Category: Discipleship Essentials

When Did It Become Fashionable to Hate Our Country?

If I were trying to undermine a country, I would attempt to make its own citizens hate it. I would do this in a veiled way so that they would not realize what was happening. I believe that this is exactly what has taken place in our nation over the past many years. The deception has been so great that even many Christian leaders who pride themselves in their biblical knowledge and discernment have been taken in “hook, line, and sinker.”

During the lead up to the 2020 election, I was appalled to hear a much-beloved and respected Christian author justify supporting the party of abortion because Trump’s pride was even worse than killing unborn babies. The desire to disassociate with all things Trump and look “respectable” to the Left robbed this man of his judgment. Two years later we see clearly that the party of abortion is also the group attempting to destroy the entire nation along with its Judaeo-Christian values. Perhaps now in hindsight those who fell for this feeble attempt to justify voting against Trump realize that they voted for the devil instead. Those who were not taken in saw clearly at the time what was going on. This is an example of “nuanced” deception masquerading a Christian wisdom. It is never okay to vote avowed baby killers into office. If even the most educated and highly regarded can come under the sway of this sort of deception, none of us is immune.

“Wokeness” and critical race theory appeal to those who believe they have a deeper understanding of things than the “great unwashed” group of people who live in the “fly over” areas of the country and who generally vote conservative. (Is this an updated edition of Gnosticism?) Spiritual pride is likely behind this desire to avoid being identified with those  despise. It is like someone who is ashamed of his family, for whatever reason, and tries to distance himself in every way possible, not realizing that it makes him seem insecure, petty, and small. We should love our families because they are where we originate. It’s who we are, so to speak, but we may not choose to identify with its members’ worst characteristics. The same is true for our nation. Every family and every nation has something good for which we can be proud.

When we are ashamed of someone or something, we lose our power to influence things for good. It is impossible to help someone to whom we have shut the door of compassion.

It is easy to fall for the lie that all white people somehow share the responsibility for systemic racism, until we encounter racism coming from the other direction that is just as hateful and evil. We should repent for specific sins we commit, but it is quite impossible to repent for systemic sins of which we have no direct knowledge, choice, or responsibility.

The devil seeks to lock us into a permanent sense of shame and guilt for which their is no solution.

To accuse this country of systemic racism is like accusing it of systemic sin, which is another way of saying we are human. We are all sinners and prone to racism, but the beauty of the gospel is that Jesus sets us free and declares us “not guilty.” God only requires us to repent for known sins of which he convicts us, but he does not want us walking under a cloud of shame and guilt that can never be resolved. Instead, the Bible clearly says that Jesus removed all condemnation and judgment that was against us. (John 5:24) The devil never wants anyone to be free. He always accuses us. There is no solution, only retribution. This sounds very much like CRT. Anything that seeks to bring us under a cloud of permanent guilt is from the devil, pure and simple.

All people are sinners and inherently racist. Bigotry and racism of some sort are present in every society. It is not always provoked by the color of one’s skin however. The central issue may be what nation we come from, what language we speak, or what religion we follow. In some areas of Africa, it is related to what tribe one belongs. All of this points to our fallen sinful condition.

If we are going to be helpful, we must rise above the sinful attitudes and behaviors around us and model something far better. In other words, we are to be “salt and light” in a very dark world.

The devil and his agents espouse philosophies and belief systems that seek to drive wedges between various people groups. He wants us to suspect and fear one another, with the hope that it will escalate into hatred and violence.

These lies have so worked themselves into the national conversation that many, who should know better, now have a “root of bitterness” against their own country. (Hebrews 12:15)

When this happens, all we can see is what is wrong with it. We feel good about ourselves when we speak evil of it, thinking that somehow this makes us superior. All it really does is ally us with the Accuser of the Brethren. (Revelation 12:10)

In addition, many Christians also have adopted a Quaker-like isolationism and passivity when it comes to politics, believing that the political realm is “beneath” us and that we should focus instead solely on the business of the church and the gospel. This cedes the political arena to those who do not serve our Lord. This is a great victory for those who have worked hard to convince one of the largest voting blocks in the country, conservative-minded Christians, to disengage politically or deny our conservative Christian heritage in an attempt to make the Left like us, which they never will because they hate God.

A large part of the reason our nation is in the mess we are in today is because good people have gone AWOL from politics.

I understand completely. Even though I believe that many who serve our Lord Jesus should be involved politically, nothing about politics appeals to me. Nevertheless, we need men and women who have great courage and stamina to serve in that part of society. Likewise, we need God-fearing people serving in all the major areas of influence and power – government, finance, education, the arts, business, medicine, the military, and science. We cannot afford to continue to cede these areas to the devil.

People who have learned to despise our nation do not seem to mind very much that it is under assault by our political enemies, who operate in both major political parties, and that we are in danger of losing our republic and our freedoms entirely. I have heard people say that Christians should focus on the kingdom of God and basically ignore those who are doing their level best to collapse the country. What would our Christian forebears think about this? What would those who gave their lives and fortunes to secure the liberties of free speech, worship, and self-defense say to us today? I believe they would be appalled at the deception we have embraced.

The Bible makes it clear that Jesus came to set the captive free. (Luke 4:18) The Bible tells us that wherever the Spirit of God is, there is freedom. (2 Corinthians 3:17) Whenever the devil gets involved in anything, freedom is lost and people become enslaved. (John 10:10)

I believe we can safely say that those nations that defend liberty promote that which is godly, and those which steal freedom from its citizens are of the devil. Government has been authorized by God to represent him as an enforcer of justice. (Romans 1:4) When a government abandons that mandate, it becomes illegitimate in the sense that it ceases to properly represent God.The framers of the US Constitution recognized that governments inherently progress or devolve into tyranny. That is why Benjamin Franklin said that we were given a republic, if we can keep it. Representative government requires constant vigilance against those who want to “play” the system and steal our liberties. That is why Thomas Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence the following.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

The biblical word “redemption” means to buy back from slavery and set free. Through faith in Christ and his shed blood, Father God grants us freedom to serve him. Freedom for freedom’s sake is never the goal, however. When we use our freedom to serve something besides God, we will eventually lose it. That is what has happened to us in the United States.

Those who braved the icy waters of the Atlantic in small wooden ships to bring their families to a wild “new world” did so in the hope of finding political and spiritual freedom. Most of them left rather tyrannical governments and wanted nothing more to do with anything like that. They were willing to risk everything in pursuit of freedom. Those who fought against Britain in the Revolution did so to a great extent because they were resisting what they viewed as tyranny. Sadly, our government today is more oppressive than Great Britain ever was, but many of us piously think that we are “above” being concerned with such matters.

I believe that our failure to address the peril we are in as a nation is proof that we have divorced our “religion” from real life. We have fallen for the devil’s ruse that we should “fort up” in our Christian ghettos (churches) and let the world go to the devil.

What will we do when our churches are closed down and those who profess Christ are hunted and persecuted? Although we know that God can and will use every situation for our good and his glory, how can anyone think that persecution would be a good thing?

The world in general is not coming to our churches. We must go to them. We must let our light shine in whatever area we can. And if we have no place to shine except in the church, maybe we should try to carve out some place else to be a witness. Maybe we should get involved with groups and causes which currently have little light shining. There are service clubs, political groups, school boards, etc. where a Bible believing person of moral courage could accomplish much.

But we will never do this if we are nursing a root of bitterness against our country and frankly do not much care if it is destroyed. May God deliver us and rekindle in us a love for the nation in which we live, despite its many failures and flaws. May God deliver us from a critical spirit that only sees what is wrong. May he open our eyes to what is good and worth saving. Then we can step forward to become part of the solution, with God’s help.

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Jacob: Hang On Until You Get the Blessing

Jacob is one of my favorite characters in the Bible. He was a deceiver, a complainer at times, fearful, and often lacking faith; yet, God chose him to be a father of the faith, and, despite all his failures, his life ended well. Jacob should give us all hope that God can use even us for his purposes. We should be encouraged that God’s grace and mercy are sufficient to carry us through, no matter how unlikely a candidate we may be.

