"The Beauty Within" -2

"How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!" (Psalms 84:1)
Actually this is a fitting way to start off speaking about the 'House of God,' especially if it's the place we long to end up! I simple way to look at the way this works, is to consider the Holy Spirit as not only our Comforter, our Helper, and our Guide, He is God abiding within us; therefore, we become a tabernacle of the Lord. These tents, in which our souls are transported around this earth, are just that, tents; temporary dwelling places that we mend and repair, sweep out, and whatever else we need to do to them to make them last until it's time to get our eternal dwelling place. Joined with us in this temporary tent, we have the Holy Spirit; who, by having His actual residence in Heaven, He gives us a new natural yearning for Home; not this home, but His Home. As many of you should know, this yearning, although it is a new natural yearning, it does not come naturally. That might not make any sense, whatsoever, not without having experienced the true yearning for Heaven. Our lives are filled with choices; each and every day, all day long, we are constantly faced with the choice of walking in the flesh or in the Spirit. When we walk in the flesh, we feed off of what the flesh desires, which are the things of this world; totally contrary to the desires we get from walking in the Spirit, which are the things of Heaven, or that are eternal. I can remember a teaching from Pastor Damian, I say about twenty years ago, where he spoke about something which may people in the room found hard to grasp, something hard to imagine what he imagined saying. It had something to do with his mother laying out his clothes for the day, and then his choice to put them on. If you will, the Holy Spirit's presence, direction, and power in our lives, is very much the same principle; it is natural that He lays out what we wear, but we must still choose to put it on...
""Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. Your eye is a lamp that provides light to your body. When your eye is good, your whole body is filled with light. But when your eye is bad, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is! No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."" (Matthew 6:19-24) NLT

"The Beauty Within"

"How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!" (Psalms 84:1)
Yes, it's true, the Tabernacle of God must have been a real special place to hang out; especially when there was any form of worship going on. And, because there was more than one area to hang out, the plural form of the word fits nicely. Aside from that, I see something here that needs to be brought out. There is something we need to understand about who we are, each and every one of us that are members of the body of Christ; we are His tabernacles! There is nothing so beautiful as when we come together and worship; besides what goes on in the room, there is something that goes on inside of us, something that is not worthy of words to express how it feels. If I had to even try and attach a word to what it's like, then it would be holiness; just a little taste of holiness! Just imagine what it might be like to be joined together in heaven. O, how glorious that is going to be! The word "amiable" is from the Hebrew word 'yediyd,' which appears only nine times in the Old Testament; five times as 'beloved,' two times as 'wellbeloved', one time as 'loves,' and one time as 'amiable.' Looking up the definition of the word 'amiable,' I get the sense that good, pleasant, agreeable, and even friendly, are all words that appear to describe what is meant by the word; if we are talking about people or personalities. But that is not the subject at hand! Take good for instance; me saying that it is good to be around somebody that I like, is not the same as me saying, it is good to be in the presence of the Lord. The words might be the same, but the person and the place are totally and completely different! Therefore, the level of good, if we could even specify a location, is far above any other! Besides all of that, the definition of the word is given for an adjective, which is a word used to describe a noun; however, the word 'yediyd,' of which this Hebrew word comes from, is a noun. Go figure that! I will go back to my previous statement, and just say that it's Indescribable...
"This boasting will do no good, but I must go on. I will reluctantly tell about visions and revelations from the Lord. I was caught up to the third heaven fourteen years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don't know -only God knows. Yes, only God knows whether I was in my body or outside my body. But I do know that I was caught up to paradise and heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell." (2 Corinthians 12:1-4) NLT

"Yearning for God's House"

PSALMS 84 [To the chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm for the sons of Korah.]
As much as I wanted to spend one more day on that, I felt God telling me to move on. Sometimes saying more is saying less; it's best sometimes to leave it to self-examination and not try to complete the thought for someone else's situation. It is believed that David is the one who wrote this Psalm, although his name is not attached to it. The musical instrument mentioned is a familiar one, it was mentioned before in Psalms 8 and 81, and is depicted as a harp; however, the more interesting depiction is that of a winepress. To the point of yesterday and how idols can be a belief, it's somewhat like 'God's Vineyard,' which He planted expecting good grapes, but they turned out to be sour. When we mix our understanding with God's truth, we can sometimes create our own idols based upon our own interpretation of God's word. When that happens, the result is mostly a god that appears more like us, flawed and uncommitted. We might think we are worshipping the True and Living God, but in our minds we have created a less powerful and less personal God than He really is. Based upon all that God has done for us, you would think that we could just take Him at His word and leave it at that; but no! As with every other example given in His word, we need to add our own little twist, our own conditions, and our own explaining of who He is and what He stands for. Here is the thing about that 'winepress' depiction, that squeezing and crushing the grapes will produce the wine; so what kind of wine will you be? It is believed that David wrote this Psalm while being forced out of his city during Absalom's rebellion. If that is the case, it forced David to examine what it was he cherished most, which was the assembly of God's people and worshipping in God's house. That is kind of on the line of Paul's point, "Don't be concerned for your own good but for the good of others." Not that I want to argue the point, but putting others first is what is required to truly worship God...
"As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, "Take this and eat it, for this is my body." And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, "Each of you drink from it, for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many. Mark my words -I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it new with you in my Father's Kingdom." Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives." (Matthew 26:26-30) NLT

"It's His Place" -Too

"That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the Most High over all the earth." (Psalms 83:18) I can't begin to tell you how much I get amazed by the way God speaks through the CSN programs, no matter who might be sharing. As long as the word of God is being taught, there is something to learn that is fresh and new; it breaths life into an otherwise longing soul. Even if what I hear is very similar to what I had written that very morning, such as was the way things went yesterday; at least two different pastors were sharing very similar things as I spoke of yesterday morning. Is it just a coincidence? No, I don't think that it is; it's a confirmation that God was speaking, just as I asked Him to do. Every morning, without fail, there are at least two very important things that I pray for God to do: to forgive me for my sins, and to speak into my heart. Now, regarding that closing Scripture from yesterday, the King James says, "Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry." (1 Corinthians 10:14) Above that verse in my Bible I have written 1 John 1:9; which is written in blue ink, that tells me it was written sometime in the 90's, back when I used a Cross pen for taking notes. In the context of what was being said, we all have faults that need to be forgiven; we all fail to flee temptation now and again, even when it's obvious that God is providing a way for us to escape, we find a way to let temptation win, now and again. Maybe it's just me, but I seriously doubt it. Here is what I believe this "idolatry" thing has to do with standing our ground, even when we fail to stand: Idols do not save us! Anything that we put between us and God is an idol, and idols will not and cannot save us! They can't forgive us of our sins; they surely can't cleanse us of all unrighteousness; and they most certainly won't get us into heaven! Here is the thing that is the most scariest thing of all: Idols don't have to be an object, they can simply be a belief...
"You are reasonable people. Decide for yourselves if what I say is true. When we bless the cup at the Lord's Table, aren't we sharing in the blood of Christ? And when we break bread, aren't we sharing in the body of Christ? And though we are many, we all eat from one loaf of bread, showing that we are one body. Think about the people of Israel. Weren't they united by eating the sacrifices at the altar? What am I trying to say? Am I saying that food offered to idols has some significance, or that idols are real gods? No, not at all. I am saying that these sacrifices are offered to demons, not to God. And I don't want you to participate with demons. You cannot drink from the cup of the Lord and from the cup of demons, too. You cannot eat at the Lord's Table and at the table of demons, too. What? Do you dare to rouse the Lord's jealousy? Do you think we are stronger than he is? You say, "I am allowed to do anything" -but not everything is good for you. You say, "I am allowed to do anything" -but not everything is beneficial. Don't be concerned for your own good but for the good of others."
(1 Corinthians 10:15-24) NLT

