Category Archives: Faith and Wisdom

Presidential Election Results in 2020

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YeHoVaH has broken the rod of the wicked,
the scepter of the rulers,
  which struck the people in wrath
    with continual strokes,
which ruled the nations in fury,
    with relentless persecution. – Isaiah 14:5-6

On November 5, 2020, a Republican shared an image that had the same wording as the wording in the image I posted with this blog entry. There can be no doubt that these words were meant to insult the Democrats’ character – and specifically the character of the presidential candidate, Joe Biden.

Not liking this posting’s wording, I posted the following comment, with a few adjustments for this blog entry, on the said Republican’s shared posting:


Nebuchadnezzar is already in office and has been there since he was elected in 2016. Furthermore, many Democrats (that includes me) and Independents have been living in exile in Babylon and behaving just like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. More importantly, we have behaved more like Yeshua and the persecuted early, mostly Jewish believers than the majority of the people who elected America’s Nebuchadnezzar in 2016.  

For this blog entry, I have added the following:

Praise YeHoVaH! We are free at last and looking forward to our Promised Land returning to some resemblance of normal.

Congratulations to President-elect Joe Biden and to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris! Shalom . . .

Trustworthy and Insightful Managers

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…Great gifts mean great responsibilities; greater gifts, greater responsibilities! – Luke 12:48b, MSG

Yeshua’s watchfulness and readiness parable (see Luke 12:35-40) is the context in which He speaks the above verse to His close Disciples. In that parable, Yeshua explains how important it is to be alert and prepared for His return.

After Peter asks Yeshua if He is speaking just to His Disciples or to everyone, Yeshua Hamashiach uses another parable. In His second parable, He defines a watchful and ready person as a “faithful and wise manager” (Luke 12:42) who has been given the responsibility of using the gifts/resources he or she has to further YeHoVaH’s heavenly Kingdom and proclaim His Glory on earth by, for example, giving food and other needed essentials to the disadvantaged and doing so at “the proper time” (Luke 12:43).  

There can be no doubt that Yeshua is saying everyone – whether saved or unsaved – has been given gifts/resources. He adds that some people are given great ones and others are given greater ones. Moreover, He makes it clear that regardless of what gifts/resources each person has and regardless of how many or how much of them each person has, the bottom line is that everybody’s faithfulness to YeHoVaH and Yeshua requires that he or she behaves like a  trustworthy and insightful manager who uses responsibly – wisely and unselfishly – the gifts/resources entrusted to him or her.

Contrary to popular opinions, no one is supposed to use whatever YeHoVaH has entrusted to him or her to make his or her own individual life comfortable, secure, wealthy, famous, and etc. In other words, no human being can afford to take his or her responsibility lightly. If he or she does, Yeshua says that when He returns that person will suffer severely for his or her unfaithfulness (that person“…will be harshly whipped” – Luke 12:47, TLV). In contrast, the individual Yeshua finds faithfully and unselfishly doing what he or she is expected to do with the gifts/resources he or she had will receive a great reward, as well as will be put in charge of everything Yeshua owns (which is everything YeHoVaH owns).  

Responsible stewardship should be everyone’s goal – especially everyone who is a Yeshua believer and follower. In the end, each Yeshua believer and follower who is found to be a faithful steward will receive a greater reward in Heaven than anything he or she ever could have had on earth.

Selah . . . .

Death Does Not Rip Apart One Flesh Married Couples

16 Tuesday Jul 2019

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God put the Man into a deep sleep. As he slept he removed one of his ribs and replaced it with flesh. God then used the rib that he had taken from the Man to make Woman and presented her to the Man.

The Man said,
“Finally! Bone of my bone,
    flesh of my flesh!
Name her Woman
    for she was made from Man.”
    Therefore a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his
 wife. They become one flesh.
    The two of them, the Man and his Wife, were naked, but they
felt no shame.– Genesis 2:21-24, MSG

  

According to Hebrew thought,  bâśâr — the Hebrew word for “flesh” — refers not only to the physical body but also to the whole person. In other words, not only can the Hebrew word for “flesh” ( bâśâr ) mean either the flesh for the body or the whole body itself but also the Hebrew word for “flesh” ( bâśâr ) can mean a “person.”

It stands to reason that since Elohim created human beings in Their image this Divine Truth is why only the tripartite Elohim joined (married) man and woman will become “one flesh” through three unities: 1. Unity of Body (sexually), 2. Unity of Spirit, and 3. Unity of Emotions (Soul). These three unities are why only death can wholly, painlessly, and emotionlessly separate those couples Elohim joined.

