pestilence that walketh in darkness, Nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. 7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, And ten thousand at thy right hand; But it shall not come nigh thee. 8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold, And see the reward of the wicked.   …13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: The young lion and the serpent shalt thou trample under foot.     Diet Of Spiritual Food    Alenna Timoshchuk  6/24/21 (David's notes in red)  I dreamt I was at my old diet coach's house. (I say old as in, she's not my diet coach anymore, she's actually young age wise.) (We have a diet of “spiritual food” that we partake of by consuming the Word of God that teach or “coach” us His ways, which are from of old.) In reality she had a baby girl about a week after I had my daughter Abigail. In my dream she had her 3 days before I gave birth to Abigail. Anyway, I was with her in her kitchen, and she was getting ready to leave to go with her husband somewhere.   As she was getting ready, she grabbed a bowl and spoon to feed her daughter, Sophia. I was so shocked because I knew Sophia was Abigail's age and couldn't be more than 3 months old and her mom was already feeding her solids. I asked her, “Are you really going to let her eat solid food? When was she born?” She replied calmly, “April 9th, yeah I feed her solids all the time now, she loves it.” I looked at her baby and was completely mystified. This baby looked like she was 1 year old. She was so big.  (If we come as a child we can eat solid food when so called grownups cant.  Heb 5:12  For when by reason of the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need again that someone teach you the rudiments of the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of solid food. Heb 5:14  But solid food is for fullgrown men, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern good and evil. We must discern truth from error by believing all of the Word.) After her mom finished feeding her, the baby got up and started walking! Again, I was so shocked and exclaimed to her, “She can walk already!? She's not even 3 months old!” And her mom just kind of looked at me and at her and shrugged her shoulders, like it was just so normal that this baby can walk.   Her husband came home and grabbed the car seat with the baby and started talking to his wife in Russian. This also surprised me because he himself is an American but she is Russian and he was talking to her so fluently and without an accent. I thought to myself, ‘how did he learn to speak her language so well?'   They all went to the front door and were about to leave, and I was just standing in the living room watching them, so surprised by all that I had seen. Then she turned to me with a big smile and said, “Well we're leaving, so you can stay here if you want, or you can leave when you're ready.” And they all went out the door.  End of dream. (We have had other dreams where the man-child will grow up and mature very quickly. Even our personal Man-child of Christ in us can grow quickly if we feed him the spiritual food.)     Crucify Him Afresh    Marie Kelton 9/24/21   During the morning meeting at Debbie's house, I asked the Lord about sending me a husband. Even though he told me multiple times that He was my husband. (Isa 54:5 For thy Maker is thy husband; Jehovah of hosts is his name: and the Holy One of Israel is thy Redeemer; the God of the whole earth shall he be called.) The Lord gave me an open vision of Him kneeling between two Roman soldiers. Jesus had cuts on Him, He didn't have a shirt on just an undergarment. His head was hanging down and He had a crown of thorns on his head. I was in a crowd with a bunch of other people looking at what was going on. I then walked up to Jesus and put my hand on His shoulder and fell to my knees. Jesus lifted his head and looked at me, His eyes held so much sadness, and I heard the words, "Crucifying the son of God afresh." Then I started crying and repenting, telling the Lord that I didn't want to crucify Him afresh. Heb 6:4-6 ASV  For as touching those who were once enlightened and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit,  5  and tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,  6  and then fell away, it is impossible to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. As I was looking at His eyes and holding His face, He turned into a lion with a huge mane (Lion of Judah) and His eyes no longer held any sadness in them.  (He is about to come as a Lion and he will judge those who persecute their brothers, His Chosen.)       The Handmaiden Cannot Bear The Fruit of Christ    Winnie Osegueda - 12/26/2021  I dreamt that I really wanted to buy bread and I was looking for somewhere to purchase it. I entered a store owned by an Orthodox/Hasidic Jewish man and I went all the way to the back of the store to get the bread located on the left in a glass refrigerator. When the Jewish man saw me, he said, "Get out of here!" In this man's eyes I was a Gentile and did not belong there. There were two other Jewish women there as well that seemed kind. One of the women had smiled at me when I walked in, but it was the man who rudely told me to leave.  As I left the store and walked away, I saw that one of the Jewish women left the store as well and walked down the street with me. I began to speak with her and ask her about her situation and she seemed to be very sad. She was trapped, but wanted to be free. (Believing in Jesus Christ is the only Way of being free from religion and all bondage.) The young Jewish woman and I entered into a public restroom, and she began to cry because she desperately desired to have children. She told me that she could not have children because she was branded as "inchallah." She lowered her pants to show me where she was branded, which was below her belly button. (This is where the womb is located.) She was branded all around this area and it even went toward the back. This branding was there so that she could not have children, and so that she would be separated from the other women. (This branding is like a curse on her womb and a “stigma” of disapproval.) At this point when I looked back up at her, I realized she was wearing a red cloak.   Then the young Jewish woman said she needed to hold her form until she finally had a husband. (Meaning she could not become pregnant until marriage.)  Although I am not certain what she meant, I felt sorry for her, and I desired for her to be free. I entered a cafeteria and began to tell someone else the problem that this woman was having.  I noticed a man with very dark hair who was facing left and taking notes. This man was also a Jew, I realized, and he was eavesdropping so that he could report the young Jewish woman and hinder her from leaving and becoming free. The verse that came to me regarding this man was: Gal 2:4 and that because of the false brethren privily brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage.  I woke up shortly after this and I immediately thought of Sarah vs Hagar. I decided to look up the word that was branded on the young woman, which was "Inchallah," as I had never heard that word before. I found out that Challah is a special bread of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, which I thought was pretty spot on regarding the dream. The word in my dream is a mixture of challah, as well as "Inshallah" which is a phrase that Muslims use which means "if God wills." Muslims, just like Jews, are under law and religious spirits. (Many ‘religious' people don't know and understand what the will of God is because they are not eating the Bread of Life for themselves but “buying bread” in the form of all kinds of books in apostate religions that do not satisfy them spiritually.)  I asked the Lord for a verse by faith at random and received: Isa 55:2 (2-3 for context) Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labor for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. 3 Incline your ear, and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live: and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. (I thought it was amazing that I landed on verse 2 regarding spending money for that which is not bread.)   The next morning on the morning prayer meeting, Amber received Gal 4 and I knew the Lord was speaking to me. I don't remember the exact verse she landed on, so I will share the entire chapter:   Gal 4: 4 but when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law,  5 that he might redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. 21 Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? 22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, one by the handmaid, and one by the freewoman. 23 Howbeit the son by the handmaid is born after the flesh; but the son by the freewoman is born through promise. 24 Which things contain an allegory: for these women are two covenants; one from mount Sinai, bearing children unto bondage, which is Hagar. (The Jewish law came from Sinai but the “New Covenant is a better covenant based on better promises.” 25 Now this Hagar is mount Sinai in Arabia and answereth to the Jerusalem that now is: for she is in bondage with her children. (Those under the Law are under a covenant that no longer exists for we were given a NEW Covenant.)  26 But the Jerusalem that is above is free, which is our mother. (Our mother is the heavenly Jerusalem that is born from above not the unregenerate Jerusalem under the law.) 27 For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; Break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: For more are the children of the desolate than of her that hath the husband. 28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise.   29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, so also it is now. 30 Howbeit what saith the scripture? Cast out the handmaid and her son: for the son of the handmaid shall not inherit with the son of the freewoman. 31 Wherefore, brethren, we are not children of a handmaid, but of the freewoman.      Law And Grace    David Eells  Gal 3:1-19 O foolish Galatians, who did bewitch you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was openly set forth crucified? 2 This only would I learn from you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? (I used a strikethrough to remove “the” in some places where it was not there in the Greek. This is because many times man makes laws by which we cannot be justified either.)  3 Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now perfected in the flesh? 4 Did ye suffer so many things in vain? if it be indeed in vain. 5 He therefore that supplieth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law (Of man or God), or by the hearing of faith?  6 Even as Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness. 7 Know therefore that they that are of faith, the same are sons of Abraham. 8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all the nations be blessed. 9 So then they that are of faith are blessed with the faithful Abraham. 10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one who continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law, to do them. 11 Now that no man is justified by the law before God, is evident: for, The righteous shall live by faith; 12 and the law is not of faith; but, He that doeth them shall live in them.  How could we be under the curse of the Law if we never knew what it said? Rom 5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the likeness of Adam's transgression, who is a figure of him that was to come. Adam's transgression was he knew the Law, “Don't partake of the fruit of the tree.” We didn't know the Law and don't sin after Adams transgression. Also the Law covenant wasn't made with us but the Jews but we were guilty of breaking God's moral law by our conscience.  Rom 2:12 For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without the law: and as many as have sinned under the law shall be judged by the law; 13 for not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified: 14 (for when Gentiles that have not the law do by nature the things of the law, these, not having the law, are the law unto themselves; 15 in that they show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness therewith, and their thoughts one with another accusing or else excusing them).   Back to Gal 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 14 that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. 15 Brethren, I speak after the manner of men: Though it be but a man's covenant, yet when it hath been confirmed, no one maketh it void, or addeth thereto. 16 Now to Abraham were the promises spoken, and to his seed. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. 17 Now this I say: A covenant confirmed beforehand by God, the law, which came four hundred and thirty years after, doth not disannul, so as to make the promise of none effect.  Col 2:14 having blotted out the bond written in ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us: and he hath taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross; 15 having despoiled the principalities and the powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. 