+ + +
Worthy is the LAMB+... worthy is the LAMB+... worthy is the LAMB+ that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing! Blessing and honor and glory and power be unto HIM that sitteth on the throne and unto The LAMB+ for ever and ever. Amen.
+ + +
Sooner or later, we all have ENORMOUS hurts or difficulties. They come to Christian and non-Christian, alike. Deaths, bodily sickness or injury, divorce, loneliness --- deep, gut-wrenching loneliness--- every human soul knows these heart-aches in one way or another. And then, when joy is finally gone, comes the worst: what is life all about, anyways? And for some, is it worth the struggle?
Our LORD JESUS tells us to walk with HIM+. HE+ does NOT tell us to be joyful. HE+ does tell us to offer up thanksgiving and praise of Who+ HE+ is in the midst of these griefs. Like Job, we recognize His+ Sovereignty at all times and in all circumstances. And then, we are required to walk with HIM+… in as much obedience as if the hurt had not happened.
As we walk with The LORD JESUS through these gut-wrenching sorrows, HE+ comforts us. HE+ also corrects our vision. HE+ corrects where --- or in whom--- we have put our trust. The Psalmist correctly states:
So now, how do we WHO ARE ALREADY IN THE COVENANT become acceptable to The LORD? Scriptures in several places, including the Psalms, and the Apostles writings, exhorts us to do those things which will make us acceptable unto HIM+.
[An aside: Originally, the Psalms were written by, to, and for the people of GOD who were under the Old Testament or Old Covenant. [Testament means covenant.] These saints were kept safe under the Mosaic Law, the Old Covenant, until the time of the Messiah. The LORD JESUS CHRIST, the Messiah, established the New and Better Covenant… the covenant made through His+ Blood.
We who are not born Jewish have become grafted into the Israel of GOD through The LORD JESUS CHRIST. Indeed, the Jews themselves now must enter into His+ new covenant established by the Messiah. The Old Covenant no longer exists.
The Psalms therefore, including both the promises and the words of exhortation, may be appropriated by all who are in the New Covenant through the LORD JESUS CHRIST. ]
So now, how do we WHO ARE ALREADY IN THE COVENANT
become acceptable to The LORD?
Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults.
Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins;
let them not have dominion over me:
then shall I be upright,
and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.
Psalm 19:12,13
Becoming acceptable unto The LORD involves good grooming of our soul and spirit. We continuously comb out the tangles. We get out the snags. The twisted nests of knots, hidden underneath, must be brought to the surface and be unsnarled, combed straight, and set free. The comb we use has sharp teeth… it is the standard of Scripture, the very words of The LORD CHRIST.
Thus, we monitor our motives, the thoughts of our hearts, in the light of His+ Word. What agrees with Scriptures, WITH CHRIST’S WORDS, we keep. What disagrees with HIS+WORD, we comb out and untangle. Even if we must use the scissors, we rid ourselves of the hidden twisted nests of knots, in the light of GOD’S word and by the power of the HOLY SPIRIT. The Apostle Paul is a good example of this. He urged the Christians to be imitators of him in this respect, to follow his ways of following CHRIST.
Let us not be content to allow ourselves tangles and twisted knots. We think they cannot be seen by others. But, there is ONE+ Who+ sees all.
Dear Heavenly FATHER, THOU art Holy. I need that holiness in the inner man. Help me to be pure in thought… pure in word … pure in deed. Help me to see my motives and ungracious spirit when I think things unworthy of my LORD CHRIST. I do not want Him+ to be ashamed of me and to always have to tolerate my slovenly ways. Help me not to excuse myself, but to walk in a way that is well-pleasing unto YOU, through your Well Beloved SON our LORD, in the strength of Your Blessed HOLY SPIRIT.
I praise You for Your continual goodness toward me. I thank You for Your patience with my errors. I thank You for Your holiness now and Your holiness when You walked on earth as a man. Help me to become more holy in my innermost being. Help me to follow your example as my LORD+ and MASTER+.
I pray this in the unblemished name of The LORD JESUS CHRIST, Your eternal SON and WORD.
Amen. + + +
And I saw the dead, small an 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. Rev. 20: 12,14
He that hath an ear, let him hear what the SPIRIT saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death. Rev. 2:11
But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone;
which is the second death. Rev. 21:8The second death brings to us the true, horrible, and frightening aspect of spending eternity in the Lake of Fire where the adversary satan will be placed. This likely will be, at the very least, that one will experience the amount of pain and suffering one has done to others during his life on earth... but possibly more, since The LORD takes those offenses as done unto HIMSELF.
