The Rose of Sharon is Jesus

BOMBS OVER PERSIA

2012-01-26T12:24:00.000-08:00

Bombs over Persia

1/26/2012

“Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:” Ezekiel 38:2-3. Are we seeing the beginning of the fulfillment of the prophecy God gave to Ezekiel? In the last few weeks the extreme rhetoric that has been tossed back and forth by Iran, Russia, the US, and Israel is striking to say the least. After my commentary entitled “Hybrids” was posted to the internet a few weeks ago people have been asking me “What’s next?” So what is next? Well, what’s the whole world witnessing today?

“Iran plans one-kiloton underground nuclear test in 2012” DEBKAfile Special Report January 10, 2012. First of all, the above statement should bring to a close all the debate as to whether or not Iran is developing a nuclear bomb. Secondly, most of us already knew they were in that process, we just didn’t know exactly where in the process they were – now we do. For those in the die hard “don’t confuse me with facts” crowd, uh, sorry but the facts are obvious. So, what’s next? I believe all the world would do well to come to grips with the fact that Iran means to wipe Israel off the proverbial world map – that truth is obvious and is seen as being their only intent for acquiring the bomb. Therefore the Jewish people around the world now stand at a precipice not seen since WWII – and they have a decision to make. Do they allow Iran to achieve their goal of perfecting a nuclear bomb – do they even allow Iran to test that bomb? Or do they strike Iran and bring the playing field of nuclear bomb holder nations back to pre-nuclear Iran days? By the way, Russia (Magog) has made it plain, striking Iran is a no-no.

More than anything else, Iran wants to push the Nation of Israel off its God given land and into the Mediterranean Sea – to be swallowed up, and forgotten forever. Then as they are reeling from that accomplishment and feeling vindicated and powerful they’d like nothing better than to see to it that the U.S. of A. takes a similar plunge. Clearly something must be done to stem the advance of a nuclear Iran, and it probably should have been done yesterday. Make no mistake, no matter what decision is made it will be costly.

Just how close are we to the prophesied Second Advent of Jesus Christ? That depends. If Iran fires a nuke at Israel, certainly earth’s Christian populous would be in a heightened state of expectation. Israel will not be annihilated, God will not allow that scenario to come to pass; He will intervene for His people Israel. The United States of America, on the other hand, is a different story. There is no promise from God to save America from annihilation save, of course, the promise He made to Abraham. “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee:” Genesis 12:3. Although the United States of America has partnered with Israel to this point, with the vehement rhetoric coming from our fearless leader concerning Israel, perhaps Christian, it’s time to start looking up.

There is a verse in Ezekiel that seems appropriate for insertion here. “And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.” Ezekiel 39:6. Obviously God is adamant about what the future of Magog holds. Then God refers to “them” in the same thought. Who is God referring to when He says “I will send a fire…among them that dwell carelessly in the isles?” The Hebrew word translated to English as “carelessly” can also mean in safety or security. The Hebrew word used here actually denotes a sense of false security or a confidence that is unrealistic. Israel will be in this same mode of false security when Russia (Magog) and her allies come against them. In the “isles” means region or country. So who is it that God is referring to? What county has been dwelling carelessly in their own country for some time now? Could it be that God has His sights on the good old U.S. of A., as we as a nation turn our backs on Him and more specifically on His people Israel?

Persia (Iran) is prophesied to move against Israel in the last days, but according to God’s word, Persia will be defeated. Now this is a very interesting scenario since Russia is telling the world that an attack on Tehran, Iran, is an attack on Moscow. Well now, that changes the dynamic somewhat. If Israel launches a preemptive strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities, Russia is going to be drug into the fray as though someone placed a hook in its jaw. “And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army…” Ezekiel 38:4a.

The whole idea of a nuclear Iran is beyond belief, not to mention comprehension. Yet for those of us who’ve studied the word of God, and believe what we read, we’ve no doubt that Iran (Persia) will do everything it can to destroy Israel in these last days. They will fail, but of course Iran doesn’t see it that way. Right now their leadership is bent on bringing together all the elements necessary to create global conflict. They believe this scenario will usher in the Twelfth Imam. Christians, if we were still here, would know this guy as the antichrist. We know he’s bringing an evil which hasn’t been seen before into the world. But the Muslims believe he is the one who will usher in global peace and harmony. They are chomping at the bit to get this guy on the scene and in control.

Where we once only read prophecy and waited for the appearance of any sign, we can now lay those prophecies over current events, and there has never been a time when they’ve fit so perfectly. The Nation of Israel will take Iran’s nukes out no matter what else happens. They will eliminate that particular threat to their existence. The U.S. will retaliate against Israel by pulling all our financial and military support and by issuing sanctions against our longtime ally. But none of that will matter to Israel as they will have attained a sense of security which will placate their people because of the now nonexistent threat from Iran (Persia). That security will be short lived as they will then find themselves entrenched in a fierce running battle for their very existence; a battle which will be fought on many fronts.

Syria, Lebanon’s Hezbollah (and of course Gaza’s Hamas) will unite with the other warring factions such as the Palestinian PLO’s Fatah army in the West Bank and they will invade Israel. There will be thousands of rockets fired at Israel and some will undoubtedly hit their mark. No other nation will come to the aid of Israel; they are on their own. Well not exactly – the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is still looking out for the tiny Nation of Israel. Once the Church has left its pretty white buildings behind, Israel will again become God’s main focus.

There is talk that the United States will jump in and stop the nuke production in Iran before Israel has the chance. But if that does happen then there will be a response from Russia and/or China that will not be pleasant for Americans. Remember, Obama agreed to eliminate most of our nuclear arsenal with a treaty he made with Russia. But for those who think Russia eliminated their nukes on the same level as the US, well, I believe they’ll be surprised.

The leaders of every nation on earth know full well that Israel cannot just sit by while Iran completes their nuke program. Don’t misunderstand, most of the nations of this world are demanding Israel do just that. But Israel has other plans. Israel’s leaders and their populous are in agreement; there will never be another Holocaust in Israel’s history. Therefore they have only one option and that is to stop Iran before they test the bomb of all bombs.

This is a very exciting but also a dangerous time period. Dangerous in that if we don’t know who Jesus is, if we haven’t placed our faith, hope, and trust in Him as Savior and Lord and the only way to the Father, then dangerous becomes our fatal flaw since the rejection of Jesus Christ only leads to destruction. But for those of us who do believe, exciting is an understatement – we’re watching God’s prophetic word unfolding daily. Every Christian should be on the edge of their seats right now. What’s going on in Iran, Syria, Egypt, Israel, Russia, and the rest of the Middle East can only be described as prophetic scripture coming to pass.

So what should we do while we wait on the Lord? Stock up on guns, ammo, and a ton of survival gear? I understand that mindset better than most as I was operations manager for a national magazine which specialized in the promotion of self-reliant living and preparedness (living off the land, and off the grid, and returning to doing things the way our grandparents or great-grandparents did them). But the mindset that promotes “self-anything” is not the Christian mindset, or at least it shouldn’t be. There’s nothing wrong with planning for tomorrow, but we have no need to worry about tomorrow because God is our Father and He takes delight in providing for the needs of His children. The Father loves His children; it’s as simple as that. We walk by faith not by sight. I see all the worldwide woes approaching but it only heightens my resolve to occupy till He comes. “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” Luke 12:32.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

FAITH COMPROMISED

2012-01-19T10:06:00.000-08:00

Faith Compromised

1/19/2012

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek (Gentile).” Romans 1:16. When a believer becomes ashamed of the Gospel he/she will display definite signs that they are embarrassment by what the Bible says. When this embarrassment becomes public the believer then feels it necessary to change, re-interpret, and corrupt the word of God. Many Christians do this so that they might remain a friend to the various religions of this world. In addition, many Christians continually attempt to fit themselves into a posture of political correctness (tolerance); in such a case the Gospel of Christ becomes an even bigger liability. There’s a new breed of Christian emerging and roaming earth who has found it convenient to line item veto the scriptures that don’t jive with their preconceptions.

When we say yes to Jesus Christ we’re saying “Yes I believe You, I believe Your word, I believe in what You did for me”. Contrary to popular teaching, we aren’t given the option to believe one scripture verse while we dismiss others. If we are to stand up for Jesus we must have a solid and sound foundation to stand on. If we poke holes in the Bible then we are only destroying our own footing. Make no mistake, if your biblical foundation is wrought with holes, sooner or later you will fall for any deception.

As Christians attempt to appease those who are of a different faith by rejecting portions of God’s word, they are virtually thumbing their noses at God. We become compromisers of our faith when we publically proclaim that the God of the Bible is the same God of all faiths. This disobedience to God is reflected in the vocabularies of many who claim to be Christians. How can we claim a relationship with the Son of God when we stand opposed to His written word? I submit that there is no discernable difference between the Christian that corrupts, ignores, or refuses to believe God’s word and those Pharisees who referred to our Lord as Satan “But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.” Matthew 12:24. At that point Israel as a Nation was in full rejection of her Messiah. When we claim a relationship with that same Messiah but dismiss His word as obscure, unnecessary, or as having little or no remaining authority over us, then be assured, Lucifer has taken over and Jesus has been dismissed. When Christians become hostile to the word of God by voiding various truths, these folks can be guaranteed that our God will not take that abuse of His word lightly. God is longsuffering, but still He’s God. He’s not to be mocked. God’s word will stand and those who reject it, or change it, or even minimize its authority as something that should be relegated to past generations will be greatly surprised at the end result of their foolishness.

Man creates his very own god; all he need do to conjure up a god is to focus his mind on that goal. Oh wait a minute; wouldn’t that be demonic? This is a perfect example of how demonic entities wind up masquerading as a god. They are invited to take the throne man has created for them and they are more than happy to facilitate man’s desires. “To whom will you liken me and make me equal, and compare me, that we may be alike?” Isaiah 46:5. God is asking those who insist on creating their own god out of some nonliving material, to whom are they comparing Him?

These false gods consist of the god of Islam, the god of the Mormons, the god of the Jehovah Witnesses, and any other man-created god. Have you ever noticed that all manmade gods deny the deity of Jesus Christ? I can’t speak for every born again believer in Christ, but these religions all sounds demonic to me. God makes the following statement which should put all people who worship false gods in their place. “Those who lavish gold from the purse, and weigh out silver in the scales, hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god; then they fall down and worship!” Isaiah 46:6. Are we beginning to see the absurdity of such folly? To compromise our faith so we can be more presentable to the other faiths of this world is absurd. It’s blatant disrespect for the Creator of the universe. God, the God of the Holy Bible, makes it plain as day that there is no other God but Him.

Is there any difference between those people in Isaiah’s day and the purveyors of falsehoods who are bent on creating their own god and establishing their own religion from nothing? Satan takes control over the minds of the rebellious who find it necessary to negate the God of the Bible. Then with control over their minds he plants the seed that they are worshiping the same god as the Christians and Jews. Take Islam for instance. George Bush claimed everyone, even Muslims, worshiped the same God, the God of the Bible. Barack Obama declares this same lie, and many evangelical Christians agree. But all it takes is a minimal amount of research to discover that the religion of Islam established its foundation based on a manmade lie. God authenticates His word by giving us history lessons in advance. What religion can boast of that? For a Christian to agree with the two individuals above something must be compromised – that would be their faith.

God declares that He alone is God “Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, …remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, …declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose” Isaiah 46:8-10. If we take God at His word then how can we neglect these passages? Standing firm on God’s precepts is the exact opposite of a faith-compromising Christian.

There is a huge difference between “religion” and Jesus our Messiah. All who practice a religion must find a way to come before God through their own good works. Religions are all works based. But Jesus requires zero works as a prerequisite to obtaining salvation, and since Jesus is God Almighty, He won’t have anything to do with false religions. He’s not a part of the “bridge builders” whose pursuit it is to connect all of earth’s religions together by insisting everyone worships the same God. Our Creator God says otherwise. All attempts to unite the world under one ecumenical system are satanic. The only Name that will secure us our own personal Heavenly inheritance is Jesus Christ, the one and only God of all creation.

“…it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks” Acts 9:5b. All of earth’s “religions” are the same in that they are all kicking against the pricks. Let me put it in simple terms everyone can understand. Religion is akin to paddling a canoe up a 1000 ft waterfall. These adherents to false religions paddling their canoes must reach the top of the waterfall to keep from drowning. Impossible you say? Think about it, these foolish people have nothing to rely on save a paddle and their own strength. All religions are in this same predicament. All of their efforts to reach God are impossible without Jesus Christ. For those of us who’ve placed our faith and trust in Him we become Christ like, taking on the characteristics of Christ. Jesus then becomes our strength; “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” Philippians 4:13. We, those who are born again, didn’t have to prove ourselves worthy before we were allotted salvation. We didn’t need to knock on doors or become righteous first, we don’t need to die in jihad to enter Heaven – Jesus did the dying – we’re given life everlasting. All we had to do was believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and God immediately justified us. All we did to get to the Father was believe on the One He sent “Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” John 6:28-29.

The Christian who compromises his/her faith by promoting the false assumption that the God of the Bible is the same God of all religions is not only calling God a liar, but they are also giving false hope to those false religions. Look at it this way; picture a cheerleader standing on the shore of the river where those in the canoe are trying to ascend that 1,000 ft waterfall. The cheerleader is calling for them to paddle harder, paddle harder, faster, faster, but it’s all to no avail. The people in the canoe can’t get anywhere – and they’re drowning. The impossibility of ascending that waterfall is the same as believing we can get to Heaven without Jesus as our Savior. We can do nothing by our own merit to earn our way into Heaven – Jesus already did it.

If you want to strike up a friendship with a person who is following after the enemy’s lie that everyone worships that same god, that’s fine; but there should be no misunderstanding on that person’s part as to just where you stand concerning false religions. If you stand on God’s inerrant word then you must be honest with those folks about where God sees them and their religion. “…I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6. By the words of that verse we must conclude that if we don’t know Jesus Christ as the way, the truth, and the life, that He alone is the only possible way to the Father, then we are in the same canoe as those folks who are attempting to get to God by some other means than through faith in His only begotten Son, Jesus the Christ. In the canoe or cheerleading on the shore, we are wallowing in hopelessness. If we say we follow Jesus Christ but we deny He’s the only way to the Father then we’ve diminished Christ’s deity and made void His work on the cross and His resurrection. This would mean our faith is in vain. “And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. ...if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.” 1 Corinthians 15:14, 17b. These people who adhere to false religions remain in their sins.

The idea that all faiths worship the same God originates in the deepest darkest depths of Hell and is a blatant attempt to create a vacuum that will suck every adherent of every false religion straight down to the abyss. A Christian who promotes this satanic lie is nothing more than a willing advocate of the devil. Only Satan could have come up with such a deception. As this malevolent supernatural being continues his opposition to God we see his focus is on the Church to create confusion while establishing friction among the followers of Jesus Christ; all to facilitate his agenda of death and destruction.

When a Christian compromises his/her faith they are walking with the devil. Help us Father to see the truth. Think about it – do you really think Jesus “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” Revelation 1:8 is apt to share His Throne with any man-invented god?

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

HYBRIDS

2012-01-12T10:57:00.000-08:00

Hybrids

1/12/2012

“And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Genesis 6:5. Humanity is moving through a period of increasingly deteriorating moral behavior. Today wickedness among earth’s inhabitants has grown to a fever pitch. When we study our Bibles what becomes evident is the fact that between the antediluvian world, known as the days of Noah, and our present world there is a shocking similarity unfolding before us.

The news of late has been replete with unimaginable stories of brutality. Most people are mystified, even horrified, at the extremity and the frequency of the cold hearted and brutal acts of senseless aggression, perpetrated mostly on the aged, in various sectors around America. What is it that we are witnessing? This seemingly new form of insanity invading America is actuality a worldwide phenomenon, and it’s burgeoning.

A new breed of criminal has emerged on the scene – younger, stronger, completely lacking remorse. Oh, and cold hearted would be a gross understatement. Nothing witnessed by generations upon generations can prepare humanity for this emerging wickedness. They are many, their numbers are growing, and they all seem to have one thing in common, they lack any semblance of a human soul. Their purpose seems to be that of mayhem, confusion, and to inflict as much pain as possible, even to the point of death of the victim. They’re being manipulated to perform like robots, and to attack like well trained attack dogs. Their trainer, who we should all recognize as a manipulator, yes, he’s Satan and he has only wickedness on his mind.

Who are they? Where have they come from? Are these marauding bands of seemingly soulless bodies even human? Has there been some tampering going on with the DNA of a segment of earthlings creating beings void of human emotion? What would need to be done to a person to negate the traits that provide us with feeling love, kindness, and even remorse? Is it possible to change the genome through DNA manipulation to void a person’s soul? The manipulation of human and animal DNA being performed in medical labs today is astounding. Most of society today hasn’t a clue about what’s being created in these labs. Genetic engineering is in well advanced stages in what can now be seen as man taking over for God; man has now become the manipulator/creator of new forms of life. “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” Daniel 12:4. Can there be any doubt in the minds of those who take God’s word seriously that knowledge has increased exponentially and that we are now at the end?

