A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR OUR LIFE
PART 33
THE “GOOD OLE BOY” MASQUERADE

We do not need to go very far to hear a person telling someone else to go to hell, or a story being told at a funeral about some good ole boy, but within the theological doctrines and philosophical worldviews, there is nothing wrong with being honest about heaven and hell and who is going where. You would not think that people who have the Bible at their fingertips and libraries of study helps would be clueless about who is saved and who is lost – but sadly that is the case. All of this is in addition to the indwelling Holy Spirit which is ready to help teach us and interpret the Holy Scriptures for us, still many people will respond to this subject by saying that no one knows another person’s heart and that we should just believe the best in everyone. This would be fine if we wanted to live in “whoville” but when we are trying to teach our children God’s absolute truth, we need to have real answers to real questions! I believe one reason that people start feeling uncomfortable about eternity is because they are not sure about their own. The way people act about their spirituality is definitely strange especially those who declare to be Christians but do not really want to act like one. As we will discover, this is not war-games where we pretend to be in a battle or a heavenly “try-out” to see who makes the team, this is spiritual reality and everything that is done or not done – is what defines who we are!

I have worked with men all my life and noticed how they act and how they respond in different situations. I am sure the attitudes are all the same with men and women as I have seen the weak being bullied and the quiet timid ones that usually end up being the followers that submit to the aggressive ones. The leaders are usually boisterous and arrogant and swelled with pride and self-confidence. This is probably due to an overactive hormone release of testosterone or maybe a strong will and charismatic personality, but whatever the case, it is interesting to listen and watch how people react to the gospel. It seems that deep within the fabric of our mentality there has always been a hesitancy to be proud and bold about God and His Word. Many that were raised in Christian homes felt the security and peace to be themselves and enjoy the contentment of family unity and love but when people leave this environment and begin to express their own identity, the Word of the Lord all the sudden is not so “cool” or comfortable. Most young men try to be tough and fearless because it seems to generate respect from both sexes but what puzzles me is how and why older men hang on to this ideology or philosophy that measures the worthiness of a man according to his strength and intimidation factors. I have seen older men, (professing Christians with families) instructing in a classroom of younger men, be perverted, childish and curse – then literally make fun of the faith with laughing and half-hearted apologies to the clergy who are present. Now brother, these are just good ole boys having fun – they do not mean any harm. Yes, I know and here we go again with trying to paint a horse to look like a zebra. We must stop playing games with God and those around us and become mature enough to understand what being a Christian is! Being a follower of Christ is not going to church on Easter and then acting like the devil all the rest of the time. I have heard many stories where people in the workplace act like heathens then are discovered to be an active member of their church. We must realize this is why the general church environment is polluted and stagnant. These “split personality” Christians are hindering the move of God because of their carnal impurity and intentional rebellion. Allow me to say that it is NOT “cool” or “cute” to be a smart-aleck rebel against God! Showing off and making fun of what is holy is very immature and deserves a trip to the woodshed. May I add that if someone is truly a Christian and has made the choice to live in the “middle of the road” the Lord is not lenient about bringing discipline. If a person can live this type of lifestyle and feel no remorse or conviction from the Holy Spirit then it is clear that the outside behavior does not match the claims of an internal transformation! Please listen to these words carefully; if no one around us would consider us a Christian – then maybe we’re not one!

Just out of curiosity, if we could ask everyone who they think is going to hell, would you not say that most people would confidently reply that all sinners end up in hell? Well, that might sound like a good answer but we may need to stop here and do a little more research about it. The old time preachers would say there are two kinds of sinners – lost sinners and saved sinners. This pretty well sums up the entire human race, and I agree this is a correct statement. Though many are saying that no one should judge another person especially where they will go after death, (and I partially agree with this position), I still believe that we should NOT walk around in confusion as to what God expects of His people or how to be aware of the lies and confusion of the devil. You see, Satan wants everyone to believe that we are all good and that it does not matter what people do or say or how they act. Now, I would like to discuss this situation with of course asking God to first help us all to see HIS interpretation about the saved and the lost.

A lost person is someone that has NOT received Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. They were born with a default spirit that needs to be redeemed and transformed by the power in the blood of Christ. These lost souls are commonly called sinners not out of disrespect or ridicule but simply because they have not been forgiven or delivered from sin. Faith comes by hearing God’s Word and when the heart is convicted this means the conscience realizes that we are heading in the wrong direction and that we need God’s love to be cleansed and saved.

A saved person has accepted the free gift of salvation which forgives their sins and changes their identity into a righteous state of being. A saved person accepts Christ as Lord into their heart to be the center of their love. As the saved person meditates on God’s Word, they are transformed into His image from the inside-out. However, being saved does not necessarily mean that a child of God will not continue to stumble and commit trespasses. Being made righteous means when God looks at our sin, He sees the covenant that Jesus established between God and man and this last will and testament backs the promises of redemption, justification and a continual forgiveness. Being born-again is being re-created as a new person that becomes convicted when they do wrong and exercises repentance while being determined to have their mind renewed and their old nature completely overhauled. Even though the newly saved person still sins, they have God now dwelling within their conscience and as promised by Christ, the Holy Spirit will guide and lead them into God’s perfect will if they choose to follow His voice.

So, we can establish the basics of the sheep and goats as; the lost have not accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior which is the cause of them going to hell and the ones that have received Jesus and are born-again are “saved” by His grace and will go to heaven. Nonetheless, the concept of eternal destination is not what many people think it is because it matters not what a lost person does to try and “EARN” their way into God’s favor. The Lord has one way of fulfilling His great plan of salvation and mankind must follow His divine reality. We must remember that being bad does NOT send anyone to hell – it is not receiving Christ in our heart. Selah. The same is true with being good does not send someone to heaven; again it is whether or not Jesus is our Master. I know this sounds simple but actually it is one of the most confusing subjects of spirituality. Those who are LOST and trying to be good on their own may go throughout their entire life in a fog of deception and never understand that their world-view is wrong. We are not on a “point system” where God gives everyone credit for what they have done and will add it all together in the end for a grade. Some people actually think that if the good outweighs the bad that the Father will give them an admission ticket to paradise. It is amazing to notice that at most funerals it is usually presumed the person went to heaven and stories are told about how they would give the shirt off their back to anyone that needed it or other worthy deeds and attitudes of generosity. This may present the deceased as a giving person but it actually has no accuracy in confirming if they are saved. There are many “crafty” individuals that give charitable donations only for the prideful reason to look good in the eyes of others and it is actually common to see the lost having emotional compassion and helping others in need. We do not think about this subject or talk about it that much, but let us take a moment to recap. Number one: Hell is a place without God’s presence. Number two: God does not send anyone to hell. Number three: People do not go to hell because of what they do or do not do. And number four: People go to hell because they have NOT accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord.

If we are truly SAVED we have the presence of Jesus within us that will guide and help us in our everyday affairs. Our salvation is not based on works because our deeds could never reserve a chair for us at the table but rather our place has been guaranteed by the blood of Jesus and His covenant with us. No one is “good” and all were lost since Adam and Eve fell – BUT, Christ paid the RANSOM for the sheep and delivered the “whosoever’s” from darkness into His marvelous light. Praise God! The remnant saints will NOT be ashamed to stand for God and His Word and will NOT be intimidated when the devil tries to run them off! It is time that Christians walk boldly in the power of God’s anointing and accomplish their calling. If we ask for more faith and courage He will give it to us and we will NOT fear what man can do to us! Amen!

As we study God’s Word, pray and walk in obedience to His voice the new Christian will develop and mature into a reflection of God’s image. Even though we do not work to go to heaven, we work because we love to obey God! Selah. We do not live holy in order to earn His favor, we live pure because we love Him and want to be as close to Him as possible! When the refiner is purifying gold he knows the dross has been burned out when he can “see” his reflection in the gold and likewise we are to reflect His image in our life. We realize that we will not walk perfect all the time and are faced with trying to explain how God’s children (which are supposedly “saved” from hell) yet still sin on a regular basis? First we must clarify that we all stumble and make mistakes but this is not the same as living a deliberate intentional life of evil thoughts and deeds. “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall NOT inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate (womanish), nor abusers of themselves with mankind. Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the Kingdom of God.” (I Corinthians 6: 9-10) It is important to notice that the passage continues with the reminder that many people that are saved now have done these things in the “past” and even more hideous acts and deeds BUT these sins were NOT keeping them from heaven! These deeds were the result of a person NOT being born-again! We must also remember that The Lord forgives sin when there is genuine repentance but there are still consequences for our actions and those who have been forgiven may still suffer from the damages that cannot be changed. Salvation is all about God’s mercy rescuing us from destruction and is given as an expression of His love as we continue in verse 11, “And such were some of you: BUT you are WASHED, but you are SANCTIFIED, but you are JUSTIFIED in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” We also find another passage of warning found in Revelation chapter 21 and verse 8, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, murderers, whoremongers, sorcerers, idolaters and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone which is the second death.” When we give our heart completely to God and are redeemed by His great sacrifice, we make a 180 turn completely in the opposite direction and do not look back! We are NOT finished or defeated because of our past. We are not to return to these sins after He washes us clean in the blood of Jesus. He is the God of many chances and is filled with pardons and liberty that can free us from the oppressive haunting and nightmares of our old life. This is the power of starting all over, a CHANGE that only Jesus Christ can bring as He receives all the glory from every transformed life.

Those who are God’s children do not want to sin in their new spiritual relationship with Christ and recognize sin as hurting and offending Him. They learn over time that His presence is the most important blessing in life and when they are dirty, there is no holy intimacy in the secret place. If those who are saved continue in their carnality He will step in and correct them as the Bible clearly teaches (which is another wonderful confirmation that we are His). “And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks unto you as unto children, my SON despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of Him. For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every SON whom He receives. If you endure chastening (discipline), God deals with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chastens not?” (Hebrews 12: 5-7) In this light, it is obvious as to what is happening in an individual’s spiritual life. If someone says they are a Christian and have no evidence or demonstration, then either they are being disciplined by THE Master or being deceived by the father of all lies!

To bring a balance to our conversation, it would only make sense to admit that everyone wants to go to heaven – but very few desire to go about it the right way. People are always looking for something free because they do not want to pay for it. It is also common to not care as much about things where we do not have a personal attachment or that have not cost us dearly. For example if we were to give $20,000.00 for a bar of solid gold, we would definitely be sure to put it in a place of safety and be very careful with it. Why? Because we worked very hard for it and it is of great value to us. When we choose to abandon our will, this becomes the highest cost and sacrifice of our life; in fact it is our highest carnal treasure. If we stop and ponder this truth, we can agree how this can be measured as to how serious we are with God. In other words, if we have put very little “investment” into following Jesus, our spiritual life will have little value to us. Selah. On the other hand, those who have loved God with all of their heart, mind and strength are focused on His face because they have given everything. The ones in this life that have enjoyed this world’s pleasures but have ignored the Lord will have nothing in the end but the ones who have surrendered their will for God will be blessed with an eternal inheritance. “So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called but few are chosen. “And every one that has forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for my names sake, shall receive a hundred fold, and shall inherit ETERNAL LIFE. But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.” (Mathew 19:29-30)

I receive magazines that talk about the integration of spiritual ministry into the world of health care and I realize that there are many different faiths and spiritual views among those who have serious illnesses. I also understand that the “system” forces professional clergy to work within strict guidelines when it comes to respecting whatever or whoever someone considers their “higher power”. However, the point of writing a letter such as this is to NOT follow the religious/political agenda that only attempts to make people “feel” better within their emotions. The mission of God’s saints is to TELL THE TRUTH of the gospel so that people are not comforted with a generic peace as they pass away into eternal darkness. There are way too many intellectuals that are highly trained in the psychological and socially acceptable “ministry” of trying to calm people’s fears but they do NOT have a clue about the reverential fear of the Lord and His demand to obey His voice. This is another example of those who dedicate their life to trying to help people but actually will have much blood on their hands in the day of judgment. Our duty has never been to just make people “feel happy” about themselves or try to get them to see how good they have been. Our calling is to tell them that Jesus Christ is the only power that can save a soul – His Word is the only message that is true – and His salvation is the only way to heaven. I do not care how offensive, non-tolerant or rude that seems to the world, it is necessary to offend in order to convict! Smoothing the truth like spreading frosting on a cake just so that people will not become angry is actually loving our reputation more than their soul! Selah. The Lord has never been afraid to tell the truth and neither should we. “Herein is our love made perfect, that we might have boldness in the day of judgment: because as He is, so are we in this world.” (I John 4:17) All Glory, Power, Honor and Praise to His name forever! Amen.