Like Elohim, the humans They created are tripartite as well. Since the human soul and the human spirit are housed in the human body, which also is called “the flesh,” this Divine Truth means that becoming “one flesh” is so much more than when a “married” man and woman experience a UNITY of BODY — the oneness that is achieved when an Elohim joined male and female fit perfectly together, sexually speaking. Additionally, the above-stated truth means that becoming “one flesh” is when an Elohim joined man and woman also experience a UNITY of SPIRIT — the oneness that is achieved when the spirit (heart) and soul (emotions; mind, which include conscience; and will) of that male and female become “one flesh” (one person) in Elohim who is the eternal SPIRIT and SOUL. Lastly, becoming “one flesh” is also when an Elohim joined man and woman experience a UNITY of EMOTIONS (SOUL) — the oneness that is achieved when a  male and female’s emotions (their souls’ voices) become “one voice” so as to “fill out” or complete both the married male and the married female in every respect. In other words, this one-flesh oneness that Elohim mentions in Genesis 2:24 is the Elohim-kind of marriage that only happens when the body, spirit, and soul’s emotions of both individuals (the Elohim married male and female) are united to make one “whole” person.

In case anyone missed the point, here it is again. The only way a male and a female can experience the above-stated three unities is if They (Elohim) unite them, and the Genesis 2:22-24 verses clearly state that They (Elohim) are the triune One who joins them. First Elohim took the woman (Eve) out of the man (Adam), and then He reunited them — made them ONE again — via His Divine Institution of marriage. This Divine Truth is why a signed and recorded state required marriage certificate doesn’t necessarily mean a couple is married in the eyes of Elohim.

Without a doubt, the above explanations of what becoming “one flesh” truly means are why Elohim declared that the married couples who are “one flesh” in Them only can be fully/completely, as well as painlessly and emotionlessly, separated by DEATH! Any other kinds of separations, like man-approved separations and divorces that states’ legal systems authorize/permit or like spousal abandonments, and so on, just mean that these separated or divorced married couples have been put asunder — have had their souls and spirits forcefully ripped apart from their “one flesh” body. Having a “one flesh” marital relationship completely destroyed by tearing the couple into pieces  is the very thing that Elohim never wanted His married “one flesh” couples to experience, which is why, once again, only DEATH is the Divine Way to painlessly, emotionlessly, and completely separate an Elohim joined “one flesh” man and woman. Selah . . . . .

Midterm Elections 2018

01 Thursday Nov 2018

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VOTE2

 

Choose wise and discerning and experienced men from your tribes, and I will appoint them as your heads. – Deuteronomy 1:13, NASB

Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne. And He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance. – Revelation 4:2-3, NASB

 

If you are a believer in Christ, then you know that it truly doesn’t matter who is in the White House, who is in Congress (either the House of Representatives or the Senate), or who is on the Supreme Court. What matters is that Father God and Christ Jesus still sit on Their Thrones in Heaven. Without a doubt, the Ones who sit on Their Heavenly Thrones are the Ones Who rule over the White House, the Congress, and the Supreme Court. The Father and the Son are King of kings, Lord of lords, and the only true Savior of this world.

After apostle John was in the Spirit; that is, after he was raptured up into Heaven, he immediately saw a multicolored throne that was surrounded by an emerald rainbow. Sitting on that Throne was Father God, who was equally as colorful. The most important point here is that John’s recorded image is a reminder to the world that, whether it is Caesar’s throne (in John’s day) or American politicians’ thrones (in our day), the eternal and absolute truth will always be that the One who has Supreme Authority over the entire universe forever sits on His Heavenly Throne.

Even though our (Christ believers’) God is Sovereign (He rules), which means His Will—not the will of men—will be done because His Will is the Supreme and Ultimate Authority and Power in the whole universe, this truth is why all citizens of America (especially Christ believers) who are registered voters should vote in November’s midterm elections. Now, midterm elections have a history of having a much lower voter turnout than presidential elections. However, if concerned Americans want to guarantee that the party of the sitting president loses—which also tends to be midterm elections’ history—registered voters shouldn’t rely on past midterm elections’ results. For sure, it is every citizen’s right to vote, so anyone who hasn’t already voted via Early Voting should get to the polls on November 6, 2018—Election Day—and exercise his or her right to vote.

Vote for the party or candidate of your choice, knowing and believing that it is your civic duty to do so. Vote for the party or candidate of your choice, knowing and believing that—if you are a believer in Christ—your God is the One Who is in control.

The Sound of Silence…Crickets

03 Wednesday Oct 2018

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Crickets

 

 

One night the Lord said to Paul in a vision, “Do not be afraid anymore, but go on speaking and do not be silent;  for I am with you, and no one will attack you in order to hurt you, because I have many people in this city.” ~ Acts 18:9-10, AMP

Therefore if there is any encouragement and comfort in Christ [as there certainly is in abundance], if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship [that we share] in the Spirit, if [there is] any [great depth of] affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, having the same love [toward one another], knit together in spirit, intent on one purpose [and living a life that reflects your faith and spreads the gospel—the good news regarding salvation through faith in Christ]. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit [through factional motives, or strife], but with [an attitude of] humility [being neither arrogant nor self-righteous], regard others as more important than yourselves. ~ Philippians 2:1-3, AMP

 

The term “crickets” refers to the nonresponse a believer in Christ receives, for example, after posting a call-to-action message. Put differently, the sound of silence is CRICKETS—what a follower of Christ hears after asking several people groups to work on creating unity by loving each other, respecting each other, listening to each other, supporting each other, and defending each other.

