We have all sinned and come short of the glory of Yahuah (God), but that does not mean we are not to hold one another accountable. The fact is that the Word of Yahuah demands that we do so…

Ephesians 5:11 (NKJV)

¹¹ And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather ^[a]expose them.

Proverbs 27:17 (NASB)

¹⁷ Iron sharpens iron,
So one man sharpens another.

Galatians 6:1-2

6 Brethren, even if ^[a]anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. ² Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Yeshua the Messiah .

This responsibility doesn’t stop when it comes to holding leaders accountable as well, both spiritual…

1 Timothy 5:19-20 (NKJV)

¹⁹ Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses. ²⁰ Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all, that the rest also may fear.

And political…

2 Samuel 12:1-13 (NKJV)

12 Then the Yahuah sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him: “There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor. ² The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds. ³ But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him. ⁴ And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him; but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”

⁵ So David’s anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Yahuah lives, the man who has done this ^[a]shall surely die! ⁶ And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.”

⁷ Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Elohim of Israel: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. ⁸ I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more! ⁹ Why have you despised the commandment of the Yahuah, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon. ¹⁰ Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ ¹¹ Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. ¹² For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.’ ” ¹³ So David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Yahuah.” And Nathan said to David, “Yahuah also has put away your sin; you shall not die.

David repented because the Prophet Nathan held him accountable.

Yeshua repeatedly rebuked the Pharisees for their sins and hypocrisy. Was that judging them?

However, these days, when sin is called out people get defensive and accuse the person or persons holding them accountable of judging.

Calling out sin is not judging. It’s our responsibility. Yeshua the Messiah, Jesus Christ, told us that we are capable of righteous judgment…

John 7:23-24 (NKJV)

²⁴ Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

He also asserted that we can tell what’s in a person’s heart by their fruit…their character…their consistent behavior…and the influence that their character yields…

Matthew 7:15-20 (NKJV)

¹⁵ “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

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I’m saying all that to say this…I have noticed a common reaction from both ‘conservatives’/’evangelicals’ and those in the LBGTQ movement when…

When someone calls out President Trump’s pride (an equal sin to shedding innocent blood per Provers 6:16-17), daily hurling of insults, speaking profanities at rallies while Christians cheer, boasting about his own accomplishments (Proverbs 27;2), and his admitted unrepentant, unforgiving attitude. He admitted publicly that he does not ask Yahuah for forgiveness, but tries to do better and doesn’t bring our Elohim into it — however when any of this is pointed out many conservatives who claim to be Christians are quick to respond…

YOU HATE THE PRESIDENT AND YOU ARE JUDGING HIM.

This is the exact same response that when the same conservatives who claim to be Christians call out the sin of those who practice homosexuality and support marriage between the same sex, when this sin is called out many in the LBGTQ are quick to respond…

YOU HATE LGBTQ PEOPLE AND YOU ARE JUDGING THEM.

Both groups have the same response, which comes from the same spirit of resistance to the truth — accusations of hate and judgment.

The apostle Paul wrote a very stern letter calling out the sins of the saints in the Corinthian church. He also called out a very public sin in 1 Corinthians Chapter 5, as well as those who condoned it. The church didn’t accuse Paul of ‘judging’ them, but repented and worked hard to rectify the matter…

2 Corinthians 7:8-13 (NIV)

⁸ Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while— ⁹ yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as Yahuah intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. ¹⁰ Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. ¹¹ See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter. ¹² So even though I wrote to you, it was neither on account of the one who did the wrong nor on account of the injured party, but rather that before God you could see for yourselves how devoted to us you are. ¹³ By all this we are encouraged.

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Calling out sin is not casting stones, hate, judgment or condemnation. It is trying to help one another avoid condemnation.

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Yahuah demands that we hate the SIN but not the SINNER, because we are all sinners who are only saved by the grace of our Elohim.

We must pray that leaders, conservatives, liberals, evangelicals, and atheists submit to Yahuah’s word, will, love, truth and salvation.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Anyone who believes in God has been asked these questions.

Most if not all believers, if they are willing to admit it to themselves, have asked some of these questions.

Not only are there some difficult things to understand in the Bible, but there are things God does today that are difficult to explain.