This teaching will examine a significant episode in Jacob’s life when he was returning to his father’s home after years of a sort of self-imposed exile. God earlier promised his mother, Rebecca, that Jacob would rule over his brother Esau.

But the children struggled together within her; and she said, "If it is so, why then am I this way?" So she went to inquire of the LORD. 23  The LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb; And two peoples will be separated from your body; And one people shall be stronger than the other; And the older shall serve the younger." Genesis 25:22-23 (NASB)

How he came into possession of that promise involves several unexpected twists and turns. Jacob came out of the womb as the second born of twins, grasping the heel of his older brother, Esau. Jacob’s name is a word play on “heel” and carried with it the connotation of a deceiver, a theme that played out during his life.

The reason that Jacob left his father’s home was because he had tricked his father into giving him his older brother’s blessing, which enraged Esau to the point of wanting to murder him. His father, Isaac, was essentially blind due to old age, which allowed the deception to succeed. Isaac preferred Esau over Jacob, and, according to the convention of the time, Esau, being the first born, should have received a blessing giving him first place among his brothers. But God had already chosen Jacob to have that honor, which is another theme that plays out repeatedly in the Old Testament.

God chooses unlikely people to accomplish his purposes.

It is inconceivable that Rebecca did not tell her husband about the promise God gave her; nevertheless, Isaac, who also had a history of being deceptive, as did his father, Abraham, chose the give his blessing to his elder son. He sent Esau out to kill game and prepare him a delicious stew which would set the stage for his imparting the blessing of the first born. Rebecca heard what was happening and instructed Jacob to bring her a goat to prepare for his father. Following his mother’s counsel, Jacob dressed in Esau’s clothing and somehow managed to pull off the ruse and get his father’s blessing just before Esau’s return. Below is a part of that blessing.

May many nations become your servants, and may they bow down to you. May you be the master over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. All who curse you will be cursed, and all who bless you will be blessed.” Genesis 27:29 (NLT)

Previously Esau had traded his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of lentil stew.

One day when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry. 30  Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”) 31  “All right,” Jacob replied, “but trade me your rights as the firstborn son.” 32  “Look, I’m dying of starvation!” said Esau. “What good is my birthright to me now?” 33  But Jacob said, “First you must swear that your birthright is mine.” So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob. 34  Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left. He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn. Genesis 25:29-34 (NLT)

The birthright being Jacob’s by Esau’s choice, it only stood to reason that the blessing should also be his. However, when Esau learned that once again his brother had taken what he felt belonged to him, he was distraught and furious. He determined to kill Jacob after his father died. Upon learning this, Rebecca instructed her son, with Isaac’s blessing, to leave the country and go back to her father’s house to obtain a bride. Jacob left immediately, encountering God along the way, and after reaching Rebecca’s home, ended up marrying two of Rebecca’s nieces, Leah and Rachel. There he built his family and fortune serving his uncle Laban. Eventually God instructed him to return to his father’s home.

Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your father and grandfather and to your relatives there, and I will be with you.” Genesis 31:3 (NLT)

This posed two huge problems for Jacob. Laban was sure to oppose the move, and the last time he saw Esau, he had murder in his heart. This brings us to another life lesson we can derive from this part of Jacob’s life.

When God tells us to do something, he promises to be with us, but that does not mean we will not encounter difficulties.

Jacob tried to escape Laban secretly to avoid a fight, but Laban hunted him down. The ensuing confrontation revealed to Jacob that God was helping him.

Laban caught up with Jacob as he was camped in the hill country of Gilead, and he set up his camp not far from Jacob’s. 26  “What do you mean by stealing away like this?” Laban demanded. “How dare you drag my daughters away like prisoners of war? 27  Why did you slip away secretly? Why did you steal away? And why didn’t you say you wanted to leave? I would have given you a farewell feast, with singing and music, accompanied by tambourines and harps. 28  Why didn’t you let me kiss my daughters and grandchildren and tell them good-bye? You have acted very foolishly! 29  I could destroy you, but the God of your father appeared to me last night and warned me, ‘Leave Jacob alone!’ Genesis 31:25-29 (NLT)

Once past this significant hurdle, Jacob still faced his biggest fear – Esau. As he approached his father’s home, he got word that Esau was coming to meet him with four hundred men. How would you interpret this news? Probably just as Jacob did… He was convinced that his brother was coming to finally get his revenge. Jacob was caught between a rock and a hard place. God clearly told him to return home, but Esau had to be met for that to happen.

God is an expert at setting up situations that require us to face our fears.

He backs us into a corner from which we cannot escape except by going straight forward. Meeting Esau seemed to be the worst thing that could happen, but God was about to turn what Jacob feared into something good.

This brings us to another important life lesson. God promises that he will work all things out for good in our lives, even the seemingly terrible things. He asks us to maintain our faith in him and his promises.

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28 (NLT)

A secondary principle that we can derive from this verse of scripture is that we should praise God in every circumstance because we can be sure that he is at work for our good and his glory.

And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:20 (NLT)

Jacob did not yet know these principles. All he knew was that God was with him and his brother appeared to be on the warpath. As the confrontation got closer, Jacob took defensive steps, sending droves of animals ahead of him as gifts to appease his brother’s wrath. The night before meeting Esau, he divided his family group in the hope that perhaps some would be spared. Then he spent the night alone by the river Jabbok.

During that sleepless night, the angel of the Lord appeared to Jacob and wrestled with him. Jacob was a powerful man, having been able to single-handedly role a huge stone that covered the opening to a well. (Genesis 29:10) Despite his prodigious strength, Jacob was unable to defeat the angel, which is not surprising. God will defeat the areas of our lives where we are self-sufficient so that we learn an important lesson.

God never intended that we be self-sufficient. We were created to draw our life and strength from God.

Until we learn to bring everything under God’s benevolent rule, we will encounter God’s loving discipline. Jacob was about to learn the biggest life lesson of all.

Even in the womb, Jacob struggled with his brother; when he became a man, he even fought with God. 4  Yes, he wrestled with the angel and won. He wept and pleaded for a blessing from him. There at Bethel he met God face to face, and God spoke to him— 5  the LORD God of Heaven’s Armies, the LORD is his name! Hosea 12:3-5 (NLT)

According to the Bible, Jacob won his wrestling match, but that is a surprising twist to the story. His victory with God came because he lost to God. This is another key to life in God.

We win by losing our fight against God.

Jacob and the angel wrestled to a stalemate, at which time, the angel revealed that he had the power to defeat Jacob at any time. Imagine a father arm wrestling with his young son and pretending that it is a struggle.

This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break. 25  When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket. 26  Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27  “What is your name?” the man asked. He replied, “Jacob.” 28  “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won.” Genesis 32:24-28 (NLT)

Jacob won this match with God because he refused to give up and let go, which brings us to the main point of this article.

Never let go of God and his promises until you get the blessing.

Life often confronts us with overwhelming problems that seemingly contradict or nullify God’s love and promises. The test we often face is whether we will let go of God or cling to him. Instead of fighting God, as Jacob did, why not simply surrender to His plan and purpose? 

The cross has been called the intersection or crossing of our will by God’s. The cross symbolizes the death of our will and our desire to determine our own course or direction in life. God’s will is usually attractive to us on a deep spiritual level, but the journey toward its fulfillment usually runs counter to the comfort and ease we all want.

We inevitably will encounter the cross when we embrace God’s divine purpose. We may struggle fiercely, but we cannot win against God. So why not be wise and surrender early on?

Jacob surrendered with one condition, which we should also adopt: he requested God’s blessing.

Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” 
“I will not let you go,” Jacob replied, “unless you bless me.” Genesis 32:26

As we face the trial before us, we should tell God that we surrender to His will and purpose for our lives in the trial (as best we can) and that we want the blessing contained in it. (Romans 8:28) The old saying that every dark cloud has a silver lining is certainly true with God.

There is nothing that the devil or life can throw at us that will not ultimately work for our good. Therefore, we can face everything with the bold confidence of a conqueror. In Christ the battle has already been won.