Today’s churches are filled with people who talk a good game, but when challenged to practice what they preach – crickets. Then too, many churchgoers profess that they love God, but when they are asked to show the same love they have for God to their neighbors – crickets. Another example is the way many confessed believers in Christ are united only within their own denominations. When they are invited to unite with other brothers and sisters in Christ from different denominations – crickets.  Sadly, most denominational Christians won’t even unite over issues they have in common. Every time they are asked to do so – crickets.

Oh, the hypocrisy of it all—believers in Christ who declare they believe in the Scriptures, yet they do not do what every Scripture tells them to do. For instance, the apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:10 that believers should be in total agreement, including being united in the way they think and the way they judge matters of faith. When believers today are asked to demonstrate the same oneness – crickets. 

OUTREACH vs. EVANGELISM

17 Tuesday May 2016

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 Outreach vs. Evangelism

 

 

It is so disconcerting that in 2016 some people still do not know the difference between OUTREACH and EVANGELISM. What’s worse is they don’t care to know, because they THINK they know what they are being called to do–as if the One who truly calls us tells us that standing on the streets while we pass out Bible tracts and Christian pamphlets, books, brochures, as well as other kinds of so-called Christian paraphernalia, is doing OUTREACH.

It is a shame how some of us have blurred the lines between OUTREACH and EVANGELISM. Knowing the difference between OUTREACH and EVANGELISM will help us to see the clear distinctions between the two, once again.

Indubitably, Christ describes what His disciples do when they are doing outreach. The apostle Matthew writes:  

Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’  Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ ~ Matthew 25:34-40, ESV 

Let there be no doubt about it.  OUTREACH, for example, is providing a LITERAL cold cup of water for a thirsty individual. Jesus says: “And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward” (Matthew 10:42, ESV). To use a more contemporary OUTREACH example, it would be Christian dentists offering citywide FREE dental assistance. Both a cup of cold water for someone who is thirsty and free dental assistance for people who have dental issues are examples of OUTREACH, because they meet the PHYSICAL needs of people (no matter whether the people are lost OR saved souls). Therefore, OUTREACH is providing Christian service and charity, as well as social action or public involvement (praising, acknowledging or celebrating the Gospel YET sharing it with no one).

On the other hand, it is the apostle Paul who writes about how Timothy’s evangelism should be done. He strongly encourages Timothy—one of Christ’s disciples—to:

preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. …As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. ~ 2 Timothy 4:2, 5, ESV

In the case of EVANGELISM, it primarily is sharing verbally, as well as sharing in print, the Word of Life (the Gospel of Christ). Jesus says: “…Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15, ESV). Apostle Paul writes: “For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. …For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” (Romans 10:10, 13-15, ESV).

Let there be no doubt about it. EVANGELISM, for example, is meeting the SPIRITUAL needs of the people in communities all over this world (mostly the spiritual needs of lost souls). Spreading the Gospel of Christ FREELY via public preaching is EVANGELISM, because evangelism provides a communicated message—the Gospel of Christ—that includes a warning about sin and the consequences of sin, an explanation of the Gospel of Christ (the ONLY solution God has provided for sin), and a call to true repentance.

Both outreach (healing) and evangelism (proclaiming/preaching) are included in the verses that Luke writes:  

And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. And he said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics. And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.” And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. ~ Luke 9:1-6, ESV

There can be no doubt about it. Believers in Christ (disciples of Christ) are called to do BOTH—to do OUTREACH and EVANGELISM. BOTH are NECESSARY. This truth is why the Lord did both. For example, on one occasion, He preached numerous kingdom parables publicly to the great crowds (while outside sitting in a small boat). This is classic evangelism—meeting the SPIRITUAL needs of people. On another occasion, the Lord is moved to heal the sick in the great crowds that followed Him, and He also feeds them with two fish and five loaves of barley bread (cf. Matthew 13 and Matthew 14:13-21). This is classic outreach—meeting the physical needs of people.   

Finally, since so many people today are calling OUTREACH the handing out of Bible tracts and Christian pamphlets, books, brochures, as well as other kinds of so-called Christian paraphernalia, the one point I want to make clear is that just standing on the streets while handing out Christian literature IS NOT OUTREACH. If the truth be told, it also is barely EVANGELISM! Selah (pause and calmly think about that)!

Let’s Get Our Bounce On!

09 Sunday Nov 2014

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Get Our Bounce On

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ~ Ephesians 6:10, NLT

When we put our relationship with Christ Jesus (our spiritual Household of Faith childship) into practice, we soon realize that we will have to battle with His enemy. This battle is the reason why we daily must wear our spiritual armor, daily wield the Sword of the Spirit, and daily be filled with the Holy Spirit so that we will be able to maintain our peace, our cheerful spirit, our strength, and our power, all of which come from Creator God’s Holy Spirit.

Now, if we, for example, have been given the abovementioned kind of protection (spiritual armor), weaponry (Sword of the Spirit), and Power (Holy Spirit Baptism), and if we are using everything we have been given, why is it that so many of us still are walking around looking defeated? How is it that Satan keeps beating our butts? Why are we spiritually fatigued?

