Podcasts about whether god

And he said to them, “When I sent you out with no moneybag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “Nothing.” He said to them, “But now let the one who has a moneybag take it, and likewise a knapsack. And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one. For I tell you that this Scripture must be fulfilled in me: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors.' For what is written about me has its fulfillment.” And they said, “Look, Lord, here are two swords.” And he said to them, “It is enough.” (Luke 22:35-38) In these final hours before the cross, Jesus prepared His disciples for a change. Once, He sent them out with nothing—and miraculously, they lacked nothing. God's provision was supernatural, constant, and clear. But now, He tells them to take their belongings, even to buy a sword. What changed? Nothing changed about God's care and provision, but the method would shift. Jesus was about to be numbered with the transgressors, fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy. The cross was near, and the world would treat the disciples the way it had treated Him. Persecution would inevitably come. The season of miraculous provision had not ended, but God was now about to provide through practical means – through obedient preparation, through wisdom, and sometimes through hardship. Jesus was not contradicting His earlier instructions; He was purposefully inviting them to trust again – this time in a different way. God’s provision is not a formula or some kind of magic. Sometimes He multiplies loaves and fishes; other times, He tells us to bring a bag and a sword. Either way, the call is the same: obedience. When God calls you into something uncertain, don't let fear or anxiety rule your steps. Don't hesitate because you don't understand how it will all work, just do what He says. If He says “go,” then go. If He says “stay,” then stay. Trust that God always sees the whole picture, even when we don't. Jesus modeled this perfectly, knowing full well the pain ahead, and He still obeyed the Father's will of willingly being counted among sinners to save us. Jesus didn't trust in comfort or clarity, He trusted in the Father – even unto death. This is a call to follow in the footsteps of our Savior. Whether God leads you by miraculous supply or by practical preparation, let go of the worry that tries to grip your heart. Say “yes” to His will. Lay down the need to understand every detail, and walk forward with open hands. Where God is guiding you, He will provide for every need, in every season, and in every calling. Take time to thank God for His provision and ask for forgiveness when you have tried to control outcomes or let fear guide you instead, and then ask the Father to teach you to trust Him like Jesus did, being obedient to do whatever He calls you to, and walking in the confidence that trusting in His provision brings. And may we all learn to walk in our calling as Jesus did, saying, “Father, not my will, but yours, be done.”

Trusting God with our family, finances, and future isn't easy…but it is necessary! We can't say we trust God and want Him to direct our lives and then not move an inch to obey. Whether God gives us an undeniable sign or not, we have to move; God cannot direct us if we're not actively obeying…simply put…He can't steer a parked car! In today's message, Pastor Gary will show you how simply acting upon the prompting of the Lord without sign after sign can bless your life and set God's will in motion!

In this episode, Gary shares about how to find courage to live for the Lord in the face of fear. Whether God is calling you into the unknown, or to stand firm against peer pressure, this message with strengthen you to be strong and courageous! "God has not given us a Spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7).PURE ENCOURAGEMENT RESOURCES​⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Download the Stronghold Buster Worksheet⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠​Take the⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠30 Day Identity Challenge⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Start your Week with Monday Motivation​Bi-weekly ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blog⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠​Need Soul Care?⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join a Journey Group⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠​More ⁠⁠Free Resources⁠⁠ at our Website

Rev. Hannah and Rev. Brittany are back again this week for Perspectives Pastors Podcast, continuing the multi-week conversation of Imago Dei – investigating what it means to be made in the image of God and celebrating the diversity of humankind. And this time, they’re discussing a rather divisive topic: political perspectives. This digital Bible study is inspired by Psalm 9:7-10. Join the discussion to hear these two female pastors’ views on: What the Bible says about politics. Whether God shows up in political situations. How Imago Dei applies to political structures and rule. The politicization and radicalization of compassion, justice, and other Biblical concepts. It’s a lot to digest. If you would like to examine these concepts with others, we invite you to head over to Patreon where you can connect with the First United Methodist Church of San Diego online community and unlock some additional inspiration. Or connect with our in-person Convergence group as you think about these questions posed by the clergywomen: How do you respond to the needs of the oppressed in times of trouble? How do you think God defines righteousness? What’s the difference between equity and equality? What is Patreon? Our online community has started to grow, so we’ve launched a Patreon channel! Located at Patreon.com/fumcsd, it’s a place where you can discuss the ideas from each episode, access some additional resources, and help support our digital ministry. When you become a free member, you’ll unlock the ability to discuss answers posed in each week’s podcast episode. There is also an option to unlock some extras by becoming a paid supporter at $5 or $10 per month.

Rev. Hannah and Rev. Brittany are back again this week for Perspectives Pastors Podcast, continuing the multi-week conversation of Imago Dei – investigating what it means to be made in the image of God and celebrating the diversity of humankind. And this time, they’re discussing a rather divisive topic: political perspectives. This digital Bible study is inspired by Psalm 9:7-10. Join the discussion to hear these two female pastors’ views on: What the Bible says about politics. Whether God shows up in political situations. How Imago Dei applies to political structures and rule. The politicization and radicalization of compassion, justice, and other Biblical concepts. It’s a lot to digest. If you would like to examine these concepts with others, we invite you to head over to Patreon where you can connect with the First United Methodist Church of San Diego online community and unlock some additional inspiration. Or connect with our in-person Convergence group as you think about these questions posed by the clergywomen: How do you respond to the needs of the oppressed in times of trouble? How do you think God defines righteousness? What’s the difference between equity and equality? What is Patreon? Our online community has started to grow, so we’ve launched a Patreon channel! Located at Patreon.com/fumcsd, it’s a place where you can discuss the ideas from each episode, access some additional resources, and help support our digital ministry. When you become a free member, you’ll unlock the ability to discuss answers posed in each week’s podcast episode. There is also an option to unlock some extras by becoming a paid supporter at $5 or $10 per month.

This week's topic comes from a listener in Blyth, ON who is curious to hear an explanation for and defense of the Reformed articulation of predestination and irresistible grace. In particular, she's interested to see how we would respond to the oft-repeated claim that "God wouldn't force people to love Him because He's a gentleman.” So by using the Scriptures and the Canons of Dort, we aim to do just that, laying out a case for how the Reformed view is deeply biblical, catholic, and pastoral, as well as how it best matches up with the experience of spiritual rebirth.    Visit www.almondvalley.org for information about Almond Valley Christian Reformed Church in Ripon, CA. Music by Jonathan Ogden used with permission.

Here are the gutsy pro-life ads that interrupted The View, the World Series, and other programming during the presidential campaign. Whether God uses a donkey or Jonah, or anybody else, the prophetic word gets out for these empires that attempt a coup against the Almighty.  This program includes: 1. The World View in 5 Minutes with Adam McManus (Terrorist attack in New Orleans kills 10 and injures 35, Judge blocked Biden's pro-abortion regulations, China builds world's largest hydropower dam) 2. Generations with Kevin Swanson

Here are the gutsy pro-life ads that interrupted The View, the World Series, and other programming during the presidential campaign. Whether God uses a donkey or Jonah, or anybody else, the prophetic word gets out for these empires that attempt a coup against the Almighty. This program includes:1. The World View in 5 Minutes with Adam McManus (Terrorist attack in New Orleans kills 10 and injures 35, Judge blocked Biden's pro-abortion regulations, China builds world's largest hydropower dam)2. Generations with Kevin Swanson

We dive into the promise of God's faithfulness and renewal from Lamentations 3:22-23, exploring how His mercies are the foundation for fresh starts and restored hope.We'll focus on two powerful truths: • Restored Purpose – Purpose isn't a one-time act or a grand gesture; it's found in faithfulness to God's call in our everyday lives. • Restored Relationships – God's grace transforms broken connections and creates opportunities for healing and reconciliation.Whether God is making a path through the wilderness or a way through the waters, He provides exactly what we need for every season. This message will also invite you to embrace spiritual disciplines like prayer and fasting, equipping you to step into 2025 with purpose and renewal.

First Part, Question 12, Articles 1, 11, 12 & 13; Article 1: Whether any created intellect can see the essence of God Article 11: Whether anyone in this life can see the essence of God Article 12: Whether God can be known in this life by natural reason Article 13: Whether by grace a higher knowledge of God can be obtained than by natural reason

First Part, Question 10, Articles 1 & 2 Article 1: What is Eternity? Article 2: Whether God is Eternal

First Part, Question 6, Articles 1 & 2 Article 1: Whether God is Good? Article 2: Whether God is the Supreme Good?

First Part, Question 2, Articles 1, 2 & 3.Article 1: Whether "God Exists" is self-evident; Article 2: Whether God's existence can be demonstrated; Article 3: Whether God exists

DEC. 3, 2024Faithfulness."Well done, good and faithful servant." Mt 25:23 NKJVJesus begins the parable of the talents with these words: "For the kingdom of heaven is like" (v. 14 NKJV). And one of the strongest points He makes is the importance of being faithful. Whether God gives you five talents, two talents, or one talent, the thing that matters to Him is your faithfulness. "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord'" (v. 21 NKJV). You will notice that He did not say, "Well done, popular servant," or "brilliant servant," but"faithful servant." Christ is talking about those who are often unnoticed but indispensable to His purposes. He is talking about those who blow no trumpets, wave no banners, and demand no applause. He is talking about those who show up day after day and use the talents God gives them, to do the job He has assigned to them. Unnoticed by men, but noticed and rewarded by God! "For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister" (Heb 6:10 NKJV).These words describe those who shun the limelight and are happy to serve in the shadows. They describe those who not only start the race but run the race day after day, who don't stop until they reach the finish line. Others may not think that you make much of a difference, but God does. While others make much out of skill levels and success levels, God measures you by your faithfulness.Faithfulness Unnoticed by men, but noticed by GodShare This DevotionalSend us a textSupport the showChanging Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

God's word is true! Whether God's word sounded ‘good' to the people (or not), His word is always true. We are to receive His word, believe it, and speak it…because the things God says, He means. Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/preach-the-word/id1449859151?mt=2 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2aSveQvIs7SPHWB4UcmSUQ

