My Mission: To Know and To Love the One True God

Repairing the Breach in the Kingdom of God - Part One

2009-11-06T23:19:00.005-05:00

Our Calling to Peace With Each Other...

The current cry in the world is for peace. The world is now claiming through media (movies, TV, etc.) that peace will only come through religious tolerance. Those who are promoting this kind of peace believe that all religions ultimately worship the same god and that is how the world wants to unify all people. This has led to our nation’s adultery with foreign gods. In the Kingdom of God, though, peace can only come when we come together as one to worship and obey King Jesus. Christians are commanded to seek God’s knowledge and understanding in His Word, the Bible, so how does God define this peace through King Jesus and what is its true purpose?

"and that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who were once afar off are made near by the blood of Christ. For He is our peace, He making us both one, and He has broken down the middle wall of partition between us, having abolished in His flesh the enmity (the Law of commandments contained in ordinances) so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, making peace between them; and so that He might reconcile both to God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity in Himself. And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off, and to those who were near.” (Eph 2:12-17 MKJV)

King Jesus Himself is God’s definition of peace! It was His sacrifice that brought peace to the world because sin had separated man from God and also brought division between mankind. Peace comes when two become one. We have peace with God when we become one with Jesus and peace is achieved between people when we become one body in Jesus. The ultimate purpose of peace, then, is for the world to be reconciled to God and for people to be reconciled to each other. Peace is one of the necessary attributes in the Kingdom of God.

Romans 14:17 – “the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit”.

The Kingdom of God is defined in this scripture by three things: 1.) righteousness – which is living the right way God wants us to, 2.) peace – living in unity, as one in Jesus, and 3.) joy – which is having happiness in our lives. These three Kingdom attributes are achieved by the power of the Holy Spirit who comes and dwells inside of us when we accept the covenant that Jesus offers to us. These Kingdom attributes pertain to how we live our lives and the relationships we have. So, that means the Kingdom of God should affect every aspect of our lives, especially in our relationships with each other. Christians are to seek peace in every relationship they have, and if they don’t, then a breach is made in the Kingdom.

Kingdom living can also be summed up into the two greatest commandments – love God with all your heart, soul, mind, strength, and love our neighbor as yourself. When I studied the Bible on how to love this way, I discovered that the most honorable and most important relationship in the Kingdom of God is marriage (Heb. 13:4). I believe that understanding the definition of marriage in the Bible is the key to understanding God’s peace in our relationship with Jesus and in our relationships with each other. It also helped me understand why the worship of other gods is considered adultery against God.

When I became born again, I first related to God as my Father and Creator, but then I soon learned that my relationship with Him was to grow into a more mature, intimate relationship as I joined with the body and spirit of Jesus – becoming one with Him. The Bible defines marriage as two becoming one.

For we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones. "For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two of them shall be one flesh." This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. (Eph 5:30-32 MKJV)

I discovered that marriage is the “grown up” relationship that the Church has with Jesus and His marriage to His people is the mystery of the Kingdom that He wants to reveal to us. Unfortunately, in the Church, we have been treating marriage as the least important relationship in our lives. We have not been living in peace with our spouses. We easily give up on marriage and we have been treating our spouses with treachery, indifference, and hate. We claim that divorce will bring us peace, but it really is a false peace. Many people in the Church are facing a crisis like this in their marriage right now. Families are being divided because spouses are choosing not to repair the breach that has come between them. This pattern of defeat and divorce within the Church should concern us because it has caused a great and ever widening breach to develop in the Kingdom of God.

Christians, wanting to be in God’s will as they handle their marriage crisis, turn to many books and counselors in the Christian community for advice, but many of them have different ways of handling the situation. Some advise that if infidelity occurs, then the fate of the marriage has already been decided and divorce is the acceptable option. Christians have also fallen into the trap of believing that they deserve better, so they find scriptures in the Bible that they think justify a divorce so that they can remarry and be happy again. Christians are leaving their families to pursue new lifestyles and new loves while the other spouse is left to deal with the burdens and responsibilities of raising the children and maintaining a home alone.

So how does someone really know what they should do when they are faced with an impending division or breach in their marriage and family? While studying love in the Bible (http://www.basiclovetraining.org), I discovered that God gave us the best example on how to deal with an unfaithful and unloving spouse. It is His love story and it is found all throughout Scripture. Understanding God’s marriage and love story should radically change how Christians view their marriages and how they should really love their spouses and live at peace with them.

God’s marriage to the children of Israel took place at the mountain of God where He gave them His covenant after their exodus from Egypt (Exodus 24). He provided everything for them, but they became a rebellious “wife”. That led to her unfaithfulness to God and then it led to her rejection of God as her Husband. God then decided to separate the disobedient part of her body from the obedient part in order to preserve the heart and soul of His wife. So as she was divided, she became two sisters – Jerusalem and Samaria. (http://www.basiclovetraining.org/blt_level4)

Samaria, the disobedient sister, wanted to leave Him anyway, so she did everything she could to make God angry with her until He finally granted her a divorce, removing her from His sight. (2 Kings 17, Jeremiah 3) Even though she rejected His love, He never broke His covenant to her (Psa 89:30-37). During her unfaithfulness and even after the divorce, He still loved her and asked her to return to Him. Unfortunately, though, she didn’t come back to Him and she was destroyed.

Jerusalem, even after witnessing what happened to Samaria, wound up betraying God and became worse than her sister! She would get into trouble, and when she needed His help, she would come back to Him in pretense, but her heart was not in it. He eventually rejected her false love and allowed her to go into captivity by her lovers and they ruined her.

Despite all of His wife’s unfaithfulness and rejection, God still wanted to have peace with all of her. He wanted to reconcile their relationship personally, so in order to demonstrate to His wife how much He loved her, to give her new life, and to set her free from her captivity, He came to the earth as Jesus and sacrificed His own life for her. This would give her eternal life, and it would make her virtuous, healthy, and whole again. She could now be joined to him by spirit, and as a new united body, her new name would be New Jerusalem, or Zion, the city of King Jesus. (http://www.basiclovetraining.org/blt_level3)

God’s love story doesn’t end there, though.

Instead of becoming one body, she divided again - dividing into the daughters of Zion (Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, & Laodicea), a daughter of Jerusalem (Egypt & Sodom), a daughter of Samaria, and a daughter of Babylon. I believe these are the Ten Virgins that Jesus talked about in one of His parables of the Kingdom of God. All God ever wanted was for His wife to love Him with all her heart, soul, mind, strength, and for her members to unite together as one in love in His city, New Jerusalem. Instead of joining together in the ministry that their Husband, King Jesus, called them to do, they created a breach that separated themselves from each other and from Him. This breach was made because of the wickedness, heavy burdens, oppression, and unnecessary yokes that the daughters put upon each other.

The Curse on America

2009-09-28T08:57:00.003-04:00

There is a curse on America, but it wasn't made by a magic spell.

"But if you will not obey the voice of the LORD your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you. (Deu 28:15 ESV)

"The LORD will bring you and your king whom you set over you to a nation that neither you nor your fathers have known. And there you shall serve other gods of wood and stone. And you shall become a horror, a proverb, and a byword among all the peoples where the LORD will lead you away. (Deu 28:36-37 ESV)

For the nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; those nations shall be utterly laid waste. (Isa 60:12 ESV)

And I will bring on that land all My Words which I have spoken against it, all that is written in this book which Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations. (Jer 25:13 MKJV)

For behold, those who are far from you shall perish; you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you. (Psa 73:27 ESV)

A curse has come upon us because of our unfaithfulness, or adultery - against God and against each other. Our nation doesn't follow after God's commandments and we have accepted and are practicing the worship of other gods and idols. These practices in our nation are also seen in American Churches.

If you have been following my study, you should understand how God's people are married to Him by covenant. Jesus is the Husband and the Church is His wife. The Church became an adulteress when she started lusting after idols in the world, allowed the worship of other gods in her home, and she stopped living and loving like Jesus commanded (broke their covenant). Every nation where the Church resides and is committing adultery in will be judged.

A good indication that a nation is committing adultery is the rate of divorce in that country. Divorce is a major cause of adultery.

The Bible's explanation of committing adultery is found in these verses:

But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
(Mat 5:32 ESV)

And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery."
(Mat 19:9 ESV)

And he said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her, and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."
(Mar 10:11-12 ESV)

"Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery. (Luk 16:18 ESV)

Adultery is committed by either marrying someone else after divorcing your spouse, or by marrying someone who has been divorced. If you divorce your spouse because they are sexually immoral, that does not give you the right to go and marry someone else. If you do, then you will be committing adultery. A marriage joins two people as one body and their covenant is for life. You are to either reconcile with your spouse, or remain unmarried, living separate but in peace with each other.

And Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking, "Is it lawful to divorce one's wife for any cause?" He answered, "Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, 'Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate."
(Mat 19:3-6 ESV)

We need to protect marriage in America, because through marriage, a new body is formed and a new life begins. Divorce is marital abortion!

"I hate divorce," says the GOD of Israel. GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies says, "I hate the violent dismembering of the 'one flesh' of marriage." So watch yourselves. Don't let your guard down. Don't cheat. (Mal 2:16 MSG)

"For the man who does not love his wife but divorces her, says the LORD, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence, says the LORD of hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and do not be faithless." (Mal 2:16 ESV)

To the married I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): the wife should not separate from her husband (but if she does, she should remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and the husband should not divorce his wife. To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so. In such cases the brother or sister is not enslaved. God has called you to peace. For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife? (1Co 7:10-16 ESV)

You are only free to marry again after your spouse has died.

A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord. (1Co 7:39 ESV)

For a married woman is bound by law to her husband while he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of marriage. Accordingly, she will be called an adulteress if she lives with another man while her husband is alive. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law, and if she marries another man she is not an adulteress. (Rom 7:2-3 ESV)

Single and married people commit adultery in their hearts when they lust after someone.

But I say to you that whoever looks on a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
(Mat 5:28 MKJV)

American movies, TV shows, books, and music are full of sexual immorality, so adultery is being committed all of the time! Our nation is cursed because it is full of adultery, and when it gets to that state, then God's judgment comes (see previous blog entry - http://toknowandtolove.blogspot.com/2009/07/isaiahs-end-times-timeline-warning-4.html).

They say, If a man puts away his wife, and she goes from him and will be for another man, will he return to her again? Would not that land be greatly defiled? But you play the harlot with many lovers; yet come back to Me, says Jehovah.
(Jer 3:1 MKJV)

Our sins have separated us from God, but If we would just repent and turn from our evil ways, then He would forgive us, accept us back, and heal our land. If we would just repent of our adultery and stop divorcing and committing adultery, forgive our spouses and accept them back, then our marriages and families would be healed. (*Note - whatever marital state that you are in when you repent, from that point forward you are to stop divorcing and committing adultery. If you are already divorced from your spouse, but neither one of you have remarried, then you should try to reconcile. If you are in the middle of a divorce when you repent, then you should try to reconcile. If you are remarried, then you remain faithful to your current spouse. When Jesus forgives us, He makes all things new and gives us another chance to do what is right.)

Our nation can be a Christian nation again, if we start loving our spouses like Jesus loves His wife. He died and rose from the dead to make their relationship new again and to make her a Bride again. This kind of sacrificial love is what will repair the breach in the Kingdom of God and it will break the curse on our nation. For our children's sake, let's break this curse!

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Links to recent articles on divorce in America:

Divorce Rates in U.S. Rise Slightly - http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/09/24/national/main5334553.shtml

Top Ten Myths of Divorce - http://marriage.rutgers.edu/Publications/MythsDivorce.pdf

The National Marriage Project - http://www.virginia.edu/marriageproject/

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Warning #4

2009-07-01T23:49:00.003-04:00

Warning #4: The Assyrian Horsemen are coming with war and famine

When a country sins by being unfaithful to God, God says that he will bring four terrible punishments (wars, famines, beasts, and plagues) against them (Eze 14:12-23). The first punishment listed is "wars" and wars are fought by armies. In Bible times, the strength and greatness of a King's army was measured by how many horses, chariots, and horsemen a King had. King Soloman had many horses, chariots. and horsemen.

And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. (1Ki 4:26 MKJV)

And King Solomon was greater than all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. And all the earth sought Solomon, to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart. And every man brought his presents, vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and clothing and armor, and spices, horses and mules, so much year by year. And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen. And he had fourteen hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he stationed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem. And the king made silver like stones in Jerusalem, and he made cedars like the sycamore trees in the valley for abundance. And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and out of Kue. The king's merchants received them from Kue at a price. And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. And so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, they brought them out by their means. (1Ki 10:23-29 MKJV)

Mighty horsemen have already risen in this world to conquer, to take peace from the world, and to weigh our harvests, but a few more horsemen are to come.

So says Jehovah, Behold, a people comes from the north country, and a great nation shall be stirred from the sides of the earth. They shall lay hold on bow and spear; they are cruel and have no mercy; their voice roars like the sea; and they ride on horses, set in order like a man for war against you, O daughter of Zion. We have heard the rumor of it; our hands become feeble; anguish has taken hold of us, and pain, like a woman in labor. Do not go out into the field, nor walk by the way; for the sword of the enemy and fear are on every side. O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth, and wallow in ashes; make mourning for yourself, as for an only son, most bitter weeping; for the ravager shall suddenly come on us. (Jer 6:22-26 MKJV)

Look, your enemies are in an uproar. Those who hate you hold their heads high. They make plans in secret against your people and plot together against those you treasure. They say, "Let's wipe out their nation so that the name of Israel will no longer be remembered." They agree completely on their plan. They form an alliance against you: the tents from Edom and Ishmael, Moab and Hagar, Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek, Philistia, along with those who live in Tyre. Even Assyria has joined them. They helped the descendants of Lot. Selah (Psa 83:2-8 GW)

In Warning #1: Captivity by the King of Assyria, I warned about the captivity that the King of Assyria would bring, but the warning in this Isaiah's End Times Timeline is of war and famine that are coming. The spirit of ancient Assyria (modern day Syria, Iraq, and Iran) is the great sword that is coming upon our land today and I believe that many people will die from their horsemen.

O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation. I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. (Isa 10:5-6 KJV)

They shall put you out of the synagogue. But an hour is coming that everyone who kills you will think that he bears God service. And they will do these things to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. (Joh 16:2-3 MKJV)

Behold, I am bringing against you a nation from afar, O house of Israel, declares the LORD. It is an enduring nation; it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language you do not know, nor can you understand what they say. Their quiver is like an open tomb; they are all mighty warriors. They shall eat up your harvest and your food; they shall eat up your sons and your daughters; they shall eat up your flocks and your herds; they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees; your fortified cities in which you trust they shall beat down with the sword." "But even in those days, declares the LORD, I will not make a full end of you. And when your people say, 'Why has the LORD our God done all these things to us?' you shall say to them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.'" Declare this in the house of Jacob; proclaim it in Judah: "Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes, but see not, who have ears, but hear not. (Jer 5:15-21 ESV)

Violent horsemen who live in the desert (ancient Chaldea) will be a part of the Assyrian army that will bring war and famine against us.

"Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own. They are dreaded and fearsome; their justice and dignity go forth from themselves. Their horses are swifter than leopards, more fierce than the evening wolves; their horsemen press proudly on. Their horsemen come from afar; they fly like an eagle swift to devour. They all come for violence, all their faces forward. They gather captives like sand. At kings they scoff, and at rulers they laugh. They laugh at every fortress, for they pile up earth and take it. Then they sweep by like the wind and go on, guilty men, whose own might is their god!" Are you not from everlasting, O LORD my God, my Holy One? We shall not die. O LORD, you have ordained them as a judgment, and you, O Rock, have established them for reproof.” (Hab 1:5-12 ESV)

God warned us about them from the beginning.

Jehovah shall bring a nation against you from far, from the end of the earth, as the eagle flies; a nation whose tongue you shall not understand, a nation fierce of face who shall not regard the person of the old, nor show favor to the young. And he shall eat the fruit of your cattle and the fruit of your land, until you are destroyed. He shall not leave you grain, wine, or oil, the increase of your livestock, or flocks of your sheep, until he has destroyed you. And he shall besiege you in all your gates until your high and fortified walls in which you trusted come down, throughout all the land. And he shall besiege you in all your gates throughout all your land which Jehovah your God has given you. (Deu 28:49-52 MKJV)

Behold the land of the Chaldeans! This people did not exist. Assyria founded it for those who live in the desert. They set up their siege-towers; they stripped its palaces. They made it a ruin. (Isa 23:13 MKJV)

The horsemen from Elam (ancient Persia) and Kir (ancient Media), who are also all a part of the Assyrian Kingdom, are also waiting at the gate.

This is a message about the Valley of Vision. What is happening? Why are all the people of the city celebrating on the roofs of the houses? The whole city is in an uproar, filled with noise and excitement. Your people who died in this war did not die fighting. All your leaders ran away and were captured before they shot a single arrow. Now leave me alone to weep bitterly over all those of my people who have died. Don't try to comfort me. This is a time of panic, defeat, and confusion in the Valley of Vision, and the Sovereign LORD Almighty has sent it on us. The walls of our city have been battered down, and cries for help have echoed among the hills. The soldiers from the land of Elam came riding on horseback, armed with bows and arrows. Soldiers from the land of Kir had their shields ready. The fertile valleys of Judah were filled with chariots; soldiers on horseback stood in front of Jerusalem's gates. All of Judah's defenses crumbled. When that happened, you brought weapons out of the arsenal. You found the places where the walls of Jerusalem needed repair. You inspected all the houses in Jerusalem and tore some of them down to get stones to repair the city walls. In order to store water, (SEE 22:9) you built a reservoir inside the city to hold the water flowing down from the old pool. But you paid no attention to God, who planned all this long ago and who caused it to happen. The Sovereign LORD Almighty was calling you then to weep and mourn, to shave your heads and wear sackcloth. Instead, you laughed and celebrated. You killed sheep and cattle to eat, and you drank wine. You said, "We might as well eat and drink! Tomorrow we'll be dead." The Sovereign LORD Almighty himself spoke to me and said, "This evil will never be forgiven them as long as they live. I, the Sovereign LORD Almighty, have spoken." (Isa 22:1-14 GNB)

I looked, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down before the face of Jehovah, before His fierce anger. For so Jehovah has said, The whole land shall be desolate, yet I will not make a full end. The earth shall mourn for this, and the heavens above shall be black, because I have spoken, I have purposed, and will not repent, nor will I turn back from it. Every city shall flee from the sound of the horsemen and bowmen. They shall go into thickets and climb up among the rocks. All the city is abandoned, and not a man shall live in them. And you, O desolate one, what will you do? Though you dress with crimson, though you put on ornaments of gold, though you make your eyes large with paint, you shall make yourself beautiful in vain; your lovers will despise you; they will seek your life. For I have heard a voice as of a woman in labor, the anguish as one bearing her first child, the voice of Zion's daughter, gasping and spreading her hands, saying, Woe to me now! For my soul faints because of murderers. (Jer 4:26-31 MKJV)

Those who leave spiritual Jerusalem at this time and return to spiritual Egypt will look to Egyptian horsemen to help them flee and to protect them instead of King Jesus.

