“We are thankful for the angels of Allah and God who rammed this hypocrites vehicle into that sacred dump truck and answered our prayers against their evil,” Las Vegas Black Foot Soldier Washington H. Wallace is quoted as saying in a statement about killing. “This is encouragement to all those who prayed, to keep praying”

A rare vortex is now opened between Divinity and the mind of the black man, according to prophets in The Circle of Elijah, a prophetic order within Master Jesus Nigaros’ Nation of Light.

The Window of God Against The Devil, as it is referred to, is the result of the level of Ultraviolet Light reaching the earth passing the 33rd degree mark.

The mark marks the emergence where the opening of the doorway between the mind of the black man and the mind of The Divine can become one, again.

Who’s Sittin’ On Tha’ Right Hand Side Now, Bytch?

READ: Whose Sittin’ On Tha’ Right Hand Side Now Bytch, by artist Nikel Felon The vacant seat of God, which is located in the Pineal Gland of the brain of the black man, is capable of containing God again. We are connected to the umbiilical chord of God. The Devil is made from the dirt of the earth and breath of our nostrils. The secret Chamber of God contains the Ultraviolet Light that is in the Pineal Gland of the black & African man. The Pineal Gland of The Devil is calcified. God may only begin to enter His Chamber & take His seat when you look through your 3rd Eye. The 3rd Eye of The Devil is on the back of his money because it is his God.

And according to the order at this, its emergence, Divinity, for a short span of time, is honoring evil whispers blacks utter (aloud but to themselves) against whites.

That disillusioned white man could have saved himself from this, the hour of his enslavement, by accepting love & refraining from reprobate thoughts. Yet he murdered love & championed wickedness.

“I shall give you whatever evil you whisper of him,” speaking in the voice of Divinity, the order’s lead prophet Elijah Shaphat said.

“After you think it, underneath
your breath, whisper it aloud.”

“One might think, for example, for his boss to fall down a plight of stairs; or, for example, one of their hands to slip off their steering wheels and their car spin out of control,” he offered. “After you think it, underneath your breath, whisper it aloud.”

Article

Elijah during a drought said, it’s going to rain.  No matter how hard Elijah tried, his servant couldn’t see it.  When he finally caught a glimpse, he said, what you’re talking about is the size of a man’s hand.  Elijah said in response, I hear the sound of an abundance of rain. (1 Kings 18:41-45)

1.) Others will not quickly believe in you! Elijah was persistent and patient.  Seven times he said, look again.  Don’t give up in the company of unbelief.  Keep on declaring what’s in your heart to those you value.

2.) Others will underestimate you! The servant told Elijah what he saw was a small cloud.  Don’t take it personal.  Others might see something, but say or give you the vibe that it’s not much.

3.) It will include a storm! Elijah experienced, God rides in on a storm.  Most people lose their blessing because they’re so narrow-minded.  They don’t believe God might be in the storm.

God doesn’t choose and anoint us to slide down a whip cream slide into strawberries and peaches.  In 1 Samuel 16, David was anointed.  In chapter 17, he fights.  If God puts something in your heart, it will have to be contended for.  Remember you’re anointed for this fight!

Daily Bible Reading, Thoughts, and a prayer for November 21st

Today is the 21st of November.  This is the Daily Bible Reading, thoughts, and prayer starter for today.  Today we are reading from the Contemporary English Version Bible.  We’ll begin today from Ezekiel 42:1-43:27.  We will continue with James 5:1-20, Psalms 119:1-116 and Proverbs 28:6-7.

Ezekiel 42:1-43:27

 ^1-2After the man and I left the temple and walked back to the outer courtyard, he showed me a set of rooms on the north side of the west building. This set of rooms was one hundred seventy feet long and eighty-five feet wide. ³On one side of them was the thirty-four feet of open space that ran alongside the temple,  and on the other side was the sidewalk that circled the outer courtyard. The rooms were arranged in three levels ⁴with doors that opened toward the north, and in front of them was a walkway seventeen feet wide and one hundred seventy feet long. ⁵The rooms on the top level were narrower than those on the middle level, and the rooms on the middle level were narrower than those on the bottom level. ⁶The rooms on the bottom level supported those on the two upper levels, and so these rooms did not have columns like other buildings in the courtyard. ^7-8To the north was a privacy wall eighty-five feet long, ^9-10and at the east end of this wall was the door leading from the courtyard to these rooms. There was also a set of rooms on the south side of the west building. ¹¹These rooms were exactly like those on the north side, and they also had a walkway in front of them. ¹²The door to these rooms was at the east end of the wall that stood in front of them. ¹³The man then said to me:

   These rooms on the north and south sides of the temple are the sacred rooms where the LORD’s priests will eat the most holy offerings. These offerings include the grain sacrifices, the sacrifices for sin, and the sacrifices to make things right. ¹⁴When the priests are ready to leave the temple, they must go through these rooms before they return to the outer courtyard. They must leave their sacred clothes in these rooms and put on regular clothes before going anywhere near other people.

