The year was 2015 and we were in the car when I got an email from NBC UNIVERSAL asking permission to use our song “Urgent” for a year.
It’s amazing how God chooses to give increase to the ‘seeds’ we plant.
We love how The Roots cleverly covered “Urgent” to introduce the movie “Insurgent”.
To God be the glory!
1 Corinthians 3:6-7 (NKJV(
6 (A)I planted, (B)Apollos watered, (C)but God gave the increase. 7 So then (D)neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.
God answers prayers! I’m a witness that He has answered countless specific prayers, intercessions and supplications for me. However, there are situations when God rejects our prayers. We can’t ignore this.
God has given us examples in the Old Testament of the behaviors that causes Him to reject the prayers of His people. However, rejection and punishment always came with a promise.
Please go back and do a dedicated bible study from the perspective of what provoked God to ‘hide His face’ and reject the prayers of His people.
Remember, idols aren’t just made of stone or wood. The devil knows he can’t convince you to ‘bow down’ to a statue. Stop and think about the ‘modern-day’ works of our hands. “…and covetousness, which is idolatry” (Colossians 3:5).
Isaiah 2:7-8 (NKJV)
7 Their land is also full of silver and gold, And there is no end to their treasures; Their land is also full of horses, And there is no end to their chariots. 8 Their land is also full of idols; They worship the work of their own hands, That which their own fingers have made.
Deuteronomy 32:20-22 (NKJV)
20 And He said: ‘I will hide My face from them, I will see what their end will be, For they are a perverse generation, Children in whom is no faith. 21 They have provoked Me to jealousy by what is not God; They have moved Me to anger by their [a]foolish idols. But I will provoke them to jealousy by those who are not a nation; I will move them to anger by a foolish nation. 22 For a fire is kindled in My anger, And shall burn to the [b]lowest [c]hell; It shall consume the earth with her increase, And set on fire the foundations of the mountains.
Jeremiah 32:28-32 (NKJV)
28 Therefore thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall take it. 29 And the Chaldeans who fight against this city shall come and set fire to this city and burn it, with the houses on whose roofs they have offered incense to Baal and poured out drink offerings to other gods, to provoke Me to anger; 30 because the children of Israel and the children of Judah have done only evil before Me from their youth. For the children of Israel have provoked Me only to anger with the work of their hands,’ says the Lord. 31 ‘For this city has been to Me a provocation of My anger and My fury from the day that they built it, even to this day; so I will remove it from before My face 32 because of all the evil of the children of Israel and the children of Judah, which they have done to provoke Me to anger—they, their kings, their princes, their priests, their prophets, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 8:3-18 (NKJV)
3 He stretched out the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my hair; and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the north gate of the inner court, where the seat of the image of jealousy was, which provokes[a] to jealousy. 4 And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the vision that I saw in the plain.
5 Then He said to me, “Son of man, lift your eyes now toward the north.” So I lifted my eyes toward the north, and there, north of the altar gate, was this image of jealousy in the entrance.
6 Furthermore He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations that the house of Israel commits here, to make Me go far away from My sanctuary? Now turn again, you will see greater abominations.” 7 So He brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, there was a hole in the wall. 8 Then He said to me, “Son of man, dig into the wall”; and when I dug into the wall, there was a door.
9 And He said to me, “Go in, and see the wicked abominations which they are doing there.” 10 So I went in and saw, and there—every sort of creeping thing, abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, [b]portrayed all around on the walls. 11 And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, and in their midst stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan. Each man had a censer in his hand, and a thick cloud of incense went up. 12 Then He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the room of his idols? For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us, the Lord has forsaken the land.’ ”
13 And He said to me, “Turn again, and you will see greater abominations that they are doing.” 14 So He brought me to the door of the north gate of the Lord’s house; and to my dismay, women were sitting there weeping for [c]Tammuz.
15 Then He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Turn again, you will see greater abominations than these.” 16 So He brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house; and there, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.
17 And He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Is it a trivial thing to the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they commit here? For they have filled the land with violence; then they have returned to provoke Me to anger. Indeed they put the branch to their nose. 18 Therefore I also will act in fury. My eye will not spare nor will I have pity; and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them.”