16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a feast day or a new moon or a sabbath day: 17 which are a shadow of the things to come; but the body is Christ's.  Back to Gal 3:18 For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no more of promise: but God hath granted it to Abraham by promise. 19 What then is the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise hath been made; and it was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.  Gal 4:21 Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?  Gal 5:1-6 For freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage. 2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that, if ye receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing. 3 Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. 4 Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit by faith wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith working through love.  Jas 2:17-26 Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself. 18 Yea, a man will say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith apart from thy works, and I by my works will show thee my faith. 19 Thou believest that God is one; thou doest well: the demons also believe, and shudder. 20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith apart from works is barren? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son upon the altar? 22 Thou seest that faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect;  23 and the scripture was fulfilled which saith, And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness; and he was called the friend of God. 24 Ye see that by works a man is justified, and not only by faith. 25 And in like manner was not also Rahab the harlot justified by works, in that she received the messengers, and sent them out another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, even so faith apart from works is dead. When we act on our faith we see miracles. Rom 4:13-5:4 For not through the law was the promise to Abraham or to his seed that he should be heir of the world, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if they that are of the law are heirs, faith is made void, and the promise is made of none effect: 15 for the law worketh wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there transgression. 16 For this cause it is of faith, that it may be according to grace; to the end that the promise may be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all 17 (as it is written, A father of many nations have I made thee) before him whom he believed, even God, who giveth life to the dead, and calleth the things that are not, as though they were.   18 Who in hope believed against hope, to the end that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, So shall thy seed be. 19 And without being weakened in faith he considered his own body now as good as dead (he being about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah's womb; 20 yet, looking unto the promise of God, he wavered not through unbelief, but waxed strong through faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully assured that what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22 Wherefore also it was reckoned unto him for righteousness.  23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was reckoned unto him; 24 but for our sake also, unto whom it shall be reckoned, who believe on him that raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification. 5:1 Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ 2 through whom also we have had our access by faith into this grace wherein we stand; and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we also rejoice in our tribulations: knowing that tribulation worketh stedfastness; 4 and stedfastness, approvedness; and approvedness, hope: 

This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Father, we thank you for the gift of holy scripture in which you reveal to us your mind, your will, your purposes. Lord, you long to bless us, and I pray that you make us a people that long to be blessed, and care about your blessing. We thank you for the greatest blessing that we can have as a relationship with you, to be reconciled with you, to have our evil redeemed by the Lord Jesus Christ. Lord, we come to your holy scriptures with trembling, and contrition of heart, recognizing that this is the posture of heart that you bless. And Lord, we fear you, and we recognize that to fear you is to love you. And to love you is to fear you to stand in awe, and reverence before your glory, your majesty. And Lord show us that the beginning of wisdom is to fear you.We are people who are naturally inclined toward evil, and folly. And Lord, as you redeem us from our evil, we do ask that you also save us from our folly, and make us a people who are good, but also who are good at life guided by your wisdom. Holy Spirit, we pray that you bless us today with your presence. And also, Lord, take these words, and apply them to each one of us specifically only as you can. We pray all this in Christ's holy name. Amen. We're continuing our sermon series called Graduate Level Grace Study in the Life of Joseph. We are today in Genesis 47, and the title of the sermon is Wise and Innocent. A few years back, the Brookings Institute named Boston as one of the knowledge centers of the world. And by this they mean that Boston is full of very intelligent, highly productive people, talented, and they come here to get more knowledge, and that knowledge is taken to the world.Knowledge is great. We're told knowledge is power, we're told, and scripture agrees. Proverbs 18:15 says, "An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge." But acquiring knowledge for the sake of knowledge is never enough. What do you do with that knowledge? That's what matters more. Can you skillfully execute upon this knowledge when necessary in the real world, and real time with real life consequences, and implications? And it doesn't matter how great of a game plan you have, if you can't execute in the real game, well then, it meant nothing. So, scripture does call us to knowledge, but to something more than just knowledge. It calls us to wisdom. And if knowledge is power, then what is wisdom? Well, wisdom is a superpower. In Matthew 10:16, Jesus tells his disciples before sending them out to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom. He says, "Behold, I'm sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves." Wise and innocent. And Joseph is marked by this razor sharp discernment, and strategic execution.The great Puritan, Thomas Watson. He said that, "The godly man acts both the politician, and the divine. He retains his ingenuity, yet does not part with his integrity." And one of the beauties about wisdom is you can grow in wisdom how through practice, and through training. Hebrews 5:14 says, "But solid food is for the mature for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil." And in our text today in Genesis 47, we see Joseph exercising this divine wisdom, and he does so in order to provide in four points to frame up our time as we walk through the text together first, Joseph provides for his family. And by doing so, Pharaoh is blessed.And then Egypt is blessed, and Israel is blessed. First, Joseph rides for his family. With shrewdness, and wisdom, Joseph sets out to accomplish his objective. His objective as his family moves from Canaan, his father, and his brother's multitude of people, hundreds. His goal is to provide prime land for them so that they can continue to prosper despite the famine that's still in the land. And in Psalm 105, 16 through 22, it's a Psalm that comments on the story of Joseph. It says, "When he summoned a famine on the land, and broke all supply of bread, he" that's the Lord, "Had sent a man ahead of them, Joseph who was sold as a slave. His feet were hurt with fetters; his neck was put in a collar of iron; until what he had said came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him. The king sent, and released him; the ruler of the peoples set him free; he made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his possessions to bind his princes at his pleasure, and to teach his elders wisdom."So, meaning all the suffering that Joseph went through, he went through with a purpose. God gave him a purpose to teach wisdom to whom? To Pharaoh, to Pharaoh's court, and then also the elders of Israel. Wisdom comes as a gift from the Lord for all who ask humbly. Scripture says, "Is there anyone lacking wisdom?" Well, just ask of the Lord, Isaiah 30:21, "And your ears shall hear a word behind you saying "This is the way, walk in it, when you turn to the right, or when you turn to the left." And this is what Jesus promised. He's a good shepherd. And he said, "My sheep hear my voice." And Jesus' voice teaches us how to follow God's moral law but also how to walk in wisdom.Psalm 25, eight, and nine, "Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way." To get the context of Genesis 47. I'm going to read the paragraph right before this is Genesis 46:31, Jacob, the brothers are before Joseph, and Joseph has a game plan, and he's coaching them. He's coaching his family's audience before Pharaoh, here's what you say, here's what you don't say. Here's how we are going to present ourselves in order to get what we want. Genesis 46:31, Joseph said to his brothers, and to his father's household, "I will go up, and tell Pharaoh, and will say to him, 'My brothers, and my father's household who were in the land of Canaan have come to me. And the men were shepherds for they have been keepers of livestock, and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have.""When Pharaoh calls you, and says, 'What is your occupation?' You shall say 'Your servants have been keepers of livestock from our youth even until now, both we, and our fathers in order that we may dwell in the land of Goshen, for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians." There are five more years left of the famine. And Joseph is thinking not just about himself, not just about his immediate family. He's thinking as a provider for his extended family. He understands that God has put him in this position, and God wants him to use his power, use his position in order to bless others. And he begins to think about the wider family, and he's thinking as a patriarch, and this is how a patriarch thinks, not how can I be most comfortable? Not how can I live a comfortable life, and have people serve me?No, a patriarch thinks how comfortable can I become with discomfort to serve as many people as possible? How can I leave a lasting legacy? How can I serve my family, and my descendants for generations? How can I provide for their needs both materially, and spiritually? And even with Joseph's approval, he knows that he could have just given them Goshen, and you guys can have that land, but he also understands that taking these men who are of fighting age, bringing them into Egypt is going to raise eyebrows, and it's going to give ammunition to Joseph's enemies in Pharaoh's court. No, he needs to get clearance from the very top, from Pharaoh himself. He needs Pharaoh to speak, and say, "Yes, you can have this land." It's only with the king's word that Joseph could protect himself from the charge of nepotism. So, he has the foresight to anticipate this, and craft a strategy with the proper precautions.So, he wants to focus on the fact that Egyptians did not like shepherds. Shepherds were an abomination to the Egyptians. Why? Because they probably felt that they were part of an impure cast. So, here you got to pause, and say, "Why would Joseph lead with this very unflattering information?" Here's my family, and their shepherds, which are an abomination. Won't people say you're from this family, you're related to these people? Well, he realized this was the best move to get the best land for his family, and also they'd be living in this land with autonomy which would allow them to grow their families, and grow their faith in the Lord. So, Joseph here he is taking a massive risk, and he's going out on a limb, but he's doing it because he understands he needs to provide for his family. So, that brings Genesis 47 verses one, and two."So, Joseph went in, and told Pharaoh, 'My father, and my brothers with their flocks, and herds, and all that they possess have come from the land of Canaan. They are now in the land of Goshen.' And from among his brothers he took five men, and presented them to Pharaoh." Which five did he pick? Most likely brought Benjamin. Which six did he overlook? We're not told. Most likely operating out of wisdom, he's bringing the most unintimidating looking guys before Pharaoh, and he does say, "This is my father, and these are my brothers." He's not ashamed of his family. He proudly introduces them to his boss, which is very much like Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ our Lord, and savior, scriptures tells us he's our older brother, and as our older brother who welcomes us into the family of God, he provides adoption for us by his blood.Well, Jesus is unashamed to call his brothers, Hebrews says, Hebrews 2:10, "For it was fitting that he, for whom, and by whom all things exist, and bringing many sons to glory should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies, and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he's not ashamed to call them brothers saying, 'I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise." Joseph tells Pharaoh, they're already in the land of Goshen. He has them camp out in the prime real estate, which is really smart. They're already there, and the text continues. Verse three, "Pharaoh said to his brothers, 'What is your occupation?' And they said to Pharaoh, 'Your servants are shepherds as our fathers were.' They said to Pharaoh, 'We have come to sojourn in the land, for there is no pasture for your servants flocks for the famine severe in the land of Canaan. And now please let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen.'."Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, 'Your father, and your brothers have come to you. The land of Egypt is before you. Settle your father, and your brothers in the best of the land. Let them settle in the land of Goshen, and if you know any able men among them, put them in charge of my livestock." Pharaoh asks about the occupation question just as Joseph had anticipated, and the wisdom, Joseph has been studying his boss for nine plus years. He anticipates the moves, and they say we've been shepherds for generations. Yes, it's an abomination in your eyes, but we've been doing this for years, and the emphasis here is on sojourn. We've come to sojourn, meaning there's no talk of permanence. This is temporary, and just as Joseph needed him to do, Pharaoh confirms publicly, Israel can have the best of the land. Not only that, he goes beyond, and he says, "If you know anyone that could take care of my animals, my livestock, you can put them to work", which is just incredible favor from the Lord.Especially, as you read at the end of the chapter, the people of Egypt, and the people from of all the other countries, they ran out of money, currency. So, they start bringing their livestock, and their animals to Pharaoh, which meant this was a wonderful work opportunity, and this is how the Lord often works with us. Not only does he long to bless us, he longs to bless us in a shocking way, a way that's unexpected. For example, Ephesians 3:20 verse 21. "Now to him who's able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask, or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church, and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen." More than we can ask, or even think, or even imagine. In Genesis 47:7, "Then Joseph brought in Jacob, his father, and stood him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh." The blessing isn't recorded, but most likely it's a customary greeting before a king, something like long live the king, which is partially perhaps why Pharaoh asks Jacob's age.But here you see this contrast. A simple, old shepherd is standing before a powerful Egyptian monarch, and spiritual gravitas meets political gravitas. Yes, Pharaoh is an incredible person of power, but Jacob is an incredible person of spiritual power, and the character of the saint surely made an impression on the king. Although Jacob didn't have a crown of gold, he had a crown of glory. You say, "What's a crown of glory in scripture?" Well, Proverbs 16:31, gray hair. "Gray hair is a crown of glory. It is gained in a righteous life." Our culture idolizes youth, and dishonors people in their old age. And this is wrong. Leviticus 19:32 says, "You shall stand up before the gray head, and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord." My grays have been coming in around my temples.I keep it nice, and short. In my beard, they're coming in. I don't have a full crown of glory just yet. So, you don't have to stand up completely in my presence, but maybe a head nod, or something. But we are to respect older people, and we do pray for the Lord to continue to send us older people to teach us wisdom, and teach us the ways of righteousness. And you see what dignity now marks Jacob, what a contrast from the day when he bowed himself seven times before Esau. But here there's no cringing, there's no fawning. He carries himself as a representative of God. He carries himself as an ambassador of the most high. He is a son of the king of kings. And in fact, the scene actually conveys the impression that Jacob is actually greater than Pharaoh no matter how great Pharaoh is, because who's doing the blessing?It's Jacob. And Hebrews 7:7 says, "It's beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior." So, the feeble patriarch blesses the mighty monarch, and in verse eight it says, "Pharaoh said to Jacob, 'How many are the days of the years of your life?" How many are the days of the years of your life? Not just how old are you, not just how many years have you lived? What an interesting turn of phrase. How many are the days of the years of your life? The emphasis here is on the individual days that go up, and that make up the total of your life. It's a great way to think about life. Why? Because today is all we have. Today is all we're given. Someone said days are long, and years are short. So, we are to think about daily. Today, am I living for the glory of God? Today, am I serving God, loving him, and loving people? I had a brother come up to me after the service, this was his second service ever. Second time in church ever.He came up, and he's like, "I could've gone to the club last night. Instead, I stayed home, and read chapter 47." Much better use of your time, brother, much better use of your time. Genesis 47:9. "And Jacob said to Pharaoh, 'The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life. They have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning." And you see this phrase repeated sojourning. What does that mean? It means a pilgrimage. Jacob understood that life is a journey. It has a beginning, and it has an end. And for the people of God, every single moment that we're alive is a moment of sacred significance. As a matter of fact, everything in a believer's life is sacred except for sin. Sin is the only thing that a secular in the life of believers. Do you view your life like this? It's a pilgrimage.Hebrews 11:13 through 16, "These all died in faith not having received the things promised, but having seen them, and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers, and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they're seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God for he has prepared for them a city." Philippians talks about our citizenship, Philippians 3:20, "Our citizenship is in heaven. And from it we await a savior of the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself."The apostle Peter in First Peter 2:11 says, "Beloved, I urge you as sojourners, and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable so that when they speak against you as evil doers, they may see your good deeds, and glorify God on the day of visitation. Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to the governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil, and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God that by doing good, you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a coverup for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor." And this is exactly what Jacob is doing, what Joseph is doing, what they're emulating. Jacob says, "Few have been the days of my years, and they've been evil."Why use the word evil? Well, he's emphasizing that his life has been hard in many ways. From his flight to Mesopotamia, from his brother Esau, his miseries at the hand of Laben, he wrestled with an angel, and then scripture says that it was actually God himself most likely Christophany. He wrestled with Christ, and Christ touches his hip. And then the rest of his life he walked with a limp, the rape of his daughter, Dinah, which led to the bloody revenge by Simeon, and Levi, and his beloved Rachel's death, his eldest son's power seeking incest, and his favorite son's apparent death. Evil have been his days, he says, and few. At 130 years old, he says, "Few are my days." Well, Abraham lived 175 years, Isaac 180 years. Few, and evil was the unadorned truth. Martin Luther said the theologian was made by three things, oratio, meditatio, and tentatio. Oratio is prayer, meditatio, meditation on God's word, and tentatio means trial.And what he meant was that theologians are made by praying, and meditating God's word, and then also through pain, and suffering, and afflictions that give you a perspective on life, and God. And this characterized his life. I wonder, do you have a vision for long life? Do you have a vision to live a long time, a healthy life? And if so, to do what? Is it to just enjoy your retirement, and your twilight years? Or is it to care for people, care for your family? Is it to care for God's family? I have not given this much thought in my twenties, and my thirties, but I'm 40 now, and now I'm giving this more thought. And I do have a vision for a long life. And I like Caleb in the Bible. Caleb in the Bible, he goes to see the promised land when he's 40. And then God made the people of Israel wander in the desert for 40 years for disobeying him, and disbelieving.And then Caleb at 85 goes to Joshua, and says, "Hey, man, I'm going to take that mountain over there, and I'm going to lead the charge myself." And Joshua's like, "What are you talking about?" And Caleb says, "I am as strong today at 85 as I was at 40." So, I'm actually working out more now because I'm 40, and this is the benchmark I got to at least maintain the benchmark so that at 85, Lord willing. But there is something about a purpose like when you have a vision to live a longer life, you care for yourself, you care for your body. The body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. But you got to make sure it's not just selfish, because living for yourself is never enough to make the impact that God has for us. Ephesians 5:15, "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise, making the best use of the time because the days are evil." What a great filter for our calendars, and what we do with our time.Is this the best use of my time? Genesis 47:10, "Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from the presence of Pharaoh." Do you think Jacob's blessing on Pharaoh was meaningful to him, to Pharaoh? I think so. Here stands before him, an aged saint who walked with the Lord faithfully in worship, and service for years. He didn't do it perfectly. He's a sinner. He's lived evil days. He knows. But scripture teaches that the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Meaning the more you grow in righteousness, and experiential righteousness, the more powerful your prayers become. The King James says, "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." And as Jacob prayed over Pharaoh, no doubt Pharaoh has never heard a prayer like this, a prayer to Yahweh. Pharaoh received that blessing, and he was blessed. Pharaoh first blessed God's people with his generosity speared Joseph promoted him, and then personally invites the family of Joseph to Goshen, sends them grain to preserve them, wagons, to transport them.And when they arrive, they're receive royally. Pharaoh blesses the people of God. And God in return blesses Pharaoh. Genesis 12:3, God promised Abraham, "I'll bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I'll curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." Text continues, Genesis 47:11. "Then Joseph settled his father, and his brothers, and gave them a possession of the land of Egypt, in the best of the land in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father's household with food according to the number of their dependents." In the Hebrew that were dependents is little ones according to their little ones. Joseph provided. And that's the emphasis on the text. And this should be the ambition of every godly person in particular godly men, men as heads of household to provide for your family, and to provide the best that you can for your family, which is actually an outward working of our faith.First Timothy 5:8 says, "If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever." Well, what's the connection between provision, and our Christian faith, where our Christian faith at the heart of it is a father who provides. God, the Father provides us with life, and he sustains us, and he cares for us. He sends Jesus Christ to procure salvation for us. God is a God who provides, and therefore his children, believers are to be people who provide, who receive his blessing, and become conduits of blessing so that the blessings that we receive are cascaded to the people around us, and beyond. So, in the throes of a deepening world, starvation, God prospers his people. So, Joseph provides for his family. And then we see that Pharaoh is blessed. This is point two, Pharaoh prospered as Joseph affects this plan that nationalizes the land, the livestock, and then turned Egyptians into tenant farmers.Genesis 47:13, "Now