The above last question reminded me of this old saying: “Put some pep in your step,” which is similar to the expressions: “Get some get up and go” and “Put a tiger in your tank.” The problem with all of these clichés is that, when placed alongside the measure of faith godly truth, they beg the question: If we have THE measure of Faith that causes us to trust Father God with our future, then why hasn’t that measure of Faith, which actually is a portion of His Faith, manifested enough power and strength in us for us to endure our present days? Said clichés also beg the question: If we have THE measure of Faith that enables us to set our minds on Father God, instead of on our circumstances, or on our problems, or on our inadequacies, then why don’t we have enough Faith to invigorate us—to keep us from dragging ourselves from here to there?

The truth is that we ought to have a bounce in our step (fervor for the spiritual life we have been called to live)—a bounce that is just as powerful as EVERY ounce of faith that is within us. In fact, even a mustard-seed Faith is powerful enough to symbolically AND literally move mountains (cf. Matthew 17:20). With this God-kind of Faith, when our eyes are on Jesus Christ and His Glory, without even thinking to do it, we will walk with a lively step (bounce); raise our heads high, looking skyward; and engage God’s enemy with the highest degree of combat readiness: war clothes, weaponry, vigor, conviction, confidence, strength, power, and so forth.

For many of us, however, the moment despair clouds the sunshine of our love, which is our Faith in Jesus Christ, that is when we immediately lose the pep to our step—there’s NO bounce, NO get up and go, NO tiger in our tanks—our heads are bowed low, and exuberance is NOWHERE to be found. Nevertheless, the Divine Truth also is that the Faith that believes in a God who will make a way (Future Tense) is the same Faith that gives (Present Tense) us the power to be energized, resilient, joyful, authoritative, powerful, and operational in the Lord’s ministry, even in the midst of our trials and tribulations.

We have liberty in Christ Jesus (cf. Galatians 5:1), which means we are delivered from any and all of the trappings that come with every kind of religious ceremony and superstition. For this reason, we never should allow ourselves to become a slave to either our day-to-day cares or the storms of life. Indeed, there is nothing that should hinder the freedom we have to live and move and have our being in Christ Jesus.

We are awesomely and amazingly made, and on top of that we have been given every spiritual gift we would need to indefatigably battle Father God and Christ’s enemy. These Divine Truths are why we should get our bounce on, now. Bounce with me, all who are God’s sons and daughters! AMEN.

~ from Faith and Wisdom: A Rhema Word in a Dry and Thirsty Land (2006); edited

Sanctified for the Mission—Preaching the Gospel, Discipling, Encouraging Fellow Believers, Glorifying God and Christ

04 Tuesday Nov 2014

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GO And Make Disciples of All Nations

Now I’m returning to you.
I’m saying these things in the world’s hearing
So my people can experience
My joy completed in them.
I gave them your word;
The godless world hated them because of it,
Because they didn’t join the world’s ways,
Just as I didn’t join the world’s ways.
I’m not asking that you take them out of the world
But that you guard them from the Evil One.
They are no more defined by the world
Than I am defined by the world.
Make them holy—consecrated—with the truth;
Your word is consecrating truth.
In the same way that you gave me a mission in the world,
I give them a mission in the world.
I’m consecrating myself for their sakes
So they’ll be truth-consecrated in their mission. ~ John 17:13-19, MSG

Isn’t it wonderful that Father God’s grand design for Christ Jesus is now a good and finished work—a real, absolute, and unchangeable reality? He performed every part of the mission God had assigned to Him, and, in doing so, He pleased, praised, and glorified God. As a result, His finished work earned Him the right to return into Heaven to His Glory, to His Throne, and in His place of Honor, which is at the right hand of God.

Backing up just a little, in John 17:13-19, Christ Jesus’ mission on Earth is about to be completed, and that is why for protection purposes our Lord is turning over to our Heavenly Father His initial followers, as well as future disciples—all the believers who have received regeneration, salvation, and the Word of God—so that Father God can preserve them (keep them in perfect or purified condition—sanctify them), while they remain in this world. It is just like a good Shepherd to put the care and preservation of His sheep before His own safety and care, even though He is much aware of the immediacy of the Cross, and even though He knows the horrible death He’d have to face before He would be able to leave this world and return to the safety and purity of Heaven. It is exactly this knowledge that has Christ Jesus tenderly praying to Father God on behalf of ALL of His disciples, but specifically for His contemporary followers.

In His prayer, Christ Jesus isn’t asking Father God to translate these disciples right then and there, like in the manner of Enoch and Elijah, nor is He asking Father God to allow them to bypass earthly afflictions and sorrows by experiencing death in its common form. The Lord doesn’t pray for them to be taken out of this world right then and there, because He has GREAT work for them to do. If they were to be taken off of this Earth, there would be no one left behind to preach the Gospel of Christ so that sinners might be reborn and saved. Then too, if His present disciples were to be removed off the Earth at that time, there also would not be anyone left to encourage and edify the remaining saints (Mary the mother of Jesus, the other Mary’s, and other friends and followers of Christ Jesus, who later were in the Upper Room on the Day of Pentecost). Once again, Christ Jesus Himself is about to be crucified, resurrected, and raptured into Heaven. Thus, it is in His interest (for Christ Jesus’ legacy; everything He has handed down to His disciples) that His original followers should live on the Earth for a little bit longer, primarily so that, in addition to their Gospel preaching, their holy and righteous empowered and disciplined lifestyle also would be glorifying Father God and Christ Jesus, as well as witnessing to Father God’s unregenerate, unsaved chosen people and to the world’s lost souls.