A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR OUR LIFE
PART 32
THE REALITY OF SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY

“Fear them NOT therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known. What I tell you in the darkness, that speak ye in the light: and what you hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops.” (Mathew 10:26-27)

Let us declare today that God is wonderful! He is fair and just in all His ways. His decisions are perfect and even when things are not going as we would like, He is completely aware of our circumstances and is working and interceding on our behalf. This life may seem to be easy for some but I promise that it is only an illusion to those who are peeking through the window from the outside trying to see what is inside. Many times the way we observe things that others enjoy are only the fleeting moments of good fortune and favorable situations. What we fail to see is the other ninety nine percent that people struggle through and have to deal with. I am not saying that everyone’s life is bad or that there are not individuals that walk in the peace and calmness of God’s presence, but rather I am saying that this earthly life was never intended to be a “yellow brick road” without challenges, temptations or tribulations. The lost try to do everything they can to figure out their own destiny and control their own directions. While many may find times of generic satisfaction, it is always temporary and never fulfilling neither does it bring any true contentment. The saved will discover that everything they learned when they were young needs to be re-filtered and adjusted to fit the standard of God’s divine reality. The heart must be recreated, the will refined and the mind emptied out and renewed so that we can be on the same page as the one who saved us. In each person, I believe the Lord is at work to get their attention and draw them into His love. He is coming soon. I can feel it in my spirit, can you?

We have heard many times that it is not what happens to us but how we handle what happens to us and this is a wise and worthy saying. I can promise you that if you have not been through a sorrowful, life changing event in your life – you will. I can also say with confidence that the Word of God is the strongest fortress, the most solid rock and the most stabilizing anchor that can be found. When we allow His Word to saturate our mind, we are digesting truth within our heart and spirit and this is where our faith evolves into confidence and a KNOWING that can hardly be explained. Many people confuse the emotional realm with faith because it is so similar. Our emotions come from thoughts and these are like images that flash across the screen and have the capability to influence us. For example “fear” is always a party crasher no matter how much we want to celebrate our boldness. When we read an inspiring story or have a motivating and exciting thought about doing something, many times these are only what are called – “whims.” This means they are great ideas but can be shot down with a certain amount of discouragement. When the dark side hears someone talking about what an awesome idea they have or boldly speaking forth a positive confession about something, the demons take notice and will immediately begin to draw up a strategy of attack. Our enemy has been taking notes throughout the years and is quite aware of our weaknesses and soft-spots. Of course why should they change now since the former ambushes have always been so successful? When the influence of doubt is launched toward someone who is trying to gather faith, it becomes a tug-of-war to see which side has the most pull. The deciding factor of course is our free-will and whichever position we decide to go with is the side that will be victorious. For the Christian it is a “win-win” even when faith cannot be found and it seems as though the enemy has won because the person may leave this world but instantly be in the presence of God. In this light, there is no fear of death even though things could have been different had they been more prepared for battle. “And the SEVENTY returned again with joy, saying Lord, even the devils are subject unto us THROUGH THY NAME. And He (Jesus) said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto YOU power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over ALL the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (Luke 10:17-19)

So how can we tell the difference between believing in something with our emotions and having faith in something? I admit it is deceiving but I also know it is the difference between receiving and not receiving. Let us establish a very important fact – God and His Word do not fail! He has never missed an appointment, forgotten someone or been unable to hear someone’s prayers. He has heard every cry, seen every tear and felt every pain. He does not favor anyone, exaggerate, lead people on, make false claims and neither does He delight in seeing His people suffer. His Word can be counted on – no matter how bleak the situation, how many people say it is hopeless, or how many demons gather around to laugh. There is nothing too difficult for God and there is nothing that He would consider outrageous or impossible. He can heal your body or my body by speaking it into existence just like He said “let there be light.” Every word that God has ever spoken did not return void or empty – but it went forth and accomplished everything that He intended. The difference between being enthused and “locked in” about an idea is whether or not the thought has been transformed into a “revelation.” A personal revelation is KNOWING within your spirit that something is not only true but it is for you! Knowledge is the gathering of facts and wisdom is understanding knowledge but revelation is receiving the Word and will of God into our heart. It is knowing that God has literally spoken to us and there is nothing or no one that can take away, destroy, remove, cancel or discredit this holy communication. Faith comes by HEARING and hearing by the Word of God! Faith comes when we hear God with more than our natural ears – it comes when we listen with our spiritual senses! Thomas Edison is said to have made this statement before he finally invented the light bulb; “I have not failed – I have just found 10,000 ways that will not work!” It is common for many people when they receive prayer and do not see any results to allow the Ocean waves of doubt to flood upon their shore because we are automatically programmed to come to the conclusions of failure and defeat. When these negative reactions are accepted into the conscience, we are as the old sailors would say – “taking on water.” With outside influences and the mocking of our trust, it becomes an all-out WAR to prevent our ship from sinking. Is generating faith easy? Of course not! However the more of God’s Word we fill our heart and mind with – the stronger our faith will be! If you notice the life of Jesus and the short time that He was on the earth, He was so filled with the Word (He was the Word) that the Word constantly came out of His mouth and directly into the situation. Yes, you guessed it – that is how we have been called to live! Filled with the Spirit means to be “overflowing” with God’s Word so that we speak into every need or problem. Jesus spoke to the forces that were against the people and against His Kingdom. He did not hesitate or run in fear because He KNEW that when He spoke – His WORDS would do what He said! Being filled with God and renewed in our mind means that we speak the “will” of His Word! Selah.
 
As I grow older, I do not see things the way I used to. The most important treasure in life is God’s Word! There are many events happening in the world today and we can say without fear that life is becoming more challenging. Today is the day to draw near to God! Today is the day to become saturated with the Word of God so that we are STRONG in our faith. I believe the type of person that God intended us to be, is an individual that walks in a very high level of spiritual sensitivity. This is only achieved with the study of His Word and constant prayer. These are the ones that will overcome because they understand the meaning of perseverance. The remnant saints KNOW God’s will and have a CLOSE personal relationship with Him. Those who are walking in purity and confidence will remind Him of His Word and remember that He has never broken His promises! This is truly walking in the Spirit! When our life lines up with His will and testament – He will HONOR our obedience and provide the miracles that we need. He is not holding back our blessings or playing games with us – He is waiting for us to give our lives to Him completely so that He can fulfill His vision for our destiny!

Allow me to say today, that God’s power has never declined or lost energy. When the Father sent His Son to live and die on this planet so that we might be restored into fellowship with Him, He had a beautiful plan and a holy vision of expectation for us. May I take my liberty to say this hour that He has never re-considered or changed His mind in any way. When Jesus walked this earth as the “man – God” He was all about saving the lost in whatever way it was needed. You do not find Jesus telling anyone that it is not God’s will that you be saved, healed or delivered. Actually, if one researches the life and ministry of Christ, it is recognized that all who came to Him in faith received His blessings and power to change their circumstances. The “good news” of the gospel is that Jesus established His covenant with those who believe in His Word and His Word explains how His blood holds Him accountable to what He has promised. The general message to the masses pertains to the born-again experience and how God forgives sin and creates within us a brand new spirit. The continuation of “being saved” includes whatever is needed in this journey to enjoy and maintain a Spirit filled, obedient, abundant life.

What I have been noticing lately in my life is the strong temptation to be distracted from what I should be thinking and doing. When we have situations that we know requires fervent prayer, do not presume that it is going to easy sailing! Becoming too busy is a clever tactic used by the enemy to get us off track from what we should be focused on. Concentrating on our prayers and confessions will take a strong self-discipline and determination in order to be successful. Vacations are a perfect example of putting our spiritual life on hold just for a little while, but it is just long enough to take our attention away from the task at hand. Believing for our physical healing is something that requires our faith and the enemy is very active trying to keep us from receiving our miracle from the Lord. Everything from people confessing curses on us to becoming absorbed in doctors and medicines can keep us focused MORE on the problem than JESUS our deliverer. If we just sit back and do not pursue the revelation of healing and invest the time to build our faith then we will end up with the default which is que sera sera. It may be news to some Christians but our spiritual journey does not consist or remain as a spiritual daycare for the Lord to constantly change our diapers and feed us bottles. I have to admit this sounds awesome because it is so easy to just walk through life and not have to exercise our faith for anything. It is so wonderful to agree and accept the default life (the life where faith is not developed) and blame God for everything that happens in the name of His “will.” This way no matter what takes place – it was God’s fault (decision) and had nothing to do with us. Well brothers and sisters, I must burst your bubble and announce that this is not the degree or maturity that God had in mind when He gave us His Word. I can say confidently that God desires His people to understand what an “overcomer” is and that the blood covenant of Christ is what empowers the saints to exercise spiritual authority over the enemy in the name of Jesus!

Allow me to ask you a question; when you make a statement in prayer and close by saying – In the Name of Jesus, do you believe in your heart that this Name carries the power to establish what you said as true? Are you not using His Name as an authoritive confession and by your faith in what you are saying, are you not convinced this is a valid spiritual LAW that God honors within His Kingdom? Then, the only reason we would not want to advance in our understanding and confidence in this authority would be because it is too time consuming, as enmity to our flesh or we are not convinced this is the way God’s government operates. In most cases these are just more reasons (excuses) why our carnality is stronger than our passion to know God more. It is not an unreasonable statement to declare that the closer we are to God the more faith we will have. The reason why we do not trust Him is because He is like a stranger to us and the first lesson we learn in “fear 101” is to never trust a stranger. For example, we trust our mom and dad with everything we have (even our life) because we KNOW they would never betray us or harm us in any way. We know without a shadow of a doubt that our parents want to do everything they can to help us succeed and not fail or be defeated in anything. How do we know this? Because we KNOW them! We know where their heart is toward us because we have been so close to them in our life. Since God is our heavenly Father and we are His children, His idea was that we would be closer to Him in this life than ANY other person in the world. Why? Because trusting Him would come from knowing Him and this would cause us to be mature in the faith which would teach us how to “walk” in the power and anointing of His Spirit! When we are children, the tools in the barn never cross our mind because we are just kids and are not expected to do the hard work that is needed to accomplish certain projects. “BUT” when we grow up and become strong and have our own property, we not only have learned how to use the tools – we realize that it is our responsibility to get the job done. This is the way the Lord planned for His Kingdom to function. He knows that when we are first saved that we are not able to do very much because we do have the knowledge, the strength or the faith that is needed to be an overcomer but He expects us to learn and grow that we might emerge as a well-trained laborer. He gives us all the (tools) His Word, spiritual gifts, talents, power, anointing and covenant authority needed to do the work and even decided to live inside of us to personally direct us and perform miracles through us. This is on top of sending the Holy Spirit as a comforter and guide and His angels to help us in our mission. HOWEVER – when will the church see that He is waiting for them to demonstrate how all of this works? Christians have no problem understanding how all of this is supposed to be functioning but for some reason they do NOT include themselves in the equation. It is time the body of Christ put away their cheer-leading uniforms and became players! Selah.  

There are different levels of understanding and faith, just like there are different levels of love and wisdom. The reason why it is so important for a person to receive Christ at an early age is because they need as much time as possible within their lifetime to learn His truth. Even if we studied every evening and lived to be 120 years old we would still only scratch the surface of knowing His vast treasures of secrets and mysteries. This knowledge is not necessarily hidden from us but rather is reserved for those who diligently and sincerely “seek” the meaning of life. These seekers that are serious about knowing God and who evolve in the enlightenment of their understanding are rewarded with the keys that can unlock His miracle power. Our lives are not always smooth sailing and we have an adversary that keeps a close eye on our spiritual development as the devil recognizes those who are spiritually weak and loves to use his ability and legal authority to influence the un-renewed mind with fear. Allow me to say that when trouble comes upon us and fear has been injected into the situation, it will affect us at whatever rate our level of faith has matured. Selah. If we have wasted our precious time with pursuing the pleasures of the world, our faith will remain a tiny seed or as a tender plant. This tiny level of spirituality can be easily shaken and the human system of emotions can react as if it is drowning in hopelessness. Fear can wreak havoc within the human mind and directly has a huge impact on the body the same as unforgiveness, resentment, jealousy and hatred. The devil has a relatively easy job of just whispering his poisonous negativity and then stands back and watches our reaction begin our own self-destruction. The Lord knew this would happen and tries to warn us through His Word and the Holy Spirit but many would rather trust something more tangible like a psychiatrist, psychic, horoscope, alcohol or an ancient remedy or book that someone is trying to sell. These imitations and substitutions for the power of God are very disappointing and usually make things even darker, confusing and more discouraging.

