"In Lust"

"When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him, and hast been partakers with adulterers." (Psalms 50:18) God is the judge alright, He can have that right because He has that right, because He has it right, more like He has us right; or more to the point: He knows exactly what it is that we really care about! Lust is more than just something that practice on our own, as in to have a lustful desire for something or someone, it is also something that can be a passion within us; something that we may not even know that we have, that is until we get caught up in something lustful. This is a little more than just turning a blind eye, or pretending not to notice something someone else is doing; this is getting involved, whether physically or mentally, it really does not matter much, because they both generate the same commitment from the heart; actually, the mental involvement may actually turn out to be worst, because there may not actually be any remorse if you did not physically get involved. One way you could best express this is by using the modern day Soap Operas that get watched on our televisions. Some people get so caught up in the life of the characters, that they actually will take sides, even if the person whom they are taking the side of is wrong, dead wrong; even if that person is involved in an adulterous affair, as long as it is their favorite character, it's all good and exciting to be a part of. Another way to look at this, one that might be more in line with the times of old, would be the position of those in leadership, say like a priest or leader in the church; thievery and adultery were pretty big deals back then, and usually those that were caught in the act of doing such things could be stoned or have something taken from them, like a limb or their head; in which case, the person of any authority could make a little money by looking the other way, which also makes them a party to what took place. Either way, the heart can long for and look forward to the commitment of something wrong to take place, because it takes pleasure in what results, both physically and mentally. The bottom line to what God is putting forth, really has more to do with holiness than anything else; not that we could ever achieve to be holy, but it should be something that we long for, and something by which we set out to accomplish in our lives. Holy living, although it may not be attainable in these failed bodies, it is still something that must be longed for; which, in case you missed the point, becomes the passion of our hearts... "Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths; whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace. Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness. We grope the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men." (Isaiah 59:7-10)  

"Judged"

"But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare My statutes, or that thou shouldest take My covenant in thy mouth? seeing that thou hatest instruction and casteth My words behind thee." (Psalms 50:16-17) Anyone that takes the time to figure out what it means to keep the "sabbath", it is not about what you do or don't do, but the attitude of your heart; just as it is when we worship God in anything that we do, it requires a heart that loves God for who He is, and for what He has done, and for His protection; which by the way means that we also love His "instruction". Don't think for a moment that God does not see the real you, because He does; He sees every thought that creeps into the very deepest parts of who we are, and there is nothing that is hidden from Him. "The wicked" that God is referring to here are not those that reject Him and say that they do not believe in Him; they are those that sit in seats of teaching and proclaiming Him as God, yet refuse to adhere to those things which they proclaim. And don't think that this is something that cannot be about you, because we all can easily fall into the trap of thinking that His instruction does not apply in our own lives. Actually, sometimes the more that you know about what you are meant to do, the more likely you are not to do it; as crazy as that might sound, if our heart is not right, we can really deceive ourselves into thinking that knowledge is the same as obedience. The five words, "casteth My words behind thee", pretty much give a really good illustration of what I am talking about; it is kind of like what I shared yesterday about not being able to bottle up what God does when He delivers me from my depression: I can not use that experience as the routine way to get through another day, because that was for then, and a new day requires a new experience. I think the 'manna' in the wilderness is a really good example of that, because they needed to go out every day, except the day before the sabbath, and get new manna; if they tried to get more than they needed for another day, then it was rotten the next day and could not be used; and if they did not get extra the day before the sabbath, they would go out on the sabbath, but found no manna. The point being, is that we must love His instruction, because when we love it we will obey it; and His word is always new to us and cannot be placed behind us as if it were knowledge gathered, because His word is alive and cannot be stored up. God's word must not be used as if it is information gathered, as if we are learning the techniques of spiritual living, or memorizing the owners manual of life; because people that treat it as such will just be gathering information, and will lose out on the instruction part all together, thinking that they have already been instructed, yet instruction comes through living out His word, day in and day out, day by day... "Thou are wearied in the greatness of thy way; yet saidest thou not, There is no hope: thou hast found the life of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved. And of whom hast thou been afraid or feared, that thou hast lied, and hast not remembered Me, nor laid it to thy heart? have not I held My peace even of old, and thou fearest Me not? I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee. When thou criest, let thy companies deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them all away; vanity shall take them: but he that putteth his trust in Me shall possess the land, and shall inherit My holy mountain." (Isaiah 57:10-13)  

"The Answer!" -2

"Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the Most High: and call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me." (Psalms 50:14-15) So what do you think? If God is for you, then what possible thing can come against you? I don't really want to get into this, but this really is the answer, it just takes doing it to even begin to understand how it works. I can not begin to tell you the number of days that I have felt like giving up; they are not really full days, because God will always deliver me from them before the day is done; but you have got to understand how I feel when I want to quit. I love my wife more than life itself, but I cannot stand to see her in this condition day in and day out; for over eleven years now, she has not said a word, nor taken a step, or been able to eat as you and I eat; it breaks my heart to no end. But God, He is good, and He is faithful in His word; because no matter how depressed I get, and no matter how discouraged I am in this circumstance, He continues to give me hope! Let me tell you in layman's terms what I am trying to say, and see if I can make it come to life. When I am down, it is time to look up; and by looking up, I mean it is time to set my mind upon God. When I set my mind upon God, I see things in such a whole different light; although they do not change, they become smaller in comparison to who He is, and what He has done for me. It is then that I can honestly begin to thank Him: I thank Him for my wife, and for the opportunity to love her and to care for her; but more than that, I thank Him for the experience of love, of knowing what it feels like to get just a little taste of what He feels, day in and day out; to love someone unconditionally and without expecting anything in return. Talk about paying "vows", it does not get any more meaningful than that! I made a vow to my wife over 32 years ago that I would love and care for her until death do us part, and I made that vow with God, saying, "So help me God": and so He does! When I call upon him in one of those "days of trouble" He delivers me; don't ask me how, because I am not quite sure what He does, nor can I bottle it up and use it again, because it is all Him. The best way that I can describe what happens, is all that is troubling me is replaced with joy; all of my sadness is replaced with gladness; and I can honestly say that I feel my loving Father's arms around me, and I am safe and secure. You see that word "shalt", as in, "and thou shalt glorify Me"; that is not a command, as in, "thou shalt, or else"; that is a reality... "Thus saith the LORD, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for My salvation is near to come, and My righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing evil. Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the LORD, speak, saying, The LORD hath utterly separated me from His people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree. For thus saith the LORD unto the eunuchs that keep My sabbaths, and choose the things that please Me, and take hold of My covenant; even unto them will I give in Mine house and within My walls a place and a name better than the sons and of the daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off." (Isaiah 56:1-5)    

"The Answer!"

"Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the Most High: and call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me." (Psalms 50:14-15) I am sorry for anyone that I offended, it is actually a very good effort to invite people to church, and God will honor any effort like that which is prayed over; but the plain truth of the matter is that people need to see something in us that they want, then there is proof that they need to be there with you; otherwise, they will most likely be offended by something there and never really want to go back. Here is what I see happening all to often, is that people are asking God for something to give Him praise over; as if they want to praise Him, but first He needs to show them something to get excited about. You have heard it time and time again, how that we can get excited over a football game, yet when it comes to praising God, we go flat; we get more excited seeing celebrities on the street than we do praising the Lord. The words "pay thy vows" pretty much says it all when it comes to giving to God, because we do not praise, give thanks, or even give our tithes, because we want to be blessed, we are blessed already; we can never repay God for what He has done for us; never in a thousand years! It is like that song, "It Is Well With My Soul", and how nothing can take away from what God has done, not even the lose of everything. In reference to what Jesus said about hating father, mother, brother or sister, it was not that we would hate anyone, because we are to love everyone; the point was more about comparison to the love we have for Him, and that compared to our love for the Lord, everything of this world comes off like hate; in other words, there is no comparison between the love we have for Him verses any one, or any thing else. When it comes to enduring storms in our lives, the answer really is quite simple, and it all depends on what matters most to us in the end, this world or God... "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of My righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10)  

"Unanswered"

"Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?" (Psalms 50:13) Don't ask; I had nothing this morning at all, and just asked God for a word, and this was it; oh my, what a strange way to start my day! I watched that movie "I am in love with a church girl" last night, and the part where he was yelling at the stained glass window of Jesus just popped into my mind, as he says, "I dump stacks of hundreds in your little velvet bag every Sunday, and I'm trying to be good, what else do you want from me?" Do you know why those that wait upon the LORD renew their strength? Yes, it is true enough to be seen; if God is our strength, then we must wait upon Him for our strength to be realized. "Oh, but wait, let me see if I can help God out a little bit, because He is obviously busy doing other things right now!" Can you see the picture unfolding? "Let Go & Let God", although it is easy to conceive, giving birth to it is very painful and requires being stretched. God does not need our sacrifices; He does not need the meat, or the blood, or even the money; He wants our lives to be surrendered to Him, freely, openly, and without expectation; yet at the same time having every expectation of His goodness for our life, and that He knows better than we know what is best for our lives. Does that mean God does not desire worship? No it does not! He loves to be worshiped, but not the way that many people worship Him; He wants to be worshiped as God! God does not need anything from us, He is the Supplier of all of our needs; and He surely does not need our worship, as if the more people believe in Him that stronger He becomes: He is the Alpha and Omega, He does not change, He does not grow weary or faint. "He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength" (Isaiah 40:29). What does that tell you? It tells me that I need to count upon God and not upon myself, because He has all that I need, and I have nothing to offer Him that will increase His strength or His abilities; absolutely nothing! "Oh, but wait, if I could just get my friend to come to church, then God will save him!", crickets...
"Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment. Who raised up the righteous man from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings? he gave them as the dust to his sword, and as driven stubble to his bow. He pursued them, and passed safely; even by the way that he had not gone with his feet. Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he." (Isaiah 41:1-4)

"It's All God's"

"I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is Mine, and the fulness thereof." (Psalms 50:11-12) There is something strange about the way sacrifice works, because it does nothing for God, yet it does when it comes to us; as if that made any sense whatsoever. It is like that rainbow, which although it assures us of His promise, it reminds Him of our suffering. In other words, the blood spilled for our sins, although it gives us assurance, God does not benefit from it, He only looks upon us differently. When Jesus died upon that cross for our sins, His blood became a covering for our sins; thereby, when the Father looks upon us that are covered by the blood, He sees the result of that cleansing, He sees us white as snow. The problem that the sacrifices brought, were that they created a tally, as though God was the one who benefited from what was offered; yet, it was all God's to begin with, so really, He gained nothing from those sacrifices, no matter how many were offered. Instead, those that gave them thought they made God in debt to them by their sacrifice, as if it were payment towards some accounting of righteousness. Do we serve God because we want some credit applied to our good column? as if our service is a wage of righteousness? or do we serve Him because He is our Master and our Redeemer? If the reason we serve Him is to receive something in return, then we have already received it; sadly though, it only benefits us now, in this life, not in judgment. That is why those that did work in His name believed that they were owed something, because they were doing a work for their benefit, as if He needed something done and they did it, so now He owed them something; while the ones that did it because they loved Him, did not even know that they did anything at all... "Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them by their names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God? Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faith and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fail: but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings of eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." (Isaiah 40:26-31)

"God's Rights"

"I will take no bullock out of thy house, nor he goats out of thy folds: for every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills." (Psalms 50:9-10) I don't know if I totally understand it or not, but God wants to have fellowship with us; He wants us to love Him, and yet He has given us free will to make us choose to love Him, because real love involves a choice: I must choose to love God above everything else! All of those different sacrifices and offerings, something like eleven or so different ones, they are not to get anyone clean or purified, really they are to show how much we need God's mercy and grace upon our lives. It is all about a heart that wants to be "Restored" with God, and restoration involves so many different areas of our lives; we need to be clean before God, we need to have peace with God, we need to be on the side of God, and we need to be the friend of God; all of which requires our heart to want it to happen, the real question is, how much do I want it? Will I offer more sacrifices, as if those matter more than the desire of my heart? or will I just choose to love God more than my sin? Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to make this all about trying to be righteous, because I am convinced that I cannot even consider that I am able to achieve righteousness on my own; but it is more about the heart, and does my heart want to be right before God! If my heart does, then God has provided the way, and it really does not involve any animals, because they all pointed to Jesus anyways; it involves knowing that God has given us His righteousness in place of our own, because He knows already we will fail on our own. Think about that for a moment, because it takes awhile for it to sink into our stubborn hearts; a heart that wants to be free and to choose for itself, just as God has designed for it to do, is all of the sudden dependent upon God to get it right; a heart that wants to think that it is strong enough to make the right choices, is given no choice when it comes to righteousness, because it has no strength to be totally righteous. In other words, we have a choice, but there is really only one thing to choose: It is God's way or no way at all... "Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein: I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thy hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. I am the LORD; that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them." (Isaiah 42:5-9)

"God's Trouble"