"It's His Place"

"That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the Most High over all the earth." (Psalms 83:18) Ultimately, it's really not up to us to save anyone; God is the one who saves! We are only vessels that He uses to spread the Good News that He does save; and we surely don't get to make the choice on who is worthy and who is not worthy to hear the Gospel. That is where some of our brothers and sisters seem to make the mistake of judging people based upon appearance; as if they are any different! When we judge someone to be condemned, we ultimately condemn ourselves in the process; not that we loose our salvation, or anything like that; but that is not our place, and there will be some sort of price to be paid for judging others; what that might be, I really do not know. If you notice, Paul said, "to save some." There will always be those who choose not to accept God's offer, but we do not make the distinction between who those people are and who are the some that will. I am sure that we are all going to be surprised to see who joins us up in heaven; but until then, we should be willing to see everyone make it there, no matter who they might be or what they might have done. As this Psalm begins, it sets up the notion of who the enemies of God are, and what it is that they do to become His enemies. The devil and his demons don't get a chance for salvation, so they are the primary enemies of God, and hell was created specifically for them. Man is not God's enemy; God's desire is that none should perish, none! So here is the end of what began as something to defeat the enemy, yet the enemy is not who we think. It's much the same with how we learn to take a stand against our old sin nature: we don't need to stand against something that is already put to death, but we do need to stand...
"I don't want you to forget, dear brothers and sisters, about our ancestors in the wilderness long ago. All of them were guided by a cloud that moved ahead of them, and all of them walked through the sea on dry ground. In the cloud and in the sea, all of them were baptized as followers of Moses. All of them are the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual water. For they drank from the spiritual rock that traveled with them, and that rock was Christ. Yet God was not pleased with most of them, and their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did, or worship idols as some of them did. As the Scriptures say, "The people celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry." And we must not engage in sexual immorality as some of them did, causing 23,000 of them to die in one day. Nor should we put Christ to the test, as some of them did and then died from snakebites. And don't grumble as some of them did, and then were destroyed by the angel of death. These things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us who live at the end of the age. If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. So my dear friends, flee from the worship of idols." (1 Corinthians 10:1-14) NLT

"Put in Place"

"Let them be confounded and troubled for ever; yea, let them be put to shame, and perish:" (Psalms 83:17) I thought about having these two last verses together, since the King James has them linked together by a colon; but there is just so much to say separately of each one, that I could not bring myself to do it. Those that choose to ignore that God is real and that He is going to judge them for their sins one day, need to know the choice they are making. I mean, it's pretty obvious that they already know that He is real, otherwise, why would they get so upset when you bring Him up? Our desire for those who are lost should always be that they would repent and be saved, first and foremost! We should never hope that anyone should perish, because God does not desire that anyone should perish, and our hearts should be inline with God's heart. Jesus told us to love our enemies, bless those who curse us, do good to those that hate us, and pray for those that spitefully use us and persecute us; all of those things are pretty much the opposite of what we naturally would want to do. Take the pray for those part of that equation, and consider what that might consist of; would it be a prayer such as the verse we have before us today? If it were you, how would you like to be prayed for? Jesus also told us to do onto others as we would have them do onto us; so how is that any different? The word "perish" is pretty much what it represents, be destroyed and put to death. That's a pretty harsh reality for someone to come to terms with, but it just might work. People usually would like to know that they have left something behind for others. That is why people write a Will or establish some kind of Trust, that when they die, their Estate might be properly dealt with. But to be destroyed, that's something more than most people could come to terms with; it's like being blotted out of existence, or forgotten evermore. Now, with that in mind, imagine the opposite condition that we might find for ourselves; a condition of leaving behind a growing legacy that will never perish...
"Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ. When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who followed the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law. When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ. When I am with those who are weak, I share in their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some. I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings. Don't you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what I should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified." (1 Corinthians 9:19-27) NLT

"Real Power" -2

"Fill their faces with shame; that they may seek thy name, O LORD." (Psalms 83:16) Beyond all of this, there is something new and glorious; this is what we must look towards, there is no turning back. If you can see yourself there, it makes the journey so much more pleasant and takes a whole heck of a lot of worry out of your otherwise worrisome life. I know Jesus said for us to take no thought over this and that, but let's be honest, when the bill is due and you don't have the money, you can't help but give it a little thought. I tend to think that we complicate things more than we should by the lifestyle we make for ourselves. Too much stuff to take care of, and too many toys to pay off; all of it makes our lives more complicated, and the more complicated our life is, the less time we spend with the Lord. Having said that, I also believe that should have some fun; don't ask me why, but there are three things I can do by myself and still have fun doing: golf, bike riding, and snowboarding. I don't know how to explain it, but those three things always seem better done by myself. Not that I don't enjoy doing them with friends and relatives, because I do; but I always have to adjust my skill level or performance to their level or performance, which just gets frustrating; and bring frustrated is not fun. Don't ask me why I even brought that up, except I woke up to a dream about trying to go on a bike ride with three friends, all of which had a different route they wanted to take; all of which had something to do before going on the ride. By the time we actually started the ride, I was already done riding. Between gathering items needed, like helmets, gloves, and even shoes, when it came time to actually start the ride, I was done and no longer interested. Is it something worth sharing? I think so. Our relationship with the Lord has got to be personal! I might not be able to properly express things the way that I should, but this one thing I know, relationships matter! My relationship with God is not based upon how well I do this or that, but it is based upon the fact that He loves me and He wants to spend time with me. Think about what I am trying to say, because it matters how we prioritize our time with God and with those that we love...
"Now I sing a song for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a rich and fertile hill. He plowed the land, cleared its stones, and planted it with the best vines. In the middle he built a watchtower and carved a winepress in the nearby rocks. Then he waited for a harvest of sweet grapes, but the grapes that grew were bitter. Now, you people of Jerusalem and Judah, you judge between me and my vineyard. What more could I have done for my vineyard that I have not already done? When I expected sweet grapes, why did my vineyard give me bitter grapes? Now let me tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will tear down its hedges and let it be destroyed. I will break down its walls and let the animals trample it. I will make it a wild place where the vines are not pruned and the ground is not hoed, a place overgrown with briers and thorns. I will command the clouds to drop no rain on it. The nation of Israel is the vineyard of the LORD of Heaven's Armies. The people of Judah are his pleasant garden. He expected a crop of justice, but instead found oppression. He expected to find righteousness, but instead he heard cries of violence." (Isaiah 5:1-7) NLT