Then, there is the accountability of who did one serve: The LORD .... satan.... oneself ?
JESUS HIMSELF spoke of this SECOND death in Mark 9: 42-48. Listen to His Words:
And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.
And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off; it is better for thee to enter into Life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell,
into the fire that never shall be quenched:
where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED.
And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into Life, than having two feet to be cast into hell,
into the fire that never shall be quenched:
where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED.
And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of GOD with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire:
where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED.
Life, in the above passage, refers to entering into Eternity with JESUS. Our LORD is telling us that rather than sin and miss Eternal Life with HIM+, it would be better for us to sever our needed body part through which sin has come. Why? It is because when we get to Heaven, we'll be made whole, once again, plus have eternal life in a NEW KIND of BODY, LIKE HIS+ GLORIOUS RESURRECTED BODY!
In other words, no matter the personal cost,
DON'T MISS ETERNITY WITH JESUS.
The opposite is a nightmare which never, ever ceases.
That second death is where all who are waiting in hell for the final judgment are thrown into the Lake of Burning Fire with hell itself and death ! We see that when the unredeemed die, they go to a place of waiting called hell or hades (Gk) or sheol (Heb). They are in torments there, as JESUS told us in Luke 16.
BUT THAT IS NOT THE SECOND DEATH
....WHICH AWAITS THEM LATER.
That awful, eternal, SECOND DEATH,
where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched.
This brings us back to our priorites, Christians...
and our accountability before the great Judgment Seat of CHRIST.
In the light of the SECOND death, how then should we live... before GOD, daily... before our fellow man... in our pursuits of this life... in the priorities of our day?
Are we truly concerned about the peoples and tribes who have never heard about The LORD, that they might be saved from the Lake of Burning Fire, the SECOND death?
Are we truly concerned about our lost neighbors that they might be saved from the SECOND death? Or rather, do we keep things on an easy, comfortable level? Do we even think to pray for them... other than when they get sick? The SECOND death is going to be harder on them than any sickness they have ever seen on this earth... and more long-lasting, too. Do we care enough even to set some regular time aside to pray?
Do we pray for opportunities to share the seriousness of eternal consequences with those who are hostile to us?
Let us pray:
Dear Holy, Heavenly FATHER,
I come to you ashamed of my light-hearted walk before THEE. I have not laid to heart the seriousness of Thy words nor of Thy commission. O LORD JESUS CHRIST, it is my heart's desire that all would know THEE+ ... Thy great love, Thy great cleansing power, and Thy great Life both here and beyond the grave.
Turn me away from self-centeredness, O LORD, and let Thy Anointing rest upon me. Let others sense the seriousness of eternal consequences when they see me or converse with me. And help me, O help me, to dislodge myself from comfort and rise up and do those things which will help to rescue friends and enemies alike from the SECOND death... which was not intended for men but for the fallen angels. I am ashamed of my lack of concern. Where would I be if others had not been concerned about my falling into that very Lake ?
I Thank THEE+, O Holy ONE+, for the salvation THOU+ has given to mankind... for whosoever will come to THEE+ . Help me to rescue the perishing and do my part, to show my love and thankfulness unto THEE+.
IN the name of the FATHER, His+ SON, JESUS CHRIST our LORD, and the HOLY SPIRIT. Amen.
+ + +
LENTEN MEDITATION 16 ~ ~ ~ The Hated People
For the Year of Our LORD, 2.21.2008
Love not the world,
neither the things that are in the world.
If any man love the world,
the love of the Father is not in him.
For ALL that is in the world,
the lust of the flesh,
and the lust of the eyes,
and the pride of life,
is not of the Father,
but is of the world.
And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof:
but he that doeth the will of God
abideth for ever.
I John 2:15-17
To do the will of GOD in every instance, in every situation, in every contingency is foremost in the heart of every serious Christian. What is the key to knowing what HIS+ will is, though, in situations about which the Scriptures are quiet?
The first step in knowing HIS+ Will is to make certain we are aligned with His+ purposes. His+ purposes are found in His+ Word.
They begin with our life-styles.