On the horizon are DNA microchips able to analyze more than a thousand traits at once, those linked not just to a child's health but to enhancements – genes that influence height, intelligence, hair, skin and eye colour and athletic ability. Source – The Globe and Mail

I am getting to a point here with all these questions. I believe the Bible has the answer. We’re informed, by Jesus Christ Himself, in Matthew 24 that there would be some distinguishing factors associated with the last days on planet earth that would set those particular days significantly apart from all other periods of time in human history, save one. Jesus tells us what time period in man’s past best fits as a comparison of what will be witnessed in the last days just prior to His return. He was enlightening us while attempting to elevate our sense of perception at the same time. Jesus is telling us what’s coming and He’s not being elusive. Jesus’ warning had to allude to something completely different than what humanity would consider normal.

“But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark” Matthew 24:37-38. Obviously those of Noah’s day were eating and drinking to sustain themselves, although we’re not told what they were eating and drinking. Some in-depth study I’ve done shows a corruption even in their diet. But my question here is – why would Jesus speak of marriage or giving in marriage during those days? To the casual reader marrying and giving in marriage is seen here as simply going about business as usual, they see nothing out of the ordinary about this verse. But to the studied reader what Jesus is alluding to is that just prior to His return to earth the world will be experiencing an all consuming evil corruption of the genes of humans through the cohabitation of fallen angels and human women just like the people of Noah’s day were, which was the reason God destroyed the antediluvians with a worldwide flood. Think about it this way, who in their right mind will be thinking about their white wedding dress or their black tuxedo at a time when the world will be crumbling around them? The world, just prior to His return, will be filled with the violence, wickedness, and mayhem that Noah witnessed in his day. Jesus lays out precisely for His disciples the full picture of those last days. Jesus wasn’t referring to normal marriage plans, but to very abnormal and abominable copulations between two distinct groups of beings. If we misinterpret the verses in Genesis 6 most of the rest of the Bible will never make sense.

Keep in mind that Jesus was referring to similarities between the antediluvian era and the last days before His return. Remember, the reason God (Jesus) sent the deluge was because of all the abominable unions (marriages) between fallen angels and human women, and the progeny these unions brought forth. Evil was spread over the antediluvian world exactly the way it’s overtaking ours today. Jesus referred to marriage in those days before the flood because that’s exactly what we read in the Genesis 6 account. “That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose” Genesis 6:2 (emphases mine). Jesus isn’t being coy; He’s laying out the future. One that involves the worst possible scenario, the re-incursion of fallen angels into our space/time continuum for one purpose, the corruption/destruction of the human race – just as they did in the days of Noah.

“And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men:” Daniel 2:43. Daniel is revealing a message given in a dream to king Nebuchadnezzar by God. But we see something very strange in this verse. “...they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men”. Again, for the casual reader there is nothing out of the ordinary in this verse, but for those of us who study prophecy with a desire to fully understand what God has in store for His creation there’s something in that verse that should give us reason to pause and delve deeper. Who are “they”? Whoever “they” are they’re mingling themselves with the seed (offspring) of men (daughters). This is a prophecy of the last days. There was a corruption of the genome in Noah’s day perpetrated by fallen angels. We’re told by God Himself that there will be a resurgence of this same corruption in the days just prior to Christ’s return. Here in Daniel chapter 2 we’re given confirmation that in the last days “they”, fallen angels, will again procreate with human women to produce offspring (hybrids/Nephilim). The question is – are these hybrids already dwelling among us?

The birth pangs that Jesus refers to in His “Olivet Discourse” lesson are upon us – only the foolish will deny it. “…all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.” Matthew 24:6b. Jesus is about to call His disciple’s attention to numerous birth pangs which will begin just a few years before His return. It is significant that the verse above mentions that all these things must come to pass. Everything Jesus lays out will happen – some of them are happening now. Jesus continues describing just what these things entail. Although Jesus is speaking to the Nation of Israel, of those folks who will still be alive at the end of the “Great Tribulation” just prior to His return, I believe the birth pangs He speaks about are a warning sign for all who will believe and trust Him. In the next verse you will see why I believe the birth pangs have begun.

“And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” Matthew 24:12. If I were to restate his verse so that the meaning would be even clearer than how it’s written above, I would state it thusly: “When lawlessness thrives and is coupled with extreme wickedness, and as this scenario becomes more and more pervasive on the world scene, then what humanity has enjoyed in the past in regards to kindness, affection, benevolence, charity, and brotherly love will be nonexistent. Then the new breed of human (the hybrid) filled with hate, malice, wickedness, and cruelty takes over” (please understand that these are my words, I’m not attempting to put my words in the Bible – only to provide a more clear understanding). If we look into the original Greek words my explanation above would be pretty close to what Jesus was telling His disciples. The period of time Jesus refers to will be extremely frightening, and there is every indication that that period of time has arrived.

The closer we get to the time of Christ’s return the more improbable will be the sights that we see and even sounds that we hear. Improbable in that they will consist of what we’ve always been taught as being that of the realm of myth (supernatural). My wife and I heard a sound the other day that was completely abnormal. It was a noise that seemed to come out of nowhere and grew louder and louder, similar to an approaching train. We had walked down the rural road we live on to our mailbox, about an eighth of a mile. As we were just about to the mailbox, the sound started. There was a slight breeze but not really enough of a wind that would create a loud howling noise. No planes in the air above us, and no approaching automobiles on the main road. We were perplexed to say the least. What was it? I have no idea, it simply stopped. But the dimension of the malevolent supernatural is invading our world and they are becoming more and more brazen with their antics, allowing many people to see things they don’t want to see, or hear things no human can explain.

UFO’s are reported every ten minutes somewhere on planet earth. That’s a lot of sightings by many people, people from every walk of life. The beings that operate these craft are, at times, allowing themselves to be seen, and for the most part they are described as creatures with no resemblance to human beings. The investigative data that I’ve studied points to these beings as inter-dimensional not extraterrestrial. They’re not traveling from distant galaxies to interact benevolently with earthlings. They are appearing and disappearing as though popping in and out of other dimensions. Why are they coming? I believe it is to create an atmosphere of fear and confusion. The beings that traverse dimensions can be benevolent or malevolent and we should be keenly aware of the current incursion by many malevolent beings in these last days. But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” Matthew 24:37.

I believe Satan’s goal is to build an army that he can fully control, thus command to fight at the last war which the Bible refers to as Armageddon. He’s not just content with readying this horde for battle with the Lord, but while the Lord tarries, Satan will be focused on inflicting a world of hurt on humanity in ways we would never have conceived, all to create an atmosphere of fear and confusion. He’s done it before, and he’s prophesied to do it again in the last days. The stories of these marauding bands of soulless misfits exploding on the scene today are from various news releases I’ve read over the past few months. I’m sure most of you have been privy to these same articles but perhaps had not connected the dots.

I mentioned birth pangs earlier and I was alluding to a gradual but burgeoning set of conditions. As the birth pangs Jesus speaks of run the gamut from minute to extreme, the church can be seen at the beginning of those birth pangs. But as they become more and more severe, without warning, in the twinkling of an eye, the church disappears and the only people remaining to experience all the mayhem and misery created by these fallen angels and their soulless hybrids are the Christ rejecters. If you’ve never said yes to Jesus Christ, and you remain in that state of mind, then those extremely harsh birth pangs are going to be yours to experience.

I’ve done my own research and am convinced humanity is in its last stage. I would hope that everyone who reads this commentary will be motivated to explore the plethora of research data on the subject of a post-human world, the world of the genetically modified human. God will not allow this corruption of His creation to go much further. As I’ve stated, the research has progressed to the stage that scientists are convinced that it’s time to alter the genome of humans. We are in the last days, and Jesus is on His way.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

you-tube videos on the end times

2012-01-11T17:37:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cihcMqBgmPs
These are videos that I thin think you will enjoy Please let me know
You will have to copy the video link and then transfer it to you mail
and there you can see them. Great teachers. Hope you like them.
Agape
Zelma

THE LEGACY OF QUETZALCOATL

2012-01-05T12:12:00.000-08:00

2012 – The Legacy of Quetzalcoatl

1/5/2012

“That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.” 1 Thessalonians 4:12. What this verse has so eloquently stated is we who walk in the precepts of the Lord should be an example to those on the outside of salvation. We should certainly not be distracted by known deceptions. We should always be prepared to denounce such lies. Satanic lies are established to create an atmosphere of fear while setting up a sense of confusion, all for the purpose of fulfilling Satan’s agenda. We’ve heard the hype leading up to 2012, and that year has now arrived. That hype is a lie built around a calendar...a calendar created by the worshipers of the demon, Quetzalcoatl.

If we look to the alternative news websites we can glean a lot of good information about what is coming, prophetically speaking. In many of these articles those of us who are students of the Bible can see the occasional unveiling of the biblical prophetic truths we’ve been studying. Some disastrous scenarios might well reach us at our homes, but they will in no way be what the Bible describes as the wrath of God.

For some time now the mainstream media (who continually obfuscates the truth) has been enamored with the possibility that the Mayan prediction might actually occur in 2012. That the mainstream media would give so much air time to such a topic, and so intently, should give us reason to doubt any serious possibility of such an occurrence. In truth, what we can see approaching is far worse than anything the mainstream media depicts as the ultimate destruction of planet earth. Pie-in-the-sky plentiful times or the end of the world, both scenarios are equally presented by these goofy mainstream media pundits. But I will say this, for those of us who follow the One who is hated by most of humanity, this year may prove to be quite a distressing year.

With the looming doomsday scenario of the Maya predictions, many will become increasingly apprehensive which will lead to a state of fearfulness. It would be well to note that if we are going to put faith in a Maya calendar prediction we would do well to remember that the Mayans gained their notoriety as the civilization that sacrificed thousands upon thousands of their own people on the altar to their god Quetzalcoatl. The Mayan people did this bloodletting to appease their god and open portals for the demons to enter this dimension – could the fact that we have the same bloodletting practice going on today in America and around the world, in the form of government sanctioned abortions, be opening the same portal of the demonic? The whole word now seems to be just as demonically enticed as the Mayans. Is Quetzalcoatl standing on our doorstep?

The lie which brought about this fairly new doom and gloom scenario is a key element in creating an atmosphere of fear and confusion. Fear is the tool at the top of the arsenal of weapons currently in use by the enemy of all humanity. Fear and confusion combined with manipulation will create the perfect atmosphere for the enemy as he draws closer to accomplishing his goal.

One day soon the world will be changed, but the end of the world will not occur on December 21, 2012. How can I, a mere human, make such a claim? Simple. I don’t read that particular doomsday scenario anywhere in the Bible. I believe the Author of the Bible above all of man’s writings. God has not declared an end to the world at a specific date in 2012, although the Rapture of His Church may occur in 2012. That would certainly usher in the “apokalypsis” and a mega war at a place referred to in the Hebrew tongue as “Harmagedōn” resulting in the re-appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ with His saints (the Church). The removal of the Church will be quite the cataclysmic event – but not the end of the world.

This same lie that portends the world will end in 2012 is currently being perpetuated by Hollywood and through a plethora of books. Both venues are involved in this deception to capitalize on the dollars each can generate. Satan doesn’t really care about the motivation, only the ultimate outcome. Movies and books will increase the promotion of the lie which will ultimately funnel down to fear and confusion. Increasingly we see that people are so ignorant of Biblical truth that falling for the enemy’s schemes is inevitable. This 2012 end of the game scenario might well be the setup for the strong delusion spoken of by God in His word.

Jesus tells those who will read His word that the last days will be laden with deception. “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.” Matthew 24:12. When we look at this verse with discernment, it’s increasingly obvious that what Jesus told His disciples those many years ago has certainly begun. Many people today are perfectly in line with Satan’s agenda and are fulfilling Jesus’ words to His disciples to the letter. Whatever we hear in these last days concerning impending doom, our recourse is to first search the scriptures to see if what we are being told, or if what we’ve heard, agrees with God’s word.

Scary things may well be in our future, but the biblically astute will be much more alert to deception. This end of the world scenario is increasingly flooding humanity with thoughts of doom and gloom, that’s Satan’s modus operandi. Because Satan doesn’t know, any more than mankind knows, when the end will come he must always capitalize on every opportunity even, the false predictions of future doom and gloom. But Satan’s final goal will not be fully realized, unless…

“And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;” Luke 21:25. The above verse is just an example of what people will be experiencing in the last days before the Lord’s return. This whole idea of the 2012 Mayan end of the world doom and gloom brings into prefect view a sense of the perplexity of nations which can be plainly seen infecting our culture today. There is currently an increasing anticipation of foreboding as people begin to believe in the possibility that the 2012 Mayan prediction might actually occur. Here’s the rub, it’s not whether it will occur or whether it won’t, but that it can’t. As I’ve already mentioned, 2012 being the year the world ends is not recorded in the word of God. The world coming to an end in December of 2012 will be a non-event. But the purpose behind the lie will have come to fruition. The damage will have been done as the goal of the malevolent sadistic supernatural realm will be that much closer to bringing about fear and confusion while trapping humanity in a cesspool of deception.

The whole idea and promotion of 2012 being the end of the world has a dark element of supernatural origin implemented to create a desired effect, which, as I’ve already stated, is one of fear and confusion. Satan remains at odds with God even though he lost everything he held dear when God died for His creation. The cross was certainly a stumbling block for Satan who, over the last 2,000 years, has become even more determined to destroy mankind. He’s not done.

The Bible plainly states that the wrath of God will come upon a Christ-rejecting world, but that the Church will not be here to witness even the beginning of the pouring out of God’s wrath. We can read about the 70 weeks prophesied in the Book of Daniel and see that only 69 of those weeks have come to pass. The final week has not begun but when it does it will culminate in Christ’s return with His Church. The Rapture must occur at least 7 years prior to Christ’s return. After that there will be 1,000 years wherein Satan will be bound and the world will keep on spinning. How then can the world end in 2012? It can’t.

The Mayans were devil worshipers who sacrificed their own people to their plumed serpent god, Quetzalcoatl. The idea that these devil worshipers could have come to a conclusion that the world would end in 2012 is preposterous. Instead of looking to Satan’s devotees to open our eyes to the future, let’s look to God – first as our Creator and Savior, secondly as the initiator of our faith and the giver of life, and thirdly as the source of all true prophecy. In doing so, we simply look into His word to see the absurdity of those flooding the world with the Maya predictions.

There is an aspect of the Maya predictions that rarely gets discussed and that is the Maya didn’t really portend an end to the world as many believe. They simply created a calendar that once deciphered ended with the year 2012. All of the doom and gloom associated with the Mayan calendar is only a satanic attempt at creating fear and confusion in the hearts of men. It sets up a plausible yet fictitious end game scenario. Since we know that Satan corrupts God’s word we also know that there will be false prophecies that somewhat parallel God’s own prophecies, but they are actually a very cleaver deception. With all the hype of 2012, I believe it is possible that we are being setup for the delusion that those who have rejected Christ will believe. If Satan can achieve his goal of getting people to accept this 2012 end of the world scenario, then as December 21, 2012, draws closer fear will also increase exponentially. …if the Rapture were to occur after that anticipation reaches fever pitch, Satan will have no difficultly convincing humanity of his end of game ultimate deception.

With fear and confusion firmly embedded in the minds and hearts of men, Satan then uses his control over those men as pawns while establishing his end game goal. After the removal of the restrainer, which includes the Church, Satan will reveal his “man in waiting” to the deceived world who will accept this man with open arms – as the savior of the world.

What we can be sure of is that the prophecies in the Bible are true, correct, and will all come to pass in due time. Just as all the fulfilled prophecies of the past came about exactly to God’s specifications, those of the future are also guaranteed to come to fruition exactly as God has pronounced. “Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.” Luke 21:26. Fearing what’s coming on earth is not prudent for the believer who has placed their faith, trust, and hope in Christ. Satan controls a mass of misinformation on this globe and the end of the world coming in 2012 is one of his biggest lies since corrupting Eve – I believe it is right up there with another huge lie which is, of course, the lie of evolution.

“The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.” Psalm 34:7. Here we’re told that those who belong to the Lord have nothing to fear from God’s enemies. Why? The angel of the Lord is a reference to the pre-incarnate Christ. He is encamped around us – we’re protected on every side. The battle rages. The enemy is relentless, but powerless, against “The angel of the LORD.” Christians shouldn’t fall for the ensuing deception as Satan floods the unbelieving world with his lies. We who follow Christ are fully protected from this evil and malevolent supernatural being; the rest of humanity, as they become more and more subjected to his lies, will find the truth increasingly elusive.

As the world becomes more and more engrossed with the idea of 2012 bringing an end to their beloved planet earth, Satan/Quetzalcoatl will continue to lead them in that lie as he sets them up for his impending doom. The rest of us will enjoy a firm and secure future, and just knowing about that future inspires hope “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” 2 Peter 1:19-21. In other words, if prophecy isn’t in the Bible it’s a deception implemented by the deceiver of all mankind and destroyer of souls.