Now brother, you are saying that God’s will is His Word but we must agree that there are other reasons why miracles do not happen. Well, I do know that God is sovereign and He can do whatever He wants, but I also know that He will never betray His Word because He cannot lie. We can sit around all of our life trying to find excuses why God’s Word failed or we can “invest” our energy trying to draw closer to God so that we can SEE His Word be fulfilled!

A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR OUR LIFE
PART 31
HAVING CONFIDENCE IN THE VALLEY

Just the sound of those words is an encouragement to me. Let us turn to a simple verse that is found in first Samuel chapter 30. In verse 6 we read. “And David was greatly distressed; for the people was talking about stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: BUT David ENCOURAGED HIMSELF in the Lord.” If there is one thing we all need now – it is encouragement. Of course the devil realizes that if he can keep us upset, frustrated, disappointed and dissatisfied, that this will cause a vexation and bondage to our spirit and inspire us to throw a pity-party in our conscience. This dark negative energy is exactly what punctures our “joy tank” which many people have not even recognized has happened that can quickly leave us spiritually dry and empty. This is a very serious condition that will continue to decline as it attempts to literally destroy our life. If this “hardness” of the heart is not corrected it can bring terrible consequences with affecting (and infecting) everything and everyone we hold dear. The pain of sadness leads to misery and can attach itself to us like an oppressive spirit and once it begins to control our thoughts it is very deceiving. Our perception of the glass being “half-empty” can become a normal way of living and this can actually change us into someone that no one wants to be around, but when we recognize what is happening within the depths of our soul, we can fall on our face and ask God to restore our fellowship with Him and He will cleanse us and flood our being with His peace that passes all understanding.

I have used this story about David in the past to illustrate about how important it is to know how to be encouraged when things are not going well and there is no one around to minister life into our soul. The “possible you” needs to learn that the Word you are absorbing today can be used to bring salvation to you tomorrow! I used the word “salvation” because when we are facing the mountains that seem impossible to conquer, God’s Word and the Holy Spirit can help us see not just the problem that is before us but the big picture of being “saved” in ANY area including from our-self. The Word of God, when it becomes a personal revelation within our mind and spirit becomes written on the tables of our heart and is a life-long companion to help us obtain (and maintain) victory in every situation. This is why it is so crucial for us to take the time to study when things are going well so that we can build our “fortress” of strength and wisdom to draw from when the trials come and we need extra faith. I have noticed in my life that when the storms come and I find myself down in the valley of despair, I can literally feel the Word of God supporting me as His truth helps to carry me through to the other side. Instead of lying in a fetal position, crying out that our life cannot be fixed or that there is no hope of carrying on, it is the power of God’s Word and the faithfulness of His presence that will flood our heart with hope, because the time we have invested in knowing Him and learning His thoughts are not in vain – in fact, they can not only save our life, but maybe help save someone else. Praise God!

The reason why David was so upset is because he had just returned to Ziklag to find that the city had been burned and many of the people had been taken captive by the Amalekites. These were the enemies of the people of Judah and had caused David much personal pain by stealing two of his wives. Have you ever felt that someone has stolen from you, hurt you very badly or maybe you feel that you were dealt a bad hand, and this fell upon you like a dark blanket of depression? I believe that all of us in our lifetime have experienced deep pain and sorrow from losing something or someone and it’s tempting to just cover up our heads and give up. However, we notice an amazing demonstration from someone who KNEW God strong enough to realize that he needed to see with his spiritual eye and rely on his faith and trust in God MORE than what he was seeing with his natural eye. If David were here he would agree with this; we have two choices; we are going to go through the valley one way or another. We can crawl on our hands and knees, spewing out negative curses and confessions while working ourselves up into a lather of anxiety and sadness – or we can realize that the little foxes are trying to spoil the vines and this is a perfect opportunity to show everyone that we still trust God with ALL of our heart! Yes, you guessed it – walking THROUGH the valley is all about staying filled with JOY!

Allow me to ask you some simple questions; do you smile like you used to? Do you love like you used to? Are you as happy as you have ever been? Do you feel the power of the Spirit like you used to? When is the last time you cried while being flooded with His presence? Do you really love and care about people like you used to? Do you enjoy life or does everything seem to disappoint you? Are you pleased with how you have lived or do you feel down inside that you have failed? There are times when we feel down and it seems that nothing is going right even when we are really trying to do the best we can. Frustration, aggravation, loneliness, regret, resentment, bitterness, heartache, unforgiveness, extreme worry and fear are all joy stealers. There needs to be a time and place where we stop and get alone with God to have a heart to heart talk while we evaluate our attitude in order to get right and get on the same page with the one who has all the answers. The longer we try to carry these burdens the more weak and sad we become and I believe this is why David was quick to repent. If you remember, when he was a young shepherd boy, he would sing and play unto the Lord while he was in the fields and sitting under the trees in the evening. The Bible says he was a man after God’s own heart and this was the result of choosing to block out the world and concentrate on the Lord of glory. He learned “how” to know God, how to worship and praise Him in spirit and in truth and this relationship became strong and beautiful. He “invested” the time with Jehovah and this spiritual intimacy helped build and develop who he was so that when he became older he could DRAW out encouragement, boldness, confidence, faith, strength and determination to rise up from the ashes and listen closely to what God was saying. You see it does not matter if we have lost EVERYTHING – God owns the entire world and can restore back to us 10 times what we had! It does not matter what the doctors say because they are only practicing what they think. GOD KNOWS you from the inside-out and He certainly does NOT need a bunch of greedy insurance companies and pharmaceutical corporations conspiring with a medical team’s opinionated diagnosis. Jesus has paid for our healing in the package known as “total salvation” and it is His will to heal us the same as it is to save us! Selah. The only reason He would not want to heal someone would be a private sovereign situation between them and God that we would not know anything about. When Jesus walked the earth the only reason someone did not receive healing is because of their lack of faith. (If you read something different I would be interested in seeing it). The same is true with the doctrine that teaches how that ONLY the 12 disciples ministered under the authority of God’s power. There were certainly more than 12 followers with Christ throughout His ministry and at the time of His death and His miracle power not only did NOT pass away with the first century church, His resurrection actually opened up the windows of heaven to whosoever would believe in His covenant! Selah. It is not how much we know but rather it is understanding what we know and this transfers in our personal relationship with Jesus as to “who we know.” Selah. All of the time you have spent learning about God and telling Him how much you love Him, will have the chance to someday come back to you and support you in the time of crisis. Those that have not built their house on the “rock” will not have enough time to learn how to re-build when the storm is on the horizon. Unfortunately, many have found themselves in a hospital room facing a life-threatening emergency but have not filled their storehouse with faith to be used for their healing. Their confidence for healing is very small and their fear can easily overwhelm their faith. When doubt and anxiety floods the mind and heart, we are helpless in the realm of spiritual authority and are vulnerable to the enemy. It is true that God can reach out and give a miracle through the faith filled prayers of mature intercessors but this is left up to God’s perfect will. Most of the time it is the faith of the person going through the crisis that will make the difference between being delivered or being devoured. There is no condemnation to those who have not invested the time to be spiritually strong but this is just a reason why miracles are hindered and another example of why true Christianity is not just sitting around waiting on Jesus to come back.

I do not personally believe the Christian life was ever intended to be easy. There are some that teach an extreme version of spiritual authority that is taken out of context with God’s perfect plan and are convinced that we can ask for things outside of God’s timing and specific will. I believe in the Christians responsibility to speak God’s Word and the authority over Satan for God’s glory but there is a huge difference between following the voice of God and our own carnal desires. For example, if the Christian could ask God for whatever they want, it would be like winning the lottery every week and consequently would cause the Kingdom of God to collapse like the fallen Roman Empire. Christians may seem spiritual from a distance, but actually (most of us) are filled with weaknesses and problems that bleed over into our thoughts and deeds. The scriptures that speak of the believer’s authority are based on hearing God’s instructions and our strict obedience in how we approach all situations. What could be more damaging than a novice Christian waving a loaded gun of “name it and claim it” passages from the Bible without teaching responsibility and accountability? Everything in God’s plan for each individual consists of a perfect solution at the perfect time and this intricate plan requires us to learn His wisdom from our mistakes. When anyone barges in on God’s ministry, they can interrupt what God is trying to teach and actually obstruct what the Lord is already working on. Words of prophecy are a wonderful expression of God’s definite direction and confirmation but even in the boldness of faith they should always be delivered in the spirit of reverence.

When we share about the hardships and trials in this life, there are few that really understand what that means especially when we are referring to our spiritual life. This is because not many have never dared to venture out into the deeper waters of faith. We speak of the “will” so much because it is the center of our desires and if our rebellious spirit is allowed to do what we want as a lifestyle – we have not advanced past the “nursery” of knowing how to be a disciple for Jesus. We like the word Christian because it seems to include a wide scale of commitment and since many teachers explain that it does not matter what you do or how you live – “it’s all good!” The problem with this lenient theology is that we may pass all of the requirements in man’s final exam but the Lord knows every tiny detail within our being and usually is not impressed with our intelligent concepts. For those who in the past (or even now) that have ventured into the deep end of the pool so to speak, you know exactly what I mean when I speak of increased warfare activity from the enemy. We should agree that for those Christians who lay on the couch and are not involved with the Lord’s work, the enemy would not really need to waste his “arrows” because they are already doing him a great service by NOT exercising their spiritual authority over his dark kingdom. However, the individuals that trigger the “alarm system” of hell are the ones that finally realize what being a true Christian is all about! These are the remnant saints that not only read about God and His demands – they get off the couch and do them! What causes this enthusiastic determination? Their knowledge has been converted into a revelation! And, until this happens there will NOT be a change in anyone’s life and a “possible you” will most likely remain the improbable you! Selah. If anyone has ever wondered why the religious spectators hide behind the four walls of the church to avoid thinking about the idea of being a disciple, it is because they are AFRAID of the devil. OK, now we might as well be honest and lay ALL the cards on the table. They are not only afraid of losing their reputation as someone who has worldly integrity and respect – they are also afraid that God may not come through with His miracle power if they were to ever attempt to demonstrate complete faith. Say amen or mercy me! Within the knowledge about God, most Christians have not “experienced” being on the front lines of the battle and to be painfully transparent – they have no desire or intention to be. Why? We just spoke about it. They do NOT want to invest the time and sacrifice that it will take to become filled with God and strong in the faith on this level. Besides, who in their “right mind” would choose to walk around with a bulls-eye on their back? (Only the serious ones).

If you are feeling down today, remember that God has not forgotten you; He knows your exact location in the valley. I can also promise that He is trying to reach out to you MORE than you are trying to reach out to Him. Do you actually think that you can love Him MORE than he loves you? What could be more encouraging than to walk confidently with Him through the valley?