God's Plan And Purpose For Evil (1) (Audio)  David Eells – 10/13/24  Many of God's people are having a problem forgiving their enemies in these days when we have seen so much evil. It is God's place to judge and recompense evil. Have you not read? Rom 9:21 Or hath not the potter a right over the clay, from the same lump to make one part a vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor? We've all been sinners from the same lump of clay But we got unmerited favor and they did not. The old saying is true: “There but for the grace of God go I.” So we got grace but they got justice. We must forgive to be forgiven. God is sovereign over all things; even those He draws unto Himself. Some think this not so, but let's see. Let's begin with a little foundation of God's sovereignty. We are shown in Rom.8:28 And we know that to them that love God all things work together for good, [even] to them that are called according to [his] purpose.  Do we really believe that “all things” work together to bring to pass the good purpose of God for His called? Our reactions to life's circumstances are a good gauge of this. Knowing God's purpose in all things gives great peace. What purpose is Paul speaking of in the above verse? In the next verse we can see that he is talking about the purpose of bringing many sons into the image of Jesus Christ. (Rom.8:29) For whom he foreknew, he also foreordained [to be] conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. God foreordained or pre-determined to bring His true children into the image of Jesus. This has been God's purpose since the creation of the world, even before man was created and fell.   All things serve God in order to manifest His sons. That is why God created this world. Some people who do not understand may see failure in God's plan. But when we study the sovereignty of God, we see there is no failure in God's system. Sovereignty means to exercise supreme and independent authority. Even sin, evil, and the fall will serve God's purpose. He is going to have sons to fellowship with throughout eternity. Toward this purpose, He is going to make all things work together for good. All things are not good, but all things work together for good. As I have said many times, “What does ‘all' leave out?” Applying this truth to our life takes thought.  God must be omnipotent (all-powerful) over all things to make this statement. He must also be omniscient (all-knowing) in order to make such all-encompassing statements in His Word. The Scriptures proclaim that God has sovereign control over all things that have anything to do with your life. He never falls off the throne and He never shares the throne with the devil. The authority that the devil has is according to God's design and laws. Everything serves God in the ongoing creation of sons and daughters. (Psa.119:91) They abide this day according to thine ordinances; For all things are thy servants. All things serve Him in this process, good and bad, to bring to pass His plan.   God never created anything that could thwart His plan, because God never makes mistakes. God even makes the evil to bring to pass His plan. Some will argue with that. Hopefully, you will change your mind as we examine the Scriptures. Evil is a tool of God's sovereignty to bring us to purity and maturity. Without the evil, there is no one to put us on the cross, to persecute us, and to cause temptations to rise up so that we might reject them and be cleansed. God has made everything, even the wicked for the day when His people will need chastening. (Pro.16:4) The Lord hath made everything for its own end (Some manuscripts say: for His own purpose.); Yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.   The apostle Paul learned contentment. He understood that none could thwart God's good plan for him. Anxiety, fear, or impatience only comes because of our own nearsighted, immature understanding of God's master plan for us. You can imagine how valuable a great apostle and evangelist such as Paul was to the saints in his day. But, in this case, Paul was put in prison. (Php.1:12) Now I would have you know, brethren, that the things [which happened] unto me have fallen out rather unto the progress of the Gospel; (13) so that my bonds became manifest in Christ throughout the whole praetorian guard, and to all the rest; (14) and that most of the brethren in the Lord, being confident through my bonds, are more abundantly bold to speak the Word of God without fear.   Paul had an understanding that the devil was not the author of his imprisonment because of its value to God's kingdom. Everything is going to work together for the good, individually and corporately. Individually it was for Paul's good, and corporately it was for the brethren's good. The Gospel went out because Paul was in prison. It was from prison that Paul wrote much of the New Testament. The Word of God went more places and was spread much faster because Paul was in prison. People became bold to go out and preach the Gospel because he was in prison.   Sometimes we look at circumstances instead of the Word and think that the devil has been able to stop God's plan. God would have never made the devil if he had been someone who could stop His plan. Some may think that God did not make the devil, but rather a good angel that fell. Since God is all-knowing as the Scriptures say He is, He knew His angel would become the devil. He is also all-powerful to stop what He knew would happen, therefore, at least by omission, He is the creator of the devil. God says in (Isa.45:7) I form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil. I am the Lord, that doeth all these things. (Isa.54:16)… I have created the waster to destroy. (17) No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper…   Since God created the evil waster, then obviously, He has authority to say that he cannot prosper against us. Evil cannot prosper for its own purpose, only God's good purpose. Do you suppose the three Hebrews wondered why the God to whom they had been so faithful had ordained the wicked to cast them into a fiery furnace? Those Hebrews found out this trial was to impress a heathen king with the power and saving grace of the God of Israel. He was impressed when God appeared to be walking with them through the fire and there was no harm to their bodies or clothes, only their ropes or bondage was burned off (Dan.3:25-27). God's purpose was to impress the heathen and to deliver them from bondage. This is a type or shadow of His purpose in our lives, too.  Everything that God is doing, He is doing according to the counsel of His own Will. There is not another completely free will in all of creation. If there were, this would be a dangerous place. A free will is a will that is able to do what it wants. Thank God that it is only His good free will, which “worketh all things after the counsel of his will,” that is in control.  I want to encourage you and show you how God is using the wicked and their evil works and His purposes for it. As we saw, He said in (Isa.45:7) I form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil. I am the Lord, that doeth all these things. What good reason could God possibly have in creating darkness and evil? Be patient, believe the Scriptures and receive a wonderful understanding of this. Let's examine how God exercises His Will over evil and to what extent.   In (Isa.10:5) Ho Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, the staff in whose hand is mine indignation! In this verse, God calls the enemy of Israel His rod and staff to correct them. In Psalm 23, the Good Shepherd uses His rod and staff to comfort David. The rod and staff were tools of the shepherd. The Lord, our Shepherd, uses our enemies as tools to correct us and keep us in line. (Isa.10:6) I will send him against a profane nation (Israel or the Church), and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. (7) Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off nations not a few.   Notice that the Assyrians did not know they were sent by God to fulfill His plan. It was in their heart to take a spoil and a prey. Whenever God uses vessels of dishonor, they are just fulfilling their lusts. God worked in the Assyrians to will and to do of His good pleasure. We will see that God does this with all of His vessels of dishonor. He has purpose for the wicked in the earth, otherwise, He would have removed them long ago. After God fulfills that purpose, He will do away with them.   (Isa.10:12) Wherefore it shall come to pass, that, when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks. (13) For he hath said, By the strength of my hand I have done it… Notice that the king of Assyria thought that he had done this by his own strength. As history and this verse prove, when God is finished using the wicked for His people, He will destroy them. From the beginning, God did not intend to immediately do away with the wicked but to use them to perfect His people.  He commanded the angels to let the tares grow together with the wheat until the end (Mat.13:30), and only then will He separate and destroy the wicked (Mat.13:41-42). He explained that if you gather up the tares, ye root up the wheat with them (Mat.13:29). If God took away the tares, the wheat would die for lack of chastening and object lessons.   (Isa.10:13) For he hath said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom…The Assyrians believed that this victory was by their wisdom and strength, but God claimed to be using them as a tool. (15) Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that wieldeth it? as if a rod should wield them that lift it up, [or] as if a staff should lift up [him that is] not wood. That is the way God sees this army, like a dumb tool. God wielded the axe, saw, rod, and staff and lifted it up to work on His creation. How ludicrous for men to take any credit. God is sovereign, and everything else is a tool to be used by Him in the chastening and perfecting of His saints.   We should know that God sends these tools to us to carve us into a vessel for His use and that we need to submit for our own sake. These tools are necessary until the saints are God's finished creation and then He will put them away. Meanwhile, we need not fear that the purpose of evil is prospering. (Isa.54:16)… I have created the waster to destroy. (17) No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper… How comforting it is to know that only God's purpose is prospering!   Even Satan is not put in his place until the end when the tempting and crucifying of the saints is over. (Rev.20:1) And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. (2) And he laid hold on the dragon, the old serpent, which is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, (3) and cast him into the abyss, and shut [it], and sealed [it] over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years should be finished: after this he must be loosed for a little time.  One angel had no trouble chaining Satan and casting him into the pit. That was so easy that God could have done it a long time ago if He wanted to. According to the theology of most, God would have had to send an army of angels to get that “heavyweight.” After all, has he not been resisting God for over 6,000 years? Wrong! Notice that after 1,000 years God looses him again! Does that give you any idea about who loosed him the first time in the Garden of Eden? Does God loose Satan to do His Will, or to thwart His Will?   (Rev.20:7) And when the thousand years are finished, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, (8) and shall come forth to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to the war: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. (9) And they went up over the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down out of heaven, and devoured them. (10) And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire…   (11) And I saw a great white throne… God loosed the devil to deceive all the evil nations, to make war on the saints. He did this so that He could rain down fire on the nations to destroy them, just in time for the great white throne judgment of the wicked. God did not even need the angels to destroy the devil and all of his children. He could have done this in the garden and saved us the trial, but it was not His plan!   Who cast the devil and his angels down to the earth to deceive the nations and to make war on the saints during the Tribulation period? (Rev.12:7) 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. Then the devil in the beast made war with the saints.   (Rev.13:7) And it was given unto him (the beast) 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. If God was going to cast the devil and his angels down, why not cast them into the lake of fire? Instead, God restrained them to the earth where we are! God needed the hoards of evil to separate the tares from the wheat and to mature the saints. Notice, there “was given unto him” (the beast), both authority over the nations and authority to make war on the saints. God gave authority to the devil, who dwelt in the beast and gave authority to the beast, to try the saints and to crucify their flesh.   Back to (Isa.10:20) And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and they that are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again lean upon him that smote them, but shall lean upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. People lean on the flesh and the world. We trust in America to defend and make us socially secure. The world has our love, respect, honor, and fear, all of which belongs only to God. God has a remedy for that. God brought the illicit lovers of Israel against her so that she would learn who the true enemies of her soul were. In this case, the Lord is showing us the same thing.   One of His remedies for us loving the things, people, and thinking of the world is that He is going to bring all that against us. (Mat.24:9) Ye shall be hated of all the nations for my name's sake. It is necessary that we be hated of all nations so that God's name is manifest in us. It is necessary that the world hate us to turn our heart away from the love of the world. God's people were too comfortable in Egypt so He turned the Egyptians' heart to hate His people (Psa.105:25). Then He saved them from the hand of him that hated them (Psa.106:10). First, God turned their heart against Israel, then, God delivered Israel out of their hand, and they were so grateful.   In (2Sa.7:14) I will be his father, and he shall be my son: if he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men. God's purpose in creating sons is going to be fulfilled by using vessels of dishonor to chasten His sons for their sins. The rod is physical men, armies, and nations. God uses spiritual principalities and powers to motivate these vessels of dishonor. If I were to pick up a stick and hit my neighbor with it, you would accuse me of evil. On the other hand, if I take the same stick and go chasten my child because of willful disobedience, you should think that good (Pro.23:13-14). What is the difference? The same stick was used, but the purpose was opposite. To attribute evil to God for using evil shows a lack of understanding of His purpose or motive.   God is going to use evil to do good. God is good and all things that God does are good. We cannot limit God with self-righteous thinking. God is going to do a good work with evil. In fact, without evil, God cannot do this work. (1Ti.1:20) of whom is Hymenaeus and Alexander; whom I delivered unto Satan, that they might be taught not to blaspheme. The word “blaspheme” here means “to speak evil against.” These men were speaking evil against either someone or the truth, and Paul, for God, turned them over to Satan so that they might be taught not to blaspheme. Satan teaches us much. In most cases, it is Satan and his demons that execute the curse on those that sin.   The curse was spoken and ordained by God in Deuteronomy 28 to motivate sinners to repent. Satan tempts us with lusts, but when we give in, he legally may administer the curse until we repent. When we get out from under the blood, Satan is waiting. It is not in Satan's mind to teach us anything or chasten us. That is God's purpose. Satan is full of lust, and hates mankind and wants to do evil against mankind. Satan does not wish to teach us, mature us, or bring us to an understanding of God but he still brings that to pass.   Jesus said, If a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand (Mar.3:24). Satan's kingdom is divided against itself because what he does to the people of God causes them to repent and mature. It is not just Satan, but everything around us that God is going to use to bring us to maturity. Satan, the leader over the vessels of dishonor, is very important to this process. Satan is in command over the wicked spirits and thus, wicked people. God is in command over Satan. The Scripture says, “All things work together for good.” According to this, what Satan does to us is for our good. Does Satan understand what he is doing? No, he does not understand.   According to the law of sowing and reaping, he has sown deceit, therefore he is deceived. He is out to take man's position of authority by tempting him to sin. Satan is also a created being. God did not create any being that was going to be able to thwart His Will. He created everything for the purpose of bringing His chosen into the image of Jesus Christ. There are several methods that God uses to move the wicked, Satan, and the demons. One is by the power of suggestion. He works in them to will and to do of His good pleasure. He also commands or gives permission to them.   We read in (1Co.5:5) to deliver such a one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. This man had his father's wife, probably what we would call a stepmother. Paul spoke to the elders in Corinth and determined to agree with them to turn this man over to Satan. Do you think that Satan is thinking about destroying people's fleshly nature to save their spirit? The flesh is Satan's ally and a manifestation of his very nature.  Paul is taking authority over the power of the enemy and using that power to chasten rebellious children of God. (Luk.10:19) Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy… (20) Nevertheless in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you… Jesus delegated authority over the power of enemy spirits to His disciples.   Disciples have a right by the Spirit of God to use their power or to forbid their power. (Mat.18:18) Verily I say unto you, what things soever ye shall bind (forbid) on earth shall be bound (forbidden) in heaven; and what things soever ye shall loose (permit) on earth shall be loosed (permitted) in heaven. Disciples have authority to forbid or permit. With the guidance of God's Spirit, mature disciples can permit the devil's power for a good purpose, “that the spirit may be saved.” In this way, God exercises His sovereignty through His disciples.   When Jesus sent out His disciples to make disciples, He commanded them to pass on the same authority and commands that He had given them. (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. If we are disciples (Greek: methetes, “learners and followers”) of Christ, we have the same commands. Jesus said that He would be with them to do this “even unto the end of the world.” Obviously, the original disciples did not live that long, therefore He is speaking to all disciples.   Today, ministries go from one extreme to the other. Either God's ministers are totally powerless in the face of rebellion or they exercise carnal dominion like the Pharisees. Just as a father and mother have authority in a family to chasten their children physically, the leadership in the Church has authority, because of the love of Jesus, over His children. This authority is not for the purpose of personal animosity, anger, or vengeance. It is because we do not want to see God's people come to the end of their lives having never repented of their sins and fall off into the pit. God's purpose has to be continually working in a person's life to bring them to maturity, to get them ready to face Him. In the above reference, Paul turned this man over to Satan in obedience to the Spirit, out of love. Some worry about the possibility of abuse here, but the curse that is causeless alighteth not (Pro.26:2).  We read in (Rom.8:7) Because the mind of the flesh is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be. It is God's plan for Satan to administer chastening. It is Satan's lust to do what he is permitted, to destroy man. Satan has been given power over the flesh. Do you remember the serpent in the garden? He was cursed to crawl on his belly and to eat the dust of the earth. What is the dust of the earth? It is what our flesh was made from. Satan has been given authority to come against flesh. I am speaking not only of this body but also of the carnal desires and appetites that gratify self. Satan's job is to devour the old man, and he is very good at it. The benefit is the saving of the spiritual man.   God commonly turns us over to Satan for chastening when we walk in willful disobedience. In Matthew 18, we have a case of unforgiveness. (Mat.18:34) And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors (demons), till he should pay all that was due. (35) So shall also my heavenly Father do unto you, if ye forgive not every one his brother from your hearts. This is a common thing. When we see ourselves delivered over to the curse, we should examine our conscience to see if there is cause to repent. I say “if,” because sometimes Satan is permitted to come against us to build our faith and to prove our authority over him. God uses a very bad devil to do a very good work in more ways than one.   It says in (2Pe.2:9) The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment unto the day of judgment; (10) but chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of defilement, and despise dominion… God takes credit for keeping the rebellious under judgment. Some live under judgment all their life because they “walk after the flesh.” If we do not understand the sovereignty of God, many times we are going to go through a lot more judgment. We need to recognize God's purpose in everything. He uses Satan, his demons, or the wicked people around us to chasten and bring us to repentance or to build our faith through trials.   Many only see the vessel; they do not see God behind the vessel whose purpose is being fulfilled. Satan would have us believe that the reason he comes against us is because we are good children of God. However, God would have us believe that when Satan comes against us it is because He loves us and chastens our corrupt nature and acts, or to give our faith a spiritual workout. If you only see Satan coming against you and not God, then you do not have any motivation to change. But, if you see God sending Satan against you, then you are motivated to change. (Joh.3:27) … A man can receive nothing, except it have been given him from heaven.   (Heb.2:2)… Every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward. All you have to do is look at the recompense, and you can tell when something is a transgression. When we look at the recompense we can see if it is wrong. Is it wrong to recreationally indulge in hard liquor? Look at the recompense, deterioration of the body and spirit. Is it wrong to smoke? Look at the recompense, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cancer, and other physical complications. People who are bitter, angry, and unforgiving are delivered over to cancer, arthritis, and other immune deficiencies.   Many with cancer or arthritis have kept up anger and bitterness in their lives. Anxiety and worry gives way to ulcers. You do not have to ask if it is sin; look at what it does to people. Even if you do not know a verse that tells you it is a sin, look at the fruit of it. Look at what comes against you because of it. God has ordained the entire curse system to come against those who transgress. Whether God is using the devil, his demons, wicked people around you, sickness, or any other part of the curse, He is doing it to bring us to repentance and fruit.   God will use evil spirits to humble us and bring about good fruit in us. Paul is a good example. He was caught up to the third heaven and received wonderful revelations that tempted him to be proud. (2Co.12:7) And by reason of the exceeding greatness of the revelations, that I should not be exalted overmuch, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger (Greek: angelos, “angel”) of Satan to buffet me, that I should not be exalted overmuch. Paul says the thorn was an angel of Satan to buffet him. The word “buffet” means “to hit over and over.” You can see that this evil spirit was given to Paul to fulfill God's purpose of humbling him.   (2Co.12:8) Concerning this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. (9) And he hath said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for [my] power is made perfect in weakness… This angel of Satan was bringing about a humbling in Paul's life that God called grace. When Paul was in a position of personal weakness or inability to save himself, he got to see God's power to save. It should be the same with us. Earlier in the text, Paul lists what he calls weaknesses. He lists things such as shipwrecks, prisons, persecutions from enemies, and stripes. Not once does Paul mention sickness in the list. The point is that God uses evil angels to come against our lusts, to humble us, to chasten us, and to cause us to repent.   (2Co.12:8) Concerning this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it (the angel of Satan or demon) might depart from me. (9) And he hath said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee… God was saying that He would deliver Paul from the individual buffetings, but not from the angel of Satan. Paul said as much to Timothy. (2Ti.3:11) Persecutions, sufferings. What things befell me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. (2Tim.4:18) The Lord will deliver me from every evil work… In this, we see the sovereignty of God in both bringing the chastening and supplying the deliverance.   We read in (2Th.1:4) So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions which ye endure. God never does anything just for one purpose. (2Th.1:5) [Which is] a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God; to the end that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer.   Sometimes God's method is to use an angel of Satan to bring us into persecution and affliction, which Paul said was a token of the judgment of God to get us ready for His kingdom. Most often, the demons are administering the curse to do that. All things, curses and blessings, are working together for our good. We have a covenant right to deliverance from the curse. (Gal. 3:13) Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us…   Now let's go to (Psa.78:43) How he set his signs in Egypt, And his wonders in the field of Zoan, (44) And turned their rivers into blood, And their streams, so that they could not drink. (45) He sent among them swarms of flies, which devoured them; And frogs, which destroyed them. (46) He gave also their increase unto the caterpillar, And their labor unto the locust. (47) He destroyed their vines with hail, And their sycomore-trees with frost. (48) He gave over their cattle also to the hail, And their flocks to hot thunderbolts. (49) He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, Wrath, and indignation, and trouble, A band of angels of evil.   (50) He made a path for his anger; He spared not their soul from death, But gave their life over to the pestilence (51) And smote all the first-born in Egypt. Here we have God sending judgments, which He called “a band of angels of evil,” to chasten His people and destroy their enemies. When God sent all these judgments through “angels of evil,” they came against both the Egyptians and the Israelites in the beginning until His people were willing to come out of Egypt. Then God made a separation between Goshen and Egypt. The judgments then fell only on the Egyptians so that God's people would be set free. When we repent of living in Egypt, we do not have to live under the judgments. And (Exo.12:23) For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side-posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. Notice that the Lord passed over the Israelites' door with the destroyer and smote the Egyptians. The king angel of the abyss in Revelation 9:11 was Apollyon (in the Greek) or Abaddon (in the Hebrew), and both of these names mean “destroyer.”   These are just two of the many names for the devil. He was the king demon over death, but God had authority over him. The destroyer came through at midnight, exactly when God said he would. God's purpose was for him to destroy God's enemies and anyone who did not partake of the lamb. God told them to eat the lamb, and the destroyer would not smite them. That is how we come out from under the curse of sin and death. We must eat the lamb, Jesus Christ, the Word. By consuming and digesting the Word of God, we are delivered from the curse and manifest our sonship.   