there was no food in all the land for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt, and the land of Canaan languished by reason of the famine. And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, and exchange for the grain that they bought. And Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. And when the money was all spent in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph, and said, 'Give us food. Why should we die before your eyes for our money is gone.' And Joseph answered, 'Give your livestock, and now we'll give you food in exchange for your livestock, if your money is gone.' So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them food in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the herds, and the donkeys. He supplied them with food in exchange for all their livestock that year.""And when that year was ended, they came to him, in the following year, and said to him, 'We will not hide from my lord that our money is all spent. The herds of livestock are my lord's. There's nothing left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our land. Why should we die before your eyes, both we, and our land? Buy us, and our land for food, and we with our land will be servants to Pharaoh, and give us seed that we may live, and not die, and that the land may not be desolate". Tenant farming becomes the norm with Pharaoh providing the seed, verse 20. "So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for all the Egyptians sold their fields because the famine was severe on them. The land became Pharaoh's. As for the people, he made servants of them from one end of Egypt to the other. Only the land of the priests he did not buy for the priest had a fixed allowance from Pharaoh, and lived on the allowance that Pharaoh gave them. Therefore they did not sell their land."So, in short order, all of Egypt except the pagan clergy were serfs. So, Pharaoh becomes greater than he could have ever imagined. Prospered thanks to Joseph. Point three, Egypt is blessed, blessed in terms of what? Well, they were on the brink of starvation, and now they're provided for. So, Genesis 47:23. "Then Joseph said to the people, 'Behold, I have this day bought you, and your land for Pharaoh. Now here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land, and at the harvest you shall give a fifth to Pharaoh, and four fifths shall be your own as seed for the field, and as food for yourselves, and your households, and as food for your little ones.' And they said, 'You have saved our lives. May it please my lord we will be servants to Pharaoh.' So, Joseph made it a statute concerning the land of Egypt. And it stands to this day that Pharaoh should have the fifth; the land of the priests alone did not become Pharaoh's."They said, "You have saved our lives may please my lord, we will be servants of Pharaoh. You've saved us, therefore of course we will serve you." And they understood this in political terms, and they understood this in real life. And how much more so does this apply to us as servants of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus, you saved us. Jesus, you paid it all. Jesus, of course to you, I owe everything. And this is how the great saints talked about the relationship with the Lord, the Apostle Paul. In his letters, he introduces himself I Paul in Apostle. And then he says over, and over, "I'm a doulos", and the Greek is, "I'm a slave. I'm a slave of Jesus Christ, and I serve him willingly. Why? Because he served me. He saved me." The royal serfs are taxed 20%, which was normal percentage back then, and 40% was not uncommon in Mesopotamia.The happy result of all of this was that Egypt thrived, the coffers were overflowing, bolstering the economy, and the people didn't complain about it. Joseph was Egypt's national hero. Without him, they'd all be dead. Joseph was led by the Lord. And scripture does teach that the closer you walk with the Lord, the more the Lord reveals his mind to you. The closer you walk with Christ, the more Christ reveals his mind to you. Well, what's Christ's mind like? Well, he's all knowing. And the Colossians Two, one through three comments on the treasures of wisdom found in Christ, "For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you, and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged being knit together in love to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding, and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden, are the treasures of wisdom, and knowledge." And the emphasis here is on the mystery. And that it is hidden. It takes effort.It takes work to study God, study his scriptures, and to walk with him. And if you study the gospels, you see that Jesus Christ applied this shrewdness, this wisdom in particular with his enemies. And he had many enemies. Enemies came to him, and they said, "John the Baptizer, you got to stop him. What is he doing? He's proclaiming the kingdom of God." And Jesus says, "Is baptism of John, of God, or of man?" Well, if they said of man, then all the people would've rejected him, because they saw the power of God. And if you say from God, well then you can't argue against that. Remember when the woman who was caught in adultery was brought to Jesus by the Pharisees?What does he say? He who is without sin cast the first stone, and they all walk away. Incredible wisdom. When the Pharisees came to him, and they questioned his divinity. And Jesus said, "Look at Psalm 1:10. What does David the Psalmist write as he is inspired by the Holy Spirit? He writes, the Lord said to my Lord, sit my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." And Jesus said, "How is David's son also David's lord?" And in that text he reveals the Trinity, the Pharisees when they came to him, and said, "Should we pay taxes to Caesar?" They want to catch Jesus so that Caesar, and the Roman authorities would arrest him. And Jesus said, bring me a coin. They bring him a coin. And he says, "Whose inscription is on this coin?" And they said, "Caesar's." And Jesus said, "Well give onto Caesar, what is Caesar's onto God? What is God's?" And the inscription, and the Greek his, icon image.So, this coin has the image of Caesar, give that back to Caesar, and whatever has the image of God, give that unto God, and he's calling them to obedience, or a question about the Sabbath. Can we do good works on the Sabbath? And Jesus said, "Which of you who has a sheep if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it, and lift it out?" And obviously we can heal on the Sabbath as Jesus did. Standing before Pontius Pilate, "Are you the king of the Jews?" And Jesus said, "You said that I am the king of the Jews." Leaving Pilate silent. Incredible wisdom as we study Christ, as we study how we operate, and as we walk with the Lord daily. Point four is Israel is blessed. This is verse 27, Genesis 47, "Thus Israel settled in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen, and they gained possessions in it, and fruitful, and multiplied greatly." They settled, they gained possessions, and they were fruitful, and multiplied greatly.They were fulfilling the great mandate that was given to Adam in Genesis 1:28. And it was given as a blessing, and God bless them. And God said to them, be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. And then after God sends the flood, and then Noah, and his family come out of the ark, God repeats this, and he repeats this twice, in Genesis 9:1 "And God blessed Noah, and his sons, and said to him, 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth." And verse seven, "And you'll be fruitful, and multiply, increase greatly on the earth, and multiply it." God loves people, and God wants more people, more people who are created the image of God, and are redeemed by Jesus Christ, and are adopted into the family of God.I had a gentleman at the gym ask me, and he found out I have four. I shock people all the time. I'm like, "I have kids." They're like, how many? "There's four." And they say, "Four?" And I always say, "Four daughters." And they're like, "Four daughters?" Same conversation every time. And he said, "How much do kids cost?" And my response is, "Well, they cost as much do you spend on them? That's how much they cost." But the principle is that the Lord does provide. And one of the things I told them, I was like, "Look, how much do you spend on going out? How much do you spend on entertainment? Well, here's the beauty of having kids. You just don't have time to go out, and they become your entertainment. And then you're like, actually this is a much better investment of my time, and money." The Lord provides for them. And that's the emphasis of this text. Someone could have said, "Jacob, why are you procreating? Why are you having so many children? How are you going to feed them all? Especially when a famine comes."But you see how the Lord blesses them. And Israel's prosperity far outstrips that of the average Egyptian. It's astonishing, but the citizens of Egypt lost their money. They lost their cattle, they lost their land. And all the time the children of Israel are over in the land of Goshen. They don't lose their money, they don't lose their land, they don't lose their livestock, or cattle. As a matter of fact, they became more, and more fruitful while the citizens of Egypt became servants of Pharaoh. And that's God's way of taking care of God's people. What Israel experienced in Egypt was a forced foretaste of the ultimate blessings of Canaan when the land, and its fatness would be theirs. And here I do just want to pause, and apply this to us. Joseph used his power, and he used his influence to bless his family. And we need to think about this in terms of our immediate family, our flesh, and blood, but also in terms of those who are not yet our family, those who don't yet know Jesus Christ.The Lord teaches us that when we repent of our sins, we become part of the family of God. So, evangelism is welcome people into the family of God. Hey, I've been saved by grace through faith. I am now a child of God, not because of anything I've done, but because of the work of Christ. And so I want to tell you about grace. I want to tell you about the fact that Jesus Christ saves people if you just ask, and receive the gift. And Jesus does teach us to think about being good stewards of everything he has given us in order to help people meet the Lord in order to gain eternal life. And Jesus does it by sharing this parable that's very curious upon a first reading. But as we meditate on it, incredible spiritual truths.In Luke 16, "He also said to the disciples, 'There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. And he called him, and said to him, 'What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management for you can no longer be manager. And the manager said to himself, 'What shall I do since my master's taking the management away from me, I'm not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. I have decided what to do, so that when I'm removed from management, people may receive me into their houses. So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, 'How much do you owe my master?' And he said, 'A hundred measures of oil.' And he said to him, 'Take your bill, and sit down quickly, and write 50.' And then he said to another, 'How much do you owe?' And he said, 'A hundred measures of wheat.' And he said to him, 'take your bill, and write 80.' The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness.""For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails, they may receive you into the eternal dwellings."So, Jesus commends this manager for his shrewd use of the vanishing opportunity before him. The manager understands my window of opportunity is going to be gone soon. And he begins to give these people discounts on what they owed the master while he still had power to do so. And the lesson for us is our time is limited, our money is limited, and we need to be thinking like good managers, like good stewards of what God has given to do what? To love people. He says, "Make friends with your wealth." People love generosity. People love generous friends. And when we're generous with time, and money, that opens up opportunities to talk about more meaningful things, and talk about the things of God.And he says, "When your wealth fails, when your health fails, well what's left is eternal souls." And he says, we are to think about it like that. And here also as we're talking about resources, a few comments on work. Jacob's sons were shepherds ordinary working men. And although their choice of vocation seemed an abomination to the Egyptians, there was nothing unworthy about their trade, but there was actually honor, and glory in their toil. And the capacity, and opportunity for work is a gift from God, whether the work is mental, or manual. And I grew up with my dad who was, he started a painting business as an immigrant, and I remember he would drop me off at college in his painting truck, and it pains me to say this. I said, "Dad, can you just drop me off like half a mile away from campus? I don't want anyone to see that my dad, the painter is dropping me off at college", which