A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR OUR LIFE
PART 30
THE SYSTEM OF THE BEAST

As time goes by, we find an increasing concern about the stability of this nation and the world in general. Many people try at all cost to avoid thinking about politics and how they relate to their worldviews simply because it upsets them. It is common to find individuals intentionally putting on “blinders” to the world’s condition as they state their case in a short deliberate sentence; “my worrying and stress will not change anything – it cannot be stopped.” Or what about this one; “what can we do about it?” This may be partly true but if we are not careful we may be waving a subconscious “white flag” in surrendering to the system of the beast. We call it the “system” of the beast, because it is mentioned in Revelation chapter thirteen and seventeen as being a controlling, influential power from the dark side that represents, is closely associated and directed by Satan or is actually Satan himself. It is not my objective to try and explain all of the eschatology details concerning the beast, the dragon, anti-christ, false prophet, the horns or the heads and all that is connected to these prophecies. This is an incredibly deep study and there are several controversies involved with the interpretations and symbols. What we are sure of is that the system receives its power from the devil and is in opposition to God and His Word and that all people who are not born-again will worship the beast and his political and religious system. “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him (the beast), whose names are not written in the book of life of the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” (Revelation 13:8)

So, I realize the world is dominated by the influence of the devil – but what has all of this to do with “a possible me?” Well, since you and I are living right in the middle of this system, I would say everything. Since we are being pulled by it, tempted, influenced, mocked, persecuted, persuaded, attacked, bombarded, hated, shunned, stressed, worried, paranoid, fighting and confessing against it, the truth seems to be that we are spending most of our time trying to deal with it. It is clear that nearly everything we do is connected to it – so it is important to discuss it and develop a wise strategy against it in order to become and remain an overcomer in this life! Our discernment can increase as a result of spending time in meditation and communication with God and this sensitivity is mostly taught as becoming aware of the Lord’s presence. This is very awesome, but since it is an increased recognition of the overall spiritual realm, it also pertains to the dark side. “Beloved, believe (trust) not every spirit, but “try” (prove) the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (I John 4:1) I am convinced we are not to be consumed with worry and doubt because it is an unhealthy negative state of mind to our spiritual well-being. It can also be agreed that just because this world’s system is like a runaway train going down the tracks and we can see where it will end up, that does not mean all is hopeless or lost. If we could exercise self-discipline within our mind and seriously ask God to control our thoughts, we would see that He has not really called us to rearrange the world or change the system. If we would bring out God’s Word and begin a goal of studying and praying each day, our spiritual eyes would be opened more clearly and we would begin to see that the believer is already victorious and ALREADY more than a conqueror! We just need to receive the revelation of our identity IN CHRIST which is simply saying that we need to KNOW who He is and who we are in Him! The Lord simply desires that we would not become distracted or discouraged with what is going on all over the world and start being aware of what we should say and do in OUR OWN NETWORK. If all Christians would just focus on the people in front of them instead of watching the news every minute or absorbing tons of information that tends to overload our brains, they would discover that God can actually use them where they are with those they know. Selah. Instead of looking at the entire world, He is saying how about looking to your next door neighbor, someone you work with or a family member. It is the hearts of the blind that are caught in the systems snare trap which is why we must live each day “WITHIN THE STORM” without fear and with a “sensitive” spirit in order to be ready to respond and react to the opportunities that are before us. I am totally convinced about the believer having spiritual authority in this life because we have been sent as agents of change from heaven. Jesus had authority and now He lives in us! The world is dark and the lost are blind so we know the authority that they are operating in is not the correct path to follow. God’s people are from the Kingdom of light and are to be a holy representation of the one who created everything. God’s idea since the resurrection of Jesus has not been to change the direction of the world but rather to change the hearts of those who love Him. Understanding spiritual authority is the responsibility of the believer, and this should give us confidence to know that we are the ones that have the real answers to all of the problems of mankind. There is nothing that God does not understand or cannot create or restore. We have the good-news of the gospel and within this revelation contains the absolute truth of all things and the purpose and meaning of our existence. His miracle power of total salvation is manifested through faith in His Word and is the reason why Jesus was crucified and resurrected and the reason why we rise each morning! The evil system is designed to stop this truth from being released and the more determined we are to speak God’s Word, the more resistance we will encounter from it. The Father has already prophesied the end of the world and His eventual destruction of the beast system, so we do not need to worry about that. What we should be concerned about is how to abandon our will and take up His cross now! If Christians would become disciples, the love and power of God would be accomplished according to His idea of salvation. Selah. He saved us so that we could be used by Him to save others. We are to live as “active” participants, not to physically fight against the system but to reach out in compassion to those who are caught up in it! The Great Shepherd is the deliverer but He uses His messengers as they obey His voice. “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh; for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity EVERY THOUGHT to the obedience of Christ.” (II Corinthians 10:3-5)

We as Christians must recognize that the direction of this world is closely monitored by God and each detail has been prophesied in His Word. The Lord has given a certain amount of liberty to Satan that came from man’s blunder in the Garden and consequently the human race has suffered since that day. Many believe in the fall of man and the curses that became a “sentence” for disobeying God’s commands, but few actually realize that a system of government was birthed within this transition period and has been a strong influence on the way we all think and perceive. Satan when he was called Lucifer was thrown out of heaven as a result of an ugly “out of control” spirit of pride and now as the “prince of the power of the air” he actually is convinced in his twisted mind that somehow he can rule the world. This is why Jesus came to restore man’s relationship with God and re-establish his spiritual authority through the blood covenant.

For as long as I can remember, people have argued and fought over elections, campaign platforms and political personalities. The ideas have always been the same, just altered and camouflaged to fit the problems of the day. The election strategy is basically simple; “we are heading in the wrong direction, we need change and you need me to lead us to success!” and for the simple minded spectator it works beautifully every time. The reason why I call the average person “simple minded” is because it is easier to deceive the ignorant as the true reality is usually hidden behind the bright colored lights and flashy entertainment. The masses believe they are voting by making choices but the decisions were made long ago. Since the devil has been given a part to play in the grand finale, the “top secret” information reveals that the people (including the politicians) are just puppets. You see, when will we ever come to realize that political parties and charismatic politicians do not give “birth” or produce a system – the system produces them! Selah. The devil does not need to train and educate the heathen how to ruin a world – he just needs to influence them to turn away from God and man will destroy himself and everything around him. The lost are in denial but God’s servants realize that mankind cannot rule himself. Humans are not smart enough and their carnal nature is too corrupted to walk in peace and love. We can take a tour of history and see the trails of destruction and fallen empires where men tried to be their own god. Without the God of the universe directing their thoughts and purifying their hearts, the masses are just spoiled, rotten brats that have grown up! Any society that does not allow God and His Word to intervene into their affairs will end in collapse. Selah.

When the creator fashioned man in His image, His intentions were not to make man completely independent of His Holy Spirit or His personal intervention. When man made the intentional and intelligent decision to throw God’s Word in the trash can and not listen to the instructions on how to live – the downward spiral began. Mankind does not have the capability to know all things or the power to rule the world or even manage his own affairs. Man was designed to be a “vessel” or instrument for the Fathers purpose. The humanistic attitude is that humans do not need a God that controls them because they are smart enough to blaze their own trails and build their own kingdoms. We only need to turn to the book of Job to be reminded of how silly and foolish this way of thinking is. Allow me to say boldly, that no matter how many books or colleges boast about the strength and creativity of the brain, man is DESPERATELY needy for God. The Lord provided the instruction manual, map and compass of the Bible to educate mankind on how to live. It is divine wisdom that has the power to be perfect in judgment and is the only source of truth. Man wants to dissect truth and compromise the absolutes by making all ideas fit into his confusing puzzle. God’s will is for His children to develop courage by abiding in faith and then purity will generate boldness to speak His divine reality. A perfect example is to watch our government handle situations. Have you ever really thought about it – the system does not have one answer to any difficulty! They CANNOT solve any crisis on their own because they have told God to go away. The only thing that government knows how to do is put more money into the problem but that is not the solution! The real problem is that the system is being guided by those who are blind and deaf to the Spirit of the Lord. We as Christians have thought for the last 200 years that if we could elect individuals that were strong in the faith of God, they could help guide this country into the divine wisdom of the Father. Sadly, what we have learned within our lifetime is how the “system” was much more advanced and prepared to fend off any type of spiritual warfare aimed at tearing down the strongholds that have been built. Many politicians who started out with excitement and good intentions, fell into a waiting “spider web” of evil when they wandered into the halls and territories of the dark kingdom. That’s OK! The devil has been given the opportunity to deceive the nations and that has been done! We have thought that everything will be alright and that things will not spiral out of control, but we must now face the situation in knowing that the rest of our journey may not be like we have planned.

Emotional happiness will not be enough to sustain us when the financial empires of the world fall and nations are brought down to their knees. We must recognize now that the media is owned and controlled by our enemy and he is trying to distract us from becoming filled with the revelation of divine reality. This reality includes the truth about our covenant with God which explains our spiritual identity. I am in no way trying to scare anyone, but rather trying to bring a sobering reminder to the way things really are. We are in a full-blown WAR (unto death) with an enemy that is a formable opponent. The difference between becoming an overcomer in this life and being defeated is how much revelation we can absorb into our spirit and mind. The ones who thought that God was obligated to do everything for them will eventually realize that all of the weapons were put into barn – but we had to go get them and use them! It will be too late for many to try and develop strong faith at the last minute. Victory in Jesus will be the result of years interceding, studying, worshipping, learning, growing, developing, advancing, and maturing into higher levels of spiritual enlightenment. This is why we must continue preaching about seeking God and His Kingdom NOW with all of our heart, mind and strength. In closing, I believe the devil has worked hard against me, even in the writing of this short letter. I have had several physical and mental challenges and distractions within the last week but Praise be to God – I will not stop! There is not a more important life-changing concept than the believer’s spiritual kingdom authority over evil, but we must KNOW God – and who we are IN HIM! “But you are a CHOSEN generation, a ROYAL priesthood, a HOLY nation, a PECULIAR people: that you should “show forth” the praises of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (Peter 2:9) Beware of the system! It is the “lion” that seeks to devour you!

A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR OUR LIFE
PART 29
EVERYONE WILL BE GIVEN THE CHANCE TO EXPLAIN

“And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also has highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus EVERY knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that EVERY tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:8-11)

Let us continue with discussing the system of the beast, our accountability, the coming judgment and what will happen at the end of the age when all things will be fulfilled. When speaking of death and where the spirit goes, in elementary terms we can say that God’s children go to a good place and those who have never known Christ go to a bad place but the complexity of this topic finds there are many different opinions about what happens until we arrive at our final destination. Some believe that after the spirit leaves the body, it goes directly to heaven or hell and that is that. However, many Bible teachers are convinced that the spirit (whether saved or lost) proceeds to designated holding chambers or a temporary plane of existence until the final judgment. This is a huge subject and not really worth arguing over because it is truly difficult to understand it completely with the limited information we have. There is much speculation but to reduce strife, may we agree that the spirits of all saints go to be with God at death. It may not be the final heavenly abode and we may not have a final glorified body or all of our rewards yet – but it is all about who you are with – not where you are at! Amen? The lost on the other hand might not be necessarily be in the lake of fire and they may not have received their final sentence of punishment but again we can agree that wherever they are – it is dark, miserable, empty and void of God’s presence. So, even though there are libraries of opinions and commentaries of interpretations about all of this, we can say for now with a fair amount of confidence that ALL souls will stand before God and after all is said and done the final judgment and sentence will be given to every spirit that has ever lived and all things will be finally settled forever.

Before we go into more about the judgment, I wanted to mention an important aspect that is associated to our attitude about sin. It is very common in today’s world to notice more things that used to be considered shameful but now are open for everyone to know. In the past we were not so naïve that we did not suspect there were terrible sins being done behind closed doors but now the imagination is no longer needed – abominations are being done openly without humiliation for the entire world to see every day. In fact, it seems the aggressive ones are proud of their deeds and the masses have become “numb” (thanks to a relentless liberal media) to their acts. For example, becoming pregnant without being married years ago was embarrassing because it was the result of not being pure. The reason why people a few generations ago would sneak around and hide in the dark is because they hated for the light of truth to expose their depravity. I know this is alarming but I believe there is not much light being generated anymore because Christians have allowed the “basket” of lukewarm love to conceal and diminish the light of Christ within their heart. I noticed in the paper recently an article about our local gay-pride day filled with parades and festivities. I do not mean to pick on this one subject because there are many more examples that can be used, but for the sake of making a point I will continue with this illustration. I read the article to see just what in the world could be said to justify such bold arrogance and the same theme kept appearing; it was all about the concept of fairness and the right to be accepted “exactly” as they are. I was thinking about the motives behind all of the hoopla and actually there are many other political and religious views that proclaim the same battle-cry such as for example – feminism. It is time that we as Christians allow the Holy Spirit to show us the big picture of what all of this is really about. The gay rights agenda is not JUST about same sex couples no more than feminism only stands for the right for women to have abortions. These are just tentacles like that of an octopus but the brain and eyes of the beast are controlled by the spirit of anti-christ – the power and confidence of the SYSTEM of secular humanism! How else can we explain why the mainstream media has pushed the gay agenda into the living rooms of this country even though less than three percent of Americans are gay? Just as Satan manipulated Adam and Eve with trying to convince them that God was “afraid” that they could be as smart as He was, the message of aggressive rebellion has never changed. Satan knows that mankind can be brainwashed if something can be repeated and “hammered” into their conscience. (Why do you think we are “attacked” repeatedly by commercials on television)? This “New Order” is beginning to hypnotize every society and its pledge of allegiance can be summed up as the right to do whatever we want to do without anyone being negative or critical – including God! The world hates what God has to say just like they hated Jesus when He spoke the absolute truth. The carnal flesh did not want to feel guilty then and it does not want to feel His conviction now! It has come to the point where anyone that offends someone (with the truth) is guilty of a hate crime. Lies are being embraced and truth is being rejected! Selah. The innocent messengers (you and I) will be arrested just like Christ and the hatred and persecution from the masses will be focused on the very same thing – to silence the truth – (the key to salvation).