No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. 38  And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39  No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:37-39 (NLT)

Adversity presents us with an opportunity to know God in a fresh new way.

Of course, for the Christian, the Lord is always present, but often we neglect to profit from this most amazing gift until pressed into a corner. We humans are so oriented toward self-sufficiency that we often forget about God, for all practical purposes, until we are faced with something so beyond our capacity to cope that we are forced to run to Him. God is so loving and humble of heart that He accepts us even when we come with such questionable motives.

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29  Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)

God has no illusions about our motives, but loves us anyway. He is a true friend as well as our God.

In addition to being an opportunity to meet God in a fresh new way, a severe trial is also an opportunity to hear God’s voice in a way that inspires our faith. God can and will speak to us through Scripture, other human beings, our circumstances, or simply by communicating directly with our hearts.

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Matthew 7:7-8 (NLT)

When God requires that we face our greatest fears, it is time to get alone with Him and hang on until He gives us the blessing that is hidden in the trial. Never doubt that it is there. It was for Jacob. When he finally face his brother Esau the next day, it turned out well. Esau came in peace, eliciting these words from Jacob.

Jacob said, “Please. If you can find it in your heart to welcome me, accept these gifts. When I saw your face, it was as the face of God smiling on me. Genesis 33:10 (The Message)

Knowing that God truly loves us is a big key to our having overcoming faith.

Some believers have a feeling that God “loves” them, but fear that He secretly does not like them very much. We have a good reason to think this way, since we are so very well acquainted with our own faults and failings. Many of us still think we are on a performance basis in our relationship with God, and we imagine we are quite unworthy of genuine affection from Him.

The good news of the gospel, however, is that God loves us to the core, despite our very unlovable traits, and that He is favorably disposed to bless us, all because of what Jesus did for us.

When we love someone deeply, it gives us pleasure to show that love through gifts and other favorable acts. That is the way God loves us.

When a severe trial comes, for some it is a confirmation that God’s displeasure has been aroused and they are being punished. It is very difficult, if not impossible, to have overcoming faith if we think like that. Perhaps the word “trial” is part of the problem, since it brings to mind a courtroom setting in which we may see ourselves as the accused. If we substitute the word “test” for “trial,” we may obtain a better grasp of what God is doing.

Tests reveal to us what we know and how far we have come in our training and maturity.

They are meant to be passed, but, if we fail one, God does not discard us. Instead we must go back to the Book, the Bible, to study some more and then go back to God, our life coach, for some more internal work. Tests are good, not bad. God is not hurting us by sending tribulation and pressures our way: He is actually helping us. The Apostle Paul wrote:

That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. 17  For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18  So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NLT)

We cannot grow spiritually without encountering tests and pressures along the way. God wants us to use them to learn how to overcome by faith.

It’s analogous to a butterfly struggling to escape its cocoon. If someone tries to “help” the insect by tearing open the cocoon, the butterfly will be robbed of its God-given opportunity to strengthen and develop its wings. It is through the struggle to get out of the cocoon that the butterfly becomes strong enough to fly. As we encounter and struggle with tests and tribulations, our faith and ability to persevere will grow.

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4  So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. James 1:2-4 (NLT)

In adversity, we learn that God is faithful and true and grow strong spiritually. Most of us routinely seek to avoid or quickly escape tribulations. Rather, we should embrace any that God sends our way and seek to profit from them.

God has a purpose for everything in our lives. We just need to find it, which happens more easily when we surrender to God’s will and purpose. Our purpose is found in His purposes. In fact, it is only in the context of His sovereign will that our lives make sense. What before had been terrifying for Jacob, now became the venue in which he beheld God’s smile.

When we go through trials and tribulations with an attitude of faith and an expectation of blessing, we will come to know God in a new way and be able to see His smile.

Do we know that God is smiling at us, or do we imagine that His face is clouded, angry, or frowning in displeasure? The priestly blessing from Numbers reveals that God is indeed smiling at us, or, as the literal Hebrew says, “shining” upon us.

May the LORD bless you and protect you. 25  May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. 26  May the LORD show you his favor and give you his peace.’ Numbers 6:24-26 (NLT)

A smile is one of the most effective ways to communicate our pleasure in another person. God takes pleasure in His people because we are perfectly pleasing to Him in and through His Son. We are completely justified, accepted, and blessed in Christ.

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. 4  Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5  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. 6  So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7  He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8  He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. Ephesians 1:3-8 (NLT)

Yes, God is smiling at us, but do we believe it yet? Keep seeking the Lord until he shows you the truth about his amazing grace.

Don’t let go of God until you experience the blessing he has already given to us in Christ.

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Is Jesus God?

Yuval Noah Harari is an Israeli-born World Economic Forum member and a lead advisor for Klaus Schwab. Klaus Schwab is the author of COVID-19 / The Great Reset and The Great Narrative. Schwab is founder of the World Economic Forum, which has a 666 logo. Yuval Noah Harari is an openly gay best-selling author who abstains from eating meat and who is celebrated by Barack Obama, Mark Zuckerberg, and Bill Gates. Yuval Noah Harari has been praised by the New York Times, Stanford, TED, MIT, Silicon Valley and TimesTalks. Yuval is a Hebrew first name which means “father of music,” stream, brook, or tributary.” In the Hebrew Bible, Yuval (also Jubal) was the son of Lamech and Adah and a descendant of Cain who is referenced in Genesis 4:20-21. To learn more about the mindset of Yuval Noah Harari read 2nd Thessalonians Chapter 2. In other words, he embodies the antichrist spirit. I am not saying that he is the Antichrist; rather, he expresses that spirit through his words and life. He stands in opposition to God’s truth and will and uses his position to defame the Lord.

Here is a collage of quotes from this man that I will examine in this article.

“Jesus Never Claimed to Be God, He Was Basically This Hippy Guru Who Wanted to Reform Judaism. Jesus Did Not Think He Was Yahweh. Decades After He Is Dead, People Say This Rabbi Who Had a Small Following Was Actually God.” 1

The Bible chapter I referenced above, which I hope you took time to read, contains this passage.

This man will...use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. 11  So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. 12  Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 (NLT)

Many of us can easily discern that there is an abnormal level of deception being poured out on the earth today. Sadly, humans in general are not very good at identifying and rejecting what is false. This inability goes back to the Garden of Eden. Apparently God deliberately created us so that we need him to know what is necessary. If we look elsewhere, we will suffer for it. In his eyes, we are all children, and we know how gullible children tend to be. He wants us to freely believe him, without fear or doubt, but flatly refuse any other source of “truth” that contradicts what he tells us. Adam and Eve failed this test miserably. Today is our turn at passing it.

If what Harari said about Jesus is true, then Jesus was either a lunatic or a liar. Let me quote the great C.S. Lewis from this classic book, Mere Christianity:

Jesus [. . .] told people that their sins were forgiven. [. . .] This makes sense only if He really was the God whose laws are broken and whose love is wounded in every sin. [. . .] I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: “I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.”

That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.

The Bible makes it clear that Jesus’ enemies knew that he claimed to be God. Let me give you two examples. The first is an encounter he had with his opposition, the Jewish religious leaders. They are the first to speak in the following passage.

"Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?" 54  Jesus answered, "If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, 'He is our God'; 55  and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word. 56  "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." 57  So the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" 58  Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am." 59  Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple. John 8:53-59 (NASB)

The name of God revealed to Moses was “I am who I am,” which is translated Yahweh in many Bibles. When Jesus declared to his enemies that he is the “I am,” he knew what he was doing, and so did they. That is why they immediately picked up stones to kill him.

Another example is when our Lord stood before his accusers during his nighttime mock trial before his crucifixion. The Sanhedrin’s false witnesses did not give them what they needed to condemn Jesus to death; so, as a last resort, they asked Jesus directly if he were indeed the Messiah. He did not simply affirm what they asked: he went much, much further, giving them grounds for declaring him a blasphemer. Here are our Lord’s words.