is terrible.That's a terrible mindset where we do rank people's worth depending on what kind of work they do, if they work with their hands, it's almost as if they're lesser. And that's not true. Scripture actually tells us that we are to aspire to work with our hands. First Thessalonians 4:9 through 12, "Now concerning brotherly love, you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers through throughout Macedonia. But we urge you brothers to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders, and be dependent on no one."So, we are to work, and we are to work, and think about working in a way where we are not dependent on other people. St. Paul funded his ministry by making tents, and this idea of being dependent on other people as the culture becomes hostile toward Christians, or to those who are faithful to the faith. Well, this idea of being dependent on someone for a salary, or for your livelihood, well this is a conversation that needs serious thought. Colossians 3:17, "Whatever you do in word, or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." In the verse 23 of that chapter, "Whatever you do, work heartily as for the Lord, and not for men. Knowing that from the Lord you'll receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ." First Corinthians 10:31. So, whether you eat, or drink, whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Genesis 47:28, "And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt 17 years. So, the days of Jacob, the years of his life were 147 years."Joseph had spent 17 years with his father Jacob in the beginning of his life. And then Jacob spent 17 years at the end of his life with his son Joseph, and then in Genesis 47:29, "And when the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son Joseph, and said to him, 'If now I have found favor in your sight, put your hand under my thigh, and promise to deal kindly, and truly with me. Do not bury me in Egypt, but let me lie with my fathers. Carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying place. He answered, 'I will do as you have said.' And he said, 'Swear to me'; and he swore to him. Then Israel bowed himself upon the head of his bed." Jacob here binds Joseph doubly. Twice he says, "I want you to promise this." Why was this so important to Jacob be buried in the promised land, the land of Canaan? Well, there's a declaration of promise. He believed that God would bring them back, and he wanted his family already to see that.And this was the symbol Jacob going to die, and we're going to bring his body to be buried in Canaan. Jacob was a man who cared about God's blessing, not just on his life, but he cared about God's blessing on the lives of his children, and his children's children. And that's why he makes Joseph promise. Jacob from his early days knew that God's blessing meant everything to the point where he even connived a away to get his father's greatest blessing when he stole it from Esau. And the text tells us that Esau did not value God's blessing. And we as people of God, we are to value God's blessing. We're to long, "Lord bless me, Lord bless my family, bless my family's family. Lord bless us." Remember Jacob even wrestling with the angel who was God himself. And he says, "I'm not going to let you go until you bless me." So, we are to value God's blessing, and God's greatest blessing is redemption.God's greatest blessing that he offers us is a relationship with God, forgiveness of our sins. Here in this text before Pharaoh, he said, "My days have been few, and evil", but perhaps he had some years to meditate on that in the land of Egypt. And in the next chapter in Genesis 48, as he's blessing the sons of Joseph, verse 15, "And he blessed Joseph, and said, 'The God before whom my father's Abraham, and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys; and in them, let my name be carried on, and the name of my father's Abraham and Isaac, and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth." Verse 16, the angel, that's the angel that he wrestled with. It was a God man, most likely Christ himself. He has redeemed me from all evil. Yes, there were days in my life he recognizes where it was evil, where I have done evil because I am evil, but he redeemed me.And that's the greatest blessing that Jesus Christ offers us. That when we come to him, and when we repent of our sins, when we acknowledge, "Lord, I have done things that are evil. I have transgressed your law. I have lived selfishly, I have lived as if I'm my own God. Lord, forgive me." John 10:10, Jesus says, "The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I'm the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." Not only is Jesus the good shepherd, but Jesus is also the only way to heaven. Jacob had another dream where he saw a staircase, and he saw the angels of God ascending, and descending. And then Jesus commenting on that dream says the following in John 1:51. "And he said to him, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, you'll see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending, and descending on the Son of Man." Jesus Christ is the only staircase to heaven, the only staircase to God.The cross of Jesus Christ is the only means of attaining the greatest blessing that God offers, and that's himself. God offers eternal life, which is a relationship with him by grace through faith. As Joseph provided a place for his family in Egypt, Jesus provides a place for us in heaven. He told the disciples, "I'm going to go, and prepare a room for you." The wisest thing in the world you can do today is to accept the free gift of eternal life by repenting, and believing in Jesus Christ, and his sacrifice for you when he died for you, when he bled for you, when he was buried for you, when he was resurrected for you, when you believed that that's what he did for you, that your sins are paid for, your eternal life is secure.I'll close it with Matthew 11:28, an invitation from the Lord Jesus Christ. "Come to me all who labor, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle, and lowly in heart, and you'll find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Let us pray. Lord Jesus, we thank you for this invitation. We thank you for your shed blood on the cross. We thank you that you, you used your position, and your power, and your influence, and you used it to serve us.

This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Father, we thank you for the gift of holy scripture in which you reveal to us your mind, your will, your purposes. Lord, you long to bless us, and I pray that you make us a people that long to be blessed, and care about your blessing. We thank you for the greatest blessing that we can have as a relationship with you, to be reconciled with you, to have our evil redeemed by the Lord Jesus Christ. Lord, we come to your holy scriptures with trembling, and contrition of heart, recognizing that this is the posture of heart that you bless. And Lord, we fear you, and we recognize that to fear you is to love you. And to love you is to fear you to stand in awe, and reverence before your glory, your majesty. And Lord show us that the beginning of wisdom is to fear you.We are people who are naturally inclined toward evil, and folly. And Lord, as you redeem us from our evil, we do ask that you also save us from our folly, and make us a people who are good, but also who are good at life guided by your wisdom. Holy Spirit, we pray that you bless us today with your presence. And also, Lord, take these words, and apply them to each one of us specifically only as you can. We pray all this in Christ's holy name. Amen. We're continuing our sermon series called Graduate Level Grace Study in the Life of Joseph. We are today in Genesis 47, and the title of the sermon is Wise and Innocent. A few years back, the Brookings Institute named Boston as one of the knowledge centers of the world. And by this they mean that Boston is full of very intelligent, highly productive people, talented, and they come here to get more knowledge, and that knowledge is taken to the world.Knowledge is great. We're told knowledge is power, we're told, and scripture agrees. Proverbs 18:15 says, "An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge." But acquiring knowledge for the sake of knowledge is never enough. What do you do with that knowledge? That's what matters more. Can you skillfully execute upon this knowledge when necessary in the real world, and real time with real life consequences, and implications? And it doesn't matter how great of a game plan you have, if you can't execute in the real game, well then, it meant nothing. So, scripture does call us to knowledge, but to something more than just knowledge. It calls us to wisdom. And if knowledge is power, then what is wisdom? Well, wisdom is a superpower. In Matthew 10:16, Jesus tells his disciples before sending them out to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom. He says, "Behold, I'm sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves." Wise and innocent. And Joseph is marked by this razor sharp discernment, and strategic execution.The great Puritan, Thomas Watson. He said that, "The godly man acts both the politician, and the divine. He retains his ingenuity, yet does not part with his integrity." And one of the beauties about wisdom is you can grow in wisdom how through practice, and through training. Hebrews 5:14 says, "But solid food is for the mature for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil." And in our text today in Genesis 47, we see Joseph exercising this divine wisdom, and he does so in order to provide in four points to frame up our time as we walk through the text together first, Joseph provides for his family. And by doing so, Pharaoh is blessed.And then Egypt is blessed, and Israel is blessed. First, Joseph rides for his family. With shrewdness, and wisdom, Joseph sets out to accomplish his objective. His objective as his family moves from Canaan, his father, and his brother's multitude of people, hundreds. His goal is to provide prime land for them so that they can continue to prosper despite the famine that's still in the land. And in Psalm 105, 16 through 22, it's a Psalm that comments on the story of Joseph. It says, "When he summoned a famine on the land, and broke all supply of bread, he" that's the Lord, "Had sent a man ahead of them, Joseph who was sold as a slave. His feet were hurt with fetters; his neck was put in a collar of iron; until what he had said came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him. The king sent, and released him; the ruler of the peoples set him free; he made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his possessions to bind his princes at his pleasure, and to teach his elders wisdom."So, meaning all the suffering that Joseph went through, he went through with a purpose. God gave him a purpose to teach wisdom to whom? To Pharaoh, to Pharaoh's court, and then also the elders of Israel. Wisdom comes as a gift from the Lord for all who ask humbly. Scripture says, "Is there anyone lacking wisdom?" Well, just ask of the Lord, Isaiah 30:21, "And your ears shall hear a word behind you saying "This is the way, walk in it, when you turn to the right, or when you turn to the left." And this is what Jesus promised. He's a good shepherd. And he said, "My sheep hear my voice." And Jesus' voice teaches us how to follow God's moral law but also how to walk in wisdom.Psalm 25, eight, and nine, "Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way." To get the context of Genesis 47. I'm going to read the paragraph right before this is Genesis 46:31, Jacob, the brothers are before Joseph, and Joseph has a game plan, and he's coaching them. He's coaching his family's audience before Pharaoh, here's what you say, here's what you don't say. Here's how we are going to present ourselves in order to get what we want. Genesis 46:31, Joseph said to his brothers, and to his father's household, "I will go up, and tell Pharaoh, and will say to him, 'My brothers, and my father's household who were in the land of Canaan have come to me. And the men were shepherds for they have been keepers of livestock, and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have.""When Pharaoh calls you, and says, 'What is your occupation?' You shall say 'Your servants have been keepers of livestock from our youth even until now, both we, and our fathers in order that we may dwell in the land of Goshen, for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians." There are five more years left of the famine. And Joseph is thinking not just about himself, not just about his immediate family. He's thinking as a provider for his extended family. He understands that God has put him in this position, and God wants him to use his power, use his position in order to bless others. And he begins to think about the wider family, and he's thinking as a patriarch, and this is how a patriarch thinks, not how can I be most comfortable? Not how can I live a comfortable life, and have people serve me?No, a patriarch thinks how comfortable can I become with discomfort to serve as many people as possible? How