What does this have to do with sin, holiness and judgment? Everything! I have talked about many things over the years but within the pages of absolute truth I am not afraid to be a voice in the wilderness that will stand by this statement; “The Christian life is NOT thinking, saying or doing whatever we want! The old nature of our human will must die. Choosing to live according to our own desires is completely opposite of God’s will for our life and the promotion of a carnal freedom to do whatever feels good without any regard to God’s Word is a deception and lie from the pits of hell.” The message of the gospel is to receive Christ and become totally transformed not only in our spirit but also in our conscience. This renewal includes no longer obeying our old nature but following the voice of God in purity and Agape love. Fairness, tolerance, freedom, unity, respect, legalism, emotional feelings, equality, religion, worldviews, opinions, interpretations, philosophies, or any other reason to disagree with God will NOT be an excuse at the judgment. Loving God is listening and responding to Him – what else is there? Selah.

Let us continue with what we can expect to see and experience in the future. These events are not something we will watch like being at the movies but we will participate and “literally” be involved with giving an account of our life while standing face to face with God Almighty. It will not help our case to point fingers and blame our upbringing, our friends, parents, social status, false teachers or even the devil for the trespasses we have committed. If knowing this and believing it is true does not have any impact on us or cause us to be more conscious of our actions then I do not know what will! Romans chapter 14 tells us that we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and that each one of us will give an account to God. “But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you reduce to nothing thy brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written, as I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue confess to God. So then every one of us shall give an account of himself to God.” (Verses 10-12) Since we believe all of this is true and that we will stand before God one day – would it not be wise to live holy and be more careful how we walk? Why would anyone that has obtained the treasures of knowledge and wisdom, intentionally do things that are negative and offensive to God? Why would anyone live their life in the bondage and misery of sin and then regret these things while trying to explain why they did them? Our life is not a game and there will be nothing funny about our intentional rebellion. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and this revelation should be one of the pillars of our faith. If we desire to walk with God in eternity – it is time to start walking with Him now. “For thou art NOT a God that has pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with Thee.” (Psalm 5:4-6) It is true that God’s mercy and grace will take all things into consideration and since He has never failed (and never will) His judgments will always be perfect – without political contamination.

We have heard of the Great White Throne judgment as described in Revelation chapter 20 and are the final judgment prior to the lost being cast into the lake of fire. “And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, STAND BEFORE GOD; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were JUDGED every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was NOT found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” We know from Revelation chapter 20 that this judgment will take place after the millennium and after Satan, the beast, and the false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire. These books that are opened evidently contain records of everyone’s deeds, whether they are good or evil, because God knows everything that has ever been said, done and thought, and He will reward or punish each one according to their works. “And behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” (Revelation 22: 12). We notice that another book is opened, called the “book of life.” It is this book that determines whether a person will inherit eternal life with God or receive everlasting punishment in the lake of fire. Although Christians are held accountable for their actions, they are forgiven in Christ and their names are written in the book of life from the creation of the world. “The beast that you saw was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottom-less pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names WERE NOT WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF LIFE FROM THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.” (Revelation 17: 8) 

The fact that there is going to be a final judgment for all men, both believers and unbelievers, is clearly confirmed in many passages of Scripture. Every person will one day stand before Christ and be judged for his or her deeds. While it is very clear that the great white throne judgment is the final judgment, Christians disagree on how it relates to the other judgments mentioned in the Bible, specifically, who will be judged at the great white throne judgment. Some Christians believe that the scriptures reveal three different judgments to come. The first is the judgment of the sheep and the goats or a judgment of the nation’s found in Mathew chapter 25. “When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory. And before Him shall be gathered ALL NATIONS: and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.” (Verses 31-32) This takes place after the tribulation period but prior to the millennium; its purpose is to determine who will enter the millennial kingdom. The second is a judgment of believers’ works, often referred to as the “judgment seat [bema] of Christ.” “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” (II Corinthians 5:10). At this judgment, Christians will receive degrees of reward for their works or service to God. The third is the great white throne judgment at the end of the millennium that was described earlier in Revelation chapter 20 and this is the judgment of unbelievers in which they are judged according to their works and sentenced to everlasting punishment in the lake of fire.

 Other teachers believe that all three of these judgments speak of the same final judgment, not of three separate judgments. In other words, the great white throne judgment in Revelation chapter 20 will be the time that believers and unbelievers are all judged at the same time. Those whose names are found in the book of life will be judged for their deeds in order to determine the rewards they will receive or lose. Those whose names are not in the book of life will be judged according to their deeds to determine the degree of punishment they will receive in the lake of fire. Those who hold this view believe that Mathew chapter 25 is another description of what takes place at the great white throne judgment. They point to the fact that the result of this judgment is the same as what is seen after the great white throne judgment. The sheep (saved believers) enter into eternal life, while the goats (lost unbelievers) are cast into eternal punishment. Like I mentioned earlier, it is difficult to know the exact details of events but whichever view one holds of the judgment, it is important to never lose sight of certain things that we do know. First, Jesus Christ will be the judge, all unbelievers will be judged by Him, and they will be punished according to the works they have done. The Bible is very clear that unbelievers are storing up wrath against themselves. “But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasuring up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; who will render to every man according to his deeds.” (Romans 2:5-6)

Believers will also be judged by Christ, but since Christ’s righteousness has been imputed to us and our names are written in the book of life, we will be rewarded, and not punished, according to our works. Many believe that we may lose rewards and fail to earn crowns of achievement and in this sense we could suffer “loss” but we will not be harshly dealt with or be ridiculed or considered a criminal. Those who are truly saved will walk with Him so close that they will know what is standing between them and God and their love for Him will not want “anything” to hinder or separate this intimacy. We would like to think that all Christians are walking in this level of spiritual bliss but I have often wondered about the sins of God’s children that are forgotten, ignored and where forgiveness was never asked for. Do these un-repented sins just drift into the universe and eventually disappear? Does God require that all of our sins be brought before Him in sorrow? We know that our sins were forgiven when we were born-again and also realize that His grace is extended to forgive us of our trespasses when we repent in the sorrow of brokenness but I am curious about the many sins that slip through the cracks. (If all sins were automatically forgiven there would be no need to ask forgiveness when we fail). We should ask Him to reveal to us our sins and call to remembrance thoughts and deeds that we need to make right with Him. No doubt, He would even tell us to go to other people and ask them to forgive us for what we have done. There are consequences to our sin that we may not have thought about because the old nature does not care about restoration, restitution, integrity or the refining fire of holiness. In this light, we can believe this level of maturity and sensitivity is a vital part of our personal relationship with God to stay in a state of prayer so that we can talk to Him about our shortcomings and weaknesses and continually ask Him to help us and forgive us. I can definitely see the need for “praying without ceasing” and having a constant awareness of His presence. It is one of the greatest miracles ever given when God chose to forgive our sins and to know they are gone forever and will not be charged to our account because they have been bought and paid for by the compassion and mercy of the Lord. The blood of Jesus was the highest, most valuable gift that could be offered that had the power which could purchase and redeem the spirits who were hopelessly lost. The enemy may try to tease us and condemn us for our past failures but that is his job as an accuser and liar. We can hold our head high with confidence and rest in the promises of His Word that is founded on His covenant with us. We should NOT live our life in fear or be anxious to stand before Him in the judgment. We should be inspired and motivated to live the way we “know” He wants us to live. Let us rest in the peace of His promise, “As far as the East is from the West, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalm 103:12) 


A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR OUR LIFE
PART 28
KNOWING WHEN TO DRAW THE LINE

“Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.” (Mathew 10: 32-33)

It is not my intention to offend anyone with this article or cause you to be upset. I do not want to be known as being negative or bringing discouragement to our already difficult struggle to exist in this world. However, I also do not believe in sugar-coating everything just so that we can live in a fantasy because many times these dreams are not true reality. I am convinced that a crucial part of being a good soldier for Christ is being filled with HIS knowledge and wisdom so that we can be AWARE and informed not only about what God wants us to do but also the strategies of our enemy. I realize there have been and presently are many good Christian people and not everything is gloom and doom and I am sure that throughout our history there have been select individuals that loved and served God sincerely. Nonetheless, we must admit that Satan has been given the authority to be the prince of the power of the air in this realm under the jurisdiction of The Almighty God and has carefully built his “system of the beast” through influencing the minds of those who do not know God. We are the true pilgrims of this world but are not trying to establish a “land” of freedom – we are servants of Christ with a mission to speak God’s Word to the lost so that souls can be rescued from an eternal life of darkness and suffering. Our “Beulah land” or Promised Land is not this earth but will be with God in heaven someday, so it is time to recognize and acknowledge the way things really are. It is difficult to accept that many events have not been what we thought they were but the beauty of being filled with the Holy Spirit is understanding God’s view – and not placing our faith in man.

It is very clear that we live in a world that is rapidly changing. It is no secret – things are not the way they used to be. There was a time (even 50 years ago) that Jesus Christ (the God of the Bible) was accepted by most people in this country as the one true God. Today, our government now proudly proclaims that we are NOT a Christian Nation but rather a diverse hodge-podge of religious ideas and convictions that are “equally” true and respected. Instead of weeping in shame for how the world has betrayed the one “TRUE” God and fallen into gross darkness, this declaration of false unity and religious tolerance has become admired as the new “constitution” of the New World Order. This persuasion or indoctrination has now taken a firm control by establishing the correct way to think and what is socially acceptable. So, who came up with all of these corrupted philosophies and ideologies? Well, as Christians, it is basic knowledge to understand there is a spiritual enemy that opposes God and everything His Kingdom stands for. Satan is the ruler of this dark force that spends every minute trying to influence the thoughts of mankind. In this light, we can know that man did not create humanism but rather the “system” created him, as his rebellion came naturally from his fallen nature and caused him to become an easy prey to the dark side. Satan should be very proud of himself, (he always is) that he has tempted Adam and Eve to sin and lose their standing with God in the beginning, and has now finally convinced most of the world to turn against God. Since all humans are born with a fallen nature it has become easier to deceive them. Why? Because the gospel is the only power that can “wake up” those who are dead and the Christians have the responsibility to proclaim it! As more and more Christians have abandoned their mission to be ON FIRE evangelist and become mesmerized with their own pleasures – the world has grown much darker and aggressively evil.

Years ago when we as Christians began to take a closer look at the way the world was changing, we were shocked to discover that maybe we were not really as strong of a Christ-led people as we thought we were. We took for granted that this country was “one nation under God” and that all who govern and represent this land would fight for Biblical principles. However, when we research history and are willing to look “under the surface” there is overwhelming evidence (even in the very beginning) of strange doctrines and the heresy of Biblical error. For example, the idea to build the statue of liberty was not really to invite people from around the world to live here so they could be saved through the gospel of JESUS CHRIST. Actually there were several reasons but for the most part it was an invitation for anyone who desired to live in freedom to come and enjoy a new way of living. Many Christians have thought this statue was a Godly symbol of truth and justice but who in their right mind can connect a “goddess” called “MOTHER of exiles” with the Lord Jesus? Many now believe this iconic symbol is just another example of American Babylonianism and represents the great whore that rides the beast and that New York is the city of Babylon that is mentioned in Revelation chapters 17 and 18 that will be destroyed. I encourage you to do a personal research of the history of this event and a Biblical study of these chapters.