Does our lifestyle reflect in exactness WHO The LORD JESUS CHRIST is?
If we blend in with our decent, conservative, hard-working neighbors… something is wrong. There are countless millions of Hindu’s, Buddhists, Moslems, and peoples who practice ancient tribal religions… who are also decent, conservative, and hard-working and who love “their” nation, culture, or society.
There are countless others in every inhabited area upon this earth who love their culture, the ways of their forefathers, their nation, so much that they would defend it to the death. In every country or nation or tribal area, there are countless “decent people” who would even send their sons and daughters to their untimely death to protect what they have… or think they have. There are countless peoples who train their off-spring to have good educations, jobs, and careers… to climb high, to have a better life than the parents.
But, what does the Word of GOD say? HE+ says this:
For what shall it profit a man,
if he shall gain the whole world,
and lose his own soul?
Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
Mark 8:36,37
There are uncountable other non-Christians in every country who do not rob banks nor kill their neighbors, who honor their aging parents, and love their children. These are good values, yes, and all societies have them.
However, The LORD JESUS CHRIST doesn’t blend in
with any culture, sub-culture, society, or nation…
although Scripture teaches that the Church will be
formed out of every language, tongue, people, and nation!
HE+ calls us OUT of our cultures, whatever they may be,
in order to be ONE with HIM+.
Are we Christians supposed to be a blended people… or a separate people?
We are peculiar people. We are strangers and sojourners upon this earth just like Abraham was… we do not put down our roots here, but upward, into that Holy City whose Maker and Builder is GOD. The LORD JESUS said:
If the world hate you,
ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
If ye were of the world, the world would love his own:
but because ye are not of the world,
but I have chosen you out of the world,
therefore the world hateth you. John 15: 18,19
Yes, we Christians should be a hated people… hated, not because of criminal activities or ill-manners, but because of our righteousness before GOD.
Even without saying a word, the worldlings around us should be able to sense the difference. The HOLY SPIRIT should be resting upon us and within us so strongly that, without saying a word to anyone, any worldling around us should feel a bit uneasy, somewhat uncomfortable for their lack of holiness.
We should notice they start to talk about their philosophies of “God”
or their “good works” of whatever variety they have.
However, the hungry souls around us will be drawn unto CHRIST JESUS. They will be drawn to HIM+ when we lift HIM+ up within us … as we yield unto CHRIST JESUS… as HE+ fills us with HIMSELF because we are turning away from the world. The hungry souls will have conviction fall upon their lives and they will cry out to The LORD to help them. They will know something is missing from their lives.
They will be pricked in their conscience to do something about amending their relationship with the Living GOD. HE+ is drawing, drawing them unto HIMSELF+… as we have lifted HIM+ up.
How do we become this hated people?
We simply separate ourselves from the world and follow CHRIST JESUS.
We separate from the world’s ways, styles, labor and life-styles.
We learn to work for The LORD where HE+ wants us to labor. We learn to live in such a manner that we present a visible yet silent witness to those around us. We set our homes, our dress, our recreation
to reflect CHRIST JESUS and to bear witness to HIM+ at all times
… including holiday times and visits with relatives.
We just simply separate. We will be hated enough.
Then, O then, will we be able to discern what is the “will of GOD”
for our lives, in so many situations and in so many particular details
about which the Scriptures are quiet.
What a relief to be in the center of GOD’s will.
It is the peace the world cannot give, nor can it take it away.
Let us pray:
Gracious Heavenly FATHER, Beloved SON, and Blessed SPIRIT, I
so long to be in the center of Thy Will. I want to be where You are, O LORD. Help me to turn away from the distractions of worldly things. Help me to forsake the world’s values. By the power of Thy Blessed HOLY SPIRIT help me to desire that holiness without which no man shall see GOD.
Help me to align myself with Your Word in every instance, even if I must disregard my own thoughts and cultural values. Grant me strength to reflect CHRIST instead of the world in my life-style. I re-commit myself to serving THEE+ with every thought and desire that is within me.
Thank You, O FATHER, for Thy Blessed HOLY SPIRIT to lead me into all Truth. Strengthen me to walk in it now and not be afraid to be hated because I am different for Thy sake. This I pray in the name of Thy Precious SON, JESUS CHRIST, Who+ was hated for my sake, so that I might know THEE, the One True GOD, Who loveth mankind. Amen.