Tag Archives: rebellion

The Same

by

0


In the eyes of my mind, I perceive humanity as a whole.  I do not divide them according to the trappings of any one generation.  Whatever toys or tools a man may hold, God sees the man.  Any man who lived 2000 years before Christ is equal in God’s sight to the baby born today.

Yet I am of this generation.  And I perceive that the kingdom of God is no different between any generation.  What was expected of men is still expected.  What is offered today is the same as was offered then.  And the outcome of the righteous and the wicked remains firmly established.

And the nature of man has not changed simply because he can fashion dirt into different objects than his ancestor imagined.  He is still as wicked.  He is still a liar.  His righteousness is still nothing but a shadow.

Two things remain throughout every generation of man.  The kingdom of God thrives among the wicked, he chooses those he will, in his eternal wisdom.  And man is totally helpless to save himself.

Do not be fooled by the proclamations today.  They are saying we are on the verge of greatness.  But they lie.  If they tell the truth, it is only that they show their pride and arrogance.

Let he who has eyes, see.  Let he who has ears, hear.  Let he who understands, proclaim.

By His Grace

The Nature of Heaven

by

0


As I drove along in the dark last night, I let my thoughts drift to the nature of heaven.  With whatever my imagination could provide, I thought about peace, living creatures, a safe and inviting environment, and a people that will never again know any sin.

I tried to think of heaven millions of years passed the day of judgement.  I thought of a place where what is here is never mentioned.  They do not remember the wicked greed of man.  They do not remember sickness and death.  And for eternity this will be their life.

As I woke up this morning I tried to consider my thoughts about heaven.  I recognize that they are only based on what I can perceive here.  And then I found myself amazed at how little God has revealed about eternity.

His message to man does not contain the indescribable beauties of his heaven.  God and all his creatures have lived in splendor for millions of millions of years.  But exceedingly little information has been given to man.

Partly, the restraint has to do with our language.  And partly the restraint has to do with the frailty of this creation.  But more so, the restraint has to do with God’s will toward Man.

God is not interested in making us happy here.  The entirety of this place is designed to cause us to hate it.  Nothing is stable.  There is no secure place.  Nothing is friendly unless it is manipulated.  And the strength of our bones wears out so that we can no longer manipulate.

The entirety of this place is designed for faith.  We have hope in faith alone.  We are to put our trust in the Living God and His Holy Son Christ Jesus.  Even the very character of our mind is full of unrest and unpredictable behavior. 

God did not desire that we should live at peace here.  It is God’s desire that we desire his peace.  So instead of describing what is his, he tells us that he is firm and true, peace, safety, strength, purity, and that his promises are fully reliable.

The nature of this place is designed to test the heart of every man.  The question hangs in the sky over the head of every man here:

“Do you desire what you have; this place full of chaos and unpredictable things?  Or will you open your heart to honesty; looking about you and confessing the true nature of this place of testing.  And that you yourself are not able to do one right thing.”

If we will turn to God out of despair, for the sake of the things we can see that are wrong, he is willing to embrace us.  But if we want to dig in our feet, and live in this place of lies, full of rebellion, full of unbelief, full of hatred for our fellow man and for God, we will suffer unto death then be cast away as unprofitable.

If you want to know the glories of heaven, listen to the righteous words of God and do them.  Allow yourself to believe in the Holy Son of God, do not harden your heart with restraint.

Read his Holy words that HAVE been sent us.  Believe them and stop second guessing the Holy Word of the Living God.  Listen to your conscience and confess your sins to him.  Ask him to strengthen you in the things that are pure and right.  Then do what you are told to do.

All of these things can be gained in Christ Jesus.  He has promised, and is reliable, overcoming this place of chaos is possible. Heaven can be attained if we listen to him.  Then we will know the nature of the eternal heaven of the Living God.  Then our language will be like his, for the place of our perception will be an eternal place.

So many like me desired to know what is in heaven.  What a perfect example of wasted time.  A better deployment of the minutes is to teach myself godly restraint, and this according to His Holy Word and the prompting of His Holy Spirit.

May God have mercy to grant understanding to those who read these words.  Those who desire will hear.  Those who hate God will stop up their ears.

In Christ Jesus, the Righteous and Holy Son of God, I pray.  Amen.

By His Grace

To the Youth

by

0


The righteous retain the right to speak.  But the wicked have forfeited their place among the people.

Blessed and at peace are the ones who obey the Living God; those who are trained from birth to do what is good and pure.  But woe to the wicked man who wakes to his wickedness; the one whose eyes have become open to all the wicked things he has done.  For that one will come to understand, yet he will not be accepted in the ears of the people.

Truth demands a voice.  And he who has truth will find himself compelled to speak.  But woe to such a man as he who has forfeited his right among the people.  A burning fire will consume his heart.  But he will have no place to stand and vent.  Though he knows the answers and can teach them well, no one will hear his words.

Listen to this, you young!  Before you let the folly of youth consume you, hear these words.  Remain dressed in what is good, so that the old man you will become may have a place to stand and speak.

Will you listen to this man?  He was once young just like you.  But in his embrace of wicked folly, he has lost his place among the people.  As truth has come upon him, his heart is changed, but too late.

You do not need to follow his example.  Seek the Lord Jesus and continue in his way all your days.  Then you will retain the right to speak among the people when wisdom has filled you.