But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” 64  Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” 65  Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy. 66  What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.” Matthew 26:63-66 (ESV)

Now to those who do not know the Old Testament scriptures, this may not seem like much. But for those Jewish leaders, who did know the scriptures, what Jesus said was a claim to be God. The reference is to the writings of the prophet Daniel.

“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14  And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. Daniel 7:13-14 (ESV)

Even though many claim that Jesus’ self-identification as the “son of man” was a reference to his humanity, I believe first and foremost it is a reference to this passage in Daniel. This son of man is a heavenly being who has been given everlasting dominion and will judge all peoples. This fits perfectly with the Christian position that Jesus is the God-man who died as the Lamb of God for our sins and rose again as the Lord of Lords, who now sits at his Father’s right hand, waiting for his enemies to be completely subjugated, at which time he will return as the divine Son of Man to judge the living and the dead and rule over God’s kingdom forever.

It is obvious that Harari and his interviewers are ignorant of the Bible, since they make many false statements during the interview I footnoted. Or they may simply be spinning a deliberate lie to deceive the simple. They will account to God for their haughty dismissal of Jesus’ claims and the Bible. In either case, Harari is being used as an instrument of Satan to weave a web of deception to drag as many people to hell with him as possible.

There is still time for repentance, even for Harari. Until we stop breathing or the Lord returns, we all still have hope. Let’s be proclaimers of truth, not collaborators with deception. Are you ready to align yourself with the truth about Jesus? Here is how.

Prayer

Jesus, I have finally reached the point where I am ready to acknowledge that you are Lord of all. I surrender my life to you and ask you to use what time I have left on earth for your glory. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. I ask you to baptize me with the Holy Spirit and power and help me to be your faithful witness. Amen.

1 From interview at - https://armchairexpertpod.com/pods/yuval-harari-returns-again - beginning at 1:00:46.
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What do we do when we are confused and unsure what to do next?

 

 

 

God designed things so that much of life is quite mysterious. He created us with an inherent need to rely him for everything. It is not that we are stupid, but there is simply so much that we do not know, need to know, or even have the capacity to know.

The quest to know more than God is willing to share with us led to our downfall. As the old saying goes, curiosity killed the cat. The serpent preyed upon this desire to go beyond what God designed us to know when he tempted Eve to taste the forbidden fruit in order to “be like God,” knowing good and evil for themselves without having to rely on God to show them. Sadly, our Lord never intended for them or us to have that knowledge because he knew it would destroy us. It is humbling to admit we are so dependent by design.

Rather than giving us knowledge of everything, God gave us a capacity, desire, and need to live by faith.

As the old hymn says,

Many Things About Tomorrow,
I Don’t Seem To Understand;
But I Know Who Holds Tomorrow,
And I Know Who Holds My Hand.

Everyone lives by faith in something, even if it is faith that there is nothing worth believing. Faith is based on believing what is unprovable using scientific methodology. The great mysteries of life must be accepted by faith.

  • Is there a God?
  • What is the purpose of life?
  • What happens after death?
  • What do I do next?

Thankfully, faith does not have to be blind. In fact, it should not be. Faith should be based on something rock solid. God has given us his written Word, called the Bible. He has also given us the Holy Spirit.

But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 1 Corinthians 2:10 (NLT)

The Spirit of God reveals things to us. He speaks to our hearts and opens our minds to understand the scriptures. This is the kind of knowledge that God permits and encourages.

Revelation from the scriptures and from the Spirit are gifts from God and minister life to us, just the opposite of what happened in the garden when the wrong kind of knowledge was pursued.

But sometimes God withholds what we might consider to be necessary key information, leaving us feeling alone, confused, and very unsure of ourselves and what to do next. This happened to King Saul near the end of his life. Because of disobedience, his access to hearing God speak to him through the prophets and by other means had been cut off. He came to a huge crisis and did not know where to turn. In his desperation, he resorted to consulting a medium or necromancer, one who brings up the dead for consultation. This was strictly forbidden, but he was so desperate that he was willing to try anything. He asked the witch of Endor to bring Samuel the prophet back from the dead. The result was not pretty. Samuel did indeed come back only to prophesy his impending death in battle.

When we get confused, afraid, and desperate to know what to do next, we should never resort to forbidden or occult forms of knowledge, as did Saul, Adam, and Eve. Such a time is a glorious opportunity for us to demonstrate our faith that God will reveal to us whatever we need to know.

If the Lord is not showing us anything, it is because we do not need to know.

Instead, God wants us to simply trust in him.

The Bible gives us a great example. Large crowds were following Jesus. His popularity was soaring, but knowing the fickleness of people, Jesus deliberately taught them some things that were difficult to comprehend and offensive to those who did not yet grasp his true identity as the Messianic King. When Jesus told the crowd that he is the bread of life and they must “eat” him to have life, the crowd was offended, not understanding the meaning.

Many of his disciples said, “This is very hard to understand. How can anyone accept it?” 61  Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining, so he said to them, “Does this offend you? 62  Then what will you think if you see the Son of Man ascend to heaven again? 63  The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 64  But some of you do not believe me.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning which ones didn’t believe, and he knew who would betray him.) 65  Then he said, “That is why I said that people can’t come to me unless the Father gives them to me.” 66  At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him. 67  Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?” 68  Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. 69  We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.” John 6:60-69 (NLT)

When life is confusing and it seems that God has let us down, that is the time fall back on what we do know.

God is good and trustworthy, and we can trust in him even when nothing else makes sense. We do not have to know everything. We just need to rely on the one who does.

To the uninitiated, living by faith without concrete proof of what is happening or going to happen, can be disconcerting. But when we learn to operate using this kind of faith, it produces a deep sense of joy and peace. God is more trustworthy than what we can see with our eyes or understand with our minds.

For we live by believing and not by seeing. 2 Corinthians 5:7 (NLT)

When we put our faith in him, he gives us a peace that passes understanding.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)

So, when we are confused and unsure what to do next, it is time to find shelter in the “secret place” of God’s presence until he chooses to reveal what is the next thing we need to know. Until then we can choose to be content in knowing him.

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How to Identify and Escape from a Satanic Attack: Part 4 – Murder, Sickness, and Debt

 

 

 

 

 

 

Having the ability to distinguish good from evil in times of great deception is extremely important. Paul warned us that Satan has the ability to masquerade as an angel of light, and his lies can be very alluring. (2 Corinthians 11:3 and 2 Corinthians 11:14) That being said, once our eyes are opened to see the truth, it is quite easy to see the difference between what God provides and what Satan seeks to do to us.

Jesus described the enemy of our souls very succinctly.

For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things 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. John 8:44 (NLT)

In another place he added:

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10 (ESV)

Putting all this together, we can state the following:

  1. Satan is a murderer, liar, thief, and destroyer.
  2. God is a life-giver, a truth speaker, generous, and a builder of what is good.

How do we practically apply these simple truths?

  • Any person or government that seeks the welfare of others is from God, but one that robs people is satanic. (repressive taxation, business suppressing policies)
  • A person or government that protects the sanctity of life and the unborn is from God, but one that encourages the murder of innocent children is from the devil. (abortion, increasing risk of death through forced vaccination, etc.)
  • A government that tells the truth to its people is from God, but one that lies continually is satanic. (censorship of the truth, misinformation, propaganda)
  • A government that ministers justice to its citizens, protects the innocent, and punishes evil doers is from God. One that promotes lawlessness and a two-tiered justice system to protect the rich and powerful but punish opposition is satanic.
  • A government that promotes peace and prosperity if from God, but one that promotes war and plunges its people into debt is from the devil.

Quite simply, life, truth, prosperity and freedom come from God, which sounds a lot like our Declaration of Independence, but death, lies, debt, and slavery come from the evil one.