Any mention of any looming apocalyptic catastrophic destruction of planet earth not found in the Bible is a scenario created out of a mind consumed with evil and hatred for the inhabitants of said planet; Satan revels in this arena. His attempts at inculcating fear in the minds of humans are legendary. On the other hand, God delights in the offering of His grace to all of His creation. Satan is intent on man’s destruction; God is fully focused on man’s salvation. Satan hates us with a hate that is humanly inconceivable; God loves us with a love unimaginable, and therefore indescribable. Satan is bent on keeping the state of mankind in a posture reserved for the damned; God died for us to remove us from that state to become heirs of all He has. While Satan is bent on instilling fear in all humanity; God would be overjoyed if all humanity were to embrace the hope He has provided through His Son, Jesus the Christ. Satan only destroys lives; God builds on our lives to perfect us and ready us for an eternity with Him. Satan is a liar and the father of all deception; who would trust him? God’s precepts are perfect and His prophecies are true and accurate; He can be trusted. Which one of these two supernatural beings are you going to look to for a true glimpse into the future?

The prophecies of God are being played out little by little almost every day just as there are false prophets portending approaching doom – nothing new here. But in this year of 2012 we may well be witnessing the encroachment on humanity of the mother of deceptions, which include the false Maya predictions. This year, the hype of 2012 will make Y2K pale in comparison. Many, if they haven’t already, will become caught up in this circus event and see it as an increasingly significant possibility. Before this year is over many will be setup to embrace the lie. What lie you ask? The lie which will be ushered in at the moment Christ removes His Church. But the prelude to that event is the setup. I believe this will be seen by the Church and will be obvious to many of us. It’s just offstage ready to be unveiled as the date of December 21st gets closer and the possibility that the Lord takes His Church home this year grows stronger. Satan will then be in a perfect position to spring a great deception on the remainder of humanity. Get ready!

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

KINGDOM OF DARKNESS

2011-12-29T10:06:00.001-08:00

Kingdom of Darkness

12/29/2011

“… the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:” Ephesians 2:2. The prince of the power of the air is Satan, and the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience is alive and flourishing in our hallowed halls of government. This evil prince, along with his controlling powers of persuasion, has been hard at work corrupting mankind from the beginning of creation. Satan is fully aware that humanity has moved into an era which is witnessing the culmination of prophecies.

Way back in the Prophet Daniel’s day Satan did everything he could to keep major end times prophecies from ever reaching Daniel’s ears. “Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.” Daniel 10:12-14. For 21 days the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood a messenger sent by God who was to deliver an end time’s prophetic message to Daniel. “Prince of the kingdom of Persia” refers to a position of rank, within the hierarchy of the kingdom of darkness. In this context it’s referring to a “demonic military rank.” Only with the archangel Michael’s help was God’s messenger able to continue and finally reach Daniel. Just as that malevolent fallen angel withstood God’s messenger in those days, the demonic realm is just as well established today. Many reside in high places of authority such as the leadership arena of the governing bodies on planet earth.

Satan is dead serious and fully determined to take control over his domain, which is planet earth and all its inhabitants. The dimension of the malevolent supernatural has moved into the dimension of man. The battle that rages between good and evil is not far from our doorstep. We can be sure that just as there was a prince of the kingdom of Persia during Daniel’s time to stand as a resistance to God’s holy angels, there’s a well established demonic prince of America who is currently resisting the forces of good while he pulls the strings of the decision makers of this land. Thus far what can be plainly seen is our elected officials are intent on driving this country to destruction. That’s what these ranking fallen “bene ha’Elohyim” are all about – the destruction of mankind.

We can also be assured that just as we understand prophecy today, the demonic realm understood it long before us. About 2,000 years ago Jesus confronted a legion of demons who had taken up occupancy in a man from Gadara. “And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?” Matthew 8:29. Before the time? What time? That legion of demons knew their time was not up yet. Why had Jesus come? The demons knew prophecy and according to their calculations Jesus was not playing by the rules of the times designated in those prophecies.

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:12. We’re given four designations in this verse and all are referencing manifestations of evil (principalities, powers, ruler, and spiritual wickedness “in high places”). In the Greek they are “archē” – “exousia” – “kosmokratōr” – “pneumatikos-ponēria”. Paul is speaking of Satan and his demonic horde consisting of fallen angels and demons. In the above verse we see a clear designation of the hierarchy of the kingdom of darkness. These hordes of malevolent misfits have received their assigned positions of power from their leader Satan accordingly. They are well established and thoroughly entrenched in the highest governing offices of every nation on earth.

God assigns individuals of His choosing to rule over the nations, yet we must realize that fallen men rebel against their God just as the fallen “bene ha’Elohyim” (angels) did eons ago. In the case of the governing bodies of the world, Satan has corrupted the leadership. We know there are limits to God’s patience, and on occasion some very unpleasant course adjustments (judgments) are decreed. In America’s case, for instance, we see a nation that once lived by God’s ordained moral precepts. America now lives by the demonic influence of the ranking prince. In accordance to the direction of that prince, America has become a nation that now promotes the worldwide distribution of pornography, the wholesale worldwide acceptance of the murder of unborn babies, and the unfettered worldwide acceptance of homosexuality. All of these societal downgrades are an abomination to God. When nations move away from God’s standard for morality something has to give. As we look down Main Street America today it seems our nation is receiving exactly what we deserve, and it’s come to us in the form of our current leadership.

The demonic element working behind the scenes in every nation on this planet is a burgeoning force; they wield great power of influence over the nations. The direction in which most of us would prefer our nation head is not in accordance with the ranking prince doing the steering. As America’s moral foundation collapses we see the waning of love and charity; long past are the days of “love thy neighbor.” America has changed from just a few decades ago; today America has an altogether different mindset. America has fallen so far from its previous high moral state that it’s as though we’re in a sewage hole with nothing to grab hold of to hoist ourselves out. Today it’s all about greed, sex, and self, and that mindset is now perfectly in tune with the ranking demonic prince of America. As so many nations have done, America has turned her sovereignty over to the prince of the power of the air, who in turn has established the ranking demonic supernatural authority over mankind.

“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” Matthew 24:21. Our God is long suffering, but according to His word, one day very soon His hammer of perfect justice will come down with a force never before seen on this planet. All the nations of the world will suffer greatly, and the supernatural element will be put in their rightful place. But that’s for another commentary.

As this rank of demons has taken their positions in the seats of power on planet earth, most of the world’s citizenry have no clue as to who is truly in the driver’s seat. If we dig into our history books it’s not hard to discover that these principalities and powers have been developing their strategy for quite some time now. The nations of the world have now embraced Satan’s agenda, which is the satanic indoctrination of anything that is opposed to the One true God of all creation. We see that Humanism, Socialism, Marxism, Communism, and Fascism have been embraced by the leadership of most nations, including America. Satan has achieved his goal. Right here in America our children are currently being indoctrinated with these very same satanic concepts through our public school system. This should leave no doubt in the minds of every Christian in America that malevolent supernatural powers have taken over the reins of our government.

Satan has used his power of influence to spread his agenda worldwide, he exercises his incredible persuasive authority to amass followers and create a stirring of their minds, and then he simply begins the string pulling from behind the scenes. Satan is domineering - the worst of all despots. But there are bounds that even he can’t cross. God has set the boundaries of Satan’s influence over mankind and although he may think he has complete autonomy, we know God views things differently. But Satan’s manipulative powers of persuasion are formidable indeed. Through his intervention into planet earth’s regional governments he has persuaded mankind that his form of government is best. I would challenge any of my readers to supply me with one example of a governing body that is a major player in world affairs that is not influenced by the demonic. Before you respond allow me to remind you of Jesus’ own words to the Pharisees and rulers of His day. “He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.” Matthew 12:30. We are either with Jesus Christ or Satan, there is no in between ground available.

All around the world we see despots ruling their nations with an iron fist, ready to smash anyone at the first sign of disobedience. Just look at Syria, North Korea, Iran, China, and Russia to name a few. These nations are led by the prince of the power of the air, and America is rapidly becoming just as totalitarian.

If Satan can, through his power of persuasion, convince men in the highest government offices to follow him and adhere to his directives instead of God’s precepts he wins the control of that nation’s government. Even though God places men or women in a position to rule over their particular governments it doesn’t mean that those individuals will stand firm and follow God’s will. Remember Saul? Satan’s influence over mankind is increasing as is plainly seen today; as we observe, many people are turning away from the God of the Bible to follow other gods – into the kingdom of darkness.

Although we might think that “We the People” have control over our government leadership through the voting processes established in our country that is no longer the case. With the demonic influence firmly seated at the pinnacle of power, American’s can vote for whomever they wish, but where the power lies the power shall remain. What about the Constitution? The United States Constitution has been disregarded or ignored by our elite elected officials for years. We are no longer dealing with natural man but with malevolent supernatural powers far beyond our control.

The scope and mass of Satan’s influence is so broad that God’s word actually refers to him as the “prince of the power of the air” and the “god of this world.” When you give those designations some deep thought you will agree that in these mortal bodies and without God’s intervention we have no hope of combating the supernatural realm on our own. Everyone on planet earth is subject to the evil of the “prince of the power of the air” when they enter his domain, and his domain is earth.

Scope and mass are two distinct properties used by Satan as he pushes forward into the lives of men. Scope is the range covered by an activity or subject – the range of application or boundaries which Satan takes full advantage of and control over when we allow him that freedom. Mass is different, it is a body that forms a whole but has no definable shape, a large but unspecified number. Satan wallows in this territory. His followers are an unspecified number but we know for certain that that unspecified number is massive. Jesus tells us “...wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:” Matthew 7:13b. In other words, they, the many referred to in the above verse, are followers of Satan. Every nation on earth reeks of a malevolent satanic influence. As each nation becomes more and more engulfed in the participation and promotion of Satan’s agenda, more and more people will find themselves heading down that broad way which leads to destruction. Many will not realize their error until it is too late.

The strangeness to all this demonic influence is that even though it is so pervasive the majority of humanity has no clue as to where they are being led. How better to control the minds of people than through their individual governments? Christians, if no one else, should be fully aware of Satan’s influence at every level of government. Ranking fallen angels and the lower class demonic horde have influenced the elected leadership in such a way that those government leaders are now promoting and implementing Satan’s agenda and forcing it on humanity.

How can we “Christians” persuade the foe of the demonic to intervene on our behalf? Prayer and being prepared is the key “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day” Ephesians 6:13. My brethren, we are firmly seated in that evil day. An incredible war is raging and we humans are the prize. Protection from all the fallout is provided by the One who battles for us. “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:” Ephesians 6:16-17. We need to put on the full armor of God to withstand Satan and his horde of fallen angels and demons. But no one can put on God’s armor until they’ve put on His Son, Jesus the Christ.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

SEVENTY WEEKS OF YEARS

2011-12-22T10:13:00.001-08:00

Seventy Weeks of Years

12/22/2011

“Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.” Daniel 9:24. To begin with, it’s imperative to grasp the meaning behind the term “weeks” in the above verse. Many times while studying God’s word we find our English words insufficient to allow a full explanation of the true meaning found in particular scripture verses. For example, in ancient Hebrew “weeks” refers to a heptadic structure we find throughout the Old and New Testament. Simply put, many times throughout His word God speaks in units of seven. The Hebrew word “shabuwa`” (weeks in English) is used to describe a period of time. Sometimes it serves to describe a seven day period, but in the text above it is a reference to a week of years.

“Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.” Daniel 9:21. This verse indicates that God sent the angel Gabriel to Daniel to give him understanding concerning the seventy weeks.

The angel Gabriel is speaking about the future of Israel, and when Gabriel says “seventy weeks are determined” what he means is seventy sets of seven years are determined on thy people and upon thy holy city. So a total of 490 years will culminate with the fulfillment of all that was spoken of by the angel Gabriel in the verse above. A portion of that verse has already been fulfilled along with 483 of those years.

Seventy weeks are determined. What God means by “determined” is that His decree to Daniel is indomitable, it is set in stone, and it won’t be changed or slighted. If we take God at His word, as we should, what the world is going to experience at the end of the seventieth week of Daniel has, in God’s view, already transpired. Which means these coming events can’t be altered – they must occur just as Gabriel proclaims.

Upon thy people and upon thy holy city. Here the angel Gabriel is referring to God’s possessions - the nation of Israel and His Holy City (Jerusalem). The seventy weeks are determined upon these two possessions of God. Conspicuous by its absence in verse 24 is any mention of the still to come Church age. Why? Everything in the verse above refers to Israel and the Holy City, Jerusalem, save one aspect. The one portion of the above verse already fulfilled today is the most important part of the whole verse. Hold on, the explanation is coming.

To finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins. Wow! Have we seen any evidence that an end of transgression and sins has occurred sometime in Israel’s past? Both transgression and sins continue today just as they have throughout the existence of mankind. Therefore, those who insist that all these prophecies have been fulfilled must live on some utopian planet somewhere apart from planet earth. Why? Because as we wake up from our night’s sleep to a new day there are always new transgression and sins to face. God says He will “finish”, put a stop to, all of this world’s transgression and sins, which as we all know has had a long and dismal effect on mankind. The end of all transgression and sins which currently plague us is a specific set date known only to God. What we do know is that elimination point will not come before the end of the prophesied seventy weeks. Sixty-nine of those weeks have passed into history, yet transgression and sins are still in full bloom. By all accounts we see the seventieth week is set to begin very shortly – that is as soon as the Church age, which began at the end of the sixty-ninth week, is brought to a close.

And to make reconciliation for iniquity. This portion of Daniel 9:24 should be fairly obvious to us all. It’s the only part of that verse that has been fulfilled. Of course we know that all of the prophecies stated by Gabriel in that one verse must be fulfilled. But one of God’s main goals which was formulated and determined before even one foundation stone was laid in the creation of planet earth, was to reconcile mankind to Him. Our God and Savior has done just that. That reconciliation occurred when Jesus, Israel’s Messiah, took His preordained position on that cross. Jesus fulfilled that particular prophecy about 2,000 years ago. Reconciliation for iniquity was made, not just for Israel but for the whole of mankind – and Jesus said “Τετέλεσται – Paid in Full.”

So what two important issues have we learned so far? 1) God has promised He will fulfill all the prophecy given to Daniel and that He is by no means through acting on Israel’s behalf. 2) The reconciliation event that occurred some 2,000 years ago has created a Way for all mankind to join the nation of Israel as partakers of the promised inheritance. Because of Israel’s rejection of her Messiah we, the Gentile Church, have been grafted into our very own relationship with the Messiah.

And to bring everlasting righteousness. Everlasting righteousness can’t be afforded to a world where transgression and sins reign supreme. But God’s promise will come to fruition at the end of Daniel’s seventieth week when the King of kings reigns supreme.

Side note:

The mystery of the Church is specific and exclusive in nature. The nation Israel, on a whole, has rejected their Messiah, and that rejection is clearly laid out in Matthew chapter 12 where the Pharisees refer to their Messiah as Satan. That rejection began with Christ’s first advent when He came as a suffering servant culminating with His death on the cross. At His Second Advent, His return as a conquering Hero and the establishment of His Monarchy will be fulfilled at the end of the seventieth week spoken of above. At which point Jesus Christ, King of kings, will put into effect His concept of a perfect new world order. No matter what some theologians and Bible teachers teach to the contrary, Israel is still God’s chosen people. God is still very much involved in the affairs of the Nation of Israel. The seventieth week of Daniel, which is still on the horizon, is a period of time in which God will prove to the nations of the world just what the Nation of Israel means to Him. But His Church must be removed first.

“…and to seal up the vision and prophecy…” Daniel 9:24b. Then the angel Gabriel tells Daniel the vision and prophecy is to be sealed up. This again points to an end and fulfillment of all biblical prophecy. Currently there are a whole lot of people seeing visions and prophesying about what’s on the horizon; every day I receive at least one letter from someone who believes they’ve had a prophetic dream or vision that they believe is foretelling of coming events. “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:” Joel 2:28. We can now conclude that God is setting the stage for the finale of human history which will culminate in everlasting righteousness replacing transgression and sin as Jesus the Christ takes the helm of planet earth as her King. There will be no further need of visions or prophecy in the Kingdom to come as everything will have been fulfilled. Therefore at the end of the seventieth week of Daniel, God will seal up vision and prophecy and make an end of them. There will be no more false prophets or wannabe gods attempting to lead the masses astray.

And to anoint the most Holy. God’s Temple will be the most Holy place on earth. Again, all prophecy must be fulfilled just as the Bible teaches. God’s Holy Temple is not even built yet, therefore this portion of the prophecy is still a future event. God can’t anoint His most Holy place until it’s built. This is another point in a long line of scripture verses which are simply dismissed by the Amillennialist (Preterist) crowd. As God anoints His Holy Temple and puts an end to all forms of unrighteousness, all transgression, and all sins, what comes into perfect view here is not only the act of committing transgression which will be dealt that God-ordained final blow, but all guilt associated with any and all of those unholy and unrighteous rebellious acts will be eliminated.