Everything written in the Old Testament was for our example today…
1 Corinthians 10:6-11 (NKJV)
6 Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. 7 And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” 8 Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; 9 nor let us [a]tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; 10 nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer. 11 Now [b]all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our [c]admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
With a sincere heart, ask God to soften the hearts of your enemies and antagonists to submit to His word, will, love, truth, and salvation.
Then ask the same for yourself.
Remember, God doesn’t love them any less than He loves you.
Matthew 5:43-48 (NKJV)
43 “You have heard that it was said, (B)‘You shall love your neighbor (C)and hate your enemy.’44 [a]But I say to you, (D)love your enemies, bless those who curse you, (E)do good to those who hate you, and pray (F)for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for (G)He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 (H)For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your [b]brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the [c]tax collectors do so?48 (I)Therefore you shall be perfect, just (J)as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Sometimes they take the same route every day and are well aware of the construction ahead.
Most of the time they see the signs that say “Traffic merges in ______ feet”.
They see you are already in the line of cars slowly proceeding through , but as if their time is more important than anyone else in line, they go to the front of the line and force everyone to stop🛑.
It may be slow, but if everyone merges early, we all keep moving.
Sometimes truckers will block traffic to shut off the stream of selfish last-minute mergers.
I must admit this is my pet peeve.
So, what’s the godly thing to do in traffic, let them in? Or, make them wait?
Should we be considerate enough to let them in?
Or, should they be more considerate of those who arrived to the spot in traffic before them?
Of course, sometimes the merge catches you by surprise, but most of the time…we know.
What do you do?
One verse of scripture for both sides of the question…
Luke 6:31 (NKJV)
31 (A)And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.
In our society today, many people consider blurting out exactly what’s on your mind equates to strength and assertiveness.
How many times have you wished that you could have some visceral response back and ‘unsay’ some words that you released?
Many people claim that…
“I couldn’t help it!
“I couldn’t hold it in!”
“I just had to say it!”
In doing so, many people have embarrassed themselves or ruined their name, reputation, career, relationships or sown discord and driven a wedge between close friends or relatives.
Or, worst of all we can ruin our testimony for Christ.
Sometimes it’s best to just HOLD IT IN!
The same people who say they can’t hold in their verbal response will hold in their flatulence.
No one is going to blurt out a loud, smelly fart that will embarrass them in public.
Holding in the hot air that comes from your mouth and behind both take the same level of restraint!
Even the word of God tells us that it’s best to sometimes ‘keep it to ourselves’…
Proverbs 13:3 The one who guards his mouth preserves his life; The one who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.
Proverbs 21:23 He who guards his mouth and his tongue, Guards his soul from troubles.
Proverbs 17:9
He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends.
James 3:1-12
My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. 2 For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a [a]perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body. 3 [b]Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. 4 Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires. 5 Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things.
See how great a forest a little fire kindles! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of [c]iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of [d]nature; and it is set on fire by [e]hell. 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. 8 But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the [f]similitude of God. 10 Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? 12 Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? [g]Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh.
As we ask God to help us to guard our tongues, let’s remember that SELF CONTROL is a Fruit of the Spirit.
I know I’m not the only one who sometimes struggles with this. I’m sincerely grateful and thankful for the level of blessing and favor on my life. I’m not talking about riches. I’m talking about being thankful that I have food, clothes, shelter, good health and a sound mind…for what many people call ‘the little things’. I’m thankful that my family is doing well, thankful for freedom, peace, safety and yes, I’m thankful for salvation.
But, sometimes I want more.
I would love for God to bless me to be able to support my family well through my writing and leave behind a financial heritage for my children. Ohhhh…that would be so awesome! I would love to be able to do some of the things for my family that I know would make them happy. Who doesn’t want financial stability, good health and peace in their life.
I can’t count the times I’ve been praying to God asking Him to bless my life and stopped and just had to stop and say, “Thank you!”
Because you see, so many times when I’m asking for more, I think about so many who have less.
So many times when I lain in my bed worrying about something, I think about the fact that it’s a blessing to have a bed in which to worry. Someone, somewhere at that very moment is trying to sleep under a bridge
God tells us to be content, and I truly am…
1 Timothy 6:6-8 (NKJV)
6 Now godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, [a]and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.
But, still I want more. Don’t you? I mean God also told us He would give us more, if we have our priorities straight…
Psalm 37:4-5 (NKJV)
4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit[a] your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.
Do you ever feel conflict over being thankful and wanting more?