can I leave a lasting legacy? How can I serve my family, and my descendants for generations? How can I provide for their needs both materially, and spiritually? And even with Joseph's approval, he knows that he could have just given them Goshen, and you guys can have that land, but he also understands that taking these men who are of fighting age, bringing them into Egypt is going to raise eyebrows, and it's going to give ammunition to Joseph's enemies in Pharaoh's court. No, he needs to get clearance from the very top, from Pharaoh himself. He needs Pharaoh to speak, and say, "Yes, you can have this land." It's only with the king's word that Joseph could protect himself from the charge of nepotism. So, he has the foresight to anticipate this, and craft a strategy with the proper precautions.So, he wants to focus on the fact that Egyptians did not like shepherds. Shepherds were an abomination to the Egyptians. Why? Because they probably felt that they were part of an impure cast. So, here you got to pause, and say, "Why would Joseph lead with this very unflattering information?" Here's my family, and their shepherds, which are an abomination. Won't people say you're from this family, you're related to these people? Well, he realized this was the best move to get the best land for his family, and also they'd be living in this land with autonomy which would allow them to grow their families, and grow their faith in the Lord. So, Joseph here he is taking a massive risk, and he's going out on a limb, but he's doing it because he understands he needs to provide for his family. So, that brings Genesis 47 verses one, and two."So, Joseph went in, and told Pharaoh, 'My father, and my brothers with their flocks, and herds, and all that they possess have come from the land of Canaan. They are now in the land of Goshen.' And from among his brothers he took five men, and presented them to Pharaoh." Which five did he pick? Most likely brought Benjamin. Which six did he overlook? We're not told. Most likely operating out of wisdom, he's bringing the most unintimidating looking guys before Pharaoh, and he does say, "This is my father, and these are my brothers." He's not ashamed of his family. He proudly introduces them to his boss, which is very much like Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ our Lord, and savior, scriptures tells us he's our older brother, and as our older brother who welcomes us into the family of God, he provides adoption for us by his blood.Well, Jesus is unashamed to call his brothers, Hebrews says, Hebrews 2:10, "For it was fitting that he, for whom, and by whom all things exist, and bringing many sons to glory should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies, and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he's not ashamed to call them brothers saying, 'I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise." Joseph tells Pharaoh, they're already in the land of Goshen. He has them camp out in the prime real estate, which is really smart. They're already there, and the text continues. Verse three, "Pharaoh said to his brothers, 'What is your occupation?' And they said to Pharaoh, 'Your servants are shepherds as our fathers were.' They said to Pharaoh, 'We have come to sojourn in the land, for there is no pasture for your servants flocks for the famine severe in the land of Canaan. And now please let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen.'."Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, 'Your father, and your brothers have come to you. The land of Egypt is before you. Settle your father, and your brothers in the best of the land. Let them settle in the land of Goshen, and if you know any able men among them, put them in charge of my livestock." Pharaoh asks about the occupation question just as Joseph had anticipated, and the wisdom, Joseph has been studying his boss for nine plus years. He anticipates the moves, and they say we've been shepherds for generations. Yes, it's an abomination in your eyes, but we've been doing this for years, and the emphasis here is on sojourn. We've come to sojourn, meaning there's no talk of permanence. This is temporary, and just as Joseph needed him to do, Pharaoh confirms publicly, Israel can have the best of the land. Not only that, he goes beyond, and he says, "If you know anyone that could take care of my animals, my livestock, you can put them to work", which is just incredible favor from the Lord.Especially, as you read at the end of the chapter, the people of Egypt, and the people from of all the other countries, they ran out of money, currency. So, they start bringing their livestock, and their animals to Pharaoh, which meant this was a wonderful work opportunity, and this is how the Lord often works with us. Not only does he long to bless us, he longs to bless us in a shocking way, a way that's unexpected. For example, Ephesians 3:20 verse 21. "Now to him who's able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask, or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church, and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen." More than we can ask, or even think, or even imagine. In Genesis 47:7, "Then Joseph brought in Jacob, his father, and stood him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh." The blessing isn't recorded, but most likely it's a customary greeting before a king, something like long live the king, which is partially perhaps why Pharaoh asks Jacob's age.But here you see this contrast. A simple, old shepherd is standing before a powerful Egyptian monarch, and spiritual gravitas meets political gravitas. Yes, Pharaoh is an incredible person of power, but Jacob is an incredible person of spiritual power, and the character of the saint surely made an impression on the king. Although Jacob didn't have a crown of gold, he had a crown of glory. You say, "What's a crown of glory in scripture?" Well, Proverbs 16:31, gray hair. "Gray hair is a crown of glory. It is gained in a righteous life." Our culture idolizes youth, and dishonors people in their old age. And this is wrong. Leviticus 19:32 says, "You shall stand up before the gray head, and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord." My grays have been coming in around my temples.I keep it nice, and short. In my beard, they're coming in. I don't have a full crown of glory just yet. So, you don't have to stand up completely in my presence, but maybe a head nod, or something. But we are to respect older people, and we do pray for the Lord to continue to send us older people to teach us wisdom, and teach us the ways of righteousness. And you see what dignity now marks Jacob, what a contrast from the day when he bowed himself seven times before Esau. But here there's no cringing, there's no fawning. He carries himself as a representative of God. He carries himself as an ambassador of the most high. He is a son of the king of kings. And in fact, the scene actually conveys the impression that Jacob is actually greater than Pharaoh no matter how great Pharaoh is, because who's doing the blessing?It's Jacob. And Hebrews 7:7 says, "It's beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior." So, the feeble patriarch blesses the mighty monarch, and in verse eight it says, "Pharaoh said to Jacob, 'How many are the days of the years of your life?" How many are the days of the years of your life? Not just how old are you, not just how many years have you lived? What an interesting turn of phrase. How many are the days of the years of your life? The emphasis here is on the individual days that go up, and that make up the total of your life. It's a great way to think about life. Why? Because today is all we have. Today is all we're given. Someone said days are long, and years are short. So, we are to think about daily. Today, am I living for the glory of God? Today, am I serving God, loving him, and loving people? I had a brother come up to me after the service, this was his second service ever. Second time in church ever.He came up, and he's like, "I could've gone to the club last night. Instead, I stayed home, and read chapter 47." Much better use of your time, brother, much better use of your time. Genesis 47:9. "And Jacob said to Pharaoh, 'The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life. They have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning." And you see this phrase repeated sojourning. What does that mean? It means a pilgrimage. Jacob understood that life is a journey. It has a beginning, and it has an end. And for the people of God, every single moment that we're alive is a moment of sacred significance. As a matter of fact, everything in a believer's life is sacred except for sin. Sin is the only thing that a secular in the life of believers. Do you view your life like this? It's a pilgrimage.Hebrews 11:13 through 16, "These all died in faith not having received the things promised, but having seen them, and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers, and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they're seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God for he has prepared for them a city." Philippians talks about our citizenship, Philippians 3:20, "Our citizenship is in heaven. And from it we await a savior of the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself."The apostle Peter in First Peter 2:11 says, "Beloved, I urge you as sojourners, and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable so that when they speak against you as evil doers, they may see your good deeds, and glorify God on the day of visitation. Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to the governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil, and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God that by doing good, you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a coverup for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor." And this is exactly what Jacob is doing, what Joseph is doing, what they're emulating. Jacob says, "Few have been the days of my years, and they've been evil."Why use the word evil? Well, he's emphasizing that his life has been hard in many ways. From his flight to Mesopotamia, from his brother Esau, his miseries at the hand of Laben, he wrestled with an angel, and then scripture says that it was actually God himself most likely Christophany. He wrestled with Christ, and Christ touches his hip. And then the rest of his life he walked with a limp, the rape of his daughter, Dinah, which led to the bloody revenge by Simeon, and Levi, and his beloved Rachel's death, his eldest son's power seeking incest, and his favorite son's apparent death. Evil have been his days, he says, and few. At 130 years old, he says, "Few are my days." Well, Abraham lived 175 years, Isaac 180 years. Few, and evil was the unadorned truth. Martin Luther said the theologian was made by three things, oratio, meditatio, and tentatio. Oratio is prayer, meditatio, meditation on God's word, and tentatio means trial.And what he meant was that theologians are made by praying, and meditating God's word, and then also through pain, and suffering, and afflictions that give you a perspective on life, and God. And this characterized his life. I wonder, do you have a vision for long life? Do you have a vision to live a long time, a healthy life? And if so, to do what? Is it to just enjoy your retirement, and your twilight years? Or is it to care for people, care for your family? Is it to care for God's family? I have not given this much thought in my twenties, and my thirties, but I'm 40 now, and now I'm giving this more thought. And I do have a vision for a long life. And I like Caleb in the Bible. Caleb in the Bible, he goes to see the promised land when he's 40. And then God made the people of Israel wander in the desert for 40 years for disobeying him, and disbelieving.And then Caleb at 85 goes to Joshua, and says, "Hey, man, I'm going to take that mountain over there, and I'm going to lead the charge myself." And Joshua's like, "What are you talking about?" And Caleb says, "I am as strong today at 85 as I was at 40." So, I'm actually working out more now because I'm 40, and this is the benchmark I got to at least maintain the benchmark so that at 85, Lord willing. But there is something about a purpose like when you have a vision to live a longer life, you care for yourself, you care for your body. The body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. But you got to make sure it's not just selfish, because living for yourself is never enough to make the impact that God has for us. Ephesians 5:15, "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise, making the best use of the time because the days are evil." What a great filter for our calendars, and what we do with our time.Is this the best use of my time? Genesis 47:10, "Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from the presence of Pharaoh." Do you think Jacob's blessing on Pharaoh was meaningful to him, to Pharaoh? I think so. Here stands before him, an aged saint who walked with the Lord faithfully in worship, and service for years. He didn't do it perfectly. He's a sinner. He's