It’s important to understand that there has been a gap period between the end of the sixty-ninth week of Daniel and the beginning of the seventieth week. This gap of time has now lasted for almost 2,000 years, and during this time God has been devoted to the establishment of His Church. This phenomenal Church growth witnessed by the world for the past 2,000 years will soon be coming to a screeching halt. The Church has been God’s focus, but all of that is about to change. Here in the 24th verse of Daniel chapter 9 we see that God’s focus is primarily on His people Israel and on His Holy City, Jerusalem.

As a nation Israel is still in rebellion to God, but that will change in the middle of the seventieth week as the abomination of desolation is revealed. “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet…” Matthew 24:15a. The abomination of desolation will mark the beginning of the Great Tribulation (note I didn’t say the beginning of the seventieth week) in which the Nation of Israel will be fully engulfed. At this point Israel will come to realize the man they’ve been so enamored with for the previous three and one half years was actually Satan himself. Then they will begin to call on the Name that is above all names – the Name of their “mashiyach nagiyd”(Messiah the King) – which is Jesus the Christ.

Prior to Daniel’s seventieth week, at a specific God-ordained point on His established timeline, His Church will be complete. At that precise point in time, Jesus will remove every born again believer from the face of this planet. There will not be any remnant of Christ’s Church remaining on earth as God once again focuses specifically on His chosen people, Israel. God will still accomplish all of His goals presented to Daniel by the angel Gabriel according to His plan and for His glory. But we, the Church, can be fully assured that that final week will not involve the body of Christ, until the end when we will come back with our Lord in His glory. “…and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.” Revelation 17:14b.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

WISE MEN STIL SEEK HIM

2011-12-15T11:11:00.001-08:00

Wise Men Still Seek Him

12/15/2011

“Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,” Matthew 2:1. Wise men have been seeking the Son of God since before His birth, and wise men still seek Him today 2,000 years after His death. Why is that?

Christmas is upon us once again, and every year the idea behind remembering and celebrating our Savior’s birth becomes a little more obscure in this secular world. But for those of us who wisely choose to follow Him, this is a very special time of year. I’m not talking about Christmas trees and mistletoe or Santa Claus and reindeer; what’s so special about this time of year is that our thoughts and remembrances are focused on the truth. Our God who created the universe entered His creation as a newborn baby – the baby Jesus – and grew into manhood all so He could die a horrible death so we, His creation, would be spared an eternity in Hell. The realization of that truth dispels any lingering doubts as to why “Wise Men Still Seek Him.” “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6.

For the moment let’s ignore all the debate about when Jesus was born – let’s rejoice in knowing that He did come. The 25th of December has become a tradition for Christians to gather together and focus on their Messiah – not just His birth, but also who He is and what He did. As we sing the wonderful traditional and contemporary songs which are so full of the spirit of Christmas, joy fills our heart, peace fills our mind, and love fills our soul.

Because it is such a special time of year, many estranged families are reunited and differences of the past seem to melt away while they remember the baby Jesus who grew to become Savior of the world. Loving one another is what the Lord Jesus is all about. Love is brought forth at just the thought of baby Jesus in a manger. From everlasting to everlasting Jesus brought us His joy, peace, and love. “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.” Psalm 136:1.

“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Luke 2:13-14. That tiny baby boy who brought forth such joyous praising from the host of Heaven’s angels at His birth is God incarnate. That little baby born in a manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes, held tenderly and lovingly in His mother’s arms, was to be “…great joy, which shall be to all people” Luke 2:10b. That little baby boy, surrounded by shepherds who had come in from the fields to view and be a part of the miracle that night, was the full representation of God Almighty. “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Colossians 2:9. Is there any doubt as to why wise men still seek Him?

The Magi who traveled from the east to meet and bring gifts to this Jewish toddler were wise men indeed. These men were not followers of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, yet they knew the scriptures better than the Pharisees. They were worshipers of false gods yet they were able to read the signs in the Heavens. They had foresight enough to adhere to what they had learned from the Hebrew Scriptures and what they’d gleaned from the stars; they knew their destination was Judea, and they knew they were seeking royalty. Why did these worshipers of false gods come to exalt and worship the one true God? They were fully convinced through all of their God given knowledge who it was they were seeking – the King of the Jews.

We’re not told very much about the baby Jesus growing into a toddler, then a teenager, then a young man in His early years of manhood. Not until we find Jesus beginning His earthly ministry are we given a glimpse of who the baby boy born in that manger in Bethlehem had truly become. Then of course as the scriptures unfold for us it becomes obvious who this little baby boy was. Jesus began His mortal life in very humble beginnings, yet preordained before the foundation of the world to be the Savior of mankind. The little baby boy born in the manger met His destiny without doubts, and He taught His disciples that they should not have any second thoughts if they were going to follow Him. Jesus told them what their future held. They too would endure pain and persecution; the world would hate them. Yet, as we see today, wise men still seek Him – persecution or no.

Some thirty-three years after the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem’s manger, He was nailed to and died on a cross of wood, yet as Chuck Missler likes to remind us “He made the hill on which it stood.” I’ve often wondered if I’d lived during the years Jesus “walked the shores of Galilee and climbed the hills of Judea” (another Missler quote) if I would have been a disciple of His scattering and running for my life, or one of those in the crowd exuberantly screaming “Crucify Him” while His mother watched her eldest son as He suffered the pain and agony of a torture meant solely for criminals.

The somber manger scene is indeed a beautiful remembrance of our Savior’s birth, and the Christmas season brings numerous messages of love and compassion. It is a wonderful time of year. But the reason for Christmas is to remember that God, displaying His grace and mercy toward His creation in an act of unselfish love, became the propitiation for the sin of the world. This little baby grew into a man and without hesitation, He set out to do His Father’s will. He taught the masses the way of the Kingdom of God, He walked on water and quelled the fears of His disciples as He calmed the seas and dispelled every attempt by Satan to destroy Him.

“Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing…” Isaiah 35:5, 6b. He healed the sick, made the blind see, the lame walked again, He raised the dead, and all these people rejoiced and praised this Son of God. But there’s so much more “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.” John 21:25. Amen!

“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” Matthew 1:23. Did Joseph and Mary really understand that this little baby, who May carried and gave birth to, would become the ruler of all nations? Did they know their baby was also their Creator? Could they have had any idea that Mary’s little baby boy would one day die for all of mankind and then rise from the grave three days later? These two regular people were told their child was to be called “God with us” and that “of his kingdom there shall be no end” Luke 1:33b, but what did that really mean? The wise men knew – they knew who they were seeking and they came to worship Him – and wise men still seek Him today!

Soon our Lord will return to take His rightful place on the Throne of David as King of kings. “Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” Isaiah 9:7.

Indeed, this is a wonderful time of year when we enjoy the sights and sounds which envelop our senses all related to the birth of Christ. While we remember Jesus’ birth let’s not forget the reason He came – to set men free. “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John 8:36. I love you Lord Jesus, you are my God, my Savior, my King, my Brother, and my Friend.

Merry Christmas, and God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

RETURN OF THE NEPHILIM

2011-12-08T09:58:00.001-08:00

Return of the Nephilim

12/08/2011

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:12. Whether or not we want to admit it, earth’s been invaded by an element of malevolent, supernatural, other dimensional beings. The paranormal is in full swing. The fight is raging and humanity is the prize. The battle has now moved into our four dimensional space/time continuum and still people ignore it or write it off as silly science fiction nonsense. Yet science fiction often has a foundation based on fact. Earth’s inhabitants are in for a measure of the paranormal unparalleled in the last 4,000 years.

Currently Satan, his hoard of fallen angels, and the demons of old are poised on the brink of facilitating the most startling phenomenon the world will ever witness; the Bible calls it a “strong delusion”. The race is on; it’s a race against time itself. Not one of the multitudes of malevolent supernatural beings, or any human for that matter, has a clue as to when Satan’s time will run out. But there are certainly indications that humanity has entered its final phase, which portends that Satan’s last days are here. Satan can see the same things we see, except he sees them with an urgency the rest of us can’t even comprehend. Satan is responsible for the evil which will bring about much of the catastrophic occurrences on planet earth in the last days.

Satan has an agenda which includes a massive amount of deception and a bit of public exposure to pique the interest of a few, yet maintaining his agenda in the realm of science fiction for the moment. In the meantime scary things are happening – the appearance of ghosts/demons, “space” aliens, unexplained animal mutilations, etc. All of these weird occurrences are burgeoning. The world is moving into chilling, unexplored territory. Yet people seem to have no fear of the aforementioned occurrences. Why is that? Because we’ve been desensitized through some entertaining Hollywood movies, and the exploitation of the paranormal. We’ve got ghost hunters enjoying a field day while exploring all the claims of paranormal occurrences, vampires becoming so acceptable in our society that many want to become vampires themselves. When I was a young boy all my friends and I wanted to be like Superman who represented everything good – today kids and adults want to be vampires which represent everything evil. What an about face society has made.

Nothing seems to be lacking as Satan slowly and meticulously unveils his deception. The mainstream media has even gotten into the fray. They see the appearances of ghosts, goblins, ghouls, spirits, and anything that goes bump in the night as newsworthy entertainment. Imagine if by chance, someone actually runs into a few of these very real specters? Would people associate any evil with such a phenomenon? There’s more than just a chance man will see these spirits as benevolent. It is Satan’s goal that mankind embrace the whole idea of the paranormal as benevolent extraterrestrials meaning no harm but only good for earth’s populous.

Here’s the rub, the human race is being setup for the last day’s delusion. Everything is falling perfectly into place. The brunt of the delusion won’t be fully in place until the “Church” is in Heaven. There’s no doubt that what’s currently occurring all over the world points to a worldwide deception. To some of us who have been given discernment, Satan’s attempt at deluding the public is obvious. “…the son of perdition. Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God...” 2 Thessalonians 2:3b-4a. This son of perdition is ready to be revealed, his only hindrance is the Holy Spirit indwelt Church.

Please try and understand that once the Church is gone and the deception is unleashed, believing anything but the lie of the enemy will be incredibly difficult – impossible for many. “God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:” 2 Thessalonians 2:11b. Why would God send this strong delusion? The very next verse tells us why. “That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:12. In other words, those who had been presented with the truth of the Gospel of Christ and rejected that truth have nothing to look forward to but condemnation as God’s strong delusion is implemented. When we take that last verse to fruition, many of us will come to a most horrible conclusion. Many of the folks we’ve witnessed to over the years who’ve remained steadfast in their rejection of the truth will end up swallowing the strong delusion – hook, line, and sinker.

I broached the subject of supernatural evil in a commentary a few weeks ago and with the tremendous response from my readership I decided to delve a little deeper into this incredibly important subject matter of the book of Genesis chapter 6.

We’re told in chapter 6 of Genesis that a supernatural evil brought on the destruction of the antediluvian world. This subject matter deserves much more attention and explanation than I can place into one commentary, especially when one considers all the foolish and misleading interpretations of these few verses. Fallen angles, human women, and their offspring – the Nephilim is the focus in this commentary, but the paranormal stems from the demonic hoard who, after the flood of Noah, found themselves without bodies. These were the Nephilim hybrids of that era. The last days before the return of our Lord Jesus will experience a resurgence of the Nephilim, hence all the activity surrounding the paranormal. Satan is readying the inhabitants of this planet to accept another invasion by the fallen angles and the return of the Nephilim.

Many folks today try to dismiss the Nephilim completely by attributing this assault on humanity as the result of the co-mingling of the sons of Seth with the daughters of Cain. Try and support that idea using Scripture. An acrobat would be hard pressed to perform such a stretch.

There were Nephilim (giants) in the land in those days and also after that. The procreation of human beings can create little monsters, but they aren’t monstrous. The Nephilim hybrid – the offspring created from the union of fallen angels and human women – brought about the most evil the world had ever experienced. To this very day we’ve not been subjected to such evil – but it is coming.

Let me get one thing straight. This commentary is not being written as an attempt to persuade those who hold opposing interpretations of Genesis 6 to change views. What I’m espousing here has come about through years of diligent study. I would propose that each “in Christ believer” do their own study of these critically important scriptures. Please don’t send me someone else’s contradicting study; believe me I’ve seen and read them all.

The verses in Genesis chapter 6 are perfectly clear and do not contradict Jesus’ words in Matthew chapter 22. “For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.” Matthew 22:30. Notice Jesus is speaking of the resurrection and angels of God in Heaven. Angels appear to men numerous times in the Bible and in male form. They’re seen eating and drinking, therefore they undoubtedly have access to all human bodily functions.

God says what He means and means what He says. I decided a long time ago to challenge myself to learn what these verses meant instead of listening to others concerning these passages. If we adhere to what the Bible is actually telling us, the truth is not difficult to discern “That the sons of God (The Hebrew bene ha Elohiym – always refers to angels) saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose…There were giants (nĕphiyl in the Hebrew or Nephilim) in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Genesis 6:2, 4-5.

In the verses above the “sons of God” refers to fallen angels who came to earth, took wives of all they chose. Put in more simple terms, the fallen angel’s cohabitated with human women and their unions brought about these hybrids referred to as Nephilim, and they were giants. What we are told occurred during that stage of human history is an evil that quite frankly seems almost impossible to even consider let alone believe, yet it is factual. To the human mind the concept of angels and human women procreating is so repugnant – so beyond fantasy – that most simply dismiss it as impossible. The problem with dismissing this evil as fantasy, especially at this point in time, is akin to burying our heads in the sand. We, the Church, need to be keenly aware of and kept abreast of this strange evil coming about again. Make no mistake these fallen angels are currently continuing their shenanigans as they corrupt the last day’s human race. The bringing forth of the hybrids (Nephilim) into our midst has begun.

These fallen angels, through whatever means at their disposal, brought a mass of hybrid beings onto this planet with one goal in mind: to create a soulless and pure evil human hybrid – to replace all who are made in God’s image. Their success would have eliminated any chance of a forthcoming Messiah. Our Messiah arrived precisely when He was supposed to which tells they were not successful. Satan has, once again, begun his dastardly deeds with another assault on mankind.

Non-human hybrids that had no souls were also void of ability to love, therefore through the influence of the fallen angels their imaginations were pure evil continually. The evil was not merely focused on mankind but on the animal kingdom as well. With enough of this interbreeding, love could be bred out of man completely. This is exactly what occurred. All flesh became corrupted save Noah and his family. “And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.” Genesis 6:7. Scientists have extrapolated that there were as many people on earth prior to the flood of Noah as there are today. If that be the case and all but eight were saved from God’s decree to destroy man from the face of the earth, something much more evil had to have taken place besides just interbreeding of various human lineages. What occurred in the antediluvian world is to reemerge in the last days. The return of the Nephilim.

Why would God destroy every created thing? Why destroy poor dumb animals, the birds of the air, and creeping things? “And the LORD said, I will destroy man…, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air.” (v7b) Yes, the animal kingdom was also corrupted, thus God destroyed them also. These malevolent supernatural beings interfered in the animal kingdom to create part animal, part human “hybrids”; an animal soul cannot exist in a human body, and vice versa. FYI - the United States Senate has just passed a bill that would clear the way for the acceptance of sodomy and bestiality in the military and it was passed by a margin of 93 to 7. Who’s pulling the strings of government? “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not…” 2 Corinthians 4:4a. Satan is the “god of this world” most men and women in leadership roles over nations bow to his every whim.

Unlike the giant Nephilim of the past the new hybrids are being created in labs around the world to resemble humans with human like traits. They will be just as soulless and loveless as those of the antediluvian corruption. They are probably already living among us. Everyone should become familiar with transhumanism. The secular scientists involved with this type of breeding animal/human hybrids are doing the devils bidding. I believe this is a major part of the strong delusion God will send to deceive the unbelieving world.

What I’ve explained in this commentary is completely verifiable through a diligent study of the scriptures. If you think I’m nuts, that a scenario such as I’ve espoused is impossible, then all I can say is wait and see. But while you wait you might heed Jesus’ words “But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” Matthew 24:37.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

WHO YOU GONNA BLAME

2011-12-01T19:00:00.000-08:00

Who You Gonna Blame

12/1/2011

“And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.” Mark 12:30. Since this is our commandment – and as we adhere to that commandment with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength – how then can we justify blaming God for the evil in this world?

God gets the blame for every evil, horrible, senseless act of hate and destruction that occurs around the planet. Look at all the people strung out on drugs and alcohol, and what about all the senseless murders that are reported every day by our illustrious media services? It’s always the God of the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who receives the blame from those who have no understanding of God. It’s never the Islamic god allah, nor any other false entity. Oddly enough, people are quick to blame God, but refuse to even acknowledge the existence of His adversary Satan. When we fail to see the true supernatural being who promotes evil and who is responsible for the dismal state of affairs of this planet then the tendency is to blame the Creator. Yet Satan is the deceiver and the destroyer of souls. Satan is the reason we live in a fallen world instead of a paradise. Eve fell for the serpent’s lies and that began the downward spiral of man. But it was Satan masquerading as a serpent who instigated the whole ungodly scheme.