How do we manage being content with our lives without being covetous?
If you have this conflict too, tell God thank you for the conflict. It’s a sign that you aren’t greedy or covetous.
Here’s a few simple tips on managing that conflict.
Please be careful when you…
Feel God owes you better.
Feel what you have isn’t good enough.
Ask God for more, more often than you thank Him for what you have.
Never pray for those who have less than you.
Lose that internal conflict between being thankful and asking God for more.
Never take for granted that Jesus commuted our death sentence to eternal life.
Before you look down on someone serving a life sentence because they got caught in their sin, thank God for His grace and mercy.
We are ALL murders saved by grace. We are all guilty. Through the lens of God’s perspective, murder begins in the heart. And, our words are just as deadly as bullets.
Matthew 5:21-26 (NKJV)
21 “You have heard that it was said to those [a]of old, (B)‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that (C)whoever is angry with his brother[b]without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, (D)‘Raca!’[c] shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, [d]‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of[e]hell fire.
James 3:5-10 (ESV)
5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life,[a] and set on fire by hell.[b]7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers,[c] these things ought not to be so.
Marriage and music are both gifts from God. Both are to be enjoyed with balance…
Love songs, even suggestive love songs, are just as appropriate to ‘set the mood’ for romance and intimacy within marriage as songs of worship are appropriate to ‘set the mood’ for worship and intimacy with God…
…Because, you can’t get romantic while listening to “Amazing Grace”. And, if you can, I’m worried about you.
Proverbs 5:18-19 (NKJV)
18 Let your fountain be blessed, And rejoice with (A)the wife of your youth. 19 (B)As a loving deer and a graceful doe, Let her breasts satisfy you at all times; And always be [a]enraptured with her love.
Song of Solomon 1:1-3 (CJB)
2 Let him smother me with kisses from his mouth, for your love is better than wine.
Enjoy the snippet above of my wife, Mechelle Johnson, performing Jill Scott’s “The Way”.
20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Matthew 28:19-20 (ESV)
19 (A)Go therefore and (B)make disciples of (C)all nations, (D)baptizing them (E)in[a](F)the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,20 teaching them (G)to observe all that (H)I have commanded you. And behold, (I)I am with you always, to (J)the end of the age.”
If its something that you feel uncomfortable praying about first, you probably…
Don’t need to do it.
Don’t need to say it.
Don’t need to go.
Don’t need to buy it.
Psalm 32:8-9 (NKJV)
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye. 9 Do not be like the horse or like the mule, Which have no understanding, Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, Else they will not come near you.
If it’s something you can’t ask God to bless or protect you need to leave it alone.
It it’s something you would be ashamed for your angel, the one that God has assigned to protect and minister to you, see you doing – you need to NOT DO IT.
‘The Purge’ is a movie series where the United States government has made all crime legal, including murder, for one night a year.
This absurdity was validated because crime and unemployment were at historical lows ‘because of the annual purge.
As far-fetched as this sounds, if 10 years ago someone predicted that there would be a worldwide pandemic forcing everyone to wear masks, and a reality show star would be President of The United States… that would sound far fetched too.
People have done some large-scale horrible things to one another throughout history.
Don’t be surprised at what people can be influenced to do by a charismatic leader for the ‘greater good’.
As absurd as a real PURGE may sound, where the hearts of many people are now…I wouldn’t be surprised.
That’s why the word of God warns us.
Galatians 5:15 (NKJV)
15 But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!
Even if I don’t have the reach of some blogs, I’m thankful for everyone around the world who is blessed by what God places on my heart.
And, though each post is original, I still feel all of my posts are plagiarized…God is the author.
I couldn’t do this without His inspiration anf Holy Spirit.
Even though my posts aren’t scripture, I still feel they are God-breathed.
I pray that His gift of edification, exhortation, admonition, inspiration and salvation is perfected in each word to build the Body of Christ, convert sinners, turn backsliders back to God and encourage the discouraged .
Ephesians 4:11-13 (NKJV)
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, (A)for the [a]edifying of (B)the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith (C)and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to (D)a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
It’s one of the most abused and misused statements and deflections…
“You can’t judge me!”
“Judge much?”
“Only God can judge me!”
Identifying what the bible says is sin isn’t judging. To identify something is to recognize and name it.