"Real Power"

"Fill their faces with shame; that they may seek thy name, O LORD." (Psalms 83:16) Regardless of who you are or what you might be capable of doing, you are not going to stand against the power of God. It's really quite simple, so simple that it almost seems unbelievable. God wants us to realize that we need Him to save us from ourselves and that He loves us and that He provided the way to be saved. You cannot deny you are unable to do anything to prevent your own death; countless stories and movies have been written to try a portray ways to make it happen, but all those are only fiction. Oddly enough, eternal life is not fiction; and for those that believe in Christ Jesus, eternity is more real than life itself. I know that might sound foolish to say; but it really depends on your definition of life and living. We have been so spoiled by so many different things, we hardly realize sometimes how much hardship there is all around us. Everywhere there are people suffering and dying all day long. According to the average mortality rate, there are 107 deaths in the world per minute; that's 6,390 deaths per hour; which is about 153,000 deaths per day. Now that might not seem like so much, not compared to the population of the planet; but my point is more about the flight of souls leaving this earth, at a rate of 1.78 souls per second. So you tell me, which life matters the most? Personally, I will place my bets on the next life over this one, and day of the week! Even the biggest most hardened person alive, when faced with death, they are powerless to overcome the grave. There is a very close parallel between our ability to overcome death and sin; both of which are impossible for us to overcome on our own...
"But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment. Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live, looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along. On that day, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames. But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God's righteousness." (2 Peter 3:10-13) NLT

"Substance and Power"

"As the fire burneth a wood, and as the flame setteth the mountains on fire; so persecute them with thy tempest, and make them afraid with thy storm." (Psalms 83:14-15) It really is pretty obvious that God's power cannot be compared to anything else; so what causes people to doubt God's ability to do something simple, like heal a body, or fight a battle? If the God we believe in can create the heavens and the earth with just a word, what makes us doubt that He can't do something personal for us, His children? Worthiness! That's what I believe that it is, worthiness to ask Him for a healing or to fight for us, because of our unfaithfulness and our lack of obedience. Wouldn't it be nice to have something to fall back on when we feel unworthy of asking our Heavenly Father for a favor or for help to get us through something that is overwhelming and unbearable? We do! We can never be worthy enough, because we are trapped in these sinful bodies; but Christ has died that we might be set free from the bondage of sin, and He rose that we might have victory over death. So those two things that make us unworthy of God's kingdom have been dealt with, sin and death; we have been made free from sin, and we have been given eternal life; what else matters? A healing? A small battle? We could be healed today, and then die tomorrow! We could win a battle today, but tomorrow we could loose the war! I tell you what, I believe that the average believer has more power in their little pinky finger than the strongest unbeliever has in their whole body, if they are fixed on the Lord. Who cares if things don't work out the way that we might hope or ask? Is not God good enough to satisfy our every wish or desire? Yes He is, provided that our desire is to be with Him, and our wish is to please Him with our lives. Beyond that, nothing else really matters, because nothing else has anything else to do with eternity. It might not seem to line up, but then again, what are you afraid of? Fire? Storm? Nah, I think not; there is nothing here that might hurt me...
"You have not come to a physical mountain, to a place of flaming fire, darkness, gloom, and whirlwind, as the Israelites did at Mount Sinai. For they heard an awesome trumpet blast and a voice so terrible that they begged God to stop speaking. They staggered back under God's command: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death." Moses himself was so frightened at the sight that he said, "I am terrified and trembling." No, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the Living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to the countless thousands of angels in a joyful gathering. You have come to the assembly of God's firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God himself, who is judge over all things. You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who have now been made perfect. You have come to Jesus, the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks of forgiveness instead of crying out for vengeance like the blood of Abel." (Hebrews 12:18-22) NLT

"Done Under!"

"O my God, make them like a wheel; as the stubble before the wind." (Psalms 83:13) Another thing that I have learned over all of these years, is that we don't give up; no way, no how, we must not give up! I have been to the edge of the cliff before; it's not a very comfortable place to be. You don't have any idea what you are doing, because what you are doing is not what God wants you to do. God wants a fighter. A fighter is someone that will stand for what they believe in, and then take everything that comes their way, standing tall and unafraid. Mathew Henry puts it like this: "Those that trust in God have their hearts fixed; those that fight against him are unfixed, like a wheel." Like the stupid song, "The wheels on the bus go round and round," there is nothing that makes it fixed to anything, it's just a stupid song to amuse children as they ride on a bus. That's pretty much the idea of this verse: those that do not fix their hearts to God are unfixed to anything that matters; and even what they think matters, is so very temporal, it really does not count for anything at all. That's is why we never give up! Nothing else really matters like the way having our hearts fixed to God matters. We might try to give up, but giving up is not an option that feels right. When we feel like giving up, we need to press harder towards God; praying harder, digging deeper into the word, and spending time sharing what we believe with others. Those that are unfixed to God, when they try harder at what they do, their circle just gets bigger, their spinning just increases faster and faster; but they still have nothing of substance to hold onto...
"Listen! The armies of many nations roar like the roaring of the sea. Hear the thunder of the mighty forces as they rush forward like thundering waves. But though they thunder like breakers on a beach, God will silence them, and run them away. They will flee like chaff scattered by the wind, and like a tumbleweed whirling before a storm. In the evening Israel waits in terror, but by dawn its enemies are dead. This is the just reward of those who plunder us, a fitting end for those who destroy us." (Isaiah 17:12-14) NLT

"Done Under Prayer"

"Make their nobles like Oreb, and like Zeeb: yea, all their princes as Zebah, and as Zalmunna: who said, Let us take to ourselves the houses of God in possession." (Psalms 83:11-12) There might be more to this than meets the eye; no, actually, I can say without a doubt, there is more to this than meets the eye. Paul again gives us this perfect illustration in Ephesians 6:12, saying, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." These are the forces behind all that is ungodly and evil in this world, and they don't play nice! We can pretend that they are not there all that we want to, but make no mistake, they are as real as the nose on your face. If there is one thing that I have learned in these thirty-five of walking with the Lord, it's that the enemy makes strongholds in our person lives, our families, our churches, and even in our nations. Strongholds are spiritual fortresses that the enemy has established or taken over; barriers that must be taken down for progress to be made in the battle against evil, both personally, corporately, or even nationally. We can see this example given all throughout the history of the Israel, by the way they established places to worship other gods, referred to as "high places" or "groves." Personally, I think the fortresses the enemy has taken over are harder to destroy than the ones he has established; mostly because those that he has established are more obvious for the common Believer to comprehend. Those that he has taken over, they are more a twist on things we accept or all ready practice; so they are less noticeable as something that must be taken down in our lives. That said, prayer is not only our powerful tool to take them down, it is also the tool that we have been given to have them revealed. I have got to be honest, my prayer life has not been something to write home about. Every since the death of my son, I just haven't been as dedicated as I once was; instead of praying for an hour straight, it's been more like thirty minutes, if that. There is a good place to start; let's start by getting back to prayer...
"Then Jehoshaphat, Asa's son, became the next king. He strengthened Judah to stand against any attack from Israel. He stationed troops in all the fortified towns of Judah, and he assigned additional garrisons to the land of Judah and to the towns of Ephraim that his father, Asa, had captured. The LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the example of his father's earlier years and did not worship the images of Baal. He sought his father's God and obeyed his commands instead of following the evil practices of the kingdom of Israel. So the LORD established Jehoshaphat's control over the kingdom of Judah. All the people of Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, so he became very wealthy and highly esteemed. He was deeply committed to the ways of the LORD. He removed the pagan shrines and Asherah poles from Judah." (2 Chronicles 17:1-6) NLT