Sennacherib, king of the Assyrian Empire, had sent his vast army against Judah, but God promised them victory through Isaiah. (Isa.37:7) Behold, I will put a spirit in him, and he shall hear tidings, and shall return unto his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land. God put a demon spirit in Sennacherib, who, hearing voices, was then afraid of being away from home. Many demon-possessed people hear voices. The demons want to destroy God's people. Sometimes they have no choice in what they do. God used this demon to take the king home where he fell by the sword of two of his sons (Isa.37:38).   Some ministers, who have not lived righteous lives and yet retain authority over God's people, have been demon-possessed. King Saul was just such a man. God called him and anointed him, but he rebelled. (1Sa.16:14) Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him. If most people did not know this was in the Word, they would accuse me of heresy. We read here an evil spirit from the Lord troubling Saul because he would not obey. (15) And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee. (16) Let our lord now command thy servants, that are before thee, to seek out a man who is a skilful player on the harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well. Of course, they found David with his harp to comfort the king. Isn't that something? God sent an evil spirit to trouble Saul and then sent David with his harp to give him some relief from the torment. He works on us from both sides.   I ministered in an assembly once where I discerned that the pastor had demons. He was having problems with women, money, and honesty. He told me three times that God had spoken to him that he was Saul and I was David. I shared with him truths that would help him to overcome, but he was self-willed. I asked the Lord what to do about him because he was causing believers to stumble. God said, “Let the Philistines take him out.” The Philistines were the enemies of God's people who took Saul out. The enemies of God's people did take this man out, too. I ended up taking over the ministering there for a short time. It was Saul and David all over again. God worked on this man from both sides. In Deuteronomy 28, God says over and over that He would send the curse to the rebellious, and now we know that He sent Jesus to deliver from that curse.   We are constantly faced with a choice. God has put us here for our soul to make a decision between our flesh and our spirit. We are the highest creation of God and the lowest creation of God. We are between heaven and hell, between demons and the angels, between God and the devil. Every way we turn, there is a decision to be made. God planned it that way. He is saying to rebellious people, “The curse is in front of you; do not go. But if you do, it is your own fault, and you will pay a penalty.” At the same time He offers grace to make the right decision.   God raised up Gideon to conquer Israel's enemies. After this, Gideon would not accept a position of authority over Israel. In fact, he would not let his sons take a position of authority over Israel while he was alive (Jdg.8:23). Gideon had seventy-one sons, one of these by a concubine in Shechem. This son lusted after authority and wanted to be the next king over Israel. So he conspired with the men of Shechem to kill Gideon's seventy sons. All but Jotham were murdered. Jotham prophesied the following to the men of Shechem after they had executed the dastardly deed: (Jdg.9:20)… Let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.   God was pronouncing through Jotham a curse of division upon the guilty parties. (Jdg.9:22) And Abimelech was prince over Israel three years. (23) And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech: (24) that the violence done to the threescore and ten sons of Jerubbaal might come, and that their blood might be laid upon Abimelech their brother, who slew them, and upon the men of Shechem, who strengthened his hands to slay his brethren. God wanted to judge and destroy this evil alliance so He sent an evil spirit between them to divide and conquer. Both Abimelech and the men of Shechem were destroyed because of this one evil spirit. God used evil to judge the guilty and to deliver His people from their hand.   Once I was ministering in an assembly along with two other ministers. These two ministers were grieving me because they were continually patting each other on the back, even while they were agreeing to disagree with God's Word. When I went home one evening after witnessing them confirm one another's errors in front of the congregation, I felt that the Lord put in my heart to pray that He would send an evil spirit between these two ministers to break up this evil alliance. I was shocked. The next day, I found out that on the very evening of my prayer, those two had fallen out with one another to the degree that they had separated. God used that to separate this evil alliance between these two people.   God uses this method all through the Scriptures. Let me share another example. (Rev.16:14) For they are spirits of demons, working signs; which go forth unto the kings of the whole world, to gather them together unto the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. Here demons gather the whole world to fight the battle of Armageddon. The same account in Zechariah says that God gathered the whole world to that battle. (Zec.14:2) For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle… (3) Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. So now we see that God will use the demons to gather the enemy army against His people just so that He can destroy them and save His people. Friend, can you see that if God [is] for us, who [is] against us? (Rom.8:31) On the other hand, if God is against us then who can be for us?   After gathering the nations to the battle, the Lord said that He would “fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle.” In 2 Chronicles 20:17, the Lord told Jehoshaphat, “Ye shall not need to fight in this [battle]: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord.” He was going to fight this battle. His method of warfare is described in the following verses: (2Ch.20:22) And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set liers-in-wait against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, that were come against Judah; and they were smitten. (23) For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.  I used to think that they waited in ambush for one another. But as I looked at the Scripture more carefully, I discovered that God set liers-in-wait for the whole army so that they fell out with one another. The demon spirits who brought them there were waiting to assemble them so that they could ambush them with suspicion, greed, anger, fear, etc., and cause them to destroy one another. He divided three armies that came as one into three, and they killed off one another. Since God is paralleling this to the battle of Armageddon, He will cause a civil war in the midst of the end time beast kingdom, and they will divide into kings of the north, kings of the south (Dan.11:40), and kings of the East (Rev.16:12) to destroy one another and save God's people. God is in control of demons, therefore, He is also in control of their obedient servants, men. All this is for the purpose of bringing us to repentance and glorifying Himself in our eyes and the world's. This should be a word of encouragement to anyone.   Though God uses evil spirits to divide, He also uses us to forbid them when appropriate. God wants us to resist the devil, to not permit his lies or his accusing of the brethren. God expects us to be vigilant and to test the spirits at all times. The ability to test with discernment comes from the practice of seeking to be a vessel of honor and having our spiritual senses exercised by the Word to discern good and evil (Heb.5:13-14). It is a pity more of God's people do not hear from the Lord today.   Many falsely believe that the division of an assembly of Christians could not possibly be the Will of God. The assembly at Jerusalem was scattered by persecution in order to spread the Gospel. Israel rebelled from under the house of David leaving only Judah and Benjamin. King Rehoboam gathered his army to bring the rebels back into the fold, but the Lord through the prophet spoke to them. (1Ki.12:24) Thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is of me… Other reasons for division could be because the assembly is too large to meet the needs of the individual or because the assembly is apostate and ruled by men, in which case, the people would not grow up in Christ.   God divided Babel because their unity was for the purpose of evil. Notice it was the tongue that divided them just as the denominations are divided now. God's purpose in division is always good but man's purpose is generally evil. Denominationalism is the tendency to divide into sects and is a work of the flesh according to the Word (Gal.5:20; 1Co.1:10-13; 1Co.3:1-8; 1Co.11:17-19; and so on.). Jesus prayed that His disciples would be one even as He and the Father are one (Joh.17:21-22). This can only happen when in the Tribulation the righteous give up their sects to be one flock with one Shepherd (Joh.10:16).   Now let's go to (Rom.9:17) For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, For this very purpose did I raise thee up, that I might show in thee my power, and that my name might be published abroad in all the earth. (18) So then he hath mercy on whom he will, and whom he will he hardeneth. Here it is hard to escape the fact that God made Pharaoh stubborn in order to make Himself famous and powerful in the eyes of men. God knows that we need to perceive a great God and Savior. Those who ignorantly think they are defending God's reputation usually say that Pharaoh hardened his own heart first. (Exo.4:21) And the Lord said unto Moses, When thou goest back into Egypt, see that thou do before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in thy hand: but I will harden his heart and he will not let the people go. (Exo.7:3) And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.   Five times in Exodus, God says that He hardened Pharaoh's heart before we are told that Pharaoh… hardened his heart (Exo.8:15). God sent Moses to tell Pharaoh to set His people free. He then hardened Pharaoh's heart to refuse to set them free. To Israel this made their freedom naturally impossible. God gave to them what they perceived as hopeless in order to glorify Himself in their eyes. They needed to know that He could save them from anything in their coming wilderness trial. God and you are a majority in any situation.   If that was not enough, God hardened Pharaoh's heart again to cause him to follow the Israelites into the Red Sea to the Egyptians' destruction. (Exo.14:4) And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he shall follow after them; and I will get me honor upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host… Unlike the movies, this is the only Pharaoh that they have found that died of drowning. All this was just to impress Israel with God's power to set free. They were going to need this in the trials to come.   Have you ever had some hardened heart in a position of power over you? Go to God, not Pharaoh. All Moses ever got from him was insolence. Have you considered your flesh? Does it seem more powerful than your ability to obey God? That was God's plan. He wants to show us His power to save from sin. (2Co.4:7) But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the exceeding greatness of the power may be of God, and not from ourselves. God wants no competition from our own ability. He wants to prove the power of His grace through our faith in Him.  It says in (Pro.26:2) As the sparrow in her wandering, as the swallow in her flying, So the curse that is causeless alighteth not. No curse can alight upon us unless there is a cause. Sin and corruption are the most likely cause. Only God's purpose is fulfilled in a curse. It says in (Num.23:8) How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? And how shall I defy, whom the Lord hath not defied? We are really wise if we are looking for the cause, and not looking at the curse, or looking at the devil. If we deal with the cause, we do not have to live with the curse.   The problem is people will not deal with the cause. They just live with the curse and try by man's methods to be delivered from it. If man, by his own methods, could deliver us from the curse that God sent to cause us to repent, man would be detrimental. What if we examine our conscience and do not see the cause? Then it is very possible that the cause is so that we renew our mind with the Word and fight the good fight of faith. Sometimes the Lord sends Satan against us so that we can whip him. Yes, God does that to prove to us that His Word is true and that we have authority over all the power of the enemy. God's ultimate purpose is to manifest His sovereignty through us.   God wants us to learn to fight a spiritual warfare. God gives us practice sometimes. When Satan comes against us through demons, wicked people, or circumstances, we should examine our conscience. If we do not find guilt because of willful disobedience, then we should exercise the authority that Jesus gave us against Satan, because we are going to win. In coming against Satan, we are also crucifying our old man because our old man is created in the image of Satan. When we fight with Satan, we fight with “self”. When we win against Satan, we win against “self”. That is another part of God's plan that is so perfect and so beautiful. Amen.   Let's go to (Lam.3:37) Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not? Can evil command something and it come to pass if the Lord has not commanded it? No! God is sovereign. Jesus said His words were not His but the Father's. We know this was true because they came to pass. By the grace of God, I have commanded healings, miracles, provisions and deliverances that have come to pass. Religious people have told me that my faith was presumptuous because we cannot know the Will of God. I have thought, “How ludicrous! Do I have power to do these things? God did them. I merely agreed with His Word.” The proof that I was in agreement with God is that they came to pass. If the devil commands something and it comes to pass, is it because he is more powerful than God? Not according to this verse. It is because God commanded it whether the devil knew it or not. (Lam.3:38) Out of the mouth of the Most High cometh there not evil and good?   Where does evil and good come from? God says that it comes out of the mouth of the Most High. Does that mean God is evil? No, it means we deserve or need the ministry of evil. (Lam.3:39) Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins? We have been brainwashed to believe that man is basically good and deserving of good, so we are shocked when bad things happen to “good” people. (Mar.10:18) And Jesus said unto him… None is good save one, [even] God.  From God's mouth comes blessing and curse, good and evil. The evil here represents the hard things that happen to “good” people in order to turn them toward good and to stop them from continuing in sin. Any evil that comes against the life of those who “are called according to His purpose” is for good. We should always examine our conscience and the Word to find out if God is sending Satan against us because of the sin in us or the actions of sin that we do.   Arminianism is the erroneous belief that everyone has a free will. God is the only one who has a free will. We have a limited free will, limited by our ability, thinking, nature, body, and circumstances. If you have a free will, let's see if you can stop sinning. We cannot do just anything we would like to do. The only one the Bible credits with the ability to do everything He wishes is God (Eph.1:11) In whom also we were made a heritage, having been foreordained (predestined) according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his will.  Like this verse, Calvinism teaches the sovereignty of God over election, predestination, evil, and everything. The only way that we can do what we want to do is to get God's Will in us. (Php.2:13) For it is God who worketh in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure. Then we can do what we want to do because we want what He wants, and what He wants He gets.   That is how the Son sets us free, by giving us a will to do His Will. While we have our own will, we will be at war with ourselves. (Gal.5:17) For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are contrary the one to the other; that ye may not do the things that ye would. We have God's Will in us, and we have our will in us. They are tugging away at each other. That is not freedom or a free will. This means that “ye may not do the things that ye would.”   We did not even have the freedom of will to come to God. (Joh.6:44) No man can come to me, except the Father that sent me draw him: and I will raise him up in the last day. That is not a free will. We choose not to come to God, unless He draws us. You may choose to sin, most do, but God will choose the time, place, and extent. (Pro.16:9) A man's heart deviseth his way; But the Lord directeth his steps. God directs the steps of His vessels of honor or dishonor. The only reason we make the choice in God's direction is because of grace. (Joh.15:16) Ye did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that ye should go and bear fruit… Jesus first chose us and gave us the will to choose Him because of His unmerited favor. We bear fruit because of a gift of His Will in us.  The Lord brings spirits against us to chasten us and to cause us to repent, then after we overcome, He has total ability to make our enemies to be at peace with us. (Pro.16:7) When a man's ways please the Lord, He maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. We see here that God has total control over our enemies and He can put peace in their heart toward us when we overcome. We should remember this when we are tempted to take care of our enemies ourselves. So we see, God uses our enemies when our ways do not please the Lord.   God created our enemies just for that purpose. (Pro.16:4) The Lord hath made everything for its own end (Some manuscripts say: for His own purpose.): Yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. Need I say that we should not argue with God? We see God's hand as sovereign in all of this. God can send the wicked to us, for a day of evil, because our ways do not please the Lord. When we overcome, God can give us total peace in the midst of our enemies. Whether they are wicked men or demon spirits, it does not make any difference.   Should we reason with our puny understanding that God would be wrong to make the wicked? He has an answer in (Rom.9:21) Or hath not the potter a right over the clay, from the same lump to make one part a vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor? (22) What if God, willing to show his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering vessels of wrath fitted (Greek: “to complete thoroughly”) unto destruction. Notice that they are vessels of dishonor and wrath, made to be destroyed. (2Pe.2:12) But these, as creatures without reason, born mere animals to be taken and destroyed…   In instances like this, we must repent and conform our reasoning to God's if we want truth. In God's opinion, and His is the only one that counts, the wicked are animals, made to be destroyed when they have served their purpose. (Pro.21:18) The wicked is a ransom for the righteous; And the treacherous [cometh] in the stead of the upright. A ransom is a price that must be paid for someone's freedom. The wicked are a price that God pays to create sons who are free from the bondage of corruption, so let us not waste their sacrifice.   When Joseph was revealed unto his brethren who came out of Canaan's land into Egypt, they were repenting to him because of the way that they had treated him. Joseph understood the cause for all the tribulation he had been through. (Gen.50:20) And as for you, ye meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Joseph credited God for using evil to bring him into Egypt “to save much people alive.” The Israelites who came out of Canaan's land were starving to death. When they came to Egypt, Joseph, who was sent on ahead because of his ‘Judas' brothers, fed them. God used them to crucify Joseph and prepare him as a vessel of honor.   I remember once when I bought a used car from a heathen. We had agreed on a price and were to close the deal the next day. I had asked God for a better price. The next day, when I went to close the deal, he said he would sell it for the better price that I had only spoken about to the Lord. Only God could put in the heart of a lost used car salesman to suggest selling for a cheaper price after we had already agreed. I realized that God had put this in his heart even though it did not come naturally to him. God works in us to will and to do of His good pleasure, so also them.   The Lord said to Peter in (Luk.22:31) Simon, Simon, behold, Satan asked to have you, that he might sift you as wheat: (32) but I made supplication for thee, that thy faith fail not; and do thou, when once thou hast turned again, establish thy brethren. Satan asked to sift Peter, but why would God give any heed to what he asks unless it is for our good? If Peter had been like most people, he would ask, “Lord, why did you give Satan permission to have me? Just say, ‘No, Satan, you cannot have him.'” But Jesus knew that was not God's Will.   God's purpose is for Satan to get what belongs to him in our lives. The purpose of sifting is to separate and remove what you want. He keeps what is his. The Lord said, “The evil one cometh but he hath nothing in me.” Jesus was pure; there was nothing in Him that belonged to Satan. Satan is sifting to get what belongs to him. God only wants what is left. God could have destroyed him back at the beginning of the world but God ordained Satan for His good purpose. When God is through doing His whole work upon the people of God, guess what He is going to do with Satan, the demons, the wicked, the false prophet and the beast, too? That is right, the lake of fire.   Jesus set the sheep on His right hand and the goats on His left (Mat.25:33). That is exactly how God uses the righteous and the wicked, as His right hand and His left. His right hand is the vessels of honor, and His left hand is the vessels of dishonor. Satan is, in effect, one of God's hands to create His sons. Let me share a dream from a close spiritual brother. He saw a line of the saints coming before Jesus in heaven. At Jesus' left hand was Satan with an old-style cannon in front of him pointed at the first person in line. Satan with a lighter in his hand eagerly wanted to light the fuse on the cannon and blow them away. Jesus' left hand was in front of Satan stopping him. From that dream, you can see that when the Lord moves His left hand, Satan moves.   Here is a clear case of that. (Job.1:8) And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job? for there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man, one that feareth God, and turneth away from evil. God brought Job to Satan's attention and bragged about him. That is just like waving a red flag in a bull's face. Satan did not want to hear that. In fact, Satan is trying to prove just the opposite to God. He is the accuser of the brethren. God inflicted Satan on Job by the power of suggestion. (9) Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? (10) Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath, on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.   Satan is admitting he did not have the power to get at Job because of God's hedge. The same is true of us. (11) But put forth thy hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will renounce thee to thy face. (12) And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thy hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord. Satan suggests to God that He drop the hedge and put forth “His hand” against Job to try him. So why drop the hedge? It was not keeping God's hand out unless you see that the left hand of the Lord was Satan! God confirms this by using the terms “in thy power” and “thy hand.”   Satan was the one who brought the Sabeans, the fire of God, the Chaldeans and the great wind from the wilderness against Job and his family to try him. Look at what Job said about it in verse (21) And he said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. (22) In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly. God says plainly here that Job was not sinning by attributing all this to Him. The Lord gave on the right hand, and the Lord took away on the left.   Some people would say that the Sabeans, Chaldeans, and the fire took everything away from Job. Some would look behind those and say that Satan did it. Then some would look a little further back and say that God did it. That is what Job did. That is what we have to do if we are to have the purpose of God fulfilled in our lives. We have to look all the way back and see God's purpose in our lives. Job did not stumble because he understood that. Anyone who sees only the vessel will stumble. If we see only an evil vessel, we will end up fighting and wrestling with flesh and blood. Even though Job was hurting, in his spirit he had rest because he saw God's purpose.   He goes on in (Job.2:3) And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job? for there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and turneth away from evil: and he still holdeth fast his integrity (God was rubbing Satan's nose in it.), although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause. God appears to be using reverse psychology on Satan, letting him believe that he was moving God when it was the other way around. God was moved against Job, but Satan was the instrument.   It was God who pointed Job out to Satan in the first place in order to fulfill His own purpose. (4) And Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. (5) But put forth thy hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will renounce thee to thy face. (6) And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thy hand; only spare his life. God always laid down the conditions of Satan's involvement even as he does today. (9) Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still hold fast thine integrity? renounce God, and die. (10) But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.  God wanted to make it plain to us, using two witnesses, that what Job was saying was correct. Shall we receive good at the hand of God and not evil? Job never gave credit to Satan. He never even gave credit to the Sabeans, Chaldeans, or the wind from the wilderness. Job only looked at the primary purpose of God.  Jesus, in teaching us to cooperate with God's purpose of crucifixion in our lives, said, “Resist not him that is evil,” speaking of men. However, we are commanded to, “Resist the devil,” speaking of evil spirits. We should never get caught up and wrestle with flesh and blood. Jesus would not. (Isa.53:7) He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he opened not his mouth; as a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. We are to wrestle with principalities and powers.   God wants us to see evil people as victims of Satan and the curse, vessels to be pitied. (Luk.23:34) And Jesus said, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do… God wants us to see through those vessels of evil and see Him. Jesus had peace because He knew all power comes from our sovereign God. (Joh.19:10) Pilate therefore saith unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? Knowest thou not that I have power to release thee, and have power to crucify thee? (11) Jesus answered him, Thou wouldest have no power against me, except it were given thee from above…  Eli rebuked his sons for their apostasy in (1Sa.2:24) Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the Lord's people to transgress. (25)… Notwithstanding, they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the Lord was minded to slay them. The purpose of the Lord is ultimate. Many will not repent because it is in the mind of the Lord to slay them for their evil. We could justly receive the same treatment, but God gave us grace. (Eph.2:8) For by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, [it is] the gift of God. Only God gives the gift of faith to believe and repent. We have to go to God; He grants faith and repentance. True understanding of salvation by unmerited grace causes us to fear God.   Some do not value the gift of God only to have it taken away and given to ones who do value it. The Jews lost out to the Gentiles. Let no one take thy crown (Rev.3:11). The self-righteous flirt with catastrophe. (1Co.4:7) For who maketh thee to differ? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? but if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory as if thou hadst not received it? If we have anything more than our neighbor, it is a gift of God, not cause for pride. 