 ¹⁵After the man had finished measuring the buildings inside the temple area, he took me back through the east gate and measured the wall around this area. ¹⁶He used his measuring stick to measure the east side of this wall; it was eight hundred forty feet long. ^17-19Then he measured the north side, the south side, and the west side of the wall, and they were each eight hundred forty feet long, ²⁰and so the temple area was a perfect square. The wall around this area separated what was sacred from what was ordinary.

 ¹The man took me back to the east gate of the temple, ²where I saw the brightness of the glory of Israel’s God coming from the east. The sound I heard was as loud as ocean waves, and everything around was shining with the dazzling brightness of his glory. ³This vision was like the one I had seen when God came to destroy Jerusalem and like the one I had seen near the Chebar River.

   I immediately bowed with my face to the ground, ⁴and the LORD’s glory came through the east gate and into the temple. ⁵The LORD’s Spirit lifted me to my feet and carried me to the inner courtyard, where I saw that the LORD’s glory had filled the temple. ⁶The man was standing beside me, and I heard the LORD say from inside the temple: ⁷Ezekiel, son of man, this temple is my throne on earth. I will live here among the people of Israel forever. They and their kings will never again disgrace me by worshiping idols at local shrines or by setting up memorials to their dead kings. ⁸Israel’s kings built their palaces so close to my holy temple that only a wall separated them from me. Then these kings disgraced me with their evil ways, and in my fierce anger I destroyed them. ⁹But if the people and their kings stop worshiping other gods and tear down those memorials, I will live among them forever. ¹⁰The people of Israel must suffer shame for sinning against me, so tell them about my holy temple. Let them think about it, ¹¹then if they are truly sorry, describe for them the design and shape of the temple, the gates, the measurements, and how the buildings are arranged. Explain the regulations about worshiping there, then write down these things, so they can study and obey them.

    ¹²The temple area on my holy mountain must be kept sacred! This is the most important law about the temple.

gutter twenty inches wide and twenty inches deep, with a ten inch ledge on the outer rim. ^14-17The altar rested on a base and had three sections, each one of them square. The bottom section was twenty-seven feet on each side and three feet high. The middle section was twenty-four feet on each side and seven feet high, and it had a ten inch rim around its outer edge. The top section, which was twenty feet on each side and seven feet high, was the place where sacrifices were burned, and the four corners of the top section looked like the horns of a bull. The steps leading up to the altar were on the east side.

 ¹⁸The LORD God said:

   Ezekiel, son of man, after the altar is built, it must be dedicated by offering sacrifices on it and by splattering it with blood. Here is what you must do: ¹⁹The priests of the Levi tribe from the family of Zadok the priest are the only ones who may serve in my temple–this is my law. So give them a young bull to slaughter as a sacrifice for sin. ²⁰Take some of the animal’s blood and smear it on the four corners of the altar, some on the corners of the middle section, and some more on the rim around its edge. That will purify the altar and make it fit for offering sacrifices to me. ²¹Then take the body of the bull outside the temple area and burn it at the special place.

    ²²The next day, a goat that has nothing wrong with it must be offered as a sacrifice for sin. Purify the altar with its blood, just as you did with the blood of the bull. ²³Then choose a young bull and a young ram that have nothing wrong with them, ²⁴and bring them to my temple. The priests will sprinkle salt on them and offer them as sacrifices to please me. ²⁵Each day for the next seven days, you must offer a goat and a bull and a ram as sacrifices for sin. These animals must have nothing wrong with them. ²⁶The priests will purify the altar during those days, so that it will be acceptable to me and ready to use. ²⁷From then on, the priests will use this altar to offer sacrifices to please me and sacrifices to ask my blessing. Then I will be pleased with the people of Israel. I, the LORD God, have spoken

    ⁵While here on earth, you have thought only of filling your own stomachs and having a good time. But now you are like fat cattle on their way to be butchered. ⁶You have condemned and murdered innocent people, who couldn’t even fight back.

 ⁷My friends, be patient until the Lord returns. Think of farmers who wait patiently for the spring and summer rains to make their valuable crops grow. ⁸Be patient like those farmers and don’t give up. The Lord will soon be here! ⁹Don’t grumble about each other or you will be judged, and the judge is right outside the door.

    ¹⁰My friends, follow the example of the prophets who spoke for the Lord. They were patient, even when they had to suffer. ¹¹In fact, we praise the ones who endured the most. You remember how patient Job was and how the Lord finally helped him. The Lord did this because he is so merciful and kind.

    ¹²My friends, above all else, don’t take an oath. You must not swear by heaven or by earth or by anything else. “Yes” or “No” is all you need to say. If you say anything more, you will be condemned.