For so says the Lord Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, In returning and rest you shall be saved; and in quietness and hope shall be your strength. And you were not willing. But you said, No; for we will flee on a horse. Therefore you shall flee. And you said, We will ride on the swift; therefore those who pursue you shall be swift. One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five you shall flee, until you are left as a pole on the top of a mountain, and as a sign on a hill. And so Jehovah waits to be gracious to you. And therefore He is exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For Jehovah is a God of judgment; blessed are all those who wait for Him. (Isa 30:15-18 MKJV)

We should not put our trust in Egypt's horsemen, for they are only men, not gods.

Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, and lean on horses and trust in chariots, because it is great; and in horsemen, because they are so very strong, but they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor do they seek Jehovah! Yet He also is wise, and will bring evil, and will not call back His Words, but will arise against the house of evil-doers and against the help of those who work iniquity. And Egypt is a man, and not God; and their horses are flesh, and not Spirit. When Jehovah shall stretch out His hand, both he who helps shall fall, and he who is helped shall fall down, and they shall all cease together. (Isa 31:1-3 MKJV)

God is using ancient Assyrian horsemen to get our attention and to turn us (the sisters, or Seven Churches) back to him so that He can heal us, bring us back together again, and to protect us because the King of Babylon is rising in power.

The King of Babylon will come and conquer spiritual Egypt and he and his horsemen will have the power to “kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth.” (Fourth seal – pale horse, horseman’s name is death)

For I will punish those who dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword, by the famine, and by the plague, So that none of the remnant of Judah who has gone into the land of Egypt to live there shall escape or remain, that they should return into the land of Judah to which they have a desire to return to live there. For none shall return except those who escape. (Jer 44:13-14 MKJV)

Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, "Come!" And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer. When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, "Come!" And out came another horse, bright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword. When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, "Come!" And I looked, and behold, a black horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine!" When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, "Come!" And I looked, and behold, a pale horse! And its rider's name was Death, and Hades followed him. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth. When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, "O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?" Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been. When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?" (Rev 6:1-17 ESV)

And I turned and lifted up my eyes and looked. And behold! Four chariots were coming from between two mountains. And the mountains were mountains of bronze. Red horses were in the first chariot; and in the second chariot black horses; and in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot horses with dappled, strong colors. And I answered and said to the angel who talked with me, What are these, my lord? And the angel answered and said to me, These are the four spirits of the heavens who go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. The black horses in it go forth into the north country; and the white go forth after them; and the dappled go forth to a south country. And the strong colored ones went forth and sought to go, so to walk to and fro through the earth. And he said, Go! Walk to and fro through the earth. So they walked to and fro through the earth. And he cried to me and spoke to me, saying, Behold, these who go toward the north country have caused My Spirit to rest in the north country. And the Word of Jehovah came to me saying, Take from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, from the exiles who have come from Babylon; and in that day you go and enter the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah. And take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them on the head of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest. And speak to him, saying, So speaks Jehovah of Hosts, saying, Behold the Man whose name is The BRANCH! And He shall spring up out of His place, and He shall build the temple of Jehovah. Even He shall build the temple of Jehovah; and He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule on His throne. And He shall be a priest on His throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. And the crowns shall be for a memorial in the temple of Jehovah to Helem and to Tobijah and to Jedaiah, and to Hen the son of Zephaniah. And the distant ones shall come and build in the temple of Jehovah, and you shall know that Jehovah of Hosts has sent me to you. And this shall be, if you will carefully obey the voice of Jehovah your God. (Zec 6:1-15 MKJV)

The horse is prepared against the day of battle; but victory is of the LORD.

(Pro 21:31 JPS)

Before God punishes the King of Assyria, he will be allowed to strike Jerusalem (spiritual and natural). That means he will attack the Christians and their land, and the Jews and their land with sword and famine.

Therefore so says the Lord Jehovah of Hosts, O my people who dwell in Zion, do not fear Assyria. He shall strike you with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against you, in the way of Egypt. But yet a little while, and the fury shall cease, and My anger shall be in their ruin. And Jehovah of Hosts shall stir up a whip on him according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; and as His rod was on the sea, so shall He lift it up in the way of Egypt. And it shall be, in that day his burden shall be taken away from off your shoulder, and his yoke from off your neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing. (Isa 10:24-27 MKJV)

And it will be, when the Lord has broken off all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the proud heart of the king of Assyria and the glory of his high looks. For he says, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I am wise. And I have removed the bounds of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the people like a strong man. And my hand has found as a nest the riches of the people; and as one gathers eggs that are left, I have gathered all the earth; and there was none who moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped. Shall the axe boast itself against him who chops with it? Shall the saw magnify itself against him who moves it? As if the rod could wave those who lift itself up! As if a staff could raise what is not wood! Therefore the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, shall send leanness among his fat ones; and under his glory He shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. And the light of Israel shall be as a fire, and His Holy One as a flame; and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day. And it shall burn up the glory of his forest and of his fruitful field, both soul and body; and they shall be as when a sick one faints. And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, so that a boy might write them. And it shall be in that day, the remnant of Israel, and those who have escaped from the house of Jacob, shall never again lean on him who struck them; but truly lean on Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel. The remnant shall return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. (Isa 10:12-21 MKJV)

When the King of Assyria has been punished, then the King of Babylon will take his place. The King of Babylon is the Antichrist. The books of the Prophets make this clear. Then the Beast of Revelation will arise and the Harlot (Babylon) will be riding upon him. But God has promised from the beginning that He would lead His redeemed people back to His city on His highway in the midst of great judgments - just like the plagues that came upon Egypt by the hand of Moses. King Jesus has been given authority by God to do just that and He gave us details of these judgments in the book of Revelation so that we would know what to expect.

And Jehovah shall strike Egypt; He shall strike and heal; and they shall return to Jehovah, and He shall hear them and shall heal them. In that day there shall be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria shall come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, and Egypt shall serve with Assyria. In that day Israel shall be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the land; whom Jehovah of Hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be My people Egypt, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance. (Isa 19:22-25 MKJV)

And it shall be in that day, the Lord shall again set His hand, the second time, to recover the remnant of His people that remains, from Assyria and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Ethiopia, and from Persia, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the coasts of the sea. And He shall lift up a banner for the nations, and shall gather the outcasts of Israel and gather together the scattered ones of Judah from the four corners of the earth. And the envy of Ephraim shall depart, and the foes of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not trouble Ephraim. But they shall fly on the shoulders of the Philistines to the west; they shall spoil the sons of the east together; they shall lay their hand on Edom and Moab; and the sons of Ammon shall obey them. And Jehovah shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; and with His scorching wind He shall shake His hand over the River, and shall strike it into seven streams, and make one tread it with shoes. And there shall be a highway for the remnant of His people, those left from Assyria; as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt. (Isa 11:11-16 MKJV)

"Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her. And there I will give her her vineyards and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth, as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt. "And in that day, declares the LORD, you will call me 'My Husband,' and no longer will you call me 'My Baal.' (Hos 2:14-16 ESV)

Who is like You, O Jehovah, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? You stretched out Your right hand, the earth swallowed them. You in Your mercy have led forth the people which You have redeemed. You have guided them in Your strength to Your holy habitation. The people shall hear, being afraid. Sorrow shall take hold on the people of Philistia. Then the princes of Edom were terrified. Trembling seized upon the mighty men of Moab. All the people of Canaan shall melt away. Fear and dread shall fall upon them. By the greatness of Your arm they shall be still as a stone, until Your people pass over, O Jehovah; until the people whom You have purchased pass over. You shall bring them and plant them in the mountain of Your inheritance, the place, O Jehovah, You have made for You to dwell in; the Sanctuary, O Jehovah, which Your hands have established. Jehovah shall reign forever and ever. (Exo 15:11-18 MKJV)

People of Jerusalem, open your gates! Repair the road to the city and clear it of stones; raise a banner to help the nations find their way. Here is what the LORD has said for all the earth to hear: "Soon I will come to save the city of Zion, and to reward you. Then you will be called, 'The LORD's Own People, The Ones He Rescued!' Your city will be known as a good place to live and a city full of people." (Isa 62:10-12 CEV)

Therefore the redeemed of the LORD shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their head: they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and mourning shall flee away. (Isa 51:11 KJV)

It is time for us to consecrate a fast from doing things our way and get back to the ancient highway that will lead us to New Jerusalem. That is where King Jesus has provisions for us and will protect us and give us rest. We have a part in helping lead others back to the safety of God’s city on His highway. We do this by walking in His love. (Read “Love Your Neighbor#6 Pledge” in my Bible Study - www.basiclovetraining.org.)

People from all nations and religions will look to King Jesus and will follow Him. They will start listening to His teachers and will be trained in His love. It is time to repair the breach in the Kingdom of God.

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Example #4

2009-05-14T08:38:00.002-04:00

Example #4: Ezra

This Ezra went up from Babylon; and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses, which the LORD God of Israel had given: and the king granted him all his request, according to the hand of the LORD his God upon him. And there went up some of the children of Israel, and of the priests, and the Levites, and the singers, and the porters, and the Nethinims, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king. And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king. For upon the first day of the first month began he to go up from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month came he to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him. For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments. (Ezr 7:6-10 KJV)

And now, Ezra, after the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, set officers and judges who may judge all the people who are Beyond the River, all who know the Laws of your God; and teach them who do not know. And whoever will not do the Law of your God, and the law of the king, let judgment be executed speedily on him, whether it is to death, or to exile, or to confiscation of goods, or imprisonment. Blessed be Jehovah, the God of our fathers, who has put this in the king's heart, to beautify the house of Jehovah in Jerusalem, and has extended mercy before the king and his counselors and before all the king's mighty princes. And I was made strong as the hand of Jehovah my God was on me, and I gathered out of Israel chief men to go up with me. (Ezr 7:25-28 MKJV)

And at the end of these things, the rulers came to me, saying, The people of Israel, and the priests and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the people of the lands. But they are doing according to their abominations, those of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. For they have taken of their daughters for themselves and for their sons. So the holy seed has mixed themselves with the people of those lands. Yes, the hand of the leaders and overseers has been chief in this sin. And when I heard this thing, I tore my garment and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down stricken dumb. Then everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel was gathered to me, because of the sin of those who had been exiled. And I remained dumb until the evening sacrifice. And at the evening sacrifice I rose up from my affliction. And tearing my garment and my mantle, I fell on my knees and spread out my hands to Jehovah my God. And I said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to You, my God. For our iniquities have increased over our heads, and our guiltiness has grown up to the heavens. Since the days of our fathers we have been in a great sin until this day. And for our iniquities we, our kings, our priests, have been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to shame of face, as it is this day. And now for a little time grace has been shown from Jehovah our God, to leave us a remnant to escape and to give us a nail in His holy place, so that our God may enlighten our eyes and give us a little life in our bondage. For we were slaves, yet our God has not left us in our bondage, but has given mercy to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us some life, to set up the house of our God, and to repair its waste, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem. And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken Your commandments which You commanded by Your servants the prophets, saying, The land into which you go to possess it, is an unclean land with the filthiness of the people of the lands, with their abominations which have filled it from one end to the other with their uncleanness. And now do not give your daughters to their sons, nor take their daughters to your sons, nor seek their peace or their wealth forever, so that you may be strong and eat the good of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your sons forever. And after all that has come on us for our evil deeds and for our great sin, since You our God have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us such an escape as this, should we again break Your commandments and join hands with the people of these abominations? Would You not be angry with us until You had crushed us, until there is no remnant nor survivor? O Jehovah, the God of Israel, You are righteous. For we are left a remnant that has escaped, as today. Behold, we are before You in our sins, for we cannot stand before You because of this.
(Ezr 9:1-15 MKJV)

And when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there gathered to him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children, for the people wept with a great weeping. And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, of the sons of Elam, answered and said to Ezra, We have sinned against our God and have taken strange women from the people of the land. Yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this thing. And now let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the women, and such as have been born of them, according to the counsel of the Lord, and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God. And let it be done according to the Law. Arise, for this matter belongs to you. We also will be with you. Be of good courage and act. Then Ezra arose and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel to swear that they should do according to this word. And they swore. Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God and went into the room of Johanan the son of Eliashib. And he went there, and he ate no bread nor drank water. For he mourned because of the sin of those who had been exiled. And they made a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem to all the sons of the captivity, to gather themselves to Jerusalem, and that who ever would not come within three days, according to the advice of the rulers and the elders, all he owned would be lost, and he himself separated from the congregation of the exiles. Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered themselves to Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth of the month. And all the people sat in the street of the house of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the great rain. And Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, You have sinned, and have taken strange women to increase the sin of Israel. And now confess to Jehovah, the God of your fathers, and do His pleasure. And separate yourselves from the people of the land, and from the strange women. Then all the congregation answered and said with a loud voice, As you have said, so we must do. (Ezr 10:1-12 MKJV)

Ezra mourned because of the guilt of the people who had left their captivity in Babylon and came back to Jerusalem to live and to rebuild the city and house of God. He was astonished at the unfaithfulness and disobedience of the people to God's command to be separate from the peoples of other lands. Their leaders were the main ones committing this sin - taking foreign wives. Because of Ezra's teaching, the people recognized their guilt and asked Ezra to help them make it right with God again, according to God's Law.

And all the people gathered themselves as one man into the street before the water gate. And they spoke to Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which Jehovah had commanded to Israel. And Ezra the priest brought the Law before the congregation, both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month. And he read in it before the street in front of the Water Gate from the morning until noon, in front of the men and the women, and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people listened to the Book of the Law. And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood which they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchiah, and Hashum, and Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam. And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people. And when he opened it, all the people stood up. And Ezra blessed Jehovah, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, amen, lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped Jehovah with their faces to the ground. And Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the Law. And the people were in their place. And they read in the Book of the Law of God, clearly. And they gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. And Nehemiah, the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people, said to all the people, This day is holy to Jehovah your God. Do not mourn or weep. For all the people wept when they heard the words of the Law. Then he said to them, Go eat the fat and drink the sweet, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared. For this day is holy to our LORD. And do not be sorry, for the joy of Jehovah is your strength. And the Levites quieted all the people, saying, Be quiet, for the day is holy. And do not be grieved. And all the people went to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words which were declared to them. And on the second day the chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, were gathered to Ezra the scribe, even to understand the words of the Law. And they found written in the Law which Jehovah had commanded by Moses, that the sons of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month, and that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth to the mountain and bring olive branches and pine branches and myrtle branches and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written. And the people went out and brought in, and made themselves booths, each one upon his roof, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the Water Gate, and in the street of the Gate of Ephraim. And all the congregation of those who had come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths. For since the days of Joshua the son of Nun until that day, the sons of Israel had not done so. And there was very great gladness. Also day by day, from the first day until the last day, he read in the Book of the Law of God. And they kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth was an assembly, according to the Law. (Neh 8:1-18 MKJV)

And now, our God, the great, the mighty, and the fearful God, who keeps covenant and mercy, let not all the trouble that has come upon us, on our kings, on our rulers, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all Your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria to this day, seem little before You. But You are just in all that is brought upon us, for You have done right, but we have done wickedly. And our kings, our rulers, our priests, and our fathers, have not kept Your Law, nor listened to Your commandments and Your words with which You testified against them. For they have not served You in their kingdom, and in Your great goodness which You gave them, and in the large and rich land which You gave before them, and they did not turn from their wicked works. Behold, we are servants today. And the land that You gave to our fathers to eat its fruit, and its good, behold, we are servants in it. And it yields much increase to the kings whom You have set over us because of our sins. And they rule over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we are in great distress. And because of all this we are cutting a sure covenant, and write it, and our princes, Levites, and priests are sealing it.
(Neh 9:32-38 MKJV)

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Event #4

2009-04-08T09:12:00.002-04:00

Event #4: Time of Returning and Provision –
In this event, I believe all the generations that I have been writing about in the previous end times events will meet and come to a Y in the road. They will have to make a decision to either follow King Jesus (the Good Shepherd) or the King of Babylon.

A lot has happened to get them to this point. Because of their disobedience, rebellion, idolatry, and unfaithfulness, God has allowed His people to be carried away into captivity by the King of Babylon.

The word of the LORD came to me: "Son of man, you dwell in the midst of a rebellious house, who have eyes to see, but see not, who have ears to hear, but hear not, for they are a rebellious house. (Eze 12:1-2 ESV)

Say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: This oracle concerns the prince in Jerusalem and all the house of Israel who are in it.' Say, 'I am a sign for you: as I have done, so shall it be done to them. They shall go into exile, into captivity.' And the prince who is among them shall lift his baggage upon his shoulder at dusk, and shall go out. They shall dig through the wall to bring him out through it. He shall cover his face, that he may not see the land with his eyes. And I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare. And I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, yet he shall not see it, and he shall die there. And I will scatter toward every wind all who are around him, his helpers and all his troops, and I will unsheathe the sword after them. And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them among the countries. But I will let a few of them escape from the sword, from famine and pestilence, that they may declare all their abominations among the nations where they go, and may know that I am the LORD."
(Eze 12:10-16 ESV)

The LORD spoke his word to me. He said, "Son of man, suppose a country sins against me by being unfaithful to me. I will use my power against it, cut off its food supply, send a famine to it, and destroy its people and animals. Even if these three men-Noah, Daniel, and Job-were in that country, they would, by their righteousness, rescue only themselves," declares the Almighty LORD. "Suppose I send wild animals through that country and they make it childless and turn it into such a wasteland that no one travels through it because of the animals. As I live, declares the Almighty LORD, not even Noah, Daniel, and Job could rescue their own sons or daughters. They could rescue only themselves. And the country would become a wasteland. "Suppose I bring a war against that country by saying, 'I will let a war go throughout this country.' Suppose I destroy the people and the animals in it. As I live, declares the Almighty LORD, not even Noah, Daniel, and Job could rescue their sons or daughters. They could rescue only themselves. "Suppose I send a plague into that country or pour out my fury on it by killing people and destroying animals. As I live, declares the Almighty LORD, not even Noah, Daniel, and Job could, by their righteousness, rescue their sons or daughters. They could rescue only themselves. "This is what the Almighty LORD says: I will surely send four terrible punishments against Jerusalem. I will send wars, famines, wild animals, and plagues. They will destroy people and animals. But some people will survive. Some of your sons and daughters will be brought out. When they come out to you, you will see how they live. Then you will be comforted after the disasters that I will bring on Jerusalem, after every disaster that I will bring against it. You will be comforted when you see how they live. Then you will know that everything I have done was done for a reason," declares the Almighty LORD.
(Eze 14:12-23 GW)

For thus saith the Lord GOD: How much more when I send My four sore judgments against Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the evil beasts, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast. (Eze 14:21 JPS)

Because of war, famine, wild animals (or evil beasts), plagues, and their captivity, the people will cry out to God because of their affliction and adversity. This event is found in our continuance in Isaiah.