It is believed that Frederic Auguste Bartholdi the sculptor, (also a freemason) had been working on some creative ideas of pagan idols and selected for the Statue of Liberty a goddess called “Libertas” which was a Roman personification of personal freedom. Interestingly, another name for the statue of Liberty is, “Liberty enlightening the world” BUT it is not referring to the holy liberty FROM sin – but rather a liberty TO sin without anyone restricting you. This evil deity promoted “personal” liberty to do anything that felt good – which is exactly the message of the devil to the human race! She was also called the “matron goddess of prostitution” because she endorsed sexual freedom, (imagine that). The ancient writings of Cicero describe the Libertas cult worship and refer to her as the “mother of harlots.” (Where have we heard that?) Thus, we can now clearly see that the outward representation of a demonic spirit was placed at the entrance of this nation and boldly opened the floodgates of perversion and darkness. Once again, the message of Satan and his beast system was given the “liberty” to poison this country because the Christians were too blind to recognize his angel costume!

Let us also take a quick glance at the inscription on the base of the statue that was written by a woman named Emma Lazarus. It is called “The NEW Colossus” and refers (you guessed it) to an ancient statue called Colossus of Rhodes, the Greek titan-god of the sun Helios and one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. He is often depicted as wearing a crown that looks like sun-beams.

“Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, with conquering limbs astride from land to land; here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand. A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command the air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame. “Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she with silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, the tempest tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door.” Many are convinced this message was declaring that the United States embraces all religions and respects all worldviews and this land will be a safe haven for all people. So what could possibly be wrong with this? It seems very innocent and sincere to want to protect all people no matter what god they worship because we are about letting “freedom ring.” Well, there are TWO WAYS of seeing this intention. The first, are those who do NOT have the Holy Spirit flooding their soul with God’s way of thinking and consequently are always seeing things in a completely different (or wrong) interpretation. The old carnal nature tries to use human logic to justify and compromise what they think is the best way and are not controlled by the conviction and fear of GODS will. We see in the attempt to build the tower of Babel that man was trying to lead himself with his own intelligence. Let us agree that without allowing God to lead – all of us are vulnerable to believing a lie! Selah. If this statue does not represent Jesus Christ (and it does not) then exactly who is speaking this message? Maybe some thought they could protect the innocent by bringing them into this country of purity and God’s Word but the devil was acting the part of the witch in seducing Hansel and Gretel by luring his victims into his house so that he could eat them! Instead of being “ONE NATION UNDER GOD” we have become saturated with blasphemy and infected the whole world with filthiness! This is why devastating judgment is on the horizon and is recognized by those who fear Him as the “Day of the Lord.”

The second way of thinking comes from a remnant of believers in Christ that are praying for a renewed mind which uses spiritual discernment instead of leaning on their own understanding. They do not follow a man and do not worship any nation, political view or organization. This small group of disciples will never agree with the masses just because they want to fit in. They realize that the American dream is not God’s idea and that if we had been a Christian nation we would have built a huge cross that had God’s Word engraved on it instead of a pagan goddess! Amen! Through the years many took for granted this was a Christian nation and that all political leaders were God fearing people and that we could convert all the people that come through our borders and live in a promised land of milk and honey. Allow me to say that we are a little ahead of schedule and this HOLY, monarchy government will not occur until the one thousand year millennial reign of Christ. Nevertheless, the “old school” thinkers thought that they could control the way everyone looked, the language, morality, public education, politics, the legal system and of course the churches doctrines. However, when humanism gave birth to tolerance and the gates of false unity and no absolutes were opened, there was no way that Christianity could be first and foremost in our society and culture. In fact, respect for Christianity has gone from sitting on the front row of the bus to the back row and now is having a difficult time even staying on the bus at all. The New World Order has been given time to rise and gain power (while the church has been napping) and is now aggressively saying, we will put an end to this madness of Jesus being the only true God, and His Word as true – and they have! Our mission today is not to turn the entire world around – but to live the Christian life in front of everyone so the lost can SEE God’s character and love. Selah.

The “system of the beast” has become a world-wide standard of thinking that is produced by the devil but transported and facilitated through the vehicle of the carnal mind. The blind cannot see and fools cannot comprehend wisdom, thus we have the masses that are ruled by their flesh and easily persuaded by Satan. These “zombies” are the messengers that carry out the devils agenda and have now established what is socially acceptable and politically correct! Those who are the remnant saints will NOT follow the system of the beast and will NOT play the game or bow their knee to any lying demon or false idol. It does not matter if it is the greatest speech ever given and is wrapped up in red, white and blue – as they are led by their Great Shepard, they will know when it is time to draw the line.

The darkness is all around us and I am sure you have noticed that the system is trying to listen and watch everything you do. What does this have to do with “a possible you?”? Everything – if your intentions are to devote your entire heart to Christ in these last hours! The future the true disciple of Christ will not be able to minister the gospel without being seen or heard. There will be situations where God will perform miracles for His glory and protect His people in certain circumstances but overall the destiny of being persecuted will become a reality to those who are completely sold-out to their Lord. As the conscience of the world becomes seared, the blindness and hatred will grow stronger against those who stand for and speak the piercing truth. This “allegiance” to the system of the beast has now taken a firm control concerning the correct way to think and act and the remnant (you and I) will be required to STAND against it! “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16)

A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR YOUR LIFE
PART 27
ARE YOUR SINS CAPTIVATING OR NAUSEATING?

For in that He (Jesus) died, He died unto sin once: but in that He lives, He lives unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be DEAD indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. LET NOT SIN therefore REIGN in your mortal body, that you should OBEY it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but “yield” yourselves unto God as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.” (Romans 6:10-13)

It is relatively clear with the above scripture that Jesus died once for the sins of ALL people. This may sound like a simple (non-controversial statement) but before we go any further allow me to mention again that the Armenian view believes that His blood paid for everyone’s sins but in the end only the ones who receive this sacrifice by faith will be adopted into God’s plan of salvation. The Calvinistic view embraces the doctrine of limited atonement or in other words Jesus only died and redeemed the elect that God not only foreknew but predestined from the foundation of the world. They believe that if Christ has truly paid for everyone’s sins – then redemption should be seen as total reconciliation of all souls. This is a wonderful conversation that we can study some other day but for now, let us continue with our topic. We notice in verse 10 that Christians are to be identified with the death and resurrection of Christ as a type and shadow with the reality of us DYING or being DEAD to sin and then being born-again and transformed by the power of God into a new creature. The scripture goes on to remind us that since this drastic change has occurred within our being, we are now equipped and enabled to begin fresh and live holy as He is holy. Notice carefully, verse 12 does not imply that being controlled with sin AFTER we have obtained the revelation of sanctification is an option or a luxury. The passage strongly emphasizes the strict “command” and discipline needed in the individual to NOT ALLOW sin to control the mind. Remember last week we talked about the origin of sin coming from our thoughts and in verse 13 we see that yielding or abandoning our WILL allows us to abide in the spiritual sensitivity and personal intimacy with God that is needed to resist temptation. Everyone will serve whom they love as the Lord of their life (whatever it is) and will not only allow but invite these idols to dictate their direction! Selah.

It is common to hear people say, I cannot live holy because I am weak, helpless, a pitiful sinner and filled with failure. Many will confess that it is impossible and not realistic to live without falling captive to sin, but allow me to present a simple thought; if we do not consider holiness as a possible state of being, it is most likely that our subconscious state of thinking will NOT even try. Selah. We can view this mentality as being similar to standing at the base of a mountain and proclaiming there is no way to climb to the summit, even though we can see through binoculars there are several that are at least half-way there. Many times we forget that in spiritual warfare the attitude of demonstrating faith is a crucial strategy that can make the difference in victory or defeat. Like I have said before, we will probably never reach a sinless existence on earth, but may we also not allow our flesh to discourage us by giving us a perfect opportunity to use our carnality as an EXCUSE to live in disobedience. If we do not ATTEMPT to live holy or THINK about living in purity, we will not be as discerning to His conviction and actually fall into darker iniquities more easily. Our old nature is always looking for a reason to give-up and I promise that if we receive counsel from our flesh, its advice will be, “don’t worry about sin – do whatever you want and enjoy it.” It is like soul winning – if we are not aware and do not have a burden for souls to be saved; we will not spend a minute in prayer about it or even be looking for an opportunity to witness to someone. “For as he thinketh in his heart – so is he” (Proverbs 23:7), this little verse is packed with a storehouse of wisdom. Whatever CONSUMES our thoughts, our focus, our love, our dreams, and our passion – this is what we will become! If our determination is to live holy, what is there to stop us but our own choices? If we are NOT concerned that sin is an offense to God, we will continue to live a double-minded, lukewarm, defeated life. Selah.

Whenever we choose to listen to our old nature we are vulnerable to being tricked by our own internal rebellion. Our carnality is so clever that it can function as a defense attorney on behalf of Satan and the kingdom of hell because it has not only been influenced but highly trained and skilled at presenting “half-truths.” The flesh will argue that we are now set free from the old law and have been given spiritual liberty and peace through the grace, mercy and love of God. This is true but at the same time can be twisted and taken out of context according to God’s bigger picture of absolute truth. Just because we are not under the law does not mean that God has changed His view about sin. He did not send Jesus to suffer and die so that our life could be one continuous party. We rejoice, celebrate, praise, worship and are grateful for our forgiveness and deliverance FROM sin – not because now we can sin all we want! “For sin shall NOT have dominion over you: for you are not under the law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin, because we are not under the law but under grace? God forbid. Do you not know, that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants you are to whom you obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” (Romans 6: 14-16) I admit it is difficult to understand how we can reason within our mind and come up with such strange ways of justifying our desires. It is like we have the ability to “customize” our own way of living as we carefully put all of the puzzle pieces together to satisfy our own pleasure and contentment. Our emotions are very deceiving because they have the power when working in cooperation with our carnality to give us peace and confidence even when we are horribly wrong. Selah. Listen as these verses continue the context of the thought. “For when you WERE servants of sin, you were free from righteousness. What fruit had you then in those things whereof you are now ASHAMED? For the end of those things is DEATH. But now being made FREE FROM SIN, (having nothing to do with sin) and becoming servants to God, you have your fruit unto HOLINESS, and the end everlasting life.” (Romans 6: 20-22) It is very interesting to note the word “ashamed” because this is what comes to mind when in the Garden of Eden, God came calling for Adam in the cool of the day and Adam was embarrassed to come out because he was naked. I believe this guilty “state of being” is running rampant within the church and has caused the Christian presence in general to become cold, weak and spiritually dry. When any Christian is being controlled by sin, they are living in a long-distance relationship with God which in turn drains them of the power and faith to live as a red-hot flaming minister of the gospel. When we are living in dis-obedience we are afraid of Him and lose our boldness and confidence which comes from being pure. When we openly enjoy the darkness and corruption of sin, we do not want to walk and hold hands with Him because we know we are wrong and need to repent.

I have always been under the impression that if we are living close to God that we would hate the sin in our life. It would seem logical that for someone to be filled with God’s Spirit, this would empower them to be “hyper-sensitive” to sin and be able to easily recognize when darkness and evil is trying to knock on the door. I will confess, there have been times in my life where I did not hate my sins but actually embraced and protected them. It is by the grace of God that His Holy Spirit CONVICTS us and “haunts” our heart by reminding us that we are going in a wrong direction and need to turn around. When the heart becomes calloused and numb to sin, we lose our feelings of guilt and the rebellion of our old nature becomes like an out of control “monster” with no conscience or feelings of remorse. The truth is that we should hate those times when we choose to please our flesh or invite carnality to lead us and gladly forget about what God wants. It does not take a Bible scholar to understand that sin drives a wedge in our relationship with God until we repent and turn our focus back to Him. Actually if we are walking as a true disciple of Christ, sin should make us nauseated because we realize that we are hurting and disappointing God. In this light, our attitude toward sin makes the difference between being aware of our thoughts and actions and living an undisciplined life of constant compromise.