Why does God allow…? Why doesn’t God put a stop to…? If God loves us then why are we in such…? Fill in the blank. These are frequently asked questions, but they are always asked of God our Creator as though He were to blame. God is not the progenitor of evil, Satan holds that title. No one wants to believe in a dark, fallen, supernatural being like Lucifer (Satan) slithering around in the dark, so most people point their finger at God when evil occurs.

Satan is, according to the God of the universe, “…the god of this world…” 2 Corinthians 4:4, which means that today just as in earth’s early history, that fallen supernatural deceiver previously known as Lucifer or Light Bearer, should take the blame for the direction we see humanity heading. Because of the fall of mankind earth temporarily belongs to Satan, but his tenure as owner of and ruler over earth is almost over. His home is about to be foreclosed on.

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;” 2 Timothy 3:1-4. We see all sorts of men and women today immersed in immorality, being fully corrupt in their hearts and minds, willing to inflict all forms of evil on others. The news organizations flock to these extreme and sensational works of the followers of Satan like sharks to the scent of blood. They seem to feed on the depravity of humanity.

From the beginning of time, men and women have been lured into the very dark arena of the malevolent supernatural world through their own foolish choices and their evil desires. As the hammer comes down on people who get wrapped up in lawless acts that ruin their lives, they seem almost instinctively to assign the blame for their predicament to God. Of course, many don’t even believe in God but the blame must go somewhere, thus blaming God is seen in their warped brains as justification of all their evil deeds.

Yes God gets angry at our foolishness and there will be a time when He will allow the ultimate hammer to fall. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;” Romans 1:18. But blaming God for our own self-indulgences and unbelief is indeed folly.

God told Adam and Eve what to do and what not to do. God, being the Creator had the right to dictate to these two how to live, but He would not force them to comply. Our antediluvian parents disobeyed God’s directive. Thus they made the decision to hand over the ownership of this world to Satan. Satan now has dominion over earth and over the lost. Instead of blaming God, who gave us everything, we should be striving to live an awesome life in unison with Him. We should be loving Him and praising Him while turning our lives away from the things Satan says are good and enjoyable. Satan’s secret agenda should be no secret at all; he only wants to see all human’s destroyed. There now, it’s out in the open – no more secret. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy…” John 10:10.

Satan, in all his deceptions, works his evil upon us then places all blame for that evil on our Creator God. He prefers to work his evil incognito. If we allow Satan this free pass, the tendency of most people will be to write off all mention of him as pure lunacy. But with every instance of hurt, pain, or suffering, hating and blaming God becomes the norm – dismissing God from every aspect of life, except when it comes to assigning blame, becomes altogether too easy. God never wanted His Creation to experience pain and suffering, He doesn’t want to see us hurt – as such we shouldn’t see Him as a mean, strict parent, but as a strong loving God who heals our lives even after we’ve gone way off course. Because we live in a world that has been cursed we must learn to live with the fact that evil things are going to happen to us and to the ones we love – the closer we get to the end the more frequent and persistent will that evil become.

Satan exists, he’s a powerful and cunning supernatural entity, and he’s malevolent to the core. We may view this world as beautiful, but in all actuality it is a disfigured cesspool brought on by the father of all lies and the deceiver of souls. Satan should be receiving the blame for the ills that have infected mankind, and man should take responsibility for his own actions. God should be given all praise, glory, and honor coupled with our undying love, but never assigned blame.

You and I have a Father, one who knows and blesses us by fulfilling our every need whether we gratefully acknowledge Him or not. We’re God’s creation, He would never think of us as rubbish even though we live on this rubbish heap. God has loved us from before the creation of the world. He’ll always love us even though He so unjustly receives such criticism and blame. God is fully aware of the blinders deployed by the one who hates us. God explains all this in His word which, because of those very blinders, so many reject.

As many of us have found out, cancer is a part of life. But this world has an even greater cancer which will soon be eradicated. Death is a part of life in a fallen world, this is just a given that everyone has or should have grown accustomed to; at any moment it can overtake us. Again, the one to blame for death and disease is Satan, not our Creator God. Satan’s has usurped authority over mankind through his deceit. This authority has one goal, to hurt, maim, kill, and completely destroy men’s lives.

God, the Creator of this universe, only wants us to see Him as He truly is, as our Savior, Redeemer, Lord, and loving Father in Heaven. Mankind, for the most part, has foolishly chosen to ignore God and allow Satan a free hand. God doesn’t allow evil things to occur, Satan with his free hand makes evil occur. Satan’s fixation has always been of pure hate; he hates mankind with a passion we can’t even comprehend. When a loved one dies we hurt, and he knows it. But what Satan does through deceitful means is to blind us of God’s perfect love while he convinces us that the Creator of the universe should be the recipient of our hate as we grieve for a loved one’s passing. In this realm Satan has been quite successful.

People make decisions that in many cases lead to hurt and suffering for them and their family. Is this God’s fault? Should we blame God for the bad choices we’ve made? Man’s rebellion to his God has created a lot of pain and suffering, most in Christ believers simply see this as another part of living in a fallen world. We’d all like to protect our loved ones from suffering pain or anguish, but sadly there’s going to be occasion for everyone in this world to experience dark times while they travel that valley of death. Placing God at fault for what boils down to our free will decisions is foolishness.

We live in a sin filled, fallen world where the worst “evil being” imaginable along with a malevolent hoard of tagalongs are in charge. We shouldn’t focus our lives on this invisible evil but we should be fully aware who is behind the full on carnage that is destroying lives.

Yes, God knows the nature of the beast that runs this world. God will one day soon take all pain and suffering from us. Nothing will remain but love, peace, and joy as we who are saved step from this world into our awaiting eternal domain of Paradise.

Perhaps the enemy’s technique of blinding humanity from seeing the truth of God has been so effective in your life that even though you don’t believe there is a God, you see no other recourse but to blame Him for every occurrence of misery that comes down the pike. In that case, just be aware that the God who you deny loves you so much He died a most horrific and agonizing death on a cross so you might have everlasting life.

God will not interfere with your decision to remain in unbelief while you assign culpability to Him. But when you enter the eternal destination you’ve chosen, which is Hell and total separation from God, you’ll be instantly confronted with the reality of your life’s decisions. You will never blame God again, only yourself.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

TIMES THAT TRY MEN's SOUL

2011-11-29T22:06:00.000-08:00

Times That Try Men’s Souls

11/24/2011

Today is very different than yesterday. Tomorrow will be nothing like today. But one thing is sure, we don’t see one day passing without reading or hearing a reference being made to this world falling apart – eroding, ending. There are so many signs today which only add to man’s apprehension in regards to an approaching calamity. “Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.” Luke 21:26. Certainly the kinds of headlines we’re bombarded with today can and do try a man’s soul.

What mankind is witnessing today is only the “birth pangs” associated with the nearness of Christ’s return; certainly we’re not feeling the full on effects of what Jesus tells us is coming in the last days. Jesus’ return is close, and every Christian should reel with anticipation and excitement every time something out of the ordinary or unexplainable happens. But today’s Christians seem to be apathetic concerning the coming of their Lord; a lull between events allows apathy to creep into the Christian’s life lessening the anticipation of future events. Although many may read about the catastrophic occurrences around the world which have led to mass amounts of human death and suffering, there seems to be a sort of disconnect as people simply dismiss any possibility of such devastation occurring near them, or in their lifetime. Today most followers of Jesus Christ are unaware of the unimaginable magnitude of catastrophic events that are coming. Jesus warns the last remaining generation prior to His return that they will be overwhelmed by three specific ever recurring events, which are earthquakes, pestilence, and famines. Interestingly we’re all witnesses to the fact that all three are increasing in frequency and intensity just like birth pangs.

If we were to travel back just fifty years and revisit the “birth pangs” of that era they would seem miniscule in comparison to today. Fifty years ago when I was 10, there was little talk, if any, of the “end of the world” scenarios. Today it’s everywhere we turn. Why? I believe the simple fact is that people, being made in God’s image, are quite adept at recognizing the signs as they effect the earth and sky changes that only God could bring about. Although they know something’s afoot most have no clue as to what is going on, and little desire to pursue God’s word for the answers. Over time, this apathy creates an atmosphere of fear, as men can’t grasp what’s taking place. Thus, men’s hearts will fail them as the end grows ever closer.

There is no doubt in this expositors mind that evil has increased exponentially throughout the world. A moral and upright person can’t even watch the nightly news, or read online news content, without grimacing in disgust while being consumed with sorrow. The horror inflicted on mankind by our fellow man, especially that which is inflicted on the very young and the very old can only be seen a pure satanic. All of this evil is many times more prevalent today than just fifty years ago. Certainly each generation must go through trying times, and the generation of fifty years ago had many troubling tribulations. Our current generation seems to have reached its zenith in regards to this trend of pervasive evil; an evil which has led all civilizations into extreme immorality, and depravity. Another form of evil permeating this world is greed. Astonishing to me is that, while most of us are doing everything we can to tighten our belts to ward off what many see as another Great Depression headed our way, a bunch of the elite bankers are so full of greed that they are doing everything possible to negate our personal sacrifices. Certainly the greed of a few will lead many men to the apex of that which tries souls.

This is our time to be tried. The difference between all those other times and ours is that this is the “last generation” before Christ’s return. The truth is, for those of us who know what’s coming next, these are exciting days. Difficult to comprehend at times yes, but exciting nonetheless. If we give some thought to what’s coming next, and then pay close attention to observe the times and the signs, there will be nothing surprising or terrifying about what follows. “But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.” 1 Thessalonians 5:4-5.

Apart from all that immorality, depravity, and greed which certainly reigns supreme on planet earth these days are the last day’s events of which Jesus tells His disciples will come. We are on a timeline in which those symbolic birth pangs are occurring more frequently and with much more intensity. But where on that timeline are we currently? Good question. It may help us to define our current position on that timeline by viewing the recurring signs of the past. When we do, we will be confronted with a huge difference in comparison as we look at frequency and intensity. I’ll give three short examples regarding these three observable phenomenon.

If we perform a simple web search on the United States Geological Service website (www.usgs.gov) we’ll find there a plethora of data concerning earthquakes past and present, even predictions of future events. Interestingly we find that both the quantity and severity of earthquakes have increased and are increasing daily. In my birth year, which was 1951, there were zero earthquakes recorded on the day I was born (August 24). I arbitrarily picked the year 2008 for a comparison and was floored by the number of earthquakes recorded that year on my birthday. There were over 293 earthquakes in “diverse” places. Remember were looking at just one single day’s earthquake occurrences. Now let’s take a look at the earthquakes for the entire year of 1951. The total was 592 that year. Now let’s look at that arbitrary year of 2008. Total earthquakes that year were 31,777 according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Are the birth pangs increasing just as Jesus explained? Some will simply say that technology has improved so that we are now able to detect more earthquakes than in previous years. Let’s see if that holds true. The 1906 earthquake that devastated San Francisco, for example, registered 7.8 magnitude. According to the USGS website the Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989 was recorded at a magnitude of 7.1 on the very same equipment as the quake of 1906. What this example demonstrates is the equipment in place during the 1906 earthquake was quite sufficient in registering any quake that might have come along. Simply put there just weren’t as many. Today’s earthquake frequency and intensity is increasing exponentially just as the Bible clearly states.

Here’s a little more information for the skeptic. So far this year (2011) 189 earthquakes have occurred within the range of magnitude measuring from 6.0 to 9.0. In 1951 there were only two earthquakes at a magnitude above 6.0, one recorded at 6.2 and the other at 6.3. Obviously something substantial is going on in regards to the frequency and intensity of earthquakes today, which point us back to the Bible and the fact that we should regard Jesus’ words as true and indisputable.

What must have been perceived as non-events by Bible teachers fifty years ago has certainly fallen into the category of “WOW the Bible is true” in the mind of any truth seeker today. “…and earthquakes, in divers places” Matthew 24:7b. The Greek word “kata” is translated divers in English meaning “throughout” but it can also mean “daily”. So we can conclude that in the days just prior to Jesus’ return there would be earthquakes occurring on a global scale increasing in their frequency and intensity on a daily basis. Even more interesting is the fact that earthquakes have increased so much in just the last fifty years that now hundreds of earthquakes shake this world every day.

Pestilences: Any deadly infectious malady – including plagues. In the last days they will come on mankind with increasing frequency and intensity. In a country that prides itself as being on the cutting edge of discoveries which result in medical cures and disease control, many ugly maladies remain unstoppable. There are actually so many plagues and diseases being combated today that they are too numerous to mention in this commentary. Let me just say that the mother of major infectious plagues these days, HIV/AIDS, is still on the top of the ladder when it comes to stubbornness. HIV/AIDS has been found to be increasingly difficult to eradicate. Certainly AIDS is the personification of the meaning behind Jesus’ word pestilence – meaning communicable, transferable, transmittable, contagious. Take your pick, isn’t this exactly what every society in every country on earth is experiencing? There is an inordinate amount of frustration with this burgeoning disease.

Famine is the one sign on our Lord’s list of signs that has the most potential for causing widespread calamity, which will certainly try man’s soul to the max. And just as earthquakes and pestilences are nothing new yet increasing in both intensity and frequency, so it is with famines. Today we witness an intensifying devastation occurring in drought stricken countries.

I recently read an article which indicated that extreme poverty in the U.S. is at record levels. The article stated that 1 in every 15 Americans are considered very poor, and that 20 million Americans are living in extreme poverty.

“About 20.5 million Americans, or 6.7 percent of the U.S. population, make up the poorest poor, defined as those at 50 per cent or less of the official poverty level. Those living in deep poverty represent nearly half of the 46.2 million people scraping by below the poverty line. In 2010, the poorest poor meant an income of $5,570 or less for an individual and $11,157 for a family of four. That 6.7 percent share is the highest in the 35 years that the Census Bureau has maintained such records, surpassing previous highs in 2009 and 1993 of just over 6 percent.” Source – Daily Mail

The obvious picture we see developing is that American’s overall are becoming poorer not wealthier. Not only is employment declining but so are wages. Once upon a time a famine was coming to America. It’s no fairytale folks that famine, by all intents and purposes, has arrived. Food is certainly high on the average persons mind every day. Poor people have a hard time buying food, some people resort to stealing to get their daily bread. Some 46 million Americans are currently receiving food stamps. When that well runs dry many will turn to stealing to get what they and their family need to survive. The birth pangs Jesus spoke about are unfolding before our eyes. Famines certainly can cause the hearts of men to fail.

Obviously the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ can’t be far off. These are the times Jesus referred to as the beginnings of sorrows. According to Jesus’ own words the last generation is the generation that will experience the brunt of birth pangs. We are that generation. But the most intense of those birth pangs are yet to come and the removal of His Church must surely be at hand. These times will become much worse as we move closer to Christ’s return. Many of my brethren, me included, are praying constantly that His return is only seven years away. That would mean that the Rapture of the Church could occur today.

Everywhere we look the sky seems to be falling, yet few are running for the One that protects and covers. Nothing can stop what’s coming, the prophecies of the Bible must be fulfilled, and they will be to the letter. Since there’s no place to run, no place to hide, that only leaves us one alternative. The peace and joy we have in Christ will endure right up to the day He takes us home. “Be careful for nothing… And the peace of God, which passed all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6a-7.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

PARADISE LOST

2011-11-17T17:06:00.000-08:00

Paradise Lost

11/17/2011

These days there seems to be a lot of confusion, conjecture, fictional theories, and downright foolishness concerning the whereabouts of the Garden of Eden. What happened to that awesome Garden after Adam and Eve rebelled and received their eviction notice demanding they leave their one time home post-haste? Was it destroyed by the Flood of Noah’s time? Was it just simply eliminated by God? Where has it gone, this Garden of God?

“And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.” Genesis 2:8. Planted in the Hebrew is “nata” and it means to establish. We see from the scripture verse above that God planted (established) this Garden in Eden (Eden, by the way, means pleasure) and then after creating Adam, placed him in his new habitat. “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” Genesis 2:15. Adam was created from the dust of the earth, and then he was transported to a location more befitting his newly created life. Adam was given an awesome responsibility in this newly established habitat, which was to keep the garden beautiful (dress it). But none of these verses tell us precisely where Eden was. So, just where is this garden of God?

After their rebellion and subsequent fall, Adam and his wife were given an eviction notice. Suddenly we see our antediluvian parents being banished from the Garden of Eden. That banishment included a new life in another location apart from the Garden of Eden, a life that would be consumed with hard physical labor, undoubtedly coupled with a deep sense of guilt, shame, and misery for them both. “Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.” Genesis 3:23. God sent Adam (and Eve) out of the Garden and back to the land and ground from which he was created. So here we see that God speaks of two distinct locations. The ground that He used to create Adam was distinctly different than the surroundings in the Garden of Eden – the perfect environment for God’s new creation. We know where the “ground” is – it’s the earth where we all live today. But where is that elusive Garden?