"Done Under Foot"

"Do unto them as unto the Midianites; as to Sisera, as to Jabin, at the brook of Kison: which perished at En-dor: they became as dung for the earth." (Psalms 83:9-10) It just so happens that we are in the Book of Judges, so much of this makes sense with the way so many were defeated with hardly any armies; sometimes by just one person and some very interesting choice of weapons. But isn't that how God likes to make things work out? He does not like to share much of the glory, so He takes away the odds and make us know that it's not our doing that gets things done. That said, there is a small part He allows for His servants to take credit for; which part, is that of showing up! That's pretty much all there is to it, if you want to be used of God, then you need to show up, step up, or just make yourself available. God pretty much will do the rest! There is one thing about Paul's version of fighting spiritual battles that has always struck me, it's the part about "standing;" "And having done all, to stand." (Ephesians 6:13c) It really matters how we survive any battle, that we don't give up! That's what the enemy wants, weak Christians that say, It's time to quit, because we just can't win. On the one hand, they have a point when they proclaim that, because it's not by our power or might that we can be victorious; so we might as well agree on that. But to give up and say that it's impossible, that just is not true! There is nothing impossible with God! And that's a quote from some very trustworthy sources; on that we can stand! If you think about what is being said about the enemies of God, 'dung' is pretty much just that, compose used to fertilize the earth. Obviously, when it comes to God defeating any army, no matter how large or how strong, that's pretty much the only power or potential that they have; on that we can also stand...
"How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight." (Hebrews 11:32-34) NLT

"Usual Suspects"

"The tabernacles of Edom, and the Ishmaelites; of Moab, and the Hagarenes; Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre; Assur also is joined with them: they have helped the children of Lot. Selah." (Psalms 83:6-8) Not that it mattered, but Jesus came to be die for the whole world, so their plot to put Him to death was nothing more than God's will; so there! It puts things in a little better perspective when you see them from God's point of view; besides, all the power that this world has to move against His people, count as nothing in comparison to the power of God. The weakness of God is stronger than the power of all mankind combined! Here is a pretty exclusive list of 'usual suspects' that are more than likely willing to conspire against the children of God. Their usual issue that they have in common is that of jealousy or envy; but put to the test, it's just pure wickedness that motivates them deep down, just pure evil thoughts against God. You could narrow it down to something simple, like not being told what to do; something it seems we all have to common, by the time we are two! I try to figure people out some times, but I just can't; no one can; just when you think you have someone figured out, they have a whole new motivation for doing what they do. That is why God has said in His word, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9) We honestly don't need to try and figure people out, because it comes down to who's children we are; if we are God's children, then we are governed by God; if we are not, well let's just say that we are not...
"Jesus told them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, because I have come to you from God. I am not here on my own, but he sent me. Why can't you understand what I am saying? It's because you can't even hear me! For you are the children of the devil, and you love to do the evil this he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. So when I tell the truth, you just naturally don't believe me! Which of you can truthfully accuse me of sin? And since I am telling you the truth, why don't you believe me? Anyone who belongs to God listens gladly to the words of God. But you don't listen because you don't belong to God."" (John 8:42-47) NLT 

"Not That It Matters"

"For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:" (Psalms 83:5)
You can take it for what it's worth; personally, I choose to think the Holy Spirit speaks to those who listen, and He can speak through who ever or what ever He wants to. It just so happens, the enemy has the ability to speak through different sources also; be it snakes, or people, or even items that do not even have life, such as the idols we make and worship. Looking back on my years growing up, I seem to remember thinking the songs I listened to were sending secret messages and secrets about life, things way more complicated and interesting than the stuff they taught us in school. Maybe it was true, on a spiritual level. If you believe those that hold to the taught that many bands worship the devil and even cast spells on their songs to influence peoples minds, then it is totally possible it could happen. I don't listen to any of those bands anymore, and I don't want to. Today's youth have their own problems that go further and deeper than the music that they listen to, because many of those that were influenced by the bands of my time are the ones teaching today. Imagine that! Not that it matters, but Pastor Mike said the exact same words yesterday that I said about a month ago. Someone called and asked about the world being millions of years old, and he said, "Didn't He make new water into old wine? Who's to say He did not make the world mature? Wasn't Adam made a full grown man?" To make his point even more convincing, he started with the universal proof, stating how the sun is getting smaller, much like a candle that is burning; and if it had been millions of years, based on the measurement from the 1880's, the sun would be the size of mars. Doesn't anyone ever think to check the facts? People believe what they want to believe, regardless of the truth. The more that something is said, even though it's a lie, the more people believe it to be true...
"Then the leading priests and Pharisees called the high council together. "What are we going to do?" They asked each other. "This man certainly performs many miraculous signs. If we allow him to go on like this, soon everyone will believe in him. Then the Roman army will come and destroy both our Temple and our nation." Caiaphas, who was the high priest at that time, said, "You don't know what you're talking about! You don't realize that it's better for you that one man should die for the people than for the whole nation to be destroyed." He did not say this on his own: as high priest at that time he was led to prophesy that Jesus would die for the entire nation. And not only for that nation, but to bring together and unite all the children of God scattered around the world. So from that time on, the Jewish leaders began to plot Jesus' death." (John 11:47-52) NLT 

"Plot of Not"