Therefore, instead of praying for His disciples’ immediate removal, Christ Jesus expresses His concern for their safety and care, and by extension ours (meaning all of us who, after being reborn, saved by Grace, and justified, like the first-century disciples, would be left behind in this cold world to continue the Lord’s work). Since Christ Jesus knew that He soon would be crucified and that shortly after His resurrection would be leaving this Earth (would be raptured), He wanted to make sure that His current left-behind followers would have everything they needed to survive and thrive in this sin-sick world—a malignant world that would hate all of His followers just because they have accepted Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior, and have accepted His Word as the absolute Divine Truth.

This knowledge is why the Lord wasn’t praying that His present-day disciples, nor His 21st-century followers, never would have to know afflictions, sorrows, exclusion, rejection, storms of controversies, adversity, or that they, nor we, never would be vilified, slandered, rebuked, reviled, abandoned, forgotten, or pushed aside, and so forth. There is no doubt that Christ Jesus also knew that these listed sufferings, which He Himself experienced, would be part and parcel of the Christian experience.

So then, for the Christian experience reason, the above stated hurts and sufferings, which are NOT the Tribulation Period’s Wrath of God but rather the centuries of persecutions committed by mankind, are precisely why the Lord knew that in order for His disciples, then and now, to be able to combat this world’s Evil and avoid sinning they all would have to be sanctified so that they would be able to continue to honor His legacy—continue to be holy and righteous saints who would pass on to future generations of believers His Gospel and His discipleship (His Word, teachings, and the good works He performed), until the end of the Age of Grace. Thus, just like the first-century disciples/believers had to receive the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying power before they could be mighty witnesses for Christ Jesus—before they could begin their mission of finishing what He had begun, which is the Great Commission (cf. Acts 1:8; see also Matthew 28:16-20)—we today also must receive the Lord’s prayed for sanctification.

This Holy Spirit-assigned process is the necessary infilling (Baptism of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues) that will guarantee we eventually will become Christlike and then, like Him, will be raptured off of this Earth, when our mission here is finished. Our removal at that time will mean that we are officially in the Lord’s rest, enjoying our eternal life with Christ Jesus in Heaven, without ever having to go through the prophesied Tribulation Period.

Praise the Lord! Sanctify us, right now, Holy Spirit! AMEN.

~ from Faith and Wisdom: A Rhema Word in a Dry and Thirsty Land (2006); edited

Rosh HaShanah 2013

02 Monday Sep 2013

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Rosh HaShanah

Tell the people of Isra’el, ‘In the seventh month, the first of the month is to be for you a day of complete rest for remembering, a holy convocation announced with blasts on the shofar. Do not do any kind of ordinary work, and bring an offering made by fire to Adonai.’ ~ Leviticus 23:24-25, CJB

Blow the shofar in Tziyon! Sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all living in the land tremble, for the Day of Adonai is coming! It’s upon us! —  ~ Joel 2:1, CJB

 

During the final month of the Jewish civil/agricultural year (the month of Elul), there traditionally is a 30-day period of intense spiritual preparation for the coming year, which begins on the Feast of Trumpets or Rosh HaShanah—day one of the month of Tishri (also spelled Tishrei). Teshuvah, the Hebrew name for this spiritual preparation (this time of prayers, introspection, and repentance; this time of atoning for sins; this time of turning back to God), gets Jewish people ready for entering the Ten Days of Awe, which include the first two days of Tishri or Rosh HaShanah. Additionally, each morning during the 30 days of the month of Elul, the trumpet (shofar) or ram’s horn is blown to warn the people they must repent and return to God.

Even though the words Rosh HaShanah are not mentioned in either the Christian Holy Bible or the Jewish Tanakh, God does refer to this feast day in His Scriptures as The Day of Remembrance (in Hebrew, Yom HaZikkaron), which pertains to remembering God, the World’s birthday, Creation’s anniversary, Isaac’s near-sacrifice, personal histories, and every Jewish person’s past (the last year’s) behaviors. In the Scriptures, God also refers to Rosh HaShanah as The Day of the Sounding of the Shofar (in Hebrew, Yom Teruah).

Now, so there won’t be any misunderstanding, it is important to note here that Tishri is both the first month and the seventh month on Jewish calendars. In other words, Rosh HaShanah is the first day of this first month (Tishri), and thus the beginning of a New Year, when Tishri is viewed on the civil/agricultural calendar, but Rosh HaShanah also is the first day of this seventh month (Tishri), and thus the first of the final three feasts of the annual seven mandatory major feasts, when Tishri is viewed on the religious/festival calendar.