Will you be warned?  Will the old man or the old woman you will become, be pleased with what you have done?  For you will certainly learn what is true and wise.  Desire will come up on you to speak.  But if you do not hear these words you will have no place of prominence.  And the wickedness you love so much will become a bitter taste in your mouth.

You will find yourself of value.  But you will be like a beautiful diamond, left in the desert, with no place to be displayed.

By His Grace

Understood or Only Perceived

by

0


A man is given a job.  What is expected of him is taught.  In many cases the expectations are written down thoroughly.  The man is tested to be sure he has grasped what is essential.  Still the question remains, has he understood.

The man who understands is rare.  Yet the one who understands will learn to do what is expected of him. Most people do their job to their best.  But there is always some lack of full understanding.  By this mistakes are made and the employer suffers loss.

Only the seriously diligent will truly understand what is expected of them.  In truth, at best, most of us can only say we have perceived the expectations.  Understanding is an entirely different animal.

The more complicated the expectations, the less the possibility that the man will understand.  Yet, as he is taught, his perception becomes more clear.  At some point, if he applies himself, he becomes a reliable representative, and perhaps one who can teach.

If this is true among the things of men, how much more so the things of God? 
Shall we stand and proclaim that we understand the Gospel?  Is not very likely that understanding has come.  If it is true that few believe the Gospel, how much more rare are those who understand?

If a man is able to do what the Gospel demands, then he may be able to say he has understood.  But more likely, truth will say he has only perceived very well.  Even in the best of us failures come and go.

The Lord has told us what is expected of us.  Do we find ourselves willing to listen?  “It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master.”

Sadly the majority of people grasp the beginnings of the Gospel, but fail to understand the fullness of it.  Like rudimentary students they live their lives lacking understanding.  All the while simplicity rules their life, and they find themselves falling horribly short.

Like the worker who simply shows up to perform some menial task, the manual of expectations is rarely read.  Such a man may be coerced or forced to do what is expected of him.  But he does not have the will to succeed. 

What employer will give promotions to those who are not diligent?  The productivity of the company will surely lack for the sake of laziness and rebellion.  How is the Kingdom of God any less?

The wise go back to the Bible everyday.  They kneel in prayer often.  They watch carefully to the things that come to them, striving to gain understanding.  In such men, loyalty is supreme.

Men will pay us according to our willingness to serve.  Should God treat us any differently?  The answer, in words, is obvious.  Does our performance give those words life?

The key to understanding lays in our loyalty.  Perception obeys like a servant.  Striving to understand obeys like a son.  The difference between them is the quality of love within the heart.

As a man loves the one who gives him the opportunity, the service is more beautiful, and understanding is bound to come.  Equally, as a man loves only himself his service to the one who gives him opportunity will lack.  The one who truly loves the Lord will find himself very prosperous for the Living God. 

Again, the proof of our love will be shown by the things we do.  And the things we do present themselves clearly before us, that we may determine how we love the Lord.

“If you love me, obey my commandments.”

By His Grace

To All Who Lead

by

0


How very typically pompous of men to create division in religion, or even civil matters.  Yet by the very nature of things in creation, hierarchy necessary.  For there are things among us that are holy.  And to our shame, there are things among us that are debased and thoroughly wicked.

Regulation of rebellion is required for the simple sake of life.  For the sake of even a semblance of order, hierarchy among men is required. 

You leaders of people; hundreds, thousands, or millions, have you considered what has given you your authority?  Have you considered what seals life among us?  Or do you believe that you have attained your position by your own strength of strategy?

The will of man can produce nothing but continuous death.  How then can hope prosper among us if the leader’s only visions produce destruction? 

The ways of Man are nothing but death.  Do you know this?  Have you even considered this? 

You are set in place by necessity.  Have you taken the time to consider the meaning of the word “righteous”?  Have you considered that there is a storehouse from which all things righteous come?  Have you appealed, continuously, to the Holy One of God for help in the decisions you make every moment?  If not, how can you hope to produce anything good from the very place you have been given to inhabit?

Holy Father I ask you to broadcast this message.  Even as you have done with all things in creation: glorify your Holy Son, that Your will may be accomplished among men.  I place this message in your Holy hands.  My hands have strung the letters together.  But the message belongs to your Holy Son, Your Righteous One, Jesus the Christ. 

May Your mercy allow understanding according to your excellent will.  By Your Grace alone my God, and this through faith, may Your Holy will be done forever.

Amen.

By His Grace

Guilty Restraint

by

0


It is the guilty who over react to the presence of law enforcement.  They have failed to live prepared for judgement.

I see this best when I am driving.  Car passes me doing 5 miles over the speed limit.  Then a police officer’s car comes into view, stopped along the side of the road with his lights flashing.  That same driver who passed me at 5 miles over the speed limit, now does 5 miles under the speed limit.

As I passing by in the right-hand lane I marvel at his form of obedience.  Then it occurs to me: his reaction is of fear.  While I have been obedient and have no fear.

As I see this apply on the road, it also applies to life and to God.  “It is the guilty who over react to the presence of law enforcement.  They have failed to live prepared for judgement.”

The wise prepare, in them there is no fear.  The foolish do as they please, and fear controls them.

By His Grace