    ¹³If you are having trouble, you should pray. And if you are feeling good, you should sing praises. ¹⁴If you are sick, ask the church leaders to come and pray for you. Ask them to put olive oil on you in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵If you have faith when you pray for sick people, they will get well. The Lord will heal them, and if they have sinned, he will forgive them. ¹⁶If you have sinned, you should tell each other what you have done. Then you can pray for one another and be healed. The prayer of an innocent person is powerful, and it can help a lot. ¹⁷Elijah was just as human as we are, and for three and a half years his prayers kept the rain from falling. ¹⁸But when he did pray for rain, it fell from the skies and made the crops grow.

    ¹⁹My friends, if any followers have wandered away from the truth, you should try to lead them back. ²⁰If you turn sinners from the wrong way, you will save them from death, and many of their sins will be forgiven.

 ¹Our LORD, you bless everyone   who lives right

   and obeys your Law.

    ²You bless all of those

   who follow your commands

   from deep in their hearts

    ³and who never do wrong

   or turn from you.

    ⁴You have ordered us always

   to obey your teachings;

    ⁵I don’t ever want to stray

   from your laws.

    ⁶Thinking about your commands

   will keep me from doing

   some foolish thing.

    ⁷I will do right and praise you

   by learning to respect

   your perfect laws.

    ⁸I will obey all of them!

   Don’t turn your back on me.

    ⁹Young people can live

   a clean life

   by obeying your word.

    ¹⁰I worship you

   with all my heart.

   Don’t let me walk away

   from your commands.

    ¹¹I treasure your word

   above all else;

   it keeps me from sinning

   against you.

    ¹²I praise you, LORD!

   Teach me your laws.

    ¹³With my own mouth,

   I tell others the laws

   that you have spoken.

    ¹⁴Obeying your instructions

   brings as much happiness

   as being rich.

    ¹⁵I will study your teachings

   and follow your footsteps.

    ¹⁶I will take pleasure

   in your laws

   and remember your words.

Proverbs 28:6-7

⁶It’s better to be poor

   and live right,

   than to be rich

   and dishonest.

    ⁷It makes good sense

   to obey the Law of God,

   but you disgrace your parents

   if you make friends

   with worthless nobodies.

Daily Bible Reading, Thoughts, and a prayer

Thoughts from Prayer for November 21st Bible reading

There were a lot of things that jumped at me today; this 840 foot square that is the temple; I don’t know, sometimes when I’m reading those dimensions I’m trying to picture them in my head, but I can’t quite get a context I guess, but today when I saw the square I began to see, wow this is like a thousand foot square, that’s big, that’s a big building.  That’s all I got there’s nothing spiritual there.  LOL. 

But I really did see James being his blunt self; be patient until the Lord returns and I like this, think of the farmers that wait patiently for the spring and the summer rains to make their valuable crops grow, because I believe we are in the season of harvest, and I don’t mean than in some mystical way.  Literally this is the season of harvest and it’s drawing to its close.  And we go into the winter months, so I believe this is our season of harvest too, it’s our invitation to gather, but it’s also an invitation to prepare.  It’s our invitation to finish well which is what I have been saying for the last month or more, encouraging us to look into that context how do we finish this year strong as opposed to in utter chaos through the holidays?  How do we enter this season of celebration for the birth of our Savior without going crazy?  And the shopping; and the family, and in every other possible way, how do we enjoy peacefully, steadfastly, what we are really here for, what the purpose really is and then go into the new year without thousands of dollars of more debt and on and on and on, how do we finish well?  And this is different for everyone; so I can’t sit here and say this is how you do it, I know that the Lord is giving me personally strategies in my life and in my world the way that I live to finish strong, so I can begin strong next year.  And so it is a seasonal thing and I think that is what James is alluding to, process, but you have to begin the process sometime, right?  It doesn’t just begin itself you must begin the process.  So if you haven’t; start now, today’s good, now is good, right now is good, start now. James says in once sentence he sort of sums it all up; if you are having trouble, you should pray.  I like that kind of stuff about James.  He’s pretty direct and I’m not a super direct person, but I can handle that, and I like that.  So; if you are having trouble; you should pray, and let’s do that.

Prayer for November 21st

(Prayer) Jesus; thank You, every day begins with a thank You, we are so grateful, we feel such a heart of gratitude towards You, for all that You’ve done and I know that “all that You’ve done” has become a cliché, but God when we think of all that You have done in our lives, it has great significance.  You are the King of Kings; and You are our leader, and we march at your command, and we are looking for your instructions.  Lord; reveal to us by the power of Your Holy Spirit how it is that we individually finish strong this year.  How do we do this God in our lives?  We invite You Holy Spirit into our lives; into every part of our lives, show us where we are to go, we love You Lord, we worship You, and we pray these things expecting that You’ve already begun to speak.  In Jesus name we pray.  Amen.

