If your situation gets clouded and confused, rest easy. God is not the author of it. This means that He is not in it. Satan is the author of confusion and catastrophe. God is clear, easy, pleasant and sensible.
If there is a decision you need to make and you have gone back and forth with it, something is wrong. Remember that God is perfect. He doesn’t play guessing games. He doesn’t change His mind. He doesn’t give you direction or an answer and then change course or re plan. We do that. This is confusion. So if God has answered a prayer and has opened doors and directed you, keep on that path. If you hem and haw and go back and forth Then you are not listening to God and are going your own way. You can be sure that if you look at your decision to go against the answer you got from Him, and your reasoning for that decision to change, it is against His word and His will. Be sure of it.
There are extreme situations for sure. And God can change a path that He knew all along he would change. But if you change your decision after you have heard from Him, look at your reason for changing. If that reason does not align with God’s word, with God’s will, you are choosing the wrong direction. God’s answers will always be in accordance with His word. If we ignore what God told us, then choose a path that suits our desires that go against His, then trouble is coming.
We sadly will reap the confusion we sow. Going back and forth, back and forth, is our own confusion. It is not of God.
Follow Him. All His ways are light. Stay in the light. We cannot drag God unto our dark ways. He won’t be a participant in our confusion. We have to step into His light…there is no confusion there.
All things, if they are in Christ, are “yes” and in Christ, “amen”.
In Christ Jesus our Lord,
Amen.
Are you a believer? Are you bearing fruit for the Kingdom of God? Are you in an ever increasing place of knowing God more and more?
If your answer is yes to all then I will tell you that He most likely has you in an active and exciting Christian life, where you see Him always present, always visiting and always talking to you. If your answer is no then beware. If you aren’t a sheep then I fear for your life and existence. If you are a sheep but God is not your all in all and you are distracted by the issues of life and He is an afterthought, then I can tell you that your life is filled with fear and trouble. This is a sinful troublous Satan ruled world.
But if you are one of those double-minded believers who cares more about the issues of life, then if things don’t change, you could be headed for a place where your older years could find you plunked in pain and isolation. If you don’t learn to pursue God truly, He will set you aside in your old age and get you so you cannot do anything but listen to Him, learn of Him, find Him. He is merciful.
It’s the 1000 year reign of Christ on earth after the Second Coming of Christ. We are given a glimpse of it beginning in Revelation 20.
Here are a few things we know from the prophets about this wonderful time just around the corner:
Most Christians have not studied Bible prophecy or don’t think much about what God wants us to be schooled in…Bible prophecy. Therefore they do not even know or have not thought about the fact that after Jesus returns in wrath at the second coming, He will usher in a period of 1000 years where He will rule and reign the earth with a rod of iron, with His saints…the raptured, Bride of Christ. But He will. And we who are raptured also will.
After the last 7 years Satan will be bound in the pit for 1000 years while the earth that has been cleansed with fire will be repopulated and made into many nations and people’s once again. The difference now is that Jesus will dwell here in person and rule these nations and we will as well.
For many reasons, I believe that just like Noah , the earth will be repopulated with the nation Israel, one family, who came through as believers, the wrath. As in the days of Noah…” We will rule and reign with Him as kings and priests in our resurrected bodies. Just like Noah and his family repopulated the earth after the flood, so will believing Israel.
This is not yet Heaven or our eternal manner of dwelling. Satan is bound in the pit and therefore has zero influence on the world for evil.
We don’t see the New Heavens and the New Earth until after this 1000 period where Satan is released for a brief moment only to be thrown forever into eternal torment and cast away for ever. The Bible clearly seems to say that the center of the earth is this pit of eternal fire and damnation. Satan is cast there, then that old earth is cast away into oblivion forever.
After the 1000 year reign of Christ, there will be a very brief battle including Satan, he is tossed away forever, then we see NEW JERUSALEM coming down from Heaven as a bride adorned for her husband…The Church and the city are both called Brides.