"They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance." (Psalms 83:4) Okay, so sometimes it hurts. Get over it! You don't think God feels our pain? Look what He went through to pay the price for our sins. Whether you are a person suffering through some trial, or the parent of someone who is, He was on both sides of the issue, and He took the full force of what hurt feels like. But there was one great difference in the way He suffered, He saw the prize that waited at the end of the suffering. That does not mean we can't see it too, because we can; with a little faith, we can see clearly and without any doubt what waits on the other side of this life. This is how the enemy gets people to forget the promises of God, by cutting of the memories of His promises. It's the same for the people of Israel, just as it is for the Christian who wanders aimlessly through life: God's promises are placed on a shelf, and then they move from the house where that shelf is located. Weird, I know; but here is the thing that matters most, more than any person or place on this earth: God's Word is secure and never changes! Here are a couple promises that God has placed in the Holy Scriptures, where they are never removed: Genesis 3:15 and Genesis 3:3. We can assume that the enemy is winning all we want, but those two verses proclaim that he never will win the war. He might win some small battles here and there, but that has no affect on the end result, because in the end, God wins! A strange thing happen yesterday with the message at church; Pastor Bryan started his message speaking about all those people who started out at failures, but ended up doing great things; people like Abraham Lincoln, Walt Disney, Henry Ford, and many others. As I left the church property, I heard Pastor Ben on the radio closing his message with the exact same list of people. It was as if they were reading from the same commentary; go figure! Seriously, they were speaking of those people with the exact same words...
"Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see. Through their faith, the people of old earned a good reputation. By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God's command, that what we see did not come from anything that can be seen. It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel's offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith."
(Hebrews 11:1-4) NLT

"The Head of Defeat"

"They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones." (Psalms 83:3) Here is the big mistake the enemies of God make, thinking that they can just go against His people any time they feel like it; because it only works when He allows it to happen. Obviously, it happens all the time; but for the most part, when it does, it causes the church to spread and become more committed to God's calling upon their lives. Do you know why that is? It's a heart issue, not a head issue. If we thought about what might happen, then nine times out of ten, we probably would not go ahead and do something that would get us in trouble with the world. It's like, do I listen to my own counsel, or do I do what is in my heart? My heart says to declare that Jesus is LORD, but my mind says, watch what you say and to who you say it to. You can get away with talking about God with almost anyone; even most atheist will put up with listening to you, until you say something that makes them check their own belief. But as soon as you start talking about Jesus and how He is the only way to get into heaven, then you have crossed the line with most people, even people that might claim to be a Christian, as hard as that is to believe. There are many churches today that hardly teach from the Bible; most of their sermons are all about having relationships with one another, more than they are about a relationship with God. That's the big difference between religion and having a personal relationship, the head and the heart; one is head knowledge, the other is love. The point is pretty simple, based upon "thy hidden ones," it speaks of those who are treasured by God, because He is their treasure. In other words, those that love God, love Him no matter what, and they do so because He loves them and they know it; and because they know that He loves them, He treasures the relationship that they have together, and He will guard and defend them, as His children...
"Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God's right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory." (Colossians 3:1-4) NLT

"The Heart of the Battle"

"For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head." (Psalms 83:2) It is really not an issue to get God to listen, nor is it really an issue to get God to speak up; for God will do what He feels He should do, when He needs to do it. That said, I believe that our response is pretty much God's will for what needs to be done. In other words, God puts the issue on the hearts of His people, and then they pray for the issue at hand. You can believe it happens however you want, but I will continue to believe it's God will that gets things done. Case in point, this is something that was explained on the radio the other day, and it had to do with the disciples and nets full of fishes. The first instance was the time Jesus saw Peter, Andrew, James, and John together, and He told them to cast their nets on the other side of the boat; the catch was so big that they could not lift up the nets and the nets began to tear. The second had to do after Jesus resurrected, as He finds them fishing again, and said, "Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find." It happens again, the net is so full that they could not draw it in. But something happens, Jesus speaks directly to them saying, "Bring of the fish which ye have now caught." So Peter goes by himself and drags the net up and over to the dry land; a net full of 153 large fish. So, what's the point? Well, if you think about it, if it's going to benefit us, it must be God's will that makes it happen. The first batch of fish were to prove the power Jesus had, which influenced their choice to follow Him, for Him to make them, "Fishers of Men." The second was to prove the power we have to do God's will, when He asks us to do it. Either way, it's His will, whether it is meant for learning or doing, it's all His will that gets it done...
"It is the LORD who provides the sun to light the day and the moon and stars to light the night, and who stirs the sea into roaring waves. His name is the LORD of Heaven's Armies, and this is what he says: "I am as likely to reject my people Israel as I am to abolish the laws of nature!" This is what the LORD says: "Just as the heavens cannot be measured and the foundations of the earth cannot be explored, so I will not consider casting them away for the evil they have done. I, the LORD, have spoken!"" (Jeremiah 31:35-37) NLT

"Making All Things Good" -2

"Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God." (Psalms 83:1) I forgot something very important about this one little thing called faith, we believe that God is good! Unlike those I this world that might think He is mean or judgmental, if they even think He exist at all; we know without a doubt that He is good and loving; He is our good Father, who never let's us down! I can't help crying when I think of this, because I was not such a good father to my son. There were times when I judged him instead of loving him, and times when I pushed him away instead of holding him close. I guess it's because I never really had a father growing up, so I didn't know how to act. That's not really a good excuse, because I have the greatest example we can have, written by the Maker of all that exist. Still, He knows! That's what blows my mind, God knows every terrible thing about me, yet He loves me all the same! Do you see how that is even possible? Do you understand how amazing God is, and how powerfully His love dissolves all that's bad and unfit for His Kingdom? We are not even capable of obeying the first commandment, to love God with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength; let along are we able to obey the second, to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. But God forgives me of this shameful lack of love in my life, because He sent His Son to stand in my place, making up for the good that was lacking in my heart. Now when God sees me, He sees the love of His Son in me! Jesus not only took my place for being judged for sin, but He takes my place in the judgment of lacking all things good. Do you know why He does this? Because He alone is Good...
"What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won't he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one -for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who the can condemn us? No one -for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God's right hand, pleading for us." (Romans 8:31-34) NLT

"Making All Things Good"

"Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God." (Psalms 83:1) Many people really don't actually think God concerns Himself with the affairs of mankind; as if He just lets things play out or take their natural course. I don't agree with that kind of thinking, nor do I think God stands still during acts of hate or destruction against His people. We really have no idea what goes on in heaven, nor can we see what is going on in the spiritual world all around us. Yesterday there was a question about what happens to people when they die. Good question, but one that requires some real knowledge of the Scriptures. The bottom line, if you want to call it that, is that those who are God's children are taken into God's care; while those that are not, are held here until the day of judgment. How or where they are held, it is up for debate; but where or how God's children are treated is made perfectly clear. The easiest way to look at this type of question is by place of citizenship; if you are a citizen of heaven, then you are handled by God and His messengers; if you are a citizen of the world, then you are handled by the world, until further notice! It really does not matter what happens to God's children here, because they are always in God's hand, always! No matter what might be happening in this physical world, that's not really the world we are to be are concerned about; ours is another place, one that is free of death and sickness and evil; one that is waiting just on the other side of this. It really isn't hard to understand, when it comes to His children, God is always making things work for the good; everything works towards the good, even death, which is really life...
"Jesus said, "There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury. At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus who was covered with sores. As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man's table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores. Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, and his soul went to the place of the dead. There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side."" (Luke 16:19-23) NLT

"Defeat Them, O God!"