lived evil days. He knows. But scripture teaches that the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Meaning the more you grow in righteousness, and experiential righteousness, the more powerful your prayers become. The King James says, "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." And as Jacob prayed over Pharaoh, no doubt Pharaoh has never heard a prayer like this, a prayer to Yahweh. Pharaoh received that blessing, and he was blessed. Pharaoh first blessed God's people with his generosity speared Joseph promoted him, and then personally invites the family of Joseph to Goshen, sends them grain to preserve them, wagons, to transport them.And when they arrive, they're receive royally. Pharaoh blesses the people of God. And God in return blesses Pharaoh. Genesis 12:3, God promised Abraham, "I'll bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I'll curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." Text continues, Genesis 47:11. "Then Joseph settled his father, and his brothers, and gave them a possession of the land of Egypt, in the best of the land in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father's household with food according to the number of their dependents." In the Hebrew that were dependents is little ones according to their little ones. Joseph provided. And that's the emphasis on the text. And this should be the ambition of every godly person in particular godly men, men as heads of household to provide for your family, and to provide the best that you can for your family, which is actually an outward working of our faith.First Timothy 5:8 says, "If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever." Well, what's the connection between provision, and our Christian faith, where our Christian faith at the heart of it is a father who provides. God, the Father provides us with life, and he sustains us, and he cares for us. He sends Jesus Christ to procure salvation for us. God is a God who provides, and therefore his children, believers are to be people who provide, who receive his blessing, and become conduits of blessing so that the blessings that we receive are cascaded to the people around us, and beyond. So, in the throes of a deepening world, starvation, God prospers his people. So, Joseph provides for his family. And then we see that Pharaoh is blessed. This is point two, Pharaoh prospered as Joseph affects this plan that nationalizes the land, the livestock, and then turned Egyptians into tenant farmers.Genesis 47:13, "Now there was no food in all the land for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt, and the land of Canaan languished by reason of the famine. And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, and exchange for the grain that they bought. And Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. And when the money was all spent in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph, and said, 'Give us food. Why should we die before your eyes for our money is gone.' And Joseph answered, 'Give your livestock, and now we'll give you food in exchange for your livestock, if your money is gone.' So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them food in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the herds, and the donkeys. He supplied them with food in exchange for all their livestock that year.""And when that year was ended, they came to him, in the following year, and said to him, 'We will not hide from my lord that our money is all spent. The herds of livestock are my lord's. There's nothing left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our land. Why should we die before your eyes, both we, and our land? Buy us, and our land for food, and we with our land will be servants to Pharaoh, and give us seed that we may live, and not die, and that the land may not be desolate". Tenant farming becomes the norm with Pharaoh providing the seed, verse 20. "So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for all the Egyptians sold their fields because the famine was severe on them. The land became Pharaoh's. As for the people, he made servants of them from one end of Egypt to the other. Only the land of the priests he did not buy for the priest had a fixed allowance from Pharaoh, and lived on the allowance that Pharaoh gave them. Therefore they did not sell their land."So, in short order, all of Egypt except the pagan clergy were serfs. So, Pharaoh becomes greater than he could have ever imagined. Prospered thanks to Joseph. Point three, Egypt is blessed, blessed in terms of what? Well, they were on the brink of starvation, and now they're provided for. So, Genesis 47:23. "Then Joseph said to the people, 'Behold, I have this day bought you, and your land for Pharaoh. Now here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land, and at the harvest you shall give a fifth to Pharaoh, and four fifths shall be your own as seed for the field, and as food for yourselves, and your households, and as food for your little ones.' And they said, 'You have saved our lives. May it please my lord we will be servants to Pharaoh.' So, Joseph made it a statute concerning the land of Egypt. And it stands to this day that Pharaoh should have the fifth; the land of the priests alone did not become Pharaoh's."They said, "You have saved our lives may please my lord, we will be servants of Pharaoh. You've saved us, therefore of course we will serve you." And they understood this in political terms, and they understood this in real life. And how much more so does this apply to us as servants of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus, you saved us. Jesus, you paid it all. Jesus, of course to you, I owe everything. And this is how the great saints talked about the relationship with the Lord, the Apostle Paul. In his letters, he introduces himself I Paul in Apostle. And then he says over, and over, "I'm a doulos", and the Greek is, "I'm a slave. I'm a slave of Jesus Christ, and I serve him willingly. Why? Because he served me. He saved me." The royal serfs are taxed 20%, which was normal percentage back then, and 40% was not uncommon in Mesopotamia.The happy result of all of this was that Egypt thrived, the coffers were overflowing, bolstering the economy, and the people didn't complain about it. Joseph was Egypt's national hero. Without him, they'd all be dead. Joseph was led by the Lord. And scripture does teach that the closer you walk with the Lord, the more the Lord reveals his mind to you. The closer you walk with Christ, the more Christ reveals his mind to you. Well, what's Christ's mind like? Well, he's all knowing. And the Colossians Two, one through three comments on the treasures of wisdom found in Christ, "For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you, and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged being knit together in love to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding, and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden, are the treasures of wisdom, and knowledge." And the emphasis here is on the mystery. And that it is hidden. It takes effort.It takes work to study God, study his scriptures, and to walk with him. And if you study the gospels, you see that Jesus Christ applied this shrewdness, this wisdom in particular with his enemies. And he had many enemies. Enemies came to him, and they said, "John the Baptizer, you got to stop him. What is he doing? He's proclaiming the kingdom of God." And Jesus says, "Is baptism of John, of God, or of man?" Well, if they said of man, then all the people would've rejected him, because they saw the power of God. And if you say from God, well then you can't argue against that. Remember when the woman who was caught in adultery was brought to Jesus by the Pharisees?What does he say? He who is without sin cast the first stone, and they all walk away. Incredible wisdom. When the Pharisees came to him, and they questioned his divinity. And Jesus said, "Look at Psalm 1:10. What does David the Psalmist write as he is inspired by the Holy Spirit? He writes, the Lord said to my Lord, sit my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." And Jesus said, "How is David's son also David's lord?" And in that text he reveals the Trinity, the Pharisees when they came to him, and said, "Should we pay taxes to Caesar?" They want to catch Jesus so that Caesar, and the Roman authorities would arrest him. And Jesus said, bring me a coin. They bring him a coin. And he says, "Whose inscription is on this coin?" And they said, "Caesar's." And Jesus said, "Well give onto Caesar, what is Caesar's onto God? What is God's?" And the inscription, and the Greek his, icon image.So, this coin has the image of Caesar, give that back to Caesar, and whatever has the image of God, give that unto God, and he's calling them to obedience, or a question about the Sabbath. Can we do good works on the Sabbath? And Jesus said, "Which of you who has a sheep if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it, and lift it out?" And obviously we can heal on the Sabbath as Jesus did. Standing before Pontius Pilate, "Are you the king of the Jews?" And Jesus said, "You said that I am the king of the Jews." Leaving Pilate silent. Incredible wisdom as we study Christ, as we study how we operate, and as we walk with the Lord daily. Point four is Israel is blessed. This is verse 27, Genesis 47, "Thus Israel settled in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen, and they gained possessions in it, and fruitful, and multiplied greatly." They settled, they gained possessions, and they were fruitful, and multiplied greatly.They were fulfilling the great mandate that was given to Adam in Genesis 1:28. And it was given as a blessing, and God bless them. And God said to them, be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. And then after God sends the flood, and then Noah, and his family come out of the ark, God repeats this, and he repeats this twice, in Genesis 9:1 "And God blessed Noah, and his sons, and said to him, 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth." And verse seven, "And you'll be fruitful, and multiply, increase greatly on the earth, and multiply it." God loves people, and God wants more people, more people who are created the image of God, and are redeemed by Jesus Christ, and are adopted into the family of God.I had a gentleman at the gym ask me, and he found out I have four. I shock people all the time. I'm like, "I have kids." They're like, how many? "There's four." And they say, "Four?" And I always say, "Four daughters." And they're like, "Four daughters?" Same conversation every time. And he said, "How much do kids cost?" And my response is, "Well, they cost as much do you spend on them? That's how much they cost." But the principle is that the Lord does provide. And one of the things I told them, I was like, "Look, how much do you spend on going out? How much do you spend on entertainment? Well, here's the beauty of having kids. You just don't have time to go out, and they become your entertainment. And then you're like, actually this is a much better investment of my time, and money." The Lord provides for them. And that's the emphasis of this text. Someone could have said, "Jacob, why are you procreating? Why are you having so many children? How are you going to feed them all? Especially when a famine comes."But you see how the Lord blesses them. And Israel's prosperity far outstrips that of the average Egyptian. It's astonishing, but the citizens of Egypt lost their money. They lost their cattle, they lost their land. And all the time the children of Israel are over in the land of Goshen. They don't lose their money, they don't lose their land, they don't lose their livestock, or cattle. As a matter of fact, they became more, and more fruitful while the citizens of Egypt became servants of Pharaoh. And that's God's way of taking care of God's people. What Israel experienced in Egypt was a forced foretaste of the ultimate blessings of Canaan when the land, and its fatness would be theirs. And here I do just want to pause, and apply this to us. Joseph used his power, and he used his influence to bless his family. And we need to think about this in terms of our immediate family, our flesh, and blood, but also in terms of those who are not yet our family, those who don't yet know Jesus Christ.The Lord teaches us that when we repent of our sins, we become part of the family of God. So, evangelism is welcome people into the family of God. Hey, I've been saved by grace through faith. I am now a child of God, not because of anything I've done, but because of the work of Christ. And so I want to tell you about grace. I want to tell you about the fact that Jesus Christ saves people if you just ask, and receive the gift. And Jesus does teach us to think about being good stewards of everything he has given us in order to help people meet the Lord in order to gain eternal life. And Jesus does it by sharing this parable that's very curious upon a first reading. But as we meditate on it, incredible spiritual truths.In Luke 16, "He also said to the disciples, 'There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. And he