All of the descriptions of Heaven, I see, are of New Jerusalem only and not of the new earth. Not all, most. It seems that the New Jerusalem is almost a planet of its own in close proximity to the new earth but is gated and only accessible to God and His Bride, the Church. This Church is made up of Jew and Gentile alike…but not the nation Israel who come through the wrath. I do believe that they will dwell on the New Earth. The Bride, both Jew and Gentile, will dwell with God in NEW JERUSALEM. The people’s that came through the 1000 year reign of Christ, are only allowed into New Jerusalem on certain days of celebration. They cannot draw near to God like the Bride can.
We see in Revelation that after this NEW JERUSALEM comes down from Heaven and hovers just over the earth, that there are gates. We also see that all who knew and followed the Lamb dwell inside. Those who followed idols and never died to self, can only draw near at certain times. When the gates are closed they cannot enter.
That’s enough of an outline to start. We can fill in more details next time. Until then, if you read this…consider it. Study it. Know it. You see what is said. May the Father count you approved in your study. He delights to tell these things.
The Spirit and the Bride say, come. Who are they talking to? Are they asking Jesus to come? No. Though we do ask Him to come and quickly. All who are thirsty, come…
This is an invitation to all created to come to Jesus and dwell in NEW JERUSALEM, where the streets are made of gold, where there is no sun because the glory of God is the light, where the water is clear running gold…
More next time, in Christ Jesus our Lord,
Amen.
As a child of God, there are many reasons. These reasons differ greatly from the reasons that a lost person suffers. Let’s look at one of the reasons a believer suffers:
It is possible, for an obedient believer to suffer and God allows it, if that suffering will bring about a blessing to that believer that they might not yet be worthy of receiving.
Its true. I have experienced it in an ongoing way and we see it all through the word of God. I suspect it in the lives of people I either know or know of.
We see this in principal when king David was leaving the city with his company in order to let his son Absolom do what he was going to do…try to seize the kingdom from his father.
David is riding out of town broken hearted and a broken man, when there came a man running alongside him cursing David, trying to inflict great harm to a man who was already in torment. Abishai, one of David’s mighty men, also his nephew, whose name means “desirous of a gift”, who was riding alongside him, and the only one who was, asked David if he could “lift off his head”? David said something amazing. He said, no. Let him do this. Perhaps God wants to recompense me somehow. And He did. That’s exactly why it happened.
God wanted to bring huge blessing into David’s life but at that point David was not worthy of the gift God so longed to give to David, but couldn’t because His justice would not permit it. But there is a way. Here it is: If a beloved child of God is the object of evil from someone, or something (could be their own persistent slowness to surrender to God their whole hearts) God will recompense that evil done to His beloved by blessing abundantly. So the evil done to His child and the suffering it causes, permits God to lavish undeserved blessing upon them. This is the reason for the suffering.
God has a gift that He is not permitted by His holiness to give. However, He can give it justly to a child who is being persecuted or to whom evil is being inflicted as a result of their following God. Or even to one who is stuck and slow to obey but God knows they will obey.
Is it in Hebrews that we are asked, is it not just that God recompense the evil done to a righteous man? We see it in Revelation. Then He says it is just! And I will do it! We see through the entire word that He does defend, and blessings follow in His wake, to the one who needed defense.
Look at your suffering. Are you waiting on healing? If it is Gods will that you be healed, is there sin in your life that you won’t let go of? God has wonderful blessings for you and inheritance for you that you won’t let Him give because you won’t obey. But He still longs for you to have it. If your rebellion is so strong and you won’t obey here, maybe He is allowing illness and broken lives to make you worthy for some huge blessing either now or in Heaven. He has established this president. Obey Him in the tiny things, that is, in every single thing, and maybe He can consider you worthy of the gift He wants to give? And maybe without the evil inflicted upon you?