And so Jehovah waits to be gracious to you. And therefore He is exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For Jehovah is a God of judgment; blessed are all those who wait for Him. For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem; you shall weep no more; He will be very gracious to you at the voice of your cry. When He hears it, He will answer you. And Jehovah gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction; yet your teachers shall not be removed into a corner any more, but your eyes shall see your teachers. And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, This is the way, walk in it, when you turn to the right hand and when you turn to the left. You shall also defile the covering of your graven images of silver, and the ornament of your molten images of gold. You shall cast them away like a menstruous cloth. You shall say to it, Get away. Then He shall give the rain for your seed, with which you sow the ground. And the bread of the produce of the earth also shall be fat and plentiful. In that day your cattle shall feed in large pastures. Also the oxen and the young asses that plow the ground shall eat clean fodder, which has been winnowed with the shovel and with the fork.
(Isa 30:18-24 MKJV)

Eyes will be opened and they will see their teachers. These are the teachers that were being grown in Event#2/Warning #2. Ears will be opened and they will listen to these "last days" teachers.

For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, "In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength." But you were unwilling, (Isa 30:15 ESV)

For precept must be on precept, precept on precept; line on line, line on line; here a little, there a little; for with stammering lips and another tongue He will speak to this people. To whom He said, This is the rest; cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing. Yet they were not willing to hear. (Isa 28:10-12 MKJV)

Therefore so says Jehovah, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: Jacob shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now become pale. But when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst, they shall sanctify My name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel. Those who erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and those who murmured shall learn doctrine. (Isa 29:22-24 MKJV)

Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and rulers shall rule in judgment. And a man shall be as a hiding place from the wind, and a shelter from the tempest, like streams of water in a dry place, like the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. And the eyes of those who see shall not be dim, and the ears of those who hear shall listen. And the heart of the rash shall understand knowledge, and the tongue of those who stutter shall be ready to speak plainly. (Isa 32:1-4 MKJV)

The teachers that have been hidden are going to help us understand how we have been unfaithful to King Jesus. They will explain why we need to return to King Jesus and not follow the King of Babylon.

For behold, those who are far from you shall perish; you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you. (Psa 73:27 ESV)

They say, If a man puts away his wife, and she goes from him and will be for another man, will he return to her again? Would not that land be greatly defiled? But you play the harlot with many lovers; yet come back to Me, says Jehovah. (Jer 3:1 MKJV)

The teachers are going to help the people understand the story of King Jesus and His Bride. They will explain the Parable of the Two Sisters - Israel and Judah, and how it relates to modern day Israel and the Church. The daughters will start to listen.

Rise up, you women who are at ease, hear my voice; you complacent daughters, give ear to my speech. (Isa 32:9 ESV)

They say, If a man puts away his wife, and she goes from him and will be for another man, will he return to her again? Would not that land be greatly defiled? But you play the harlot with many lovers; yet come back to Me, says Jehovah. Lift up your eyes to the high places, and see. Where have you not been lain with? By the highways you have sat for them, like the Arabian in the wilderness; and you have defiled the land with your fornications and with your wickedness. Therefore the showers have been withheld, and there has been no latter rain; and you had a harlot's forehead, you refused to be ashamed. Will you not from this time cry to Me, My father, You are the guide of my youth? Will He keep His anger forever? Will He keep it to the end? Behold, you have spoken and done all the evil things you could do. Jehovah also said to me in the days of Josiah the king, Have you seen that which backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and has fornicated there. And I said after she had done all these things, Turn to Me! But she did not return. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. And I saw, when for all the causes for which backsliding Israel committed adultery, I sent her away and gave a bill of divorce to her, yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but she went and whored, she also. And it happened, from the folly of her whoredom, she defiled the land and fornicated with stones and stocks. And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned to Me with her whole heart, but with falsehood, says Jehovah. And Jehovah said to me, The backsliding Israel has justified herself more than treacherous Judah. Go and cry these words toward the north, and say, Return, O backsliding Israel, says Jehovah; and I will not cause My anger to fall on you; for I am merciful, says Jehovah, and I will not keep anger forever. Only acknowledge your iniquity, that you have sinned against Jehovah your God and have scattered your ways to the strangers under every green tree, and you have not obeyed My voice, says Jehovah. Turn, O backsliding sons, says Jehovah; for I am married to you; and I will take you one from a city, and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion. And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. And it will be when you have multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, says Jehovah, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of Jehovah! Nor shall it come to mind; nor shall they remember it; nor shall they visit it; nor shall it be made any more. At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah; and all nations shall be gathered to it, to the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem. Nor shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart. In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance to your fathers. But I said, How shall I put you among the sons, and give you a pleasant land, a beautiful inheritance among the hosts of nations? And I said, You shall call Me, My Father, and shall not turn away from Me. Surely as a wife treacherously departs from her husband, so you have dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, says Jehovah. A voice was heard on the high places weeping, cryings of the sons of Israel; for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten Jehovah their God. Return, O backsliding sons, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come to You; for You are Jehovah our God. Truly, for delusion comes from the high hills, tumult on the mountains. Truly, in Jehovah our God is the salvation of Israel. For shame has eaten up the labor of our fathers from our youth, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters. We lie down in our shame, and our confusion covers us; for we have sinned against Jehovah our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even to this day, and have not obeyed the voice of Jehovah our God.
(Jer 3:1-25 MKJV)

Yet the LORD heard them when they cried out, and he took notice of their distress. For their sake he remembered his covenant, and because of his great love he relented. He made all their oppressors feel sorry for them. Save us, O LORD our God, and bring us back from among the nations, so that we may be thankful and praise your holy name. Praise the LORD, the God of Israel; praise him now and forever! Let everyone say, "Amen!" Praise the LORD!
(Psa 106:44-48 GNB)

Only King Jesus can set us free from our captivity and bring us back to Zion. The teachers who are arising will know what is on God's heart and will "feed" us with God's knowledge and understanding. The provision that we need to strenghten us as we return to His city will increase and rain will come for the seed in the ground - the promised "latter rain".

"and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (Joh 8:32 ESV)

"So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. " (Joh 8:36 ESV)

But you, O LORD, are king forever; all generations will remember you. You will rise and take pity on Zion; the time has come to have mercy on her; this is the right time. Your servants love her, even though she is destroyed; they have pity on her, even though she is in ruins. The nations will fear the LORD; all the kings of the earth will fear his power. When the LORD rebuilds Zion, he will reveal his greatness. He will hear his forsaken people and listen to their prayer. Write down for the coming generation what the LORD has done, so that people not yet born will praise him. The LORD looked down from his holy place on high, he looked down from heaven to earth. He heard the groans of prisoners and set free those who were condemned to die. And so his name will be proclaimed in Zion, and he will be praised in Jerusalem when nations and kingdoms come together and worship the LORD.
(Psa 102:12-22 GNB)

The reason why I suffer...

2009-02-22T09:35:00.002-05:00

Normally I am on the go constantly, so getting sick was not something I had planned on this week. It is hard for me to slow down and rest. But there is another reason why I try to avoid slowing down right now because that is when feelings of depression and hopelessness seem to grow and try to take over me. The other night those feelings took advantage of my physical weakness and tried to overwhelm me. In my pain, I was thrown into a battle in my mind in order to try to understand why I am going through some personal suffering in my family right now. But instead of giving in to my feelings of despair, I grabbed my Bible and started reading these scriptures:

Christ suffered here on earth. Now you must be ready to suffer as he did, because suffering shows that you have stopped sinning. It means you have turned from your own desires and want to obey God for the rest of your life. You have already lived long enough like people who don't know God. You were immoral and followed your evil desires. You went around drinking and partying and carrying on. In fact, you even worshiped disgusting idols. Now your former friends wonder why you have stopped running around with them, and they curse you for it. But they will have to answer to God, who judges the living and the dead. (1Pe 4:1-5 CEV)

Through the words of Peter, the Lord was helping me understand the reason why I was suffering. Suffering for Christians didn’t stop at the cross. Suffering, for the right reasons, was something that I needed to be ready for and it would help me know who is really in control of my life. Jesus suffered physically and emotionally here on earth and was our example on how to live in a sinful world. So for me to live my life free from sin in this world, I too will suffer physically and emotionally.

Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; (1Pe 4:1 KJV)

In the movie, "The Da Vinci Code", there was a monk who purposely inflicted pain on himself, thinking it would purge him from his sins and make him stronger. Well, the suffering in the flesh that Peter talks about in the scriptures above is not this type of self mutilation. How do we suffer in the flesh? Talk to the recovering alcoholic, talk to the former adulterer, talk to the former gang member, talk to anyone who used to party and follow the "in" crowd. They will all tell you that in order to stop doing those things, they had to suffer in their flesh or body - physically and emotionally. How did they get to that point? They made a decision to change. So, daily they have to arm themselves in their minds to not give in to what they used to do. They have to deal with rejection, insults, and cruelty from their former friends. The great thing, though, is that as Christians, we have someone who will help us in our suffering and will strengthen us each day to live a life free from the bondage of all our sins. He is the Holy Spirit!

The enemy of our souls wants us to "feel good" and be numb to our pain and suffering so that he can inflict even more pain on us in order to destroy us. The Holy Spirit, our Master Trainer, wants us to feel our pain so that He can help us through it to strengthen us. A good soldier or athlete welcomes pain because it makes him stronger. Christians need to become more like disciplined soldiers. The spiritual battle is in our minds as we choose to either give in to what our flesh wants us to do or we choose to take a stand and obey the voice of the Holy Spirit. The only way to stay armed and protected is to put on the whole armor of God and stay in continual training as a soldier in His army. This is what Paul talked about in the book of Ephesians.

Being lukewarm and getting comfortable in what we want to do and how we want to worship God just lets our defenses down. If you talk to any soldier who has been out in the battlefield, they will tell you that you could get injured or lose your life if you let your guard down. That is what idol worship does. Modern day idols are found on the TV, in movies, books, music, associated with food, beverages, and drugs. They are everywhere and we are so blinded by them!!! That is why it is SO important to guard what we put in to our minds.

The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. (1Pe 4:7-8 ESV)

Israel was divided and then eventually destroyed because of her idol worship. The more she got comfortable with the nations where she learned the practice of idolatry, letting them into her city and showing them her riches, that is when she let her guard down and they attacked her over and over again, eventually destroying her. This is what happens to our minds when we compromise with the world and justify the things we do that go against God's will for us.

Where are the radical Christians who hate sin but who fervently love Jesus and their neighbors? Only the love of God will win the war that we are in. We have to be in continual love training. We must really understand how God wants us to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and how He wants us to love others. The enemy is attacking and he is coming to destroy our city! Judgment is coming…

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And "If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?" Therefore let those who suffer according to God's will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. (1Pe 4:12-19 ESV)

The reason why there aren't more radical Christians out there is because we are afraid of persecution. We are afraid to suffer. It hurts deeply to be rejected by the people we love and care about; especially if they are rejecting us because they don't believe the same way we do about Jesus. But we shouldn't be surprised by this. This will happen to test our faith.

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. (1Pe 5:6-10 ESV)

So we need to rejoice, keep doing good, love fervently, be firm in our faith, and humble ourselves during our trials. Then at the right time, God's mighty hand will lift us up and will restore us and our relationships, He will confirm to us who we are in Him, and He will strengthen and establish us as mighty soldiers in His army. We will be prepared and will stand strong when the end comes. The end is just the beginning of something new and beautiful though - no more suffering, no more pain, no more tears, no more separation, just life eternal with King Jesus!

I needed this reminder on why I suffer and I hope you did, too!

http://www.basiclovetraining.org/

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Warning #3

2008-12-13T10:56:00.002-05:00

Warning #3: Captivity by the King of Babylon
Jeremiah's message of warning was not just for Judah and Jerusalem - it was for our modern-day nations, too. God appointed Jeremiah as a prophet to the nations (Jer. 1:10), Jewish and Gentile. His message of warning is for any nation that does evil and does not obey God's commands, forgetting God and doing things their own way. This evil is not just found in unbelieving nations, but it is found in nations where the Church has made her home. You see, the Church is repeating Israel's history in the nations where she has chosen to live.

The Word which came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying, Arise and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear My Words. Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he was working a work on the wheel. And the vessel that he made in clay was ruined in the hand of the potter; so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the Word of Jehovah came to me, saying, O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter? says Jehovah. Behold, As the clay in the potter's hands, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel. The instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck it up and to pull it down, and to destroy it; if that nation, against whom I have spoken, will turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do to them. And the instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build it and to plant it; if it does evil in My sight, not to obey My voice, then I will repent of the good with which I said I would do them good. Now then please, speak to the men of Judah, and to the people of Jerusalem, saying, So says Jehovah: Behold, I am forming evil against you, and devising a plan against you. Return now, each one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good. And they said, There is no hope; but we will walk after our own ways, and we will each one do according to the stubbornness of his evil heart. Therefore so says Jehovah, Ask now among the nations; who has heard the like of this? The virgin of Israel has done a very horrible thing. Does the snow of Lebanon forsake the rock of the field? Or shall the cold flowing waters that come from another place be forsaken? Because My people have forgotten Me, they have burned incense to vanity, and they have caused themselves to stumble in their ways from the old paths, to walk in by-paths, not in the highway, to make their land desolate and a hissing forever. Everyone who passes by will be amazed, and will wag his head. I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity. Then they said, Come and let us plot schemes against Jeremiah. For the Law shall not perish from the priest, nor wisdom from the wise, nor the Word from the prophet. Come and let us strike him with the tongue, and let us not pay attention to any of his words. Pay attention to me; O Jehovah, and attend to the voice of my foes. Should evil be repaid for good? For they have dug a pit for my soul. Remember that I stood before You to do good for them, and to turn away Your wrath from them. Therefore deliver up their sons to the famine, and give them over to the hand of the sword. And let their wives be bereaved, and widows, and their men be slain of death; let their young men be struck by the sword in battle. Let a cry be heard from their houses, when You suddenly bring a raiding party on them. For they have dug a pit to take me, and have hidden snares for my feet. Yet, Jehovah, You know all their counsel against me to kill me. Do not forgive their iniquity, nor blot out their sin from Your sight, but let them be overthrown before You; deal with them in the time of Your anger. (Jer 18:1-23 MKJV)

So says Jehovah of Hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring to this city, and on all its towns, all the evil that I have spoken against it, because they have stiffened their necks in order not to hear My Words. (Jer 19:15 LITV)

The Church hasn't learned from the mistakes of her Mother. The virgin daughters that make up the Church have done a very horrible thing by going back to their old ways, forgetting their King and all He has done for them, and for refusing to hear His voice.

(See these previous blog entries: The Ten Virgins, Laodicea, and Pergamum)

We have sinned as our ancestors did; we have been wicked and evil. Our ancestors in Egypt did not understand God's wonderful acts; they forgot the many times he showed them his love, and they rebelled against the Almighty at the Red Sea. But he saved them, as he had promised, in order to show his great power. He gave a command to the Red Sea, and it dried up; he led his people across on dry land. He saved them from those who hated them; he rescued them from their enemies. But the water drowned their enemies; not one of them was left. Then his people believed his promises and sang praises to him. But they quickly forgot what he had done and acted without waiting for his advice. They were filled with craving in the desert and put God to the test; so he gave them what they asked for, but also sent a terrible disease among them. There in the desert they were jealous of Moses and of Aaron, the LORD's holy servant. Then the earth opened up and swallowed Dathan and buried Abiram and his family; fire came down on their followers and burned up those wicked people. They made a gold bull-calf at Sinai and worshiped that idol; they exchanged the glory of God for the image of an animal that eats grass. They forgot the God who had saved them by his mighty acts in Egypt. What wonderful things he did there! What amazing things at the Red Sea! When God said that he would destroy his people, his chosen servant, Moses, stood up against God and kept his anger from destroying them. Then they rejected the pleasant land, because they did not believe God's promise. They stayed in their tents and grumbled and would not listen to the LORD. So he have them a solomn warning that he would make them die in the desert and scatter their descendants among the heathen, letting them die in foreign countries. Then at Peor, God's people joined in the worship of Baal and ate sacrifices offered to dead gods. They stirred up the LORD's anger by their actions, and a terrible disease broke out among them. But Phinehas stood up and punished the guilty, and the plague was stopped. This has been remembered in his favor ever since and will be for all time to come. At the springs of Meribah the people made the LORD angry, and Moses was in trouble on their account. They made him so bitter that he spoke without stopping to think. They did not kill the heathen, as the LORD had commanded them to do, but they intermarried with them and adopted their pagan ways. God's people worshiped idols, and this caused their destruction. They offered their own sons and daughters as sacrifices to the idols of Canaan. They killed those innocent children, and the land was defiled by those murders. They made themselves impure by their actions and were unfaithful to God. So the LORD was angry with his people; he was disgusted with them. He abandoned them to the power of the heathen, and their enemies ruled over them. They were oppressed by their enemies and were in complete subjection to them. Many times the LORD rescued his people, but they chose to rebel against him and sank deeper into sin. (Psa 106:6-43 GNB)

The majority of the Church today is showing herself more like a daughter of Egypt. Her pagan ways have weakened her defenses so the King of Babylon is coming to take her captive. He has already invaded other nations in the East. His eyes are set now on the nations of the West and he is sharpening his sword. There still is hope for the Church, though, if she would just confess her sins and soften her heart towards her King. He will remember His covenant with her and won't destroy her completely. He will rescue her from her captivity and will lead His chosen remnant to Zion.