“So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” Genesis 3:24. The word “kĕruwb (Cherub) in the Hebrew, used in the above verse, can denote one Cherub or a number of Cherubim. The translators of the King James Version of the Bible translated “kĕruwb” into English as Cherubims which doesn’t really make sense. The plural of cherub is cherubim. There is no need for an “s” at the end as we see rendered in English in the above verse. In this case God placed a Cherub (kĕruwb) at the east of the Garden of Eden to keep the way of the tree of life. As we look further into the Hebrew words we find that God placed just one angelic sword there with the Cherub, this would further indicate the presence of just one Cherub.

Was this precaution to keep Adam and his descendents out of the Garden of Eden? Not hardly. Angels are very powerful and cherubim are even more so. One angel would have been over-kill to keep mankind out of God’s Garden.

Here’s a little tidbit of information for those of you who are not familiar with the power of angels. “And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.” 2 Kings 19:35. One angel in one night slew 185,000 Assyrians; they are much more powerful than humans.

If we humans were being kept from the Garden we would be able to see it and the Cherub wielding his flaming sword. So, where is that Garden? Consider this. The Garden of Eden does not exist in the dimension in which we live and the Cherub is not guarding against humans, but guarding against supernatural beings bent on wickedness who desperately want access to the tree of life. The flaming sword (angelic sword in the Hebrew) that turned every way indicates a supernatural barrier. Therefore there would be no “earthly” reason for guarding the entrance to the Garden of Eden against unlawful entry by mankind. It’s a physical impossibility for mortal humans “in the flesh” to see it, let alone enter the Garden of Eden (Paradise).

That Cherub is there explicitly to keep supernatural malevolent beings from entering and being mischievous. But why? I’m going to answer that question with a bit of conjecture on my part, but it’s a logical conclusion. God told Satan and his hoard of fallen angels that there would be a fight between two distinct seeds (“And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:15). The hostility God is speaking about is between Jesus the Christ (the seed of the women) and Satan’s seed. This proclamation caused Satan to realize that if he was to survive it was up to him to disrupt God’s plan of the redemption of mankind. If Satan had been allowed to enter the Garden of Eden again; and more specifically to gain access to the “tree of life,” that access could have greatly contributed to his agenda of disrupting God’s plan to restore the broken relationship between Him and man. Obviously God had no intention of allowing Satan any latitude in this area again – hence the Cherub and his sword. The Garden of Eden/Paradise is of another dimension where the faithful go when they die. Therefore Satan and his cohorts had to have been denied any access to that dimension without exception.

“And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life , and eat, and live for ever:” Genesis 3:23. The above verse explains why God, being fully aware of Satan’s plan, had no choice but to guard the entrance to the Garden of Eden. Otherwise man, by way of Satan and his malevolent hoard of fallen angels, would have become as corrupt as those wicked supernatural beings, but with one added detriment for mankind. With access to the properties of that “Tree of Life”, man would have been immortal just like those malevolent supernatural beings and just as bent on corruption, shades of Genesis chapter 6 occurring over and over again.

The only way we humans can live forever is to shed these mortal vessels we refer to as bodies. Basically we must die to live. “So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.” 1 Corinthians 15:54. It was Christ’s victory over death and over Satan that gives humanity the only way of by-passing eternal damnation. Not at all the way Satan would have preferred things to have turned out. But hey, there it is. God is faithful! We can depend on God’s plans as always being perfect.

“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” Revelation 2:7. Jesus’ own words tell us where the tree of life can be found – it’s in the midst of Paradise. And those who overcome will be given access to that tree. Certainly the probability of Paradise and the Garden of Eden being the same location is very great indeed since from the beginning the “tree of life” was “established” as one of the trees in the Garden of Eden. We either have two names for the same location – The Garden of Eden/Paradise – or someone dug up the “tree of life” and replanted it in another location.

“And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom:” Luke 16:22. Abraham’s bosom is a reference to Paradise. On the day Christ was crucified there were two others suspended on their own crosses. One recognized who Christ was and asked to be remembered. He is now in paradise with the rest of the believers. “And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:43. Paradise is the location where the Apostle Paul tells us he went when he was raptured (caught up – Harpazō in the Greek). “How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.” 2 Corinthians 12:4. When the saints are finally caught up (Raptured) we too will be with the Lord in Paradise (the Garden of Eden). If I’m correct in my theory about the Garden of Eden and Paradise being the same location, then the Garden of Eden has moved. “Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.” Ephesians 4:8. Now we see Paradise has been moved to a new location – it has ascended up on high.

So, the Garden of Eden is still very real, it’s just not visible to those still living on earth. Paradise is also very real because both locations are one and the same, and God confirms this by referring to the “tree of life” and it’s location as being both in the Garden and in Paradise. It’s a place that is completely off limits to any form of evil. It can’t be described with human words. It’s a dimension that will never be seen by the damned. It belongs to God and the redeemed.

“We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 5:8. Everyone who has died with their faith firmly established in the Son of God is now occupying that Garden/Paradise. They now know without any doubt that Paradise was never lost – only man. Paradise awaits each of us who’ve placed our faith and trust in the One who designed and created it, our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ. The alternative to Paradise has never moved; it’s exactly where it was when Abraham had the discussion with the rich man in Luke chapter 16 verses 19 through 31. By the way, that discourse was not a parable but a true account.

The Creator of all dimensions (Jesus Christ) has a special dimension fully established, which currently houses multitudes of God’s children. In contrast to that beautiful, awesome Garden (Paradise) is a location which is the most unpleasant of habitations, and that is a gross understatement. It currently awaits all the Christ-rejecters who have made it plain they want nothing to do with God. Two distinct and completely dissimilar eternal locations are in view as we live our lives out on planet earth. Paradise and Hell – both equally real. Paradise is the place where the living, continue living…forever. Hell is the place where the dead continue dying…forever. Deciding on which location you prefer doesn’t take a lot of intellectual prowess. It’s a simple choice. Which place is yours?

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

IT'S PERSONAL NOT CORPORATE

2011-11-11T10:17:00.001-08:00

It’s Personal not Corporate

11/10/2011

“And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” Genesis 3:6. Since the beginning of our human existence the influence of one spouse over another has been, in many cases, disastrous. Eve was deceived by the serpent, not Adam. But through Eve’s influential prodding Adam made a decision that led to his death. It was Eve’s will that Adam should eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. From the very beginning we see that one spouse can have a strong influence over the other.

Stumbling blocks and strongholds of the enemy are continually placed in all our lives. We must learn to fight to withstand the enemy forces. The lost people of this world will find this increasingly difficult. One such stumbling block is known as conformity. A somewhat touchy subject for any writer is to address the conforming influence a husband has over his wife, or vice versa. A man and woman will have various conflicting convictions prior to marriage, but soon after the consummation of that marriage a change begins to occur. Many times that change results in one or the other being conformed into accepting what the other believes. In most cases the wife’s beliefs change to mirror the beliefs of her husband. In some cases it’s not a bad thing; sometimes a spouse, being at one time lost and worldly, begins to see God’s truth. Thus the positive influence of this spouse is a good thing. On the other hand, when a husband or wife holds to a false belief system and influences their spouse against believing the truth of the Gospel of Christ, this conformity will only lead to destruction. Satan knows the truth, that Jesus the Christ is alive. But to fight that truth, a weapon in his vast arsenal is the influence of one spouse over the other.

Each individual on this planet must make a choice concerning the eternal. This choice is a personal decision affecting only the person making the choice. For example, I can’t make the choice for my wife nor can she make it for me. The same goes for our children, we can teach our children right from wrong, we can teach them about faith and love – all about Jesus – but we can’t make the most important decision of their lives for them. I’m sure some of us would like it if we could make that decision for a loved one, but it just doesn’t work that way. Even though salvation is a free gift of God, He’s made it abundantly clear it’s personal not corporate. Everyone must face the reality that Satan wields his influence over the lost like a king over his kingdom. An unbelieving spouse is a subject of that king, thus he/she must do his bidding.

My wife and I were married in June of 1988. I was 36 years old. I was pretty well set in my ways. I was already an alcoholic, my vocabulary was more than just laced with profanity, and I had a mean disposition. My new bride, a godly shy woman, a born again Christian with a heart that could only have come from God, knew that she was not following the word of God by becoming yoked with a non-believing and very ungodly, worldly man. I was for all intents and purposes a follower of the enemy of God; this is something my wife should have been repulsed with. Instead she fell in love me and I with her. We were married shortly thereafter. Can you see how horrible my influence over her life could have been? But instead she influenced my life. Please understand, it seldom works out that way.

Husband or wife, whichever one follows Satan normally will have the stronger influence. In most marriages the husband is the dominant force. They exercise an incredible amount of influence over their wife’s life. A wife, who obeys her unbelieving and many times manipulative husband, when it comes to a decision for Christ may just obey him right into Hell. In many marriages this tragedy is very real. Similarly, a wife can have the same detrimental effect on her husband if she remains in her satanic induced blindness toward the truth.

When men or women ignore the truth of God just to appease their spouse they are only foolishly falling into a trap laid down by the father of all lies (Satan). This personification of evil keeps a tight rein on those who belong to him. Satan will work one spouse against the other convincing them to remain in his camp. I’ve seen this type of situation time and time again, where a spouse begins to climb out of the muck and mire of the filthy camp of the enemy only to be waylaid by their other half who unabashedly steps in to do Satan’s bidding. I’ve also witnessed that at this point both of their hearts become incredibly hardened against their Creator, and when they remain in that steadfast position they all but cement their decision to spend an eternity in Hell.

Many will follow their spouses into the abyss instead of using their own intellect to come to a decision for Christ. Ignoring the power of the enemy is a common mistake these days as so many relegate Satan to nothing more than a mythological existence at best. Thus, he’s able to keep his hold on people through their own ignorant and erroneous beliefs.

Influence and conformity can be powerful stumbling blocks that, when coupled with decision making, can and do lead people astray. Certainly there are everyday decisions that affect the marriage and those decisions must be made together. Both spouses must participate in the decision making process to really enjoy a good and loving marriage. But the decision to turn one’s life over to Christ is the most important decision in this life, and it is personal not corporate.

Over the years I’ve learned, as many of you have, that marriage is a great institution. I can’t, or won’t, even contemplate living alone without my wife. My wife is not just a woman I met fell in love with and then married, she is more, much more. She is a major part of my life, she has become a part of me – bodily she and I are one. I can’t be separated from her for any length of time at all without missing her in a way that is almost impossible to describe. The love we have for one another is that same love that Jesus has for His Church. When she is away from me it’s the same as though a part of my body has been ripped away. God meant for us to view marriage just as He described it in the book of Genesis “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” Genesis 2:24. God meant it. When a man takes a woman to be his wife there’s a lifelong bond established. This bond is never to be broken. This is exactly why the influence of one spouse over the other can be so great. If one spouse is a non-believer, the adverse affect that that one person can have on the other can truly mean Hell for all eternity.

This is precisely the reason why we (believers in Christ) aren’t to be unequally yoked with non-believing people “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” 2 Corinthians 6:14. Why is the Apostle Paul giving us this admonition? Because time and time again unequal unions result in a most devastating end for one or both participants.

Then, of course, we have marriages with both husband and wife being non-believers. These two unbelievers aren’t really going to know love, the love of Christ that transcends all barriers, since their union was not built on a godly foundation. This ungodly union can place an incredible strain on a marriage, especially if one spouse begins to learn the truth about God. There’s a span of time where one spouse might begin to see God in ways they’ve never perceived before. This can cause friction in a marriage and even result in divorce. Even though one spouse emerges victorious in Christ they may have just destroyed their marriage. The Bible tells us that God hates divorce – and please don’t misunderstand, I’m not advocating divorce – but God in His word tells us that the believing spouse is under no obligation to remain in a marriage with an unbeliever. “But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace.” 1 Corinthians 7:15.

Because of the incredibly powerful influence of their spouse, many who might be on the verge of making a decision for Christ will be convinced to stay in unbelief. As such they continue to drink from Satan’s pool of damnation. This is just another of Satan’s tools of deception. It’s a horrible sight to be witness to, especially when it occurs within your own family. In the big scheme of life, a personal decision for Christ is the most important of all decisions; all other decisions are comparatively immaterial. If we understand nothing else in this life, we must come to grips with the fact that a decision for Christ is personal not corporate.

Wife, your husband has no say in the matter concerning your eternal destination – husband, your wife has no say in the matter concerning your eternal destination. Here’s something to consider, when you stand before the God of all creation, at His Throne of Judgment with the rest of those who rejected Christ as their Savior, you will not be able to use the excuse that it was your spouse that kept you from making the decision to avoid Hell. It will be too late at that point to make excuses and there will be no chance for you to change your mind concerning your eternal destination.

Here are your choices: follow my unbelieving spouse into Hell or follow Jesus Christ into Heaven. Remember influence works both ways – your decision for Christ could be just what your spouse has been waiting for – to see the love of Christ in you. That Christ centered love might be the catalysts that turns another hardened hear toward Christ. Hear Jesus promise to you: “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” John 10:27-28. (Emphasis mine)

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

NAME ABOVE ALL NAMES

2011-11-03T10:44:00.000-07:00

Name above All Names

11/3/2011

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow…And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:9, 10a, 11. Why is the name which God placed above every name so often looked upon with disgust, animosity, and even hatred? Hatred toward the one who gave us life is beyond understanding. Yet even though God exalted His Son’s Name above all names it has become the most hated name in man’s history. I’m not taking about the most hated man in all man’s history, such as Adolf Hitler, but the most hated name above all names. In the United States of American you better think twice before mentioning the name of Jesus in the hallowed halls of academia. Mentioning Jesus’ name in public school as a visitor these days will get you a quick rebuke and if you are a student – detention and expulsion.

Why? What’s in a name anyway? Jesus, is a word translated from a Greek word “Iēsous” which means salvation. So Jesus’ name – a name we use every day (many times in the most derogatory manner) means salvation (our salvation). Most people hate the idea that they need to be saved so they reject the name of the one who wishes only to save them.

A huge majority of folks these days use the Lords name in the most disgusting manner. Jesus is coupled together with the word Christ to facilitate a revolting response to someone else’s angry and suggestive overture. Many times the name Jesus is used to express some annoyance or dissatisfaction. Jesus is used many times by many people who ignorantly go through life with little to no understanding of what they are doing by bantering about the name that God hath highly exalted and placed above all names.

Why don’t people use the name of Mohammad, or Buddha, or even one of the many names attributed to God’s adversary such as Lucifer, Satan, or Baal to express all the filth associated with our imaginations? Why is the name Jesus, which God elevated above all other names for His glory, made to be the brunt of so many filthy conversations these days? We can attribute the reasons for all these unholy expressions of anger and annoyance to two main categories – ignorance and hate.

Hate can be explained in many ways, but the main reason people hate Jesus is because of His most exclusive words. “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6. Jesus proclaimed to His disciples that there was only one way to get into Heaven and that was through Him (Jesus). Basically, Jesus was only reiterating what He had previously proclaimed “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John 3:36. Only through Him (the Son of God) can a person enter Heaven. This statement of Jesus’, for many people, is beyond ridiculous. How can God condemn so many people to Hell just because they believe in an alternative path to Him? After all, we can see that many people want to get to God, they just don’t want to go through God to get to God. They don’t see Jesus as God; interestingly, even though many will see Jesus as God’s Son they don’t equate the two as one.

Let’s be right up front here. There are no paths to Heaven. There is only one way to Heaven and that way was just explained above. The thought of many “paths” is encouraging to a wide variety of folks who are obsessed with being politically correct. This pervasive mindset doesn’t allow for such exclusivity as we see in the Christian faith. The minds of many have been so thoroughly deceived that they believe the lie of the enemy that many roads (paths) lead to God. In all actuality they do all lead to God, but not the way these folks would like to believe. Everyone who continues to believe in the lie which points to many alternative paths to God while rejecting His Son will one day stand before the very God they’ve rejected, Jesus the Christ. It will only be as a hearing, though, for their final judgment which will relegate them to an existence without the presence of God for all of eternity, which is Hell. Sadly, when they finally realize their mistake it will be too late.

Still others hate Him and His name because He was born Jewish, and we know that many people and even whole nations this world over hate the Jews and have for centuries. God entered His creation and became a Jewish man, fulfilling many prophecies. That truth is repugnant to those who have a deep-seated hatred for the Jews. Therefore that hatred continues into the supernatural. People hate Jesus and His name not even realizing that He is their God -- the only God of all eternity.

Most won’t accept the truth about Jesus the Christ during their lifetime. Many multitudes will continue to lash out in hatred and ignorance at the one who would freely give them everlasting life, the one who loves them beyond compare. The name of Jesus is horribly mistreated by a mass of people who see Him as just another man. Some don’t even believe He ever really existed. Some hate Him so much that they will go to any length to explain Him away. Sadly, many of these folks will die carrying that mindset of hate with them to the grave and beyond.