I looked up the name of the one who was riding alongside David. I knew it was one of the mighty men, just didn’t remember his name. So I discovered it was Abishai, his nephew. And when I looked the verse up I saw who he was and the meaning of his name right there in the Bible study notes…desirous of a gift. How absolutely confoundingly overwhelming Gods word is!
This blesses Him!!
…under the shadow of His wing. Why is it secret? It’s because the only way to know where it is, is to search for it. Who will search for it? Almost no one will search for it. Do all Christians live there or have access to this place? No, not all Christians do. Why is that? It’s because very few true believers care enough to find it. I’m sorry. It’s true. It’s harsh but there is no time for softness. It’s true. Most believers are distracted with and love this present world. They do not really care for the things of God. They are more interested in the world around them and what their favorite entertainment person has to say. They do not care what God has to say and they don’t really care for His company.
But there is a place that single minded believers have access to and it is the place that is hidden with Christ, in God. You have to leave everything behind to enter there but when you do, everything you ever wanted and more than you can imagine you wanted is there. We have no idea Who we are ignoring. We have no idea. But for those who do know, for those whom God saw in their heart something that desired God truly, He gives the key.
Whose prayers have weight and authority before God? It’s these very ones who do…the hidden ones. Why? Because they sought the Lord. They paid all they have to buy the field. How did they know? God told them. Why hasn’t he told you, if He hasn’t told you? He has tried. You won’t listen. You are distracted by your love for the world.
Obey God. If you want to know what I am talking about; this is really all I am permitted to say. Obey God. Fear Him enough to walk forward and lay down all you are to hear what He says. He is searching for the glorious Bride and on that day that she is presented to Him before the whole world, you’ll see why you aren’t part of her. You’ll see why and agree to it and say it is just and right and good and you’ll begin to be accepting of your lot for eternity and will say this is how it should be.
Pastors and leaders who teach otherwise will be held accountable. They have not looked into the word of God we’ll enough. They have lazily done His work. They have led countless into immaturity. They have deprived them of truth. They want to be liked.
There is time now. I can go through all of the theology for you. I can go through the particulars. But there is no assurance after I have done it that you will hear it. But God will open that chapter for you here a little, there a little, line upon line, line upon line if you desire it.
This is the first thing: Love the Lord your God, with all you heart, soul, mind and strength and He will of you desire, fill your heart with the knowledge of Him.
search for Him today as if He were the only thing there is…because I am telling you…he is the only thing there is.
Amen.
I’m not sure where I got this notion. I know that a lot of the thoughts God brings to me are unique to me. In fact, many of them are. But I also know that much of them are a sort of amalgamation of the wisdom I have gained from the cloud of witnesses that have gone before me. In other words, they are bits and pieces of truth that registered in my spirit from my favorite writers from long ago: Oswald Chambers being one, and I could list so, so many more.
Here’s one of them this morning. In God’s word, He has always been, from the beginning in Genesis, very serious about fruit bearing after its kind. God’s truth is true, and it touches every aspect of life. The principles of God do.
This is one of them and it’s a very important one. We see that fruit from trees are mentioned as always being fruit after their kind. An apple tree will bear apples not oranges. Perhaps the most important fruit is the fruit that believers bear for the kingdom of God. I’m sorry, not perhaps but absolutely.
It struck me this morning, as I was pondering the things of God. And I am just remembering that I did read about bearing fruit after it’s kind in a devotional. So We do see in the Bible that in order to bear fruit for the kingdom, we have to be a believer who abides in Christ. Without great explanation, the whole word teaches that this is referring to a mature believer. Also known as a single minded believer. Also known as a fully sanctified believer.