Have a great day.  And I will be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Download today’s Podcast

Daniel my brother you are older than me
Do you still feel the pain of the scars that won’t heal
Your eyes have died but you see more than I
Daniel you’re a star in the face of the sky

Elton John sang these lyrics with melodic conviction through our truck’s fuzzy radio reception this morning.  I was late (again) for chapel, yet when this song buzzed in I felt myself relax and begin to sing along.  (Singing when alone is about the only opportunity I get for singing nowadays [living with introverts has its challenges...]).  Since I cut teeth on KDWB AM 630 radio, I suppose I’ve heard Elton’s Daniel hundreds of times since its early 1970’s release–it runs deep in my psyche, yet I’m not sure I’ve ever actually listened to the words of this verse.  So go figure, while racing to go adore, I hear them as if for the first time. 

Although I know many Daniels (and some very cool Daniels at that),  Daniel from the Old Testament flashed before my mind’s eye.  Need some help?  Well, he is most well known for his dip in the lion’s den found in the Old Testament book of Daniel.  The story goes something like this:  Daniel refuses to bow before any king ordained gods and openly worships God instead, so he is thrown into a pit of hungry lions, lions whose mouths are closed by God.  Daniel lives, God gets the glory-oh yeah!  This is only one story, though: Daniel, time and time again throughout his life, chose unswerving trust in God and time and time again, God rescued, honored, lifted Daniel (even after years in a prison for something he didn’t do).  God gives Daniel the gifts of interpreting dreams and prophecy that prove to be invaluable for the people of his day as well as the people of our day.  He stands tall before God and, as Elton sings, he is my brother.

My brother…my brother…in Christ he is my brother…even though his “eyes have died” and he sees “more than I”, he is my brother.  Singing happily in a Mercury Mountaineer I wondered: have I been so dense all these years of struggling with earthly family issues that I’ve not seen the Family I’m part of?  Have I really never realized deeply who I’m eternally kin with?  Do I see Moses, Daniel, Ruth, Elijah, Mary, Jesus, Paul, St Patrick, Teresa of Avila, Padre Pio and Mother Teresa as my Brothers and Sisters?  Do I dare to ponder that these departed souls root me on and want nothing but the best for me just like my biological brother does?  Could it be that they check in to see how I’m doing like my brother and I do with each other?  Do they show up, stick close and pray hard when heartache visits, like many siblings do for each other?  Do they feel my pain, “the pain of scars that won’t heal”? 

Wow!  Have I been blind!  The Apostle Paul in the New Testament states over and over that followers of Jesus are Brothers and Sisters in Christ, yet I haven’t REALLY taken that in.  I need to sit with this a bit and ingest:  I have Family (not just a cloud of witnesses, like Hebrews 12 says) who, although physically dead, are real and present and trying to help me walk by faith with God.  They stand in His brilliance and undoubtedly pray for me as I try to hang with the Big Guy……………………Oh my gosh, even when I feel alone, I’m not alone, none of us are.  And with them we’re safe for they never betray, abandon, neglect or belittle…they’re life-givers, they’re fellow siblings of faith who are free of the sin nature that we on earth struggle with, yet they know all about that struggle.  They get it and “see more than I”.  They’re safe souls we can trust, they’re like Brothers and Sisters in the flesh but oh so much more, for they perpetually live in the holy Presence of God. 

It’s not just me and Jesus, it is me and a sea of supportive Siblings too.  As I reach for God, maybe they help extend my arms.  As I weep for others, maybe they weep with me.  As I stumble in faith, maybe they’re Ones who get beneath and lift until sure footing is found… 

Surely, each is a shining, holy ”star in the face of the sky” that I’m only just beginning to see…

He is calling us out from Alcoholics Anonymous, out from 12 Step spirituality.

He is our merciful, righteous God.

“Yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him.” 1 Kings 19:18

Here, once again, is the article that exposes this AA deception. LINK: http://www.worldviewtimes.com/article.php/articleid-3537/Brannon-Howse/John-Lanagan

Mark 8:1-38

From J. C. Ryle, for verses 1 – 13, “Let us observe in this passage how great is the kindness and compassion of our Lord Jesus Christ.”  “Let us observe, in the second place, from this passage, that with Christ nothing is impossible.”  “Let us observe, in the last place, how much sorrow unbelief occasions to our Lord Jesus Christ.”

“In those days the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and saith unto them, 2 I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat: 3 And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far. 4 And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness? 5 And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven. 6 And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people. 7 And they had a few small fishes: and he blessed, and commanded to set them also before them. 8 So they did eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets. 9 And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away.” Mark 8:1-9 (KJV)

There are some who want us to believe that the feeding of the “five thousand” and the feeding of the “four thousand” are actually the same feeding “Miracle”.  If they were they would not be mentioned back to back with one another.  Mark 6:34-43 contains the miracle of the feeding of the “five thousand”, and then Matthew 14:15-21 does as well.  Then, we have the feeding of the “four thousand” here in chapter 8 of Mark with the feeding of the “four thousand” also mentioned in Matthew 15:32-38.  The questions of the legitimacy of Scriptures only come from those who do not want to believe it.  I am not talking of “honest” questions which are for information and not for placing doubt.

