This Is Too Long (Sorry)-- But Global Events...........

"'The days are coming,' says the Lord, 'when the reaper will be overtaken by the plowman and the planter by the one treading grapes..., and I will bring my people Israel back from exile.  They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them.  They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit.  I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them,' says the Lord your God.'" (From Amos 9:13-15, NIV)

In other words, Things are going to happen so fast that your "heads will swim."  Today I have heard this phrase several times, referring to events in the Middle East: "All of this is happening so fast."  Take heart, my friend, "The days are coming,..." and will continue to come.

I cannot implore you enough to keep your eye on current events, especially in the Middle East.  Our text began its final fulfillment in 1947-48, and continues right to this moment, the moment you read this.  Sarah and I have seen the literal fulfillment of rebuilt, "ruined cities...."  We have seen the, "vineyards," and, "their fruit."  It was watching the very Word of God at work, could we say, "At His best," i.e., fulfilling His Words to generations?!?  Yet, along with the fulfillment of our text, we are watching also the fulfillment of the prophesied, continual attack of, "the enemies of the cross of Christ," upon the Covenant People.  What is the stark reality which most are unwilling to face?  "....Evildoers and imposters will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived" (2 Timothy 3:13).  Who, then, prevails in such a world?  They prevail who will not give up, who as Churchill told his people, "We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans,..we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender."  Now while truth and reality can be very disconcerting, the overriding Reality and Truth is that The Word of God, Jesus the Christ, will continue to fulfill His Words.  Build our lives upon this Truth, Which/Who is the only Truth, and we build our lives upon The Solid Rock.

There is a "life style" in the world of which most Americans have not a clue.  The Vietnamese had it.  Drug cartels have it.  They simply outlast their enemies-------------- so do the Arabs and Jews.  The difference between Arabs and Jews, and Americans is that Arabs and Jews have not grown weary of war, viz., to the point of a war-weariness which causes a people to give up the fight and surrender to its enemies.  Islam has been fighting its enemies for 1500 years.  Just watch/read the news to see the stark reality: They won't "stop fighting 'til the fighting's done."  And what about the Jews?  They have been fighting for their lives for 3500 years.  What if the Jews had done as the Americans in Viet Nam?  After 10 years of fighting enemies in Viet Nam and at home, scramble onto helicopters from the embassy in Saigon, running for their lives, or, bring home troops from Iraq after loosing 4500 soldiers, and after a political campaign which appealed to the soft-life, iphone/ipad American public?  There would be no Israel today, no Jews.  How have the Jews survived for milennia, after 6,000,000+ murdered in less than 12 years in one case, and many, many more over their history?  The Jews have refused to say, "O, we're tired of war, all the killing, all the babies dying, all the destruction."  The Jews realize the saying of Jimmy Malone to Ness, "They won't stop fighting 'til one of you is dead."  
"Breaking News:"  This is the motto of Global Islam.

The one who wins in life is the one who won't stop, won't give up or give in.  We all long for those moments when we can relax, take vacations, enjoy family and friends, "kick back."  The only problem with that is Satan and his hordes never do.  The Japanese picked the best day of the week at the best hour to attack American Forces at Pearl Harbor.  In that case, R & R turned into DOA.  Do not, my friend, let this happen to you.  You and I are in Christ to the end, are we not?!?  His enemies still attempt to pick off any stragglers, any "war-weary" sojourners.  The Unitas Fratrum, aka, Moravians, had a motto, "No one works unless someone is praying."  The Global Church should adopt this policy.

Father, in Jesus' Name, I pray for Your grace for increasing strength in every area of my life.  Help me to never grow weary with the fight.  Amen.
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A timely article at:        jhs58.blogspot.com 

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2

"Whoever Wants To Be My Disciple Must...."

"Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." (Mark 8:34, NIV)

This is only a, "hard saying," to those who know not Jesus.  When one knows Jesus, this is a welcomed and embraced command.

Consider Jesus for a moment.  Earlier in the chapter we read, "Jesus...said, 'I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat.'"  He is Jesus of, "compassion for these people," which includes you and me.  Jesus came to me when I had, "nothing to eat," and said, "I am the bread of life.  He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst"?  What a "no -brainer" choice day by day, my "bread" or Jesus.  Is Jesus not worth, "....deny...cross and follow"? 

Later in the chapter we read of Jesus' encounter with the blind man.  The first touch produced, "I see people; they look like trees walking around."  But our Lord did not settle for, "they look like trees walking around."  That is the sight of those who have a religious experience, but never go on to, "bring fruit to perfection."  Jesus does not have this for any of us.  He only has, "Once more Jesus put his hands on the man's eyes.  Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly."  Only a continual "touch" of Jesus will enable us to see, "everything clearly."  Can you remember when Jesus opened your spiritual eyes, so that you could say, "....his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly"? 

I challenge you today to reconsider those Biblical passages which, as our text, seem like, "a hard saying."  Can Jesus really say anything which is, "a hard saying"?  Jesus said to Peter when Peter did not want Jesus to wash his feet, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand"--- what an absolutely foundational life principle.  Are we willing to wait for the, "later you will understand"?   

"Thought for the Day:"  If you and I read every word in the Bible with the attitude, "....deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Me," we will never stop reading every word in the Bible.