A believer who does abide in Christ cannot, not abide in Christ. They always abide in Christ. If they aren’t always abiding in Christ, then they are not yet single minded. Now back to fruit bearing. Look at your life as a believer. Look around you. What kind of fruit do you bear on a consistent and regular basis? I can tell you what kind of fruit you bear. I have never met you but I can tell what kind of fruit you bear. You bear fruit after your kind. Paul said it is a good thing as long as we are in this body, sanctified, not yet sanctified, but it is always a good thing to examine yourself to see what manner of spirit you are in. Part of that is looking around to see what kind of fruit you’re bearing. Is it good fruit, then it will be Kingdom fruit. Is it bad fruit, then it’s not even worth trampling on.
Are you leading other people to single minded abiding in Christ, then you are bearing good fruit. You’re bearing good fruit after your kind. Are you leading other people to have your bad habits? Are you leading people you are regularly in contact with to stumble in righteousness, to compromise in righteousness? If you are, then you are bearing bad fruit after your kind.
The reason this is a very important thing to examine, and to know for sure, is this: if you are bearing fruit after your kind, and it’s bad fruit, the issue isn’t with the people around you, the issue is with you. John 15 tells us that if we do not abide in Christ, we cannot bear fruit. We know elsewhere in the word that it is inferred here, that Jesus meant good fruit for the kingdom. He assumes the reader understands that. Elsewhere in the Bible we are told bad fruit can be produced. We are also told that each thing bears fruit after its kind. So if you want to examine yourself like Paul said regularly to see what manner of spirit you are in, examine not only your fruit but the fruit that is produced as a result of being in contact with you. God will show you.
When Paul told us to do this, we know that he said it with a heart that always desired that every believer would store up treasures in heaven as a result. Treasures are not stored up in heaven for the believer who bears bad fruit.
The beautiful thing, and the sobering thing is that it is all our responsibility. It is totally up to us what kind of fruit we will bear. Make it good fruit today. And this is another notion I am borrowing from someone along the way who has taught me and I do not know who first said it. Fruit that a believer bears, just happens, there is no effort in it. Good deeds are not necessarily good fruit, if they are not done as a byproduct of abiding in Christ. An apple tree doesn’t strain and plot to bear apples. It just bears apples because of what it is. It’s an apple tree.
A believer will bear fruit after their kind, by becoming that kind. Glorious truth from a glorious God.
Think of the parable of the talents too. The same message is being spoken there as well. The foolish servant has only one talent, just one seed, to give to the master when he returns. The wise servants have many talents, many seeds, to present to the master at his return. The foolish servant represents the saved but not sanctified, while alive, believer, who produced nothing for the kingdom… No fruit.
All of this is to reinforce the possibility that a wife can sanctify her husband and children by being that kernel of wheat that falls to the ground and dies whereby producing many seeds. There are dozens of scriptures to show that what I am saying about a sanctified believers in the last generation is a real and strong possibility, but I will mention just a few. I have mentioned all of these already but want to look at a few more a little closer. Hebrews 11:5 says that Enoch was taken and did not see death because he walked with God and he pleased God. He was sanctified. To walk with God and to please God refers to being sanctified… Walking in the fear of the Lord. He is a picture of the raptured church. There is another hidden message here I think: this also means that a believer can be sanctified without experiencing physical death… But if you will. Most believers will have to die physically to entirely sanctified. But there are those who like Enoch will walk with God while alive and be sanctified while alive through death to self rule.
I believe Noah and his family represent the 144,000 Israelites that will be brought safely through the tribulation period. Remember that Israel, the ones who now have received Christ, is taken to a safe place and untouched by the wrath of God during this period. They are neither harmed nor raptured but refined and preserved through the trouble on the earth. They will be the righteous who see Christ at His second coming and also go into the period of the thousand year reign of Christ as the redeemed. Another reason that I think Noah and his family could very well represent the nation of Israel preserved through the tribulation is that they will also, like Noah and his family, re-populate the earth during the thousand year reign. Interesting.