FAIR (LDS apologetics group) says that, “The idea that God may once have been a sinner is speculation. Many Latter-day Saints find the idea impossible, while others consider it a possibility.” (link) It goes on to ask, “Does it really matter all that much?” UCRC is hosting a dialog between Aaron Shafovaloff (evangelical; associate with … Continue reading LDS/Evangelical Dialog: Does it matter whether God sinned? →

Whether God chooses to deliver us from trouble or difficulty or if gives us his strength to endure what we are going through, he always does everything well in his perfect love and care for us. This sermon based on Mark 7:31-37 was preached on September 8, 2024, for a sermon series called "Before You Give Up."

Whether God seems to be blessing abundantly or whether the work is less encouraging, we are required to remain faithful. This podcast helps us understand this. A text copy is on the website.

Different Storms #RTTBROS #nightlight Anchored or Adrift: Obeying God's Voice in Every Storm "And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm." - Matthew 8:26 (KJV) "God told Noah to go into the boat. God told Peter to get out of the boat. Different storms require different levels of obedience." Life often feels like a series of storms, each one unique and challenging in its own way. As believers, we're called to navigate these turbulent waters with faith and obedience. But what does obedience look like when the storms of life are raging around us? Consider Noah and Peter, two men of faith faced with very different circumstances: 1. Noah's Obedience: Enter the Ark God commanded Noah to build an ark and enter it with his family and the animals. This act of obedience seemed foolish to others, but it saved Noah and his family from the flood. "And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation." - Genesis 7:1 (KJV) 2. Peter's Obedience: Step Out on the Water When Jesus called Peter to walk on water, obedience meant leaving the safety of the boat and stepping into the unknown. "And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus." - Matthew 14:29 (KJV) In both cases, obedience required trust in God's voice and a willingness to act, even when it seemed illogical or frightening. Reflection: 1. Are you facing a storm in your life right now? 2. What is God calling you to do? Is He asking you to enter a place of safety, or to step out in faith? 3. How can you cultivate a heart that's ready to obey, regardless of the nature of the storm? Prayer: Lord, grant me the wisdom to discern Your voice amidst life's storms. Give me the courage of Noah to enter the ark when You call me to safety, and the faith of Peter to step out onto the waters when You beckon me. Help me trust that Your commands are always for my good, even when I don't understand. In Jesus' name, Amen. Remember, our obedience isn't about perfectly predicting the outcome, but about trusting the One who commands the wind and waves. Whether God is calling you into the boat or out of it, know that He is with you in every storm. https://linktr.ee/rttbros Be sure to Like, Share, Follow and subscribe it helps get the word out. https://linktr.ee/rttbros

A human face can tell us many things. A smile may be warm, encouraging, inviting or conniving. A person's eyes may look at you, past you, though you or deep into your soul. A face may be menacing or soaked in love. Faces have the ability reveal what lies behind them. However, God made it clear to Moses that he would not be permitted to see His face. Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live” (Ex 33:18-20).Whether God has an actual physical face is, perhaps, a topic for another conversation, but The Lord has made clear that we will not get to know Him in the same way we might a friend or a spouse: by seeing with eyes and subconsciously noting the others' expressions. However, we will know Him through other ways He chooses to reveal himself.  So, what is the face of God that we can see? Moses was invited into the presence of God (a few verses earlier), entering a tent marked by a pillar of cloud where, we are told that “The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend” (Ex 33: 11). Assuming the Bible does not contradict itself, what might that mean? Especially as we are exhorted to “seek God's face”, for example, in Psalm 24. One explanation may be found in Numbers 12: 8, where The Lord, speaking about Moses, said to Aaron and Miriam: “With him (that is, Moses) I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the LORD.”And earlier in the book of Numbers we read, “When Moses entered the tent of meeting to speak with the LORD, he heard the voice speaking to him from between the two cherubim above the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant law. In this way the LORD spoke to him” (Numbers 7: 89)Moses saw the form of The Lord, but got to know Him through what he heard, Just as there are an infinite number of ways that a message can be sent through facial expressions, so The Lord has no limits as to how He might convey His words and His heart to us through His voice. And, of course, the idea of God's voice can mean many things. For some it might be an impression laid on their heart or a nudge on their conscience. It might be a verse of Scripture, silently bringing a new perspective to a personal situation. It might be a peace that came out of nowhere, or a sense that I must keep praying until he says it's enough. However the Lord chooses to speak or show himself, the song of Asaph is an ongoing call throughout the ages and down to today: “Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always” (1 Chronicles 16:11). 

And the Israelites separated themselves from all foreigners and stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. - Nehemiah 9:2   This Episode's Links and Timestamps: 00:00 – Scripture Reading 08:02 – Thoughts on the Reading 42:02 - Genesis 9 – Biblia.com 1:10:30 - I have three crucial observations for Christians from that debacle of an opening ceremony – Peter Heck, NTB 1:29:50 - Joy Behar: It's ‘Un-Christian' For Trump To Say God Was Watching Over Him – Virginia Kruta, DW 1:44:44 - Sen. Josh Hawley: "MOST of Trump's security detail working the event last Saturday were not even Secret Service. DHS assigned unprepared and inexperienced personnel." – Joel Abbott, NTB 1:56:12 - Primogeniture – Wikipedia 2:06:49 - Younger Son Preference in the Bible – ChatGPT 4o

And I said to them, “Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot. And while they are still standing guard, let them shut and bar the doors. Appoint guards from among the inhabitants of Jerusalem, some at their guard posts and some in front of their own homes.” - Nehemiah 7:3   This Episode's Links and Timestamps: 00:00 – Scripture Reading 07:58 – Thoughts on the Reading 24:39 - The media says healthcare has never been more unaffordable. It's long past time to repeal the reason why. – Peter Heck, NTB 44:34 - Psalm 127 – BibleHub.com 56:22 - Behind the Homeless Surge in California's High Desert – Beige Luciano-Adams, The Epoch Times 1:16:36 - Newsom Issues Executive Order To Remove Homeless Encampments Across California – Mairead Elordi, DW 1:22:08 - Watching Pierre Poilievre explain how to fix Canada's housing crisis is a breath of fresh air in clown world – Commodore Vanderbilt, NTB 1:40:09 – What the Bible Says About Houses – BibleGateway.com

In the First Century B.C., Roman historian Sallust said, “Prosperity tries the souls, even of the wise.”Most people would choose financial prosperity despite its temptations. But what if you're living with financial adversity? Today, we'll talk about how to be wise in good times and bad.The Temptations of Financial Success and AdversityWhen things are going well financially, it's tempting to take credit for your success, leading to sins like pride and greed. On the other hand, adversity brings its own set of temptations, such as self-pity, bitterness, and envy. Neither set of attitudes is godly.Christians are called to live with integrity, no matter our circumstances. But how do we consistently do that? According to the Bible, wisdom is the key to godly living in both good times and bad.Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.” Fearing the Lord means respecting and honoring His authority and obeying His commands. Understanding the consequences of breaking God's rules is the first step toward living wisely.Good parents know that children need boundaries for safety and healthy development. God has also set boundaries for His children that protect us spiritually and physically. When God says “no” to something, like stealing or dishonesty, those things hurt us by breaking relationships with others and the Lord.Because God loves us, He sets these boundaries for our lives. When we obey, we are safe and at peace. So, fearing the Lord isn't about being afraid; it's about learning to love and obey our Heavenly Father even more.The Benefits of WisdomWisdom begins with a healthy respect for God's authority. Whether struggling financially or experiencing prosperity, you can still live wisely by listening to God's words. Here are a few benefits of wisdom:Discernment: Proverbs 2:9 says the wise “…will understand what is right and just and fair.”Guidance: Proverbs 3:6 reminds us, “In all your ways acknowledge Him…and He will make your paths straight.”Blessing: Proverbs 3:13 says, “Blessed is the man who finds wisdom.”Good Reputation: Proverbs 3:35 says, “The wise inherit honor.”Protection: Proverbs 16:6 says, “Through the fear of the Lord, a man avoids evil.”These benefits are available to you, no matter your financial state. Conversely, the Bible refers to those who do not honor God and live by His rules as “fools.” Psalm 14:1 says, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.' They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good.” Fools suffer shame, disaster, distress, and troubles—outcomes we should strive to avoid in our finances and lives.Following a Path of Wisdom in Financial DecisionsSo, how can you follow a path of wisdom in your day-to-day financial decisions? Understand how God views money and possessions. The Bible tells us that God owns everything, and we are to be wise caretakers of whatever we have. He's not really concerned about your bank balance; what matters is where your heart is. Ask the Lord to change your heart so you can follow Him in this area.Being financially wise means living according to biblical principles. Practice integrity in all your dealings and consider others more important than yourself.Contentment is key to financial wisdom. When you invite God into your finances, trusting Him to lead you and provide what you need, you'll begin to understand 1 Timothy 6:6, “Godliness with contentment is great gain.”What do your actions and attitudes about money reveal about you? Are you wise or foolish? If you're committed to Jesus and following the Lord with all your heart, it will show in your financial choices. Whether God has provided you with adversity or prosperity, you can be confident in His love and provision. Stay focused on what's really important—following Jesus.On Today's Program, Rob Answers Listener Questions:I own a home, and it's just my name. I do have a will, but I'm concerned about these advertisements on TV about people being scammed out of their houses. I wondered if I should put my house in an LLC or a trust.I wanted to cash in some US Treasury Savings Bonds I bought in the 80s and 90s to take advantage of higher interest rates today. I wondered if there would be any problems with cashing them in to put the money into a one-year CD since it's paying 5% interest now.I wanted to understand why, when you get your first mortgage statement, they haven't taken the interest rate you were quoted—like 7%—but a much larger portion of your interest payment, like 60% rather than 7%. How do amortized loans work? Is the interest on the loan “front-loaded” in the early years of the loan?Resources Mentioned:Rich Toward God: A Study on the Parable of the Rich FoolFind a Certified Kingdom Advisor (CKA) or Certified Christian Financial Counselor (CertCFC)FaithFi App Remember, you can call in to ask your questions most days at (800) 525-7000. Faith & Finance is also available on the Moody Radio Network and American Family Radio. Visit our website at FaithFi.com where you can join the FaithFi Community and give as we expand our outreach.

It's Wednesday, June 26th, A.D. 2024. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark 37 physical attacks on Christians in Israel in 2023 The Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue released a report this month entitled, “Attacks on Christians in Israel and East Jerusalem.”  The report documented 33 attacks on church properties and 37 cases of physical attacks against Christians last year. The report noted, “While hostility towards the Christian presence has been a longstanding occurrence in some local communities, it has now escalated to a broader and more severe phenomenon.”  And the report quoted the Cardinal of Jerusalem, Pier Battista Pizzaballa, who said, “These people, [the attackers], feel they are protected … that the cultural and political atmosphere now can justify, or tolerate, actions against Christians.”    Liberian Methodist Bishop opposes American Methodist heresy Back in May, the United Methodist Church voted in favor of allowing those living sexually perverted lifestyles to be clergy. To its credit, the United Methodist Church in Liberia, Africa is opposing the decision. Liberian Bishop Samuel J. Quire Jr. released a statement this month.  He wrote, “The Liberia Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church will not conduct any weddings or ordinations of self-avowed, practicing homosexuals. The Liberia Annual Conference … is traditional in its interpretation of Holy Scripture and will continue its evangelistic outreach to all persons who live in darkness and do not know the redemptive grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ.”  I Corinthians 16:13 says, “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.” Franklin Graham champions religious liberty in Scotland FRANKLIN GRAHAM: “It is good to be in Glasgow.” Evangelist Franklin Graham preached to over 7,000 people in Glasgow, Scotland on Saturday. Listen to this clip from his sermon. GRAHAM: “Sin is a barrier. It's a wall. It blocks you from God. You see, God loves you, and He's willing to forgive our sins, but we have to come to Him, His way, and that's through the cross of Jesus Christ. You can hit the reset button. You've got a new start at life, but you have to make a choice.” Over 300 Scottish churches partnered with Graham for the event. One local pastor said, “We see depression, mental health problems, financial issues, we see it all. And it's not just our church, it's people all over Scotland. Nothing is going to help Scotland apart from Jesus.” One man in his 20s professed Jesus Christ as his Savior at the crusade. NEW CHRISTIAN: “I went up tonight because Franklin is so powerful in his Word. He said, ‘Get up out your seat.'  I had to get up out of my seat.  I had to get there. I didn't realize that there was going to be two to three thousand people behind me. It gives me anxiety, but I didn't care.  I'm going. I'm going to give it to the cross.” During the event, Graham announced the creation of the Billy Graham Defense Fund for protecting religious freedom in the U.K. He said the fund is designed to “encourage Christians across the U.K. to keep living out and sharing their faith freely and boldly.” Biden and Trump ready to rumble on CNN ANNOUNCER: “Let's get ready to rumble. Are you all ready for this?” President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are set to debate tomorrow night in Atlanta on CNN.  Ahead of the debate, both candidates released campaign updates. Trump's campaign and the Republican National Committee raised over $140 million in May. Meanwhile, Biden's campaign and the Democratic National Committee raised $85 million. Trump's support was boosted by small dollar donations during his trial and conviction in May on charges of falsifying business records. Oklahoma Supreme Court rules religious charter school unconstitutional Oklahoma's state supreme court ruled on Tuesday that a religious charter school is unconstitutional. St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School was set to open this year. It would have been the first publicly-funded religious charter school in the country.  Alliance Defending Freedom is supporting the charter school. ADF Attorney Phil Sechler said, “The U.S. Constitution protects St. Isidore's freedom to operate according to its faith. … We are disappointed with the court's ruling that upholds discrimination against religion; we'll be considering all legal options, including appeal.” U.S. deficit $400 billion higher than predicted The U.S. Congressional Budget Office updated its federal budget deficit estimate on Tuesday.  The agency projects the U.S. deficit will be $400 billion higher this year than the agency projected in February. This projection follows spending packages for Ukraine and Israel, costs for reducing student loan debt, and increased Medicaid spending.  Take a look at the U.S. Debt Clock through a special link in our transcript today at www.TheWorldview.com. The agency also expects public debt will increase from 99% of the Gross Domestic Product this year to 122% by 2034. That would be the highest level on record. Anniversary of Roman Emperor Julian the Apostate's death Roman Emperor Julian the Apostate died on this day in history in AD 363. He suffered wounds during a conflict with Persian forces in what is modern-day Iraq. As his name suggests, Julian spent his life trying to bring back paganism to the Roman Empire. He took aim at many of the Christian reforms of Emperor Constantine.  However, referencing Christ in his dying words, Julian said, “Thou hast won, O Galilean.” The pagan emperor's last words aptly sum up the previous centuries of Christ's victory over paganism through His church.  Isaiah 9:7 says of Jesus, “Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end.” What prompted a 10-year-old boy to give $10 to The Worldview I picked up the phone recently and talked to two  Worldview listeners, Kristina and her 10-year-old son Lukas in Olympia, Washington. Kristina, a homeschool mother of six children, explained how the family first became aware of The Worldview newscast. KRISTINA: “We started listening to it because we bought some Generations curriculum a few years ago, the history, and it was connected with that. I just love it! Because I want my children and myself to have a heart for what God's doing in the world. It helps our hearts to be bigger and focus on what God's focused on. I just appreciate the daily refocusing of our vision to be bigger. It gives us something to pray about.” She is especially grateful for the stories we share on the persecuted church. KRISTINA: “When we listen to the first story about Christians who are suffering for their faith, we just love the opportunity to uphold brothers and sisters around the world who are suffering for Christ and yet are remaining faithful. So, we uphold them in prayer and thank the Lord that we have these brothers and sisters and just pray that their ministry, whatever it is, and their influence would be expanded and the Gospel would go forth.” Lukas, her 10-year-old, echoed that sentiment. LUKAS: “It's just very informative about Christ moving in the world, stories of people following their faith, even if it gets them hospitalized.” McMANUS: “Have you and Daniel and your parents ever prayed for someone you heard about on the newscast?” LUKAS: “Every single time we listen to it.” McMANUS: “Oh, wow!” LUKAS: “When we hear about someone who's getting persecuted or has being threatened to get persecuted, we pray that God would save them in some way, or that they would not give up faith in God.” McMANUS: “What made you think about giving $10?” LUKAS: “It feels like God has really changed a lot in my life and felt like He was encouraging me to do that.” McMANUS: “Where did this money come from?” LUKAS: “Just money I accumulated from birthdays or other things.” McMANUS: “Is it just from gifts that you got the money from or did you work for any of the money?" LUKAS: “I guess I've helped my dad with some things to get some of it.” McMANUS: “What do you do for your dad?” LUKAS: “Usually just something useful to help him, like getting into places he can't reach when he's working.” McMANUS: (laughs) “That sounds like my kids. Oh, that's funny. Like cleaning the attic or the garage or a project like that where you're cleaning up something or what?" LUKAS: “Usually in the attic. I just have to pull some wires to where he can reach them.” McMANUS “What was your reaction when Lukas said he wanted to give $10 of his money to, to the newscast effort.” KRISTINA: “I was grateful that he listened to the nudge of the Holy Spirit. It was excited that his heart was turned toward that.” McMANUS: “Tell me about your decision to match it.” KRISTINA: “Well, I thought I would join him, that would honor his gift by doubling it. The Lord loves to multiply little things into much.” 8 Worldview listeners donated $3,050 And finally, toward our $84,000 final goal by 5:00pm central this Saturday, June 29th, 8 Worldview listeners stepped up to the plate to help fund our 6-member team for another fiscal year. Our thanks to Janet in Canton, Illinois who gave $50, Jeanne in Thomasville, North Carolina who gave $100, as well as Michael in Ritzville, Washington and Dan in Ingersoll, Ontario, Canada—both of whom gave $200. And we're grateful to God for Lona in Billings, Montana who pledged $25/month for 12 months for a gift of $300, Leland in Rapid City, South Dakota who gave $400, Isaac in Pleasantville, Tennessee who pledged $50/month for 12 months for a gift of $600, and Members of SovereignGraceSingles.com who pledged $100/month for 12 months for a gift of $1,200. Those 8 donors gave $3,050.  Ready for our new grand total? Drum roll please. (sound effect of drum roll) $61,055.16. (audience cheering) In order to hit our $84,000 goal, we still need to raise the sizable sum of $22,944.84 by 5:00pm Central on Saturday, June 29th. I'm getting a little nervous. If you've been waiting until the last minute to make a donation, that time has officially arrived. I would love to see 40 people step forward today and make a donation.  Whether God is prompting you to give $50, $500, or $5,000, we need everybody to do their part.  There are only three days left. Will you step up to the plate? Please go to TheWorldview.com, click on “Give,” select the dollar amount you'd like to donate, and click on the recurring monthly tab if that's your wish. Ask God what He wants you to give to this newscast that proclaims Jesus Christ as our standard for Truth. Close And that's The Worldview on this Wednesday, June 26th, in the year of our Lord 2024. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