called him, and said to him, 'What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management for you can no longer be manager. And the manager said to himself, 'What shall I do since my master's taking the management away from me, I'm not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. I have decided what to do, so that when I'm removed from management, people may receive me into their houses. So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, 'How much do you owe my master?' And he said, 'A hundred measures of oil.' And he said to him, 'Take your bill, and sit down quickly, and write 50.' And then he said to another, 'How much do you owe?' And he said, 'A hundred measures of wheat.' And he said to him, 'take your bill, and write 80.' The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness.""For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails, they may receive you into the eternal dwellings."So, Jesus commends this manager for his shrewd use of the vanishing opportunity before him. The manager understands my window of opportunity is going to be gone soon. And he begins to give these people discounts on what they owed the master while he still had power to do so. And the lesson for us is our time is limited, our money is limited, and we need to be thinking like good managers, like good stewards of what God has given to do what? To love people. He says, "Make friends with your wealth." People love generosity. People love generous friends. And when we're generous with time, and money, that opens up opportunities to talk about more meaningful things, and talk about the things of God.And he says, "When your wealth fails, when your health fails, well what's left is eternal souls." And he says, we are to think about it like that. And here also as we're talking about resources, a few comments on work. Jacob's sons were shepherds ordinary working men. And although their choice of vocation seemed an abomination to the Egyptians, there was nothing unworthy about their trade, but there was actually honor, and glory in their toil. And the capacity, and opportunity for work is a gift from God, whether the work is mental, or manual. And I grew up with my dad who was, he started a painting business as an immigrant, and I remember he would drop me off at college in his painting truck, and it pains me to say this. I said, "Dad, can you just drop me off like half a mile away from campus? I don't want anyone to see that my dad, the painter is dropping me off at college", which is terrible.That's a terrible mindset where we do rank people's worth depending on what kind of work they do, if they work with their hands, it's almost as if they're lesser. And that's not true. Scripture actually tells us that we are to aspire to work with our hands. First Thessalonians 4:9 through 12, "Now concerning brotherly love, you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers through throughout Macedonia. But we urge you brothers to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders, and be dependent on no one."So, we are to work, and we are to work, and think about working in a way where we are not dependent on other people. St. Paul funded his ministry by making tents, and this idea of being dependent on other people as the culture becomes hostile toward Christians, or to those who are faithful to the faith. Well, this idea of being dependent on someone for a salary, or for your livelihood, well this is a conversation that needs serious thought. Colossians 3:17, "Whatever you do in word, or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." In the verse 23 of that chapter, "Whatever you do, work heartily as for the Lord, and not for men. Knowing that from the Lord you'll receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ." First Corinthians 10:31. So, whether you eat, or drink, whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Genesis 47:28, "And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt 17 years. So, the days of Jacob, the years of his life were 147 years."Joseph had spent 17 years with his father Jacob in the beginning of his life. And then Jacob spent 17 years at the end of his life with his son Joseph, and then in Genesis 47:29, "And when the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son Joseph, and said to him, 'If now I have found favor in your sight, put your hand under my thigh, and promise to deal kindly, and truly with me. Do not bury me in Egypt, but let me lie with my fathers. Carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying place. He answered, 'I will do as you have said.' And he said, 'Swear to me'; and he swore to him. Then Israel bowed himself upon the head of his bed." Jacob here binds Joseph doubly. Twice he says, "I want you to promise this." Why was this so important to Jacob be buried in the promised land, the land of Canaan? Well, there's a declaration of promise. He believed that God would bring them back, and he wanted his family already to see that.And this was the symbol Jacob going to die, and we're going to bring his body to be buried in Canaan. Jacob was a man who cared about God's blessing, not just on his life, but he cared about God's blessing on the lives of his children, and his children's children. And that's why he makes Joseph promise. Jacob from his early days knew that God's blessing meant everything to the point where he even connived a away to get his father's greatest blessing when he stole it from Esau. And the text tells us that Esau did not value God's blessing. And we as people of God, we are to value God's blessing. We're to long, "Lord bless me, Lord bless my family, bless my family's family. Lord bless us." Remember Jacob even wrestling with the angel who was God himself. And he says, "I'm not going to let you go until you bless me." So, we are to value God's blessing, and God's greatest blessing is redemption.God's greatest blessing that he offers us is a relationship with God, forgiveness of our sins. Here in this text before Pharaoh, he said, "My days have been few, and evil", but perhaps he had some years to meditate on that in the land of Egypt. And in the next chapter in Genesis 48, as he's blessing the sons of Joseph, verse 15, "And he blessed Joseph, and said, 'The God before whom my father's Abraham, and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys; and in them, let my name be carried on, and the name of my father's Abraham and Isaac, and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth." Verse 16, the angel, that's the angel that he wrestled with. It was a God man, most likely Christ himself. He has redeemed me from all evil. Yes, there were days in my life he recognizes where it was evil, where I have done evil because I am evil, but he redeemed me.And that's the greatest blessing that Jesus Christ offers us. That when we come to him, and when we repent of our sins, when we acknowledge, "Lord, I have done things that are evil. I have transgressed your law. I have lived selfishly, I have lived as if I'm my own God. Lord, forgive me." John 10:10, Jesus says, "The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I'm the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." Not only is Jesus the good shepherd, but Jesus is also the only way to heaven. Jacob had another dream where he saw a staircase, and he saw the angels of God ascending, and descending. And then Jesus commenting on that dream says the following in John 1:51. "And he said to him, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, you'll see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending, and descending on the Son of Man." Jesus Christ is the only staircase to heaven, the only staircase to God.The cross of Jesus Christ is the only means of attaining the greatest blessing that God offers, and that's himself. God offers eternal life, which is a relationship with him by grace through faith. As Joseph provided a place for his family in Egypt, Jesus provides a place for us in heaven. He told the disciples, "I'm going to go, and prepare a room for you." The wisest thing in the world you can do today is to accept the free gift of eternal life by repenting, and believing in Jesus Christ, and his sacrifice for you when he died for you, when he bled for you, when he was buried for you, when he was resurrected for you, when you believed that that's what he did for you, that your sins are paid for, your eternal life is secure.I'll close it with Matthew 11:28, an invitation from the Lord Jesus Christ. "Come to me all who labor, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle, and lowly in heart, and you'll find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Let us pray. Lord Jesus, we thank you for this invitation. We thank you for your shed blood on the cross. We thank you that you, you used your position, and your power, and your influence, and you used it to serve us.

  TDAgiantslayer@gmail.com    Brought to you by wellbuiltbody.com    97X     PODBEAN   Apple Podcast    Colossians 1:1 Paul,  I forgot to tell you next week we have a special guest speaking on integrity, honesty and character taking lessons from his own life… President Joe Biden…   Paul? His past? Writing this letter??? Really???   Deuteronomy 32:23 says be sure your sins will find you out… and yes this is true before we come to Christ and many times true after we come to Christ… but no need to be ashamed.    There is good reason to believe that the Apostle Paul dealt with shame before he came to know christ. It is very typical for a person to exhibit the behavior he did due to unresolved shame. Rigid, extreme, moralist and putting others under the same regime or persecuting them for it…    “Beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it: – Galatians 1:13 “As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison” – Acts 8:3 “And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.” – Acts 9:1-2   He was even an accessory to murder at one point in his life! Remember when Stephen was stoned to death by an angry mob, that it was a young man named Saul who held the cloaks of Stephen's assailants.   Two more examples Even before Paul's conversion, Ananias was apprehensive towards him when the Lord commanded him to go to Paul and teach him what he needed to do in order to be saved. He said, “I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name,” Acts 9:13-14. After Paul's conversion, the consequences of his past sins were still felt. Some years after his conversion, the Christians at Jerusalem were still wary and mistrustful of him, “And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple,” Acts 9:26. WAS PAUL ASHAMED OF HIS BEHAVIOR?  He very well could have been… Are you? Do you still carry shame?    When a wild bear gets its hand on garbage it will no longer forage for food. If you catch it digging through garbage it will become angry. Why? Experts say it is because the bear is ashamed.   ARE YOU ACTING OUT OF SHAME?    SAY THIS: I am not ashamed of my past because I am no LONGER my past!   When someone loses a lot of weight… and someone notices it… do they get embarrassed are they ashamed?  When someone calls you out on your past… don't worry, they can't see all the weight you lost in the spiritual.   You will many times hear a coach regard a great player for one particular attribute… a short memory. You pitch bad, you throw an interception, you miss a strike, you miss game winning shot… you forget about it and move on.    I love that Paul does not start out…. Col. 1:1 I Paul, the guy who was called by Jesus and yes I ransacked the church, and tore down doors, threw people in out in the streets and killed people and even asked for a special dispensation from the high priest to torture any Christians, and I know Im not perfect… but nobody is…anyway I write this letter to Colosse    How did he deal with it? Phil. 3:13, 14 “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” -Philippians 3:13-14   Shame is a powerful weapon of the enemy.   Guilt is - I did a bad thing Shame is - I am bad A demonic stronghold of shame is - I now must hide and pretend I am someone else… Im defective.    

This episode is about working for fun, love, and legacy. Peter Gladstone is the Co-founder of Mass Hole Donuts, bakers of gourmet donut holes that celebrate the people, traditions, and spirit of Boston and Massachusetts. After 20 years in consumer marketing with companies like Gillette, P&G, and the Boston Beer Company (aka, Sam Adams), Peter retired and is now building Mass Holes because, he says, it's fun, and he wants to contribute to the culture of his hometown. When he's not establishing his Boston institutions, he is a Senior Advisor at the Harvard Innovation Labs where he advises consumer-facing ventures. Peter and I (Paul, host of show and writer of notes) were classmates at Dartmouth's Tuck School of Business. That is where I developed my appreciation for his creative mind and wacky and wicked good sense of humor. We talk about the difference between working to pay your bills and working on a passion project, the role of humor in the corporate world, how he and his team survived pandemic, and how he defines success now that he has “enough.”  ✍