The other category, ignorance, is where many people reside. They remain in the bliss of their ignorance, never wishing to disrupt the lives they’ve made for themselves by intertwining themselves with the foolish tradition of men. “The Bible was written by men therefore it is only of men not of God.” This misconception of God’s word has and will have a very detrimental effect on a large portion of humanity before the end. In this enlightened post-modern world, many people believe they’ve risen above the need for a God. These days, the enlightened crowd considers anything that has to do with God simply manmade, pure superstition. If a person were to casually mention the name Jesus in the presence of one of these enlightened folks they would soon realize the brunt of their mistake as almost immediately there would come a pounce on that person like an attacking lioness protecting her cubs.

Many people today have been taught the lie of evolution to the exclusion of all other very real possibilities. These people believe that evolution is the catalyst which has propelled humanity into the 21st century. These same folks are fully convinced that all religions, including Christianity, are built on nothing more than foolish fantasies, excluding of course their own religion of secular humanism. Now that the populous has been enlightened with the idea that there is no absolute truth and the time of “reason” has been established, they can now say there is no God with complete impunity. Their zeal is unfettered as they trample on the Name above all names – Jesus the Christ, the only way to the Father.

Perhaps the two categories of hate and ignorance are more intertwined than we perceive. Here’s a recent headline taken from the WND website “Jesus’ name ruled unconstitutional, Judge says prayers to Christ do violence to America's pluralistic, inclusive values.” This attempt to bury the Name that God has exalted above all names is fraught with evil. Satan is the one who is behind every attempt to rid mankind of their Creator’s Name. But his attempts will always be fruitless as we who are Christ’s followers are still here reminding the unbelievers that Jesus is the Name above all names, and that He is the only way of salvation.

Obviously many will remain in their progressive state of ignorance, standing firm in their contempt for the one true God while they continually drag His Name through the filthiness of their grossly flawed minds. There are many reasons why Jesus’ name is so infused in the culture of hate today, some of which are due in part to those of His followers. Sometimes Christians can be their own worst enemies. If we study our Bibles we learn that we aren’t to be argumentative or abrasive when it comes to our interactions with non-believers, but we are to be as the Apostle Paul admonishes “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:” Philippians 2:3-5. Lowliness of mind means that we are to be humble servants of the most High God, Jesus the Christ. We are to address the unbelievers with the mind of Christ who, when addressing the non-believing world, did so with love and compassion not strife or vainglory.

Does it infuriate you when Jesus’ name is used in vain? Think about how God sees those who use His name thusly. Does it infuriate Him? No. He loves them, and He understands better than the rest of us how powerful the enemy is. God wants us to love those who mistreat us and who drag the name of our Savior and Lord through the mud. And when we witness to them we might convince them that the Name they are showing so much disrespect for is indeed the Creator of the universe, and He loves them and is ready to forgive them all their trespasses. If only they will believe.

One day, very soon now, all knees will bow and all tongues will confess that the Name so many willfully abuse is the Name of the Judge of the universe. Jesus the Christ is God Almighty and without exception no matter how people treat His name He loves them all. But God’s word is true, only those who’ve placed their faith and trust in Him and Him alone for their salvation will avoid that Judgment Throne. The rest will be relegated to a place that is filled with fire and brimstone.

Let’s talk to these folks with the love of Christ in our hearts, after all some might just believe and be saved. Talk to them in a manner that they perceive to be argumentative and full of vainglory and they will not respond to His name with any semblance of love and affection. Let’s help all we can to rid them of the hate they profess toward Jesus our Savior God. We can help educate those who are ignorant to who He is. We, His Church, can be the light that so many are looking for in this dark world, which is just about to end, as we promote the truth about the one who has been assigned the Name above all Names. Jesus!

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

SIMPLICITY

2011-10-27T09:55:00.000-07:00

Simplicity

10/27/2011

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. Why is it so hard to see the simplicity in this verse? Just about everyone it seems is able to quote it from memory, but not many actually understand the content. God loves each and every human being on this planet and He always has. Before He laid the foundation stone of the earth He had already designed the way of salvation for all His creation. The fact that He allowed His only begotten Son to be the payment for the sin of the world was not an afterthought. Why is it so difficult for people grasp what God is telling us in the above verse? Believing the truth of what Jesus did for us is all it takes for God to see us as His children. Whosoever believeth in him. Believing is the key which unlocks the doors of Heaven for everlasting life – eternally secure in the hands of our Savior.

God provided the way for everyone to receive everlasting life, and He did so with simplicity in mind. But, God has given us each the freedom to choose – to choose either life or death. He knew, before we exited our mother’s womb, how hard headed and stiff necked we would turn out so He compensated, He designed the plan of salvation in a way that would be easily accessible to all. Please don’t misunderstand, for God Himself there was nothing simple about planning and then watching the death of His only begotten Son. Providing the way had to be hard even for God. Watching while Jesus was spit upon, slapped, mocked, ridiculed, scourged, and finally nailed to that cross to die would have been anything but simple for the Father. The simplicity I’m speaking of is how easy God made it for us to simply say yes to His Son, Jesus the Christ, and obtain what we clearly don’t deserve. Salvation is free for the asking. Believe, ask, and then receive God’s free gift of salvation – what could be simpler?

All God asks of us is to believe. There are no works involved. We don’t have to provide any proof of who we are, we don’t have to perform any religious tricks, or follow a set of rules and regulations to receive God’s free gift. Ya get it? It’s free for anyone who believes. Yet we see that many Christian organizations want to add to the simplicity of what Jesus did for us on that cross. All manner of works related faith programs are being espoused these days to create an atmosphere of difficulty – and in many cases are impossible to comply with. Just like the leaders of the Israelites adding over 600 laws to keep their people in line, we see many Christian based organizations following in Pharisaical footsteps lording over the laity (the nothings) with works and rules for obtaining and keeping their salvation. This was not the intent behind the cross of Christ.

How much more simple could God have made it? “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Acts 2:21. I believe, yes Lord Jesus I believe in what you did for me on that cross. At the very instant that our mind begins to formulate those words we become born again, born from above, from God. God sees into our hearts and He hears our very thoughts, so He knew our words before they even came out of our mouths. Actually, God knew who would say yes to His son and who would say no long before any human habitation of earth.

God tells us in His word (the Bible) that Jesus (His only begotten Son) died on a cross and was buried. That He (Jesus) was three days and three nights in the grave and on the third day He rose from the grave. This is what God says we must believe in order to receive His free gift of salvation. There is nothing else for us to do but believe in order to receive that free gift. All God asks of me and you is to believe in order to freely obtain everlasting life. Does that sound simple to you? Doesn’t accepting the gift of salvation God gives us freely seem easy to you? Yes? Then why do so many people try to make it so difficult?

Believing in the Son is the key to everlasting life, and it’s not difficult to believe in Jesus because it’s not difficult to believe truth. There is also simplicity in believing lies and we must be careful to always see lies for what they are, attacks by the enemy. There are many things that are difficult in this life; loving others with the same agape love by which God loves all of us can be very difficult, and at times it may seem impossible. But when speaking about God’s free gift of salvation there is nothing that can take on a more simplistic tone than to simply believe. How hard is it to believe in a Creator who loves us and wants only to have a relationship with us? It’s not hard at all, unless of course we’ve been taught that there is no God. Then we would certainly find believing in something that we were taught doesn’t exist far from simple. But God does exist and He’s proved it time and time again. With every new day we’re confronted with God’s majesty. With every night’s sky we’re confronted with God’s plan of salvation in the stars.

After seeing God’s creation, no one in their right mind can conclude that there is no God, not if they’re being completely honestly that is. After seeing His creation and determining that He is and that He must be an awesome and powerful God, reality eventually sets in. At which point saying yes to Jesus Christ becomes a simple statement of faith “I believe”. “What about asking for forgiveness – repenting – and turning from our sinful lives?” Now you’re talking about sanctification which comes after we are justified (saved). The sanctification process is ongoing and will last until the day we die or until the rapture, at which point we will then be glorified. I’ve mentioned this in another commentary but I’ll repeat myself here for clarification. God’s plan is a three tier process. First we begin with Justification which is a done deal at the point in time when we first say “Yes Jesus, I believe”. The second part of the process is Sanctification; this can be the longest part of the three tier process, but it is God who does all the work here. He works on our hearts, convicting us of sin so we will begin to move away from what we were once involved in. During this process God is reforming us into the exact likeness of His Son, Jesus. It’s actually God who moves us away from sin by convicting – sort of like when a child gets too close to the edge the street. We call them back or we go get them. God does the same thing with those who are His children. The process of sanctification will take the rest of your life. Lastly, in this three tier process, is Glorification. We receive our glorified bodies and live with God for eternity.

The simplicity in believing in what Jesus did for us on that cross and then through His resurrection takes faith in God. We must believe that God loves us, and that He loves us so much that He’d send His perfect Son to take our punishment, to die in our stead. Believing this truth is the only way of salvation. Yes it’s simple; it’s just hard for those who’ve been taught in school or at home that there is no God. I can understand how hard believing in the death, burial, and resurrection of a supposedly nonexistent God would be. The simplicity comes when we are assured through the mountains of proof that exist everywhere we look that all we see must have been intelligently designed and that that designer is our Creator God, Jesus the Christ. “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:” Romans 1:19-20. The fact is we are without any excuse for rejecting the truth which points to a loving God who does exist and who did die for His creation.

Really, the free gift that God offers is simply just that, a free gift. We can argue with God all day about how we feel that we should be required to do something to earn His free gift, that it is just too important to be so freely given. But at the end of the day Jesus said “Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” John 6:28-29. Believe on Him (Jesus the Christ) whom He (God) hath sent. How much simpler could God have made it? Remember the decision to die for His creation was made before mankind was created. The simplicity surrounding the decision to say yes to Jesus Christ has been given to us by God. Will you accept His free gift or will you reject it? Simple question.

Believing in Jesus as Lord and Savior is easy, it’s just hard for those who wish to continue in their rebellion to God. And there will always be those works based Christians who insist on placing a massive yoke around the necks of those who want nothing more than a relationship with their Savior God. But hard hearts can be melted, and the works based deceived individuals can be set free. Just a few kind words from a follower of Jesus Christ can move mountains if we will only speak the words. This too is a simple thing, it’s made difficult by people who think some kind of reprisal will be forthcoming once the subject of Jesus Christ is broached. Believe it or not, many times people put on a hard shell but underneath there’s a Christian trying to come out (I was one of those). All they need is to hear a little truth and voila another dead person comes alive. The shell is broken and underneath that hard shell was another follower of Jesus Christ whose been dying to get out.

The truth is God does love every one. And His love is the same for each of us. “Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:” Acts 10:34. God doesn’t want any of His creation to perish. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9.

Salvation is simple, God made it simple. Why? Because He loves us with a love we can’t even come close to comprehending. But we can understand “…that whosoever believeth in him should not perish…” John 3:16b. Believing in Jesus as our God and Savior is all it takes to gain everlasting life; Jesus paid the price, we in turn have nothing to pay. It’s simple when you really think about it. We were all perishing at one time until we said yes to Jesus Christ and believed on Him. Simple isn’t it? We humans make it hard but God designed it to be as a simple as a walk in the park. Everlasting life – all we need do is believe in the one who gives us that life, Jesus the Christ, Creator of Heaven and earth.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

PLENTY TO GO AROUND

2011-10-13T15:50:00.001-07:00

Plenty to Go Around

10/13/2011

“Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:” Ephesians 1:9-11 . What was God’s intent for creating us in the first place? Almost everyone who is presented with this question has a different answer. But there is only one true answer, God created us according to His will for His purposes and for His good pleasure.

We’re born on this planet earth and we die on this planet and in between those two points in time we may accomplish a lot or we may accomplish little depending on how we look at this life God has handed us. To God our accomplishments are viewed very differently than how we humans may perceive them to be. Did God place us here to become wealthy or influential? Did He place us on this planet to be poor or utterly useless? There is a vast array of ideas on just how we should live and conduct our lives being propagated today, and few of these concepts concur with God’s ideal lifestyle for the human side of His creation. How you and I see each other is not necessarily how God sees us.

It was never God’s intention that man be consumed with his daily labor to the exclusion of all else, especially as can be plainly seen in that so many have fully excluded God from their lives, and from wanting any part of Him. How can God be pleased when His creation ignores Him – all the time running after more wealth and masses of material goods? These days are filled with the pursuit of accumulating wealth and, of course, the age old problem arises as to what’s more important – what’s the priority in our lives? Sooner or later pursuing wealth will become overwhelming and our lives will reveal the loss of any thought of what’s really important, such as remembering we have a God – a Father in Heaven – who simply wants a loving and awesome relationship with His children to come to fruition.

Chasing after knowledge is another quest which becomes a stumbling block for many because we can exclude all else as we strive to obtain the goal of higher knowledge – most of which comes without any wisdom (knowledge means we know a tomato is a fruit, wisdom means we realize tomatoes don’t belong in a fruit salad). God is the giver of all knowledge and wisdom and He gives us what we need to build a loving relationship with Him, pursuing humanistic dreams which more often than not contradict God’s word fall into a category which is insulting to Him. All contrary concepts in regards to the word of God are of the enemy, and as we pursue them we unwittingly cross over a line which leads us directly into the enemy’s camp.

God’s plan for His creation never included anything apart from His Word. As we go about pursuing our own goals we must ask ourselves, where does God fit in? When we design our plans for our future is God involved? Future, there’s a word that must be discussed more. Without God we have no future. Our future according to God may have nothing to do with our own personal plans. God’s plan will be achieved no matter how many times we mere humans try to throw a monkey wrench into His plan for our future. The best laid plans.

“But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” 1Timothy 6:9-10. Most people who pursue after incredible wealth and power aren’t really concerned with what God wants or expects from them. Money, finances, these things are necessary for us to get by, that’s just a fact of life, but as far as God is concerned they are secondary needs and He will provide all our needs. First of all, God wants us to get to know Him. He’s put it on our hearts to seek Him, and He knows that we will live a life with a huge void in our hearts until we do just that. He wants us (His children) to have and enjoy a relationship with Him while we sojourn on this planet. He’s preparing us for an eternity filled with so much more than we can experience or appreciate during our stay on earth. Money buys just about anything, gobs of money buys way more than we need. A huge problem arises when we allow money to determine our path instead of allowing God to control that task. It’s easy to separate ourselves from God as we allow our hearts and minds to be filled with something we can’t easily be shed of; that would be greed.

“And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” 1Timothy 6:8. You see, the more we have the more we want, and that’s just the human way of living. That’s why God tells us not to be consumed with the desire to have more than we need, but to be content in what we have. If we can’t find contentment in what we have then ultimately we will pursue after that desire to obtain more. This attitude of more in turn establishes a stumbling block in our lives, in this case it’s that old greed monster raising its ugly head again. We can either serve God in which case we will find contentment in whatever situation comes our way, or we will become subservient to the pursuit of the desire to have more and more of everything.

Let’s take a look at a much forgotten way of life. Years ago travel was mostly accomplished by using a horse-drawn wagon. Families would load up the kids for a jaunt into town on a Saturday to stock up with the necessities for the coming week or even for the next month. Sundays they would head to church in that same horse-drawn wagon. There was no rushing around and no cutting people off in traffic in order to get to their favorite fast food joint before the rush. Before we knew it we were sitting in shinny new and fast moving cars that would get us to where we wanted to go in an instant. All so we could wait in line to buy what we don’t really need. As we began to travel faster we began to expect everything that comes our way to come instantaneously. And we become upset whenever we are asked to wait or be patient. We stop at a fast food restaurant and expect our food to be delivered at breakneck speed. If, heaven forbid, we aren’t accommodated as we have come to expect, God help the poor soul that fell behind with our order by a minute or two. I give this fast food example because our daughter works at one of these establishments. It’s amazing to listen to her describe the patrons as they become incredibly irate by the delay of a few seconds in receiving their French fries. She tells her mother and me that some of these folks only have three or four letter word vocabularies – none of which are encouraging words. The really amazing thing is that all of these folks seem to be running late for their next appointment. How did everything get so rushed? Where is God in the mix of all this hurriedness?

Can you see what has happened in our pursuit for more? More and faster cars, more and bigger homes, more and more money so we are able to purchase more and more things that usually end up only collecting dust in an attic or basement. What all these wants add up to is a huge void where God should be. Once God fills that void everything else becomes of non-importance. Money, the one item that everyone needs, is no longer pursued with the fervor it once was. God provides.

In the mindset of most humans there is a goal to reach which has nothing to do with what God wants from us. God wants us to achieve something, that’s true, but it isn’t wealth, popularity, a ton of materialism, or even a massive amount of knowledge. He wants our love, our faithfulness, our minds focused on Him and not on the things of this world. In short, God wants a personal relationship with each one of us, as uninhibited by worldly influences as possible. Most of the things that occupy our minds and lives these days are actually things of the enemy. That’s right! Anything that takes your mind off God as you push yourself to even higher pursuits of happiness gives the enemy occasion to insert his propaganda into whatever time slot he finds accessible, especially where he finds God to be absent. You might want to rethink what gives you pleasure in this world, and when you do you might just realize that much of the pleasure of this world is satanic.