Blessings Follow Sanctification (2) (audio) David Eells 6/2/24   I'd like to continue talking about how God's going to provide these awesome blessings in His Word to a sanctified corporate body of His people. Let's look again in (Isa.61:2) To proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; (3) to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them a garland for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness... The corporate body of the Man-child is who this appointing “unto them that mourn in Zion” is referring to and we can see the same thing spoken in Ezekiel.   (Eze.9:2) And behold, six men came from the way of the upper gate, which lieth toward the north, every man with his slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man in the midst of them clothed in linen... That linen is the same thing as the bridal garments worn by those who are invited to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, which represents the righteousness of the saints, their righteous acts. But who is this man in linen who was in the midst of the six men with their slaughter weapons? We know the six men represent the Beast because, if you go back to the previous chapter, you see, (Eze.8:1) And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month.... And then you read on down and you find this is the third “6,” which makes “666.” This is the Beast that's going to destroy the Harlot and in the midst of them is this man in linen, Who is Jesus the Man-child, both in His day and is in the Man-child in our day.   (Eze.9:2) And behold, six men came from the way of the upper gate, which lieth toward the north, every man with his slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man in the midst of them clothed in linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side. And they went in, and stood beside the brazen altar. (3) And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon it was, to the threshold of the house: and he called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writer's inkhorn by his side. (4) And the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem.   (This is both the people of unregenerate Jerusalem and regenerate Jerusalem and we will see the difference between the two people here.), and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry over all the abominations that are done in the midst thereof. There it is! Those who recognize the abominations that are being done in the midst of God's people, and are grieved over it are truly God's people. So who marks God's people? We can see the mark of the Beast is in the hand and the forehead.   (Rev.13:16) And he causeth all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free and the bond, that there be given them a mark on their right hand, or upon their forehead; (17) and that 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. (18) Here is wisdom. He that hath understanding, let him count the number of the beast; for it is the number of a man: and his number is Six hundred and sixty and six. And Exodus 13 talks about the mark of the Lord in the hand and the forehead. (Exo.13:9) And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thy hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath the Lord brought thee out of Egypt.   But then it's explained even better here: (Deu.11:18) Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul; and ye shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes (meaning on your forehead). The Israelites did this in the letter, literally. They wrote certain verses from the Word of God on parchment (Exodus 13:1-10, 11-16; Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 11:13-21), which they put in little boxes called phylacteries. Then they tied them on their forehead and upon their hand. In type, it represents the Word of God manifested in your works and in your thoughts.   (Rom.12:2) And be not fashioned according to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind (This is the Word of God in your mind.), that ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. And so, who does this? Jesus does this! Jesus is the One Who marks His people with the Word. He's the Sower Who goes forth to sow the seed. He's the One Who marks His people and He's the One Who sanctifies them.   (Heb.1:3) Who being the effulgence of his glory, and the very image of his substance.... Jesus is the image of God and the Greek word there for “image” is charakter, which is a tool for recreating itself. The character creates an eikon, or “likeness,” “representation,” “image.” And, of course, God uses Jesus to recreate Himself in our mind and works. Jesus is the One who marks His people with the mark of God. He does that by putting the Word of God in your forehead and in your hand. So Jesus went forth to mark those men who sighed and cried over the abominations that were done among the people, and then what did God do to the wicked? (Eze.9:5) And to the others he said in my hearing, Go ye through the city after him, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity;  (This is so clearly what the beast has done to those who have the mind and works of flesh that we know as the faction.) (6) slay utterly the old man, the young man and the virgin, and little children and women; but come not near any man upon whom is the mark (that's of God): and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the old men that were before the house. (7) And he said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and smote in the city. And this was among the people who were called the “people of God”! The Beast destroyed the Harlot who was among God's people and the only ones who were spared were the ones whom the man in linen with the ink horn had marked as righteous.   Once again, this is about to happen. The Man-child reformers have this same ministry to put the mark of God upon God's people. (Rev.14:1) And I saw, and behold, the Lamb standing on the mount Zion, and with him a hundred and forty and four thousand, having his name, and the name of his Father, written on their foreheads. “Name” is “nature, character and authority.” They have the image of Jesus! Praise God for His mark!  And the body is sanctified of the leaven. Now when Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit and came out of His wilderness, He preached, (Luk.4:18) The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, Because he anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor: He hath sent me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovering of sight to the blind, To set at liberty them that are bruised, (19) To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. (20) And he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down: and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him.   You'll recognize that as the first part of the Isaiah 61 anointing. (Isa.61:1) The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; (2) to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor  (And that's where Jesus stopped, but the verse continues.), and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn (Who are these people who mourn?); (Isa.61:3) to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion (So Zion, who is the Bride, is mourning.), to give unto them a garland for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified. Amen! Remember Isaiah 61 was fulfilled in Jesus' day when He was the Man-child and it will be fulfilled again in our day with the corporate Man-child of Revelation 12, which is the first-fruits corporate body in whom Jesus lives.   We know Zion is the Bride, the most beautiful of all the fair virgins of the Kingdom, because John saw the city of Zion, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of Heaven. (Rev.21:9) And there came one of the seven angels …, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb. (10) And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.   Now we noticed in Ezekiel those people who mourned were the ones who escaped the Beast. (Eze.9:1) Then he cried in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause ye them that have charge over the city to draw near, every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. (2) And behold, six men came from the way of the upper gate, which lieth toward the north, every man with his slaughter weapon in his hand (representing the Beast); and one man in the midst of them clothed in linen (representing Jesus in the Man-child of our day), with a writer's inkhorn by his side. And they went in, and stood beside the brazen altar. (3) And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon it was, to the threshold of the house: and he called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writer's inkhorn by his side.   (4) And the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry (This is the Bride whom we saw are mourning.) over all the abominations that are done in the midst thereof. (5) And to the others he said in my hearing, Go ye through the city after him, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity; (6) slay utterly the old man, the young man and the virgin, and little children and women; but come not near any man upon whom is the mark: and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the old men that were before the house. (Who should have known better.) He marked the forehead of those righteous people who mourned over the sins that they saw done among God's people and, of course, they were the ones who escaped. He marked them with that writer's inkhorn on their forehead to identify them and it represents having the renewed mind of Christ by the Word of God. God uses the written Word to write upon our minds and upon our hearts. His very nature, character and authority. So we see once again that the Man-child's ministry is to raise up Zion, the Bride, as Jesus did.   Going back now to (Isa.61:4) And they (Zion, the Bride) shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations.... What is this talking about, the “old wastes”? Well, when God's people were taken into captivity, their Promised Land was destroyed; their cities, their houses and their crops were all destroyed. But the Bride has come out of Babylonish captivity and Babylonish religion. They have returned to their Promised Land and they have a job to do, just like Jesus, Who led the disciples in His day. When John the Baptist saw Jesus leading His disciples, he said, (Joh.3:29) He that hath the bride is the bridegroom.... The Bride that Jesus was raising up was the foundation of His new Kingdom. They went forth to bring God's people into all that God had for them and now that's going to happen in our day.   (Isa.61:4) And they shall build the old wastes (In other words, the Bride is going to restore that which the Beast has devoured and destroyed.), they shall raise up the former desolations (They're going to restore that which was taken away from them, taken away from their Promised Land.), and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. So this Bride is going to have a job to do for the rest of God's people, like Esther. Her job was to preserve and restore God's people. The Shulammite, the “perfect one” in the Song of Solomon, worked to prepare her little sister. The bride in Psalm 45 worked to bring the virgins before the king and we see the same parallel through the rest of the Scriptures.   The first of the waste cities they began to restore was Zion, which in type and shadow represents the Bride, the “heavenly Jerusalem” as Paul called it. (Heb.12:22) but ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem… And the rest of the cities of Israel had to also be restored because not everybody is going to live in Zion! But notice that the rest of those cities are not as close to God as Zion, the Bride, who sits right next to the King. For example, when God's people came out of bondage to Babylon or Assyria, many of those people didn't go all the way back to Jerusalem. And today, spiritually speaking, not all of those who come out of bondage to the world, worldly religions, and so on, will go all the way to Zion. They are not going to come all the way to the Bride because many of them are content with less of God.   Zion had the Lord right in their midst. Their temple was in the midst of the city and they were very close to God. That's why Zion represented salvation and safety, because the presence of the Lord was there. You remember how the Israelites took the Ark of the Covenant with them and their enemies were conquered, and awesome miracles happened when they went through the wilderness or when they were protecting their cities, and so on. Well, it was the same with Zion because it was a place of protection, provision, safety, blessing and of holiness. Being inside the walls of Zion represented salvation from whatever difficulty you had, but some people were content to dwell in these other cities and so they restored them, too.   In the end times, there are people who are going to bear fruit 30-, 60- and 100-fold, and the Bride ultimately will represent the 100-fold as does their King David, a type of the Man-child. These are the people who are going to restore the cities that have been laid waste. Do you know that Christianity is the same way? Christianity is “the desolations of many generations.” What we had back there, 2000 years ago, we haven't had since. It was destroyed and God's people were taken into captivity to Babylonish religion, but that's all about to change. The Lord through the Man-child is going to raise up the Bride and She is going to begin to lay this foundation and restore their Promised Land. The benefits and blessings of our Land of Promise, and the way Christians are supposed to walk in the steps of Jesus, all these things are going to be restored.   (Isa.61:4) And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. We have another text that's so similar to this, it's almost a quote: (Isa.58:12) And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places; thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations.... The foundations have been destroyed for many generations. We're climbing up out of the Dark Ages now and what God gave to us was something He always wanted us to have and yet the wolves of Babylonish religion came in and divided the flock. The Church has been plundered for many generations.   (Isa.58:12) … and thou shalt be called The repairer of the breach.... The breach, of course, is the breach in the wall that allowed the enemy to come in and conquer. They will restore the wall which represents sanctification! It represents separation, not only your separation from the world, but separation from your enemy, from the Beast who is of the world. They will repair the breach so the enemy cannot come through to destroy you. (Isa.58:12) … and thou shalt be called The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in. Praise God! They are going to restore the highway of holiness, the right “paths to dwell in.”   Back in (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 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; they shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk [there]: (10) and the ransomed of the Lord 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.   You know, the “judgment seat,” or “bema seat judgment,” is literally the “footprint tribunal.” The Greek word there is bema and it means “a step, a pace.” And that's exactly what the judgment is: Do you walk in the steps of Jesus? (1Jn.2:6) He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked. Keep that in mind as we read on. (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 the Lord honorable; and shalt honor it, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words.... Wow! If we keep the Sabbath, we will be those who restore the old waste places and raise up the foundations of many generations, etc.   Are we talking about the Old Testament Sabbath? No! Colossians 2 tells us plainly that the Sabbath is “... a shadow of things to come....” It's not the very image; it's the shadow; it's a parable. And this parable points to walking by faith and ceasing from our own works. Read this part again: (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 the Lord honorable; and shalt honor it, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words.... In other words, the Sabbath represents ceasing from your own works. It represents ceasing from the works of the flesh, works of self-justification and all those things. God paid the price for us to keep the Sabbath and, if we don't keep the Sabbath, what happens? We come under judgment!   “Sanctification” is “keeping the Sabbath.” Through sanctification, we will be able, by the grace of God, to restore everything that has been taken from us. (Heb.4:2) For indeed we have had good tidings (the Gospel) 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. So if you don't believe the Gospel, the good news of what the Lord has done for you, then you're not mixing faith with it and it's going to be useless. Remember, the Lord has already healed you, already delivered you from sin, already delivered you from the curse, already delivered you from demons! The Bible says it's already been done, finished, accomplished.   So when you believe, when you mix faith with the Gospel, the first thing you do is cease from your works. You stop trying to do it because God's already done it. (Heb.4:3) For we who have believed do enter into that rest (The “rest” is ceasing from your works.); 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. God's already done the work, and that's why we can rest! He doesn't need our help; He wants our faith. He wants us to believe we have received. Jesus said, (Mar.11:24) Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive (The literal translation there is past tense, “received.”) them, and ye shall have them. By faith we enter into this rest from our own works in order to see God's works.   (Heb.4:9) There remaineth therefore a sabbath rest for the people of God. This Sabbath rest is not speaking about a Saturday rest. This is the only place in the Bible that this particular Greek word translated as “sabbath” is used. The word is sabbatismos and it means “a continual rest.” The “rest” is ceasing from our works! It's ceasing from doing our own pleasure on God's holy day. When is God's holy day? Every day is God's holy day; this is a continual Sabbath. (Heb.4:9) There remaineth therefore a [sabbatismos] 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.   The Lord wants us to rest from our works and that includes our religious works, too. In order to keep the Sabbath, we have to cease from any kind of work that comes through self. And, as we just read, those who keep the Sabbath are the people who will be restoring everything that has been taken away from God's people.   Continuing on in (Isa.58:14) Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; 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 (In other words, you will have the heritage that your great forefathers had!): for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. (Isa.59:1) Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: (2) but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, so that he will not hear. What's the cure? It's keeping the sabbatismos! The cure is ceasing from our works! Our works are what God is calling “sin.” Doing your own will on His holy day is what God is calling “sin.”  We now must do His works as we are led by Him. Going back to (Isa.58:9) Then shalt thou call, and the Lord will answer; thou shalt cry, and he will say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking wickedly. Do you know those who are judging other people, who are critical-minded, unforgiving and speaking about others behind their back? These people are “pointing the finger” and they don't have the authority of the Lord to do so. He said you have to take this “away from the midst of thee,” then He will answer you when you call upon Him.   (Isa.58:10) And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul: then shall thy light rise in darkness, and thine obscurity be as the noonday; (11) and the Lord will guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in dry places, and make strong thy bones; and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. Wow! All this is for the person who keeps the sabbatismos. They will be those who repair the breach and restore the paths to dwell in, etc.   This is the text that is very similar to what we just read: (Isa.61:4) And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. Joel's prophecy speaks of God's empowerment and discernment to do the works of God. (Joe.2:23) Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord 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] (or “in the beginning” or “at the first”). There is no word for “month” in the original text; that was added-in. At the very beginning of the move of God in our day, God is going to restore both the former rain and the latter rain anointings.   Three-and-a-half years into Jesus' ministry, Jesus took the “mantle” that was upon Him and in (Joh.20:21) Jesus therefore said to them again, Peace be unto you: as the Father hath sent me, even so send I you. (22) And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Spirit. They received the former rain, or the first anointing, at the beginning of their solo ministry. And the power that's coming in our day is going to be far beyond what it was last time. (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.   (Joe.2:24) And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil. This great blessing is going to be poured out because of the power of God's Holy Spirit. He enables people to walk a holy walk; He empowers people. The Lord said, (Act.1:8) But ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you.... This is the power to do the works of the Lord and power to live a holy life. And because of that comes: (Joe.2:24) …and the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil. (25) And I will restore to you the years (There it is! The “desolations of many generations” are going to be restored. A revival!) that the locust hath eaten, the canker-worm, and the caterpillar, and the palmer-worm, my great army which I sent among you.   (Joe.2:26) And ye shall eat in plenty and be satisfied (During the tribulation and with great lack all over the world, God's Bride will have His provision! That's exactly what we've been reading.), and shall praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you; and my people shall never be put to shame. Praise the Lord! You know, we need tribulation, persecution, and chastening to cause us to walk in the path. But if a people are walking holy before the Lord, by His grace and by His power, they don't need that, and God knows it. He knows how to make that separation and how to get people behind the broad walls of Zion.   Going back again to (Isa.61:4) And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. We have our own Book of Acts coming! God is going to restore many “generations. We're told of the generation of Jesus Christ: (Mat.1:1) The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. The word “generation” there is singular and it's actually the same word used further down for “birth.” (Mat.1:18) Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise.... Now most people don't read the genealogy leading up to Jesus' birth. They might possibly read the names once or twice and after that they skip over them. But back when I was young in the Lord, we were reading this one day in our Bible study and we decided to start counting the names in the three paragraphs because verse 17 sparked our imagination.   It reads, (Mat.1:17) So all the generations from Abraham unto David are fourteen generations; and from David unto the carrying away to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the carrying away to Babylon unto the Christ fourteen generations. I thought, “Well, that's very interesting.” So we just started counting them and we thought we counted incorrectly, since we found 14, 14, and then only 13 generations. So we counted them again and we tried to be more careful because you can make a mistake counting some names twice.   Anyway, when you count each generation, you come up with 14, 14 and 13 every time, yet it states, (Mat.1:17) So all the generations from Abraham unto David are fourteen generations; and from David unto the carrying away to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the carrying away to Babylon unto the Christ fourteen generations. So we each scratched our head until we got the revelation, “Aha! He's talking about 14 generations unto the body of Christ! Praise God!” Notice it states, “the generation of Jesus Christ.” It couldn't have been unto Jesus Christ, physically, because that would have been only 13 generations “from the carrying away to Babylon.” But when you count His seed, about which the Bible speaks over and over, you come up to a total of 42 generations.   We are the body of Christ! We are a corporate body in whom the regenerated, born-again Spirit of Christ lives! This corporate body in whom, ultimately, the soul of Christ lives, in whom the nature, character, mind, will and emotions of Christ will be manifested. Also, “Christ” is the Greek word Christos which means “anointed.” Scripture speaks about us also being “Christed” or “anointed.” “Jesus Christ” means “Savior anointed” or “Christ Jesus” means “anointed Savior.” “Christ” was not His name; “Christ” was what He was. He was God's anointed King and God's anointed Savior.   And Scripture says the same thing about us: (2Co.1:20) For how many soever be the promises of God, in him is the yea: wherefore also through him is the Amen, unto the glory of God through us. (21) Now he that establisheth us with you in Christ (Christos), and anointed us.... That's the word, chrio, which is the verb of Christos. This is the same word translated “anointed” where Jesus said, (Luk.4:18) The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, Because he anointed me.... When the Spirit of the Lord came upon Christ, that's what made Him the anointed. The Hebrew word mashiyach is translated “Messiah” and it means “anointed one,” so “Christ” and “Messiah” have the same meaning. It says, “He that establisheth us with you in Christ.”   We are all in this body called “Christ” and when you receive the anointing of the Holy Spirit, you truly do reflect what Jesus was because of the same Spirit God put upon Him. Then not only do you have the Spirit of Christ, but you have the Spirit of God. The Spirit of Christ, of course, is your born-again spirit and the Spirit of God is the Holy Spirit that He puts upon you. Those are two different manifestations of God upon you. (1Co.1:21) Now he that establisheth us with you in Christ, and anointed us, is God; (22) who also sealed us, and gave us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts. This anointing is what makes you truly the body of Christos.   As a body, we should all be anointed. (Act.19:1) And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper country came to Ephesus, and found certain disciples: (2) and he said unto them, Did ye receive the Holy Spirit when ye believed? And they said unto him, Nay, we did not so much as hear whether the Holy Spirit was given. (3) And he said, Into what then were ye baptized? And they said, Into John's baptism. (4) And Paul said, John baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him that should come after him, that is, on Jesus. (5) And when they heard this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. (6) And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.   I don't care what the religions say, they deny the Word of the Lord. When you get the Holy Spirit, you get the gifts of the Spirit, you get the power of God! Jesus said, (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. Jesus didn't do one miracle until He was baptized in the Holy Spirit and, if you want to do what He did, and do what the disciples did, then you have to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, too. Ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit and He will do it. To receive the Holy Spirit is to be “sealed.” (2Co.1:22) who also sealed us, and gave us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts. The Greek word there for “sealed” is sphragizo, which means “to stamp (with a signet or private mark) for security or preservation.”   When Christos lives in you, that makes you the body of Christ. (Gal.2:20) I have been crucified with Christ (Christos); and it is no longer I that live, but Christ (Christos) 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. And Paul also said, (Gal.4:19) ... I am again in travail until Christ be formed in you. So you see, you can be a Christian and have a born-again Spirit, but not have Christos being formed in you, if you're not walking by faith. In this particular example, the Galatians were seeking to be justified by going back under the Law and Paul was rebuking them for that. Christos can't be formed in you unless you walk by faith.   Another Scripture about the body of Christ is (Eph.1:10) Unto a dispensation of the fulness of the times, to sum up (The word translated there as “sum up” is anakephalaiomai and it means “to gather together in one” or “to present as a whole.”) all things in Christ (There is no Greek word “things” in the original manuscript, so it should read “to sum up all in Christ.” And “all” is “all of God's people”: “to sum up all of God's people in Christ.”), in the heavens, and upon the earth.... Whether God's people are in the heavens or upon the earth, they all need to be summed-up in Christ. Nobody gets the credit but God. Christ is the One Who does the works because we have to cease from our works in order to keep the Sabbath.  (Eph.2:8) For by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of your selves, it is the gift of God; (9) not of works, that no man should glory. (10) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should walk in them. You're just the body of Christ. He's the One doing the works and He gets all the credit. If they are the works of God and not the works of man, then Christ is doing the work through you and we can't take any credit for that. Can Christ in you walk a holy walk? Yes, He can! Can He cast out demons or raise the dead? Yes, He can! He can do all those things. The whole point is that we be a willing and yielded vessel through whom the Lord will, by His anointing, deal with this world. His plan from the very beginning was to do this.   So God wants (Eph.1:10 Numeric) ... to sum up all in Christ, those upon the heavens, and those upon the earth; in him, (11) in whom also we were made a heritage (In other words, your heritage, your inheritance, is only when you abide in Christ.), foreordained according to the purpose of him who worketh all after the counsel of his will; (12) that we be unto the praise of his glory, we who had before hoped in the 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 the promise. Wow! There it is again, another confirmation: you “were sealed with the Holy Spirit of the promise.” You were already in Him when you heard because (Eph.1:4) ... he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blemish before him in love.   You were “in Him” when you heard, you were “in Him” when you decided to accept it and it was His gift of faith that caused you to repent, turn to Him and accept His salvation. That was His work. And also, (Gal.3:28) There can be neither Jew nor Greek, there can be neither bond nor free, there can be no male and female; for ye all are one [man] in Christ (Christos) Jesus. (29) And if ye are Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, heirs according to promise. We are one in Christ; the word “man” was added-in. We are one in Christos, we are the anointed body. This is the generation that we're talking about here. This is the 42nd generation!   As a matter of fact, let me show you that in another place: (Isa.53:8) By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation (Again, that's one generation.), who [among them] considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression of my people to whom the stroke [was due]? We were the ones who incurred the debt because of our sin; He's the One Who paid it and bore our curse. (Isa.53:9) And they made his grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in his death; although he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.   (10) Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief (Actually, the Hebrew there is “made Him sick.” God put our sickness upon Him.): when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin.... “Soul” and “life” are the same Hebrew word: nephesh. (Lev.17:11) For the life (or “soul”) of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh atonement by reason of the life. He poured out His soul, His life, unto death, and notice what happened when He died, when He made His soul an offering for sin:  (Isa.53:10) Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see [his] seed (The “seed” are those who are the seed of Abraham, those who are one in Christ.), he shall prolong his days (He prolonged His days in His seed. The Christos, the “anointed One” is in His people.), and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.   If you remember, Jesus was not the “hand”; Jesus was the “arm” of the Lord. (Isa.53:1) Who hath believed our message? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed? So Jesus is the “arm,” but who's the “hand” here? The “hand” is His “seed” and the “seed” is His people. We are the hand of the Lord in the earth. He is the arm Who gives strength to the hand to do the work. (Isa.53:11) He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by the knowledge of himself shall my righteous servant justify many; and he shall bear their iniquities.   And also, (Psa.22:30) A seed shall serve him; It shall be told of the Lord unto the next generation. But the actual wording is “counted unto the Lord for His generation” or “generations”; it's correct either way. “A seed shall serve Him; It shall be counted unto the Lord for His generations.” They are the generation of the Lord; they are the 42nd generation. (Psa.22:31) They shall come and shall declare his righteousness Unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done it. Notice that. They're going to share the Gospel “that He hath done it!” That's not an Old Testament message. That's a New Testament message “that He hath done it.” The 42nd generation is going to preach the Gospel! We can keep the Sabbath now because He's already done it. And it says in, (Psa.24:6) This is the generation of them that seek after him, That seek thy face, even Jacob. Oh, praise the Lord!   Here's another one: (Psa.102:12) But thou, O Lord, wilt abide forever; And thy memorial name unto all generations. (13) Thou wilt arise, and have mercy upon Zion.... We're just going into that time right now. God is about to arise and show His mercy upon Zion. You know, He's basically left the Church to go its own way for 2000 years. (Hos.6:1) Come, and let us return unto the Lord; 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, and we shall live before him. (3) And let us know, let us follow on to know the Lord: 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.  In what way has He left? In the mighty power of God, in the things that we have lost, in the things that we've been robbed of for 2000 years, He has left us, but now He is about to return. He has always had a small witness but the anointing is coming and He is going to stand up and fight for His bride, His Zion! (Psa.102:13) Thou wilt arise, and have mercy upon Zion; For it is time to have pity upon her, Yea, the set time is come. Praise God! I believe this is a Word for us today, “the set time is come.” God is going to have mercy on His Bride and His Bride is going to bring His mercy and His grace to the Church. The Bride is going to bring His restoration of all the old waste places and the “paths to dwell in” to the Church.   (Psa.102:14) For thy servants take pleasure in her stones (The stones represent salvation; they represent separation. The stones of Zion's wall separated the saints from the beastly world.),And have pity upon her dust. We mourn the fact that we are so weak, so unable, so incapable. Yet in our weakness, God is made strong and God is about to prove that. He wants to show His glory and the way He can do that is with weak vessels.   (Psa.102:15) So the nations shall fear the name of the Lord, And all the kings of the earth thy glory. (16) For the Lord hath built up Zion; He hath appeared in his glory. Notice that! God is coming in His Zion! (17) He hath regarded the prayer of the destitute, And hath not despised their prayer. God's people are crying out to Him as never before, but not like they're going to, either. (18) This shall be written for the generation to come (This is for our generation, the 42nd generation.); And a people which shall be created shall praise the Lord. (19) For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary; From heaven did the Lord behold the earth; (20) To hear the sighing of the prisoner; To loose those that are appointed to death....   Do you suppose that some people are going to escape death? I believe the Bride is going to escape death in Zion because the Beast cannot touch them, as Paul said. Let this sink in: (Heb.12:18) For ye are not come unto a mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, and unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, (19) and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard entreated that no word more should be spoken unto them;  (i.e. Don't let us hear the voice of God lest we die. You go talk to Him, Moses, and let us know.) (20) for they could not endure that which was enjoined, If even a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned; (21) and so fearful was the appearance, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake: (22) but ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable hosts of angels, (23) to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, (24) and to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaketh better than that of Abel.   (Psa.102:21) That men may declare the name of the Lord in Zion.... And, literally, the name or nature of the Lord is “Zion.” (Jer.3:17) At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart. Jeremiah called God's people out of bondage in the north to repent and return to Zion. (Jer.3:14) Return, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am a husband unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion.   And Jeremiah said that returning to Zion was returning to the name of the Lord, that is the nature, character and authority of the Lord. (Psa.102:21) That men may declare the name of the Lord in Zion, And his praise in Jerusalem; (22) When the peoples are gathered together, And the kingdoms, to serve the Lord. Yes, God is gathering a people out of all nations to serve Him.   Now the Bible says that Christ is, (1Pe.2:8) ... A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence; for they stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. So notice that whoever Peter is talking to is not a people who stumbled at the Word by being disobedient. (1Pe.2:9) But ye are an elect race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.... “Holy” or hagios means “separate,” “sanctified.” A “saint” is “a holy one.” And “elect” here is eklektos, meaning “chosen.” It's translated “chosen” many times in the Scriptures. And the word “race” here is genos, or “generation.” Well, who is this “chosen generation” he's talking about? Peter is talking to all generations of Christians since the crucifixion of Christ and he says they are “a holy nation,” “a chosen generation.”   So this 42nd generation speaks of a body of Christ in whom Christ lives and this I think helps us understand Isaiah a little better when he speaks of this chosen people. (Isa.61:8) For I, the Lord, love justice, I hate robbery with iniquity; and I will give them their recompense in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. (9) And their seed shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples; all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed. (They are the separated seed that the Lord has blessed.) (10) I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation.   Jesus was God's great reformer. He came to raise up in the New Testament a spiritual fulfillment of what the Old Testament was in the parable of the letter. Jacob's 12 sons, the patriarchs, were the forefathers of His Old Testament people. Jesus raised up the 12 apostles, who were the forefathers of His New Covenant people. Those men came out of the Babylonish religion of their day and followed Jesus. And Jesus said that He was coming again, in a repetition of history, as a little baby born to a woman.   (Joh.16:21) A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but when she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for the joy that a man is born into the world. (22) And ye therefore now have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no one taketh away from you.   We see this woman with man-child again in (Rev.12:5) And she was delivered of a son, a man child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and unto his throne. Speaking about a company of first-fruits in our day when, once again, reformers are going to be raised up to restore the Church.   Jesus spoke of His reformer ministry then and now in (Isa.61:4) And they shall build the old wastes.... In other words, that which had been destroyed of Christianity in Jesus' day and that which has been lost to us for 2000 years is now going to be restored again through the Man-child ministry of our day, just like it was when Jesus came and restored all things. (Isa.61:4) … they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. (5) And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks....   Now He's speaking here of Zion, the Bride who is that holy people whom Jesus raised up and whom the Man-child in our day is going to raise up. And he says of them, (5) And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and foreigners shall be your plowmen and your vine-dressers. Well, that's very interesting! Who are these strangers and foreigners? You're looking at the letter here in the Old Testament, but the translation in the New Testament is spiritual because it's for a spiritual people.   God has hidden things in a parable so that He can hide them from the wise and prudent. So who are these strangers and foreigners who do the physical work of labor for the elect? If we want to answer that question, we need to first find out who are the elect, the chosen people for the Kingdom of God in the New Testament. We know in the Old Testament the elect were a literal, physical people. But in the New Testament, Jesus came to raise up a spiritual people. Adam came to raise up a physical people, but the last Adam, Jesus was the spiritual Father of the born-again man.   So again, once we know who these elect are, we should be able to find out who it is that serves the elect. Let's start in (Gal.5:17) For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are contrary the one to the other; that ye may not do the things that ye would. The old man of flesh is totally contrary to the spirit man and is constantly making war on the spirit man, but who's the elect? The elect is the one who's going into God's Kingdom and we know, (1Co.15:50) … brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Flesh and blood is not the elect in the New Testament; the spiritual man is the elect in the New Testament. As a parable, the Israelite represented the spiritual man in the Old Testament. As a parable, the Canaanite or the Egyptian both represented the old man, but the Israelite represented the new man.   In the Old Testament, the Israelite was the one who was saved and was God's elect, according to the letter and according to the flesh, not according to the spirit man. (Rom.8:7) Because the mind of the flesh is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be: (8) and they that are in the flesh cannot please God. The “mind of the flesh” rules the flesh. It's not part of God's Kingdom; it will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. We've now identified who the elect are in the New Testament.   The born-again man, the spiritual man, is the elect and the carnal man is his mortal enemy. The Israelite had to put to death the carnal man who lived in the land in order to take over his house and, of course, we are the house and our carnal man, that Canaanite, that giant Goliath, needs to be put to death because he's the enemy of God.   What we're seeing in Isaiah 61 is another parable of sanctification. Sanctification is what happens when the born-again man is no longer in bondage to the old carnal man. While the Israelites were in Egypt, they were in bondage to the Egyptians, but at the Red Sea, the Egyptian was the old man who went down in the water and the Israelite was the new man who came up. Paul called the Red Sea experience a “baptism.” (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; (3) and did all eat the same spiritual food; (4) and did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of a spiritual rock that followed them: and the rock was Christ.   Baptism symbolizes the death of the old man, so now you know to whom the Israelites were in bondage. They were slaves to the carnal man and their Red Sea experience is a type and shadow of our salvation in the New Testament when we're baptized. When we come up out of the water, the old man is dead. (Rom.6:11) Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. And the new man is (Col.1:27) ... Christ in you, the hope of glory, because (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.   (Isa.61:5) And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and foreigners shall be your plowmen and your vine-dressers. What if you reversed this? Who is the “stranger” and the “foreigner”? It's the old man! It's the man who has no right to the Kingdom of God, the man who is not an Israelite, the man who is not a Christian. He's a member of the body of the Beast. “And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and foreigners shall be your plowmen and your vine-dressers” is talking about the old man serving you! The old man, who is dead to his former dominion over you, is now serving you! This life, this physical life, now serves you!   All the blessings that follow sanctification are because this happened. This is the restoration of the days of the apostles when they served God with a fervor and were holy, when they didn't give in to the flesh, but instead, like Paul, ruled over the flesh.   Paul said, (1Co.9:27) But I buffet my body, and bring it into bondage: lest by any means, after that I have preached to others, I myself should be rejected. He buffeted his body; he brought it into subjection, lest he himself would be adokimos, or “reprobated.” He made his body serve him; he put it in bondage. Paul called himself “a bondservant of Jesus Christ”. So now it's no longer the spiritual man who's in bondage in Egypt; it's the carnal man who is in bondage in the Promised Land. This is the work of sanctification! We desire earnestly that this flesh would have no ability nor power of its own, but would simply be a vessel to carry the spiritual man and do the physical things to serve the spiritual man. In our Testament, in our Covenant, that's what this is talking about. (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.   Back to (Isa.61:6) But ye shall be named the priests of the Lord; men shall call you the ministers of our God: ye shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves. Notice that they will be the priests! And the priests offered sacrifices. They offered burnt-offerings, for instance, and God promised Moses that we would be a kingdom of priests, if we would keep His laws. (Exo.19:5) Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be mine own possession from among all peoples: for all the earth is mine: (6) and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.   In other words, God promised we would all be priests, we would all have sacrifices, we would all be offering burnt-offerings before the Lord. And those burnt offerings would be the Flesh! But who is the priest? The spiritual man is the priest. The carnal man is the offering; he's the beast that is burned up in the fiery trial. You see, in overcoming that old man, in crucifying the old man, we're all priests, and so the “strangers” will serve God's elect.   We can see this more clearly if we go back a few chapters in Isaiah 13. There we see that God's people are in bondage to Babylon and, you know, Babylon falls twice. The Lord showed me it falls spiritually and then it falls physically. (Rev.18:1) After these things I saw another angel coming down out of heaven, having great authority; and the earth was lightened with his glory. (2) And he cried with a mighty voice, saying, Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, and is become a habitation of demons (Notice, he's not talking about the destruction; now he's talking about a spiritual fall of Babylon. The physical fall of Babylon comes a little later in this chapter.),and a hold (or a “prison”) of every unclean spirit, and a hold of every unclean and hateful bird.   (Rev.18:4) And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come forth, my people, out of her, that ye have no fellowship with her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. So now this is talking about the coming physical destruction of Babylon. Babylon can symbolize fallen DS America because Babylon was the “great eagle.” It can also be a spiritual revelation of apostate religion, which is called the “Harlot,” because it's receiving the seed of the world. Apostate religions are committing fornication with the world, instead of receiving the seed of their Husband, Who is the Lord. (Rev.18:5) For her sins have reached even unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. He's saying to come out so that you won't be destroyed with her. There is first the spiritual fall of Babylon into debauchery, into demon possession, into her churches being filled with demons instead of righteous people.   And then God says, “Now you come out of her so you don't partake of her destruction,” which is a physical fall. (Isa.13:19) And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans' pride, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. So there is a Babylon spiritually fallen and we have to spiritually come out of her. In our spirit man, in our spiritual life, we have to come out of her. You really can't leave worldwide Babylon physically because the whole world came from Babel. That's where the tongues were confounded and the people were spread out, and then God broke the continents up and separated the peoples by their languages. So you really can't leave larger Babylon, which is the whole world, but the day will come when Babylon will physically fall and by that time you need to be spiritually separated from her.   You're spiritually coming out of Babylon now, but there's coming a day when we are going to physically leave Babylon when the “ark” is going to lift off, so keep that in mind as we read this. (Isa.13:20) It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there. (21) But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there (In other words, the true shepherds and their flocks are no longer there.); and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and ostriches (An ostrich represents a very big bird in the world, but it can't overcome the world. It's earthbound, just like some very big “birds” who are in this world today. They can't overcome the world and they are unclean.) shall dwell there, and wild goats shall dance there. Goats are another symbol of apostate Christianity.   (Isa.13:22) And wolves (one more symbol) shall cry in their castles, and jackals in the pleasant palaces (Those castles and palaces are the apostate churches.): and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged. Here comes the physical fall and you better get out! (Isa.14:1) For the Lord will have compassion on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land.... When we come out of Babylon, we are to go to Zion. We are to go to our spiritual Promised Land where we can live as Christians, where we can live by what God told Joshua: (Jos.1:3) Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, to you have I given it, as I spake unto Moses. And then God gave the boundaries of the Promised Land.   The Word of God is our land. The Word of God is where we dwell and how we walk. God is going to give you every place you put underneath the soles of your feet. In other words, every promise in the Word of God on which you stand is your Promised Land that God is going to give to you. He raised up Jacob and the 12 patriarchs of the Old Testament, just as He raised up Jesus and the 12 patriarchs of the New Testament, and He's about to do the same thing again. He's about to raise up the Man-child and the 12 multiplied patriarchs, too, and set them in their own land. God's people are leaving Babylon and going back to their own land. God is going to restore the waste places, restore the cities, etc.   (Isa.14:1) For the Lord will have compassion on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the sojourner shall join himself with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob. (2) And the peoples shall take them, and bring them to their place (What “peoples” took God's people to their Promised Land?); and the house of Israel shall possess them (That is, the house of Jacob shall possess the peoples that brought them to their place.) in the land of the Lord for servants and for handmaids.... Wow! You know, it is this physical man who brings us to our Promised Land, but then that man becomes the servant of the spiritual man.   When we are living upon our Promised Land, the Egyptian, or old man, is the servant and not the Israelite. The old man is simply a “vessel” for the spiritual man. The old man brings that spiritual man everywhere he goes, but the old man is no longer ruling. He's no longer the master; he's now the servant. When you go to your Promised Land, it means that old man is no longer ruling over you. You are ruling over him.   (Isa.14:2) … and they shall take them captive whose captives they were.... In Egypt, the Egyptian made captives of the Israelites, which means the man of flesh ruled over the spiritual man, and when that happens, we call it “sin.” (Rom.8:13) 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. If you walk after the flesh, you must die! Multitudes of people who call themselves Christians walk after the flesh; they are in bondage in Egypt. Serving the flesh is what caused the destruction of the Adamic race altogether. (Isa.14:2) … and they shall take them captive whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors. That's sanctification! There is a great blessing for this because now you can live in the Promised Land.   Now you can stand on the promises and the old man won't talk you out of them or cause you to walk in the flesh and lose your benefits. (Isa.14:3) And it shall come to pass in the day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow.... So you enter into the “rest”! Remember, the “rest” is ceasing from your own works. You keep the New Testament spiritual sabbatismos, which means “a continual rest.” (Isa.14:3) And it shall come to pass in the day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy trouble (There's no lack of trouble and persecution to sinners, but a person who is walking a holy walk is finally free.), and from the hard service wherein thou wast made to serve.   We've all been in bondage to sin and to the old man, and we've reaped the bad fruit of that, which is the curse! The curse is the fruit of serving the old man. What's the benefit of the old man serving the new man? It's just the opposite; it's the blessings and great benefits that the Lord spoke about in Deuteronomy 28 and that we're reading in Isaiah 60 and 61. It's been about 2000 years since God's people actually walked that way, but now the Lord is going to raise up a Man-child to walk in the steps of Jesus and bring about restoration.   Jesus raised up apostolic forefathers to go forth and raise up the Church, and the Man-child is going to do the same thing, except this time both the Man-child and those forefathers are going to be multiplied. Glory to God! (Isa.14:4) That thou shalt take up this parable against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased! (5) The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of the rulers; (6) that smote the peoples in wrath with a continual stroke (He's broken the power of the rulers to rule over their slaves. He's broken the power of the old man over the spiritual man.), that ruled the nations in anger, with a persecution that none restrained.  Glory to God! 