PSALMS 83 [A Song or Psalm of Asaph.]
This is the last of a series of eleven Psalms ascribed to Asaph, which one he was, we really don't quite know. If he was the Asaph whom David placed in charge of the Temple worship, the he surely had some prophetic abilities, to say the least; however, we know that the real Author of these Holy Scriptures is God, who just used men as His vessels to speak and write those things He wanted to say to a fallen world. As you might have guessed again, the title above matches the Title shown above this Psalm in my Bible; a Zodhiates' Bible no less, one that I have used to study from since January 1st, 1989. Before that, my first Study Bible was a Jimmy Swaggart Study Bible; which sadly feel apart at the seams, not too long after his ministry did in 1988. My intent for getting this particular Bible, was because it has the Hebrew and Greek Lexical aids in the back; aids that I used for sharing the true meaning of certain words with my J.W. visitors, if they dared to show up at my house. It was a good idea, but one that hardly ever saw the light of day; mostly because, when it came to presenting real evidence, they seemed to have somewhere else they needed to be. Isn't that the truth! You can call it spiritual blindness if you want to, I will call it spiritual deception; as a matter of fact, there is actually a spirit at work in them, and it's grip is hard to cut loose. But, it's like that for everyone who is walking in spiritual darkness; only the Holy Spirit can cause them to open their hearts to the truth. That's how it was for me, because before I was saved, I wanted nothing to do with church; and I surely did not know who Jesus truly was, nor did I care to find out. I remember even reading tracts that shared things about Him, but they really did not matter, because my heart could not receive it anyway; it was like it was written in another language or something, and only the parts I could receive where the parts that I understood. I find it rather interesting how this Psalm follows the one which speaks about God being in control. If we are going to reach anyone with the Gospel message, then it's going to require God's help; it's going to require the Holy Spirit to open the eyes of their heart. That is pretty much what "Defeat" represents, to overcome by force, to subdue or reduce, to cause them to surrender their way of thinking and comply...
"So God's rest is there for people to enter, but those who first heard the good news failed to enter because they disobeyed God. So God set another time for entering his rest, and that time is today. God announced this through David much later in the word's already quoted: "Today when you hear his voice, don't harden your hearts."" (Hebrews 4:6-7) NLT 

"The Real Place"

"Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations." (Psalms 82:8) As with most of the Psalms, the last verse is pretty much the highlight of all that was being said; in that regard, this verse pretty much closes the argument on who has the upper hand. This starts off with placing God above all that are high and mighty; no matter who, whether spiritual leaders or leaders of nations, God is watching over and judging all that they do or say, especially the way that they judge the people under them. That is pretty much everyone's duty, not just those placed in powerful places, but every mother or father, employer or teacher; anyone who has any chance to influence the life or direct the life of another person, is responsible for their judgment of those they oversee. How that groups together with spiritual warfare is pretty interesting, because there is more of a connection than many of us realize. We can gleam a small hint of this in Paul's letter to Ephesus, as he makes the case for there being only 'One Body' of which we are all members, none more important than the other. This counts for Jews and Gentiles as well; even though the Jews are God's chosen people, we all are grafted into that same tree; thus becoming part of His peculiar people, the chosen children of God. How that fits into the spiritual warfare is part of knowing our place in the battle, and who it is that we are fighting against; because it's surely not our brothers and sisters! Much like Paul's letter starts out, that is how we must start looking at our position, we are seated in Christ! First and foremost, that is where we have been placed; and from that position we must remain, whether we are leading others or being led, there is no difference, because we all are seated in Christ. Only from that position can we stand in the spiritual battle; only from the position of being totally dependent upon Christ can we have any chance of being able to stand at all...
"I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, "Look, God's home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever." And the one sitting on the throne said, "Look, I am making everything new!" And then he said to me, "Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true." And he also said, "It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega -the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children. But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars -their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."" (Revelations 21:3-8) NLT

"Put In Our Place"

"But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes." (Psalms 82:7) Pondering upon the reason for certain things that happen is totally a waste of time; our time is better spent if we examine what it is that we learned in it, rather than what it was meant to achieve. God has a way of bringing us to a point where we see our true position in this world; because if we think we have strength enough to compete against the natural process, we are in for a serious letdown, to say the least. Here's another thing about Nehemiah 8 that I find rather interesting, the people learned the Feast of Booths and reestablished them. It might seem like something of little meaning to some, but there is some pretty complex reasons behind God instructing the children of Israel to celebrate this tradition. For one, it was an acknowledgment of God's giving of water and light; two very important ingredients for having a successful harvest; but beyond that, it was a celebration of thee Water and Light, none other than Jesus Christ, who was to come and 'Tabernacle' among us! Those that try to lessen the teachings of the Old Testament, saying that they do not apply any longer, because we are a New Testament church, they really do not understand how important the Scriptures are to our position in Christ. We need to learn from our mistakes, because by them we are shown our need for redemption and our need to be saved. Without Christ we are doomed for destruction, which is the natural course that we are headed into. But Jesus came to correct that course and to establish a new direction for our eternal soul; one in which He and He alone could establish. I think want happens next is rather interesting, because after they reestablished the Feast of Booths, they confessed their sins; reading the Law, then confessing, then worshipping the LORD! That's how it needs to happen! The Word goes in, and the dirt comes out; then, and only then, can we experience real worship of God...
"On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, "Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, 'Rivers of living water will flow from his heart." (When he said "living water," he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.)" (John 7:37-39) NLT

"Justice Rendered"

"I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the Most High." (Psalms 82:6) It might be just a slight overreach, but just because a person has power, does not mean that they are above the law. When did we surrender over to man's rule? Seriously! Laws are being determined and written based upon what man feels is good or bad, not what God says; never mind the Constitution or what ever other form of documents a nation was founded on, God's laws are still relevant, so why are we not governed by them? I will tell you why: Because no one in power wants to submit to power! There really needs to be a wake-up call to the powers that be, because God is still on the Throne, and I am beginning to think He is getting ready to slam the hammer down. Here is what I think needs to take place, much like the Book of Nehemiah, we need leaders that lead people back to following God! Leaders that call it like it is, sin is sin, wrong is wrong, bad is bad; there has got to be something else that divides us other than race and wealth. If you notice something about Nehemiah 8:8, the reading of the law was read clearly and distinctly; in other words, they did not pick and choose what they read, but read to make the people understand the whole context of the law. That's what wrong in our churches today, picking and choosing what parts of God's Word will be shared with the people. We must present the whole counsel of God, both the good and the bad, the parts that make us feel good, as well as those that make us feel dirty...
"They read from the Book of the Law of God and clearly explained the meaning of what was being read, helping the people understand each passage. Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who were interpreting for the people said to them, "Don't mourn or weep on such a day as this! For today is a sacred day before the LORD your God." For the people had all been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law. And Nehemiah continued, "Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don't be dejected or sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!" And the Levites too, quieted the people, telling them, "Hush! Don't weep! For this is a sacred day." So the people went away to eat and drink at a festive meal, to share gifts of food, and to celebrate with great joy because they had heard God's words and understood them. On October 9 the family leaders of all the people, together with the priests and Levites, met with Ezra the scribe to go over the Law in greater detail." (Nehemiah 8:8-13) NLT