We know from all the last day prophecy that during the thousand year reign of Christ that there will again be many nations. This confused me until I remembered that Noah, being one family, became many nations. So it still seems plausible to me that the 144,000 will re-populate the entire world during the millennium. Paul tells us that not all Israel is Israel. I am sure that even though the 144,000 believing Jews enter the thousand year reign as Israel that their offspring will become these nations of the earth during the thousand year reign. Noah’s sons went out and settled the lands and made nations and peoples and many worshipped foreign gods. And think of this: Abraham was not a Jew. His offspring would become a people claimed by God because of the covenant he made with Abraham, and this people would be called Israel but Abraham was chosen to be the father Of many nations, genesis 17:4, etc., and he was. I believe this is just what will happen during the thousand year reign. The 144,000 or not the bride of Christ but they are also the redeemed. “And all Israel will be saved.”
I believe that because so few believers will be raptured, they will hardly be noticed when they are. Isaiah, in chapters 56 through 57, describes this time. Isaiah says that the righteous, sanctified, are removed from the wrath to come and no one notices. The word perish here actually could mean vanish. I happened upon this on Whitestone ministries website, looked it up and it is correct. The better translation of that word is indeed vanish. We have a strange representation of the rapture today. Some have thought that all of a sudden multitudes disappear. They say that all children will disappear as well and that would be an unmistakable clue that the rapture has occurred. But here this thought for a moment and consider it with me. I don’t think all children will go and here is why: not every child will become a believer and God sees that… He knows every heart and every destiny. Hitler was once a sweet baby and a child but God knew who he would become… He would never become a believer. Again, think back to the scripture that described Jacob and Esau even before they were born… Remember? Their destinies were already determined even before they could choose good or evil. And all who were ordained to eternal life believed, Act 13:48. So while we see an innocent child, God sees the finished person. All are offered salvation but not all will receive it.
more next time!
I believe Noah and his family represent the 144,000 Israelites that will be brought safely through the tribulation period. remember that Israel, the ones who now have received Christ, is taken to a safe place and untouched by the wrath of God during this period. They are neither harmed nor raptured but refined and preserved through the trouble on the earth. They will be the righteous who see Christ at his second coming and also go into the period of the thousand year reign of Christ as the redeemed. Another reason that I think Noah and his family could very well represent the nation of Israel preserved through the tribulation. Is that they will also, like Noah and his family, repopulate the earth during the thousand year reign. Interesting.
Are you ready? If yes, is your family ready? If yes, are your friends and neighbors ready?
There is a Kingdom coming and by the looks of things and by what Bible prophecy tells us, it looks like soon…and very soon.
I am prone to prophetic dreams. I have journals full of them and dates of their fulfillment. I never cease to be flabbergasted that God shares His secrets with me. He does. The Bible says that He loves to and He tells us who He shares them with. The inner circle. “ The Lord confides in those who fear Him. Who fears Him? The sanctified. That’s why He confides in them. He has their whole hearts and all of their attention.
How many Christians know that there is a Kingdom coming? Not many. Why? Churches don’t teach it. Believers don’t know their Bibles. They are the ones Jesus said would be distracted by the cares of this life. That is, the daily events of life.
But it looks like the Kingdom is at the door step or close to it and who knows? Are we ready? Isaiah said in chapter 56 that in these last days a group of righteous people will be caught up with Jesus when He returns for the faithful. The righteous vanish and no one notices. There are so few who go.
Jeaus told us to pray that we would be counted worthy to escape the wrath to come. Being born again is not enough. We must be born again and single minded concerning God. The Luke warm will stay here on earth during the last 3.5 years of the 7 year period called Jacobs trouble.
They will be refined and do enter the Kingdom, but because they did not lose their lives they will have to be refined by the wrath of the Lamb. It’s true.
So if this covid19 virus hangs around and if there is hunger and there are earthquakes and wild beasts killing people, then we are looking at the livid or pale horse where 1/4 of the earth’s population is killed by all of these things. That would mean 2 billion. It sounds far fetched but so would this situation we are in have sounded many months ago. It sounds like a science fiction movie that no one would watch, yet it is happening.