Whether God speaks from a verse of scripture in the Bible, or even through an incredible experience in the natural world, God has something to say. Of course when God speaks we need to be listening so that we don't miss His Word for us. 

God Grants Repentance David Eells– 4/7/24 (audio)  Repentance means to change your mind. God grants repentance and changes minds. 2Ti 2:25  in meekness correcting them that oppose themselves; if peradventure God may give them repentance unto the knowledge of the truth, Act 5:31  Him did God exalt with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins. 2Ti 2:25  in meekness correcting them that oppose themselves; if peradventure God may give them repentance unto the knowledge of the truth, We think we convince people sometimes into knowing the Lord, accepting the Lord, accepting His doctrine, but it really doesn't work that way. The Bible says God grants repentance. A good scripture reference, among others is Pro 21:1 The king's heart is in the hand of Jehovah as the watercourses: He turneth it whithersoever he will.  God is the only One that the Bible gives credit for being sovereign; the devil has no sovereignty. God works all things after the council of His own will; He doesn't council with us about what He wants to do. A man can receive nothing except it come from heaven, the Bible says. Pro 21:1 says the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord as the watercourses or as the channels, He turneth it whithersoever He will. In other words, God can turn a person's heart any way He wants to turn it; and He did that with us. We didn't choose Him, Jesus said; He chose us. Blessed is the man that thou choosest and cause to approach unto thee,… (Psa 65:4) God draws us to approach Him in any way.   God has to make the first move. (Joh 6:44) No man can come to me, except the Father that sent me draw him. How does God draw us? He draws us by putting in us the desire to change our mind (repent) and to come to Him. Before approaching Him, we really just wanted to go our own way and do our own thing, but the Lord by His mercy and grace gave us this gift to come and we need it to keep coming. It's such an awesome gift! For instance, the Gentiles didn't come to God for thousands of years. Why did the Gentiles come to God after thousands of years? The Lord chose them. And what did God do when He did choose them?  Act 11:18 And when they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then to the Gentiles also hath God granted repentance unto life. It's very important that we understand this; otherwise we'll be trusting in our own works and see an awful lot of failure. There are several reasons for this. God generally just backs up and waits as long as we are doing our works, and when we give up and put our trust in Him, His power is there.  Repentance has to be granted by God. Otherwise, people would just go their own way; because we are just what we are. It takes God from the outside to put something in us to cause us to be something that we are normally not. God's grace, which is unmerited favor, grants repentance, a change of mind. When we find lack in ourselves, or lack in our ability, or lack in our willpower, or lack in anything, we can go to God and He will take care of it for us. David prayed many prayers asking for help, such as in Psalm 119. David counted on God to turn his heart in the direction he wanted it to go. Here are just a few of those verses…  Psa 119:10 With my whole heart have I sought thee: Oh let me not wander from thy commandments. 17-18 Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live; So will I observe thy word. 18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.  25-29 My soul cleaveth unto the dust: Quicken (means make alive) thou me according to thy word. 26 I declared my ways, and thou answeredst me: Teach me thy statutes. 27 Make me to understand the way of thy precepts: So shall I meditate on thy wondrous works. 28 My soul melteth for heaviness: Strengthen thou me according unto thy word. 29 Remove from me the way of falsehood; and grant me thy law graciously.  31-37 I cleave unto thy testimonies: O Jehovah, put me not to shame. 32 I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge my heart. 33 Teach me, O Jehovah, the way of thy statutes; And I shall keep it unto the end. 34 Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; Yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart. 35 Make me to go in the path of thy commandments; For therein do I delight. 36 Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, And not to covetousness. 37 Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity, and quicken me in thy ways. This is all recognizing the sovereignty of God over our minds and asking for favor. David had faith in the Lord; this included the power and the sovereignty of God to change his mind and his heart and put in him the will he needed. We're told the Lord works in us to will and to do of His good pleasure (Php 2:13). If our faith is towards the Lord to change us, instead of us picking ourselves up by our own bootstraps, as the world says, we'll have some victory. If not, we are going to fail consistently, because we have faith in ourselves. For example, Peter was sure he would not deny the Lord, but the Lord turned and told him, Before the cock crows you're going to deny me three times. Peter was self-confident; he wasn't God-confident. The Lord told him that Satan has desired to sift him as wheat, but the Lord prayed for him that his faith wouldn't fail him. Peter wasn't operating in faith, he was operating in self-confidence.   You could see David's faith in the Lord; he had faith in the Lord to draw him, keep him, deliver him from sin, and to put in him a will and desire that belonged there. His faith was in the Lord. David's faith certainly wasn't in himself. Peter's faith was in himself and that's why he fell; he needed to fall. He needed to be a failure so that he would learn that lesson.   It's amazing how we usually look at people in the Old Testament as having less light than people in the New Testament, because we know that they lived under types and shadows and really didn't know the revelation of those types/shadows that we do now. But David almost lived a New Testament life with the Lord, because he understood the sovereignty of God and depended upon God for His grace to be who he was. The following is a prayer of David concerning the offering of the temple (when they were taking up offerings to build the temple):  1Ch 29:10-14 Wherefore David blessed Jehovah before all the assembly; and David said, Blessed be thou, O Jehovah, the God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. (11) Thine, O Jehovah, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: (Jesus said, All authority (authority to exercise power) in heaven and earth has been given unto me (Mat 28:18).  If we need power, where do we have to get it? We don't have any power. Jesus Himself said that He was nothing without the Father; He couldn't do anything without the Father. This is certainly true about us. Our power comes from God by grace and in most cases it has to come because of our faith. We believe God has delivered us from sin through Jesus Christ; we believe God has delivered us from the curse through Jesus Christ.   God gives us a mind and desire to do what is right and a lot of times, that is in the form of repentance.) Back to (11) ..for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Jehovah, and thou art exalted as head above all. (12) Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou rulest over all; and in thy hand is power and might; and in thy hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all. (We must get our strength from the Father.) (13) Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name. (14) But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.  Did you catch the “willingly” part in verse 14? He gave them this will. Any place we lack we can go to the Father and He will help us; He will give us grace to will His Will.  Jesus said, he who the Son sets free is free indeed. (Joh 8:36). Do you know how He really sets us free? Do you know what freedom is? Freedom is the ability or lack of restraint from doing anything you want to do. However, when you're walking in the lusts of your flesh you can't do everything you want to do; you can't get away with it and you don't have the ability. You're limited by nature; by physical circumstances; and limited by gravity. You just can't do everything you want to do. But in this process of the Lord working in you to will and to do of His good pleasure, He's able to put His Will in you. If you really want His Will, He can put it in you.   When God is done with this process (of putting His Will in you), then you get to do what you want to do, because you want to do what He wants to do. And nobody stops God from doing what He wants to do. He works all things after the council of His own Will. Daniel said nobody restrains His hand. You're free because He who the Son sets free is free indeed. So if you really want to be free you have to ask God to put His Will in you. And when you read the Word, you've got to repent, meaning change your mind. If your desire is according to the Word, you're going to have your desires, and they will all be good desires.  You know why we are not free? It's because there is a war going on in us. Between the outer man and the inner man, they both want their way. Galatians Chapter 5 talks about the flesh lusting against the spirit and the spirit lusting against the flesh; they are at war and are totally contrary one to another. The Bible also says that the outer man is decaying and the inner man is being renewed, while we look not at the things that are seen but at the things that are not seen (2Co 4:16-18). In other words, if we get our eyes set on what the Word says about us, even though we don't see it in the physical, God is working to bring it to pass. And the outer man is going to be dying and the inner man is going to be renewed and free to do his will, which is God's will.   God's plan is for the inner man to take over. He's like the Israelite who goes into the promise land and puts to death the Canaanite and takes his house. Well, we are an Israelite's house. This is a process of repenting, of reading His Word and saying, “Okay, Lord, you're right and I'm wrong. I want your thoughts to be my thoughts.” Like Jesus said, “have the faith of God.” We want God's thoughts and faith to be our thoughts and faith. If God's thoughts are your thoughts, then you are free, because nobody restrains God's Will.   People restrain God's “wishes” sometimes as in this verse. 2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness; but is longsuffering to you-ward, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.  KJV says, “God is not willing that any should perish.” Willing is not in the ancient manuscripts or Numerics. The word here is “wishing” or “intending” in the Numeric. If God were not “willing” for anyone to perish, no one would perish. But He is not “wishing” that any should perish.   Notice: God “is longsuffering to you-ward”. He's talking to Christians, not the world. God wants all of His people to repent and He is not “wishing” that any of His people perish. But if He weren't “willing” for any of them to perish, none would. The fact is, the Church is in a great falling away because the Bible shows this. It's important that we understand that God has granted us repentance; it was a free gift. And it wasn't really necessary that He gave it to us; He could have given it to somebody else. Some refuse because the love the world.  We should fear the Lord. If you understand the sovereignty of God, you'll fear the Lord. If we repent, it is a gift from God, like faith. We are in God's kingdom because of His mercy and grace. To the extent we want to progress in His kingdom, we still need His mercy and grace to repent. He wants us to acknowledge His ability in our life in all things. He wants us to seek Him for the desire to do right.  Look at Rom 2:1 Wherefore thou art without excuse, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest dost practice the same things. Notice that it mentions the plural, things. He's not saying you're doing the same thing that you are judging this person for. This is very important.  (2) And we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against them that practice such things. (3) And reckonest thou this, O man, who judgest them that practice such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? (4) Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?  This is why we shouldn't judge or be unforgiving. It's because we may not be doing the same thing we are judging someone for, but that's not the way the Law works. You break one part of the Law and you're a lawbreaker. If you're judging somebody else who has broken part of the Law and you consider them not worthy of God's forgiveness because they broke some part of the Law, God's going to judge you the same way. Now we have proof of that in James chapter 2.  I might also remind you that Paul reminded us in 1Co 5:6, that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump, and, put out the leaven from among you. He was talking about outward moral disobedience or willful disobedience, and he told the church that there should be at least one among them that is spiritual enough to judge between the brethren and people who were in this outward, willful, moral disobedience, and that they should be separated from the church. Be careful that when you talk about sin, you draw a line between willful disobedience and failure. Because for failure, the blood of Jesus covers it. Rom 7:16-17  But if what I would not, that I do, I consent unto the law that it is good.  17  So now it is no more I that do it, but sin which dwelleth in me.   So if a person wills to do good but fails he gets mercy and the blood covering.    Heb 10:26 But if we sin willfully, after that we receive the knowledge of the truth, there remains no sacrifice for sin, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment which shall devour the adversaries.  The Lord is saying that if one of His children sins willfully, in other words, they know it is sin and they're going to do it anyway, then they are doing it with their will, then there is judgment and condemnation against that kind of a sin. But as we saw in Rom 7, the Apostle Paul himself was giving us his experience of failing the Lord and not knowing what to do because he wanted to serve the Lord and please the Lord. He was lamenting his inability to serve the Lord, and to be obedient to the Lord, and he was failing. Then he got this revelation in Rom 7:24 who shall deliver me from the body of this death?  He then said, (25) I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Rom 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus.  He got a revelation of grace that is sorely needed! God starts separating the sin from you when your will is against the sin. But when your will is for the sin, He judges you. And the Church should know this, but they group all sin in the same category. This is false and dangerous. It's inevitable that you will get judged when it's willful disobedience, because He's a good Father. You should do it with your children, too, if you are a good parent. You wouldn't let them get away with willful disobedience. You hate your child, the Bible says, if you do that.   So He does not let willful disobedience go by (Heb 10:26); he doesn't want us to either. Well, in the Church it's the same way. The leadership is not supposed to let willful disobedience go by. 1 Corinthians 5 and 6 is a really good example of that. But concerning other things, concerning failures in the Church, of which there are many, because we are dealing with the outer man still, he gives us some advice here:  Jas 2:8-9 Howbeit if ye fulfill the royal law, according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well: (9) but if ye have respect of persons, ye commit sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors. In other words, you've got to love your neighbors just as much as you love yourself. You can't judge him any differently than you would judge yourself. Do you see the point he is getting at here?  (10) For whosoever shall keep the whole law and yet stumble in one point, he is become guilty of all. (11) For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou dost not commit adultery, but killest, thou art become a transgressor of the law. (12) So speak ye, and so do, as men that are to be judged by a law of liberty.  In other words, you want to judge other people the way you want to be judged. Because what measure you measure it out it's going to be measured unto you again, the Bible says. That's why Jesus said be quick to get the board out of your eyes so you can get the mote out of your brother's eye. Well, here's the point. Since you are judging your brother according to the Law, you are going to be judged according to the Law. So he says be careful that you judge according to a law of liberty. You know what the liberty was? Liberty was the jubilee. Liberty was when all servants who were in bondage were set free.   And we know what Jesus did for us. Because of the blood covering He set us free, and we consider that we accept God's forgiveness. And we accept God's blood covering over our failures until He gets us where He wants us. Well, we've got to be sure that we are saying the same thing and judging the same way for our brother. James says here in Jas 2:13 For judgment is without mercy to him that hath showed no mercy: mercy glorieth against judgment.  So we have to be careful because we'll bring ourselves under judgment. We'll bring ourselves under the Law, as a matter of fact. So that's why he says in Rom 2:4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? In other words, God had mercy upon you, He gave you a gift He didn't have to give you or didn't owe you. He could have given it to anybody. And yet, like Noah's day only a small percentage of the world gets God's gift of repentance to turn around and goes His way.  So He could give this to anybody. We should consider ourselves most fortunate to get this gift from God, to change our minds and go His way. And even to the extent that we lack in an area, we can go to God and He will help us; but He won't help us if we judge other people so we need to be careful.  The Bible says, in 2Co 10:6, and being in readiness to avenge all disobedience, when your obedience shall be made full. Notice that in the scriptures, God used the elders to do this judging. When I mean elders, I'm not talking about people that went to Bible school, I'm talking about people who are grown up in the Lord, who are mature in the Lord. What does it mean to be mature in the Lord? It means for the Lord to be mature in them. The Lord is manifesting in them; there's fruit in their life; they're overcoming sin. The Lord only gives authority to those who overcome sin. Rev 2:26 And he that overcometh, and he that keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give authority over the nations:  Rev 3:21 He that overcometh, I will give to him to sit down with me in my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father in his throne. The throne is the place of authority over the people. God doesn't put people over the church that are in sin; the apostate church does that. In the Bible, He made sure that these were not novices they were laying hands on to ordain as elders, because, He said, novices were going to fall into condemnation of the devil if put in a position of authority, so these people had to be without reproach. And even to the world; (“those from without”), they had to have a clean slate. The church isn't paying attention to this nowadays. When God ordains elders, which are the 5 fold ministers, He does it according to whether they are overcomers or not, according to whether they are grown up in the Lord, not whether they pass their grades in Bible school or not. Because you know that you can pass the grades and answer the questions according to the way that they want to hear it and get your certificate, and that means nothing to God any more than the Pharisees did who were judged.  Rom 2:5 but after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up for thyself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; In other words, for people that judge other people while they themselves are living in sin, there's a day coming down the road where God is going to judge these apostates, so we have to be careful.  Rom 2:1  Wherefore thou art without excuse, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest dost practice the same things. …   6 who will render to every man according to his works: 7 to them that by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and incorruption, eternal life: 8 but unto them that are factious, and obey not the truth, but obey unrighteousness, shall be wrath and indignation, 9 tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that worketh evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Greek; 10 but glory and honor and peace to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek:  So the goodness of God has led us to repentance. And the goodness of God will continue to do that. The Bible says, By grace have you been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is a gift from God (Eph 2:8). So if we'll exercise faith towards God we'll get all the grace we need to walk with Him. We should know that God's got all the ability to put in us a will to be pleasing unto Him. But we need to acknowledge to Him that it's not our own ability. We need to go to Him for this grace and this ability and He will work it in us. Like we see in the Old Testament, David prayed constantly for God to work this desire in him.  God deals with people and they sometimes just ignore Him. He even gives them a desire to do His Will and they still turn to their flesh and do their own thing. I was privileged years ago to witness to this young fellow that received the Lord and a week later he was dead. Have you ever heard of these horror stories? Witnessed to so and so and they didn't listen, they went out and that was the end of it. Well, this guy received the Lord one week and was dead the next. He got in an automobile accident and he was gone. But thank God, he knew the Lord. He was walking in the best of his understanding of the Lord when he died.   It's a deception to think you can come to the Lord when you are ready, often because you are enjoying the life you have now. That's because no one comes unto the Son except the Father draws him or her. When you are drawn you need to go, because you don't have a guarantee later, you've got a guarantee for now. If He doesn't draw you, you will not go. God does this corporately also. We are coming to a time when He is going to turn away from the Gentiles and turn back to the Jews. So there is a time for people to wait too late.   Remember the parable of the ten virgins. Five were wise and five were foolish. The Lord came and five weren't ready, so the Lord took the five wise virgins. There's a line drawn in the sand there, and there's a corporate time when we can wait too late. But there are also individual times that a person can wait too late and not do something with the grace God has given them. When God is dealing with you it's because He's going to give you grace to go in His direction, but if you keep turning away from that grace, He'll take it back. He does reprobate some people which means rejected or not standing the test. We all have probably known people like this that have totally turned away from God to follow after the lusts of their own flesh. That's the only thing that pleased them.    God can do that because the only reason that we have a desire to know the Lord and love His Word is because He put it in us. And to whom much is given, much is expected. If you don't do something with what God gives you, He'll take it back and give it to someone else. (Rev 3:11  I come quickly: hold fast that which thou hast, that no one take thy crown.) There are many people sitting on church pews right now that are in this state. They think that they are justified because they are affiliated with a church and they have a certain revelation and a certain denomination, but they are dead.   In the Book of Jude it talks about these people who went after the way of Balaam for hire. He said they were without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots. Twice dead means that you must have been born-again. So God can reprobate someone who doesn't do something with the grace that God gives.   The following is a corporate example of reprobation. Luk 13:22-24 And he went on his way through cities and villages, teaching, and journeying on unto Jerusalem. (23) And one said unto him, Lord, are they few that are saved? And he said unto them, (24) Strive to enter in by the narrow door: for many, I say unto you, shall seek to enter in and shall not be able.  Have you ever run across people that really wanted to go God's way, but they weren't able? They weren't able to turn away from their sins. You see, the way we come in God's direction is because He grants us repentance. It's not just the desire; it's the repentance. Repentance means to turn around and go the other way, change your mind. God grants repentance or He doesn't grant repentance. A good example is in Heb 12:14 Follow after peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no man shall see the Lord: If you're not walking in holiness (sanctification), you are in danger. Sanctification (holiness) means separated from sin unto God. 15 looking carefully lest there be any man that falleth short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby the many be defiled.   You know, bitterness can destroy a person. If you don't forgive, you are not forgiven. If you are not forgiven, you are not saved. How could you possibly go to heaven if you're not forgiven? Jesus said very plainly that, if you don't forgive, you're not forgiven. Bitterness is unforgiveness; wrath is unforgiveness; anger is unforgiveness. That's why the Lord warns us to separate ourselves from these things. Be sure to forgive. Be sure to cast out any root of bitterness. He says many be defiled; they're unclean, they are unacceptable. 16 ... lest there be any fornication, or profane person, as Esau, who for one mess of meat sold his own birthright.  Now Esau was a son of Abraham and he lost his birthright. It seems Esau had bitterness and unforgiveness towards his brother Jacob. But people say they are a son of Abraham and can't possibly be lost. This is a huge error. Esau was a son of Abraham and he was lost. 17 For ye know that even when he afterward desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected; for he found no place for a change of mind in his father, though he sought it diligently with tears. The word rejected here means reprobated. In other words, he found no place for repentance. “In his father” wasn't in the original, this was someone's theology inserted there. Esau couldn't repent or change his mind. Judas couldn't repent though he knew he was wrong. Have you ever been under bondage to something and you didn't want to be there, but you couldn't change your mind, and you were in bondage to this thing and you didn't like it? Well, Esau couldn't change his mind. Being able to change your mind or being able to repent is a gift from God. And He will grant it to any one of us by faith. Christians have a right to it because we have promises for it, but we have to exercise faith to enter into it.   Of course, the devil doesn't want us to understand that and know that. God freely has this gift to give us if we'll just exercise faith for it. However, He won't grant repentance to those judging other people, like we just read in Romans. There are other reasons too, such as self-righteousness, like Peter. Peter did not find the grace of God to be bold enough to stand and not deny the Lord. Why did he not find that grace with God? It was because he was self-righteous. He was considering his own ability and not God's ability. Jesus prayed for him that his faith wouldn't fail him and he found repentance and became a great Apostle. Some people say you can't overcome sin. You know why they say that? Because they only consider their own ability, they don't consider God's ability. God's ability has been given to us to overcome sin. There's no sin that you can't exercise faith in the Word of God and overcome it. The Bible says, having therefore these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2Co 7:1) So, we can cleanse ourselves from any defilement of our flesh or evil spirits by faith in these promises. That's God's Word. We've got to believe it. God has all the ability; He has no problem overcoming sin in us, but He wants us to exercise faith for it.   The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes it. (Rom 1:16) The condition is for us to believe the Good News. We won't bear fruit without agreeing with the Good News. Those who fear the Lord and repent have every right to claim the sacrifice of Jesus for deliverance from 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… The entire curse that was due us was put on Jesus. All we have to do is repent and believe.   Only God gives the gift of faith to believe and repent. We have to go to God; He grants faith and repentance. True understanding of salvation by unmerited grace causes us to fear God. Some do not value the gift of God only to have it taken away and given to ones who do value it.  If we consider ourselves able, like Peter did, then we are going to fall and we won't find grace from God. Peter didn't find it and he fell. He found it later through his stumbling. He obviously got the revelation and he got the Holy Spirit in Acts chapter 2 and he stood up and was used to convert thousands of people. He was very bold then to everybody. So anything we need we can go to God to get it because it's all been provided through Jesus Christ. It's all been provided. Just remember, when you need it go to God.   Also remember, He said many will seek to enter in and they won't be able. Let's start here in Luk 13:1-2 Now there were some present at that very season who told him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And he answered and said unto them, Think ye that these Galileans were sinners above all the Galileans, because they have suffered these things? 3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all in like manner perish. Obviously, these people weren't suspecting that they were sinners. Well, I would imagine today many Christians would say, “Oh, look at those sinners. Look what God did to them.” And just like these people were, they were expecting that the ones that God made an example of were not necessarily an example, but they were the sinners. And it's easy to look around and point the finger over there and say, “That's what sin is.” But sin is relative, isn't it? Jas 4:17  To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.   And in people's minds its relative. And they always like to pick somebody they think less of, and point them out, to make them feel better about themselves. Mat 7:5  Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.   But our relativity is to Jesus Christ in His Word. It has nothing to do with comparing ourselves to others. They were probably justifying themselves like a lot of people do today. They can't receive any kind of correction. Of course, the Bible says a fool hates correction, but there are a lot of fools. And 3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all in like manner perish. 4 Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and killed them, think ye that they were offenders above all the men that dwell in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Notice, it sounded like He was saying if you repented, you wouldn't perish. I'm sure some didn't get that out of it, but it's pretty clear, isn't it? If a person repents; “righteousness delivers from death.”   And of course, repentance is coming into agreement with the Word of God. It's not coming into agreement with your church or religion, or feeling good, because you belong to any certain group. Repentance is coming into agreement with the Word of God. (Amo 3:3) How can two walk together except they be agreed? The Lord wants us to agree with the Word.  Anyway, He went on to say in Luk 13:6 And he spake this parable; (And who is he speaking to? The same people, right?) A certain man had a fig tree (What's the fig tree represent? God's people. So He was talking to God's people among them.) a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came seeking fruit thereon, and found none. 7 And he said unto the vinedresser, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; (This is the Father commanding to cut down this fruitless tree and the vine dresser is Jesus.) why doth it also cumber the ground? 8 And he answering saith unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: 9 and if it bear fruit thenceforth, well; but if not, thou shalt cut it down.  I'm sure you know a lot of people out there getting dunged and it doesn't bring any fruit of the life of Christ. So if this doesn't bring any repentance or any fruit it's going to be cut down according to Jesus. Of course they say that couldn't be me for I have gifts of the Spirit and I do this or that… We know it's not gifts or works that insure we are in the Kingdom but the fruit of the Spirit. Those who are lukewarm in their holiness are being spewed out of the mouth of the body of Christ, because that's what the threat is. Spewed out of the body of Christ. Well, he goes down in verse 23 And one said unto him, Lord, are they few that are saved? Well, the Lord said, many are called but few are chosen. Meaning among those that we call Christians, many are called. He didn't say “all are called” because he doesn't call all, the Bible says. “He saved us and called us”, so all “they that are called are saved”. But if they don't walk by faith, they don't bear fruit. It is the elect “eklectos” or chosen that will ultimately bear fruit and be saved as in the parable of the sower. The fruit is chosen and the plant is plowed under.    24 Strive to enter in by the narrow door: for many, I say unto you, shall seek to enter in, (Who is it that seeking to enter in? It's not the lost people. These are people seeking to enter in through the door of the Kingdom.) and shall not be able. He said, strive to enter in by the narrow door, and this was spoken to God's people. He says, strive to enter in. What kind of striving do we need to do? The Bible tells us to strive against sin and we strive to walk by faith to enable us to “walk as Jesus walked”. We have to do warfare against the enemy, to walk by faith so that we may receive the power from God to be well pleasing unto Him. We cannot be satisfied like the Laodicean Church. They were satisfied.  Again Luk 13:24-27 Strive to enter in by the narrow door: for many, I say unto you, shall seek to enter in, and shall not be able. (We think that if we seek something, we will just automatically have it, but that's not so. There is a time of reprobation when the fruit is not there. In this text it's very clear that God closed the door with the elect inside and the fruitless outside.) 25 When once the master of the house is risen up and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, open to us; and he shall answer and say to you, I know you not whence ye are; 26 then shall ye begin to say, We did eat and drink in thy presence, and thou didst teach in our streets; 27 and he shall say, I tell you, I know not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.   Obviously there was no repentance, not enough fruit to keep them from being workers of iniquity. Now, many people believe everything that they do is covered by the blood. They can do whatever they want. And in the end, they'll not be found in the Kingdom. They're lukewarm, they don't walk under the King and therefore are not in the Kingdom. He said He doesn't know them. They haven't received His seed.  We must gracefully correct them as in 2Ti 2:25 in meekness correcting them that oppose themselves; if peradventure God may give them repentance unto the knowledge of the truth, See, when we try to correct people, we try to bring them in-line with God's Word; the only hope is that God will grant them repentance unto the knowledge of the truth. Convincing won't really work; they'll just as easily convinced out of it. But, if God gives them the grace to repent and believe the truth, then that's the only way we are going to be successful. That's why we need to go to God first. If we think we can do it we're going to meet with much failure. We need to ask God to move in this person's heart; we need to ask God to grant this person repentance; we need to ask God to put the fear of God in them. We've got to start with God. If we don't start with God, He's rather insulted. Because obviously you think you can do it yourself. That's not the way people get grace from God.  26 and they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him unto his will. We have to go to God. Remember, just as God put in you a desire and a will to serve Him and run after Him, He can do it for the people you are praying for. God uses substance to make everything out of, doesn't He? In Hebrews chapter 11, faith is the “substance” of the things hoped for.   So we go to God by faith that He will put in this person's heart His gift of repentance and His desires. We can believe for our loved ones, we can believe for our children, because we have promises for all these things. We can pray to God. Jesus said, “All things whatsoever you pray and ask for believe you have received them and you shall have them.”  God will use our faith to put His desire in that person's heart to draw them unto Jesus. And they will recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him “unto the will of him” (Numeric).   The devil doesn't have a free-will. He's bound in sin and shapen in iniquity, too, but if the devil's got somebody, that's God's Will too. God is the only one that can, “will them” out from under the dominion of the devil. For example, the apostle Paul turned a Christian over to the devil in 1 Corinthians 5 because he was living in sin. It was the will of God that they turn this Christian “over to the devil for the destruction of his flesh so that his spirit would be saved in the day of the Lord.” For that Christian to be under the hand, or dominion of the devil was the Will of God so he would repent, because the devil is not nice to Christians and he'll make you wish you were back under the blood, where it is safe. The Lord is intent on turning us around when we go into sin.  Ever see people that go to the altar, time and time again? They are continually and constantly crying out to the Lord, but they're never getting any deliverance. Well, it's because it takes faith to receive grace from God. Many people are being put under condemnation and they don't understand that condemnation is not the way to be an overcomer; faith is. If you stay under condemnation you will not have faith. Faith is the victory that overcomes the world, the Bible says.  Paul says, 2Co 7:9-10 I now rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye were made sorry unto repentance; for ye were made sorry after a godly sort, that ye might suffer loss by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance unto salvation, a repentance which bringeth no regret; but the sorrow of the world worketh death.  The sorrow of the world doesn't work repentance. Godly sorrow makes you change your mind and go the other way. Sorrow of the world just works regret, meaning they go right back to sinning. We can be sorry, but it has to end up in faith, because faith is the only thing that gives us grace from God. Many people want to overcome their sin, but the only thing that they can see before their eyes is failures and they have condemnation and rejection. But when they change their mind and desire to go God's way they have got to have faith, they need faith in their heart.   Without faith it is impossible to be well-pleasing unto God; without faith it's impossible to receive of His grace. So what you have to do with a person like that is you got to put faith in their heart; you've got to tell them that the Lord delivered (past tense) them from this sin and that the Lord will give them a desire to do what He wants them to do, but they need to get rid of their condemnation.  Rom 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus. Note that it does not say “who walk not after the flesh” in the original. The KJV says that, but it's not in the ancient manuscripts or numeric pattern, because who needs this verse if you're not walking after the flesh to begin with? It doesn't make any sense; it was added in there. There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus while they are still in their sin, desiring to be delivered of it like Paul was. In Romans chapter 7, Paul was failing God miserably and he hated it, he wanted to serve God; then he got this revelation in Rom 8:1.   Why did he get this revelation? Because the only way you can get out of the sin is to get rid of condemnation and get faith, else you're not going to have the victory that overcomes the world. We want a godly sorrow that works repentance, not just the sorrow of the world. The world is sorry because they got caught, or because they're having troubles. We've got to be sorry that we are going the wrong way; we've got to be sorry that we are displeasing God; we've got to be sorry enough to turn around and go the other way.  Then we know we have received grace from God. Joh 3:27 …A man can receive nothing, except it have been given him from heaven. That really does not fit with what we have been taught. Most of God's people are absorbed in the teaching that some things are of God, and some things are not. This doctrine has been passed down through the traditions of men. We need to see God as being on the throne, always ruling over the devil as in Job 1. The circumstances in our lives motivate us to fear, respect, and to have faith in Him. We learn nothing when we blame the devil or people.   For instance, in James 5:16 the Lord says, “Confess therefore your sins one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.” It is common and convenient to blame the devil instead of seeing sickness as a chastening from God for our sins. Some go their whole lives and die in their sicknesses, never repenting, because they never saw a reason to since they were just being persecuted by a bad devil.   Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. In other words, we receive from God according to our actions. He will render to every man according to his works. We also make our own future. Through repentance and faith the sins of our former life are forgiven and washed away, but if we continue in those sins, then we will reap what we have sown. Now that makes us respect and fear God. God has ordained the entire curse system to come against those who transgress. Whether God is using the devil, his demons, wicked people around you, sickness, or any other part of the curse, He is doing it to bring us to repentance and fruit. God will administer His gifts of healing, deliverance, and provision to the ones who are in line for God's blessings through repentance, faith, and justification.  The Lord brings spirits against us to chasten us and to cause us to repent, then after we overcome, He has total ability to make our enemies to be at peace with us. Pro 16:7 When a man's ways please the Lord, He maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. Jesus showed us that enemies are for the crucifixion of our flesh. Even if we are walking in what we know the flesh resists us and must die. We see here that God has total control over our enemies and He can put peace in their heart toward us when we overcome the flesh. We should remember this when we are tempted to take care of our enemies ourselves in retaliation.   So we see, God uses our enemies when our flesh nature is still alive. God created our enemies just for that purpose. Pro 16:4 The Lord hath made everything for its own end (Some manuscripts say: for His own purpose.): Yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. We see God's sovereign hand in all of this. God can send the wicked to us, for a day of evil, because some of our ways do not please the Lord. When we overcome, God can give us total peace in the midst of our enemies. Whether they are wicked men or demon spirits, it does not make any difference.  The Bible says we can go boldly before the throne of grace to receive help. Well, if you're going boldly, you're going with faith, aren't you? We need grace and we have to get it from God. If we go by faith, we are going to receive the grace we need. The devil is really diligent in trying to turn us away and cause us to look at our past, look at our failures. If he can do that, you're just going to feel condemnation all the time. But the Bible says in  (Php 3:13-14)…forgetting those things that are behind let us press forward to the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. We've got to forget what's back there. We've got to look ahead “reckoning ourselves to be dead unto sin.”. We've got to forget all our failures and see what the Bible says about us and hold fast to it. Heb 10:23  let us hold fast the confession of our hope that it waver not; for he is faithful that promised.  So let's look here in Jer 31:18 I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus, Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a calf unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art Jehovah my God. 19 Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth. Notice the words “turn thou me.” The power comes from God. Notice: If He turns us we'll be turned. And after we are turned, we'll repent, and do it His way. And this repentance causes Ephraim to smite himself upon his thigh. This is grief; grief for going against God.  It's awesome how you can pray for people and God can even put the fear of the Lord in them. Think about Paul on the Damascus Road; God can save anybody He wants to save. What makes Him want to save somebody? Faith. We exercise our faith that He gives us. Now, who would be in Paul's shoes there on the road and they wouldn't say, “Yes, Lord?” God has the ability and He has the circumstances in His hand. We can be confident in the Lord.   There are promises in the Bible for our children; our children won't be in bondage to foreign dominion (Deuteronomy 28). That was part of the curse that our children would be in bondage to the enemy. So Jesus bore the curse. Even when they think they want to go the other way, God is able to put in them the desire to turn and go towards Him, like Ephraim did, or ourselves, for failing God.   It's the same way for us; “Lord, please change my heart. I invite you to change my heart and put in it Your desires to go Your way. Please put it in me, Lord, to do Your will and I'll serve You. We say with the Shulamite in Song of Solomon, “Draw me, and we will run after You”. God is pleased when we recognize that He is the only One with the power and the authority to give us abilities to do what He wants. Self-righteousness is a filthy rag before God. Our faith in our own ability will fail, like Peter. God sees to it; He makes sure you fail when you're self-confident for self is the enemy.  Now when we confess our sins and our failures to God, we are cleansed of them. 1Jn 1:9 ASV  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Then we can have faith and the devil can't condemn us. But is there a right place for condemnation? Yeah, sure there is. If a person is in willful disobedience, there's the right place for condemnation. If a person desires to serve God, that's when they need to get rid of their condemnation. When do we confess God's salvation and when do we confess our sins? Think about it. You confess your sins when you are repenting of it then you turn away from it. Then you confess Jesus and His gift of righteousness. You don't look back anymore.   Some people just look at the sin over and over and over, but you'll never overcome it that way. You've got to say what the Bible says about you. You look at the sin one time, you confess it to God and then you forget about it. He will “cleanse you from all unrighteousness”. Do you believe that? You can't have it unless you believe it.  What is unrighteousness? It's the thing that makes you sin in the first place. If He takes that out of you, are you going to sin? No. That's God's promise, and He means it too. So what we do is kind of like when the Israelites were in the wilderness and were murmuring against God, they were speaking unbelief against the Lord, and God sent the fiery serpents to bite them. Many of the Israelites were dying from these fiery serpents and the Lord gave to Moses the remedy that Moses was to put this brazen serpent on a pole, and everybody that got their eyes on this serpent on the pole and off the curse would be delivered or healed of the snake bite.   We know that Jesus was that serpent on the pole, because He became sin for us (2Co 5:21). That's why He was likened unto a serpent. But if you get your eyes on Jesus, and get your eyes off the snake bite, you get healed of the snake bite. If you get your eyes on the snake bite and off of Jesus, you get nothing except more of the same curse. If thine eye be single thy whole body shall be full of light.  Some very well-meaning but ignorant preachers like to get your eyes on your sin and keep them there all the time. With this approach, you could never overcome anything because you're always crying about your sin. The Lord doesn't want us to continue to cry about our sin, He wants us to reckon ourselves dead unto sin but alive unto God as in Rom 6. This is God's way of delivering us from sin. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes it (Rom 1:16). The Gospel is the Good News! The Good News is that Jesus took your sins away.   The Bible says let your speech always be seasoned with grace. If it's law and condemnation all the time then you're continually going to be looking inward instead of upward and you're going to be continually failing. Because you've got your eyes on yourself and the problem, you don't have your eyes on the serpent on the pole, Jesus. This is why He tells us we're dead to sin.   Romans chapter 6 is the story of you being united with the death of Christ through baptism, so that when you come up out of the water you're dead and Jesus lives. That's our faith. That's why we get baptized. We get baptized so we are united with His death, burial and resurrection. In other words, when I came up out of that water, Dave was dead and Jesus lives. He lives in me. That's what Paul said. It's no more I that live; it's Christ that lives in me (Gal 2:20).  Rom 6:11 Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus. In other words, stop looking at the sin. Jesus is bigger. He took care of it. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey the lusts thereof: Why does he say that? Notice that verses 11 and 12 go together. If you do verse 11, then you get verse 12. He's telling you this is the way to not let sin rule over you. Reckon yourself to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God. This is the Gospel, the Good News. Jesus took care of sin. He already overcame the world. It's finished. He's taken away our sins. He was the Lamb of God that took (past tense) away the sins of the world. We are delivered. And he goes on in this chapter to tell us that we were made free from sin, in 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.  That should give you cause to rejoice! We're free! We've got to be so confident in that because it's the Gospel that we keep our eyes on Jesus and He gives us power, if we believe it. If we don't believe it and we are continually looking at ourselves in sin, then we're going to get no power. Because the Lord doesn't want us looking at ourselves, He wants us looking at Him. Look at the promise and reckon it to be done. He said, “Reckon yourself to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God.”  I am dead to sin; sin no more has power over me. If you believe that sin has power over you, then it has power over you. If you believe that it does not have power over you, because of what Jesus did, then it has no power over you.  And God will continue to do a good work in you because He's got faith coming out of you and you are speaking it. Gal 2:20…It's no more I that live, it is Christ living in me… Agree with the Word of God. I don't live, Jesus lives. David died. He died with Christ about 2000 years ago. I was spiritually united with Him at the time of my baptism.  Jesus took away every sin and put it on His cross. All we have to do is believe the Gospel and He is able to do it. Do you know that He's not able to do it unless you believe the Gospel? He's not able to deliver you from sin unless you believe the Gospel. Remember that Jesus went to His own hometown and He was not able to do many mighty works because of their unbelief (Mat 13:53-57). He was not able. And He's not able to deliver from sin with unbelief either. We have to give Him the substance of the thing hoped for (Heb 11:1-2).   Now concerning forgiving others, the correct confession is: I can forgive because of what Jesus did for me. I am dead to sin and alive unto God. Our confession has to be in line with the Word as in Rom 10:10 ... for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. We need to agree with the Word and speak it.  Most of the worldly church is living in the Old Testament. Because they consider the only thing Jesus came for was to bring forgiveness of sins, which the blood of bulls and goats already brought; but the Bible says it couldn't take away sin, so God brought another Covenant, by the blood of Jesus, in order to take away sin. They don't understand that this Covenant came to take away the very nature of sin, so what do they do? They want to go back and live under the Old Covenant where they just have forgiveness of sin. Forgiveness is good, we've got that, but we also have something much greater than that.  The Bible says that God rejected that first covenant because it could not perfect. Why did He bring the New Covenant? Because what happened at the cross through Jesus Christ is that Jesus took away sin; took away the very nature of evil. He took it out of us. He nailed it on the cross. He gave us His life. See, these people are confessing something that's not New Testament. We need to confess what the Bible says about us and what the Lord did for us. Most people aren't entering into this because they are not agreeing with the New Testament.   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:  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.  Heb 10:1-2 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. (2) Else would they not have ceased to be offered? because the worshippers, having been once cleansed, would have had no more consciousness of sins.  God fulfills this Hebrews 10:1-2 in the New Testament. Why did He reject the Old Covenant? Because it couldn't make perfect them that draw nigh. Heb 10:14 For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. It is finished! Repent and Believe!  Does God ever change His mind; does He repent? How can God change His mind when He knows and speaks the end in the beginning? Isa 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not [yet] done; saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure. If He sees all from the beginning, why would He ever need to change His mind? God will not change what is written in His Word. Psa 119:89 For ever, O Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven. His Word is likened unto a rock, immovable and unchangeable. However, God can change or delay what He speaks to you personally as a warning through prophets, dreams, visions, or His Spirit. When the Word ultimately comes to pass, it will be fulfilled as the Bible says it will.   God gave us an example of this in the book of Jonah. Jonah cried and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown (Jon 3:4). God told Jonah to preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee (Jon 3:2), so he did. He was not a false prophet. God spared Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, because they repented. This angered Jonah because Assyria was the mortal enemy of Israel and the prophets had already been prophesying that Assyria would conquer rebellious Israel. He wanted them to be destroyed for what he perceived was Israel's sake. Jonah knew that if he preached to Nineveh and they repented, God would not destroy them, so he fled.   Jon 4:1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. 2 And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I hasted to flee unto Tarshish; for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, and repentest thee of the evil. God spared Nineveh around 752 B.C. so that Assyria could conquer the northern ten tribes of Israel around 720 B.C. and then Judah around 701 B.C. Nineveh ultimately did fall around 612 B.C. God knew before He threatened Nineveh that He was going to spare them for the purpose of using them to chasten Israel.   From Nineveh's perspective, they changed God's mind by repenting, but from God's perspective, He changed Nineveh's mind and fulfilled His plan from the beginning for them, which was to chasten Israel! Jonah's Hebrew word for “repentest” here is nacham meaning “to sigh” and by implication “to be sorry.” In itself, nacham does not admit evil doing, or even a change of mind, only sorrow. As Father, God must do many things that He sorrows over. When the Scriptures speak of God repenting, it is for our perspective because it appears to us that He changed His mind and did not do what He threatened. As a parent five times over, I have done this many times. The difference between God and us is, He plans and sees the delays and repentances from the beginning. Num 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie, Neither the son of man, that he should repent. 1Sa 15:29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent; for he is not a man, that he should repent. 