"I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices or thy burnt offerings, to have been continually before Me." (Psalms 50:8) What could possibly be a trouble for God? as if God could make a rock so big that even He could not pick up! Yeah, but did you notice that this verse does not speak of the positive, as if God is saying, "I just love all of these sacrifices and offerings that you have been giving unto Me", because that is not what He is saying here; quite the opposite is being said. God really does not desire our sacrifices and burnt offerings; as a matter of fact, they are really quite detestable if you get right down to it; they were meant to make us aware of the seriousness of our sins and trespasses; that a innocent life must be taken for the forgiveness of sin and that innocent blood must be shed for our iniquities; it is not something that God takes pleasure in, the killing of innocent animals is grottiest; especially if given continually, as if they are really no big deal. Why was the practice of animal sacrifice started? was it for man to have his sins forgiven, or was it to cover his sin so as to allow him to have fellowship with God? I am thinking that the latter was the actual reason, because God desires to have fellowship with us, not that we just cover up our own sins by shedding innocent blood. The same is true for the reason that He sent His Son; He did not send Jesus to just die on the cross to make us free from sin, but that the fellowship that was destroyed by Adam's sin could be restored, and man could once again enter into fellowship with their Creator. When we think that it is all about us being forgiven for our sins, we are missing out on the bigger picture, that so we could have fellowship with God is the most important reason that Jesus came and died for us, not so that we could have our sins forgiven and then go about our merry way. If you give a man an inch, he will take a mile; that is God's trouble! Having forgiveness of sin does not mean that we can sin because we have a way to cover our sins, that just gets old and does not benefit anyone; it surely does not please God in any way. God's intention was that we could experience fellowship with Him, and then want to continue having fellowship with Him, because that void in our hearts was made full; in other words, so that we would fall in love with Him, for real... "Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see. Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I sent? who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the LORD's servant? Seeing many things, but thou observest not; opening the ears, but he heareth not. The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable. But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes, and they are hid in prison houses: they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore. Who among you will give ear to this? who will hearken and hear for the time has come? Who gave Jacob for a spoil, and Israel to the robbers? did not the LORD, he against whom we have sinned? for they would not walk in his ways, neither there were they obedient unto his law. Therefore he hath poured upon him the fury of his anger, and the strength of battle: and it hath set him on fire round about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart." (Isaiah 42:18-25)

"Word of God Speak!" -2

"Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I testify against thee: I am God, even thy God." (Psalms 50:7) Here is the thing about the 'Word', what John understood, and what we must understand also: the 'Word' is the "Logos", which is more than just a word or words, it is words that have been uttered by a living voice, embodies a conception or idea; in other words, if you what to know what God looks like, then look at Jesus! Stated as this: "In John, denotes the essential Word of God, Jesus Christ, the personal wisdom and power in union with God, his minister in creation and government of the universe, the cause of all of the world's life both physical and ethical, which for the procurement of man's salvation put on human nature in the person of Jesus the Messiah, the second person in the Godhead, and shone forth conspicuously His words and deeds." Following Jesus around in His everyday practice of placing Himself in the midst of people's lives, one could get the understanding how much He knew about our lives; not just that He knew about how we lived, but that He knew about how we thought, and more importantly, what we thought of Him, meaning God! God is not just some cosmic force out there somewhere in space, God is alive in us, in nature, in everything that He has created; and of everything that He has created, nothing else is as special to Him as man. I heard this said yesterday, that God instilled in us the same essential desire that He has for fellowship; in other words, God desires to have fellowship with us the same as we desire fellowship with one another; He has put that desire within us so that we might desire fellowship with Him. It might sound a little weird, but it will all make perfect sense in heaven; until then, we must approach God in such a way that we understand He knows us already; there are no secrets you have from God, so you cannot speak to Him as though you are hiding something, if you know what I mean; He knows when we are being honest with Him and when we are not, so just be honest! When we are honest with God, He will open up to us also, revealing Himself to us on a personal level; speaking directly into our hearts, not through another person, or even through the written text, but one on one, He will speak directly to you and to me. John had this kind of a relationship with Jesus, which was why he called himself, "The disciple whom Jesus loved", because he was totally honest with Jesus and there was a special relationship built upon trust... "For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed. He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with me? let us stand together: who is mine adversary? let him come near to me. Behold, the Lord GOD will help me; who is he that shall condemn me? lo, they all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up. Who is among you that feareth the LORD, that obeyeth the voice of His servant, that walketh in darkness and hath no light? let him trust in the name of the LORD, and stay upon his God. Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks: walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow." (Isaiah 50:7-11)

"Word of God Speak!"

"Hear, O My people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify against thee: I am God, even thy God." (Psalms 50:7) I just love quoting Isaiah 9:6, but you have got to admit, that was some pretty powerful stuff; why some people can't just accept that Jesus is God; it has got to be something spiritual, because God's word is pretty plain about it. And yet, His very own rejected Him; even though they were waiting for Him to come, He came, and they still refused Him, and they demanded that He be crucified upon that cross. Stop right now and think about what has happened: God's chosen people, they were chosen to condemn Him to death; a death that was demanded of Him because He said He was God, and He was, yet they used the law that they were given, by Him, to put Him to death. He was their God, the one that they worshiped in all of their ceremonies and in all of their sacrifices, it was Him, the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob; the God that brought them out of Egypt, and into the promised land, that same God they spat upon and raised their fist to, and turned over to the Gentiles to be slain like a thief and a murderer. The Apostle John was a Jew; he was the one that was referred to as the one "whom Jesus loved" (John 13:23), he was at the foot of the cross when Jesus died (John 19:26), He was first to enter the empty tomb (John 20:4), he was the one who saw it was Jesus that told then to cast their net on the right side (John 21:7), and he was the last one to die (John 21:20-22); and John was the one to witness the very end (Revelation). John was also the one to write that Jesus "was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1); and he also made mention why he wrote his account, just after Thomas said, "My Lord and my God" (John 28-31). It really does not take much more to convince the average Gentile that Jesus is God; but the Jew, they are still looking for another, someone who will show up with great charisma and present himself as a leader among men; which they will accept as the Messiah, but he will turn out to be the Antichrist, and they come to realize what they had done. You could not make it any clearer, God has chosen His people to demonstrate the power of His love and how much loves us despite our transgressions against Him... "Thus saith the LORD, Where is the bill of your mother's divorcement, whom I have put away? or which of My creditors is it to whom I have sold you? Behold, for you iniquities have ye sold yourselves, and for your transgressions is your mother put away. Wherefore, when I came, was there no man? when  I called, was there no answer? Is My hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem? or have I no power to deliver? behold, at My rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a wilderness: their fish stinketh, because there is no water, and dieth for thirst. I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering. The LORD GOD hath given Me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: He wakeneth morning by morning, He wakeneth Mine ear to hear as the learned. The LORD GOD hath opened Mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back. I gave My back to the smiters, and My cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not My face from shame and spitting." (Isaiah 50:1-6)