We see that Jesus had “Compassion” on the people who were following.  His heart was moved with sympathy and called for them to be fed.  The question came up again, “How are we going to feed them?”  “How many loaves have we?” was the question Jesus asked.  Their answer was “seven”.

As I sit and study this passage I find myself wondering why these disciples were wondering how these people were going to be fed.  Then, I stop to think about how many times I have seen the wonder of the power of God in Christ and I wonder no more at the “doubts” of the disciples.  It is “hardness of heart”.  Why is it we can witness the power of God and His intervention in our lives one day, and then, just a few days later we are in doubt again and wondering, “Where is God in all of this?”

We must note  that in Matthew’s Gospel of this account he writes in verse 38, “Now those who ate were 4,000 men, besides women and children.  Matt 15:38 (HCSB)”.  Seeing how there were four thousand men it would be quite reasonalble to assume there could have been 12,000 – 15,000 or more there to eat of the bread and fish of the Creator.  That would only be a wife and one child for every man who was present.

The compassion of Jesus is wonderful, and it is sure that nothing is impossible for Him.

“And straightway he entered into a ship with his disciples, and came into the parts of Dalmanutha. 11 And the Pharisees came forth, and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from heaven, tempting him. 12 And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given unto this generation.”  Mark 8:10-12 (KJV)

The unbelieving will not believe even though they see a sign.  If they will not believe “Moses and the Prophets” they will not believe though one has risen from the dead.  Jesus made a similar statement in Luke 16:31.

Jesus had done many mighty works and the Pharisees were witnesses to many of them.  Their problem was jealousy.  Jesus had a following and they did not.  Jesus was doing mighty works, and they could not.  Jesus lived a life without fault, and they did not.  Jesus lived a life without sin, and they did not.  Jesus was the Son of God, and they were the children of Satan.

In Matthew 12:38-40 Jesus said, “An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: 40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Matt 12:39-40 (KJV)”.  When these religious leaders were not even believing the Scriptures (Moses and the Prophets), why would they believe even though they had the Son of God standing before them doing miracles.  They “Could not see the forest for the trees”.  As we saw in the last chapter (chapter 7) they added their tradition to their laws, thus, in effect cancelling out the Scriptures – at least for themselves.  Because of that the Word of God had no effect on their lives, and it would not have any effect on others as they looked at the Pharisees.  The sign of the prophet Jonah was that he had been three days and nights in the “Fish’s belly”, and Jesus would be three days and nights in the “Heart of the earth”.

Jesus rose from the grave after three days, and rather than believe it they tried to make it into a lie, by telling lies, and bribing officials to tell lies.  They were blind, so they could not see.  They were deaf, so they could not hear.

Seeing miracles does not give faith.  They may assure it, but faith comes by hearing the word of the Lord (Rom. 10:17).  Faith stands when there is no miracle.  Faith grows without a miracle, and by the word of the Lord.

“And he left them, and entering into the ship again departed to the other side. 14 Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, neither had they in the ship with them more than one loaf. 15 And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod. 16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread. 17 And when Jesus knew it, he saith unto them, Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened? 18 Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? and do ye not remember? 19 When I brake the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They say unto him, Twelve. 20 And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said, Seven. 21 And he said unto them, How is it that ye do not understand?”  Mark 8:13-21 (KJV)

(SEE Matthew 16:12).

As we saw in the last chapter the Pharisees made themselves “loopholes” in order to escape the clear teachings of the law.  Only the religious leaders knew these “loopholes”, thus the people knew nothing of them.

The “Leaders” had a Sabbath law of a “Sabbath days journey”.  By this they limited the distance a person could travel on the Sabbath.  They exempted themselves by interpreting that law to mean from your property, so they could take a chair, stool, saddle, sandal, piece of clothing out a normal “Sabbath days journey”, then take another piece of personal property another “Sabbath days journey”, and place another item, and could go on and on.  These actions were, thus, a form of “False doctrine” and “False living”.  They were condemning themselves by their very lies and the lives they lived.

J. C. Ryle on verses 14-21,  1)

“Let us notice the solemn warning which our Lord gives to His disciples at the beginning of this passage.”  2) “Let us notice the dull understanding of the disciples, when our Lord gave the warning of this passage.”