As the Sabbatical month on the religious/festival calendar, Tishri ushers in the last three annual feasts: Rosh HaShanah or Feast of Trumpets, Yom Kippur or Day of Atonement, and Sukkot or Feast of Tabernacles. More important, the final three feasts of Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot not only mark the conclusion of the Jewish religious/festival year but also they epitomize both the conclusion and the fulfillment of God’s redemption plan.  

Then too, of these three final annual feasts, two are known as “The High Holy Days” or “High Holidays” or the Awesome Days (Days of Awe), and these two feasts are Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. During the High Holiday of Rosh HaShanah, and the days leading up to the High Holiday of Yom Kippur, the Jewish people cleanse their souls by making amends either via repentance and turning back to God (Teshuvah); or via introspection, self-evaluation, self-judgment, and the renewing or strengthening of their attachment/bond/marriage with or to God (Tefilah); or via justice or righteousness (Tzedakah). They cleanse their souls so that they could be forgiven not only by mankind but also by God and, thus, given the chance to start fresh with an unburdened conscience (with a clean slate), as they attempt to live a better life in the upcoming year.

That said; in this current secular month (September), Jewish people worldwide will observe their Jewish New Year or Rosh HaShanah (literally, “Head of the Year” or the first of the year). This year Rosh HaShanah is from sundown September 4th to sundown September 6th. These days are the first and second of Tishri, the Jewish month that usually falls sometime on the secular calendar in September or October.

Unlike the big partying Americans do on their New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, for Jewish people Rosh HaShanah, though a celebratory holiday, is a very solemn, holy and spiritual festival, primarily because this feast gives Jewish people the opportunity to put their previous year’s sins in the past and move forward with God’s forgiveness. For this reason, Rosh HaShanah traditionally also is observed as The Day of Judgment—the day God judges His Jewish people and then inscribes the fate of every Jewish person either in The Book of Life or in The Book of Death.

Rosh HaShanah or the Feast of Trumpets also is an important festival, because on this holiday God completed His work of Creation (He made Adam and Eve). Therefore, it traditionally is believed that the blowing of the shofars (trumpets) on Rosh HaShanah/Feast of Trumpets is meant to be a warning call (cry) to the Jewish people, letting them know that it is time for them to be judged for their sins. The blowing of the shofars (trumpets) also is a call (cry), which lets Jewish people know that not only are they to repent their sins but also they are to prepare themselves for their trial—for their Day of Judgment. According to Jewish traditions, annually, on Rosh HaShanah, Jewish people would stand before God to be judged. However, it also was on Rosh HaShanah that the Jewish people were allowed to appeal to God for forgiveness of their past year’s sins, before He passed His final judgment on them.

Now day one of Rosh HaShanah was the only feast day on which God decided the fate of the entire world for the upcoming new year, even though His verdict was not final until the Day of Atonement (also known as The Day of the Lord or Judgment Day). In other words, ten days before the Day of Atonement, God executes judgment from His heavenly Court, declaring who will live; who will die by fire, water, earthquake, sword, famine, thirst, and so forth; who will have a good life; who will have a bad life, who will be poor; who will be rich; who will have rest; who will wander; who will fall (be degraded); who will rise (be exalted); and so forth. Traditionally, Jewish people had the Ten Days of Awe (from day one of Rosh HaShanah to Yom Kippur—the last 10 days of the 40 days of Teshuvah, the period of repentance and forgiveness) to reflect, repent, cleanse themselves, seek forgiveness, and make any necessary amends in order to influence God’s final judgment on that ultimately awesome Judgment Day (the Day of Atonement; the Day of the Lord), when the Books of Life and Death would be sealed.

The bottom line is that for Jewish people, Rosh HaShanah isn’t just The Jewish New Year. Rosh HaShanah also is The Day of Remembrance (Yom HaZikkaron), when the Books of Life, Death, and Remembrance are opened in Heaven, and The Day of the Sounding of the Shofar or The Day of the Awakening Blast/Shout (Yom Teruah).

Additionally, Rosh HaShanah is: The Day of the Resurrection of the Righteous Dead and the Taking Up of the Living Righteous (Yom HaNatzal); The Day of the Hiding or Concealment, or Hidden Day (Yom HaKeseh), which pertains to when the first sliver of the New Moon is sighted; The Day of Judgment (Yom HaDin), the day when God would judge His Jewish people and then inscribe their names in either the Book of Life or the Book of Death; The Day of God’s Kingship and The Day of the Coronation of the Messiah (Yom HaMelech), which is both the day for re-establishing God’s Kingship or the re-throning of the Master of the Universe—the One who created the world and everything and everyone in it—as well as  the Coronation of Christ in Heaven, crowning Him the King of kings and Lord of lords over all the Earth so that He can reign 1,000 years as King after He returns to Earth; The Wedding Day of the Messiah (Yom HaKiddushin/Nesuim), when the marriage between Christ the Groom and the Body of Christ the Bride finally is consummated; and The Day of Abraham’s Offering of Isaac (Yom HaAkedah), for it was from the binding of Isaac incident that the left horn of the ram caught in the thicket came to symbolize the shofar’s First Trump or Bride of God (blown on Pentecost or Shavuot), and that same ram’s right horn came to symbolize the shofar’s Last Trump or Bride of Christ (blown on the Feast of Trumpets or Rosh HaShanah or Yom Teruah). Thus, every one of these mentioned idioms and/or names for Rosh HaShanah leaves no doubt as to why this feast day not only is a High Holy Day but also an extremely important holiday for Jewish people, indeed, for all mankind.