You must serve only the LORD your God. If you do, I will bless you with food and water, and I will protect you from illness. 26  There will be no miscarriages or infertility in your land, and I will give you long, full lives. Exodus 23:25-26 (NLT)

Health comes from God, but sickness and death come from sin and the devil. Blessings and prosperity come from God, but Satan wishes to curse and impoverish us. Children are a blessing from the Lord, but Satan wants us to be childless; hence, the emphasis on birth control, abortion, and population control. God wants us to be healthy and enjoy life, but Satan wants us sick and miserable; hence, the emphasis on medicines and vaccines that actually make us sicker and reduce childbirth and fertility. God wants us to be debt free, but Satan wants us crushed and impoverished by a mountain of debt; hence, his servants have spent our nation into a hopeless debt situation.

Is there any good news? Absolutely! The Bible tells us that Jesus came to set the captives free! He came to heal the sick, raise the dead, and pay back a hopeless debt!

The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, 19  and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.” Luke 4:18-19 (NLT)

Jesus said that he came that we might have an “abundant” life here on earth and live forever in heaven! He came to reveal to us just how incredible God’s love is. He came to change us on the inside so we can become more and more like God, loving others, telling the truth, and helping others find their freedom in God, too.

How can we experience what Jesus came to give us? It’s really very simple. All we have to do is recognize that we need help and turn to Jesus. God wants us to acknowledge that we are incapable of living without him. He wants us to return to the Author of Life so he can be our all in all – our Creator, Sustainer, Redeemer, and Hope.

If we give Jesus our trust and allegiance, he will give us all that he is. We will discover that he really is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and we will escape from the tyranny of the devil.

For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, 14  who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins. Colossians 1:13-14 (NLT)

Why not make the exchange today? Give to God your sin and hopeless situation and receive all Jesus died to give to you. You might pray this simple prayer from your heart.

Jesus, I am weary of being subject to the devil. I have had enough of his lying, stealing, and murder. Forgive me for being allied to him and for the things I have done, thought, and said that have evidenced my rebellion against you, Lord. I ask you to forgive me for trying to live independently from you, Lord. I give you my life, and I receive your forgiveness. Thank you for giving me eternal life. Come, Holy Spirit, fill me to overflowing. Live your life through me. Empower and equip me to be a proper follower of Christ and his witness to others. Amen.
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Siren’s Song: Life without Responsibility

 

 

 

 

 

In Greek mythology siren’s were female-like creatures who lived on a rocky island. Their beautiful songs were irresistible and lured sailors too close to the island where they would wreck and perish. Homer wrote about them is the Odyssey.

Today we have another sort of siren calling out to our people inviting them to believe the lie that we can live without responsibility. Those who believe this deception will shipwreck their lives.

The United States began her journey as a nation following the hard fought war of independence. Its political leaders hammered out a Constitution and Bill of Rights that depended upon its people being resolute in their will to keep it intact. Our founders knew that it would only last as long as its people feared God and embraced personal responsibility. Once its citizens figured out that they could vote into office those who would use the government treasury for their constituents’ benefit, all would be lost. Once its people abandoned moral integrity, everything would fall apart. That is where we are today.

When God put Adam and Eve in the garden, he gave them two basic responsibilities – to be fruitful and multiply and to work and tend the garden. (Genesis 1:28 and Genesis 2:15) Having children is both pleasurable and painful. It carries with it the built in necessity of hard work to nurture, feed, protect, and train. Following God’s first command increases our responsibilities, but it also multiplies our joy and fulfillment. God’s blessings make us richer without adding any sorrow to our lives. There is no down side to embracing a life of responsibility. (Proverbs 10:22)

Today our government and conventional wisdom tell us that the planet is overpopulated, and we need to refrain from having more children. Does this sound like Satan to you?  He is always trying to negate God’s clear commands. To make this possible, many forms of contraception are available, and, when that is not used or fails, abortion is held out as the ultimate solution. That reminds me of Hitler’s ultimate solution – the gas chambers. Isn’t interesting that Satan’s solutions always involve killing innocent people? The deception is that we can defy Gods command to multiply and enjoy the pleasures of sex without any responsibility. Embracing such outright deception will crash our lives upon the rocks.

There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death. Proverbs 14:12 (NLT)

God meant sex to be enjoyed between a man and a woman who are committed to one another for life. Obviously sex was created to produce children. The associated pleasure is part of the inducement to bring new lives into the world, but the little ones carry with them their own pleasures, as every new parent discovers. Sure, children add to our work load, too, but over the long haul, the pleasures outweigh the negatives, especially if we attain to old age when adult children bring their own little ones into the world. The choice not to have children may provide an escape from the work of rearing them, but in the long run it has quite a bit of sorrow and loss attached to it.

Marriage was also instituted because God said it is not good for us to be alone. (Genesis 2:18) Married sex heightens our mutual love, enjoyment, and satisfaction with our spouses. Today, however, people often choose to “hook up” without any long-term commitment. This provides temporary pleasure but long-term pain. Experiencing old age is difficult enough with our life partner by our side. Alone it can be excruciating.

Violating God’s way of doing things always shipwrecks us. Doing things his way is always best and most satisfying.

Our government, for whatever reason, encourages people to embrace life without responsibility. During the covid lock down, we were given government checks not to work. Many seem to have come to the conclusion that a work free life is a good thing, but it is not. God instituted work in the beginning. A job well done brings us a lot of satisfaction. Laziness destroys. (Proverbs 18:9)

People also try to discard the responsibility of using our God given abilities, but that also is a dead end. God put abilities and potential in each of us that must be developed, if we are to experience life at its fullest. Modern society tells us that we do not even have to accept how God created us. We can even change our genders at will, pretending to be someone and something we are not, which is the height of deception and irresponsibility.

When we try not to be who we really are or try to be something we are not, it shipwrecks our lives.

Our government tells us that we can attend college without having to pay for it. We can break laws without suffering the consequences. We can even illegally enter the country and be rewarded for it. All of this is a deception. Borrowing money without paying it back is theft. Breaking the law invites God’s justice, even if man fails in this regard. Even though many seem to be getting away with murder, so to speak, a day of reckoning is certainly coming.

It is impossible to live irresponsibly without eventually paying the piper.

Perhaps you fell for the siren’s song and now have regrets. Is there anything we can do? The answer is “yes!” God provided a way for us to recover from shipwreck, but it requires us to adopt a whole new way of thinking.

When Jason piloted his ship called the Argo, he brought along a musician named Orpheus. When the ship got in range of the sirens, Orpheus sang loud enough to drown out their song.

God wants us to embrace the truth of the Bible to offset the lure of deception this world offers.

Once we surrender our lives to the Lord Jesus, we must let God’s Word transform how we think. This is our only safety.

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:2 (NLT)

Once we escape the deception of the world system, we should try to help others do the same. Sharing what Jesus did to set us free, the gospel, is the first thing. Next we should teach others to follow God’s ways, which lead to life, instead of the way of the world, which leads to sorrow and death. Politically we should vote for those whose positions most closely mirror God’s ways and against those who spread deception and rebellion against God. That is our responsibility.

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The Origin and Collapse of Freedom

Any student of history understands that the United States of America was birthed by the idea that governments should promote liberty and justice for all, rather than for the elites only. It bubbled up in the turmoil produced by oppressive taxation and unjust laws coming from a long established and powerful monarchy in Great Britain that was accustomed to forcing its will on its subjects. The idea of having personal liberty to worship according to one’s own conscience, the right to own property, and no taxation without proper representative government, inspired men and women to risk all, even their lives, in the quest to obtain it via a revolution. I have been inspired personally by reading of the heroism, perseverance, and faith of those men and women. One cannot help but conclude that they won only because of divine intervention.

The question before us is this: is personal freedom an idea birthed by the mind of man via the Enlightenment, or did it come from God?

When God created Adam and placed him in the garden, he gave him tremendous freedom. The only restriction put upon Adam and, by extension, Eve was to avoid eating from one tree, the one that would give him the knowledge of good and evil. The reason God prohibited that one is because it would kill him. In other words, God only forbade that which would destroy Adam. He was free to eat and enjoy everything else.

This is an eternal principle: God’s heart is to give us freedom in all things except that which will harm us.

Satan afterward planted the idea in Eve’s mind that God only banned the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in order to withhold something good from her.