Recognizing and naming sin is NOT judging. It’s our responsibility as disciples to hold one another accountable and to let ‘sinners’ (we are all sinners saved by grace) that they are falling short of God’s standards.
John 7:24 (NKJV)
24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”
Ephesians 5:11 (NKJV)
11 And have (A)no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather [a]expose them.
However, assuming that you know what is inside someone else’s heart…
Assuming that you know their motives…
Or pronouncing condemnation on them…
Are all examples of judging.
Saying that the cup in the picture above is green is not judging it. But, assuming there is coffee inside of it is. Assuming it can only be used for coffee is. The fact is that it may prefer being called a mug.
“YOU’RE JUDGING ME!”… is often the response to an assumption or a conclusion based on someone’s established behavior, character and that’s not judging, that’s their fruit.
Many Americans are afraid of losing their freedoms, and point their fingers at the ‘blatant, overt sinners’ in the land.
However, if you study the bible carefully, Israel lost their freedom and were oppressed and exiled not because of the ‘non-believers’ or heathens, (we are all sinners saved by grace) but because of the idolatry, hypocrisy, compromise and pride of believers.
God rebuked them for refusing to reject the ‘sins of their fathers’.
Leviticus 26:40-42 (NKJV)
40 ‘But(A)if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me,
41 and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies;
if their (B)uncircumcised hearts are (C)humbled, and they (D)accept their guilt—
42 then I will (E)remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember;
Too many ‘Christians’ are pointing their fingers at unbelievers and those they consider to be ‘worse sinners than them’ instead of repenting of their pride, arrogance and self righteousness, much like the Pharisee in the parable of The Pharisee and The Publican …
Luke 18:9-14 (NIV)
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness(A) and looked down on everyone else,(B) Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray,(C) one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself(D) and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast(E)twice a week and give a tenth(F) of all I get.’
13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast(G) and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’(H)
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”(I)
Remember, God Himself said national restoration wouldn’t take place through the repentance of ‘sinners’, but the repentance of those who consider themselves to be His.
2 Chronicles 7:14 (NKJV)
14 if My people who are (A)called by My name will (B)humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, (C)then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
Remember, PRIDE is the first mentioned among the 7 deadly sins and the ‘parent’ sin to countless others.
If you’re afraid of losing your freedom, maybe you should put your pride in check.
Many Christians don’t see the cultural and behavioral parallels between the religious leaders in the days of Yeshua’s (Jesus’s) earthly ministry and believers today. One of the reasons is that many believers today only see themselves as the biblical heroes, and never the Pharisees, Scribes, Pharaoh, Egypt, Haman, Babylon, Herod or the Romans.
The truth is that modern Christianity in many ways has submitted to pride (the first among the seven deadly sins and parent sin to countless others), arrogance, self-righteousness, selfishness, greed and covetousness.
Proverbs 6:16-19 (NKJV)
16 These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to [a]Him: 17 A[b] proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.
If they are honest with themselves, many people who claim to love Jesus would have been among those who criticized Him.
Matthew 15:8-9 (NKJV)
8 ‘These people [a]draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. 9 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”
We prove where we would have stood in history by where we stand today.
It’s easy to point a self-righteous finger at those who antagonized the Lord in the Bible, but if we’re honest with ourselves many times our actions today prove we would have been among them in at least some instances.
Here are 5 ways that many (but not all) Christians would have criticized Jesus if they were living during His earthly ministry…
1.’HANGIN’ OUT WITH SINNERS AND PROSTITUES
Jesus had a reputation for keeping company with sinners, tax collectors and prostitutes. How would you have reacted to that? How would many ‘church people’ today react to a leader doing so today.
Matthew 9:10-17 (NIV)
10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’[a] For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
2. DRINKING ALCOHOL
Yes the Lord turned water into wine, real wine, even though many today try to say it was unfermented to fit their narrative.
He was called a ‘winebibber’ because He drank wine, though He never got drunk. Even the apostle Paul instructed us to not always drink water but a little wine for our stomach’s sake (1 Timothy 5:23).
Matthew 11:19 (NKJV)
19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a [a]winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by her [b]children.”
The fact is that many Christians today would have missed their an opportunity to meet Jesus and witness His first miracle at the wedding party where He changed water to wine because ‘they were drinking there’.