Why does God allow babies and children to suffer with terminal illnesses?

Why does the bible not explicitly forbid slavery?

Why does God allow abusive parents to have children, while others who would be loving, nurturing parents to go childless?

Why does God allow some people to be healed but other people, some we would even call ‘good’ people, to not be healed?

Luke 4:27 (NKJV)

²⁷ And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”

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There are countless questions that atheists and some believers ask concerning God, either arrogantly or anxiously waiting for answers.

God gave us the example through the Psalms that He will allow us to question Him in humility, as long as we continue to trust Him…

Psalm 13:1-2 (NKJV)

How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
How long will You hide Your face from me?
² How long shall I take counsel in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?

³ Consider and hear me, O Lord my God;
Enlighten my eyes,
Lest I sleep the sleep of death;
⁴ Lest my enemy say,
“I have prevailed against him”;
Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.

⁵ But I have trusted in Your mercy;
My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
⁶ I will sing to the Lord,
Because He has dealt bountifully with me.

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If you’re like me, sometimes you feel pressured to give a quick and definite answer to ‘defend’ God. Sometimes you want a definite answer to satisfy yourself. 

But the truth is that some things we simply don’t know.

That means sometimes the best answer is…

I DON’T KNOW!

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Even those who depend on science to shape their beliefs have to admit that with all of our advances in science and medicine, there is still more that’s unknown than is known.

Scientists still have to sometimes say…

I DON’T KNOW!

Doctors have to sometimes admit…

I DON’T KNOW!

There are times that after a deadly diagnoses that the illness sometimes disappears and the physician has to admit…

I DON’T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED!

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So, no one should really scoff when a believer says they simply don’t know.

The fact is, there is great peace in admitting that even though you don’t know…you still trust God. He has told us that there are things that will be beyond are human minds, and even science helps prove that. There is much in science well beyond the reach of scientific knowledge.

Isaiah 55:8-9 (NKJV)

⁸ “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
⁹ “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.

Don’t deny yourself the blessing and peace of simply saying…”I DON’T KNOW!”

Psalm 131:1 (NKJV)

Lord, my heart is not ^[a]haughty,
Nor my eyes ^[b]lofty.
Neither do I ^[c]concern myself with great matters,
Nor with things too ^[d]profound for me.

Admitting that you don’t know doesn’t confirm God isn’t God, it just confirms that we are human.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

I can’t count how many times that I’ve heard Christians imply that asking Yahuah in prayer over and over again implies there’s a lack of faith…

They make statements like, “If you trust Yahuah, you will pray and then forget about it.”

But, that implication is in direct contradiction to what Yeshua the Messiah taught us.

Remember the illustration Yeshua gave His disciples immediately after the Model Prayer Luke Chapter 11…

Luke 11:5-10 (CJB)

⁵ He also said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend; and you go to him in the middle of the night and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, ⁶ because a friend of mine who has been travelling has just arrived at my house, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ ⁷ Now the one inside may answer, ‘Don’t bother me! The door is already shut, my children are with me in bed — I can’t get up to give you anything!’ ⁸ But I tell you, even if he won’t get up because the man is his friend, yet because of the man’s hutzpah he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

⁹ “Moreover, I myself say to you: keep asking, and it will be given to you; keep seeking, and you will find; keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you. ¹⁰ For everyone who goes on asking receives; and he who goes on seeking finds; and to him who continues knocking, the door will be opened.

Verse number 8 confirms that Yahuah wants us to pray with ‘HOLY HUZTPAH’ (the Hebrew word for extreme self-confidence or audacity).

El Elyon insists that we show persistence mixed with humility.

So, if you’re trusting Yahuah for something, continue to ask Him believing you will receive it IF IT’S HIS WILL…

James 1:5-7 (NKJV)

^{5 (A)}If any of you lacks wisdom, ^(B)let him ask of Yahuah (God), who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and ^(C)it will be given to him. ^{6 (D)}But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. ⁷ For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;

Have the same audacity that a child does when he or she keeps asking for something that they need or sometimes want from a parent.

“CAN I HAVE IT?”

“CAN I HAVE IT?”

“CAN I HAVE IT?”