"Perverted Justice"

"They know not, neither will they understand; they walk in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course." (Psalms 82:5) There is most certainly something going on when those things that are considered bad are called good, and the good things are called bad; it's pretty much the sign of the times that we currently are living in. But, there is something else we are talking about here, something far more sinister, something that will make the hairs stand up on the back of your neck. I do truly hope that I am not left here to live or die through the Great Tribulation, because it is going to be one heck of a nasty ride. That said, I also stand on the side of a 'pre-tribulation rapture' and hold to the belief that the Lord would not beat or punish His bride, the church! Oh, it's true that we face some tribulation, it's happening right now, whether you can accept it or not. Why any Bible believing Christian would be a part of a political party that refuses to put God on their platform, or refuses to name the enemy for what they are, it really makes me wonder what kind of Christian they truly are. If you were to ask me, they believe the Bible is a set of rules, and that's about it; other than that, they will refuse to accept it as a form of Life or Truth; they can't, it's not in their system to even try, even if they wanted to. Do you know why that is? Because they are of the world! Plain and simple, they might claim to believe in God, but they really don't know who God is, because they have placed the world and it's beliefs over that of the Bible. Global warming is the biggest farce of the last 100 years; next to the theory of evolution, it not only make the masses feel and believe that they don't matter at all, but it makes them believe they are destroying the earth, and it puts government out to be the Deliverer. Listen to what the government says or die, that's pretty much the idea; with the additional concept of making people pay for their carbon footprint, which nothing more than another form of a tax, disguised as a means to stabilize the earth's climate; a climate that they can really do nothing about, because God controls it all anyway...
"But God shows his anger from heaven against a sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. They know the truth about God because he as made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities -his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and retiles." (Romans 1:18-23) NLT

"Due Justice" -Too

"Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked." (Psalms 82:4) Here's a thought: What if the "Oil" is Love? If you don't know now, you will find out soon enough. Looking at this word "rid," it's a lot like the Greek word that we use for Rapture, "Harpazo," with the exception of being snatched away secretly. Odd, but oh so true! Here is the point that I believe the Lord is speaking to my heart about. We that are believers in Christ, we have an obligation, to love as we are loved; if we fail to fulfill this obligation, primarily due to negligence, we are fully aware of the lack we have; in other words, no one needs to inform us that we lack love for others, because we are very much aware of our deficiency. At the Lord's coming, those five foolish virgins knew that they did not have the oil they needed; no one needed to tell them it was so. I think a better way to look at what is being said, is like saying, We are all on the same page, or of the same Spirit; or better yet, we are known! What was Jesus said to the five foolish virgins, He said, "I never knew you." Just because I might be a 'Believer' in Christ, does not necessarily guarantee that He knows me; not if we don't both share the same love! I might see love in a whole different way than Jesus does, thinking it's more about good intentions or hoping to do better some day. But in the real form of the love Jesus is all about, it's about sacrifice; which means that it is spontaneous and uninhibited. In other words, it does not make a plan to act, it just acts! More than that, Love is a Language! You either speak the same language as the Lord or you don't! And, by the way, a liar is not called a liar unless the knew the truth and did not speak the truth; FYI...
"We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. We love each other because he loved us first. If someone says, "I love God," but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don't love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters." (1 John 4:16-21) NLT

"Due Justice"

"Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked." (Psalms 82:4) Caught off guard, is more like it! The truth of the matter is, most people don't think it's their responsibility. Hey, that's not my thing, I work and make money, and then I give money to those that do that for a living, like The Salvation Army, or my church. Let them take care of all the mushy stuff, I have better things to do with my time, like make money. I know, that sounds pretty judgmental; but that's okay, because I am judging myself! I use to try and make an effort to hand money out with a tract, or some sort of gift card with a tract, or even just a gift card or spare change; but lately I have gone off message, if you want to call it that. Personally, I would say it's more about the heart, a heart that has been hardened by the multitude increasing; dare I say it, more than I care to see asking for hand-outs. Not all of them are in it for the money, because it's pretty easy to tell who is needy and who just needs another fix; at least most times. I think one easy way to cure that, is to picture ourselves in their shoes (or without shoes), because once we realize that it could be us, we seem to look at it from a little different angle. Going back to what Peter was saying in 2 Peter 1:7, "charity" is the word in the King James, but "love for everyone" is the New Living Translation's version of that one word. In other words, it does not make the determination about who is loved, which is what we do when we see someone that we determine not to love, or to whom you will be charitable; if you want to consider the meaning of the word, "charity." Oddly enough, I think it really comes down to believing that you have something of value to offer, that is what gives you the charitable feeling...
"Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to die; save them as they stagger to their death. Don't excuse yourself by saying, "Look, we didn't know." For God understands all hearts, and he sees you. He who guards your soul knows you knew. He will repay all people as their actions deserve."
 (Proverbs 24:11-12) NLT

"Do Justice"

"Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and the needy." (Psalms 82:3) Taking what Peter was saying to heart, one would think having compassion might be one of the actions that would be part of our new way of life; after all, without God's mercy on us, where would we be? We serve a great God of mercy and love, so too, we should be all about mercy and love; it's our new standard! It reminds me of the "sheep and the goat judgment" that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 25:31-46. In that, He showed two totally different kind of people, one was good and one was bad; however, the good ones were amazed at His statement that they had fed Him, gave Him water, clothed Him, or visited Him when He was sick or in prison, saying, 'Lord, when did we do all of that?' When we are powered by love, it just does not appear to us to be work! People come up to me all the time saying how special I am for how I have continued to care for my wife. Granted, there are many that would not do this, I know better than most how true that is. But it's not about anything more than love, the love that I promised her that day we made our vows to each other. Isn't that what love is all about, being committed? It's not based upon feelings or happiness or any other emotional experience; it's based on making a commitment to love someone, regardless! Isn't that how we are loved by God? In spite of all of our sins, and in spite of our thumbing our nose at Him, He still loves us! And then you have those bad people, the ones who were surprised how Jesus accused them of not feeding Him when they saw Him hungry, and not giving Him water when they saw Him thirsty; not taking Him in when they saw Him a stranger, or clothing Him when they saw that He was naked; when they saw Him sick or in prison, they visited Him not. How dumbfounded they were, as they exclaimed, "Lord, when saw we thee hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?" Man, sometimes we can be so blind...
""And he will answer, 'I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.' "And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life."" (Matthew 25:45-46) NLT

"The Worse of The Worst"