"A Holy Judgment" -2

"And the heavens shall declare His righteousness: for God is judge Himself. Selah." (Psalms 50:6) After taking a moment to think about it (actually a day), I have come to the conclusion that God has every right to judge any way that He feels that we should be judged; after all, He is our Maker! I think sometimes we forget that, not that we don't realize it is so, but that we some how may have some sort of moment where we think that we have made what we are, as in, "Look what I have done for myself", kind of moment. That did not work out so well for Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4:29-33), and it will not work well with any of us either. God has set everything in motion, and He keeps it in motion; He has given us the breath of life, and He keeps us alive with our breathing; when the motion stops, the world will also; when our breathing stops, so will this life. When it comes right down to it, God has every right to do whatever He wants to do, and we have no reason to complain about anything; why? Because God has placed all of our punishment upon Himself!!! Talk about "Righteousness", that the Maker would lay down His life for the children that He has made, there is no greater display of "Righteousness"; that truly adds a little more punch to John 3:17 & 18, since He is the Judge and the Executioner, yet at the same time, He is the Redeemer and the Deliverer! All of the false religions in this world all have one thing in common, they all point to what man can do for himself, as if the power to save is within us; nothing could be farther from the truth, because only the "Righteousness" of God can save us from His holy judgment; anything that we do is like pouring coals on the fire, because it is like snubbing our nose up to God's redemption that He has provided. Think about the choice to be made: will I choose to be judged by my righteousness or by God's righteousness? If man were the judge, then maybe there would be something to consider, but the judge is not man, it is God; and God is going to judge us based upon His Righteousness and whether or not we have received it... "The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined. Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil. For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian. For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire. For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon His kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this." (Isaiah 9:2-7)

"A Holy Judgment"

"And the heavens shall declare His righteousness: for God is judge Himself. Selah." (Psalms 50:6) Need I say more? If indeed the rainbow signifies God's judgment upon Himself, then what of His righteousness? Okay, this could get interesting, to say the least; but the more I think about it, the more I wonder if God some how puts a little blame upon Himself; not that He is to blame for anything that we have done, but that He knew that it would happen, yet He let it happen anyway. I once heard a pastor on the radio, I believe it was Pastor Steve, that said, "I knew before my child was born that he was going to have some difficulties, was going to be hurt, was going to get into trouble, and even going to one day suffer and die; but I knew also that I would love my child, and that I would have little me to share my life with; so all of that other stuff really did not matter." After God destroyed all living creatures on this earth with the flood (which by the way, was a very big deal to God, because He said, "The flood killed everything" like at least four times, signifying how much it hurt Him to do it), He made a promise with a rainbow that would appear in the clouds; yet the word rainbow does not appear, it is instead "bow", which God uses to display His promise or covenant for all to see, but He also placed it there for Him to see also; in fact, He stressed that it was more for Him than it was for us (Genesis 9:12-17). The very next time that God would be judging the sins of the world, He would be putting the judgment upon Himself; instead of water destroying the world, the world would be destroying the Water... "For thy Maker is thine Husband; the LORD of hosts is His name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall He be called. For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God. For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid My face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer. For this is as the waters of Noah unto Me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee." (Isaiah 54:5-10)

"A Holy Sacrifice"

"Gather My saints together unto Me; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice." (Psalms 50:5) As I was praying this morning, I almost was going to title this "Shhh", as in Quiet; don't ask me why, because I really don't know; maybe God was just telling me to shut up and not say anything. But, now that I think about it, how are we to make a covenant with God? Do we negotiate with God, as if we have something to bring to the table? I know that is how I did things once upon a time, saying things like, "Lord, help me out of this mess, and I will serve you forever", or "Lord, please do this thing for me, and I will give you a tenth of all that I have." God does not need my promises; mostly because my words are not worth the breath it takes to say them; what God desires, is for me to worship Him, and to treat Him as if He is my God! When you look at the 'contract signing' between God and Abram in Genesis 15:17, it was only God that passed between those animal pieces; He alone signed the contract, because only He could fulfill it. When it comes to making a covenant with God, the contract part is pretty much all God's doing, our part is just to trust Him and obey, He does the rest. One thing for sure, we don't get to negotiate our side of the contract, and we surely don't tell God what His part of the contract is going to be; instead, God provides us with both sides, what He is going to do for us, and what we need to do in response; take it or leave it, that is our only choice. Besides, God's part of any covenant that could be made is so much bigger than anything that we might have to offer, how could we even think about competing with His part of anything, as if we have something to negotiate with? All that we can offer Him is sacrifice, and not even as if the sacrifice counts for anything, but just because He deserves to be worshiped; as soon as we start counting up our sacrifices, as if they are worth anything to God, they are made worthless; meaning that they become "filthy rags". Those that are God's "saints" are those that worship Him because He is, not because they need something or want to be blessed; God's saints worship Him because He is their God, their Maker, their Only Hope of life, breath, love, peace; you name it, God has provided the ultimate sacrifice, so what do we have to offer Him?
"For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath eye seen, O God, besides Thee, what He hath prepared for him that waiteth for Him. Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember Thee in Thy ways: behold, Thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved. But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rages; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. And there is none that calleth upon Thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee: for Thou hast hid Thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities. But now, O LORD, Thou art our Father; we are the clay, and Thou art the Potter; and we are the work of Thy hand." (Isaiah 64:4-8)  

"The Holy Judge"

"He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His people." (Psalms 50:4) Just so you know, I am one of those 'middle-of-the-road' kind of believers that believe it is not just about God's provision of His righteousness, but without the provision of His righteousness we are toast; and it's not just about believing in that provision, but there are choices that need to be made on our part to truly be saved. In other words, we cannot just believe, then confess that Jesus is Lord, continue living in sin, and then expect that all will be well in the end, because it wont! Nor can we expect to be free from sin, because as long as we are living in these corruptible bodies we are going to sin; but God's grace provides the righteousness that we need, and His mercy provides the forgiveness that we must have, that in the end, as long as we are sincere in our effort to get it right, God's provision is all that I need. That said, there is one thing that we must totally understand about God's judgment, in that His judgment comes from above and is based upon His standards, not the standards of this world; in other words, God does not take a pole or use the overall condition of this earth to set His standard, or to establish the degree of His judgment; God's judgment is based upon His holiness and His alone, therefore we all are in the same boat when it comes to being judged. Yes, that's right, you and that murderer down the road are in the same boat when it comes to God's judgment; as weird as that might appear, it's not based upon how we judge, but it is based upon how God judges, and God's judgment is of the heart and is based upon His holiness, not what the world considers to be holy. If we did not know about God's provision already, then we would say, "Who then can be saved?" (Mark 10:26); but God, who knows the matter of our hearts far better than we do, has provided a way, which is not based upon what we do or don't do, but is based upon the action of His heart; in other words, God's remedy for our situation here on this earth was not provided from this earth, but it was provided from heaven; because just as nothing of this earth can establish His judgment, nothing of this earth could ever satisfy His judgment either... "Awake, awake, put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean. Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion. For this saith the LORD, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money." (Isaiah 52:1-3)

"Holy Fire"

"Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him." (Psalms 50:3) If ever we needed God to speak out, today is that day; and yet, the simple truth of the matter is, we are meant to be His voice in a land of darkness. And yes I was thinking of that song this morning, especially the part that says, "I need less of me, and more of You". In a perfect world we are all walking if perfect harmony and mighty things are being done in the name of Jesus, but this world is far from perfect; as a matter of fact, you could say that it is becoming more and more imperfect with every passing day. But do not loose hope, because in the end our God wins! He always wins! Do you know why that is? It is because our God cannot fail; He does not fail; there is absolutely nothing about Him that can even come close to failure. When you are powered by love, it is impossible to fail; it is also beneficial if you know all things and that you can pretty much do anything that you want; but love is the engine that triumphs over all. I think Jesus really tried to make that point; He surely demonstrated it upon the cross! It was always all about love: "Love your enemies", "Love one another", "Love the Lord your God", "If you love Me, then you will". It is not too hard to see what we must do, but it sure is hard to do it! When it comes to God's judgment over everything that is evil, I believe that His love is this ragging fire that "shall devour before Him"; although to those that are not His people, this fire will be wrath and anger; pretty much like a mother lion protecting her cubs, His anger will be against those who wish to harm His children; but His anger to still driven by love, and it is a love for you and for me. I cannot think of a better place to be then on the good side of God! God has given us free will because love is a choice; it is a commandment that we love Him, but it still a choice that we obey what He commands. If we truly want to obey, then He will provide for us a way; and yet, if we cannot still find it in our power to obey, then He has still provide us a way; at which point, we must get out of the way... "Hearken to Me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the LORD: look unto the rock whence ye were hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged. Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him. For the LORD shall comfort Zion: He will comfort all her waste places; and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody. Hearken unto Me, My people; and give ear unto Me, O My nation: for a law shall proceed from Me, and I will make My judgment to rest for a light of the people. My righteousness is near; My salvation is gone forth, and Mine arms shall judge the people; the isles shall wait upon Me, and on Mine arm shall they trust." (Isaiah 51:1-5)

"God's Radiance" -2

"Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined." (Psalms 50:2) Actually these ten words do say a lot, and I think most of you know that based upon that closing Scripture from Isaiah; and if you did not get the connection, then let me see if I can enlighten you. Although Zion was known as the City of David, and latter became the place known as Jerusalem; this is not where it's name came from, for the name actually means "parched place", and was called Zion because it referred to the Jebusite fortress conquered by David. The Jebusites were an interesting fixture among the people of Israel, because they could never drive them out because of their mountainous position, so they ended up dwelling among the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. The tunnel just keeps going deeper and deeper, because the Babylonian name for that region was 'Salem', and we know who was the king of Salem, it was Melchizedek, the priest of the most high God (Genesis 14:18). The point that I am trying to make has to do with God's dwelling place, and that any place or person that God dwells within is "the perfection of beauty", because God's light shines in that place or person in which He dwells. In other words, the place could be a place which was previously a fortress for the Heathens, but when God shows up, it is a 'Shinning City on a Hill'; the person could have been the most evil person alive, but when God enters into their heart, they are a Saint and a testimony of God's glory. "The perfection of beauty" is not just what God wants it to be, it is what God makes it to be; which means, in case you were not paying attention, that the ugliness and the sinfulness, and the ungodliness and the unrighteousness, and any other 'ness' that is opposed to God becomes holiness and righteousness when God shows up... "Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising." (Isaiah 60:1-3)

"God's Radiance"

"Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined." (Psalms 50:2) Although Zion is also known as Jerusalem, in this context I do not feel that it represents a place as much as it represents a concept or a particular perception; Zion was a special place for the Jewish people, especially for David, but Zion was only a place, God's presence is what made it special. I heard something yesterday that came to mind this morning as I was praying and reading this verse (if you can even imagine anyone needing to pray over 10 words, as if so little could say so much), and it had to do with "scars in heaven", and whether or not we would have them, or something like that; anyway, the question was not the point, the answer was; and the answer that Pastor Steve gave was brilliant. Steve said something that I have always believed, but I always had a hard time articulating to others, which was how Jesus can always manifest Himself in anyway that He needs to to express who He is or what He is to any particular person or people. There are some that believe Jesus was here in spirit form for this very reason; but it was not that He was a spirit or a ghost, He is God, and God is capable of doing just about anything that He wants to do. If He wants to show up in a fiery furnace, He can do that; if He wants to show up as a burning bush, He can do that also; He could even show up as a giant fish if He wanted to, or a Lamb that has been slain; whatever He needs to be, and for whatever reason, Jesus is always the Incarnation of God Almighty being manifested or expressed. Steve said something else that I found rather interesting, which was about the scars which Jesus bore, His nail pierced hands and feet, and His sword pierced side, the marking of ugliness and sufferings; but for the sake of our redemption, they are the marks of beauty and love. When you actually think about it, the Father was "pleased to bruise Him" because it was "the perfection of beauty"; not that His suffering was beautiful to look upon, because it was not; but the whole concept of what was taking place, based upon what would come of it, had a certain beauty that could never be duplicated, and it could never be accomplished any other way. So in a way, God is the Judge of "the perfection of beauty"; or, if you wish, God can decide what works for what, and He gets to decide what He will shine through; whether that be suffering and death, or resurrection and life, He is God, and ultimately, He is the judge of what is what... "For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shalt bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob." (Isaiah 60:12-16)

"God's Establishment"

"The Mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof." (Psalms 50:1) Just in case you were wondering, "God Is the Judge" is the title above this Psalm in my Bible; therefore it will be safe to say that I am basing the majority of theses next 23 verses upon God being the judge; whether that means of His judgement, or if that might refer to His instruction; and by instruction, I mean all that He has established. Establishment is an interesting word: if I had a restaurant, it would be my establishment, thereby I set the type of menus and the atmosphere by which I would like my restaurant to put forth, which means that I set the rules; except of course for the regulations that I must abide by that are set by government, I am free to establish whatever type of restaurant that I wish. God has established the earth, and He has made it to His specifications; which basically means that God has set all of the limits for time and space; meaning that everything works together like clockwork, which we can be very thankful for, although we seldom give it much thought. When it says, "hath spoken", the general idea is that of 'command', as in God has commanded it to be so. From the very beginning of the Bible we are given this fact, that God has spoken all things into existence, so why should we doubt that God has not established every order in that very same way; after all, if God's voice is powerful enough to create everything, then it should also be powerful enough to sustain it, right? The word "called" is the same word from Genesis 1:5, which says, "And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night"; which basically means that He proclaimed them to be Day and Night, which means that He established it to be so. Although this verse might appear to proclaim this same principle (day and night, rising of the sun and setting of the sun), it means far more than just times, but it takes into consideration all that He has made; all that exist "from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof", He has established. Now then, if He has established everything, doesn't stand to reason that He is allowed to judge it? I mean, if I established my restaurant to provide a certain atmosphere and a certain dinning experience, then shouldn't I get to judge whether or not what I have established meets the establishment I have envisioned? Therefore, God is the Judge of what He has established...  "But we are as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities like the wind, have taken us away. And there is none that calleth upon Thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee: for Thou hast hid Thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities. But now, O LORD, Thou art our Father; we are clay, and Thou our Potter; and we all are the work of Thy hand." (Isaiah 64:6-8)  

"God Is the Judge"