Pray with HOLY HUTZPAH!

BE BLESSTIFIED!

This piece is not necessarily critical of fraternal organizations, but addresses a question in an age of removing vestiges of white supremacy and racism from American institutions.

The question it addresses is valid whether you agree or disagree with the removal of monuments, statues and aspects of a time in American when open exclusion, subjugation and racism was accepted.

Black fraternities and sororities are an integral part of Black culture.

Most began in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s following the models of White fraternities and sororities that excluded Black members.

Membership in these organizations has become a tradition and expectation in many families.

They are responsible for much great work in the community.

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But here’s the question. In an age of the removal of statues and monuments erected in a time when America had a different mindset, why aren’t the Greek letters that distinguish these organizations considered to be a reminder of the system that excluded Blacks from membership? Why are they excluded from the conversation?

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How many African languages are there that offer options of letters that could be used to not only distinguish these organizations, but also celebrate African heritage?

Or, why use letters at all?

Black members of these organizations say, “I’m Greek.” How many people of other cultures proclaim, “I’m an African”?

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Greece is a part of the European continent. Members of these organizations refer to themselves by saying, “I’m a Greek.” Even though both religion and science agree that life began in Africa…how many people of other continents proclaim, “I’m an African”. How many people are more passionate about their affiliation than their faith in God.

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God introduced Himself to Moses as ‘I AM’, so we must be careful what we say behind our “I AM”.

Exodus 3:14 (NKJV)

¹⁴ And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”

There is no condemnation for using Greek letters and culture…just wondering why members of Black fraternities and sororities who are passionate about removing aspects of racism are excluding Greek letters and culture ( language and letters are a part of culture) from the conversation and movement.

Am I an expert on secret societies and their history in America? No.

But, that doesn’t reduce the legitimacy of the question.

What do you think?

BE BLESSTIFIED!

One of the keys to having inner PEACE is understanding and accepting the fact that God never promised that life on this earth would be fair. The fact that God told us that we shouldn’t fret because evildoers will prosper let’s us know that life isn’t fair ( Psalm 37:1).

The fact that God told us that it has been given to us to not only believe, but to suffer for the sake of Christ ( Philippians 1:29) implies that life isn’t fair.

It’s not fair that some are born rich and others in deep poverty.

It’s not fair that children get sick, suffer and die.

It’s not fair that some horrible parents have several children while some potential great parents are unable to have any.

It’s not fair that some people were born into generations of slavery while others squander their freedom.

Let’s take for example sick children. Notice in the bible how David’s first child by Bathsheeba died because of his sin in 2 Samuel 12.

Notice in Mark 9 and Matthew 17 how a man’s son was possessed by a demon since he was a child.

Notice in John Chapter 9 how a man was born blind and spent most of his life blind until healed by Jesus. Notice in  Matthew 9 Jairus’ daughter died, but was resurrected by Jesus.

Now those that Jesus healed had been sick, possessed or died for the sole purpose that God could be glorified through their healing, deliverance and resurrection.

The truth is I CAN’T EXPLAIN why David’s son died. There is much about why God does what He does that we can’t explain.

In fact, who are we to ask for an explanation?

When they continually asked Jesus for a sign, He said none would be given but the sign of the prophet Jonah (Matthew 16:4). The fact is, Jesus showed them numerous miracles and signs which they ignored, but they wanted a sign that would satisfy them. Jesus Himself pointed out in…

Luke 4:25-27

But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; 26 but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath,in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”

God tells us in Romans 9:21 that the clay doesn’t question the potter.

Most of all it wasn’t fair that God had to send His only Son to suffer and die a shameful death for our sins. The truth is that life isn’t fair, there is much we won’t understand, and much we can’t understand with our limited human intelligence, as God told in…

Isaiah 55:8-9…8

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.  9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.

No one has all of the answers as to why God does what He does and allows what He allows, and don’t trust any ‘superspiritual’ person who claims to have all the answers.

The fact is, that after all things are considered, we must TRUST GOD.

He promised in…

Romans 8:28

All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

We must understand and accept that even though God may not be FAIR by our standards that He is JUST by His.

BE BLESSTIFIED!!!