3. FEEDING & HEALING THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE
There are many people today who would have criticized Jesus for feeding and healing thousands of people. All of the people among the 5000 and 4000 weren’t destitute, they just came to hear Him.
Matthew 14:13-21 (NKJV)
13 When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities. 14 And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick. 15 When it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves food.”16 But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” 17 And they said to Him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.”18 He said, “Bring them here to Me.” 19 Then He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes. 20 So they all ate and were filled, and they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments that remained. 21 Now those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children.
4. CRITICIZING & CORRECTING THE ‘LEADERS’
Jesus was constantly rebuking the religious leaders for their hypocrisy and self-righteousness. These were those who felt they controlled the interpretation and narrative of God’s word. This same spirit exists today among many who call themselves ‘evangelicals’. Go back and read Matthew Chapter 23 again from this perspective. How many Christians today accuse people of ‘judging’ when they hold leaders accountable? In fact, when one holds a leader whom they love accountable, many Christians respond the same way that ‘sinners’ do when they call out many of the ‘politicized sins’ (homosexuality and abortion)… as ‘sinners’ respond, “You can’t judge me!”
5. CHALLENGING THEIR TRADITIONS
There are many American traditions that directly contradict the word of God, such as swearing in elected officials through an oath of office. It is even in our Constitution. Jesus consistently challenged the religious leaders for ignoring God’s word to keep their traditions.
Mark 7:7-13 (NKJV)
7 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’8 For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men—[a]the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.” 9 He said to them, “All too well you [b]reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ 11 But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”—’ (that is, a gift to God), 12 then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, 13 making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.”
Many of our American traditions are considered holy. Everything we do must be measured agains the word of God.
Be honest with yourself. If you were living in the days of Jesus’s earthly ministry, how would you have received Him. You prove it by your attitudes, behaviors and values today.
Most of the time when many people think of this verse in the context of discipline…
Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV)
6 (A)Train up a child in the way he should go, [a]And when he is old he will not depart from it.
But, raising children in the Lord is more than discipline. Don’t raise a generation of grandparents who can’t cook for their grandkids!
Teach those girls and boys to cook!
Genesis 25:29-34 (NKJV)
29 Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew,for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called [a]Edom.
31 But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.”
32 And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so (B)what is this birthright to me?”
33 Then Jacob said, [b]“Swear to me as of this day.”
So he swore to him, and (C)sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then (D)he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau (E)despised his birthright.
There are many HUGE blessings that we can sometimes take for granted in our materialistic, self-centered society. And, I’m not necessarily talking about those things that we usually STOP and thank God for too.
I’m talking about those blessings that aren’t really even thought of as blessings, kinda like air conditioning in a new car or indoor plumbing…we see them as a ‘givens’.
1. THE ABILITY TO BATHE YOURSELF…
Ask anyone who has to endure depending on someone else to bathe them every day. There are some things that you don’t want either loved ones or strangers to have to do for you.
2. THE ABILITY TO WIPE YOURSELF…
I’m going to push this point a little further… farther? You know what I mean:-) Imagine if you had to depend on someone to clean you every time you went to the bathroom. Never take the blessings of being able to do this for yourself for granted.
3. THE ABILITY TO HAVE COMPLETE BOWEL MOVEMENTS…
While we are thanking God for the ability to walk, see, hear and even think for ourselves, let us not forget to thank God for a healthy digestive system. Have you ever felt the misery of constipation?
4. THE ABILITY FEEL PAIN…
As annoying as pain may be, God gave us pain for a reason. It often let’s us know that something is wrong with our bodies. What if you didn’t know you were leaning on a hot stove? Sometimes pain is a warning to an underlying health condition.
5. THE ABSENCE OF PAIN…
And, as much as pain can be a warning, there are those who live in constant pain daily. Never take for granted the blessing if ‘feeling good’.
This short list is by no means exhaustive. I just wanted to provoke us to thinking and thanking. What are some other things that we often forget to forget when giving thanks?
1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NKJV)
18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
The religious leaders during the time of Yeshua the Messiah’s (Jesus Christ) earthly ministry pretentiously observed and interpreted God’s word through the lens of their self-righteous, self-serving and hypocritical perspective.