 

“And he cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto him, and besought him to touch him. 23 And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought. 24 And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking. 25 After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly. 26 And he sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town.”  Mark 8:22-26 (KJV)

J. C. Ryle gives us four thoughts concerning these verses,

1) “it is well to remember, in reading passages of this kind, that the Lord is not tied to the use of any one means.”;   2) “One thing in the passage demands our special observation. That thing is the gradual nature of the cure which our Lord performed on this blind man. He did not deliver him from his blindness at once, but by degrees.”;   3) “Let us see then in this gradual restoration to sight, a vivid illustration of the manner in which the Spirit frequently works in the conversion of souls. We are all naturally blind and ignorant in the matters which concern our souls. Conversion is an illumination, a change from darkness to light, from blindness to seeing the kingdom of God.”;   4) “Finally, let us see in the gradual cure of this blind man, a striking picture of the present position of Christ’s believing people in the world, compared with that which is to come. We see in part and know in part in the present dispensation. We are like those that travel by night. We know not the meaning of much that is passing around us.”

 

“And Jesus went out, and his disciples, into the towns of Caesarea Philippi: and by the way he asked his disciples, saying unto them, Whom do men say that I am? 28 And they answered, John the Baptist: but some say, Elias; and others, One of the prophets. 29 And he saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Peter answereth and saith unto him, Thou art the Christ. 30 And he charged them that they should tell no man of him. 31 And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him. 33 But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men.”  Mark 8:27-33 (KJV)

Things J. C. Ryle writes that we as Christians need to observe,

1) “Let us observe the variety of opinions about Christ, which prevailed among the Jews. Some said that He was John the Baptist–some Elijah–and others one of the prophets. In short every kind of opinion appears to have been current, excepting that one which was true.”;   2) “Let us observe the good confession of faith which the apostle Peter witnessed.”;   3) “Let us observe the full declaration which our Lord makes of His own coming death and resurrection. We read that “He began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.”;   4) “Finally, let us observe in this passage the strange mixture of grace and infirmity which may be found in the heart of a true Christian. We see that very Peter who had just witnessed so noble a confession, presuming to rebuke his Master because He spoke of suffering and dying.”

 

“And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 35 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it. 36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? 37 Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? 38 Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”  Mark 8:34-38 (KJV)

J. C. Ryle’s commentary on these verses,

1) “We learn, for one thing, from these verses, the absolute necessity of self-denial, if we would be Christ’s disciples, and be saved. What says our Lord? “Whoever will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.”;   2) “Let us often ask ourselves whether our Christianity costs us anything? Does it entail any sacrifice? Has it the true stamp of heaven? Does it carry with it any cross? If not, we may well tremble and be afraid. We have everything to learn. A religion which costs nothing, is worth nothing. It will do us no good in the life that now is. It will lead to no salvation in the life to come.”;   3) “We learn, for another thing, from these verses, the unspeakable value of the soul. What says our Lord? “What shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” These words were meant to stir us up to exertion and self-denial. They ought to ring in our ears like a trumpet, every morning when we rise from our beds, and every night when we lie down. May they be deeply engraved in our memories, and never effaced by the devil and the world!”;   4)  “We learn, in the last place, from these verses, the great danger of being ashamed of Christ. What says our Lord? “Whoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.’”

 

-Tim A. Blankenship quoting much from J.C. Ryle

Luke 4: 14-30

I know I missed about 4 days. I got very busy which is no excuse. So I need to either learn how to organize my time better or become better disciplined. Probably a little bit of both. When you sidetracked the only thing you can do is find your back and continue where you left off. So that is what I am doing.

24 And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown. 25 But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; 26 yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. 27 There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” 28 When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. 29 They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff. 30 But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.

After reading Wesley’s commentary on these verses it said that God goes to the Israelites, his chosen people first. If they choose not to listen and reject him then he will go to the gentiles, non-Israelites, and see if they will accept him. I learned two things from this. 1. If you are witnessing to someone and they are rejecting your witness leave them alone for a bit and come back another time to try again. Much like God did with Israel in the Old Testament. Second, even though Israel is God’s chosen people God did not forget the rest of world and that we are included in the big picture. Just like Jesus was telling the Samaritan woman how he came not only to the Jews but to the whole world.

I wonder how it felt to the little boy who gave Jesus his lunch.

I wonder how the poor widow woman felt as she prepared the loaf for Elijah instead of for herself and her son.

I wonder how the lady felt as she dropped her whole income–one penny–into the treasury at the temple.

I wonder how Moses felt the first time God used his stick.

Wonder.

Sometimes the sense of helplessness comes first. The sense of smallness. Maybe even the sense of ridiculousness. But underlying all of it is a knowledge of what is right. And often a tiny, incongruous sense of hope.

And afterwards . . . A sense of wonder.

A sense of satisfaction and then curiosity and then utter amazement that could hardly find the words to speak itself.

A sense of wanting to be still and quiet for fear of breaking the silence.

And sometimes there’s just the comfortable sense of knowing one’s God after all.