This is a satanic principle: the devil tells us that the thing that will destroy us really is something wonderful that God is keeping from us, sowing in us a desire for it. He also tricks us into believing that God cannot be trusted.

The serpent began his questioning by misrepresenting God altogether.

The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” Genesis 3:1 (NLT)

This deliberate falsification of God’s position was the first recorded instance of the use of misinformation or propaganda to deceive. Jesus called Satan the “father of lies” in whom there is no truth. (John 8:44) Adam and Eve were newly created beings who did not have any inherent bias toward believing lies with which we were born. Nevertheless, the serpent’s lie proved to be irresistible to Eve. Satan also accused God of deliberately withholding something wonderful from Adam and Eve, the ability to be like God by knowing good and evil for themselves.

“You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. 5  “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” 6  The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. Genesis 3:4-6 (NLT)

Why is being like God so alluring to us?

God created us to be dependent beings who can enjoy God and his creation with unbridled joy as long as we are satisfied with remaining in the condition he made us.

The only thing that could destroy all that was the attempt to be something more, to be like God himself. That is what brought Satan down, and he used the same lie to destroy God’s most wonderful creation called humanity, plunging all of us into slavery to sin, death, disease, demons, and all sorts of destructive behaviors and addictions. Adam and Eve exchanged the life and freedom God graciously gave to them in a foolish pursuit of godhood status.

The lesson we learn from this is that freedom comes from God. Oppression and slavery come from the devil. Anything that promotes true freedom originates in God. Everything that enslaves emanates from the evil one. No matter how falsely it may be represented to us, the fruit will be sorrow, regret, loss, and death.

When Jesus announced his mission at the beginning of his three-year public ministry, he made it clear that his goal was to liberate humanity.

The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, Luke 4:18 (NLT)

Jesus went about setting people free from sin, sickness, demonic oppression, and even death.

And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. Acts 10:38 (NLT)

The Law, which previously had been put in place by God to reveal our need for a Savior, did its work by making it clear that no one could keep it. Anyone who seriously tries to keep God’s commands eventually concludes that doing so is impossible.

Before the way of faith in Christ was available to us, we were placed under guard by the law. We were kept in protective custody, so to speak, until the way of faith was revealed. Galatians 3:23 (NLT)

Nevertheless, the Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day used to Law to bolster their position of power and prestige and keep those under them in bondage. When Jesus arrived on the scene, it became immediately clear that he posed a threat to the power of the Jewish leaders, which incited them to hatred and murder. Little did they know that God was using everything to break the bands of oppression off all those who eventually would put their faith and allegiance in the crucified and risen Lord.

After his ascension into heaven, Jesus poured out the Holy Spirit upon his followers, enabling them to carry out the mission to take the wonderful news of freedom from sin, death, demons, sickness, and bondage to the ends of the earth. Paul understood that the core of the gospel message is that Christ gave his life to bring us back into proper alignment with the Creator, the source of freedom and life.

For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17 (NLT)

The gospel truly proclaimed and understood will always produce freedom in its hearers. Those who pervert the gospel always do so to bring us into bondage.

Even that question came up only because of some so-called Christians there—false ones, really—who were secretly brought in. They sneaked in to spy on us and take away the freedom we have in Christ Jesus. They wanted to enslave us and force us to follow their Jewish regulations. Galatians 2:4 (NLT)

Therefore, we are to resist any corruption of the gospel that promotes legalism and slavery. Satan has not stopped trying to pervert what is precious to God and us. He has not ceased telling lies. If he can corrupt our understanding of the most freeing message in the universe, he can bring us back into bondage.

Legalism is the attempt to be like God by thinking we are capable of earning our own way into God’s favor and blessing through our own efforts and establishing our own righteousness apart from God’s.

The gospel makes it clear that no one can do that. The way to freedom requires us to admit we are thoroughly dependent upon the graciousness of God, who freely gives us our right standing with him.

The issue at the heart of being free is whether or not we are willing to embrace our status as dependent beings who joyfully serve our Creator-Sustainer-Redeemer God. Freedom immediately collapses when we reject that status and pursue independence from him

The men and women who founded the United States would be astonished that we have allowed the government won through the spilling of their blood to become even more tyrannical than the British monarchy of the 18th century. How did this happen? I believe we got here by an incremental rejection of God’s rule in our individual lives and nationally. Every good thing is eventually corrupted, unless we steadfastly hold on to God and biblical truth. The idea of freedom to live according to God’s precepts was gradually turned into freedom to do whatever we might choose.

The paradox of liberty is that true freedom can only be experienced when we live as dependent beings in the pursuit of God’s glory. Anything else leads to bondage because it elevates self-will to godhood status.

Today our nation’s pledge of allegiance still affirms that we are one nation “under God,” and our money still declares, “In God We Trust;” but our leaders have enacted laws and policies that are thoroughly against God and contrary to his revealed will in the Bible.

The purpose of government, according the Bible, is to ensure justice and to promote the well-being of those who are governed.

For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. 4  The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. Romans 13:3-4 (NLT)

Any government which perverts justice and works against the well-being of its citizens has moved outside of its God-given mandate. In a very real sense, it is illegitimate because it falsely represents God.

The laws and policies put into place in response to Covid revealed just how far we have fallen from the constitutional republic bequeathed to us. The government, against all sound reason and true science, mandated that its citizens take an experimental “vaccine,” which harmful side effects are still being discovered. Citizens were denied access to worship, public transportation, medical care, and employment depending on whether or not they would bow the knee to a government mandate. This is the height of tyranny and anti-God. Our soldiers and many in law enforcement and the medical profession were forced to take this experimental jab or be ejected from serving their country. This is oppression pure and simple. The government is never supposed to coerce its citizens to violate their consciences. Such a government has transgressed God’s purpose for it and attempted to “be like God.” It has become “beastly” in its pursuit of the power and the authority that belongs only to God. (Revelation 13:1)

The question then arises: what is our responsibility in the matter? When Benjamin Franklin was asked what kind of government our founding fathers set up, he famously replied, “a republic, if you can keep it.” History will eventually record if we were successful. If we are to preserve political liberty, we must first do everything to maintain spiritual liberty. Loving God, embracing truth, and serving God with a good conscience are essential. We must also pray. Ultimately, the battle is the Lord’s. He is greater than all human governments, and he promised in the Bible that his glory will fill the earth. (Habakkuk 2:14) If we pray for God’s will to be done and his glory enhanced, we will always be centered in his will. 

Next, we must be practical. As good citizens of the United States, we must do everything possible to reform our government and elect representatives who will govern with the fear of the Lord. At the very least, we should stay informed and use the right to vote in the upcoming election. Those who are inspired to become more involved politically need our support.

But none of this will mean very much unless we first become servants of the Lord Jesus.

We cannot do much for freedom until we come into alignment with the source of freedom.

Having done all, we must stand in our confidence that God ultimately is in control.

“Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” Psalm 46:10 (NLT)
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Part 29 – What to Expect during a PPM Session

This is the 29th article in a series entitled Wonderful Counseling. You can access the rest of the articles by clicking here.

 

Many people are apprehensive prior to their first Personal Prayer Ministry session because they do not know what to expect. It is natural to fear the unknown, but thankfully we can trust Jesus to be kind, gracious, and patient with us. He is the safest person in the universe. Anyone who would voluntarily die for us is certainly not going to treat us poorly.

PPM likely is going to be different from any other kind of counseling or ministry you have ever received. The goal of PPM is to deliberately make room for Jesus to be the Wonderful Counselor (Isaiah 9:6).

In order to accomplish this, we emphasize the following principles.