Psalms 50 [A Psalm of Asaph.] As we begin this next Psalm there is something that we must get through our thick skulls, God is the Judge! We all have people in our lives that need to be either saved or restored, and they all have one great big problem with coming to God: being judged by God; whether that is because they do not want to give up something or they do not believe that God can forgive them, either way, they have an issue with God's judgment. Compound their problem with the way so called "loving Christians" judge them, and you have makings of a personal war between what is right and what is righteous. These are really very touchy times that we are living in, because so many of our children are being given so called truth without the foundation of where truth comes from. If we do not establish that God is the Giver of the law and the Judge of that law He has been given, then the law is whatever we decide to make it, and all things are permissible. Any society that is ran under man's rule is going to perish; although, at this point in time that really does not matter any more, because Jesus is coming really really soon; that's not a prediction, that is a fact! Unfortunately not every Bible believing Christian holds to that agreement, nor do they also believe all of the Bible. How can someone say they believe the Bible but not believe it all is true? It is this "all about me" life that we are living that allows for that to happen, when it should be all about God's judgment; because if we lived as though God is the Judge, then we might care a little more about every word that He has spoken. Instead, we pick and choose what laws pertain to us, taking what truths we want to except, and letting others tell us what certain passages of Scriptures actually mean; while all the while believing that we have it right based upon our own understanding of what is right. But it is not based upon what is right in our own eyes, it is ultimately based upon the righteousness of God! I see a couple different types of people being judged, and I want to be in the right group; the one's that beg for mercy because we know that we need His forgiveness, and the one's that are so very thankful for His grace because we know where we stand without it... "The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness. But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore. Against whom do ye sport yourselves? against whom make ye a wide mouth, and draw out the tongue? are ye not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood, enflaming yourselves with idols under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys under the clefts of the rocks? Among the smooth stones of the stream is thy portion; they, they are thy lot: even to them hast thou poured a drink offering thou hast offered a meat offering. Should I receive comfort in these?" (Isaiah 57:1-6)
  

"Such Is Life"

"Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish." (Psalms 49:20) I usually don't like to end a Psalm on a sour note, but this particular Psalm gives me no choice; as a matter of fact, to say that this last verse could summarize the Psalm, well let's just say that it leaves me wanting. However, it does pound the finishing nail in the coffin of the foolish that trust in riches; it's just that it does not lend anything out to those of us that trust in God; with the exception of this one point, which is, "He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much." (Luke 16:10) My point is about "Man that is in honour", because we have all been given something to be faithful over, whether that be material goods, people, or knowledge; even the salvation that we have been given is something that is in honour, because it is a precious thing, more valuable that all the riches in the world. In a way, those that trust in their riches as though they are the security of life, they are really no different then those that have been given salvation but do not share what they have been given. I know that might sound a little harsh, and maybe a little judgmental; but truth be told, we are going to be judged on what we have done with what we have been given, so Jesus will be the judge of that. The way that I see it, the rich are not condemned for being rich, they are condemned for trusting in their riches and not trusting in God. Had the rich young ruler done as Jesus instructed him (and maybe he did), he would have inherited eternal life in so doing, which was to sell all that he had and distribute it all to the poor; and just because he would sell all that he had, that does not mean that he would not become rich again, because most that have done it, can do it again. We could see this simple point throughout the Scriptures, that God will bless those that love to bless others; those that give up something for the sake of others are rewarded, in one way or another. Just because a person is rich, that does not mean that they are damned, not if they are blessing others with what they have been given; not if they are trusting in God's provision and not their own riches. The word "understandeth" speaks more than just understanding, it speaks of standing apart, and being distinguished or being prudent; it speaks of giving understanding and instruction, which is to teach others in the values that you have been given, whether those values been financial, spiritual, or just the basic facts of life. Everything that we have been given, if it is not shared, it loses it's value; and if we go to our grave not having given those things away, they become worthless and lost, just as "the beasts that perish", gone without a trace; cut off from existence and undone...
"And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of a mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you. But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do." (Luke 17:5-10)

"Be That As It May"

"Though while he lived he blessed his soul, (and men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself,) he shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light." (Psalms 49:18-19) If I truly know where my heart is meant to be, then why not stay fixed there, and get pulled into a place I do not belong? You tell me! Fortunately I have someone watching out for me, who will correct my direction, and who will keep me on the right path; because if it were left only to me, I would still be trying to buy some land and name it after myself. This is actually a very interesting couple of verses, because it concludes several different points that speak very loud and clear about what we should not do, and, if we do that, we are going to be lost. Jesus made something very clear about this matter, in that He said, "No servant can serve two masters" (Luke 16:13). I used the Luke version because of the term "servant"; Matthew has it say, "No Man can serve two masters" (Matthew 6:24); because we are to be servants unto the Lord, not to ourselves. The main point to what is being said above, is that of being self-serving, which basically means that everything you do, you do to benefit yourself, as in, treating yourself well, even at the expense of others. When you see the "light", you understand how God's economy works, and that in His economy when we die to ourselves we are made rich; unlike those that bless themselves, although they might appear blessed to others, they are really living in darkness; a darkness that they shall never depart from. And then we have this "soul" that is being mentioned, which is strangely enough 'the soul', however it is the seat of desire at the same time. So what does that mean in the real world? Well, if you wanted to see what a damned soul might look like, then there you go! That is pretty much the easiest way to explain that; because the soul will be eternally damned based upon the seat of their desires; in other words, if they desire riches and they only care about themselves, then that will be the peak of their happiness, because when this life is over he will join "the generation of his fathers", which just means that he will join the dead; but more than that, because his fathers does not just mean his father or grandfather, but all of those by whom he had modeled his life after... "Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love Me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of Myself, but He sent Me. Why do ye not understand My speech? even because ye cannot hear My word. Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do: he was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe Me not. Which of you convinceth Me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe Me? He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God." (John 8:42-47)

"The Calibrated Heart"

"Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased; for when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him." (Psalms 49:16-17) For those of us that are dialed into a relationship with Christ, eternity has already begun, we are already living in eternity; we might not be with the Lord yet, but we are already blessed in knowing that we have everlasting life. That is what Jesus was speaking of in Luke 18:29-30, in that those who have left all "for the kingdom of God's sake" do not have to wait for the world to come to experience life everlasting, that experience begins now! Really, no joke! I need you to consider what is being said here based upon what has been said already, and calibrate your heart accordingly. What that means, if you don't already know, is that you take an evaluation of your heart, compare where it stands to where it is meant to be, and then make the proper adjustment. Simple, yes? Maybe, maybe not; it really is all dependent upon your heart; because sometimes it might be more than just a simple adjustment, it might require a revival of the heart to even begin to see where it is meant to be. It is really easy to see where our hearts are, we can pretty much know that by looking inside and taking notice; but seeing where it is meant to be requires the Word of God to guide the way and the Holy Spirit to change your heart. Okay, so this might to hard to totally comprehend; but that does not mean we don't try to make it happen! The word "afraid" that is used above is the same 'afraid' that was used by Adam in the garden when he answered God, saying, "I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." It is a fear that is based upon not being in the place that you should be, or not being in the condition that you should be; therefore, your fear is brought on by being outside of your element. Adam's fear was based upon his feeling naked, which was the result of guilt, which was the result of sin; all of which caused Adam to hid from God as soon as he heard His voice. The fear spoken of above is based upon seeing someone made rich and then wondering if you are missing out on something; as if to say, "Why can't I have some of that?" It is a little more complicated than that, but it is really all about the desires of our hearts, of which, according to Jeremiah 17:9, "Who can know it?" But the calibration part comes by knowing where we are headed, and the real glory that matters the most; because the main difference between us and them is the direction of our departure: "descend" means to go down, which is not the direction that we are headed...