In Part 1 we met:

I. The Pious Patriarch (Naboth)
II. The Pouting Potentate (Ahab)

Now we will meet Jezebel, the wife of Ahab.

III. The Poisonous Pupeteer

And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.

I Kings 21:7

This is so characteristic of how the devil works. Lacking the ability to know the thoughts and intents of every heart the way God does, he watches and observes… Until it’s time for him to “arise.” He rises like a serpent with its head poised to strike. He finds someone who is saying no to God’s way – someone who loves things more than God – someone who loves self more than God. Then the devil arises, and he strikes, and he tells his servants to arise. Beware of the poison of those who will manipulate you at the behest of the devil.

Jezebel knew just which strings to pull. She injected the poison of greed and covetousness, and she started to put on the devil’s own puppet show.

Take a moment to figuratively look around you right now. Who has hold of your strings today? Are you surrounded by good and Godly friends? People who will hold you accountable in tough love? Who will tell you when you’re sinfully pouting? Or do you have acquaintances who are working for the devil? You can recognize them by the way they always have a soothing word – they’re quick to tell you just what you want to hear. And secretly they are pulling the strings and they are moving your hands away from prayer and the Bible. They are moving your feet away from the church house. They are pulling your eyelids open until the wee hours on Saturday night, and holding them down on Sunday morning. You need to ask God to cut those strings.

When Jezebel started pulling the strings for her devilish puppet show, she played a masterpiece of evil. First, she forged Ahab’s name on a poison pen letter.

So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth.

I Kings 21:8

Then, she blasphemed God by pretending that someone in Jezreel had sinned against Him and Ahab.

And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people:

I Kings 21:9

To be “set on high” was not an honor. It was to be placed in the seat of the accused. Naboth, who had honored God, was being falsely accused of dishonoring God. When the devil says “arise,” there are always plenty of his children eager to do his bidding. Jezebel brought out two puppets to bear false witness.

And there came in two men, children of Belial, and sat before him: and the men of Belial witnessed against him, even against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, Naboth did blaspheme God and the king. Then they carried him forth out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died.

I Kings 21:13

Covetousness led to lying, and to blasphemy, and to theft, and to murder. Never kid yourself that the sin of coveting what your neighbor has is a harmless or a minor little fault.

II Kings 9:26 tells us that not only did these sons of Belial, these worthless puppets – playing on the ends of their strings for their evil puppet-master Jezebel – kill Naboth, but they took his little sons out and killed them, too. They did this so that Ahab would not have to contend with any heirs to Naboth’s vineyard.

If you play with sin, sin will play with you. And if sin plays with you, it will wreck your life. If you fool around with sin, sin will make a fool out of you.

Sin will take you further than you wanted to go.
Sin will teach you more than you wanted to know.
It will keep you longer than you wanted to stay.
It will cost you more than you wanted to pay.

So far, we have seen 2 despicable characters: Ahab, the Pouting Potentate, and his manipulative and evil wife, Jezebel, the Poisonous Puppeteer. We have seen one person in this whole account who has acted honorably: Naboth, the Pious Patriarch. And he and his beloved sons have been killed for their trouble.

Now we will see that when someone arises to the cause of God, and then the devil and his minions arise to do battle, the outlook is not always rosy from start to finish. When the devil says “arise,” sometimes his victims are struck down. But aren’t you glad that, even though Satan has his followers to whom he can say “arise,” God has His man to whom He can say “arise?”

And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it.

I Kings 21:17-18

IV. The Pestering Prophet

Elijah was Ahab’s and Jezebel’s old foe. He did not live in a palace like Ahab. He was from the little town of Tish. He did not wear fancy clothes like Ahab. He wore rough clothes. He did not dine on delicacies and herbs like Ahab. He had a strange diet in the wilderness. But underneath his rough exterior, he had a pure heart, a holy devotion to God. Ahab’s fine garments covered a corrupt, rotten heart.

Ahab wandered through the vineyard that Jezebel had got for him with treachery. We might wonder if suddenly a shadow suddenly a shadow fell across his path: the shadow of Elijah the prophet.

I call Elijah the pestering prophet not because he was a pest in general, but because in the days when Ahab’s wife and yes-men encouraged every frivolous sin he indulged in, Elijah alone was the one voice who would not condone, who not go along, who would not soften his tone, who would not bow before the throne of the wicked.

And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the LORD.

I Kings 21:20

Elijah was not really Ahab’s “enemy.” No, he was the only friend he had in all the land. Your best friend is the one who tells you the most truth. Elijah was no more Ahab’s enemy than Christians who are intolerant of sin, are the enemies of a nation. We live in a day and age when we are not only allowed to sin, not not only tempted to sin, not only encouraged to sin, but praised and honored for being good at sin. We tolerate everything in this world – except intolerance.