They felt they represented what God and wanted from His people. They ‘cherry-picked’ the sins they felt concerned God the most while ignoring and justifying others…
Matthew 23:23 (NIV)
23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
They continued traditions that were in contradiction to God’s word justifying them with their own reasoning…
Matthew 15:3 (NKJV)
3 He answered and said to them, “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?
They condemned sinners without sharing God’s true word, will, love, truth and salvation…
Matthew 9:11-13 (NKJV)
11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with (A)tax collectors and (B)sinners?”12 When Jesus heard that, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 But go and learn what this means:(C)‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, (D)but sinners, [a]to repentance.”
And, they responded with violence to those who opposed them or threatened their influence
Mark 11:18 (NKJV)
18 And (A)the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because (B)all the people were astonished at His teaching.
However, the Lord was constantly rebuking them.
It’s amazing that so many (but not all) who call themselves or are labeled evangelicals can’t see the parallels. Many ‘Christians’ our preoccupied and prioritize two sins above equal abominations.
There are too many hard hearted, hypocritical people who call themselves evangelicals that are ‘ruining’ the brand of ‘Christianity’.
Besides, Jesus never called us to be Christians anyway. He called us to be disciples.
Matthew 28:19 (NKJV)
19 (A)Go [a]therefore and (B)make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
John 13:34-35 (NKJV)
34 (A)A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 (B)By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
I hope this doesn’t offend you. That’s not my intention, but if so…why assume that I’m talking about you unless it describes your behavior.
“In Jesus name” is his reputation and character. Notice how many times God says, FOR MY NAME’S SAKE in the bible.
It’s our responsibility to protect the brand!
Psalms 23:3
“He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”
Most American’s are passionate and protective of their right to free speech…
Or are we?
How many people have willingly signed away their right to free speech because of their job or career.
Companies, school systems, municipalities, government agencies, and even religious organizations don’t want their employees making them ‘look bad’ or liable; so they make one of the conditions of employment a contract that ‘limits’ what they can say publicly if they are to remain employed.
I’m talking about speech that’s respectful and responsible, not reckless.
Ephesians 4:29 (NKJV)
29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary [a]edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
Colossians 4:6 (NKJV)
6 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.
Are you free to say what you want to say about your company and where they stand on issues?
Are you free to say how you feel about the culture of your organization without fear of retaliation?
Is there something that you want to responsibly express or share about your organization… about your faith… about what’s in your heart, but if you do so you know you could lose your job?
How many people endure toxic cultures, bullying, inequity, unfair policies, abuse of authority, basically from people who are merely ‘working for a living’ just like them because they fear losing their job…career…even their retirement?
Is that freedom of speech?
Restricting our ability to respectfully and responsibly be critical and hold accountable the leadership in our places of employment or our concerns about social or spiritual issues is quite frankly not allowed in many workplaces.
It can’t be equated to shouting ‘FIRE’ in a public place. That protects life. And there is some speech that is not protected by the constitution because it’s a threat to the ‘public good’ however, withholding what’s on our mind about our employers sometimes only protects egos, reputations and the threat of litigation.
Think about this, Americans are more free to say how they feel about their national, state and local leaders… their pastor… their loved ones… than their boss.
Many people even express their criticism to God Himself before the do so to their boss!
We are more free to tell God how we feel without fear of relaliation than the person for whom we work.
Psalm 142:1-2 (NKJV)
I cry out to the Lord with my voice; With my voice to the Lord I make my supplication. 2 I pour out my complaint before Him; I declare before Him my trouble.
God is more willing to ‘reason with us’ than many of our places of employment.
Isaiah 1:18 (NKJV)
18 “Come now, and 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 be as wool.
Is you freedom of speech that’s protected by the Constitution, surrendered in your contract?
Think about it, but be careful what you say about it at work.
His or her strength isn’t proven until it actually lifts and overcomes weight.
No matter how much they claim to love one another…
Their love and marriage isn’t proven until challenged by a real rival.
No matter how strong they claim their faith to be…
It isn’t proven until confronted with a real reason to doubt God.
1 Peter 1:7 (NLT)
7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
We have more in common than we sometimes realize, even when we disagree.
Two of the most controversial topics in America, if not the world, are BLACK-ON-BLACK CRIME and WHITE PRIVILEGE They are both issues that are quickly deflected when mentioned to many in their respective races.