Never underestimate the power of a moment. The impact of the choices we make today can have a ripple effect that could last for generations. Whether God is calling you to your Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, or to the ends of the earth; our obedience is more important than our comfort. 

In today's enlightening episode of the School of Divine Mysteries, we delve into the captivating topic of sin and the intricate nature of good and evil. Join Aba Al-Sadiq (fhip) and his insightful guest Tiffany as they unravel the profound mysteries surrounding morality.

In this episode, Rich and Emily are joined by Dr. James Maxey, Director of Strategic Partnerships for The Seed Company, and Dr. Nathan Esala, formerly Translations Coordinator for Lutheran Bible Translators—who has joined Seed Company as part of the strategic alliance between the two organizations. They discuss the power of partnerships across the Bible translation community. We are in a season of collaboration at Lutheran Bible Translators to expand the Bible translation movement. As servants of Christ, we desire unity across the Church to make God's Word available to all people. During this interview, Maxey and Esala share their eagerness for this new exploration of partnership between the two organizations. There are multiple benefits to joining in alliance with each other. Esala highlights Lutheran Bible Translators's many years of involvement in global communities and the resultant long-standing relationships. The Seed Company offers a fresh take on how to gain awareness for the mission of Bible translation. Specifically, Esala and Maxey are working with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea to make Bible translation a focused ministry in the country. Combining our efforts can lead to new accomplishments for God's Kingdom. The connecting power of relationships is emphasized throughout the discussion. Maxey and Esala have a deep connection to Lutheran Bible Translators and to each other. Their entwined relationship throughout the years has motivated them to form this partnership. Esala reminds us that one of the functions of Christianity involves building bridges between people of different cultures and experiences. Whether God has led us to foster partnerships in countries like Papua New Guinea or Cameroon, or we are embedded within our own communities in the United States, God desires us to learn continuously more from one another.

In the second part of a series entitled, "Portrait of a Godly Woman," Brett shows how Ruth was diligent to work. She was not lazy. Whether God calls a woman into the marketplace or whether she is a homemaker, God expects that woman to put her heart into it.

This psalm calls the earth to rejoice that the LORD reignsThe fact "the LORD reigns" (Ps. 93:1; 96:10; 97;1; 99:1) or God is King (Ps. 95:3; 98:6) is emphasized repeatedly in the psalms through this section. 97:2 The LORD dwells in thick darkness- Sinai- Exod. 19:16-19; 20:18-21; Deut. 4:11-12; 5:22; Heb. 12:18. Solomon's prayer stresses the same in I Kings 8:12; II Chron. 6:1.Sometimes the Bible stresses God dwells in light- Ps. 104:2; I Tim. 6:16. Whether God is pictured as dwelling in light or darkness, the text emphasizes that we cannot see God in all HIs glory- Exodus 33:18-23.97:3 Fire consumes HIs enemies- Lev. 10:1-2; Num. 11:1-3; 16:35; Ps. 50:397:4-5 These verses sound like a thunderstorm, an earthquake, and a volcano all rolled up into one- Micah 1:4; Nahum 1:3-6; Psalm 18:7-1597;7 If God is so awesome, it is foolish to worship another. 97:7 is quoted from the LXX (also Deut. 32:43) from the LXX and applied to Jesus. All the angels worship Jesus. A passage applied to Yahweh and HIs glory is applied to Jesus in Hebrews 1. Jesus fully shares in being God. The holiness of God as described in Ps. 97:2-3 is our hope. Evil and injustice will not prevail forever in our world because God is utterly holy and absolutely powerful.However, the holiness of God is also our problem. Fire consumes HIs adversaries in Ps. 97:3. The word used for adversaries in the Greek translation was used for us all in Rom. 5:10. Because of our sin we are His enemies. Righteousness is the foundation of HIs throne but there is none righteous, not even one- Rom. 3:10.How can we stand before Him? Nahum 1:6.The death of Christ, the greatest injustice and greatest act of unrighteouness in history, displays the justice and righteousness of God- Romans 3:21-26. Through the cross and resurrection of Jesus, it is possible that unrighteous and enemies of God like us can be saved. 

Colossians 2:6-7... Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. ---------- The only way a ship survives a storm is by setting down its anchor on a firm foundation. When the winds blow and the sea threatens to carry the ship out to sea, the only security the sailors have is by securing their anchor in solid ground. ---------- Even so, where we place our anchor will determine whether we survive the storm. Is your anchor in your career, social status, possessions, or abilities? Or have you anchored yourself on God and His Word? When you are anchored in Christ, He will be able to still the storm in your life. While sometimes God allows us to go through trials to grow us, He can also take away the trials in our lives if we seek Him. When the storm clouds begin to roll in, we should immediately seek His will in the matter. ---------- Whether God's will is for you to endure the trial or for it to be removed, anchoring yourself in Christ and seeking His will is always the best plan of action.

Colossians 2:6-7... Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. ---------- The only way a ship survives a storm is by setting down its anchor on a firm foundation. When the winds blow and the sea threatens to carry the ship out to sea, the only security the sailors have is by securing their anchor in solid ground. ---------- Even so, where we place our anchor will determine whether we survive the storm. Is your anchor in your career, social status, possessions, or abilities? Or have you anchored yourself on God and His Word? When you are anchored in Christ, He will be able to still the storm in your life. While sometimes God allows us to go through trials to grow us, He can also take away the trials in our lives if we seek Him. When the storm clouds begin to roll in, we should immediately seek His will in the matter. ---------- Whether God's will is for you to endure the trial or for it to be removed, anchoring yourself in Christ and seeking His will is always the best plan of action.

Colossians 2:6-7... Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. ---------- The only way a ship survives a storm is by setting down its anchor on a firm foundation. When the winds blow and the sea threatens to carry the ship out to sea, the only security the sailors have is by securing their anchor in solid ground. ---------- Even so, where we place our anchor will determine whether we survive the storm. Is your anchor in your career, social status, possessions, or abilities? Or have you anchored yourself on God and His Word? When you are anchored in Christ, He will be able to still the storm in your life. While sometimes God allows us to go through trials to grow us, He can also take away the trials in our lives if we seek Him. When the storm clouds begin to roll in, we should immediately seek His will in the matter. ---------- Whether God's will is for you to endure the trial or for it to be removed, anchoring yourself in Christ and seeking His will is always the best plan of action.

One of the great struggles in the life of a disciple is when we pray to God, believing that he will give us what we need, and yet he says 'no.' This message reminds us of the powerful truth that he DOES promise give us what we pray for, and yet he also retains the right to say 'no' to our prayers. How are we to stay faithful in prayer when that's the case?

Today is a SPIRITUAL SUNDAY Episode. If you're new to ETE... that means we take today and talk about spiritual stuff. If you dig that kind of stuff... and/or you're curious about that kind of stuff... then stick around! If that's not your thing... no harm no foul. Just skip to one of the other 150+ episodes! But if you stick around... today... we're talking about a story where I heard someone say that they thought God had given them cancer to get their attention. Whew. That hurt my heart to hear that. I get it. I hear people say that kind of thing all the time. But... I will say... I believe something different and we're going to talk about that in this episode. If you're curious about this... and/or... you're dealing with some tough stuff right now... I hope you join me in this convo! If not... scroll on. No matter what tho... know I'm rooting for you my friend! Stay encouraged and we'll talk tomorrow. By the way... I mention a Bible verse in this episode. Specifically Ephesians 3:16 - 21... so I wanted to share it here. 14 For this reason I bend my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner self, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to all the fullness of God. 20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21 to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations [p]forever and ever. Amen. _______________ Be sure to hit me up with questions at ⁠www.encouragingtheencouragers.com⁠ and I'll answer them as we go! You can grab our free "WELL PAID ENCOURAGER'S SECRET TOOL BOX" there too!  Be sure to check out "DREAM THINK DO too: ⁠www.mitchmatthews.com/podcast And hey... let's connect on LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/in/mitchmatthews), Facebook (www.facebook.com/mitch.matthews.104) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/mitch.matthews) too! #letsdothis #IlovejesusbutIcussalittle #coaching #speaker #lifecoach #motivation #lifecoaching #coaching #love #coach #mindset #inspiration #selflove #life #selfcare #success #lifestyle #mentalhealth #mindfulness #personaldevelopment #entrepreneur #goals #happiness #loveyourself #meditation #healing #motivationalquotes #lifequotes #fitness #positivevibes #motivationalspeaker #businesscoach #personalgrowth #business

“To the Levites I have given every tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service that they do, their service in the tent of meeting, so that the people of Israel do not come near the tent of meeting, lest they bear sin and die.” Numbers 18:21-22 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. 1 Thessalonians 4:10b-12 This Episode's Links: (All timestamps offset by 24-seconds) 00:00 – Numbers 18 08:50 – Thoughts on the Reading 25:04 – Education expert torches school system after history grades fall to lowest ever: ‘Dumbed down curriculum' – Fox News 45:59 - Tucker: "By 2008, it was obvious to anybody who was paying attention that Barack Obama had a strange and highly creepy personal life" – NTB Staff 1:05:46 - Colorado distributing $4 million in emergency funding to 245 food pantries as community need increases – Lauren Penington, The Denver Post 1:20:03 - Average Rent by Year – iPropertyManagement.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/garrett-ashley-mullet/message

Have you ever felt unseen? In 2022, singer-songwriter and worship pastor Amy Savin found herself in a season of hiddenness for an entire year. After all her tour dates and income came to a halt in 2020, God led her to a worship pastor position in 2021 and then to take a step back entirely from social media in 2022. In that year of being unseen, God ministered to her grieving heart, and she re-evaluated her relationship with social media. If you've ever felt hidden and unseen, you're in good company. Jesus spent most of his life hidden. David was hidden in the fields before God brought Him to the palace. Whether God calls you to a time of hiddenness or a season of stepping out, follow His leading with all your heart. No season is better than the other. God sees you where you are. When you're faithful to His calling, He celebrates you even when no one else is watching. Tune in to gain heaps of encouragement from Amy and to hear the story behind her newest single, "Like Cargo."  

In this episode, Drs. Ian Clary and Wyatt Graham discussion Thomas's second question in the Summa. In Thomas's age, asking whether something exists was the first part of someone's study. Thomas obviously believes God does exist. In an almost comical line, Thomas answers the question "Whether God Exists" by saying "yes" because God says he does in Exodus 3:14, "I am who I am!" If God says it, then he must exist. Now, the Bible also says some people mentally believe God does not exist (Ps 53:1). So, while God does exist and it is self-evident, we can reason from God's created effects back to the existence of God, which Thomas believes we should and can do because Paul tells us to do so in Romans 1:20. Drs. Clary and Graham also discuss the first of the five ways of God's existence. They push back against the notion that God is somehow immobile since he is the first mover. That, they show, is not what Thomas has in mind.

Episode 363 debuts on February 15, at 8:00 PM Eastern. Rebroadcasts will take place according to the Crusade Channel programming schedule (note: all times listed are Central time). The topic is Expanding on Saint Thomas' Fifth Way. Michael Sheehan (Archbishoph of Germia) — at wikiwand.com Summa Theologiae Question 2. The existence of God, Article 3. Whether God exists? — by Saint Thomas Aquinas at newadvent.org Apologetics and Catholic Doctrine — book by The Most Rev. M. Sheehan, D.D., at archive.org Apologetics and Catholic Doctrine — at goodreads.com Anonymous, God as Architect, public domain, via wikimedia commons “Reconquest” is a militant, engaging, and informative Catholic radio program featuring interviews with interesting guests as well as commentary by your host. It is a radio-journalistic extension of the Crusade of Saint Benedict Center. Each weekly, one-hour episode of Reconquest will debut RIGHT HERE on Wednesday night at 8:00 PM Eastern (7:00 PM Central). It will then be rebroadcast according to the Crusade Channel programming schedule (note: all times listed are Central time).