Liberalism says that everyone is free to do what he wants – except to tell the Truth about Jesus. We don’t want Christ in anything anymore. We are not supposed to talk about celebrating Christ’s birth in December – we’re just supposed to say “Seasons Greetings.” We are not supposed to celebrate Resurrection Day – we are supposed to have “spring break.” We don’t pray in our schools anymore – we’re too busy reminding our kids that they came from an amoeba or a monkey. A man can fornicate with a man or a woman with a woman – and celebrate it in a parade. But if you stand up and say the Bible says it’s not marriage, it’s sin, then you’re guilty of a hate crime! When a missionary or a pastor or a Christian father or mother who was faithful for 60 years dies, it’s not on the news. Because if it were on the news, it would have to interrupt the spectacular tribute to some idol whose great contribution to society was wearing a sequined glove and walking backwards while pretending to walk forward! According to today’s society it’s narrow-minded, close-minded, “everybody who rejects Jesus is going to Hell,” Christians who are the only problem we have in this country. And that’s the way it’s portrayed in the media.

Ahab called Elijah “my enemy.” “Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?” And this wasn’t the first time Ahab had taken this attitude toward Elijah. After Elijah had told Ahab it was not going to rain, he went to see him after three years of drought.

And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?

I Kings 18:17

That’s what the government – that’s what society – that’s what popular culture – is saying to Christians today: “You are the ones who are troubling America.” One day – and it might be soon – they’re going to see just what this world will be like without Christians troubling it – and they’re not going to like it one bit.

I. The Pious Patriarch
II. The Pouting Potentate
III. The Poisonous Puppeteer
IV. The Pestering Prophet

In Part 3, we will examine the Preeminent Precept.

Who says, “My dog ate it” when they are asked about something they don’t turn in?

I got an email from Elijah’s teacher today telling me that he had sent a note home on Friday that needed to be signed and turned back in. I had never seen the note and let the teacher know I would talk to Elijah about it when he got home. A little while later I get this email from the teacher.

“When I dug a little deeper as to what he had done with his note that needed to be signed, he said that “my dog ate it”. No joke. I thought you should know.”

Who says that? I asked the teacher to let Elijah know that I knew about the note and that he had said “the dog ate it.” We’ll see how fun this bus ride and walk from the bus to the house is for this young man today.

BTW: WE DON’T HAVE A DOG!!!!

When you said Elijah kept you
awake at night, I thought you meant
the squeaking. When you said keep

opening the door, I thought you meant
for prophets. When you said you
saw wrestlers, I thought you meant
the stems.

Elijah stops by for brief interlude.
“These glasses won’t fog
themselves.” The door’s a jar
I keep humming. Put your foot
down. The door’s playing Elijah At

The Door, plus parachute. Silk kids
giggle, un-hide. Elijah’s glad
the wine he likes outlasts plague
years. He ghosts, skinny greeting.
Dog magnet.

Annual April, during younger days
Freehold, New Jersey or Succasunna
Carriage or Harte, Toby Drive, Shady Lane
Maxwell House, blue with white stripe, Hagaddahs

Egg, roasted shank bone, horseradish on fish,
Passover my favorite, symbolic plates
Liberating Jews from slaves in Egypt
With four glasses of wine to celebrate

My cultural past, less so religious
Reading and eating together at night
Singing songs of ten plagues, frogs and locusts
How underdogs won, exuberant fight

Reclining in chairs to chill over food
Elijah stops by for brief interlude

Never have I ever thought of Heaven as much as I have in the past 2 1/2 years.  There is not a day that goes by that my thoughts are not heavenward in some way.  I have also learned to savor the mundane activities of motherhood, all of them, laundry, cooking, arguments, selfishness, everything.  Even before Elijah’s death, my heart was filled with gladness at the activities of being a mom.  I remember before we had children, desiring with everything inside of us to be parents, hearing parents complain about being at home, loneliness, sickness, laundry, and on and on they would go.  I remember thinking in my heart, “I will seek to treasure every moment.”  And then God gave us two.  Overwhelmed at the unbelievable blessing, but still aching and standing in the gap for those longing for the blessing, I refused to be a part of mom groups that seemed to have as their motto, “Let’s get together and gripe and complain about how hard it is to be a mother.”  I just could not stomach it. 

So since Saturday night, I have been savoring the moments of motherhood, the not so easy ones, with one really sick little girl and one sick little boy.  There is nothing in this world that compares to having the privilege of taking care of these children.  I have to think about my sweet friends who long for the day when they will have a child to care for and love.  I also think, how I long to hold Elijah, wash his sweet little clothes, prepare a meal for him, clean up his vomit, all the things that motherhood includes. 

Melvin came home the other day and asked me if I had heard the new Steven Curtis Chapman song.  It is a song about his longing for heaven, to see his little girl.  It so sums up this random thoughted post.  Just had to share it.