"For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace. So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple." (Luke 14:28-33) 

"No Sting Here!"

"But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for He shall receive me. Selah." (Psalms 49:15) Did you know that there was power in the grave? Seriously, that is not a trick question, but it is one that does cause one to 'pause' and think about the meaning of gravity. It might not make much sense at first thought, but we are actually being pulled towards the grave, and the rate of that pull increases with age; never mind that the actual act of death seals the deal, but the whole thought of dying does not do much to help take away from the pressure; that is unless you know that you are redeemed and death is no longer an option. When you look at the word "power", as in "the power of the grave", it speaks more about 'hand', as in the hand that is upon me, or the hand that moves this or that, or the hand that is heavy against me. Interesting enough, the word "receive", as in "for He shall receive me", also involves a hand, as in the hand that takes me! In a way, and without getting overly scientific about it, the laws of gravity have been broken; the force that once pulled me towards the grave no longer has that same power, because I will be lifted upward, not downward. In other words, instead of death having dominion over me, death will release me; death will release me into the hand of God! Therefore, what might have been a sting, as in something that has a prick or a pain, death becomes the hand that opens, much as a hand that contains something light the wind sweeps away as it is opened; at which time, the hand of God draws me unto Himself; at least that is how I see it happening. The main point is not really about how it will happen, but that we know it will happen; because when we know it will happen, then we live our lives in a different manner, and we set the priorities of our life in a different order. What is our treasure in heaven? Is it not God?
"Now when Jesus heard these things, He said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow Me. And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. And when Jesus saw that he was sorrowful, He said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved? And He said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and follow Thee. And He said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting." (Luke 18:22-30)

"The Sting of Death"

"Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling." (Psalms 49:14) Paints a pretty picture, don't you think? It is kind of like the story Jesus told of "The Rich Man and Lazarus", from Luke 16:19; which by the way, I do not believe was a parable, as He shows the sharp contrast between those that have plenty here, yet lack everything but torment after death. That is the clearest definition of "and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning", morning being the time that they wake up in hell and discover that the poor beggar has all the comforts, while they beg for just a drop of water from the beggar's finger tip. I was going to title this post "Ode To The Rich", based upon the elements of a ode all being present; except for the length, there is the strophe, the antistrophe, and the epode; all of which make the classic ode come to life, painting a perfect picture on the glory of death; or in this case, the ugliness of dying with your treasure in the things of earth. The start of this classic ode would incorporate the reality of death, which for the one that counts on the his riches for hope, is nothing but terrible; for not only are they laid to rest without any hope to come, but they are totally consumed by death, forever. Unlike some that believe that after you die you will experience nothing, but your soul will sleep, Jesus paints a totally different picture, as He shows that sleep is not really an option for the dead, but more of a desire, as in, If only I could sleep and wake up when all of this is over! The center of the ode would incorporate something of a different tone, such as in this case, we have "the upright", which are those that they might have had dominion over in this life, yet in the next, those roles change drastically! The upright will be comforted and at peace, while the unrighteous will be tormented and in anguish; apples and oranges; night and day; you get the picture! And then we have the epode, or the conclusion; or in this case, the reality of the sting of death; no more mansions here, no beauty of fame and fortune, only the sting of death, which just keeps on stinging, for ever and ever, from their new dwelling place... "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; and in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torment, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence." (Luke 16:22-26)  

"...For Nobody!"

"This their way is their folly: yet their prosperity approve their sayings. Selah." (Psalms 49:13) Notice that Jesus did not say, Where your heart is, there will your treasure be also; that would be a farce on this side of heaven, because if your heart is set upon the things of earth, guess what, You've got nothing!!! There will be no treasure waiting for you at the end of your journey; but if your heart is set upon the things of heaven, then, if that's where you're going, you will have something to look forward to. However, what Jesus said, and the way that He said it, it works well in both directions; because if your treasure is here, then your heart will be set upon the things of this place; but if your treasure is in heaven, then your heart will be set upon the things of heaven, and you will pay close attention to what is required to get there! And here, that is, here upon this earth, we have nothing that can bring us any real prosperity; nothing that will last, nothing to save our eternal soul, or the souls of others. When he says, "yet their prosperity approve their sayings", it is an interesting concept to look upon, because it is so true: their prosperity agrees with their sentiments! They had their hearts set upon the things of this earth, so is their prosperity, dirt; nothing more than dirt. As a matter of fact, you could say that their prosperity perishes with them; they can have it all the way up until they die, and then it is no more; poof, just like that, it is gone and no longer within reach! "Sayings" are more than just words, although it shows what might be said; it is more about the commandments that they live by, or the expression of their lives; what they really care about will be expressed by the way that they live and the things that they say. In other words, "their folly", which is their stupidity in trusting in riches, is a false hope; it is a hope that cannot be held onto, no matter how hard you try, or how much you have; in the end, nobody is the any richer for any of it, because it will all be gone... "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being of fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat." (2 Peter 3:10-12)

"Nowhere Plan..."

"Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish." (Psalms 49:12) It is the part about "call their lands after their own names" that really takes the cake; not that we all have not done the same thing at one time or another, because I am sure that we have. As a kid, I remember playing with my brothers and sister in the back yard, and being the oldest, I named the yard and made everyone serve me and my adventure. Sure it was just for fun, but it shows the attitude of a heart that wants to be honored. Jesus took no honor upon Himself when it came to this world; quite the opposite was His life in regards to possessions and stature: born in a stable, raised in Nazareth; the son of a carpenter, yet born out of wedlock; no royal robe fit for a King, but the cloths of a peasant; and on and on, I think you get the point. Jesus was not from this world or of this world, He was from the Father and of heaven! Do you really get that? I don't think we totally understand sometimes how important that little bit of information actually is, because if we did, then we surely would have a different outlook on what matters the most, and it's not this life! All the plans that we make for here go nowhere, they end up dirt and have nothing to show for themselves in the end. Sure we might make a name for ourselves, or create an empire, or even have a piece of land called by our name; but in the end, it all does not do anything towards heaven, and it surely adds nothing to the amount of our days upon this earth. Here today, gone tomorrow; that is the reality of this life, and there is nothing that we can do to change that. So, all the honor, and all the glory, and all the stature, they all mean nothing and they take us nowhere; they do not even guarantee to be provisions for our children, which "is like the beasts that perish"... "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Matthew 6:19-21)  

"Nowhere Man..."

"Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names." (Psalms 49:11) 'Casa de Nothing' is the main thought that the Lord has put upon my heart; not because there is nothing actually involved with setting up an inheritance for your children, because there is, and it really is a good idea to provide for those that you love; but to make it your "inward thought", that could be dangerous, if not totally ungodly. If you were to ask me 38 years ago what my most important thing in life was, I would have told you that it was owning a ranch in Texas with 600 head of cattle and a dozen horses. When I was 18 years old, I really had a passion for getting independent from the city life; I saw it as a trap, and truly believed that kind of life caused people to be dependent upon others to provide for their every need; and it does, but so what, such is life. We really don't realize how dependent we all are on God; how that God holds everything in perfect balance, and that balance is what keeps this ball we call earth from bursting into a ball of fire. Think about what must be going through the heads of many of our younger generation of children, as they are convinced that there is no God, and yet told that the earth they live on is going to perish; they must be really stressed out inside, feeling hopelessly doomed and not seeing any grandchildren likely in their futures. It could actually happen, and there will be a time that it will actually take place, but that does not mean that we are without hope! If our true focus is upon heaven, then what happens here on earth really becomes something of a fairy tale; but if our focus is upon this earth, then it is heaven that becomes a fairy tale; a nominal place which could be, but not worth dying for. We are really all going to die anyway, so why not die for something worth dying for? If we believe in Jesus Christ, then we need to believe in everything that He said. It really is that simple!
"These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall show you plainly of the Father. At that day ye shall ask in My name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you: for the Father Himself loveth you, because ye have loved Me, and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father." (John 16:25-28)

"All For Naught"

"For he seeth that wise men die, likewise the fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their wealth to others." (Psalms 49:10) And then we have the flip side, the material world, where nothing counts for nothing, as in, if it's not real then it does not get past the grave! I just pulled a U-haul up here from Southern California, so I can freshly attest to the fact, "You will never see a Hearse Pulling A U-Haul!" It's a fact that we do not get to take anything with us when we depart, it is all left behind for others, and it is dissolved back into the earth. Being in the Termite Industry, I can also attest to the way God has created those little creatures for a very special purpose, and they are very good at what they have been created for, which is breaking down dead wood back into the soil. Everything goes back into the earth in one way or another; which is the way that God has designed all of creation; it comes from the earth, and it returns to the earth. That includes these bodies that we have been given to dwell within; they will end up being dissolved back into the earth from which they were created. In a way, you could say the same for wealth that we leave behind to others: it gets dissolved into the hands of other people, which will eventually be dissolved back into the earth. Freaky, isn't it? It really does not matter how hard you plan, or how well you manage your money, because it's all going to end up going right back where it came from, the dirt! The only investment that can be counted beyond the grave is that which is counted for Christ! You want to leave something meaningful for your children, then leave them safe in the arms of Jesus! That is a goal to set your heart upon! Say, "Before I die, I want to see all of my family saved and ready to meet me on the other side!" Otherwise, it's really all for naught... "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: which, when it was full, they drew it to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 13:47-50)

"Love Has A Price" -2

"They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; none of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God ransom for him: (for the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:) that he should still live for ever, and not see corruption." (Psalms 49:6-9) As I was praying about this portion of Scripture, and relating to this the closing verses from Romans 8, I could not help but think about a certain parable that Jesus spoke of, the parable about the buried treasure and the very beautiful pearl, found in Matthew 13:44-46. Both of those parables are pretty much proclaiming the same thing, but of who was Jesus speaking? Even though I may not understand the whole picture of God's great love for us, I think I can see the beauty in what His love means to me, and how much He gave to purchase my life. Many times when Jesus spoke about the kingdom of heaven, and what the kingdom of heaven was like, He related to things that seemed to put value in the eternal and in the things that lead to the eternal, whether that might be Himself or the choices made of Him, by Him, or for Him. In particular, I am thinking of that portion of the Scripture above that is from Psalms 49:8, which says, "(for the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)". We could spend hours and hours debating the logic of why God did what He did, but there is no reason whatsoever to debate the beauty of what He did, because it was the most beautiful act of love ever demonstrated upon this earth. You might think that "beauty" is a strange choice of word to describe the horror of what Jesus went through; but according to the Father's eye, we were that "treasure in the field"; we were that "very beautiful pearl". Ponder that as you think of the price that comes with love... "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchantman, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it." (Matthew 13:44-46)

"Love Has A Price"

"They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; none of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: (for the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:) that he should still live for ever, and not see corruption." (Psalms 49:6-9) I tried, but there is no way to break these verses up; it is one statement that cannot be separated. The message though is really quite simple, although it has quite a lot to say: Money cannot buy true happiness, but that does not mean that love is cheap, nor that true happiness comes without a price. The main point that God is pressing into my heart is about the fact that love is the most costly thing that we have to give one another, yet is is also the one thing that we all have the same ability to share. In other words, love does have a price, but it is not measured in gold or money, nor in wealth and worldly possessions; it is measured in sacrifice and caring for one another; and caring for someone goes far beyond just handing them some cash or giving them anything that will provide for their earthly comfort, because it is about eternity, something we cannot buy them; only God can save a soul, and only God can provide the great price for redemption; which He has already done on the cross. Talk about a great price, there was no greater price ever displayed for love, then the Son of God giving up His life for us upon that cross. And when you really think about what He displayed, in that He had no worldly possessions; there was nothing here that He called His own, except for you and I, for which He laid down His life. There was really no money involved in that exchange; nothing but the blood of Jesus can take away our sins, and nothing but the blood of Jesus can redeem my brother from his sins; the most precious substance of all, the blood of Jesus, is available to all that will choose to be washed in it. It is free, but that does not mean it is cheap; but it surely brings real happiness... "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:35-39)  

"Giving It All To God"

"Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about?" (Psalms 49:5) Understandably, we all can find ourselves in the place of overreaching and holding onto the things of this world a little tighter than we should; after all, we are only humans and are dependent upon the things of this world to sustain this mortal shell. When he speaks of "the iniquity of my heels", he is speaking of the consequences of overreaching, which is where you find yourself when you have grown dependent upon a system that is not real; at least it is not real enough to provide life, either here or in the life to come. This verse is very very interesting to me, because it shows us how much fear is placed in something that really cannot harm us; if it cannot provide life, then it surely cannot take our life, at least not the life that matters the most! What is our answer for such a fear? God, He is our answer; He is the one that we turn to, even when that place we find ourselves painted into a corner by our own doing, God is always there to lift us out and to put our feet back on solid ground. Simply put, if God will protect us in the good times, He will protect us in the bad times; He protects us in the wilderness, just as He protects us in the promised land; we just need to give it all to Him, and acknowledge that He is God... "At the same time, saith the LORD, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people. Thus saith the LORD, The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest. The LORD hath appeared of old unto to me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee." (Jeremiah 31:1-3)