Have you ever sat and thought about how Jesus suffered for you? Do you hate that Jesus had to suffer for your failures? Sometimes I believe we see pictures of Jesus on the cross and hear about how He rose from the dead, but we think on the terms of Him doing it for the “world” instead of for us. A personal relationship with Christ means that we are “bonded” with Him in the knowing that He died for us personally – and that He loves us personally. There are many things to be filled with joy about today! I know my sins are covered under the blood of Jesus and I know that I cannot fail so much that God will stop loving me. I know I am saved by grace though faith and that the seal of that salvation is the Holy Spirit residing inside my own heart. In order NOT to take for granted the blood of Jesus, we must be “on guard” for a lethargic arrogance that can cause us to stop caring about the sin in our lives because we think it is automatically covered by Jesus. It seems that much of the problem is that we forget just how God feels about sin and what He has done to deliver us from it. If the old saying is true that, “out of sight – is out of mind” then maybe we need to keep reminding ourselves of how much love it took to bring Him to earth and inspire Him to be willing to die for us. “Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us ALL. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before her shears is dumb (quiet), so He opened not His mouth.” (Isaiah 53:4-7) This is a perfect explanation of how God feels about sin. He gave the highest most precious gift that could be given so that we could be saved from it. For us to “wallow” in sin after such a display of compassion and generosity would be like spitting in the face of a firefighter that just pulled us from the flames. The utter brutality of His sacrifice illustrates just how much God hates sin and should cause us to live soberly and in reverence to Him. There are no words that can explain or do justice to communicate the horror He suffered for our sins. He was more than wounded – He had nails hammered into his hands and feet, his head was dripping in blood from the crown of thorns and He spent his final hours scraping his shredded back against a piece of wood, hoisting his weight upon the nails in his hands and feet just to take each and every breath. He did all of this naked and under the hot sun was mocked and laughed at all because He loved us more than His own life. He was bruised and beaten, bashed in the face again and again and when He was whipped, it was not just those thin red lines you get from a normal leather whip. Jesus was scourged with strands of leather embedded with glass, rock, and anything else they could tie onto leather. The effect of this sadistic device was to dig into the skin and rip it away from the body as it was pulled across. His back was more than striped – it was shredded.  How can this kind of pain and suffering that occurred during the punishment and death of Jesus be described? How can this type of love be measured? Let us not forget that Jesus deserved none of it because He was “perfect” without sin. Our heavenly Father allowed His only begotten Son to suffer a level of suffering and pain that no one can even fathom in their worst nightmares. This is just a glimpse of how God feels about sin.
 
Eternal life is a free gift that Jesus purchased for us through His agony and death. Even the sins we will commit today are paid for because they were placed on Jesus at the cross. We must never think that our sin has no effect because they do – those sins nailed Him to a cross. There are always consequences for sin but the cross is a reminder that Jesus bore the punishment for the sins we commit. All sin must be punished and in Christ the WAGES of our sin was His death. You see, without Christ, we would bear that punishment eternally but through the establishment of His blood covenant we can be forgiven. In the end, it is about gratitude. Are we truly grateful for what Jesus did for us? Do we consider the COST of our sins and the PRICE that Jesus paid for us to deliver us from temptation? The answer is in our actions. Selah. Appreciation is more than just saying “thank you” but actually living as though we do. Sadly, our willingness to sin reveals our lack of gratitude – and this is where we must evolve! “A possible you” includes the possibility that you and I can not only visualize but actually manifest a much better and improved way of life in the area of purity and virtuous living. Grace is not a license to be carnal. It is time to realize that refusing to let go of our precious sin is like wiping our muddy feet on His love.

A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR YOUR LIFE
PART 26
WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES OF SIN?

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death? Therefore we are “buried” with Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so should we walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6: 1-4)

What are the consequences of sin? Some might say this is a crazy question because we should know that God hates sin – and does not want anyone to sin. I am reminded of the insurance commercial that says, “Everybody knows that” but I believe (even in the Christian faith) there is much confusion about this topic. The above verse says that we should walk in “newness” of life which we all can agree this means to be holy like He is holy, but what about when Christians choose to hold on to the old sins? I am not talking about mistakes or stumbles but rather intentional pet sins that we love and have no plans to be delivered from. My question is; can we live in direct disobedience to His will and still lead a happy, peaceful life in His presence? “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.” (Romans 13:14) When trying to learn more about what God expects and what our responsibilities are concerning sanctification and personal holiness, it is important to know what is true so that we can become all that He has called us to be. I have been around long enough to finally realize that humans are very sneaky and conniving creatures that take advantage of their superior brains which in turn gives them the ability to act one way while secretly thinking and living the opposite. When Jesus mentioned how that we as adults need to become more like “little children” I know He was referring to returning to the state of innocence but I can also see a common attribute in children where they can think of everything in the world to manipulate and justify their schemes in order to get what they want. This standard feature of being able to deceive unfortunately many times does not change but actually becomes more sophisticated as we grow older. The sad truth about this life of game playing is how humans are very convinced that they can outsmart and trick God with all of this. It is almost like when a child watches their parents out of the corner of their eye and attempts to take another piece of chocolate candy without them seeing. How many people live their daily lives believing that they can say, think and do whatever they want with every intention of getting away with it? Allow me to ask a question; do you think that since Jesus died on the cross and paid for our sins, that we can now sin all we want and not worry about it? Do you believe there are times when God shrugs His shoulders or just looks the other way when it comes to our sin? Let us continue and take a closer look at how God feels about our behavior.

I know about a situation that happened several years ago where a young woman committed a huge mistake and it ended up costing her job and her husband. When trying to reach out for counseling and possible reconciliation, a pastor said that her husband should divorce her because they were un-equally yoked together. The young woman wanted to know the meaning of this statement and the pastor replied that it was “impossible” for a Christian to commit such a sin and that obviously she was lost and did not know God. This story causes me to ponder about just how far a Christian can “cross the line” but then I remember King David was a man after God’s heart yet made a huge error in his life that brought much pain and damage. I believe we can say that the dark nature of humans can still be “activated” within the Christian if they allow their thoughts to take control. Yes, we are supposed to be focused on Christ but our free-will is always present and ready to cooperate with our flesh. We also know that if we do fall into a terrible sin and even if we end up in prison, God’s mercy and grace can forgive us if we have a broken and contrite heart and in repentance ask Him to forgive us. This still does not answer my original question about how or if a Christian can continue living in premeditated sin their entire life while still enjoying the blessings and fullness of the glory of God. We know the origin of sin came from Adam and Eve but where does sin originate in our personal life? You guessed it! Our mind. Every sin that is committed comes from a thought and deeds that we have been called to do that we DO NOT do, comes from the absence of thinking. If you have ever grown weary of me or anyone else constantly talking about how our mind needs to be renewed, this is one of the big reasons for the emphasis. It only makes sense that the more we can harness our thoughts – the more holy we can become. Of course we need to DESIRE to live holy or all of this talk just becomes blah – blah – blah. It bothers me that myself and probably many more people like me would rather listen to messages that are filled with the promises of blessings. I realize the subject of sin is something most people are trying to avoid. The “seeker sensitive” idea for many churches today uses a strategy of avoiding the topic of sin because it is feared that it would make individuals uncomfortable. Their plan is to play rock music and talk about psychology instead of telling the truth and allowing the Holy Spirit to do God’s work. For those who do recognize the need for mental discipline as a foundation for sanctification, we can base our energy and vision on the solid rock of His Word. “Casting down IMAGINATIONS, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity EVERY THOUGHT to the obedience of Christ. And having in a readiness to revenge (avenge) all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.” (II Corinthians 10:5-6) Have we as Christians forgotten that it is our responsibility to govern and rule our mind so that God can rule our heart? Do we believe that since our sins have been forgiven that we do not need to worry about being holy? I hope not.

I had a lengthy conversation with a Christian the other day about a certain topic in which they were entangled (which was about a specific sin) and they finally admitted that they knew it was a sin against God. They went on to say that occasionally they felt dirty inside however, they were also quick to point out that according to their view of life the whole world sins every day and that sin was sin. In their justification of this lifestyle they had measured the good and bad and felt confident that not only God would understand but that He would lovingly welcome them into His heaven when they pass from this life. The concept behind this theology is that God loves sinners and has mercy on our weaknesses. I listened for a while and finally said this is true within the context of our knowledge and His sovereignty but followed with saying this particular sin that we were talking about is a willful, INTENTIONAL lifestyle choice that is offensive to His holiness. It was like an arrow had been shot into their heart and the conversation changed directions into something completely different. I realized the Holy Spirit had provided the conviction but the rebellion was standing its ground. The little child was stomping its feet and having a tantrum while screaming “I don’t care if it’s wrong – I want it! When they left it dawned on me – are we all not the same way? I wondered if this was a divine appointment of if I should have maybe went even further but I could definitely sense this was a tender area that did not want to be touched. Don’t we all justify what we love and are we all not guilty of protecting our sinful thoughts? I thought we were supposed to be casting them down. I believe in order to become a “more improved” follower of Christ; we need to not only examine the truth about sin but also do some intense cleaning within the hidden chambers, attics, basements and secret places within our heart. These are messages that need to be spoken but many times the speaker is too embarrassed to expose their own problems and weaknesses.

I realize that we usually sin everyday but I also not proclaiming that we “must” continually sin by always complaining how the devil made us do it because sadly, we are quite capable of committing our fair share of trespasses completely on our own. I also am not trying to be negative by implying that we will probably not attain to a level where we do not sin, but if we could ever develop an awareness of His presence, we could certainly improve from where we are. The Nazarene denomination is a group of Christians that are convinced that it is possible for an individual to reach a level of perfection or sinlessness. It is called, “entire sanctification” and comes from the teachings and doctrines of John Wesley. I have heard Bible teachers Present the idea that sin is not something “we must do” because they believe that most of our trespasses can be avoided and can be traced back to the willing choices that we make. The question that needs to be asked is not whether our sins are covered under the blood of Jesus but what about explaining the fine details and small print clauses that reveal just how this process works and what it includes. We know that if we confess our sins and repent with Godly sorrow that He listens and responds by forgiving us. However, what happens when someone is involved with a sin and does not ask for forgiveness neither do they even worry about it because they are convinced that the sins of a Christian are “automatically” washed away? Will there be any type of judgment for unrepentant sin in this believer’s life? I want to continue with these thoughts in the next message, but in closing I just want remind us that we are to hate sin. We are not to view sin as exciting, thrilling, interesting or entertaining. Sin makes God sick and angry and He is very offended when we allow it to dominate our life. It always comes back to the importance of developing an awareness of what we are thinking which directly effects our walk with God. The closer we are in our love relationship with Him the further away from sin we should run. To hold onto sin with one hand and hold God’s hand with the other is living in deception. Selah.

A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR YOUR LIFE
PART 25
REVIVAL HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH RELIGION

Lord, I come to you now, knowing that you see me and are listening to my cries. “Your eyes are on the sparrow, and I know You are watching me.” realize that for me to be effective, I must be in position to be used. This only takes place when I become obedient to your voice and willing to do what you are saying. Please give me a burning desire to draw closer to you (not so that I can do more works) but only because I love you.

I know you have a specific place for me to serve, but I must deal with my attitude. When I become usable – you will move me into my place. If I keep trying to do it myself, or take control of the situation it is only going to delay and hinder the situation. All I need to focus on is to make sure my heart is right and that I am sold-out to your will. I do not want to compromise with playing games in the religious system. I believe that others are suffering from not listening to your Holy Spirit. Many have brought much of their discouragement on themselves because they have observed false ministries that have prospered from compromising your truth. People are able to do many things but very few are ready to lay down their agenda. I would rather live isolated but in your presence – than to be world renown without you.

I pray that you will touch my body and make me whole. As I grow older, I have aches and pains and I reach out and touch the hem of your garment I ask today that you purify and cleanse me. You are the Great Physician that has all power and authority and I release my faith according to your Word. You are the Healer and desire to restore and perform miracles and I confess and receive them today in Jesus Name. Deliver me from that which is trying to hurt and kill me and empower me with Your anointing. Protect me from the attacks of the enemy and reveal to me any open doors that are allowing me to be ambushed. I repent from my sins and ask you to wash me clean. Purify my heart with the refining fire of your love. I confess victory and choose life this day and believe in faith that you are guiding and intervening on my behalf for your glory, in the Name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Many may think it is strange to pray for one’s self but actually it is not. The reason why people overlook this is because they do not feel they need anything at the present time or are convinced that spiritually they are OK the way they are. If we think everything is fine just because we are not having any major problems, we are not seeing clearly. In reality, we are a very desperate people that are in constant need of God’s touch. It is possible for the pride of our independence to deceive us because our nature does not want to rely or commune with God about the direction of our life. Remember the old hymn, I need Thee?