"Don't make idols for yourselves; don't set up an image or a sacred pillar for yourselves, and don't place a carved stone in your land that you can bow down to in worship. I am GOD, your God. "Keep my Sabbaths; treat my Sanctuary with reverence. I am GOD. "If you live by my decrees and obediently keep my commandments, I will send the rains in their seasons, the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit. You will thresh until the grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting time; you'll have more than enough to eat and will live safe and secure in your land. "I'll make the country a place of peace--you'll be able to go to sleep at night without fear; I'll get rid of the wild beasts; I'll eliminate war. You'll chase out your enemies and defeat them: Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand and do away with them. I'll give you my full attention: I'll make sure you prosper, make sure you grow in numbers, and keep my covenant with you in good working order. You'll still be eating from last year's harvest when you have to clean out the barns to make room for the new crops. "I'll set up my residence in your neighborhood; I won't avoid or shun you; I'll stroll through your streets. I'll be your God; you'll be my people. I am GOD, your personal God who rescued you from Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians. I ripped off the harness of your slavery so that you can move about freely. "But if you refuse to obey me and won't observe my commandments, despising my decrees and holding my laws in contempt by your disobedience, making a shambles of my covenant, I'll step in and pour on the trouble: debilitating disease, high fevers, blindness, your life leaking out bit by bit. You'll plant seed but your enemies will eat the crops. I'll turn my back on you and stand by while your enemies defeat you. People who hate you will govern you. You'll run scared even when there's no one chasing you. "And if none of this works in getting your attention, I'll discipline you seven times over for your sins. I'll break your strong pride: I'll make the skies above you like a sheet of tin and the ground under you like cast iron. No matter how hard you work, nothing will come of it: No crops out of the ground, no fruit off the trees. "If you defy me and refuse to listen, your punishment will be seven times more than your sins: I'll set wild animals on you; they'll rob you of your children, kill your cattle, and decimate your numbers until you'll think you are living in a ghost town. "And if even this doesn't work and you refuse my discipline and continue your defiance, then it will be my turn to defy you. I, yes I, will punish you for your sins seven times over: I'll let war loose on you, avenging your breaking of the covenant; when you huddle in your cities for protection, I'll send a deadly epidemic on you and you'll be helpless before your enemies; when I cut off your bread supply, ten women will bake bread in one oven and ration it out. You'll eat, but barely--no one will get enough. "And if this--even this!--doesn't work and you still won't listen, still defy me, I'll have had enough and in hot anger will defy you, punishing you for your sins seven times over: famine will be so severe that you'll end up cooking and eating your sons in stews and your daughters in barbecues; I'll smash your sex-and-religion shrines and all the paraphernalia that goes with them, and then stack your corpses and the idol-corpses in the same piles--I'll abhor you; I'll turn your cities into rubble; I'll clean out your sanctuaries; I'll hold my nose at the "pleasing aroma" of your sacrifices. I'll turn your land into a lifeless moonscape--your enemies who come in to take over will be shocked at what they see. I'll scatter you all over the world and keep after you with the point of my sword in your backs. There'll be nothing left in your land, nothing going on in your cities. With you gone and dispersed in the countries of your enemies, the land, empty of you, will finally get a break and enjoy its Sabbath years. All the time it's left there empty, the land will get rest, the Sabbaths it never got when you lived there. "As for those among you still alive, I'll give them over to fearful timidity--even the rustle of a leaf will throw them into a panic. They'll run here and there, back and forth, as if running for their lives even though no one is after them, tripping and falling over one another in total confusion. You won't stand a chance against an enemy. You'll perish among the nations; the land of your enemies will eat you up. Any who are left will slowly rot away in the enemy lands. Rot. And all because of their sins, their sins compounded by their ancestors' sins. "On the other hand, if they confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors, their treacherous betrayal, the defiance that set off my defiance that sent them off into enemy lands; if by some chance they soften their hard hearts and make amends for their sin, I'll remember my covenant with Jacob, I'll remember my covenant with Isaac, and, yes, I'll remember my covenant with Abraham. And I'll remember the land. "The land will be empty of them and enjoy its Sabbaths while they're gone. They'll pay for their sins because they refused my laws and treated my decrees with contempt. But in spite of their behavior, while they are among their enemies I won't reject or abhor or destroy them completely. I won't break my covenant with them: I am GOD, their God. For their sake I will remember the covenant with their ancestors whom I, with all the nations watching, brought out of Egypt in order to be their God. I am GOD." These are the decrees, laws, and instructions that GOD established between himself and the People of Israel through Moses at Mount Sinai. (Lev 26:1-46 MSG)

"In those days and in that time, declares the LORD, the people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, weeping as they come, and they shall seek the LORD their God. They shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, saying, 'Come, let us join ourselves to the LORD in an everlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.' "My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold. All who found them have devoured them, and their enemies have said, 'We are not guilty, for they have sinned against the LORD, their habitation of righteousness, the LORD, the hope of their fathers.' "Flee from the midst of Babylon, and go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as male goats before the flock.
(Jer 50:4-8 ESV)

I am the Good Shepherd, and I know those that are Mine, and I am known by those who are Mine. Even as the Father knows Me, I also know the Father. And I lay down My life for the sheep. And I have other sheep who are not of this fold. I must also lead those, and they shall hear My voice, and there shall be one flock, one Shepherd. (Joh 10:14-16 MKJV)

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Example #3

2008-11-19T05:48:00.003-05:00

Example #3: Jeremiah and the Remnant of Judah

The northern kingdom of Israel had already been captured by the king of Babylon and now Nebuchadnezzar had his sights set on the southern kingdom of Judah and Jerusalem. The city had already been attacked by him and a lot of people and the temple articles had already been carried away to Babylon. Jeremiah had warned them, but the people didn't want to hear the voice of the Lord. Now that only a remnant lived there, they were tired of the war and wanted peace. They had very little food and were afraid of the king of Babylon. They thought that if they went back to Egypt, they would find peace, safety, and food. They were terribly wrong, though.

Then all the commanders of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest, came near and said to Jeremiah the prophet, "Let our plea for mercy come before you, and pray to the LORD your God for us, for all this remnant--because we are left with but a few, as your eyes see us-- that the LORD your God may show us the way we should go, and the thing that we should do." Jeremiah the prophet said to them, "I have heard you. Behold, I will pray to the LORD your God according to your request, and whatever the LORD answers you I will tell you. I will keep nothing back from you." Then they said to Jeremiah, "May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act according to all the word with which the LORD your God sends you to us. Whether it is good or bad, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God." At the end of ten days the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah. Then he summoned Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest, and said to them, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your plea for mercy before him: If you will remain in this land, then I will build you up and not pull you down; I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I relent of the disaster that I did to you. Do not fear the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid. Do not fear him, declares the LORD, for I am with you, to save you and to deliver you from his hand. I will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and let you remain in your own land. But if you say, 'We will not remain in this land,' disobeying the voice of the LORD your God and saying, 'No, we will go to the land of Egypt, where we shall not see war or hear the sound of the trumpet or be hungry for bread, and we will dwell there,' then hear the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: If you set your faces to enter Egypt and go to live there, then the sword that you fear shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine of which you are afraid shall follow close after you to Egypt, and there you shall die. All the men who set their faces to go to Egypt to live there shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. They shall have no remnant or survivor from the disaster that I will bring upon them. "For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: As my anger and my wrath were poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so my wrath will be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You shall become an execration, a horror, a curse, and a taunt. You shall see this place no more. The LORD has said to you, O remnant of Judah, 'Do not go to Egypt.' Know for a certainty that I have warned you this day that you have gone astray at the cost of your lives. For you sent me to the LORD your God, saying, 'Pray for us to the LORD our God, and whatever the LORD our God says declare to us and we will do it.' And I have this day declared it to you, but you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God in anything that he sent me to tell you. Now therefore know for a certainty that you shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence in the place where you desire to go to live." (Jer 42:1-22 ESV)

When Jeremiah finished speaking to all the people all these words of the LORD their God, with which the LORD their God had sent him to them, Azariah the son of Hoshaiah and Johanan the son of Kareah and all the insolent men said to Jeremiah, "You are telling a lie. The LORD our God did not send you to say, 'Do not go to Egypt to live there,' but Baruch the son of Neriah has set you against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may kill us or take us into exile in Babylon." So Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces and all the people did not obey the voice of the LORD, to remain in the land of Judah. But Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces took all the remnant of Judah who had returned to live in the land of Judah from all the nations to which they had been driven-- the men, the women, the children, the princesses, and every person whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan; also Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch the son of Neriah. And they came into the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice of the LORD. And they arrived at Tahpanhes. Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah in Tahpanhes: "Take in your hands large stones and hide them in the mortar in the pavement that is at the entrance to Pharaoh's palace in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah, and say to them, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will set his throne above these stones that I have hidden, and he will spread his royal canopy over them. He shall come and strike the land of Egypt, giving over to the pestilence those who are doomed to the pestilence, to captivity those who are doomed to captivity, and to the sword those who are doomed to the sword. I shall kindle a fire in the temples of the gods of Egypt, and he shall burn them and carry them away captive. And he shall clean the land of Egypt as a shepherd cleans his cloak of vermin, and he shall go away from there in peace. (Jer 43:1-12 ESV)

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Event #3

2008-11-08T08:43:00.002-05:00

Event #3: Time of Rebellion and Captivity –

"Ah, stubborn children," declares the LORD, "who carry out a plan, but not mine, and who make an alliance, but not of my Spirit, that they may add sin to sin; who set out to go down to Egypt, without asking for my direction, to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt! Therefore shall the protection of Pharaoh turn to your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt to your humiliation. For though his officials are at Zoan and his envoys reach Hanes, everyone comes to shame through a people that cannot profit them, that brings neither help nor profit, but shame and disgrace." An oracle on the beasts of the Negeb. Through a land of trouble and anguish, from where come the lioness and the lion, the adder and the flying fiery serpent, they carry their riches on the backs of donkeys, and their treasures on the humps of camels, to a people that cannot profit them. Egypt's help is worthless and empty; therefore I have called her "Rahab who sits still." And now, go, write it before them on a tablet and inscribe it in a book, that it may be for the time to come as a witness forever. For they are a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the LORD; who say to the seers, "Do not see," and to the prophets, "Do not prophesy to us what is right; speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions, leave the way, turn aside from the path, let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel." Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel, "Because you despise this word and trust in oppression and perverseness and rely on them, therefore this iniquity shall be to you like a breach in a high wall, bulging out, and about to collapse, whose breaking comes suddenly, in an instant; and its breaking is like that of a potter's vessel that is smashed so ruthlessly that among its fragments not a shard is found with which to take fire from the hearth, or to dip up water out of the cistern." For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, "In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength." But you were unwilling, and you said, "No! We will flee upon horses"; therefore you shall flee away; and, "We will ride upon swift steeds"; therefore your pursuers shall be swift. A thousand shall flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you shall flee, till you are left like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain, like a signal on a hill. Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him. (Isa 30:1-18 ESV)

In BLT Level 4 - Lesson 19: The Sword and the Captivity, I explain that instead of trusting in King Jesus to give us what we need and to deliver us, a part of the faithful Church has gone back into the old ways of her flesh, back into Egypt to become a daughter of Egypt. Those who are rebelling have left "spiritual Jerusalem" and are now citizens of "spiritual Egypt".

And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. (Rev 11:8 KJV)

In my blog entry - "The Church in Ephesus", I explain how cities in the Bible have spiritual counterparts. Citizens of spiritual Egypt are rebelling against God's plan for their lives and they don't want to hear the Word of the Lord. Instead, they get their counsel from worldly sources and they reject the Truth. They are also liars who are trying to hide the sin in their lives. They believe that they are safe in the lifestyle that they now live in spiritual Egypt. If they go to Church, they only want to hear good things, not things that would convict them. They only want to hear sermons on peace and prosperity, not the judgment of God. They run away when they are convicted and when times get hard for them. Christians who do not follow the leading of the Holy Spirit in their lives will go back to spiritual Egypt for help - back to the bondage that Jesus delivered them from, but that is a very dangerous place to be.

Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, and lean on horses, and trust on chariotry, because it is great; and in horsemen because they are very strong! But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek Jehovah. And He also is wise, and brings evil, and will not turn aside His Words, but will rise against the house of evildoers, and against the help of those who work iniquity. And Egypt is a man, and not God. And their horses are flesh, and not spirit. And Jehovah stretches out His hand, and both he who helps shall fall, and he who is helped shall fall; and they shall all cease together. (Isa 31:1-3 LITV)

They will fall because they despise the Word of the Lord. They will be broken suddenly and pursued by the enemy. The king of Babylon will take them as his prisoners and with the sword, he will take over spiritual Egypt. The same punishment and captivity that came upon earthly Jerusalem in the past is coming upon those of the Church (spiritual Jerusalem) who have joined themselves with the spiritual daughter of Egypt. The only way of is escape is if they return by the leading of the Holy Spirit on God's Highway to the Heavenly Jerusalem in Zion. "In returning and rest they will be saved", but if they remain in their city of chosen bondage, they will meet a worse fate.

Now there were false prophets among the people, just as there also will be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many people will follow their immoral ways, and because of them the way of truth will be maligned. In their greed they will exploit you with deceptive words. The ancient verdict against them is still in force, and their destruction is not asleep. For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but threw them into the lowest hell and committed them to chains of deepest darkness to be kept for judgment; and if he did not spare the ancient world but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others when he brought the flood on the world of ungodly people; and if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and destroyed them by burning them to ashes, making them an example to ungodly people of what is going to happen to them; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man who was greatly distressed by the immoral conduct of lawless people- for as long as that righteous man lived among them, day after day he was being tortured in his righteous soul by what he saw and heard in their lawless actions- then the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials and to hold unrighteous people for punishment on the day of judgment, especially those who satisfy their flesh by indulging in its passions and who despise authority. Being bold and arrogant, they are not afraid to slander glorious beings. Yet even angels, although they are greater in strength and power, do not bring a slanderous accusation against them from the Lord. These people, like irrational animals, are mere creatures of instinct that are born to be caught and killed. They insult what they don't understand, and like animals they, too, will be destroyed, suffering wrong as punishment for their wrongdoing. They take pleasure in wild parties in broad daylight. They are stains and blemishes, reveling in their deceitful pleasures while they eat with you. With eyes full of adultery, they cannot get enough of sin. They seduce unsteady souls and have had their hearts expertly trained in greed. They are doomed to a curse. They have left the straight path and wandered off to follow the path of Balaam, the son of Bosor, who loved the reward he got for doing wrong. But he was rebuked for his offense. A donkey that normally cannot talk spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet's insanity. These men are dried-up springs, mere clouds driven by a storm. Gloomy darkness is reserved for them. By talking high-sounding nonsense and using sinful cravings of the flesh, they entice people who have just escaped from those who live in error. Promising them freedom, they themselves are slaves to depravity, for a person is a slave to whatever conquers him. For if, after escaping the world's corruptions through a full knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled and conquered by them, then their last condition is worse than their former one. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than to know it and turn their backs on the holy commandment that was committed to them. The proverb is true that describes what has happened to them: "A dog returns to its vomit," and "A pig that is washed goes back to wallow in the mud." (2Pe 2:1-22 ISV)

Return to me...

2008-11-05T07:46:00.001-05:00

If you will return, O Israel, says Jehovah, return to Me. And if you will put away your abominations out of your sight, then you shall not be moved. And you shall swear, Jehovah lives, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in Him, and in Him they shall glory. For so says Jehovah to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to Jehovah, and take away the foreskins of your heart, men of Judah and people of Jerusalem; lest My fury come forth like fire, and burn so that none can put it out; because of the evil of your doings. Declare in Judah, and let it be heard in Jerusalem; and say, Blow the trumpet in the land; cry, gather together, and say, Gather yourselves and let us go into the fortified cities. Set up the banner toward Zion; flee for safety and do not wait; for I will bring evil from the north, and a great ruin. The lion has come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the nations has set out; he has left his place to make your land a waste. Your cities will fall into ruins without inhabitant. Put on sackcloth for this, wail and howl; for the fierce anger of Jehovah is not turned back from us. And it shall be at that day, says Jehovah, the king's heart will perish, and the heart of the rulers; and the priests will be amazed, and the prophets will be astounded. Then I said, Ah, Lord Jehovah! Surely You have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, You shall have peace; but the sword reaches to the soul. At that time it shall be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry wind from the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of My people, not to sift nor to cleanse. A wind more full than these shall come for Me. Now also I will utter judgments against them. Behold, he shall come up like clouds, and his chariots like a tempest. His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us, for we are plundered! O Jerusalem, cleanse your heart from evil so that you may be saved. How long shall your vain thoughts lodge within you? For a voice declares from Dan, and proclaims affliction from mount Ephraim. Tell it to the nations: Behold! proclaim against Jerusalem! Besiegers are going to come from a distant land; and they will set their voice against the cities of Judah. Like watchmen of a field, they are against her all around; because she rebelled against Me, says Jehovah. Your way and your doings have brought these things on you; this is your evil, because it is bitter, because it reaches to your heart. My bowels, my bowels! I convulse in pain. O walls of my heart! My heart is restless within me; I cannot be silent because you have heard, O my soul, the sound of the ram's horn, the alarm of war. Ruin on ruin is cried; for the whole land is laid waste. Suddenly my tents are laid waste, my curtains in a moment. How long shall I see the banner and hear the sound of the ram's horn? For My people are foolish; they have not known Me; they are stupid sons, and they have no understanding. They are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge. I looked on the earth, and, lo, it was without form and void; and the heavens, and they had no light. I looked on the mountains, and, lo, they quaked; and all the hills were shaken. I looked, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens had fled. I looked, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down before the face of Jehovah, before His fierce anger. For so Jehovah has said, The whole land shall be desolate, yet I will not make a full end. The earth shall mourn for this, and the heavens above shall be black, because I have spoken, I have purposed, and will not repent, nor will I turn back from it. Every city shall flee from the sound of the horsemen and bowmen. They shall go into thickets and climb up among the rocks. All the city is abandoned, and not a man shall live in them. And you, O desolate one, what will you do? Though you dress with crimson, though you put on ornaments of gold, though you make your eyes large with paint, you shall make yourself beautiful in vain; your lovers will despise you; they will seek your life. For I have heard a voice as of a woman in labor, the anguish as one bearing her first child, the voice of Zion's daughter, gasping and spreading her hands, saying, Woe to me now! For my soul faints because of murderers.
(Jer 4:1-31 MKJV)

Our Nation is in the Potter's Hand

2008-11-02T22:01:00.002-05:00

The Word which came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying, Arise and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear My Words. Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he was working a work on the wheel. And the vessel that he made in clay was ruined in the hand of the potter; so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the Word of Jehovah came to me, saying, O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter? says Jehovah. Behold, As the clay in the potter's hands, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel. The instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck it up and to pull it down, and to destroy it; if that nation, against whom I have spoken, will turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do to them. And the instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build it and to plant it; if it does evil in My sight, not to obey My voice, then I will repent of the good with which I said I would do them good. Now then please, speak to the men of Judah, and to the people of Jerusalem, saying, So says Jehovah: Behold, I am forming evil against you, and devising a plan against you. Return now, each one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good. And they said, There is no hope; but we will walk after our own ways, and we will each one do according to the stubbornness of his evil heart. Therefore so says Jehovah, Ask now among the nations; who has heard the like of this? The virgin of Israel has done a very horrible thing. Does the snow of Lebanon forsake the rock of the field? Or shall the cold flowing waters that come from another place be forsaken? Because My people have forgotten Me, they have burned incense to vanity, and they have caused themselves to stumble in their ways from the old paths, to walk in by-paths, not in the highway, to make their land desolate and a hissing forever. Everyone who passes by will be amazed, and will wag his head. I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity. (Jer 18:1-17 MKJV)

The cup of Jehovah given to the Nations:

The Word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah. It was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; the Word which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the people of Jerusalem, saying, From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even to this day, that is the twenty-third year, the Word of Jehovah has come to me, and I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking. But you have not listened. And Jehovah has sent to you all His servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but you have not listened nor bowed down your ear to hear. They said, Turn again now, each one from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that Jehovah has given to you and to your fathers forever and ever. And do not go after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no harm. Yet you have not listened to Me, says Jehovah, so that you might provoke Me with the works of your hands, for harm to you. Therefore so says Jehovah of Hosts, Because you have not heard My Words, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, says Jehovah, and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant; and will bring them against this land, and against its people, and against all these nations all around. And I will completely destroy them, and make them a waste, and a hissing, and everlasting ruins. And I will take from them the voice of rejoicing and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the candle. And this whole land shall be a ruin and a waste. And these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. And it shall be, when seventy years are fulfilled I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, and the land of the Chaldeans, says Jehovah, for their iniquity, and I will make it an everlasting ruin. And I will bring on that land all My Words which I have spoken against it, all that is written in this book which Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations. For many nations and great kings shall lay service on them also. And I will repay them according to their deeds, and according to the works of their own hands. For so says Jehovah, the God of Israel, to me, Take the wine cup of this wrath at My hand, and cause all the nations to whom I shall send you to drink it. And they shall drink, and reel to and fro, and be maddened, because of the sword that I will send among them. Then I took the cup at Jehovah's hand, and made all the nations drink, to whom Jehovah had sent me. Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings of them, and their rulers, to make them a ruin, a horror, a hissing, and a curse, as it is today, Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and his servants, and his rulers, and all his people, and all the mixed people, and all the kings of the land of Uz, and all the kings of the land of the Philistines, and Ashkelon, and Azzah, and Ekron, and the rest of Ashdod; Edom, and Moab, and the sons of Ammon, and all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the coastlands beyond the sea, Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and those who trim the edges of their beards. and all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the mixed people who dwell in the desert, and all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of the Medes, and all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another, and all the kingdoms of the world, which are on the face of the earth; and the king of Sheshach shall drink after them. So you shall say to them, So says Jehovah of Hosts, the God of Israel: Drink and be drunk, and vomit, and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you. And it shall be if they refuse to take the cup at your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, So says Jehovah of Hosts, You shall certainly drink. For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the city which is called by My name; and should you be found entirely without guilt? You shall not be without guilt. For I will call for a sword on all the inhabitants of the earth, says Jehovah of Hosts. And prophesy against them all these Words, and say to them, Jehovah shall roar from on high, and utter His voice from His holy habitation. He shall mightily roar over His dwelling place. He shall give a shout, like those who tread out grapes, against all the people of the earth. A noise shall come to the ends of the earth; for Jehovah has a controversy with the nations; He will enter into judgment with all flesh. He will give those who are wicked to the sword, says Jehovah. So says Jehovah of Hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great tempest shall be stirred up from the corners of the earth. And the slain of Jehovah shall be at that day from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth; they shall not be mourned, nor gathered, nor buried. They shall be as dung on the ground. Howl, shepherds, and cry; and roll, leaders of the flock! For the days of your slaughter and of your scatterings are fulfilled; and you shall fall like a desirable vessel. And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the choice ones of the flock, to escape. A voice of the cry of the shepherds, and a howling of the choice ones of the flock shall be heard; for Jehovah has spoiled their pasture. And the peaceful pastures are cut down because of the fierce anger of Jehovah. Like the lion, He has left His den; for their land is wasted because of the oppressor's pressing fury, and because of His fierce anger. (Jer 25:1-38 MKJV)

The Scariest Thing on Halloween

2008-10-31T08:47:00.002-04:00

*I posted this to my Battlecry blog last year, and I believe it still applies this year, especially with the Presidential Election coming up.
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Many people in America today will be celebrating Halloween by watching scary movies, dressing up in scary costumes, and going to parties with dark themes. Things like ghosts, vampires, and witches might be scary, but as a Christian, these things should not scare us. This is what should scare us:

"But if you refuse to obey me and won't observe my commandments, despising my decrees and holding my laws in contempt by your disobedience, making a shambles of my covenant, I'll step in and pour on the trouble: debilitating disease, high fevers, blindness, your life leaking out bit by bit. You'll plant seed but your enemies will eat the crops. I'll turn my back on you and stand by while your enemies defeat you. People who hate you will govern you. You'll run scared even when there's no one chasing you. "And if none of this works in getting your attention, I'll discipline you seven times over for your sins. I'll break your strong pride: I'll make the skies above you like a sheet of tin and the ground under you like cast iron. No matter how hard you work, nothing will come of it: No crops out of the ground, no fruit off the trees. "If you defy me and refuse to listen, your punishment will be seven times more than your sins: I'll set wild animals on you; they'll rob you of your children, kill your cattle, and decimate your numbers until you'll think you are living in a ghost town. "And if even this doesn't work and you refuse my discipline and continue your defiance, then it will be my turn to defy you. I, yes I, will punish you for your sins seven times over: I'll let war loose on you, avenging your breaking of the covenant; when you huddle in your cities for protection, I'll send a deadly epidemic on you and you'll be helpless before your enemies; when I cut off your bread supply, ten women will bake bread in one oven and ration it out. You'll eat, but barely--no one will get enough. "And if this--even this!--doesn't work and you still won't listen, still defy me, I'll have had enough and in hot anger will defy you, punishing you for your sins seven times over: famine will be so severe that you'll end up cooking and eating your sons in stews and your daughters in barbecues; I'll smash your sex-and-religion shrines and all the paraphernalia that goes with them, and then stack your corpses and the idol-corpses in the same piles--I'll abhor you; I'll turn your cities into rubble; I'll clean out your sanctuaries; I'll hold my nose at the "pleasing aroma" of your sacrifices. I'll turn your land into a lifeless moonscape--your enemies who come in to take over will be shocked at what they see. I'll scatter you all over the world and keep after you with the point of my sword in your backs. There'll be nothing left in your land, nothing going on in your cities. With you gone and dispersed in the countries of your enemies, the land, empty of you, will finally get a break and enjoy its Sabbath years. All the time it's left there empty, the land will get rest, the Sabbaths it never got when you lived there. "As for those among you still alive, I'll give them over to fearful timidity--even the rustle of a leaf will throw them into a panic. They'll run here and there, back and forth, as if running for their lives even though no one is after them, tripping and falling over one another in total confusion. You won't stand a chance against an enemy. You'll perish among the nations; the land of your enemies will eat you up. Any who are left will slowly rot away in the enemy lands. Rot. And all because of their sins, their sins compounded by their ancestors' sins. "On the other hand, if they confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors, their treacherous betrayal, the defiance that set off my defiance that sent them off into enemy lands; if by some chance they soften their hard hearts and make amends for their sin, I'll remember my covenant with Jacob, I'll remember my covenant with Isaac, and, yes, I'll remember my covenant with Abraham. And I'll remember the land. "The land will be empty of them and enjoy its Sabbaths while they're gone. They'll pay for their sins because they refused my laws and treated my decrees with contempt. But in spite of their behavior, while they are among their enemies I won't reject or abhor or destroy them completely. I won't break my covenant with them: I am GOD, their God. For their sake I will remember the covenant with their ancestors whom I, with all the nations watching, brought out of Egypt in order to be their God. I am GOD." (Lev 26:14-45 MSG)

When you ask Jesus into your heart, you come into covenant with Him. Breaking covenant with Him is a serious and scary thing. My fellow Americans, instead of celebrating this Halloween, lets confess and repent of our sins. Jesus always forgives! If we do, He will remember our land.

Here is an opportunity to pray for our nation this weekend: http://www.thecall.com/

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Warning #2

2008-10-01T22:40:00.003-04:00

Warning #2: God's Wrath is Coming -
In early American times, the Bible used to be the only text book in school. Now it is banned from the teacher's desk and our children have very little knowledge of Scripture. Their knowledge of God is being taught from the doctrine of men, not from God's Word. God's commandments are also being removed from our court houses. We have also accepted other God's and religions into our nation. We worship idols. God's wrath is coming upon us and we don't even realize it!

And if they are bound in chains, and are held in cords of affliction, then He shows them their work, and their sins, that they have behaved themselves proudly. He also opens their ears to teaching, and commands that they return from iniquity. If they obey and serve Him, they shall spend their days in blessedness, and their years in pleasures. But if they do not obey, they shall perish by the sword, and they shall die without knowledge. But the ungodly in heart heap up wrath; they cry not when He binds them. (Job 36:8-13 MKJV)

God, our Creator, told us everything we needed to know to live our lives, and He even had it written in a book to remind us, but we don't even want to read it. It is now time for the teachers to start teaching from God's Book again!

An instruction of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my law; bow down your ears to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in a parable; I will speak dark sayings of old, which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their sons, showing to the generations to come the praises of Jehovah, and His strength, and His wonderful works that He has done. For He set up a testimony in Jacob, and ordered a Law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers, that they should teach them to their sons; so that the generation to come might know; sons shall be born, and they shall arise and tell their sons, so that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His Commandments; and might not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not set their heart aright, and whose spirit was not faithful with God.
(Psa 78:1-8 MKJV)

Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and election sure, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2Pe 1:1-11 ESV)

We become unfruitful and blind when we don't supplement our faith with Godly qualities and we forget how the Lord has cleansed us from our sins. Teachers are being grown at this time, though, to remind us of God's promises, prophecies, and commandments in order to prepare the Bride for the coming day of the Lord. This "Josiah generation" are these Churches: Philadelphia and Smyrna.

Dear friends, this is now the second letter I am writing to you. In them I have been trying to stimulate your pure minds by reminding you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the commandment of our Lord and Savior spoken through your apostles. First of all you must understand this: In the last days mockers will come and, following their own desires, will ridicule us by saying, "What happened to his promise to return? Ever since our ancestors died, everything continues as it did from the beginning of creation." But they deliberately ignore the fact that long ago the heavens existed and the earth was formed by God's word out of water and with water, by which the world at that time was deluged with water and destroyed. Now by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire and are being kept for the day when ungodly people will be judged and destroyed. Don't forget this fact, dear friends: With the Lord a single day is like a 1,000 years, and a 1,000 years are like a single day. The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some people understand slowness, but is being patient with you. He does not want anyone to perish, but wants everyone to come to repentance. But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. On that day the heavens will disappear with a roaring sound, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done on it will be exposed. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, think of the kind of holy and godly people you ought to be as you look forward to and hasten the coming of the day of God, by which the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved and the elements will melt with fire. But in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward to new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to have him find you without spot or fault and at peace. Think of our Lord's patience as salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him. He speaks about this subject in all his letters. Some things in them are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort to their own destruction, as they do the rest of the Scriptures. And so, dear friends, since you already know these things, continually be on your guard not to be carried away by the deception of lawless people, lest you fall from your secure position. Instead, continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Glory belongs to him both now and on that eternal day! Amen. (2Pe 3:1-18 ISV)

The Book has been opened and fruit is being grown. The last day teachers will speak and you will know them by their fruit.

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Example #2

2008-08-12T20:18:00.003-04:00

Example #2: King Josiah -

Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign. And he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Boscath. And he did the right in the sight of Jehovah, and walked in all the way of David his father, and did not turn aside to the right or to the left. And it happened in the eighteenth year of Josiah, the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam the scribe, to the house of Jehovah, saying, Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, so that he may count the silver which is brought into the house of Jehovah, which the doorkeepers have gathered from the people. And let them deliver it into the hand of the workers who have the oversight of the house of Jehovah. And let them give it to the workers who are in the house of Jehovah, in order to repair the breaks of the house, to carpenters, and builders, and masons, and to buy timber and cut stone to repair the house. Only, the silver that is given into their hand shall not be reckoned with them, for they are dealing in faithfulness. And Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the Book of the Law in the house of Jehovah. And Hilkiah gave the Book to Shaphan, and he read it. And Shaphan the scribe came to the king and brought the king word again, and said, Your servants have gathered the silver that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of the workers, who have the oversight of the house of Jehovah. And Shaphan the scribe showed the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest has delivered me a Book. And Shaphan read it before the king. And it happened when the king had heard the Words of the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes. And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Michaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asahiah a servant of the king, saying, Go inquire of Jehovah for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the Words of this Book which is found. For great is the wrath of Jehovah which is kindled against us, because our fathers have not listened to the Words of this Book, to do according to all which is written concerning us. And Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe. And she lived in Jerusalem in the second part. And they talked with her. And she said to them, So says Jehovah, the God of Israel, Tell the man who sent you to me, So says Jehovah, Behold, I will bring evil on this place and on the people of it, all the Words of the Book which the king of Judah has read; because they have forsaken Me, and have burned incense to other gods, so that they might provoke Me to anger with all the works of their hands, therefore My wrath shall be kindled against this place, and it shall not be quenched. But to the king of Judah who sent you to inquire of Jehovah, so you shall say to him, So says Jehovah, the God of Israel, The Words which you have heard, because your heart was tender and you have humbled yourself before Jehovah, when you heard what I spoke against this place, and against its people (that they should become a waste and a curse, and have torn your clothes and wept before Me), I have heard you, says Jehovah. Behold, even so I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace. And your eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring on this place. And they brought the king this word again. (2Ki 22:1-20 MKJV)

Each King of Israel was to write a copy of the Law of God in a book so that he could read it "all the days of his life".

And it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write a copy of this Law in a book from before the priests, the Levites. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear Jehovah his God, to keep all the words of this Law, and these statutes, to do them, so that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers, and that he does not turn aside from the commandment, to the right or the left, so that he may make his days longer in his kingdom, he and his sons, in the midst of Israel. (Deu 17:18-20 MKJV)

Because the kings failed to do this, they and the people of Israel would forget and not obey God's Laws. So, God would send a prophet to them to remind them of what He had said to them. The prophet was usually required to write in a book all the words that God had spoken to them as a reminder for them and for future generations.

And it happened in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, this Word came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying, Take for yourself a roll of a book, and write in it all the Words that I have spoken to you against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josiah, even to this day. It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I plan to do to them, that they may each man turn from his evil way, so that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin. Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah. And Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the Words of Jehovah, which He had spoken to him, on a roll of a book. (Jer 36:1-4 MKJV)

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Event #2

2008-08-07T22:48:00.003-04:00

Ok, now back to my study of end times prophecy and the end times timeline that I am seeing in Isaiah. If you are new to reading my blog, please go back and read over some of the previous entries I have made on End Times Prophecy. My first entry for this study was "A Woman's Perspective on End Time Prophecy".

I am going to break up the events of "Isaiah's End Times Timeline" into sections because they are becoming long. :) For each event, there will be an example and a warning.

Event #2: Time of fruit, when the Book is opened –
I explained in Event #1 how there would be "times of refreshing" from the Lord when He would speak to His people and pour out His Spirit upon them like wine, but unfortunately, during these times, the priests and prophets would eventually become spiritually "drunk" and err in vision. Then a deep sleep would come upon the prophets and their eyes would be closed, as if they were blind. Their vision would become "like the words of a book that is sealed". Their wisdom would perish and their understanding would be hidden. People heart's would then be far from God and their fear of God would be "taught by the command of men".

It shall even be as when a hungry one dreams, and behold, he eats, but he wakes and his soul is empty; or as when a thirsty man dreams, and behold, he drinks; but he awakes, and behold, he is faint and his soul is longing. So shall it be with the multitude of all the nations who fight against mount Zion. Stand still and wonder! Blind your eyes and be blind! They are drunk, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink. For Jehovah has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes; He has covered the prophets and your heads, the seers. And the vision of all has become to you like the words of a book that is sealed, which they give to one who knows books saying, Please read this; and he says, I cannot, for it is sealed. And the book is delivered to him who does not know books, saying, Please read this; and he says, I do not know books. And Jehovah said, Because this people draw near Me with their mouth, and with their lips honor Me, but have removed their heart far from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the command of men; therefore, behold, I will go on doing among this people, a wonder, even a wonder. For the wisdom of their wise ones shall perish, and the understanding of their intelligent ones shall be hidden. (Isa 29:8-14 MKJV)

Despite all of this, there is a prophecy where those who are deaf will "hear the words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see." Those who erred in their visions will come to understand and those who murmured and taught the wrong doctrine will accept correction and instruction from the Lord. This is the time of fruit when the book is opened.

Ah, you who hide deep from the LORD your counsel, whose deeds are in the dark, and who say, "Who sees us? Who knows us?" You turn things upside down! Shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say of its maker, "He did not make me"; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, "He has no understanding"? Is it not yet a very little while until Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be regarded as a forest? In that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see. The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the LORD, and the poor among mankind shall exult in the Holy One of Israel. For the ruthless shall come to nothing and the scoffer cease, and all who watch to do evil shall be cut off, who by a word make a man out to be an offender, and lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate, and with an empty plea turn aside him who is in the right. Therefore thus says the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: "Jacob shall no more be ashamed, no more shall his face grow pale. For when he sees his children, the work of my hands, in his midst, they will sanctify my name; they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob and will stand in awe of the God of Israel. And those who go astray in spirit will come to understanding, and those who murmur will accept instruction." (Isa 29:15-24 ESV)

Now go, write it before them in a tablet, and note it in a book, so that it may be for the time to come forever and ever, (Isa 30:8 MKJV)

A "book" of end time visions is mentioned in Habakkuk and Daniel.

And Jehovah answered me and said, Write the vision, and make it plain on the tablets, that he who reads it may run. For the vision is still for an appointed time, but it speaks to the end, and it does not lie. Though it lingers, wait for it; because it will surely come. It will not tarry. (Hab 2:2-3 MKJV)

But you, O Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book, even to the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased. (Dan 12:4 MKJV)

And I heard, but I did not understand. Then I said, O my lord, what shall be the end of these things? And He said, Go, Daniel! For the words are closed up and sealed until the end-time. Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried. But the wicked shall do wickedly. And none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand. (Dan 12:8-10 MKJV)

This book is opened and read at the "time of the end". That is when its words and vision will be understood.

And I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel showing me these things. Then he said to me, Behold! See, do not do it! For I am your fellow-servant, and of your brothers the prophets, and of those who keep the Words of this Book. Do worship to God. And he said to me, Do not seal the Words of the prophecy of this Book; for the time is at hand. (Rev 22:8-10 MKJV)

King Jesus is the one who, by His Spirit, gives us understanding of this Book of End Times Vision/Prophecy - the sealed book of the Prophets. Each Prophet contributed to it and had the job of preserving the Words. Jesus is the final Prophet to contribute to it and He also testifies to the Words in it.

I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify these things to you over the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright and Morning Star. And the Spirit and the bride say, Come! And let the one hearing say, Come! And let the one who is thirsty come. And he willing, let him take of the Water of Life freely. For I testify together to everyone who hears the Words of the prophecy of this Book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add on him the plagues that have been written in this Book. And if anyone takes away from the Words of the Book of this prophecy, God will take away his part out of the Book of Life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which have been written in this Book. He who testifies these things says, Yes, I am coming quickly, Amen. Yes, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you. Amen. (Rev 22:16-21 MKJV)

It is time for the end times teachers and leaders to open their eyes, be sober, and let the Holy Spirit give them understanding of this Book of End Times Vision/Prophecy.