"How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah." (Psalms 82:2) If you know where you are headed, then your heart should be towards heaven, where it belongs. It's hard to make that the focus of you desires, especially living in this world while enjoying all of it's pleasures. I'm not talking about evil pleasures, I'm talking about some of life's simple pleasures, like beautiful sunsets, a walk on the beach, a morning sunrise; you name it, there are plenty of things to keep our focus and attention on God's amazing creations. There is really nothing wrong with loving to experience the splendor of the good things this life has to offer. But when we find ourselves putting these pleasures above those waiting for us in heaven, that's when we can find ourselves out of sorts. This verse pretty much is speaking to those who judge unfairly; such as a person who is in the place of what is right, but judges on the side of what is wrong. I feel the Lord speaking to me about what it is that makes someone do such a thing, more than what it is that they are doing. This was one of those things Jesus took issue with the Jewish Leaders about; and more than that, it was what motivated them to have Him put to death; even to the point of preferring His death over that of a murderer. It really takes a certain kind of person to do that, because there is a something of a monstrous nature that comes to life within them, that nothing else matters but their will and desire. The sad thing about all of that, is that it could happen to anyone of us, if our hearts are in the wrong place. We are to do something special, because we are special! We are no longer of this world, but only living through it. It's hard to keep our focus and hold onto all the great things this earth has to offer; and at the same time, it's harder still if we are seeking acceptance in this world. That is what I think takes a person from one side to the other, to be accepted by the world and it's standards. It's okay to love the things of the world, but it's not okay to love being a part of it, or even conforming to it's standards. This is an evil place, ruled by evil men, and with the powers of darkness at work in it; but God still holds all the cards, and He still has plans for dealing with it! Oh, does He ever...
"By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who has called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. In view of all of this, make every effort to respond to God's promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins." (2 Peter 1:3-9) NLT

"Above All Else" -Too

"God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods." (Psalms 82:1) Much like Joshua's statement, "Choose you this day whom you will serve," it all comes down to making a choice, 'Am I going to serve God, or not?' We can't have it both ways; although there are plenty of people who think otherwise. This verse is speaking more to the one's within leadership, such as those who might have occupied a position within the Temple; but it is also something we should all keep in mind for ourselves, because God will not be fooled, but we can. Jesus made some pretty bold statements, making it very clear who He was, and why He was sent here. The part that gets me about what He said, is that He "did not come to judge the world, but to save it." As crazy as this might sound, He came to be judged in our place; with one big difference, He passed! So, whether you like it or not, unless you can pass also, you had better hitch your wagon to a Star, The Bright and Morning Star! About that 'fly on flypaper' comment from yesterday, it is really quite simple how that stupid saying can work to our benefit; because it is our sin that gets us into trouble, but if we know the truth, it is our sin that makes us stick to the truth. We could not get free, even if we wanted to, because our freedom to sin has been nailed to the cross. That's the part that we get us in trouble, more often than not, thinking that it's alright to sin; we must act sinless and sin less! I think we get the feeling that our testimony really does not matter much, so why should I strive to be holy, and then we just do what we want. But God sees our heart, never mind that He sees our sin, He looks much deeper than that, He sees our intentions. Besides, our testimonies matter a whole heck of a lot; more than you could ever know or realize. Basically, what I am trying to say, is that once you have committed your life to the Lord, you are committed to live as a child of God; not because we have any special qualities that make us a child of God, but because Jesus has given us that position, and now we are stuck there...
"And furthermore, it is not angels who will control the future world we are taking about. For in one place the Scriptures say, "What are mere mortals that you should think about them, or the son of man that you should care for him? Yet made them only a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You gave them authority over all things." Now when it says "all things," it means nothing is left out. But we have not yet seen all things put under their authority. What we do see is Jesus, who was given a position "a little lower than the angels"; and because he suffered death for us, he is now "crowned with glory and honor." Yes, by God's grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone. God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation. So now Jesus and the ones he makes holy have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters." (Hebrews 2:5-11) NLT

"Above All Else"

"God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods." (Psalms 82:1) Don't you know how much God cares for us? I know we sometimes have our vision distorted by our trials, and that we sometimes question our standing with God when things are falling apart in our lives; but God is always right there, through anything we might be going through, to reach out His hand. He wants us to want Him! More than anything else, God wants us to realize that we need Him, and that without Him, we are not going to make it. That's the truth! I don't care who you are, or how powerful you might think that you are, if you are not holding onto God for your security, you're without hope. More specific, if you are not holding onto Jesus Christ, then it's not going to go well with you on judgment day. On 'To Every Man an Answer' the other day, a lady called in asking, "If someone were to die while saving another life, would they make it to heaven?" Tough question, because there are way too many people who should know the right answer, but because it's not 'politically correct' they will not say it. The right answer is, One Way, and One Way Only! Jesus was very specific about how anyone comes to the Father, saying, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." If any man could save himself, then Jesus would not have needed to come and sacrifice His life upon that cross. It is the only way into heaven, to believe that Jesus died for your sins, and to receive that truth into your life; without that saving grace, you die in your sins, no matter how it is that you die. That's not what the world wants to hear; and many will say that it's narrow minded, or that it shows no compassion; but the truth is the truth. Besides that, we just need to know that His word is always true, and we stick to that, like a fly on flypaper...
"Jesus shouted to the crowds, "If you trust me, you are trusting not only me, but also God who sent me. For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me. I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark. I will not judge those who hear me but don't obey me, for I have come to save the world and not to judge it. But all who reject me and my message will be judged on the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken. I don't speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it. And I know his commands lead to eternal life; so I say whatever the Father tells me to say.""
(John 12:44-50) NLT

"God Is in Control"

PSALM 82 [A Psalm of Asaph.]
Actually, I think I wrote 'Isaiah 55' above this title; although it's in the line of the last verse of 81:16, it's positioned directly above the title for Psalms 82, "God Is in Control." There are many things that we don't understand, although we think we do. As a matter of fact, there are more things we do not know, far more than we know, but we just don't know because we do not know them. That might not seem to make any sense, but there is far more unseen things happening all around us, all the time, that we just don't even know about, nor can we begin to understand them. However, no matter what might be happening, things known or unknown, God is in control of everything! That is hard for some people to accept, because it puts God in charge of all the evil that goes on all around us; but that is not God's doing, that is the doing the evil one and all that follow him. What happens that is evil, God hates; He has always hated it, and did not want man to even know it existed. One of those things we should not have had any knowledge of, but disobedience to God ruined that, for everyone! I know we have different opinions on the way things happened; and as I have said before, all though the garden of Eden was good, it was not perfect. The reason that it was not perfect, is that there was a tree placed in the midst of the garden that was forbidden; something to tempt man, testing his obedience to follow God's command, "Do not eat of that one tree!" I truly believe that God already knew Adam was going to fail the test, but evil had already been established, long before Adam had been created. How do we know that to be the case? "And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundations of the world." (Revelation 13:8) Although it speaks of the damned, they were not damned from the beginning of time, but God's foreknowledge is such, that He already knows who are His and who are not. That might be terrible news for those that are going to hell, whomever they might be; but it is spectacular news for those that are saved and going to heaven...
"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding." (Ephesians 1:3-8) NLT