  • Relax. No one is under any pressure to “perform.” If nothing comes out of these sessions except that we spend time in prayer and listening to the Lord, it will be time well spent. However, it has been my experience that Jesus is far more interested and committed to our being set free than we are.
  • Turn off your analytical brain and listen. Many people have trained themselves to analyze everything. This goes back to the Garden of Eden and Adam’s first sin. We try to figure out the reasons for our bondage and how we can get free. While there is certainly a time and place for that, it is not during the listening portion of PPM. As we “wait upon the Lord,” we want to hear what Jesus has to say to us. His words and insights will set us free, not our analysis.
  • Don’t filter anything. This one is difficult for analysts. As we wait on the Lord, he often brings to mind memories of past events. It is important that we not filter out anything, thinking it is irrelevant. We don’t yet know what is relevant. You will be asked to share everything that comes to mind – the good, bad, ugly, silly, and the seemingly irreverent or irrelevant. The PPM minister will help decide what is or is not from the Lord and the meaning. This is important. The part you may be tempted to ignore could be critical. If you think something is not from the Lord, share it anyway. Your minister will help judge such things and determine what to do with it. Before ministry, we always pray that the only voice we will hear is from the Lord. We trust him to oversee the entire process.
  • Be open to the Lord communicating in various ways. We never know how Jesus may communicate with us. First of all, it is perfectly okay to get nothing at all. However, when all obstacles have been removed, it is usual for the Lord to speak often and clearly. He communicates through memories, visions, Bible verses, thoughts, impressions, feelings, and bodily sensations. Do not discount anything. Feelings of confusion must be felt, likewise pain, fear, etc. You will be expected to be an open book to share everything you are receiving. Remember, we are holistic beings, not mere intellects.

Opening Prayer

I begin every PPM session with prayer, covering the following points.

  • Acknowledge that Jesus is the Wonderful Counselor. We turn over the entire process to him. We ask him to direct every facet of the ministry.
  • Ask the Holy Spirit to fill us afresh and be Christ’s administrator of the session. We pray that he will inspire us and enable us in every area.
  • We proclaim Christ’s victory and authority over every form of bondage. We declare his authority over every demon, bondage, lie, generational issue, and sickness. We command any evil spirit that may be somehow involved to be bound and silent, unless directed by Jesus to manifest in some way that will contribute to the deliverance. We command every voice but that of the Lord to be still.
  • We “clothe” ourselves with Christ’s authority and righteousness, recognizing that we have none of our own. Our competency and authority to minister come from Christ.
  • We invoke Father God’s presence and love to permeate everything.
  • We thank Jesus what we can safely trust him to direct and protect every aspect of the ministry. We can be as little children in our confidence that nothing weird or harmful will take place as we depend on his guidance and oversight. We will only hear the Shepherd’s voice.

Jesus Directed

Deciding where to begin is important. The application form will likely give us clues, but we will pray asking Jesus to show us where he wants to start. This will be a continuing practice throughout the ministry times. We will always be going back to Jesus in prayer making sure we are on the same track as he. Sometimes we may need to back up and go in a different direction. This normal and to be expected. We are seeking to follow him, not direct the show.

Many Faceted

Bondage usually has many tentacles, and we want to make sure we leave no stone unturned. During the course of ministry, we will be covering bitterness issues, generational devastation, traumatic inner pain, embedded lies, and demonization, not necessarily in any specific order. We want the Spirit to lead us, but we will do our best to cover everything.

Session Duration

Sessions usually go for around two hours or until it seems like a good time to stop. The number of sessions depends on the person, but you can expect at least three or four, but perhaps more.  I have seen things go quickly, but sometimes there is a lot of work to do. We usually know when we have done all we can do. Remember: no one gets completely set free prior to the resurrection. We will

Between Sessions

In the gap between PPM sessions, the Holy Spirit does not stop his ministry. You will be asked to keep a journal of your interactions and conversations with the Lord and bring it to the next session. One of the great benefits of receiving PPM is developing your ability to hear the Lord for yourself. One goal of PPM is to help you learn to receive directly from Jesus without needing someone else to help you; although, from time to time we probably can all benefit from getting some outside help.

Conclusion

I hope this series of articles has helped you better understand PPM. If after reading it, you wish to receive ministry, please contact me, and we can discuss it. I am also open to helping train others to do this ministry.

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Part 28 – The Purpose of the Application Form

This is the 28th article in a series entitled Wonderful Counseling. You can access the rest of the articles by clicking here.

 

The application form I use asks a number of questions that provide an array of potential areas and sources of bondage. Rather than discover things piecemeal during ministry sessions, I have found it is better to have a snapshot of your life up front. We will still need to rely on the Holy Spirit regarding how to use this information and how to proceed during our sessions.

After signing the previously mentioned waivers and reading the introductory information about commitment, etc., you will be asked to provide background information about yourself. This includes your family, educational, medical, marital, and spiritual background information, any of which may give insights into your current situation. Next, you will be asked to check off any of eighteen different possible areas of struggle that led you to seek ministry. The next sections ask you to identify any parental history that might be connected to your situation. Following that you will be asked to check off any areas of dysfunction that you can identify in your family. This may not sound like much fun, but it is interesting and enlightening. Following that, you will be asked three questions which will require more in depth answers, before moving on to fill in your family tree, as much as you know, going back to your great grandparents.

The next section may take you a while. It is an extensive list of potential bondage areas. You will be asked to circle any that apply to your family and indicate whether it refers to you personally or to some family member. All I need is the relationship, such as uncle on mother’s side, not a name. The purpose of this section is to help identify areas of generational devastation. Following that, there is a brief list of questions regarding your birth. Lastly, you will be asked to check off any of the listed personal belief statements that seem to fit. To properly complete this section, please rely on your heart level response, not a theological answer. Many times we believe lies at the heart level that we know intellectually to be false. This section will help me to identify deeply embedded lies that we may need to address.

In all there are twelve pages to this application form. This will be part of your upfront commitment to the process. If I am willing to commit to spending hours of my time working with you, it is reasonable for me to ask you to invest your time in preparation. When you complete the form, please email me either the MS Word or PDF version prior to our first session. You will need to obtain the form from me.

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Why Everyone Needs to Be Disillusioned

Disillusionment is sometimes associated with betrayal. At other times it is connected with naivete. Whatever the immediate reason for our disillusionment, somewhere we had expectations that were dashed.

Humorous (for us, but painful for them) examples of disillusionment can be seen on old episodes of auditions for the TV show, American Idol. (Note the title, which itself is an illusion.) Every season people who thought they were great singers were unceremoniously told that they could not sing by the judges. Someone had led these contestants to believe that they had great voices, and they believed it. They suffered under the illusion that they were wonderful, when they were actually awful. The judges disillusioned them. They were forced to face the truth about their singing ability. Many of them became angry and lashed out at the judges, declaring they did not know what they were doing. It was funny in one way, but tragic in another. In the last analysis, it was very necessary. Now they could get on with their lives rather than waste their time in the pursuit of a fantasy.

Most of us serve illusions of one sort or another, about ourselves, others, marriage, work, God…  While counseling young couples who are preparing for marriage, I usually tell them that the man hopes his wife to be will never change, but the woman hopes to change her man. They both likely will be disappointed, or disillusioned. We try to put our best foot forward during the dating or courting process. After we tie the knot, we tend to relax into our “normal” way of doing things, which may be a surprise to the spouse. Sometimes young couples go into a marriage expecting that their spouses will be responsible for certain things, as they saw modeled in the home in which they grew up. I often ask the couple during counseling, “Who will clean the bathroom?” “Who will handle the finances?” “Who will wash the dishes?” “Who will do the cooking?” Where will you spend Christmas? Thanksgiving? Do you want children? How many? You get the point. These are things to talk about ahead of marriage to avoid unwelcome surprises.

We all tend to be deceptive and become deceived. Women wear make up to create an illusion of beauty that is not naturally there. We all tend to “put our best foot forward” in order to help (deceive?) people to like or accept us. But if we get people to like the illusion we project, do they really like us? We are afraid they will not like the real us, so we become hypocrites of the best (worst?) sort. I have always said that true friends know what we are really like, but love us anyway. What a relief to let go of pretenses! It is delightful to meet and relate to truly honest people, even if it makes us a little uncomfortable.