Lastly, the main themes of remembering, shouting, awakening, repenting, preparing, resurrecting, marrying, hiding, concealing, escaping, as in not receiving the death sentence/judgment, and resting are ALL images of the Rapture. Furthermore, there can be no doubt that the blowing of shofars is both a warning that it is time to prepare for standing before God to be judged and a sign that the resurrecting of the righteous dead and the snatching up of the righteous living are about to take place for the prepared (repentant, forgiven, saved, sanctified, cleansed, ready, and expecting to meet the Lord in the air) Bride so that She can go home to Heaven with Her Groom and be hidden there in the Bridal Chambers from the seven-year Tribulation. Again, these themes are all images of the Rapture.

Moreover, if we combine together these already mentioned themes with the re-throning, crowning, judging, and the blowing of the shofar’s Last Trump themes, the end result is a bigger picture of the Rapture. Therefore, there can be no doubt that all of Rosh HaShanah’s themes, idioms, names, and images are why this feast is the top choice for when the prophesied Rapture of the Bride of Christ will happen. Now, while no one knows which Jewish New Year will include the Rapture, believers in Christ know that they must stay spiritually prepared and alert, and they know that they must keep looking up, especially around the time of Rosh HaShanah, so that they won’t miss the Rapture.

A word to the wise should be sufficient. Amen!

Separating Christ’s Saints from the Ain’ts

07 Friday Jun 2013

Posted by in Faith and Wisdom

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Always Keep Oil In Your Vessel (Your Heart)

Always Keep Oil In Your Vessel (Your Heart)

you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. ~ Acts 10:37-38, ESV

And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.~ Matthew 25:10, ESV

Someone literally shutting a door in our face is probably one of the most embarrassing feelings we ever will experience in this life. However, an even more embarrassing experience, other than having Christ Jesus shut the door to Heaven in our face, will be hearing the Lord tell us, from behind that shut door, that He doesn’t know us!

Should we find ourselves in this left-behind situation, we either will be in total denial, or we will admit our spiritual nakedness to the other left behinders—acknowledge that we have been spiritually uncovered (deprived of God’s spiritual hedge of protection) and, as a result, left on our own. What a horrible feeling this will be, and yet, if we presently profess with our lips to be Christians but with our hearts continue to choose lifestyles that don’t reflect Christ in us, then the harsh reality of our spiritual nakedness is what so many of us will experience, when Christ Jesus (our Bridegroom) comes back for His Bride (His Body of Believers) and leaves behind every professed believer who doesn’t have enough Oil in him or her!

How silly the left-behind members in today’s “churches” will feel when they realize that they are those foolish, unprepared virgins (believers) who denied their hearts the necessary Oil. In essence, they will feel silly for being believers who carried only a lamp of profession, or, if you will, had an outward show of religiosity, while lacking in their hearts (the vessels in which the Oil should have been placed) the Oil of the Holy Spirit. How silly these left behinders also will feel when they learn that they cannot obtain the Oil they are lacking by pleading with the sensible, prepared virgins to give them some of theirs. These foolish left behinders also cannot “buy” their needed Oil from worldly “oil” dealers.

The point here is that the Holy Spirit’s spiritual excellence (Oil of anointing or divine empowerment that produces spiritual preparedness) is non-transferable. It also can’t be borrowed, and it can’t be humanly reproduced, because the Holy Spirit’s spiritual excellence or Oil of anointing comes directly from God, and He freely gives this Oil to His Household of faith children!

Yes, there are “religious” leaders who sell anointed oil, but the Divine Truth is that the Holy Spirit’s spiritual excellence (Oil of anointing or divine empowerment) is an invisible, intangible, supernatural preparedness. This kind of spiritual preparedness is a matter of the heart, and that’s why the Oil (Holy Spirit’s anointing or divine empowerment) cannot be transferred, borrowed, or bought with worldly money or possessions. This Divine Truth is why, when the unprepared virgins/believers returned empty-handed and began to beg their Lord to let them in, Christ Jesus could not be moved to open the door for them. He couldn’t open the door to Heaven, because they never took the time to develop an intimate relationship with Him—they never took the time to make the necessary preparations for their marriage to Him!

Now, while there have been countless discussions about the meaning of Christ’s Jesus’ words in the Parable of the Ten Virgins, what is absolutely clear in this parable is that Christ Jesus is the symbolic Bridegroom. Also absolutely clear is that this parable is about His (Christ Jesus’) return. Another absolutely clear fact about this parable is that it contains specific ancient Jewish marriage customs.