A woman where I live was killed by an alligator 2 days ago. I’ll do a search to see if there is an unusually high amount of wild beasts killing people.
I did google average deaths per year. I think the number was around 100 million which isn’t even close to 2 billion. The Bible doesn’t specify the time line for this but it is inferred contextually in Revelation that is is at once or at least within a short period of time. If we dragged it out over the first 3.5 years how many is that roughly per year?
It’s less that 1 billion per year. That’s still a staggering amount. It is such a large amount that it would be an unmistakeable mile marker that this is it. So when the white horse gets here it’ll be very obvious to those who are watching.
This virus could strike again and much harder. We will have to see. But are we ready? Make sure we are ready. The Kingdom coming is everything your heart has ever desired. That was pure and holy. It is perfect joy and peace and wonder and fullness. Jesus will reign. And we who suffered with Him will also reign with Him. Do you know Him? That’s first. Know Him. He has died for your sin. Repent and come to Him for forgiveness and be saved today.
But that’s not all. Know Him. A half hearted believer is a sorrow to Him. Give all you are to this glorious God and King. He is coming soon.
I know that, or I should say I believe that, God shows us Israel’s path in order to show us what the church will do.
The USA has been called of God to spread the gospel. So we as a nation mirror Israel, as God’s people. Israel, blinded, is under the old covenant and the church, (and the USA who exists because of God’s calling upon us) is under the new covenant of grace.
The USA, is primary exporter of pornography, and now is inundated every minute with pro homosexual propaganda to such an extent that their primary target audience is children.
Walt Disney promotes homosexuality in their movies for children… along with witchcraft.
Is God judging the USA in the same way He judged Israel?
She was enslaved by Egypt, besieged by Assyria, then Babylon then Persia, Greece and Rome. Mystery Babylon is the next one, and the last one who will enslave God’s people. We can say that the world system is Mystery Babylon but more, the USA is. Included in this last day Mystery Babylon, is an apostate church who is pictured as the harlot. But there is a specific world power who embodies all that this spiritual entity known as last day Babylon, is. If we look at the very vivid description of this world power, we see the USA. There has been no other power on earth that fits this description and the USA fits perfectly.
So are we now, as Mystery Babylon, being besieged just as Israel was? We are also God’s people gone after the world system…like a harlot. Our churches for the most part have married the world here in the USA.
Yes. I Believe this pandemic is judgement. I believe in God’s mercy it is a warning. In the USA, we cannot turn on the TV without every single major company advertising their product using homosexual couples. This country is inundated with it. The schools are indoctrinating innocent children to think of and agree with homosexuality and transvestitism. The mainline churches have endorsed it.
This is such an abomination, and even the voices of the most godly leaders are silent. If they are not silent they are mostly silent.
Isaiah warned of such a day. He saw that the world in the last day would be totally corrupt. It is today. We have hit bottom. In chapter 56, we see God calling His own watchmen, “dumb dogs who won’t bark”. He says the prophets are so light that they refuse to see the trouble coming and actually tell the sheep to not worry because everything is fine. They say today is plenty and tomorrow will be plenty. They say it in the midst of the rising tide of trouble.
Then we see the prophet say that the righteous vanish and no one notices. He repeats, the righteous are taken away from the trouble to come and no one even sees.
Here we are. The pandemic is all over the world. We have been in our homes for nearly 2 months, there is no commerce or very little. And still, no one will bark. I will turn on my TV today and homosexual couples will fill the TV all day long. Innocent children will wee it and not miss it. We have given Satan access to our babies.
He is killing them before they are born because we have turned away from God. And those who are born are corrupted immediately with the images and talk of what God calls an abomination.
The church sleeps. It is afraid to warn. It is too invested in the world system. It’s very survival depends upon it. It does not depend on God.
Father give me a voice and allow me to declare Your truth today. Open hearts and minds to hear. Deliver Your remnant today. Let righteousness reign supreme. Be glorified in Your people today Lord.
Amen!