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - an explanation

2008-07-21T10:35:00.002-04:00

I know it has been a while since I posted, and I'm sorry for that. Our family has been dealing with some issues and the enemy has tried to silence me because of that, but I am not giving up and our family will overcome these matters. I ask that you would pray for reconciliation and a change of heart for all of us. Thanks!

Now, I wanted to get back to "Isaiah's End Times Timeline" but before I continued the timeline, I wanted to give you more explanation of why I believe there is a timeline. Well, while studying the nation Israel and all that happened to them as they were established as a people and a Kingdom and how they related to God and His response to them, I started to see a pattern, or cycle, that they would continually repeat.

God would provide for His people in His Kingdom and would make them successful and prosperous, but then the people would get too comfortable and prideful and then would forget God and His Law, wanting to live their lives their own way. Then they would seek after other gods, wanting to be more like their worldly neighbors, provoking God to anger. God would send a prophet to speak His Word to them to remind them who He is, His love for them, and what He had done for them so that they would repent, but the people wouldn't listen. So, to punish them for their disobedience and to bring them to repentance, He would send the sword, captivity, famine, and disease upon them. Some people would repent and return to Him, but those who didn't eventually perished. God would then take the remnant of those who were faithful and those who repented and would use them to build up His city and Kingdom again.

Now, I know that God hasn't changed who He is and how He feels about disobedience and idolatry. Unfortunately, though, human nature hasn't changed, either. God still provides and propers His people, but if we aren't careful to walk in His Spirit and His ways, we too forget about Him and how He wants us to live. We then start doing what we think is best and start lusting after the ways of the world, thinking that we can still be a Christian but do what everybody else is doing. Jesus, God's Word, will speak to our spirit, but we will drown out His voice because what He is saying is too uncomfortable to hear. He will send others to speak His Words of love to us, but we will either ignore them or get defensive, telling them that they are judging us. Then we go after what we want, enjoying it for a time, but we end up falling into a trap. We become addicted and go far into debt so that we eventually lose everything we had and are left all alone. We are broken and bruised and our lives our filled with pain. We are captives to the life that we have chosen to live. But, in the midst of the darkest night, Jesus is there and He sheds His light over everything. He has already made a way of escape, but it is our choice to repent and follow Him. Some people do repent at that point, but others harden their hearts because they don't understand how a God of love would let them get to this point, and they reject Him and eventually perish. Those who repent and have been faithful to King Jesus then go on to help build up His Kingdom.

So, with that being said, why do we think that the end times, His return, and the establishment of His Kingdom and the New Jerusalem will go any other way?

What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecc 1:9 ESV)

Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: (Isa 46:9-10 KJV)

I have foretold the former things from the beginning; and they went out of My mouth; and I made them hear; I acted suddenly; and they came about. Because I knew that you are obstinate, and your neck is an iron sinew and your brow bronze. And I declared it to you from the beginning. Before it happened I revealed it to you; lest you should say, My idol has done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, has commanded them. You heard; see it all; and will you not declare? I have shown you new things from this time, even hidden things, and you did not know them. They are created now, and not from the beginning; even before the day when you did not hear them; lest you should say, Behold, I knew them. Yea, you did not hear; yea, you did not know; yea, from the time that your ear was not opened; for I surely know that you will betray and trespass; from the womb it was called to you. For My name's sake I will put off My anger, and for My praise I will hold back for you, that I do not cut you off. Behold, I have refined you, but not with silver; I have chosen you in the furnace of affliction. For my sake, for My sake I will do it; for why should My name be defiled? And I will not give My glory to another. Listen to me, O Jacob and Israel, My called; I am He; I am the first, I also am the last. My hand also has laid the foundation of the earth, and My right hand has stretched out the heavens. I called; they stood up together. Let all of you gather and hear; who among them has declared these things? Jehovah has loved him; He will do His pleasure on Babylon, and His arm shall be on the Chaldeans. I, I, have spoken; yea, I have called him; I brought him and he makes his way succeed. Come near to Me, hear this; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning. From its being, I was there; and now the Lord Jehovah, and His Spirit, has sent Me. So says Jehovah, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, I am Jehovah your God who teaches you to profit, who leads you by the way that you should go. Oh that you had paid attention to My commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea. And your seed would have been like the sand, and the offspring of your bowels like its grain; his name would not have been cut off nor destroyed from before Me. Go out of Babylon; flee from the Chaldeans. Tell it with a voice of singing, let this be heard, let it go out to the end of the earth; say, Jehovah has redeemed His servant Jacob. And they did not thirst when He led them through the deserts; He caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them; He cut open the rock also, and the waters gushed out. There is no peace, says Jehovah, to the wicked.
(Isa 48:3-22 MKJV)

Is there anybody else out there who can see the cycle that we are in?

Modern day time of refreshing

2008-05-22T10:26:00.002-04:00

A time of refreshing is a kick-off event that triggers other prophecied events that happen before the final destruction of a city that has turned away from the Lord. These other events that follow a time of refreshing are a time of going (preaching the gospel, teaching God's commandments), a time of falling backward (rebellion), a time of being broken (crushed or torn apart), and a time of being snared and taken (captivity). I'm not an expert on the history of the Jews or Church history, but I know that both the Old and New Testament is full of examples of this type of timeline, especially in the stories of the Kings of Israel and Judah and the cities of Samaria and Jerusalem. These events repeat, like waves, until the final destruction comes.

Since the end of April, there has been a modern day time of refreshing that has been taking place here in America. It started in Lakeland, Florida. Here are the signs: there are many reports of miracles and healings taking place in peoples lives. There are also reports of heavenly visitations - children and adults are seeing visions, having dreams, prophesying. Peter confirms the signs of this time of refreshing in Acts chapter 2 and 3. All of this is happening in the same manner as predicted by Isaiah and the prophet Joel.

Jesus rebuked the Pharisees and Sadducees for not being able to discern the signs of the times (Matthew 16:1-4). They knew God's law, but they were blinded by their own doctrine to really see what was happening. This is why I believe it is now time for all believers to open our eyes and discern Isaiah's endtimes timeline. The key to understanding the times is to go back to the basics - loving God and loving our neighbor (Matthew 22:36-40).

What spiritual city have you been living in? Destruction and captivity is right around the corner for the spiritual cities (churches) that have removed themselves from the authority and protection of King Jesus. The Day of the Lord is coming! This time of refreshing is for us to repent and return to the city of the King. Only the city of Zion is where we will find true protection and rest.

Links to info on the Florida Revival:
http://www.god.tv/florida
http://www.freshfire.ca/

Other revivals happening now:
http://www.morningstarministries.org/
http://www.morningstarministries.org/Publisher/Article.aspx?id=1000031456

Another message on getting back to the basics:
http://www.morningstarministries.org/Publisher/Article.aspx?id=1000031933

Prophecies given to me

2008-03-28T09:19:00.002-04:00

Before I continue my study on prophecies of the Bride of Christ, I wanted to share with you some prophecies that were given to me that are starting to be fulfilled in my life.

When I was a teenager, an Evangelist with a gift of personal prophecy came to our Church and gave me a message from God. He said that God has called me and gave me these specific scripture references:

1st Scripture Reference: I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. (Isaiah 42:6-8 KJV)

2nd Scripture Reference: And I have given them the glory which You have given Me, that they may be one, as We are One: (John 17:22 LITV)

3rd Scripture Reference: You have not chosen Me, but I chose you out and planted you, that you should go and should bear fruit, and your fruit remain, that whatever you should ask the Father in My name, He may give you. (John 15:16 LITV)

The references to these scriptures and God's message to me was written down on a small piece of paper with the Evangelist's name on it and given to me. At the time, I did not know what they meant, but I kept the paper in my Bible.

I love to read and I usually keep all the books that are special to me, so I kept that Bible, even after getting a new one. It had a zippered cover, so any notes or papers that I had with it stayed inside. Many years later, I picked up that old Bible, unzipped the cover, and started to go through it.

I had just started reading the Bible again, so I thought it would be fun to see what kind of notes I took when I was a teenager. I had notes written on the inside cover, on the pages in the back, and I had underlined certain scriptures throughout it. Old memories of when I was a child, growing up in Church, started to come back to me. I reviewed all of them and then I started to look at the papers that I had folded up and put in the inside pocket of the cover. When I opened this paper, though, my heart skipped a beat. I couldn't believe I had kept it all these years!

I was intrigued, so I hurried and flipped through the Bible to read each scripture reference, hoping to understand the special calling that God gave to me years ago. I read each scripture thoroughly, but I still didn't understand what I was supposed to do. So, I folded the paper back up and placed it back where I found it.

In the midst of all of this, my husband was preparing to go to Iraq to fight in the war. We were living on an Army post in Colorado at the time. My husband and I had been talking about wanting to buy our own house and to find a place where we could settle down and raise our kids when he got back from the war. My Grandfather had recently died, and my Grandmother was having a hard time trying to take care of her home in Ohio by herself. It was out in the country but close to a nice, small town, which I knew would be a good place to raise kids. So we talked about maybe seeing if she would want to sell the house to us, then we could keep the house in the family.

So, before my husband left, I talked to my Grandmother about the kids and I coming to live with her while he was gone and the prospects of buying the house from her. She was excited about that and agreed.

We had been going to a Church off post and had made some good friends there, so we knew it would be hard to say goodbye to them. I had been meeting with a group of ladies at Church and we had been doing a Bible study together. The time had come for me to tell them that I would be leaving soon. So, at the time of prayer requests, I told them our plans to move to Ohio. One lady asked if she could pray for me.

As we closed our eyes, waiting for the prayer to start, this lady started to tell me that the Lord had a message for me. She then started to quote a scripture to me. As I listened, I realized that this scripture seemed familiar to me. I thought, "are these the same scriptures from the paper in my old Bible?" She went on to give me a couple more scriptures and then prayed for me.

Well, when I got home, I raced to my bedroom and found my old Bible. I zipped open the case and pulled out the paper. I then flipped through the pages to find the scriptures in Isaiah (1st Scripture Reference), and read it again. To my surprise, it was the same scriptures that the Evangelist gave to me. I couldn't believe it! After that, I knew the Lord was really trying to tell me something, so I decided right then that I would study these scriptures to understand the meaning of His message to me.

With my Bible and Bible software, that is what I did. I searched the whole Bible to find other scriptures like the ones that I was given and read all the stories of these ancient people who were called by God to be righteous like Him, who were given the power to open blind eyes, to set prisoners free, and to be a light of His truth to nations of people.

The Lord then started showing me the covenant that He gave to His people in His Word. With the help of His Holy Spirit, I began to understand how He wants to be "one" with us and also how He wants His people to be "one" (2nd Scripture Reference).

I couldn't keep all this information and understanding to myself, so that is why I wrote "Basic Love Training". With the skills God gave me, I knew I was to teach others how to study the Bible with today's technology. By doing this, then I would start to accomplish the calling God gave to me according to the scriptures that were given to me:

· "To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. " (Isa_42:6-8 KJV) - to help people understand how they are spiritually blind and are being held captive. I believe we are blind because we have forgotten or don't know the basic qualities of a Christian and we lack Biblical knowledge. We have gone into captivity because of it.
· "that they may be one, even as we are one" (Joh_17:22 KJV) - to help people understand our relationship with Jesus and how we are to be one with each other (His covenant with us and our relationship with each other).

Studying the Bible is a whole lot easier when you search for key words with computer software. The Lord provided all the resources I needed to write and record the Bible study and to publish it out on the Internet so that all the world can see it and use it. The Lord wants us to search His Word to find the knowledge of God (Proverbs 2:1-5). When I started to do that, then that is when I started to understand God's message to me.

Now for the 3rd Scripture Reference, I have recently been given an understanding of that and I have written about it previously on my blog - The King's Garden. We must now really understand what it means to bear fruit in our soul and how that relates to a fruit tree. Judgment is coming upon the trees that don't bear fruit, so I believe that God wants me to warn the keeper of the trees.

So, this is my calling that I am pursuing with a passion and this is how God's prophecy to me is being fulfilled in my life. If He can fulfill prophecy in my own life, then I know He will fulfill His prophecies for His Bride. Now is the time for us to understand.

Isaiah's End Times Timeline - Event #1

2008-03-17T11:02:00.002-04:00

While studying The Seven Churches, The Ten Virgins, and The King's Garden, I noticed that I kept returning to the book of Isaiah for certain passages of scripture. The book of Isaiah is known for it's prophecies of Jesus, but to my surprise, I began to see prophecies for Zion (New Jerusalem - the Bride) and her virgins - things that would happen to them in the "last days" or "latter days". Understanding the connection between houses, cities, mothers, women, daughters, virgins, trees, gardens, wells, and water (see my previous blog entries) helped me to see the end times prophecies for Zion in the book of Isaiah.

The Word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem: And it shall be in the last days, the mountain of the house of Jehovah shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow into it. And many people shall go and say, Come and let us go up to the mount of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob. And He will teach from His ways, and we will walk in His paths. For out of Zion the Law will go forth, and the Word of Jehovah from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among the nations and shall rebuke many people. And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, nor shall they learn war any more. Oh house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of Jehovah. (Isa 2:1-5 LITV)

If I hadn't been reading the book of Isaiah from a "woman's perspective", then I would have missed the outline of events that Isaiah gave to us which would lead us up until the time of the end, or “Day of the Lord”.

Event #1: Times of Refreshing –

Whom shall He teach knowledge? And whom shall He make to understand doctrine? Those weaned from the milk and drawn from the breasts. For precept must be on precept, precept on precept; line on line, line on line; here a little, there a little; for with stammering lips and another tongue He will speak to this people. To whom He said, This is the rest; cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing. Yet they were not willing to hear. But the Word of Jehovah was to them precept on precept, precept on precept; line on line, line on line; here a little, there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken and snared and taken. (Isa 28:9-13 MKJV)

The Lord planned on teaching us the knowledge of Him and an understanding of His Word "little by little", just like with babies as we gradually transition them from milk to solid food. This is the "time of refreshing" that would come and God would speak to His people “with stammering lips and another tongue”. This first happened in the city of Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, but it also happened in spiritual Jerusalem during the Azusa Street Revival. God always does things first in the natural realm to help us understand what He is going to do in the spiritual realm.

But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. (1Co 15:46 ESV)

Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. (Act 3:19-21 KJV)

When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. And they were amazed and astonished, saying, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians--we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God." And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "What does this mean?" But others mocking said, "They are filled with new wine." But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: "Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: "'And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.' (Act 2:1-21 ESV)

God planned to use these “times of refreshing” before the return of Jesus in order to send His Word (doctrine) out to all people, but many people refused to hear. Unfortunately, during these times, the priests and prophets wound up becoming spiritually “drunk” and erred in vision. Desiring only more of this spiritual wine, they focused their ministry on just that, and they forgot to teach the commandments of God. Then a deep sleep came upon the prophets and they became blind. Their wisdom perished and their understanding was hidden.

But they also have sinned through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way. The priest and the prophet have sinned through drink; they are swallowed up by wine; they are out of the way through strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment. (Isa 28:7 MKJV)

It shall even be as when a hungry one dreams, and behold, he eats, but he wakes and his soul is empty; or as when a thirsty man dreams, and behold, he drinks; but he awakes, and behold, he is faint and his soul is longing. So shall it be with the multitude of all the nations who fight against mount Zion. Stand still and wonder! Blind your eyes and be blind! They are drunk, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink. For Jehovah has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes; He has covered the prophets and your heads, the seers. And the vision of all has become to you like the words of a book that is sealed, which they give to one who knows books saying, Please read this; and he says, I cannot, for it is sealed. And the book is delivered to him who does not know books, saying, Please read this; and he says, I do not know books. And Jehovah said, Because this people draw near Me with their mouth, and with their lips honor Me, but have removed their heart far from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the command of men; therefore, behold, I will go on doing among this people, a wonder, even a wonder. For the wisdom of their wise ones shall perish, and the understanding of their intelligent ones shall be hidden. (Isa 29:8-14 MKJV)

Example #1: Hezekiah & Manasseh

The Bible gives us a "natural" example of this in the stories of King Hezekiah and his son, Manasseh. Isaiah was a prophet during King Hezekiah's reign in Jerusalem. You can read their stories in 2 Kings chapters 18-21, and 2 Chronicles chapters 29-33.

Now recently in spiritual Jerusalem, there was a Hezekiah generation that grew up to become Ministers, Pastors, and leaders of the Church. Their purpose was to cleanse and set the service of the house of the Lord in order. There were also from this generation those who helped to restore worship in the Temple of the Lord with songs of David. This brought revivals and new spiritual movements of God within the Church. They did many things to advance the Kingdom of God, but the only problem was that in the midst of their business with setting up their ministries, they forgot or gave low priority to the reading and teaching of the commandments and the Word of God to their children.

They instructed their children to read their Bibles, but many of them didn’t take the time to actually read it to them or train them in it personally, like God commanded. They wound up leaving the training of their children in the hands of others who didn’t really know the Word and who were questioning it themselves. So their children grew up thinking “why do I need to go to Church to worship God?” and many left the Church and started worshipping God and Jesus their own way. This lead to their influence by the world (TV, music, movies, etc.) and some of them started questioning if there really was only one God or if there was a God at all. Like Hezekiah, the parents were really only concerned with their own spiritual peace and security and not about the spiritual captivity that their children would be living under. The Hezekiah generation are these Churches: Sardis, Ephesus, and Thyatira.

So, some of their children became so deeply involved in the ways of the world that they became slaves to it. This is the Manasseh generation and they are theses Churches: Laodicea and Pergamum. This generation got involved in fornication, adultery, violence, witchcraft, wizardry, soothsaying, palm reading, idol worship, pagan worship, and they even caused their own children to die so that they could continue living the way they wanted to live.

There is a generation that curses their father, and does not bless their mother. There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their own filth. There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! And their eyelids are lifted up. There is a generation whose teeth are like swords, and their jaw teeth like knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men. (Pro 30:11-14 MKJV)

A great majority of this Manasseh generation is living in America.

Warning #1: Captivity by the King of Assyria

Manasseh didn’t change until God allowed the king of Assyria to come and take him captive to the land of Babylon. That is when he cried out to God and God heard him and brought him back to Jerusalem. So, this is the warning that I hear – the king of Assyria is coming to take the generation of Manasseh captive to Babylon. America is already at war with him, so we had better heed this warning!