Christ Jesus definitely is using the Ten Virgins’ parable to teach all believers about the parallels between the traditional Jewish marriage customs and the Kingdom of Heaven’s spiritual Truths about being betrothed to Christ Jesus and what will happen to those Bride of Christ believers who behave carelessly, nonchalantly and, thus, end up breaking their betrothed vows to their Bridegroom. That’s why, contrary to popular opinions, the Ten Virgins’ parable is not about Israel being grafted back onto the Olive Tree just in time to rule with Christ Jesus during His millennial reign. Spiritually speaking, since the Kingdom of Heaven/Kingdom of God is inside every born again and saved believer in Christ, this Divine Truth means the Ten Virgins’ parable is about all believers (Jews and Gentiles) who live and die on Earth during the CHURCH Age (or the Age of Grace).

For this last reason, the Parable of the Ten Virgins also is about the Holy Spirit of God (or the Spirit of the Lord), who is the Oil in the five wise virgins’ vessels—the spiritual Oil that sanctifies believers with godly holiness, as well as the spiritual Oil that will glorify them. Put differently, the Oil of the Holy Spirit (also referred to as the Oil of anointing) is the Holy Spirit—the One God gave to Christ Jesus so that He could do the Perfect Will of Father God while serving mankind, and the One God gives to every born again and saved believer so that he or she too can do the Perfect Will of Father God while serving others.

That is why during every believer’s betrothal period (the Church Age/Age of Grace) he or she is expected to live and walk in the Holy Spirit. In other words, every believer is expected to keep his or her vessel (heart) filled with the Oil of the Holy Spirit. The point here is that the Holy Spirit not only dwells in every believer but also He is put inside each believer so that He (the Holy Spirit) could fill him or her.

The infilling of the Holy Spirit produces the supernatural power that helps believers develop their necessary daily intimacy and fellowship—their righteous and holy relationship with God—so that their spiritual life matures morally, emotionally, spiritually, and faithfully. Additionally, the infilling of the Holy Spirit’s supernatural power also helps believers become Christ Jesus’ watchful and ready (prepared) Bride—the only Bride the Bridegroom (Christ Jesus) will recognize as being faithful to Him, when He comes back for Her.

The bottom line is that it is the Holy Spirit’s nature to fill, and refill, and refill . . . the Lord’s spiritually baptized and spiritually productive believers. Moreover, the Holy Spirit’s on-going sanctification is a process, one that not only has the Holy Spirit empowering, endowing, edifying, and educating the Lord’s Holy Spirit baptized believers, but also the Holy Spirit’s on-going sanctification is a process, which has the Holy Spirit purifying the Lord’s Holy Spirit baptized believers, until they eventually become thoroughly Christ-like. The ultimate result of sanctification is for the Lord’s Holy Spirit baptized believers to be ready for their glorification—that vital transformation that makes it possible for them to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven and be with God. How is it, then, that any believer could ever run out of the Oil of the Holy Spirit?

The Divine Truth is that it is impossible to be Holy Spirit filled yet empty and helpless. That is to say, there is no way that believers can be filled with the Oil of the Holy Spirit but only have a form of godliness (deny the power that makes them like Christ Jesus)! For believers to have a form of godliness, they either would have received an inferior or counterfeit portion of “oil,” or they could never have been filled and then continually refilled with the Oil of Holy Spirit! 

For sure, when believers are being continually refilled with the Holy Spirit, they then are able to be spiritually productive, well prepared (wholly purified), and eventually ready to be glorified. Their glorification, however, only happens when their Bridegroom comes for them, and He both resurrects the dead in Christ and snatches up the alive in Christ so that they can meet Him in the air. These are the believers (the Bride) who will enter into the heavenly Bridal Chamber with their Bridegroom (their Lord)!

Finally, there can be no doubt about Christ Jesus’ spiritual meaning of the Ten Virgins’ parable. He is saying that the foolish, carnal, non-productive, unprepared (not completely purified) believers are the “ain’ts,” those individuals who will be left behind. Christ Jesus also is saying that the wise, spiritually productive, prepared (wholly purified) “saints” will be raptured. Put differently, the Lord is saying that no genuinely prepared believer in Him will ever be like the parable’s left behind foolish five virgins, who apparently believed that the Holy Spirit had given them enough Oil to last them until the Lord returned.

Here is the primary difference between the foolish and wise virgins. Only the wise virgins remained in constant contact with the One who dispenses the Oil—the Holy Spirit. Scripture proves that the foolish virgins did not receive the crucial refills that would have given them an adequate supply of Oil, which would have made it possible for them to trim their lamps so as to be ready to follow their Bridegroom into the bridal chamber, when He finally arrived. In essence, the foolish five virgins waited too long before they spiritually sought the One who fills, and refills, and refills . . . .

The parable’s Divine Truth, thus, is startlingly clear. That Divine Truth is: Any professed believer who is left behind to experience the Tribulation Period will be a professed believer who didn’t bother to have enough Oil of the Holy Spirit inside him or her so that he or she not only could make it to the time of the Rapture but also would be spiritually prepared (completely Christ-like and therefore ready) to be raptured (cf. Matthew 25:3; 12-13)! AMEN.

from Faith and Wisdom: A Rhema Word in a Dry and Thirsty Land (2006; edited)

 

For a more complete explanation of the Parable of the Ten Virgins, please read the following blog entry: The Bridegroom Is Coming: God’s Ultimate Marriage Story.