Father, in Jesus' Name, thank You so much that you called me to deny myself.  Denying me to have You is the greatest decision I can make.  Amen.
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FALL MISSION: SEPTEMBER 14-21

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2

"Baffled To Fight Better" (Chambers' Summary of the Book of Job)

"He sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn are lifted to safety." (Job 5;11)

This was one of Job's friends to Job.  It wasn't "working."  Everyone, including Job, was trying to figure out what had happened.  This is life.  There are days when all you have heard or learned doesn't seem to "work."  That's okay.  Maybe they aren't supposed to "work." 

Christendom over the years and centuries has propagated many, many formulae.  The longer I live, and, quite frankly, the longer I am not in "mainstream" church or ministry circles, it's amazing some of the things I am seeing in Scripture.  Now before you get concerned, I'm not going apostate.  I just want to suggest to you today that you pray with me about really seeing/hearing what our Lord Jesus Christ is saying in His Words.  Read them with as much of an open mind and heart as we can.  Pray the prayers of Scripture which, e.g., many of the prayers in Psalm 119, the ones which ask for enlightenment and understanding concerning, "The Word of God."  As these days proceed, we will desperately need to have such.

Modern charisma had produced as much "mainline" religion as any of the "mainline" denominations.  All one has to do is peruse religious television, radio, and print to see this.  I guarantee you that every time there is a telethon, I can predict with great accuracy what the salesmen will say.  You cannot hide the fact that they are telling you, "If you do what I'm telling you, everything will be okay."  Or, "If you do what I am telling you, we can get rid of the Book of Job, Ecclesiastes, the Prophets, much of the Gospels and Epistles." 

We must remember that everything Job's "friends" said was later rejected by God, and they themselves were rebuked by the Lord God.  When they saw Job, he was not, "on high," nor had he been, "lifted to safety."  Job was the most righteous person of his day.  Jesus "boasted" on him to Satan.  Yet some of the worst "things" imaginable happened to him.  His friends, like O so many in Christendom today, thought he had done something wrong, i.e., Job did something wrong and was therefore punished, or Job did not work the formula, so he did not, "receive the promises."  At the end, "The Word of God," Jesus, said that nothing Job's friends said had anything to do with what Job had experienced.

Perhaps today you are wondering why "this does not work."  Don't do it.  You and I are called to walk with and in Jesus Christ our Lord, not in "this."  The only consist "formula" you can find in the Bible is God's love to us, a love demonstrated, "in His Cross," His Blood, His gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit, His imminent Second Appearing.  In the midst of life's unanswerable questions we have the words of our Lord, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid....These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."  And in Jesus, so do we.

Father, in Jesus' Name, I listen to You.  Amen.

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2

"If There Arises Among You a Prophet...."

"If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, 'Let us go after other gods'..., you shall not listen to the words of that prophet...."  (From Deut. 13:1-3)

My purpose is not to encourage rejection of "prophetic words" or prophets.  But there is a reality which has plagued the Church since the beginning, viz., false prophets, people who do everything seemingly right, many of their prophecies "come to pass," but they are false nonetheless.

Our text tells us that prophets can arise among us who can foretell things which come to pass.  The conclusion to the naive is that, "Well, that's the confirmation."  Such reasoning is a non sequitur.  Miracles, healings, deliverances, giving people "words" which come to pass, the popular intro to a "word" for people, "There's someone here tonight who........," all can be counterfeit and false.  Now most false prophets today would never think of prophesying, "Let us go after gods," not at least that obviously.  But their spirit is saying exactly that.  And I can assure you that if any of us is not a regular reader of, "the words of God," we can all "be had."

I have been writing regular devotionals for almost 14 years.  Of course one is going to repeat oneself with that much writing over that period.  I have said it before, but I hope you and I realize that the Bible is God repeating Himself.  We have the Words.  We are warned not to subtract anything nor add anything.  In other words, the Book was closed many centuries ago.  Many "prophets," though, are really attempting to appeal to those who would like something beyond the Word of God.  To put it another way, they are bored with reading the same words over and over again year after year; therefore, they provide words which are a cure for that boredom.  The antidote to this is judging all prophesy in and by the Scriptures.  Moreover, prophecies should always be judged, "in the mouth of two or three witnesses."  I have seen individuals and local congregations destroyed who did not follow these two basic principles. 

The last part of verse three says, "....for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul."  Do we love Jesus, does the love of Jesus in our hearts rule over all?  If so, we will be very jealous of that love and never allow anyone, no matter how smooth, to deceive us away from our Lord Jesus Christ.  If any "word of the Lord" given by anyone, no matter how loved or popular or how big their "ministry," if that "word" is not rooted in the "God-Breathed" Words, avoid such.  I don't mean that a prophet can only stand and quote Scripture.  The essence, however, is the spirit and principles innate and foundational in the Word of God.  If we run our race, "Looking unto Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith," we will not be deceived.  If His Words are our words, our thoughts, our modus operandi, then no false prophet will destroy our lives.  The principle discussed today will be tested from time to time in all our lives.

Father, in Jesus' Name, may Your Words always prevail in me.  Amen.
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Right now, I'm looking at the week of September 14 to be in DC.

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2