BLACK-ON-BLACK CRIME
There are countless neighborhoods in America where many of the residents live in fear, not of racists…not of other races…but of people who look like them. There is vigorous debate as to the causes such as generational poverty, systematic racism, the drug epidemic, organized gangs and others. However, the problem still persists and is undeniable. Many people within the Black community act just the same as people of other races when certain neighborhoods and cities are mentioned. The fact is that many of the EXTERNAL REASONS have been accepted as EXCUSES by many.
WHITE PRIVILEGE
Even if a white person is born in abject poverty and works very hard to become successful, the fact that they benefited from a system that was designed through generations that put them at an advantage. Societal attitudes, preferences, and norms have been established from a ‘white’ perspective. Even from the simple fact that many products whose packaging lists the color as ‘nude’ is the color of white flesh. The fact that beauty standard for generations have been based on ‘European’ features. And, that ‘acceptable’ history has been recorded from one perspective (for examples, Native Americans were portrayed as savages, and cowboys as heroes) . Injustice, inequality, inequity and a sense of entitlement (even though sometimes unintentional) is an undeniably interwoven into United States history as the extraordinary opportunities that the country offers.
As different as these two issues may be, they have some things in common and they have common solutions.
BOTH PROVOKE A DEFENSIVE RESPONSE
When you mention Black-on-Black crime to or White privilege to many members of their respective races, they are quick to respond…”There is no such thing!” Mentioning both issues quickly yield a defensive response. Both issues are quickly deflected with reasons to either justify, excuse or dismiss the behavior.
PEOPLE WITHIN EACH RACE ARE AFRAID TO ADMIT THE PROBLEM BECAUSE OF THE BACKLASH
There are many people in both communities who quietly agree there is a problem, but they know if they speak up about it they will be ridiculed by people within their own race.
BOTH HAVE BIBLICAL EXAMPLES
Israel spent 400 years of slavery in Egypt. After being established in the “Promised Land”, they were exiled in a strange country and considered second-class citizens. Even in the days of Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) they were under Roman rule and considered second-class citizens in their own land. This caused internal and cultural challenges within the Jewish nation.
A gentle once told me, there is no such thing as ‘white privilege’ in the Bible. My response was study the Romans…the people, not the New Testament book. The Romans were European conquerors who felt entitled to the spoil of whomever they conquered. In the case of Israel, the Romans considered themselves superior, they did not associate with the Jews on an equal level, and their very empire was set-up to give them an advantage economically, socially and legally.
BOTH ISSUES SHARE COMMON SOLUTIONS
No matter what external challenges the Jews faces, God still expected them to maintain the integrity of His name and to always represent Him in their behavior through the most difficult situations. Look at what God told them while exiled in Babylon…
Jeremiah 29:4-14 (NKJV)
4 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who were carried away captive, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon:
5 Build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. 6 Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters—that you may be increased there, and not diminished. 7 And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. 8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are in your midst deceive you, nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed. 9 For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them, says the Lord.
10 For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive.
So God doesn’t give ‘a pass’ to indulge in crime because of the external challenges.
God also has an expectation of those who find themselves in a position of power. . Being a member of the majority puts one at an advantage. To be a member of the ‘majority’ is a position of strength. And, what is God’s expectation of ‘the strong’?
Romans 15:1-2 (NKJV)
We then who are strong ought to bear with the [a]scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 2 Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to [b]edification.
God expects those who are in the position of strength to consider those who are weaker rather than please themselves.
Both Black and White people must:
Amit to themselves their own cultural challenges.
Courageously and aggressively address those challenges INTERNALLY in spite of any EXTERNAL causes or influences.
Every race and society must promote a culture and expectation must of EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE that perfectly aligns with the word of God. Many of our problems in society can be solved through cultures of high Emotional Intelligence (when one is aware of his or her emotions and the emotions of those around them and the ability to control their emotions).
Promote a culture of EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE that perfectly aligns with the word of God. Many of our problems in society can be solved through cultures of high Emotional Intelligence (when one is aware of his or her emotions and the emotions of those around them and the ability to control their emotions).
Crime, an attitude of privilege, as well as other sins…murder, theft, fornication, adultery, rage, wrath, revenge, greed, hatred, drunkenness, idolatry, selfishness can be cured by controlling our emotions. This must be achieved on and individual and cultural level. And, this behavioral science concept aligns perfectly with scripture…
Ephesians 4:31-32 (NKJV)
31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, [a]clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. 32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Colossians 3:5-11 (NKJV)
5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, 7 in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.8 But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, 11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.