Many, if not all, of us, have illusions about God. It is popular today to imagine that God is all love – that he would never condemn anyone to hell. But that is not the God of the Bible, is it? When God revealed himself to Moses, he told him that his name is “I Am Who I Am.” Not “I Am Who You Want Me to Be.” This is very important, because, if we serve our illusion of God but not the real God, are we not idolators? Jesus is the Truth, not an illusion created by us to match what we want God to be. A big part of life, especially for the disciple, is coming to terms with who God really is and surrendering completely to him.

Many disciples have illusions about ministry, too. We receive a “call” from God to serve him, but we often imagine what that will look like based on what we have seen others do. We may end up pursuing God’s real call on our lives or our imagination of what that should be. As you have already guessed, if we pursue an illusion, eventually we will become disillusioned.

I remember when we first launched what was then called Liberty Church here in Burlington, NC, I had my five and ten year plans. I had been taught to treat the church somewhat like a business in that regard. (We did not start that way, but over time as the home church in Greensboro grew, we resorted to worldly ideas. That was serving an illusion for sure because the church is not a business.) I had the illusion that we would quickly grow to the 400 number and would need a building to accommodate that crowd. Thirty-four years later I now realize that in reality I have grace to be a small church pastor because that is what I have always been.

Whatever grace is upon our lives will produce fruit in keeping with that grace, not in keeping with some illusion we have.

I am much happier now just being who God created and gifted me to be, instead of reaching for an illusion that was always just beyond my grasp.

Illusions can work just the opposite, too. Some people labor under the illusion of inability and incompetence instead of believing that God can and will use them to do his work. Moses was just such a man. Early in life, Moses felt called or sensed the inner desire to help the Israelites. He tried doing it in his own way, but was quickly thwarted and disillusioned. He fled to the desert where he spent decades tending sheep for this father-in-law on the back side of the desert. Then one day God appeared to him and commissioned him to go back to Egypt and liberate a nation. Moses came up with excuse after excuse. He had been so disillusioned in himself that he had lost faith in God.

We are never to allow our disillusionment to spill over into unbelief.

God wants disillusionment to spur us on to pursue him and the truth. We want to move from self-confidence to God confidence.

Illusions are a type of lie that the Bible calls a “stronghold.”

For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. 4  For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5  We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (ESV)

Beginning with Adam and Eve, mankind has shown a propensity for believing lies. Satan knows this and is a master deceiver. Jesus identified him as the “father of lies.”

In general, people accept lies more easily then they do the truth.

One salacious slander is usually more easily believed than a hundred truthful protestations of innocence. Knowing this, politicians use smear campaigns to “dirty up” their opponents.  People remember the dirt, even if it is later refuted. Sadly, once people make up their minds, it can be very difficult or impossible to change them. Delaware Senator Joe Biden and company pulled this ugly trick on Clarence Thomas during his Supreme Court nomination. Everyone should read Judge Thomas’ biography to see what this man had to overcome on the road to greatness.

To be blunt, illusions are lies. If we believe a lie, we need to be disillusioned.

Disillusionment takes place when it becomes evident to us that the lie we once believed is not true.

This can be very traumatic. Some people never recover; while others are able to learn from their mistakes and move forward. Can you imagine how difficult and it would be for a college professor who built his or her entire career on promoting Darwinism and evolution to come to terms with the truth of intelligent design and specific creation?

There are perils and benefits to being disillusioned. Jesus’ disciples, like us, needed to be disillusioned in certain areas. They had false ideas about Jesus’ mission and their roles in God’s kingdom. Despite the fact that Jesus repeatedly warned them that he would be crucified and rise again, his disciples were not able or willing to process that reality and expected him to lead a glorious revolution against Roman oppression. When the truth finally dawned on them, it was very painful. In their pain and confusion, all of them except John deserted the Lord at least temporarily.

When we are afraid to confront truth, it makes it probable that we will adopt a convenient illusion.

The Benefits of Peter’s Disillusionment

Just before his passion, Jesus told his followers that they would be scattered when he embraced his assigned destiny to die as God’s Lamb.

Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 32  But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 33  Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” 34  Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” 35  Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. Matthew 26:31-35 (ESV)

Peter believed a lie about Jesus’ destiny, and he held on to false beliefs about himself, too. He imagined that he was much stronger and more faithful to Jesus than he actually was. His confidence was based on trust in his own strength and convictions. He was proud and due for a fall, and he was not alone. The other disciples said the same thing, but Jesus chose Peter to be an example to us all.

When Jesus was first taken captive in the Garden of Gethsemane, Peter sprang into action, just as he promised Jesus that he would. He took his sword and attacked those who came to arrest Jesus, cutting off the ear of the servant of the high priest. Jesus commanded him to put away his sword and healed the wounded man. (Matthew 26:52-56)

It was one thing to die defending Jesus, but quite another to find out that Jesus had no intention of resisting those who came to kill him. Peter was ready to die fighting, but apparently not prepared to die without a fight, as Jesus did. Peter was disillusioned: he learned that following Jesus was not what he thought. His confusion led to his denying the Lord three times.

Why did Jesus call Peter out on this earlier, when he prophesied that before the rooster crowed he would deny him three times? I believe it was to help Peter hang on by faith after the denial. Knowing that Jesus knew in advance about his coming failure must have given Peter hope. Jesus did not reject Peter for his faithlessness under fire. Luke’s account of the incident adds some important details.

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, 32  but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” 33  Peter said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.” 34  Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.” Luke 22:31-34 (ESV)

Knowing that God selected us to belong to him, despite knowing all about our sins and weaknesses in advance, should give us all great hope, just as it did Peter.

Peter needed to be disillusioned. He needed to find out that he was not everything he thought he was. He needed to discover that God loved him despite his sins and weaknesses. Disillusionment brought humility.

I feel sure that Peter was never the same afterward. His faith in himself was less, but his faith in the grace and mercy of God was far greater.

The Peril of Judas’ Disillusionment

Judas was another disciple who became disillusioned, but he did not benefit from it. His idea of who Jesus was (and is) and what it meant to be his follower was overthrown. He gradually realized that Jesus was not on a trajectory to acquire wealth, power, and fame (of which he would be sure to share). Rather, he apparently became offended at Jesus’ disregard for money, when Mary anointed him with expensive oil prior to his death. It was just after that pivotal event that Judas agreed to betray Jesus for a fee. The sad part is that Judas never found room for repentance. His disillusionment led to his destruction.

What we do when we are confronted with the truth makes all the difference.

Principles for Handling Disillusionment

Following these principles can help us to profit during the times when we become disillusioned. Otherwise, we may become permanently embittered and disabled by disillusionment.

  • Decide to follow Jesus, no matter what. Following Christ means we surrender ourselves to his Lordship. This means we give up control over our lives, choices, and destinies. If we live a surrendered life, it will help us to hang on faithfully to Jesus, even should things get painful and confusing to us. Disillusionment will not rock the world of a surrendered person. We know we are serving a person who ultimately controls everything and is working all things for our good and his glory. (Romans 8:28)
  • Become well acquainted with the Bible. Disillusionment becomes necessary when we believe a lie. We can insulate ourselves from deception by embracing the truth of God’s Word. If we value truth above all else, we will be thankful when God delivers us from believing a lie.
  • Develop the habit of being thankful. Thankfulness reveals a heart that is humble and surrendered. The Bible teaches us that thankfulness glorifies God. (Ephesians 5:20) God works in and through disillusionment for our benefit, if we keep our eyes on the Lord. Thank God for any area in which you are struggling. You will experience a new measure of God’s grace when you do.
  • Expect to encounter suffering and tribulation in life. One of the greatest illusions many Christians face is that following Christ should be trouble free. Quite the contrary, God uses suffering and pressure to make us more like Jesus. Those who are ready for such things will find it much easier when suffering arrives on the scene. (1 Thessalonians 3:3)

Prayer

Jesus, you are the Truth. Thank you that you are leading me into more and more truth. Please deliver me from any area in my life in which I believe a lie. Help me to pass through every period of disillusionment and come out on the other side a stronger and more devoted follower. Help my faith not to fail, Lord. I give you thanks for how you are working all things together for good in my life. May I bring glory to your name. Amen

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