How horrible it will be for you Ariel (Jerusalem), Ariel, the city where David camped. Let year after year go by. Let your annual festivals go on. I will torment Ariel, and the city will be filled with people grieving and mourning. The city will become like Ariel. I will set up war camps all around you. I will blockade you with towers. I will put up mounds of dirt around you. When you have fallen, you will speak as you lie on the ground. Your words will be muffled by the dust. Your voice will come out of the ground like that of a ghost. Your words will be whispered from the dust. Your many enemies will be like fine dust. Your many foes will be like husks blown by the wind. All of this will happen suddenly, unexpectedly. The LORD of Armies will punish you with thunder, earthquakes, and loud noises, with windstorms, rainstorms, and fire storms. The armies from all the nations will go to war against Ariel. They will go to war against it, blockade it, and torment it. All of this will be like a dream, like a vision in the night. They will be like hungry people who dream that they're eating and wake up to find they're hungry. They will be like thirsty people who dream that they're drinking and wake up to find they're lightheaded and parched with thirst. This is what will happen to the armies from all the nations that fight against Mount Zion. If you confuse yourselves, you will be confused. If you blind yourselves, you will be blinded. You are drunk, but not from wine. You stagger, but not from liquor. The LORD has poured out on you a spirit of deep sleep. He will shut your eyes. (Your eyes are the prophets.) He will cover your heads. (Your heads are the seers.) (Isa 29:1-10 GW)

Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God and did not keep his testimonies, but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers; they twisted like a deceitful bow. For they provoked him to anger with their high places; they moved him to jealousy with their idols. When God heard, he was full of wrath, and he utterly rejected Israel. He forsook his dwelling at Shiloh, the tent where he dwelt among mankind, and delivered his power to captivity, his glory to the hand of the foe. He gave his people over to the sword and vented his wrath on his heritage. Fire devoured their young men, and their young women had no marriage song. Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation. (Psa 78:56-64 ESV)

Yet they sinned still more against him, rebelling against the Most High in the desert. They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved. They spoke against God, saying, "Can God spread a table in the wilderness? He struck the rock so that water gushed out and streams overflowed. Can he also give bread or provide meat for his people?" Therefore, when the LORD heard, he was full of wrath; a fire was kindled against Jacob; his anger rose against Israel, because they did not believe in God and did not trust his saving power. Yet he commanded the skies above and opened the doors of heaven, and he rained down on them manna to eat and gave them the grain of heaven. Man ate of the bread of the angels; he sent them food in abundance. He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens, and by his power he led out the south wind; he rained meat on them like dust, winged birds like the sand of the seas; he let them fall in the midst of their camp, all around their dwellings. And they ate and were well filled, for he gave them what they craved. But before they had satisfied their craving, while the food was still in their mouths, the anger of God rose against them, and he killed the strongest of them and laid low the young men of Israel.
(Psa 78:17-31 ESV)

These two generations of the Church are becoming rebellious, demanding, complacent, contentious, deceitful, distrusting, and unthankful - just like how the children of Israel became in the desert. Because of this, fire, sword, and captivity are coming to the Church. We should not be surprised that the Lord is using the Assyrians/Chaldeans once again to bring His sword (His judgment) upon our land (see "The Sword and the Captivity - Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4").

The time has come for judgment to begin, and God's own people are the first to be judged. If it starts with us, how will it end with those who do not believe the Good News from God? (1Pe 4:17 GNB)

But if that wicked servant says to himself, 'My master is delayed,' and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Mat 24:48-51 ESV)

"How can I pardon you? Your children have forsaken me and have sworn by those who are no gods. When I fed them to the full, they committed adultery and trooped to the houses of whores. They were well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing for his neighbor's wife. Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD; and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this? "Go up through her vine rows and destroy, but make not a full end; strip away her branches, for they are not the LORD's. For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have been utterly treacherous to me, declares the LORD. They have spoken falsely of the LORD and have said, 'He will do nothing; no disaster will come upon us, nor shall we see sword or famine. The prophets will become wind; the word is not in them. Thus shall it be done to them!'" Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts: "Because you have spoken this word, behold, I am making my words in your mouth a fire, and this people wood, and the fire shall consume them. Behold, I am bringing against you a nation from afar, O house of Israel, declares the LORD. It is an enduring nation; it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language you do not know, nor can you understand what they say. Their quiver is like an open tomb; they are all mighty warriors. They shall eat up your harvest and your food; they shall eat up your sons and your daughters; they shall eat up your flocks and your herds; they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees; your fortified cities in which you trust they shall beat down with the sword." "But even in those days, declares the LORD, I will not make a full end of you. And when your people say, 'Why has the LORD our God done all these things to us?' you shall say to them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.'" Declare this in the house of Jacob; proclaim it in Judah: "Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes, but see not, who have ears, but hear not. Do you not fear me? declares the LORD. Do you not tremble before me? I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea, a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass; though the waves toss, they cannot prevail; though they roar, they cannot pass over it. But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart; they have turned aside and gone away. They do not say in their hearts, 'Let us fear the LORD our God, who gives the rain in its season, the autumn rain and the spring rain, and keeps for us the weeks appointed for the harvest.' Your iniquities have turned these away, and your sins have kept good from you. For wicked men are found among my people; they lurk like fowlers lying in wait. They set a trap; they catch men. Like a cage full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; therefore they have become great and rich; they have grown fat and sleek. They know no bounds in deeds of evil; they judge not with justice the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper, and they do not defend the rights of the needy. Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD, and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?" An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land: the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; my people love to have it so, but what will you do when the end comes? (Jer 5:7-31 ESV)

IT IS TIME TO REPENT AND PREPARE FOR WHAT IS COMING. PLEASE HEAR THIS WARNING!!

Not convinced about God's marriage, yet?

2008-02-29T17:58:00.003-05:00

What I want most to do is to convince everyone of the marriage of God. That is why I wrote Basic Love Training and continue to write in this blog. If you are not convinced yet, please let me present another view for you.

You see, when studying how to love God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, the Holy Spirit showed me that my relationship with Jesus was supposed to be more than just a casual friendship. He wants and loves all of me, just like a husband should want and love all of his wife. This is how Jesus feels about the Church.

So, since Jesus is a Jew, then how do Jews define marriage?

Well, according to this Jewish website on the Torah: http://www.mechon-mamre.org/jewfaq/marriage.htm, Torah Scholars from Israel say there are actually two marriage ceremonies, or weddings, to complete the whole marriage process. The first one is the betrothal (or “Kiddushin”) and the second one is the “full-fledged marriage” (or “nisuin”). The “Kiddushin” ceremony is when the woman accepts the marriage contract (or “Ketubah”) from the man. The marriage contract is written by the husband and explains his obligations to his wife in their marriage. It also explains what her inheritance will be from him. Once the woman accepts the marriage contract, then they are considered legally married and she is called his wife. Their marriage can now only be dissolved by death or divorce.

This is exactly how the Bible explains how God married the children of Israel in Exodus 24! The Law is God’s marriage contract to Israel! She accepted it and from then on she was legally God’s wife. God hates divorce, so the only way to make a new covenant with His wife and to redeem her body from death would mean that He would have to die. That is why God’s Word, Jesus, came down to earth in the flesh to die for His wife! (I explain all of this in more detail in my study in Lesson 15d: The Death of the Husband.)

The Jewish website also explains that “Nisuin” is the second marriage ceremony. This is when the husband brings his wife into his home so that they can live together. What is neat about the word “nisuin” is that it means “elevation”. This goes right along with how Jesus went back to Heaven (a place of elevation) to prepare a place for us. Now, He didn’t leave His wife alone, He still abides with her (John 14) in her “tent of meeting” or her home, just like He lived with her in the wilderness and while He was preparing a temple and more permanent home for her in Jerusalem. (I explain this in these BLT Level 3 lessons: Lesson 15b: Married in the Wilderness, Lesson 15c: A Separated Relationship, Lesson 15e: Married in the Wilderness, again, and Lesson 15f: A Close Relationship.)

In the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah, God promised Israel that when he would give her a new heart, He would enlarge her tent (Isaiah 54:1-5) and then she would be able to conceive new life by His Spirit dwelling within her. You see, with the death and resurrection of Jesus, God started the marriage process all over again, redeeming His relationship with His wife, just like He promised. (I explain all of this in these BLT Level 3 lessons: Lesson 15g: Joined By One Spirit Into One Body and Lesson 15h: A Nourished and Enlarged New Soul.)

When we accept Jesus (God’s Word) into our heart, then we are participating in the first marriage ceremony. The Church, now included as His wife, should be obeying the marriage contract that He originally gave to His wife, Israel. Jesus made it easier for us, though, by summing the contract up into two commandments – love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. So, in my study, I am actually taking an in depth look at the marriage contract that Jesus gave us. Lesson 15i: Heir to Riches, Beautiful, and Crowned with Glory explains our inheritance through Jesus and all the riches that He gives us. It also explains the beauty that He gives us as His Bride. Lesson 15j: Baptized in His Name, Given Power and Protection explains the power and royal authority that King Jesus gives to His wife right now here on earth to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom and to show others the Way to His city and a marriage with Him (Lesson 15: The Mystery of the Kingdom). The Bride’s new name is Jerusalem (Zion), the city of the Great King! That is why we should love our neighbor as our self because we are now citizens of New Jerusalem and we will live with the King in His home when He returns (the second marriage ceremony).

The problem is that the Church doesn’t understand how she is His wife and hasn’t been obeying His marriage contract of love. She has divided her heart, just like Jerusalem and Samaria were divided and became sisters. Now, a part of her is following after the prince of this world and she has become a daughter of Babylon, the harlot. The spirit of adultery has come upon the Church and now is the time for her to repent and come back to her Husband, her first love! I explain all of this in BLT Level 4 in these lessons: Lesson 17: The Division of the Kingdom, Lesson 18: The Parable of the Two Sisters, Lesson 19: The Sword and the Captivity. The virgin daughters of Zion will come under judgment because of this. This is the wrath of a jealous Husband and this is what end times prophecy is all about. I have been writing about this in these previous blog entries: End Times Prophecy, Wife’s Duty, Husband’s Judgment.

So, believing that the Church is the wife of Jesus does go along with Jewish marriage customs. What matters, though, is what God says in His Word. That is where the true definition of marriage is found. The basic definition in the Bible for marriage is a man and woman joined together as one. The Bible begins with the joining of a man and woman as one and it ends with the joining of a King and Bride as one. God Himself gives us the most perfect example with His relationship with Israel and we are a part of this marriage process right now! God’s marriage is the mystery of the Kingdom that we are to seek out and to know and understand by the help of the Holy Spirit (Lesson 1: How Do You Get To Know God?, Lesson 9: Who Is The Holy Spirit?, Lesson 15g: Joined By One Spirit Into One Body). Now is the time to for us to understand and get back to our duty and training as wife and Bride because the second wedding ceremony is about to begin!

http://www.basiclovetraining.org/

Women, Wells, Water, Trees

2008-02-08T07:42:00.000-05:00

The Lord wants us to get our counsel from Him.

Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water; but a man of understanding will draw it out. (Pro 20:5 KJV)

Women were the ones that drew out the water for their families.

And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, the time that women go out to draw. (Gen 24:11 MKJV)

Behold, I stand by the well of water. And the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water. (Gen 24:13 MKJV)

The woman at the well found out that the true living water we need is from Jesus.

A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water." The woman said to him, "Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock." Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (Joh 4:7-14 ESV)

Drink waters out of your own cistern, and running waters out of your own well. Should your overflowing springs be scattered outside, like rivers of waters in the streets? Let them be only your own, and not to strangers with you; let your fountains be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth; (Pro 5:15-18 LITV)

The Lord loves His wife (the Church) but she has taken counsel (water) from other wells. She must return to her Husband's well and draw deeply from it. Her understanding of this must increase.

The words of a man's mouth are like deep waters, the fountain of wisdom like a flowing stream. (Pro 18:4 LITV)

Cease to hear instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge. (Pro 19:27 ESV)

Hear counsel, and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end. There are many devices in a man's heart; nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand. (Pro 19:20-21 KJV)

The Tree of Life is planted in the midst of the River of Life.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
(Rev 22:1-2 ESV)

A locked garden is My sister, My spouse; a spring locked up, a sealed fountain. Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates with excellent fruits, with henna and spikenard; spikenard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon; with all trees of frankincense, myrrh and aloes; with all the chief balsam spices; a fountain of gardens, a well of living waters; even flowings from Lebanon. Awake, north wind; yea, come, south wind; blow on my garden; let its spices flow out. Let my Beloved come into His garden and eat its excellent fruits. (Son 4:12-16 LITV)

My beloved spoke, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. (Son 2:10 KJVR)

"I, Jesus, sent my Angel to testify to these things for the churches. I'm the Root and Branch of David, the Bright Morning Star." "Come!" say the Spirit and the Bride. Whoever hears, echo, "Come!" Is anyone thirsty? Come! All who will, come and drink, Drink freely of the Water of Life! (Rev 22:16-17 MSG)

A Message to the Captains...

2008-02-05T10:32:00.000-05:00

I am writing to all Captains (Pastors, Ministers, Priests, Teachers) who have been commissioned by God to nurture and care for the Church - the wife of Jesus Christ. Some of you have been faithful, but some of you have left your post and have not been performing your duty. Troubling times are coming for the Church and she needs you now more than ever!

Maybe you were discouraged by the doctrines of men, maybe your leaders and followers failed you, but now is the time for you to return and rise up in the calling that the Lord has given you. He has not forgotten you nor the plan He has for your life. It is not too late to return to your post.

The King is now training His Army and preparing His Bride for His return. Obeying the commands of the King should be your highest priority. His commands of love will give you the knowlege and understanding of who the Bride is and her position of royalty in His Kingdom. Your eyes will be opened to see what is coming to purify and unite her body. Then you will truly understand what the Church needs to prepare her for His return.

Some men are starting to understand this. Rick Joyner (http://www.morningstarministries.org) has been writing about the Bride and God's Army in his books and articles (see "2007 Prophetic Bulletin - The Weightiest Matter"). In his most recent "Word for the Week - The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 6", he explains how the Church is called to be feminine and martial in nature. I have written "Basic Love Training" to help you understand the Bride and her relationship with the King and His Army. It is now time for all the Captains to begin to see her identity and her relationship to the King from a woman's perspective. Only a woman can truly understand what it feels like to be a bride and a wife. Please let this woman help you in your understanding. http://www.basiclovetraining.org

In His Love,
Angie (a.k.a. Biblestudymom)

The King's Garden - Part 2

2008-01-31T11:00:00.000-05:00

So how do these trees fit in with end times prophecy? Well, the Prophets spoke alot about the condition and future of these trees.

The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth; for the LORD has spoken: "Children have I reared and brought up, but they have rebelled against me. The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master's crib, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand." Ah, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, offspring of evildoers, children who deal corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD, they have despised the Holy One of Israel, they are utterly estranged. Why will you still be struck down? Why will you continue to rebel? The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it, but bruises and sores and raw wounds; they are not pressed out or bound up or softened with oil. Your country lies desolate; your cities are burned with fire; in your very presence foreigners devour your land; it is desolate, as overthrown by foreigners. And the daughter of Zion is left like a booth in a vineyard, like a lodge in a cucumber field, like a besieged city. If the LORD of hosts had not left us a few survivors, we should have been like Sodom, and become like Gomorrah. Hear the word of the LORD, you rulers of Sodom! Give ear to the teaching of our God, you people of Gomorrah! "What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the LORD; I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats. "When you come to appear before me, who has required of you this trampling of my courts? Bring no more vain offerings; incense is an abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations-- I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly. Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hates; they have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood. Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause. "Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken." How the faithful city has become a whore, she who was full of justice! Righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers. Your silver has become dross, your best wine mixed with water. Your princes are rebels and companions of thieves. Everyone loves a bribe and runs after gifts. They do not bring justice to the fatherless, and the widow's cause does not come to them. Therefore the Lord declares, the LORD of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel: "Ah, I will get relief from my enemies and avenge myself on my foes. I will turn my hand against you and will smelt away your dross as with lye and remove all your alloy. And I will restore your judges as at the first, and your counselors as at the beginning. Afterward you shall be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city." Zion shall be redeemed by justice, and those in her who repent, by righteousness. But rebels and sinners shall be broken together, and those who forsake the LORD shall be consumed. For they shall be ashamed of the oaks that you desired; and you shall blush for the gardens that you have chosen. For you shall be like an oak whose leaf withers, and like a garden without water. And the strong shall become tinder, and his work a spark, and both of them shall burn together, with none to quench them. (Isa 1:1-31 ESV)

Zion will be ashamed of the gardens she chose to tend instead of the King's Garden. God's judgment will come because of the wickedness of the daughters of Zion and their cities and forests will be cut down and burned.

You brought a vine out of Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it. You cleared the ground for it; it took deep root and filled the land. The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. It sent out its branches to the sea and its shoots to the River. Why then have you broken down its walls, so that all who pass along the way pluck its fruit? The boar from the forest ravages it, and all that move in the field feed on it. Turn again, O God of hosts! Look down from heaven, and see; have regard for this vine, the stock that your right hand planted, and for the son whom you made strong for yourself. They have burned it with fire; they have cut it down; may they perish at the rebuke of your face! But let your hand be on the man of your right hand, the son of man whom you have made strong for yourself! Then we shall not turn back from you; give us life, and we will call upon your name! Restore us, O LORD God of hosts! Let your face shine, that we may be saved! (Psa 80:8-19 ESV)

Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars! Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen, for the glorious trees are ruined! Wail, oaks of Bashan, for the thick forest has been felled!
(Zec 11:1-2 ESV)

For wickedness burns like the fire; it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forest, and they shall roll upwards like the lifting up of smoke. Through the wrath of Jehovah of Hosts is the land scorched, and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire; no man shall have pity on his brother. And he shall cut off on the right hand and be hungry; and he shall eat on the left, and they shall not be satisfied. Each man shall eat the flesh of his own arm; Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh; and they together shall be against Judah. In all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.
(Isa 9:18-21 MKJV)

Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. (Pro 14:29 ESV)

The Lord is not slow concerning His promise, as some count slowness, but is long-suffering toward us, not purposing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a rushing noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat. And the earth and the works in it will be burned up. Then, all these things being about to be dissolved, what sort ought you to be in holy behavior and godliness, looking for and rushing the coming of the Day of God, on account of which the heavens, being on fire, will melt away, and the elements will melt, burning with heat? But according to His promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking for these things, be diligent, spotless, and without blemish, to be found by Him in peace.
(2Pe 3:9-14 MKJV)

Even though God is angry at us, He still stretches out His hand of forgiveness to us. His day of wrath, or "day of the Lord", is slow coming because He loves us and doesn't want anyone to perish. We should be full of joy because King Jesus is coming to judge the earth.

Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns! Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity." Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it! Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the LORD, for he comes, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness, and the peoples in his faithfulness. (Psa 96:10-13 ESV)

Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. (1Ch 16:33 ESV)

"For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall make a name for the LORD, an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off."
(Isa 55:12-13 ESV)

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. (Psa 1:1-6 ESV)

"Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her. And there I will give her her vineyards and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth, as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt. "And in that day, declares the LORD, you will call me 'My Husband,' and no longer will you call me 'My Baal.' For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and they shall be remembered by name no more. And I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety. And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the LORD. "And in that day I will answer, declares the LORD, I will answer the heavens, and they shall answer the earth, and the earth shall answer the grain, the wine, and the oil, and they shall answer Jezreel, and I will sow her for myself in the land. And I will have mercy on No Mercy, and I will say to Not My People, 'You are my people'; and he shall say, 'You are my God.'"
(Hos 2:14-23 ESV)

So the Lord Jehovah says this to them: Behold I Myself will even judge between the fat lamb and the lean lamb. Because you have thrust with side and with shoulder, and have pushed all the weak with your horns until you have scattered them to the outside, therefore I will save My flock, and they shall no more be a prey. And I will judge between lamb and lamb. And I will set up one Shepherd over them, and He shall feed them, My servant David. He shall feed them, and He shall be their Shepherd. And I Jehovah will be their God, and My servant David a ruler among them. I Jehovah have spoken. And I will make a covenant of peace with them, and will send the evil beasts out of the land. And they shall dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. And I will make them, and the places around My hill, a blessing; and I will bring down the shower in its season. There shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase. And they shall be safe in their land, and they shall know that I am Jehovah, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and have delivered them out of the hands of those who enslaved them. And no more shall they be a prey to the nations, nor shall the beast of the land eat them. But they shall dwell safely, and none shall terrify them. And I will raise up for them a noted planting place, and they shall never again be of those gathered by famine in the land, nor shall they bear the shame of the nations any more. And they shall know that I, Jehovah their God, am with them, and they, the house of Israel, are My people, says the Lord Jehovah.
(Eze 34:20-30 MKJV)

King Jesus is coming to reign in peace forever on His holy mountain, where the righteous and faithful trees will be permanently planted.

"You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed; you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode. The peoples have heard; they tremble; pangs have seized the inhabitants of Philistia. Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed; trembling seizes the leaders of Moab; all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away. Terror and dread fall upon them; because of the greatness of your arm, they are still as a stone, till your people, O LORD, pass by, till the people pass by whom you have purchased. You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain, the place, O LORD, which you have made for your abode, the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have established. The LORD will reign forever and ever."
(Exo 15:13-18 ESV)

The trees will become one Tree of Life, or one nation in the end.

And the Word of Jehovah came to me, saying, And you, son of man, take a stick and write on it, For Judah and for his companions, the sons of Israel. And take another stick and write on it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and all the house of Israel, his companions. And join them to one another into one stick. And they shall become one in your hand. And when the sons of your people shall speak to you, saying, Will you not declare to us what these mean to you? Say to them, So says the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions, and I will put them with him, with the stick of Judah, and will make them one stick, and they shall be one in My hand. And the sticks on which you write shall be in your hand before their eyes. And say to them, So says the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and will gather them on every side, and will bring them into their own land. And I will make them one nation in the land on the mountains of Israel, and one King shall be king to them all. And they shall not still be two nations, nor shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all. Nor shall they be defiled with their idols, even with their filthy idols, nor with all of their transgressions. But I will save them out of all their dwelling places, in them where they sinned, and will cleanse them. And they shall be to Me for a people, and I will be to them for God. And David My servant shall be King over them. And there shall be one Shepherd to all of them. And they shall walk in My judgments, and obey My Laws, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, the land in which your fathers have lived. And they shall dwell in it, even they and their sons, and the sons of their sons for ever. And My servant David shall be their ruler forever. And I will cut a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them, and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever. And My tabernacle shall be with them. Yea, I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And the nations shall know that I Jehovah sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary shall be in their midst forever. (Eze 37:15-28 MKJV)

The King's Garden - Part 1

2008-01-10T09:50:00.000-05:00

As I continue to study "women", "mothers", "daughters", and "virgins" in the Bible, I am beginning to see a connection in scripture between women and trees.

Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gets understanding. For the profit from it is better than the gain from silver, and its produce more than fine gold; she is more precious than rubies; and all the things you can desire are not to be compared with her. Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand, riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who lay hold upon her; and happy is everyone who keeps her. (Pro 3:13-18 MKJV)

To understand this connection, we need to go back to the beginning of the Bible where "trees" are first mentioned.

And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the third day. (Gen 1:11-13 KJV)

And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die." (Gen 2:8-17 ESV)

The tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil were in the middle of God's first garden, the Garden of Eden. In the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible, a garden with a tree is described again.

And he showed me a pure river of Water of Life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of its street, and of the river, from here and from there, was the Tree of Life, which bore twelve fruits, each yielding its fruit according to one month. And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And every curse will no longer be; but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His servants will serve Him. And they will see His face, and His name will be in their foreheads. And there will be no night there. And they need no lamp, or light of the sun; for the Lord God gives them light. And they will reign forever and ever. And he said to me, These sayings are faithful and true. And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show to His servants the things which must shortly be done. Behold, I come quickly. Blessed is he who keeps the Words of the prophecy of this Book. And I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel showing me these things. Then he said to me, Behold! See, do not do it! For I am your fellow-servant, and of your brothers the prophets, and of those who keep the Words of this Book. Do worship to God. And he said to me, Do not seal the Words of the prophecy of this Book; for the time is at hand. He acting unjustly, let him still act unjustly. And the filthy, let him be filthy still. And the righteous, let him be righteous still. And the holy, let him be holy still. And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to each according as his work is. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the Ending, the First and the Last. Blessed are they who do His commandments, that their authority will be over the Tree of Life, and they may enter in by the gates into the city. (Rev 22:1-14 MKJV)

In Isaiah 46:9-10, God says that He declared the end from the beginning. I believe that God planned from the beginning how He would restore His garden.

The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah is on Me, because Jehovah has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the meek. He has sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to captives, and complete opening to the bound ones; to proclaim the acceptable year of Jehovah, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to appoint to those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of the spirit of infirmity, so that one calls them trees of righteousness, the planting of Jehovah, in order to beautify Himself. And they shall build old ruins; they shall raise up former desolations; and they shall restore the waste cities, ruins of generations and generations. (Isa 61:1-4 LITV)

The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that is wise winneth souls.
(Pro 11:30 JPS)

In the end, there will only be one tree in God's garden - the Tree of Life. The Tree of Life is in the midst of New Jerusalem, the Bride of the King. King Jesus came to make us trees of righteousness that will repair the ruined cities. The fruit of our trees will produce the Tree of Life that is described in the book of Revelation, the one that produces twelve fruits and leaves to heal the nations.

So that means the soul of the wife of King Jesus is His new garden (review BLT Level 3 - Lesson 15h: A Nourished and Enlarged New Soul). The Church has been given the duty to grow and take care of her new soul (review BLT Level 4 - Lesson 17: The Division of the Kingdom). Seven trees are planted there right now, one for each of the seven churches to tend and to keep. Each tree produces fruit according to their kind. In the book of Isaiah, we find out the names of these seven trees and where they are located.

I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive. I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane and the pine together, that they may see and know, may consider and understand together, that the hand of the LORD has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it. (Isa 41:19-20 ESV)

The trees of the LORD are watered abundantly, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted. (Psa 104:16 ESV)

The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the courts of our God. They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green, to declare that the LORD is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
(Psa 92:12-15 ESV)

How goodly are your tents, O Jacob, your tabernacles, O Israel! They are spread forth like the valleys, like gardens by the river's side, like the trees of aloes which Jehovah has planted, like cedar trees beside the waters. He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters. And his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted.
(Num 24:5-7 MKJV)

He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
(Mat 13:37-38 KJV)

They were planted in the field of the world, 4 in the wilderness and 3 in the desert. More trees grew, according to their kind. So the fruitful field became a forest in the Kingdom. The seven virgin daughters were supposed to tend to the King's Garden, but they let things get out of hand and let the weeds grow up and take over. They also started to make their own gardens to produce their own "tree of the knowledge of good and evil", separating themselves from each other. But the fruit of their trees began to dry up and rot, and now the harvest will not come.

And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it. Now, therefore, say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: 'Thus says the LORD, Behold, I am shaping disaster against you and devising a plan against you. Return, every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your deeds.' "But they say, 'That is in vain! We will follow our own plans, and will every one act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.' "Therefore thus says the LORD: Ask among the nations, Who has heard the like of this? The virgin Israel has done a very horrible thing.
(Jer 18:9-13 ESV)

Rise up, women who are at ease; hear my voice, careless daughters; listen to my speech. Many days and years you shall be troubled, careless women; for the vintage shall fail, the gathering shall not come. Tremble, women at ease; be troubled, careless ones; strip yourselves and make yourselves bare, and bind sackcloth on your loins. They shall mourn for the breasts, for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine. On the land of my people shall come up thorns and briers; yea, on all the houses of joy in the joyous city; because the palace shall be deserted, the multitude of the city shall be forsaken; instead the mound and tower shall be for dens forever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks until the Spirit is poured on us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is thought to be a forest. Then judgment shall dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field. And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the service of righteousness shall be quietness and hope forever. And my people shall dwell in a peaceable home, and in secure dwellings and quiet resting places. Though it hails, when the forest is felled, and the city laid low. Blessed are you who sow beside all waters, who send out the feet of the ox and the ass.
(Isa 32:9-20 MKJV)

Judgment is coming to their wild gardens. The forests and gardens of the careless daughters will be cut down and their cities will be destroyed, just like their mother's vine.

Your mother was like a vine in a vineyard planted by the water, fruitful and full of branches by reason of abundant water. Its strong stems became rulers' scepters; it towered aloft among the thick boughs; it was seen in its height with the mass of its branches. But the vine was plucked up in fury, cast down to the ground; the east wind dried up its fruit; they were stripped off and withered. As for its strong stem, fire consumed it. Now it is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty land. And fire has gone out from the stem of its shoots, has consumed its fruit, so that there remains in it no strong stem, no scepter for ruling. This is a lamentation and has become a lamentation.
(Eze 19:10-14 ESV)

But there is still hope for the trees and their fruit - the King has promised to send a latter rain if the daughters return to their first love, to His vine and garden, and fix their eyes upon the face of the King!

"For there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease. Though its root grow old in the earth, and its stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put out branches like a young plant." (Job 14:7-9 ESV)

I am the Vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
(Joh 15:5 MKJV)

In the light of the face of the king is life, and his favor is like a cloud of the latter rain. (Pro 16:15 LITV)

'Come, and let us return unto the LORD; for He hath torn, and He will heal us, He hath smitten, and He will bind us up. After two days will He revive us, on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His presence. And let us know, eagerly strive to know the LORD, His going forth is sure as the morning; and He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter rain that watereth the earth.'
(Hos 6:1-3 JPS)

IT'S TIME FOR THE CHURCH TO RETURN AND FOCUS ALL HER EFFORTS INTO KNOWING AND LOVING KING JESUS!!!

http://www.basiclovetraining.org

Wife's Duty, Husband's Judgment

2007-12-08T15:01:00.000-05:00

Jesus came to give us all we need to be joined forever with Him - body, soul, and spirit. This was the plan from the beginning - for us to be married to Him. This was all mapped out from the beginning, when God gave His commandment to Moses to teach the children of Israel after delivering them from the bondage of Egypt. This is when God married Israel. Jesus fulfilled and is fulfilling all of God's commands and promises as Husband. Using Deuteronomy chapters 6, 7, & 8, let me show you how this is mapped out:

Jesus came to redeem our lives from the bondage of sin. When we believe in Him, accepting Him as Lord (Husband) of our lives, then we are given His Spirit which gives us eternal life. His Spirit also gives us His Wisdom and the knowledge we need to live a holy life like Him so that we stay in relationship with Him.

For you are a holy people to Jehovah your God. Jehovah your God has chosen you to be His own treasure out of all the people on the face of the earth. Jehovah did not set His love on you or choose you because you were more in number than any people, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But because Jehovah loved you, and because He kept the oath which He swore to your fathers, Jehovah has caused you to go out with a strong hand, and redeemed you from the house of slaves, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Because of this, know that Jehovah your God, He is God, the faithful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to those who love Him, and to those who keep His commands, to a thousand generations;
(Deu 7:6-9 LITV)

And Jehovah commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear Jehovah our God, for our good always, so that He might preserve us alive, as it is today. And if we are careful to do all this commandment before Jehovah our God, as He has commanded us, it shall be our righteousness.
(Deu 6:24-25 MKJV)

The death and resurrection of Jesus was to give us a new, incorruptible body like His, but it also made the way for all of us to become a part of His body, the Church, and to be included in His Kingdom - Israel. His Spirit gives us the understanding of who we are as His Wife and how we are to be united together in His city, Jerusalem. His Spirit also plants the seed of Jesus (God's Word) in our hearts to produce the fruit of His Soul in us. As we fear God the Father and obey His commandments, His love will be perfected in us and He will keep His promise to bless and mulitply us.

Then hear, O, Israel, and be careful to do it, so that it may be well with you, and that you may greatly multiply, as Jehovah, the God of our fathers has promised you, in the land that flows with milk and honey. Hear, O, Israel. Jehovah our God is one Jehovah. And you shall love Jehovah your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words which I command you this day shall be in your heart. And you shall carefully teach them to your sons, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up. And you shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them upon the posts of your house, and on your gates. And it shall be when Jehovah your God has brought you into the land which He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you great and good cities which you did not build, and houses full of every good thing which you did not fill, and wells which are dug, but which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and you shall eat and be full, (Deu 6:3-11 MKJV)

And it shall be, because you listen to these judgments and keep and do them, Jehovah your God shall keep to you the covenant and the mercy which He swore to your fathers. And He will love you and bless you and multiply you. He will also bless the fruit of your womb, and the fruit of your land, your grain, and your wine, and your oil, the increase of your cattle, and the flocks of your sheep, in the land which He swore to your fathers to give you. You shall be blessed above all people. There shall not be male or female barren among you or among your cattle. (Deu 7:12-14 MKJV)

His Spirit gives the Church the power and protection to do His work (building His city) and to be His testimony on this earth.

You shall carefully keep the commandments of Jehovah your God, and His testimonies, and His statutes which He has commanded you. And you shall do the right and good in the sight of Jehovah, so that it may be well with you, and so that you may go in and possess the good land which Jehovah swore to your fathers, to cast out all your enemies from before you, as Jehovah has spoken. (Deu 6:17-19 MKJV)

And Jehovah will take away from you all sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt which you know upon you. But He will lay them upon all who hate you. And you shall destroy all the people which Jehovah your God shall deliver you. Your eye shall have no pity upon them, neither shall you serve their gods, for they will be a snare to you.
(Deu 7:15-16 MKJV)

You shall not be afraid of them, for Jehovah your God is among you, a mighty and terrible God. And Jehovah your God will put out those nations before you by little and little. You may not destroy them at once, lest the beasts of the field increase upon you. And Jehovah your God shall deliver them to you, and shall destroy them with a mighty ruin until they are destroyed. (Deu 7:21-23 MKJV)

Everything God gave to His wife, Israel, Jesus gives to His wife, the Church. Jesus forgives His wife's sins, He saves her life from eternal destruction, He heals her, He provides for all her needs, He protects her, and He makes her new and beautiful again. As long as the wife does her duty to fear her husband and keep his commandments, then she is blessed and fruitful. But, if she disobeys and forgets about her husband, then judgment comes upon her. In the end, her spiritual life might be the only thing saved, but all her work and building will be burned and destroyed, if she hasn't been following her husband's instructions (1 Cor. 3:11-15). God has given Jesus all the authority to bring judgment upon all people.

And these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which Jehovah our God commanded to teach you so that you might do them in the land where you go, to possess it, that you might fear Jehovah your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you, and your son, and your son's son, all the days of your life, and so that your days may be prolonged. (Deu 6:1-2 MKJV)

You shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people all around you, for Jehovah your God is a jealous God among you, lest the anger of Jehovah your God be kindled against you and destroy you from off the face of the earth.
(Deu 6:14-15 MKJV)

You shall burn the graven images of their gods with fire. You shall not desire the silver or gold on them, nor take it for yourself, so that you may not be snared in it. For it is an abomination to Jehovah your God. And you shall not bring an abomination into your house, lest you be a cursed thing like it. You shall utterly hate it, and you shall utterly despise it. For it is a cursed thing. (Deu 7:25-26 MKJV)

Beware that you do not forget Jehovah your God, in not keeping His commandments, and His judgments, and His statutes, which I command you today, lest when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and lived in them, and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold is multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied, then your heart might be lifted up, and you might forget Jehovah your God who brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of slaves. He led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground, where there was no water, who brought you forth water out of the rock of flint, who fed you in the wilderness with manna which your fathers did not know, so that He might humble you and so that He might prove you, to do you good in your latter end, and so that you might not say in your heart, My power and the might of my hand has gotten me this wealth. But you shall remember Jehovah your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, so that He may confirm His covenant which He has sworn to your fathers, as it is today. And it shall be if you do at all forget Jehovah your God and walk after other gods and serve them and worship them, I testify against you today that you shall surely perish. As the nations whom Jehovah destroys before your face, so you shall perish because you would not listen to the voice of Jehovah your God. (Deu 8:11-20 MKJV)

As king of Israel, Solomon wisely summed up all of these things:

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. Fear God, and keep His commandments. For this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it is good, or whether evil.
(Ecc 12:13-14 MKJV)

If we truly believe that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and that He is God's Word made flesh, and that He and the Father are one, then we have to believe that judgment will come to the Church, just like it did to the children of Israel, if we disobey and forget to do what Jesus has instructed us to do.

So, what have we forgotten to do? Well, I believe the Church has failed in teaching the commandments to their children and grandchildren. Because of this, we have forgotten God and we have gone after other gods and idols to serve them and worship them. Our children do not know what is right and they are confusing evil for good. They do not know King Jesus and they do not know about His Kingdom. Judgment is coming upon us, not to utterly destroy us, but to humble us and bring us to repentence.

For Jehovah your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. When you father sons and sons of sons, and when you shall have remained long in the land and have dealt corruptly by making a graven image, the likeness of anything, and shall do evil in the sight of Jehovah your God, to provoke Him to anger, I call Heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you shall soon utterly perish from off the land which you are crossing over Jordan to possess. You shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed. And Jehovah shall scatter you among the nations, and you shall be left few in number among the nations where Jehovah shall drive you. And there you shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell. But if you shall seek Jehovah your God from there, you shall find Him, if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in trouble and when all these things have found you in the latter days, then you shall return to Jehovah your God and shall be obedient to His voice. For Jehovah your God is a merciful God; He will not forsake you, nor destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your fathers which He swore to them. (Deu 4:24-31 MKJV)

How long, O Jehovah? Will You be angry forever? Shall Your jealousy burn like fire? Pour out Your wrath on the nations who have not known You, and on the kingdoms who have not called on Your name. For they have eaten up Jacob, and wasted his dwelling-place. O do not remember against us our former sins; let Your tender mercies meet us quickly; for we are brought very low. (Psa 79:5-8 MKJV)

The Church is dying and unfruitful because of our disobedience. It is now time to repent! It is not too late for us to teach our children and grandchildren how to know and love Jesus! In the last days, there is a promised generation who will know and love their God and will "be strong and take action" (Daniel 11:32-33). Let's be the ones who understand and teach them how to fear God and to obey His commandments of love.

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