Hebrews 12:1 (NKJV)
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
God give us the responsibility to change, and the gift of His Holy Spirit to make those changes.
We all have more in common than we often realize, even when we disagree.
22 The Lord said to Moses, 23 “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:
24 “‘“The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’
27 “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”
It can be annoying when someone who has hurt you never apologize and act as though they didn’t do anything.
But as time goes on you may notice that their behavior reflects they are sorry for what they did, even if they never apologize with their mouth.
If their behavior has changed and they don’t go back to thar dark place in their relationship with you, you’ve gotten something better than an apology… you’ve gotten repentance.
Forgive them.
Colossians 3:13 (NKJV)
13 (A)bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.
This post isn’t a discussion about whether the antichrist comes before or after the return of Yeshua the Messiah, but how the stage is being set. Just as John the Baptist ‘prepared the way of the Lord’, the enemy is preparing hearts to accept his emissaries.
2 Corinthians 11:14-15 “And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.”
Emissaries of the ‘evil one’ attempt to disguise themselves. The antichrist won’t deceive the people through presumptuous sins, but by appearing to care about what concerns them (an angel of light).
When you read the bible closely, the antichrist will bring what appears to be peace and prosperity before revealing who he really is. He will be a man of great boasting and arrogance, pride, insults, unrepentance, unforgiveness, accusations are all attributes of the enemy.
Pride is the FIRST mentioned of the 7 deadly sins. Israel wasn’t exiled because of the ‘heathens’ and their overt sins in the land, but because of their own idolatry, pride, compromise, hypocrisy, arrogant leaders, and yes denying justice to the oppressed (Isaiah Chapters 1 and 10).
Yeshua consistently rebuked the Pharisees for their cherry-picked sins, hypocrisy, self-righteousness and the attitude they owned the narrative as to which sins concerned God the most.
Many well-meaning believers who claim to ‘vote the bible’ justify pride, forsake God’s day of rest, celebrate paganism, teach their children that Santa Claus is omnipresent, blaspheme by calling our celebration of Jesus’s resurrection by a pagan goddess’s name, deny justice because they have decided these sins ‘aren’t a big deal’. The Apostle John said the SPIRIT of the antichrist is already here. The Apostles John and Paul said many believers will be fooled. The stage is being set for his appearance…and believers are distracted by two politicized sins, (and yes, they are sins) worshiping our economy and their guns. #ByTheirFruitsYouShallKnowThem
Should you leave your faith at home when you go to work? Remember, that Yeshua the Messiah, Jesus Christ, engaged Peter, Andrew, James, John and Matthew while they were busy working on their jobs.
He could have waited until they finished for the day, but he ministered to them while they were still working.
Matthew 4:18-22 (NKJV)
18 And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19 Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 They immediately left their nets and followed Him.
21 Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.
Matthew 9:9-13 (NKJV)
9 As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him.
Sometimes God places disciples in the workplace to be light.
Matthew 5:14-16 (NKJV)
14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
God hates pride just as much as lying, abortion, murderers, devious schemes, eagerness to commit evil, being a false, and sowing discord among those who are close.
We don’t define what God hates the most based on what we hate the most.
We don’t define the narrative of which sins are most detestable and which aren’t.
Remember God was so pissed off at those who forsook His day of rest, He commanded they be stoned. This was an example. That seems like a minor sin today, as many ‘put off’ work they could do any other day for The Lord’s Day.
There is a reason that God listed Pride first among the 7 deadly sins…so many other sins emanate from it.
Proverbs 6:16-19 (NKJV)
16 These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to [a]Him: 17 (A)A[b] proud look, (B)A lying tongue, (C)Hands that shed innocent blood, 18 (D)A heart that devises wicked plans, (E)Feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 (F)A false witness who speaks lies, And one who (G)sows discord among brethren.
Luke 18:9-14 NKJV The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector 9 Also He spoke this parable to some (A)who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee (B)stood and prayed thus with himself, (C)‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13 And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; (D)for everyone who exalts himself will be [a]humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, (A)choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether (B)the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of [a]the River, or (C)the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. (D)But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
BE BLESSTIFIED! 