I need Thee every hour, most gracious Lord, no tender voice like Thine can peace afford.
I need Thee every hour, stay Thou nearby, temptations lose their power when Thou art nigh.
I need Thee every hour, in joy or pain, come quickly and abide, or life is vain.
I need Thee every hour; teach me Thy will, and Thy rich promises in me fulfill.
I need Thee every hour, most Holy One, oh, make me Thine indeed, Thou blessed Son.
I need Thee, Oh I need thee – every hour I need Thee – Oh, bless me now my Savior – I come to Thee.

We were never created to live on our own but God’s idea was for us to walk “with” Him. Many have never realized this is God’s world and He created everything in it (including us) to worship Him and to obey Him. This can only be done in a humble, submissive attitude of love and wisdom. Big news alert – God will not resuscitate or bless anything that is acting or pretending to be religious! Why not? Because religion is an idol that tries to compete for God’s attention. It is the generic impostor that presents itself as the genuine for the purpose of leading souls away from the Almighty. I would also guess there are not many people praying for revival either. Why would you say that? Because they think everything is OK the way it is. Sadly, when people do pray for revival, many usually do not understand what they are asking for because it is not what they are convinced it is. Most people think revival is where God blesses what we have been trying to do. If we think that more people will bring more money into the church so that new can purchase or do more things, we have been derailed in our thinking. The real definition of revival means to be renewed and transformed back to GOD! To be revived is to be brought back from the dead – but not to be restored back to our old cold, religious state of being. God is not interested in pouring out the healing power of His Spirit so that He might enhance our man-made programs and advertise our political agendas. He desires for people to throw away their preconceived ideas so that He can do what He wants to do. He is all about saving souls and renewing the minds of those who are seeking His face. He desires to bring the revelation of His Word so that individuals can begin to see what life is all about – and begin the “change” process. He wants His children to be followers of His voice – not followers of a denomination. He despises the petty doctrines of man and the twisted arguments that corrupt the conscience with carnal arrogance. I actually believe God is calling many of His true saints OUT of the organized chaos of religion because the sin of unbelief has caused the Lord to take away the candlestick of the assembly and He has backed away from these masquerade parties that many are calling church. “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such TURN AWAY. Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the TRUTH” (II Timothy 3: 5, 7). If you are one of God’s children that has been called out of the religious system, do not be discouraged but rejoice in knowing that He is watching over you and guiding you into His will. “But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and have been assured of, knowing of whom thou has learned them; and that from a child thou hast known the Holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through FAITH which is in Christ Jesus.” (II Timothy 3: 14-15)

The future of the religious church will continue down the broad path of absorbing the sins of the world and focusing on entertaining the carnal nature. This seeker sensitive approach to ministry is replacing God’s truth with a deceptive presentation that brings comfort, relaxation and a false security. Without the conviction of God’s balanced Word the Holy Spirit cannot convict the heart to repent or be enlightened with revelation wisdom. The future of the remnant bride will continue to include solitude, rejection, mockery and persecution. “Yea, and all that will live GODLY in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” The true church will become hated as Christ was hated by the religious masses. I am concerned to say that followers of Jesus will be outcast from their own families and targeted as heretics, hatemongers, blasphemers and a menace to society, but the Words of God will come to pass exactly as they were prophesied, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance (conflict) against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.” (Mathew 10: 34-36) Being led of the “Spirit” is the most common Christian subject to talk about and yet hardly ever practiced. We all wonder why the church world has surrendered much of its power and influence yet it refuses to let go of control. In the past it was common to hear about revivals and tent meetings and we looked forward to seasons of spiritual awakening and refreshing, but much of the excitement has faded because the enthusiasm to live a sanctified life has become weak. Revival is not a blanket that covers a multitude of people all at once as much as it is a “personal” conviction that God is trying to get our attention about changing US! The foundation for revival always originates from prayer and the realization that we are desperately in need of a touch from God. Repentance is the fuel that prepares and ignites revival for the purpose of establishing an awareness of our responsibility to live holy before God in order to draw nearer to the Lord and be a witness and testimony to the world. It is no secret that the flesh hates to be conformed to God’s Word and our old nature has no desire to allow Christ to sit on the throne of our heart. The undisciplined lifestyle of Christians comes from giving in to the temptation to be led by the un-renewed mind and this will hardened the heart and reinforce an evil rebellion in those who consider themselves decent and moral. However, deception means that a person is blind but does not realize it! The reason why revival has lost its popularity is because people would rather look the part of a religious person than actually walk with God. I know many people that are members of churches that lead heathen lifestyles. I know none of us are perfect but how could anyone that lives as a hypocrite, be relaxed and comfortable under the anointed preaching of God’s Word? Who has the courage to speak the truth? Abandoning our carnal will has been replaced with religious entertainment because people are more attracted and interested in a soft soothing message of comfort and prosperity than the piercing, (reviving) spiritual realities of God’s truth. Selah.

A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR YOUR LIFE
PART 24
FANNING THE EMBERS OF LOVE

“Say not ye, there are four months, and then comes the harvest? Behold, I say unto you, lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white (ripe) already to harvest. And he that reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit unto life eternal: that both he that sows and he that reaps may rejoice together.” (John 4: 35-36) As Christians, the concept of evangelism includes “producing” or birthing new people into God’s Kingdom by spreading the gospel. We believe and teach that God’s Word has the power to transform those who reach out to Jesus by faith. We are supposed to know that it is our responsibility to sow His seed and be a witness unto the world so the lost might “see” Christ and be drawn to Him by the Holy Spirit. This is certainly the heart of the great commission to “multiply” and expand God’s flock however, I believe there has been one crucial component that has been left out of this divine process over the last 75 years and that is – actually doing it! It seems the same problem keeps coming up over and over, we realize how we should be a light and salt, we have read many salvation tracts and have listened to many missionaries tell their stories, but it seems our burden is NOT burning brightly because we have forgotten that WE are missionaries! Is it possible that many have never had the revelation of God’s truth about how we are being held accountable for interceding as a soul-winner? Could our level of love be so low that we are embarrassed and we have no burden for other people’s souls? Maybe Christians are NOT living holy in front of those they know and CANNOT be a witness because no one respects their spiritual walk! Selah. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16)

The church is a wonderful place to learn about being a witness and to even practice the skills of sharing the gospel, testifying and teaching, but where did we ever come up with the idea that this is the ONLY place we “demonstrate” our obedience? We learn and develop our skills to minister in the safe environment of the assembly – so that we can be “equipped” to minister the gospel in the harsh realities of this dark world. It seems that many would rather stay in boot-camp and hide behind the walls of the church instead of developing an awareness of God’s presence outside of their comfort zone so that our peers can “see” what a good soldier we are. In the real world it is difficult to discern God’s divine appointments if we are not “looking” for them. Selah. Awareness takes effect when we ask Him to open our eyes and then EXPECT to be used as a “light” of His love wherever we are. If we choose to stay focused and distracted with our own agenda, we will walk right past the ones that God wanted us to intervene with. He is always trying to get our attention but many times we are just too busy or uninterested to get involved.

We must also include in the world of evangelism that many consider the “lost” as heathens in third world countries that are deceived or criminals and bad people that are psychotic monsters. This might be partly true, but we also need to re-focus our attention from the “world” and become aware of the truth that the lost also includes those we work with and even individuals in our own family! It is much easier to see evangelism as something that missionaries do for a living instead of embracing the burden and looking into the mirror to understand that our mission is the same. It does not make any sense that we would go to church and put money into the offering plate for world missions while ignoring our responsibility to evangelize and teach our own children and be a testimony unto our own friends and family! We can talk about spiritual leadership all day long but if we do not include the ones we know and love – we have missed the point! If the head of the house guides the family into the Lord and obeys God’s voice, there will be a beautiful expression of God’s love and wisdom that will be produced. I am not saying there will not be challenges or trials, but we have been promised that if we do our part, God will provide the miracle power that is needed to touch a heart. There will be many arguments about this and many will be offended because they are frustrated and have experienced much failure in this area but this does not mean that God’s principals are not true. People are quick to point out that all truth has exceptions but I can say without being ashamed that we must hold on to our faith. If God and His Word are not perfect and if He has even the slightest possibility of failing, then we might as well throw it all in the garbage, live however we want and hope for the best. God is all about perfect order and us following His divine instructions to the letter – then and only then will He release the miracles and blessings that is a part of His will that was envisioned before we were born. God has a plan for each person – but just because someone rejects His salvation it does not mean that God has failed. He placed Godly mothers and fathers in the home to teach and live as an example to the family and this is our first and most important mission field.

Sadly, many believe that life is just a card game and whatever happens – happens. They may ask someone to please pray when someone is in the hospital or is facing a prison sentence but overall they just live day by day believing in their own intelligence and laboring in their own strength. This is NOT the way we are supposed to live and certainly NOT the Lord’s idea of the Christian life! God has given His instruction manual and when we yield our will and allow Him to be our Lord, it is our obedience that enables His Spirit to operate and activate the power of His revelation wisdom into our life. You see, God does not play the games of chance. He does not look at us in the morning and spin the roulette wheel to cause or prevent us from having a good day or a day filled with tragedy. Many of the things that happen in our day to day lives are consequences that are related the acts that were spoken or committed or not spoken and omitted. I said, “Many” not all, because there are other circumstances that involve His plans and no human has the answers for the many other unexplainable events that happen. I am a counselor for the Kentucky emergency crisis response organization and the most frequently used word in crisis is “why” (which very rarely anyone has an answer for). My point is that God works within such a system of principals and order of perfection that our sensitivity and obedience has a direct influence on not only things around us but also how they affect our life. It is the Lord Almighty that causes things to happen – who prevents things from happening and who can stop whatever IF HE WANTS TO! This is the kind of authority that makes the crooked places straight and makes a way where there seems to be no way! This is the miracle power that changes circumstances, opens doors and allows the world to see the GLORY of God!

Let us go another step in this subject. We seem to have the idea that everything that happens is God’s will. I was raised with the doctrinal view that believes God chooses everything to do or not to do which makes everything His decision. There is some truth in this concept but He never intended or led anyone into sin and sin is the root cause why many bad things happen. The sovereignty of God is a huge and controversial subject because it means that God can do (or choose not to do) whatever He desires and it is not my intention of going into this now, however to continue on the subject of evangelism, we must acknowledge the fact that understanding revelational truth and fervent faith can and does play a significant role in what happens to us and those around us! Let us be very simple for the sake of time and ask the question; does living close to God make any difference in eternity? Are there deeds that can be done that will literally have a life-changing effect on certain people and have an eternal impact on their soul? If we answered yes, then we must accept the fact that us choosing to obey Him within our free-will accomplishes His foreknowledge and has a direct impact on our destiny! Just because He wants someone to do something – that does not mean they will do it! Those who choose to listen and be used in the confidence and boldness of His anointing will be rewarded with joining God’s passion to save the lost. Even if we have not been used in the entire conviction process, He will recognize and bless our spiritual sensitivity within His divine appointment. “And herein is that saying true, one sows, and another reaps. I sent you to reap where you bestowed no labor: other men labored, and you entered into their labors” (John 4: 37-38)

It is not difficult to stop and look around and see the consequences of ignorance. I use this word in the sense of being “unlearned”. Let us look at a few more words that are directly related to this word as defined by the Oxford dictionary; “unknowing, unaware, unenlightened, in the dark, oblivious, uneducated, uninformed, ill-mannered, rude, discourteous, boorish, and impolite.” For those who do not know what their responsibilities are, The Lord allows time for learning and development but what about the elders in the faith that refuses to become involved with soul winning? This lack of concern reveals a serious problem.

Once upon a time in this country, there was a common belief that God was absolutely true and every other spiritual idea was confused. You could go anywhere in the eighteen hundreds and early nineteen hundreds, and find that most people believed in the reverence and respect for the God of the Bible. God’s Word was thought of as the highest power and anyone connected with His kingdom were considered humble servants of integrity. In today’s world system that embraces the philosophy that every religion is just another road to heaven, it is more difficult to proclaim the gospel of Christ as the “only” way with God. This is why it is so crucial that we as Christians listen carefully and follow His instructions. It is not how much we preach or hand out tracts – it is asking Him for a burning passion of LOVE, to abandon our will and have the courage to “LIVE” what we know. Selah.