Episode 361 debuts on February 1, at 8:00 PM Eastern. Rebroadcasts will take place according to the Crusade Channel programming schedule (note: all times listed are Central time). The topic is 'Whether God Exists?' — the Five Proofs. Summa Theologiae Question 2. The existence of God, Article 3. Whether God exists? — by Saint Thomas Aquinas at newadvent.org Causality, Principle Of — at encyclopedia.com Reality: A Synthesis of Thomistic Thought — by Père Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P., at ewtn.com Anonymous Cusco School, Saint Thomas Aquinas, Protector of the University of Cusco, detail, Lima Art Museum, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons   “Reconquest” is a militant, engaging, and informative Catholic radio program featuring interviews with interesting guests as well as commentary by your host. It is a radio-journalistic extension of the Crusade of Saint Benedict Center. Each weekly, one-hour episode of Reconquest will debut RIGHT HERE on Wednesday night at 8:00 PM Eastern (7:00 PM Central). It will then be rebroadcast according to the Crusade Channel programming schedule (note: all times listed are Central time).

IntroductionToday, we are diving deeper into the miracle of the Incarnation. What were the effects of the Incarnation on Christ and on us? How did the world fundamentally shift 2,000 years ago?! If you have not yet listened to part 1 of this two-parter, I highly recommend beginning there. I went over some fairly deep theology of what the Incarnation means and what the Hypostatic Union of the divine and human natures of Christ in one Divine Person is.The Fittingness of the Incarnation According to AquinasSt. Thomas Aquinas asks a series of really cool questions about the Incarnation in question 1 of the third part of the Summa. In this section, he focuses entirely on what he calls the “fittingness” of the Incarnation. When Aquinas speaks of fittingness, he is juxtaposing this term with necessity. In other words, is an event or action in theology strictly necessary or simply fitting? In the first two questions, he explores this query..Is it fitting for God to become incarnate?First, Aquinas asks: “Is it fitting for God to become incarnate?” We know that God is good; this is one the realities of His essence. God exists and He is the truth, the good, the beautiful, and the ground of being itself. Aquinas argues that because of His great and perfect goodness, He desired to share His goodness in the highest manner possible to His creature. So, St. Thomas concludes that it is “manifest that it was fitting that God should become incarnate (ST III, q. 1, a. 1, co.)” Was it necessary for the restoration of the human race?Even though it is a tremendous mystery that God would condescend to become one of us, it was fitting because of His great goodness. But what about necessary? “Was it necessary for the restoration of the human race?” asks Aquinas. He answers that:“What frees the human race from perdition is necessary for the salvation of man. But the mystery of Incarnation is such; according to John 3:16: ‘God so loved the world as to give His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him may not perish, but may have life everlasting.' Therefore it was necessary for man's salvation that God should become incarnate (ST III, q. 1, a. 2, s.c.).”So, because of the sin of Adam and Eve, it was necessary that God should become incarnate. As God, He can reconcile us to Himself; as Man, He can do so on our behalf!If there had been no sin, would God have become incarnate?This leads to St. Thomas' next question: “If there had been no sin, would God have become incarnate?” This question is one of my favorites to contemplate. It was actually the topic of a great conversation for me and my coworkers at lunch a couple weeks ago. In Romans, St. Paul shows us that all men were made sinners through the disobedience of Adam and it was through the one Man, Jesus Christ, that many will be made righteous. In the first letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul says: “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive (1 Cor. 15:22).” Jesus Christ is, thus, the “new Adam” or the “second Adam.” As St. John Henry Newman wrote in his hymn “Praise to the Holiest in the height”:“O loving wisdom of our God!When all was sin and shame,A second Adam to the fightAnd to the rescue came.”It is clear that Scripture teaches that the reason for the Incarnation is the sin of Adam. So, how does Aquinas answer this question: “If there had been no sin, would God have become incarnate?” He says,“... the word of Incarnation was ordained by God as a remedy for sin; so that, had sin had not existed, Incarnation would not have been. And yet the power of God is not limited to this; even had sin not existed, God could have become incarnate (ST III, q. 1, a. 3, co.).”Whether God became incarnate in order to take away actual sin, rather than to take away original sin?God could have become incarnate, even in the absence of human sin. But, as it is, Adam did sin and the incarnation allowed for the stain of original sin to be washed away. But what about personal sin, or as the Church calls it: “actual sin.” St. Thomas asks: “Whether God became incarnate in order to take away actual sin, rather than to take away original sin?”He answers directly that the principle reason for the incarnation was to take away original sin. But he adds:“It is certain that Christ came into this world not only to take away that sin which is handed on originally to posterity, but also in order to take away all sins subsequently added to it; not that all are taken away (ST III, q. 1, a. 4, co.).”Whether it was fitting that God should become incarnate in the beginning of the human race?On the next question: “Whether it was fitting that God should become incarnate in the beginning of the human race?” Aquinas has a lot to say, but we can summarize it thusly:“... God became incarnate at the most fitting time; and it was not fitting that God should become incarnate at the beginning of the human race (ST III, q. 1, a. 5, s.c.).” Whether Incarnation ought to have been put off till the end of the world?In God's timing, the incarnation was unfitting to happen right after the sin of Adam and Eve, but St. Thomas asks “Whether Incarnation ought to have been put off till the end of the world?” He answers:“It is written (Habakkuk 3:2): ‘In the midst of the years Thou shalt make it known.' Therefore the mystery of Incarnation which was made known to the world ought not to have been put off till the end of the world (ST III, q. 1, a. 6, s.c.).”Put simply: the incarnation happened exactly when and where was best, in God's Providence and with His perfect knowledge and planning.The Effects of the Incarnation on Christ HimselfThe Incarnation of Christ was fitting and necessary for the salvation of man. But what were the effects on Christ Himself? First, we can think of our own body and soul. We are limited and finite. We have inclinations to sin and imperfections. We are sinful and sorrowful. We are intrinsically good and capable of wonderful things, by God's grace. But we are also capable of great evil. As we discussed last time, the human nature of Jesus Christ is perfect and perfectly subordinate to His Divinity. He is incapable of sin and acts in the perfection for which mankind was originally made. What does that look like? Perfection. Living in accord with the Will of the Father, perfectly. What is possible? The great St. Athanasius, discussing the Incarnation, says this: “And, in a word, the achievements of the Saviour, resulting from His becoming man, are of such kind and number, that if one should wish to enumerate them, he may be compared to men who gaze at the expanse of the sea and wish to count its waves. For as one cannot take in the whole of the waves with his eyes, for those which are coming on baffle the sense of him that attempts it; so for him that would take in all the achievements of Christ in the body, it is impossible to take in the whole, even by reckoning them up, as those which go beyond his thought are more than those he thinks he has taken in. Better is it, then, not to aim at speaking of the whole, where one cannot do justice even to a part, but, after mentioning one more, to leave the whole for you to marvel at. For all alike are marvelous, and wherever a man turns his glance, he may behold on that side the divinity of the Word, and be struck with exceeding great awe (Athanasius, On the Incarnation, 54.4-5).” The Incarnation is a Miracle and our Blessed Lord is the perfect Man. He shows us what God intended from the beginning for mankind. So, let us take a moment to zoom in: what effects did the Incarnation have on the human body and human soul of Christ?On the Body of ChristJesus Christ had a human body, as we do. He knows our human limitations and is like us. In Hebrews 4:15, we hear: “We have not a high priest, who cannot have compassion on our infirmities: but one tempted in all things like as we are, without sin.” Before His Resurrection from the dead, the Body of Christ was subject to all the bodily weaknesses caused by original sin, which we are all subject: He experienced hunger, thirst, pain, fatigue, and death. These are all natural results of human nature which He assumed. There are a couple of things in the body, however, which Christ did not necessarily experience. It is possible that He had no bodily deformities (until His Passion) and never got sick. St. Athanasius persuasively argues this by saying that it would be “unbecoming that He should heal others who was Himself not healed (P.G., XX, 133).”On the Human Soul of ChristWhen speaking of the human soul of Christ, there are a few areas worth mentioning: His intellect, will, sanctity, and likes and dislikes. In the WillJesus was entirely sinless. Thomists following after St. Thomas Aquinas, as well as Francisco Suarez, and the Society of Jesus all argue that sin is incompatible with the Hypostatic Union. It is safe to assume that this is the case simply on the merits of Dominicans and Jesuits being in agreement (just a joke). Those following the teaching of Duns Scotus say that the sinlessness of Christ is not due to the Hypostatic Union but due to a special Divine Providence similar to the way that it is impossible for the blessed in Heaven to sin.No matter which theological avenue you take, it is an article of faith, to be held definitively, taught at the Council of Ephesus, that Christ never sinned. Jesus Christ is a Divine Person and God cannot turn away from Himself.We also want to take great care to acknowledge the total liberty of Christ, in His human will. After the Incarnation, the will of Christ remained. If this were not the case, then in the matter of death, Christ could not have merited nor satisfied the justice of God for us. St. Thomas Aquinas not only believed in the total liberty of the human will of Christ, but he also provided seventeen different explanations for why this is true!In the IntellectLet us now turn to the human intellect of Christ. Every time the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord comes around, I brace for the incredibly ridiculous homilies in which the deacon or priest (or God, help us, bishops) explain that it was at this moment that Christ realized His mission. They hold that it was at the Baptism of the Lord, when the Spirit descends like a dove, that Christ receives His anointing, grace, and His mission. I want to say unequivocally that this is heretical and nonsensical garbage. The soul of Christ was endowed with the Beatific Vision from the beginning of its existence. For the first moment in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, when the Hypostatic Union came into being, the human soul of Christ beheld the Godhead in its fullness.Like Adam and Eve, Christ had infused knowledge. God the Father revealed many things to Jesus in His humanity all at once, as needed. He also acquired human knowledge through His senses and imagination. The human soul of Christ had a beginning and is not, therefore, infinite as God is infinite. But by the grace of union, His human soul (intellect and will) was most perfect and embraced the widest range possible. Sanctity of Christ From the first moment, in the Hypostatic Union, Jesus Christ enjoyed the grace of union. As St. Augustine teaches:“When the Word was made Flesh then, indeed, He sanctified Himself in Himself, that is, Himself as Man in Himself as Word; for that Christ is One Person, both Word and Man, and renders His human nature holy in the holiness of the Divine nature (Augustine, In Johan. tract. 108, n. 5, in P.L., XXXV, 1916).”St. John also tells us in the prologue of His Gospel that the Word was “full of grace (Jn. 1:14).” And, so, in the human soul of Christ, there was a fullness of sanctifying grace. This is the same grace of the sacraments that we receive at our Baptism and in each of the seven sacraments. Likes and Dislikes In the Hypostatic Union, Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. This glorious union, however, does not deprive the human soul of Christ of the human reality of likes and dislikes. There were certain foods that Jesus preferred. He likely had a favorite game or sport, a favorite joke or turn of phrase, a favorite way to recline at a table that He found most comfortable, and the list goes on. We see in the Gospels that Christ was angry, fearful, sad, happy, and experienced the sensible affections of hope, desire, and joy. After all, He is like us in all things but sin. His likes and dislikes, however, were under complete control by His human will subordinated perfectly to His divine will. The God-Man and the “Communication of Idioms”How we speak about Christ matters, if we are to avoid error. Our words will never fully penetrate the deep mysteries of the Person of Jesus Christ, but there are certain ways of phrasing things that are just plain wrong. In the last part of this two-parter, we discussed a few different Christological heresies that can serve as an illustration of this.How then can we speak about the interaction of deity and humanity in the Divine Person of Jesus Christ? The Church gives us the concept of the communicatio idiomatum (Latin: communication of properties or communication of idioms). There are difficulties that require such a convention. What properties belong to Jesus in His human nature? What properties belong to His divine nature? Is it possible that these properties are shared or mingled between the two natures?Jesus did many things physically which are attributed to His divine power. For example, He healed the sick, forgave sins, walked on water, changed water into wine, and rose from the dead. Though Jesus Christ, the God-man did all of these things, because of the communicatio idiomatum, we can safely say that God did all these things. God healed the sick. God walked on water. God changed water into wine. We are not saying that the properties of Christ's divinity become the properties of His humanity, or vice versa; they are already deeply united by grace. But we rightly say these things because Jesus Christ, even in His humanity, is a Divine Person. So, whatever is affirmed of the Divine Person, the Son of God, the Word made Flesh, Jesus Christ, after the incarnation, in His human or divine natures is attributed to the one Person. This is why St. Ignatius of Antioch referred to the “blood of God” and the “suffering of God.” God the Father has no blood nor did God the Spirit suffer, but the Eternal Word of God, God the Son, assumed Flesh. This is why we can rightly say that Mary is the Theotokos (the God-bearer) rather than merely the Christotokos (the Christ-bearer).There is an excellent summary of the “rules” of the communicatio idiomatum on encyclopedia.com, of all places. You can check that our here, if you are interested in reading further.  The Adoration of the Humanity of ChristThe Greek word dulia refers to veneration. This is the type of respect that is due to the saints and angels on account of their holiness and closeness to God. The next step up is hyperdulia; this is the preeminent veneration and devotion due to the Blessed Virgin Mary as Queen of Heaven. Finally, we arrive at true worship and adoration, in Greek: latria. Latria is due to God alone. In fact, giving latria to anyone other than God would be the grave sin of blasphemy. The Catholic Encyclopedia explains:“The human nature of Christ, united hypostatically with the Divine nature, is adored with the same worship as the Divine nature. We adore the Word when we adore Christ the Man; but the Word is God. The human nature of Christ is not at all the reason of our adoration of Him; that reason is only the Divine nature (CE).”We do not worship the human nature of Jesus Christ. Yet, we affirm that because of the Hypostatic Union, the divinity and humanity of Christ cannot be separated. And, most importantly, there is only one Person in Jesus Christ, which is the Divine Word of God. So, according to the whole Person rather than the parts, we truly adore Jesus Christ, the God-man, with all the devotion, love, and worship due to Almighty God! Effects of the Incarnation on UsFinally, we come to the big question, for us: why did the Word of God become Flesh? How did the Incarnation affect us? In Order to Save UsFirst, as we acclaim in the Nicene Creed: “For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit, he came incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and was made man.” The Word became Flesh for us “in order to save us by reconciling us with God (CCC 456).” Jesus Christ atoned for the sins of the world, both original and personal, though He Himself was without sin. He did this in our place as the Son of Man and He did this perfectly as the Son of God.St. Gregory of Nyssa, one of the Eastern Church Fathers, explains:“Sick, our nature demanded to be healed; fallen, to be raised up; dead, to rise again. We had lost the possession of the good; it was necessary for it to be given back to us. Closed in the darkness, it was necessary to bring us the light; captives, we awaited a Savior; prisoners, help; slaves, a liberator. Are these things minor or insignificant? Did they not move God to descend to human nature and visit it, since humanity was in so miserable and unhappy a state (St. Gregory of Nyssa, Orat. catech 15: PG 45, 48B.)?”That We Might Know God's LoveSecond, the Son of God incarnated that we might know God's love. As St. Thomas Aquinas taught, it was fitting that God should become man in order to show us the depths of His love and the heights of His goodness. The Incarnation is a tremendous miracle and mystery. The fact that Almighty God, containing all things and yet uncontained Himself, became a baby. He depended on the love and care of His Holy Mother and St. Joseph. In His unfathomable humility, the Lord shows us the lengths God was willing to go to in order to bring us back from sin and death. Of course, we see His loving action on full display, bearing the Cross for our sakes. “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends (John 15:13).”To Be Our Model for HolinessThird, Jesus Christ, the Word made Flesh, shows us the model for holiness. By His holy example, we can follow Him in all things, Who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. There is an old blessing that speaks of discipleship: “May you be covered in the dust of the Master.” By following so near to Jesus, we are covered in the dust which His holy feet kick up as He leads us. If we listen to His holy words and holy example, we will be beckoned closer to sharing eternal life with Him in Heaven. To Make Us Partakers of the Divine NatureSt. Peter begins his second letter in this way:“His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire (2 Peter 1:3-4).”The chief of the Apostles reveals to us another reason why the Word became Flesh. He came to make us “partakers of the divine nature.” As St. Irenaeus said,“For this is why the Word became man, and the Son of God became the Son of man: so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God (St. Irenaeus, Adv. haeres. 3, 19, 1: PG 7/1, 939.).”The great St. Athanasius put it even more succinctly: “For the Son of God became man so that we might become God (St. Athanasius, De inc. 54, 3: PG 25, 192B.).” And lest we think that this notion is peculiar to the first millennium, St. Thomas Aquinas said, “The only-begotten Son of God, wanting to make us sharers in his divinity, assumed our nature, so that he, made man, might make men gods (St. Thomas Aquinas, Opusc. 57, 1-4.).”Receiving Sanctifying GraceThe primary means of receiving sanctifying grace in our soul and sharing in the divine nature is through the Sacrament of Baptism. We enter the sacramental life through the door of Baptism and God comes to dwell within us as in a Temple. We receive an infusion of the divine life and have the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity operative in our soul. This initiation, begun in Baptism, is perfected and strengthened in the Sacrament of Confirmation. Our initiation is complete when we receive the Lord's own Body and Blood in the Holy Eucharist, the Sacrament of sacraments. The same Flesh born of Mary, the Word of God Incarnate, comes to us under the veil of a sacrament at Holy Mass in what looks like bread and looks like wine. But this is no ordinary food. It is the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ who desires to make Himself our supersubstantial bread and come into intimate communion with us. This foretaste of Heaven leads us as a pledge of future glory to our eternal home. The Incarnation goes beyond the cave in Bethlehem, beyond the home in Nazareth, beyond the Temple in Jerusalem, beyond the wood of the Cross, and beyond the empty grave. In the Sacraments, especially the Holy Eucharist, the Incarnation is extended. Just as we are body and soul, the Lord commanded that His Church should be visible and invisible. Our invisible God has taken on visible Flesh. So too, the Church celebrates in sensible signs the invisible wonders of God's overwhelming grace. The most amazing part of all of this is that He invites us to respond and take part in these saving mysteries and realities. Praise be to God for such a gift!I will end with the words of Pope St. Leo the Great:Christian, remember your dignity, and now that you share in God's own nature, do not return by sin to your former base condition. Bear in mind who is your head and of whose body you are a member. Do not forget that you have been rescued from the power of darkness and brought into the light of God's kingdom.If you have enjoyed this post in the slightest, please consider sharing it with your friends and family on social media, text, or email! Thank you! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit willwrightcatholic.substack.com

Do you have a hard time inviting others into your home? Today we're talking all things hospitality with Amber Stumph, founder of Copper and Nines, a company dedicated to helping people create meaningful space. Why do we feel so much pressure to make our homes perfect? Our guests simply want to experience life close to us. Our homes foster an atmosphere to grow meaningful relationships through personal connections.    After listening to today's conversation, you'll learn:  Why opening the doors to our home can feel so intimidating How we can switch our perspectives to become others-oriented Strategies to be "guest ready" at all times How we can have a healthy perspective of what a "beautiful home" looks like How to confidently walk into a thrift store to find unique decor items that will work for your space.   Quotes to remember:  "I can't do it all, but I can do this."   "Whether God has given you a grand or a humble home to live in, you can be proud of the space you have because you have something to offer people."   Read Amber's article An Open-Door Policy in Truly's Home issue.  Connect with Amber Stumph on Instagram (@copperandnines) , Facebook, or learn more about what she's up to at copperandnines.com. 

Bible Reading: Mark 10:6-9; Ephesians 5:31-32mom, are you going to divorce Dad?" Charlotte asked, tears rolling down her cheeks."What do you mean, honey?" asked Mom with surprise."I heard you and Dad arguing last night. I thought you were going to divorce him.""Oh, Charlotte," said Mom. "It's true that we argued. We had a disagreement over holiday spending. But that doesn't mean we're getting a divorce." Mom gave Charlotte a hug. "Every couple has differences they need to work out sometimes, like Dad and I did last night. We managed to compromise and work out a solution. It gave us the opportunity to understand each other better and to be patient with each other.""Phew!" Charlotte let out a sigh. "I'm glad you guys are still together." "We took our marriage vows before God," said Mom. "We're trusting Him to help us honor those vows because marriage is a picture of Jesus's love for us as His church. For better, for worse--"Charlotte jumped in. "For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health." She stopped. "I can't remember the rest."Mom smiled and continued. "To love and to cherish, till death do us part.""That's beautiful, Mom," said Charlotte."Yes," said Mom. "In fact, this coming Saturday, we'll be celebrating our tenth wedding anniversary." "Wow! That's great!" exclaimed Charlotte."And that's not all," said Mom. "Your grandparents will be celebrating their golden anniversary next month. That's fifty years of marriage!""That's half a century!" said Charlotte."That's right!" said Mom. "Grandpa and Grandma were high school sweethearts. They love each other and built a lovely family together.""Do they argue too?" asked Charlotte."Sometimes, of course," replied Mom. "But they always make up and work it out. They've been together through good times and bad. When I was ten, Grandpa had a terrible car accident and Grandma took care of him. And five years ago, Grandma had cancer and Grandpa took care of her.""They must really love each other," said Charlotte. Mom nodded. "It's a blessing from God to be married, and the lifelong commitment of marriage is a picture of God's faithfulness toward us. Jesus will always love us and take care of us, now and forever." Kelly ChoyHow About You?Do you know anyone who has been married for many years? In marriage, God wants us to love and cherish our spouses, just like Jesus loves the church, which is made up of all those who trust in Him. Whether God calls us to be married or single, it's important to know that all our relationships are an opportunity to share God's love with each other. We can love because Jesus loved us first (1 John 4:19).Today's Key Verse:[Marriage] is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one. (NLT) (Ephesians 5:32)Today's Key Thought:Marriage is a picture of God's love

As I understand my basic science, time can speed up or slow down depending on the speed at which an object travels. That is a little hard to grasp, but they say it has been scientifically demonstrated, so we will take that as a given. But my first proposition is that, fast or slow, time is a one-way street. There is no such thing as time travel, nor will there ever be.Now I have heard people speak of God existing outside of time, and they draw a mental picture of God sitting on a hill where he can see the entire timeline of man. He sees it like a road. We can’t see around the next bend, but God sees it all. But let me pose a problem to you. As I write this, I am sitting in Texas. Can God see me right now in, say, Mexico City? Of course not, because I am not in Mexico City, I am here. Have I limited God? No, the question is absurd and everyone knows it.Well, can God see me next year? If we say no, are we limiting God? Can’t God travel in time? Can’t God see the future? Whether God can or not, we might discuss. But first, you may want to write this down: God does not do things merely because he can.

1. God decides the day of your death (Is. 38:1)2. Prayer can change the mind of God (Is. 38:2-8)3. Whether God heals or not, give Him praise (Is. 38:9-22)

Whether God made you above-average smart or your grades weren't that great or you fall somewhere in between, you have this significant thing in common. This week's devotional series by Pastor Mike is also featured on our Grace Talks Daily Devotional podcast! Check out our newest podcast, The Nonmicrowaved Truth with C.L. Whiteside! Search for it on your favorite podcast app. To stay rooted in Jesus, subscribe to our daily email! https://timeofgrace.org/subscribe/ Time of Grace is a donor-supported effort.

Healing looks different for everyone. Whether God heals you or not he still has a purpose for your life.