“I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me. Riches and honour are with me; yea, durable riches and righteousness. My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold; and my revenue than choice silver. I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment: That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures.” Proverbs 8:17-21. God doesn’t look on earthly wealth as some kind of grand accomplishment. He doesn’t care how big our home is. He’s not interested in the fleet of cars and planes we might have acquired while we live on earth. As a matter of fact, to God all of that stuff is absolutely of no use in His domain. People will do everything they can to accumulate treasures here on earth and yet they all die, at which point their endeavors of accumulating earthly treasure are abruptly finished. If they’ve done nothing in regards to what God considers important then it was all for naught. Fame and fortune are only earthly pursuits.

“For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.” 1Timothy 6:7. What portion of those accumulated treasures do we get to take with us into Heaven? Not even one microscopic particle. Therefore, if we are born again and we know we will live forever, why store up treasures here on earth when we’re also told that all will be destroyed? “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:” Matthew 6:19.

One more thing that God wants for His people – for those who are called by His name, those who are born again, His children – is that at some point during their sojourning on planet earth, they will come to the realization that nothing materialistic, nothing of this current world will matter to their eternal existence. But that by being a positive force behind the promotion of His Kingdom they can actually store up treasure for themselves in Heaven – treasure that will be an eternal benefit to their existence in eternity. “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Matthew 6:20-21. God wants our hearts to be focused on Him while we avoid the trappings of materialistic pursuits. Is that possible? Absolutely. Give God your attention and watch what He does.

Isn’t it interesting how so many people seek wealth and power above all other pursuits? What would happen if they were told that even if they were to gain the whole world they have nothing if they lose their soul in the pursuit of the dream of such things? Should we tell them? Might some still listen? Don’t worry; you won’t lose out, there are still plenty of mansions to go around in Heaven.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

TWO THIEVES, A JAILER, AND GOD

2011-09-29T17:19:00.000-07:00

Two Thieves, a Jailer, and God

9/29/2011

“And they crucified him...Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left.” Matthew 27:35a, 38. “I’ve done way too much to ever be considered a candidate for salvation”. Really? Just how much of a sinner are you? Are your sins so egregious that you would jump into Hell blindfolded without ever pursuing the truth – the real Truth? You feel there’s no hope for anyone such as yourself? Consider, if you will, a man who hung on his very own cross some two thousand years ago just off to one side of the Creator of the world. When the Roman soldiers drove those spikes into his body and stood His cross upright, he too was sure there was no hope for him – he had gone too far – his sins were too numerous.

God knew you before He began His creation of the earth. He knew the choice you would make concerning His only begotten Son even before He created Adam. God knew you would commit all the sins you have and still He died for you. Now, let me ask that question again. Are your sins so egregious that you feel God would never forgive such a sinner? Here’s the truth. All the sins of humanity that have been committed against humanity and against our God have been forgiven. They are gone people, never to be remembered by God again. What God does remember is your decision to believe in His only begotten Son, and He remembers all those who reject Him right up to the point of death, then they too will never be remembered again.

While Jesus was pushing up with His feet trying to keep from suffocating to death, as He was in horrible pain from spikes that had been driven into His body securing His body to that old ugly cross which was standing atop Golgotha that day, and this after being beaten to within an inch of giving up life, at this point Jesus was quickly slipping into death mode, yet He had the presence of mind to forgive one of the thieves hanging next to Him who had simply acknowledged who He was.

There was another man on another cross in Jesus’ view that fateful day; a man who the Roman authorities had found guilty of a crime against humanity. He was a thief. He stole from someone and he got caught. The Romans were making a spectacle out of these two men who had both been convicted of the crime of theft as a deterrent to others who might have been contemplating a life of crime. Two guilty men were being punished that day for their complicity in crime, but one of these men saw something – a light that day which was somehow obscured from the view of the other thief as he remained in darkness. Both men knew they were guilty. But only one was forgiven that day. Hanging on His own cross, was another man, the man Jesus Christ who unlike the two thieves was completely innocent of any crime. Yet He too would endure the same punishment as well as certain death just as the two criminals hanging next to Him. But the reality of the purpose of Jesus’ death that day would be remembered by every forgiven sinner for eternity.

The two thieves were both, at the beginning of this horrible episode, very belligerent as they taunted Jesus with snide remarks. As the crowed began their malicious and spiteful insults directed at the God of all creation, the two thieves joined right in. As Jesus began His triumph over death while hanging on that cross, it must have seemed to Him that He was surrounded by nothing but enemies. But instead of reeling off condemnations toward all those who were spewing their venom at Him, He was filled with pity for them. At one point, as He was watching the Roman soldier’s part His garments, He spoke the following to His Father in Heaven “Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.” Luke 23:34. He was actually asking for forgiveness for the men who drove the spikes into His body. Then many of the on lookers began to ridicule Him “And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.” Matthew 27:40-43. That’s when even the malefactors that hung on crosses next to Him began to chime in. “The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.” Matthew 27:44.

After that, strangely enough, one of the thieves began to think about what he was saying. Something touched this onetime thief in a way that gave him pause. Jesus had done nothing wrong and the more the other thief spat his venom at Jesus the more the now repentant thief began to be convicted of his errors. The Holy Spirit had broken through the hard shell exterior of this criminal, and before God Himself the thief became an admitted believer in Christ. His words to the other are quite telling. “And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.” Luke 23:39-41.

When this man, a criminal, began to speak to the Creator of the universe he was already a believer in his heart, he was born again – born from God. “And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:42-43. What was the works that this man did to be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven? What could he possibly have done to warrant God’s grace while hanging on that cross next to Jesus the Christ? He believed, and Jesus pronounced this newly born man justified “Today you will be with me in paradise”. All the man did was to admit that Jesus Christ was Lord. We’re told in the scriptures that no man can say Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Spirit. “Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.” 1 Corinthians 12:3. That one time thief became a son of God in an instant while hanging on that cross, as he first began to formulate his words to ask His Lord to remember him. But what of the other malefactor? Why didn’t he come to the same conclusion while in that most horrible predicament?

Crucifixion was the most horrible of executions for capital punishment judgments the Romans could devise. Apparently they had become well perfected in their craft. In many cases the pain and suffering went on for days. The other thief had to have been reeling in pain while spewing his heated venom at the King of the Jews. The Bible doesn’t give us any indication that this man ever came to a believing faith in Jesus Christ before he died. One thief we’ll meet in Heaven some day, and the other? Well, those of us who have done as the other thief in professing our faith in Christ will never meet the one who refused Christ that day. Sadly, some of those reading this commentary might.

How sinful have you been as you reflect back on the pages of your life? God places no more emphasis on one sin than another. As a matter of fact, since His only begotten Son has covered all sin with His shed blood God the Father is fully prepared to receive each of us into His Kingdom with no more than an affirmative response to Jesus His Son. One thief said yes the other said no. Jesus said to the one “Today you’ll join Me in paradise”, but to the other Jesus said nothing. The other man remained condemned, condemned by the Romans and condemned by his very rejection of the King of kings.

Why don’t people read their Bibles? If they would they’d find there the perfect rebuttal to the erroneous statement “I’ve done way too much to ever be considered a candidate for salvation”. Here’s another instance where an individual considered his life over – not worth saving. “And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ...” Acts 16:27-31a.

The lot of the jailer in the above verses was that if any of his charges were to escape he was held totally responsible for their sentence being completed. These Roman jailers were brutal and had no compassion for those held in their prisons. When this jailer awoke and saw all the doors opened he assumed every inmate was long gone. At that moment he knew he was in a world of hurt. This caused him much grief and he was about to commit suicide when the Apostle Paul spoke out to let the jailer know that they were all still there. That jailer knew at that very moment there is a God and he wanted to know him. Paul told him how to make that want become a reality. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. It’s just as easy for you my friend; you can do that can’t you?

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. See? Jesus doesn’t beat around the bush nor does He pull His punches. The word “whosoever” is all encompassing. Even that brutal jailer now lives forever in Paradise. You can too, if you’ll only believe.

Let me get some folks stirred up a little. Here’s a statement some will no doubt get their dander up about. Here it comes – ready? No one goes to Hell because of their sins. “Oh Ron, just when I thought you were right on target, off you go on some unbiblical tangent. Aren’t unrepentant sinners condemned to Hell?” Yes. Unrepentant sinners are in real trouble that’s for sure, but if they go to Hell when they die it won’t be because they committed sins. Jesus paid for all of the world’s sin some two thousand years ago. People go to Hell because they’ve thoroughly rejected the payment Jesus Christ made for their sins. Those who reject the Son remain condemned unless they have a change of mind prior to death. The thief that rejected Christ at the cross condemned himself to Hell, and he was no more a sinner than the other man who was saved that day. We are all sinners in need of a Savior. When we become born again we don’t automatically or instantaneously stop sinning. We grow to hate sin but we are still sinners. When we die as a born again believer in Christ we still die as a sinner, but a forgiven sinner with a very different eternal destination (Heaven) than those who’ve rejected their God’s free gift for their salvation (Hell).

How sinful of a life have you led? Your past sinful lifestyle means nothing to God. What matters to God is this, are you willing to say yes to the fact that He paid the price for all sin past present and future with His own blood. Are you able to humble yourself enough to stand before God Almighty and say “Yes Lord, I believe”? If you are able to admit this one simple truth you too can have everlasting life. It really is that simple.

God died one day on an old wooden cross surrounded by unbelievers, by the time He died that day He had already gathered all the world’s sin unto Himself. Let me say that again. He gathered all sin to Himself. You can’t do anything so bad that God would say to you “Sorry my man, you’re just too sinful for Heaven.” And you can’t do anything to earn your salvation – take a lesson from the thief on the cross who did nothing but admit that Jesus Christ is the Lord.

Jesus Christ died for all His creation, He was buried that same day, and then just three days later Jesus our Messiah – God Almighty– arose from the grave. Jesus defeated death, and all who believe in Him will live forever. Believe the truth of this Gospel and you have everlasting life, reject it and you will join the unrepentant thief in his most horrible agony – a much worse agony than the few hours he spent on that cross – Hell is eternal. You see, although he had the same opportunity as the other man, he remained an unrepentant sinner until he died that day. I can still hear him saying “I’ve done way too much to ever be considered a candidate for salvation”. Please – choose Christ and live.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

WHAT JESUS DID FOR ME

2011-09-22T15:23:00.001-07:00

What Jesus Did For Me

9/22/2011

“And, behold, there came a man named Jairus,…and he fell down at Jesus' feet, and besought him that he would come…For he had one only daughter, …and she lay a dying,…he (Jesus) answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole…and (Jesus) took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid, arise. …and she arose straightway... And her parents were astonished: but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done.” Luke 8:41, 42a 50, 54b, 55b, 56.

The parents of the young girl in the story above, who everyone had supposed had died, (everyone but Jesus that is) we’re astonished at what Jesus had done. Obviously overcome with joy as they received their daughter back from the jaws of death. Certainly they wanted to scream their elation telling everyone what Jesus had done. Jesus charged them to tell no man. What do you think; did they comply with His wishes? Probably not. Lately that same elation has been overwhelming me. I too am now placed in the very real life scenario of wanting to let anybody and everybody know what Jesus did for me. Let me tell you why.

A question I get asked a lot these days is “How are you feeling?” Well, the answer is I feel pretty good. If I may I’ll explain why, starting from the beginning. As many of you know I’ve been fighting a battle with a disease called Myasthenia Gravis. My wife, daughter, and I have a piece of property here in southern Missouri. It’s just a small four acre parcel, but I truly enjoy it. Before my illness I kept our little piece of ground well manicured like a park; this chore had become a labor of love for me. For the past two years my chores had turned into nightmares since I was unable to carry out any of them.

I had endured seven IVIG infusions and a host of drugs had been prescribed by my neurologist to attempt to fend off this horrible debilitating neuro-muscular disease. My health seemed to be as a yo-yo, I’d feel fairly good for a few days then back to full on muscle fatigue. This was the routine since beginning the infusions. Then one day in July seemingly out of nowhere God intervened. I just woke up one morning feeling great. Wow! Praise God! Now I gotta tell somebody what Jesus did for me.

Back in May of this year I wrote a commentary explaining to my readership, that the infusions had worked and I was feeling better. Just after posting that commentary the fatigue came back with a vengeance. Our eldest daughter and her children lived with us at that time and my hematologist told me that the strain and stress was too much for me. He told me that trying to contend with four grandchildren (one of which was just a toddler, and the youngest still an infant) while in the midst of this disease was creating a wall of resistance to the procedures he had put in place as he tried to eradicate, or at least send into remission, the Myasthenia which was attacking my body.

My grandchildren are so important to me, and for the 10 months they lived with us I had become completely captivated by and attached to my infant granddaughter. So much so that we had bonded to a point that I knew I could never give her up. Grandpa, with his disease, wasn’t able to do much in the way of interacting with the other kids, but with the youngest I was able to hold her on my lap and feed her when it was time and everyday she would fall asleep on my chest while I sang to her. But, alas, I did give her up. Our daughter had made the decision to move back to California to pick her life back up, I imagine that means where she left it prior to moving to Missouri. When she took my ten month old granddaughter away I honestly thought I would die. The pain was incredible, far worse than any illness or disease I’d ever endured. I spent weeks in misery, the tears would not stop. Only through the grace and insistence of Almighty God was I able to continue with life and with writing the commentaries.

Just one month after their departure my health greatly improved and God gave me the relief I needed from the horrible depression that had beset me. With my health improvement, my outside chores became something I was looking forward to tackling again. Little by little I ventured out into the midsummer heat attempting to bring a not so good looking yard back to its previous splendor. At first it was a bit overwhelming. I’ve now progressed to a point that I’m able to perform some of my outside chores with little hindrance. God is good, and He gets all the glory.

Why am I telling you all of this? Because I gotta tell somebody what Jesus did for me! Jesus brought me back; He and He alone is responsible for my very improved heath today. No matter what the doctors might think or what the skeptics that read my commentaries might say, I know who healed me. Our family doctor is a great guy, this man is very knowledgeable and he dearly loves his work. He genuinely loves people, thus he makes a great doctor. When I fell into that seemingly bottomless pit which this whole disease experience had caused, my wife and I were convinced that my life was quickly approaching its end, and my doctor also saw the signs that caused him to concur. We had begun to discuss funeral arrangements. Our family doctor suggested it might be time for some hospice care. This all took place just a few weeks before our eldest daughter left for California with our grandchildren.

Needless to say, my doctor was shocked at my incredibly quick recovery, yet not really all that surprised as he also knew who was responsible for the miraculous improvement. When I visited my doctor just a week ago all he could do was simile and congratulate me on my recovery; all I can do is praise God. My doctor asked me that day what I attributed my renewed heath to and I told him – God. He agreed, even with all the marvelous advancements in medical technology, what happened to me was nothing less than a miracle. So, I gotta tell somebody – I gotta tell somebody – what Jesus did for me!

That’s why I am in a renewed posture these days. I want to shout it from the roof top. “Look what Jesus did for me!” It’s no secret what Jesus did for all of us two thousand years ago, not to mention all the miracles He performed. The miracles Jesus does today are just as visible, although these days it’s seldom our God and Savior who receives the glory, but it should be.

It wasn’t long ago that I made a conscience decision to place my life fully into God’s hands, holding nothing back for any reason. I’m His. This is essentially what the mindset of every devoted follower of Jesus Christ should be, which is nothing short of what Paul explains. “…But we have the mind of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 2:16b. The Greek word for mind is “nous” which denotes spiritual truth, the higher powers of the soul, the faculty of perceiving divine things, of recognizing goodness and of hating evil. All those who are born again have the mind of Christ, so use it.

My life is still in a bit of turmoil these days even after the Myasthenia has disappeared or gone into remission. I will go through knee replacement surgery on the 26th of September. Then after I’m fully recouped I’ll see another doctor about the problem with my esophagus. I’ve had constant reflux for some months now and my doctor is very concerned that there might be a growth down by the area of the junction of the stomach and the esophagus. The main point to all my rambling is to assure everyone who God is and that He is fully involved in the lives of His children. We say “God is in control” but do we mean it? I have no doubt who’s responsible for my much improved health. Just look what Jesus did, and is doing, for me. I spent two years with this disease which was only diagnosed last November. Did I ever think God had abandoned me? Not hardly. Even though the deterioration had caused my wife and I to focus on the end game – God was never dismissed as coach.

Many of my readers, and many more people than that, are in much worse straits than I ever was. On the other hand there are some who will never experience in this life any debilitating physical illness whatsoever. The crux of the matter is, either way, there is an end coming. The Truth which will lead us to everlasting life is always available, the perfect peace given us by Jesus Christ is that everlasting life and it is fully attainable for anyone who desires it. Those of us who have acknowledged the truth of the Gospel of Christ and who now have the mind of Christ are in for an awesome everlasting future. Of course, there will always be those who see no benefit in acknowledging God’s existence or who place no importance in the sacrifice of His only begotten Son for the remission of their sins. Therefore they will experience a very different eternity – one the Bible refers to as Hell.

Babies are born and people die, battles with illnesses come and go, there’s nothing new under the sun. “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 1:9. Eternal life is and always has been eternal – there’s nothing new about it. Once we have it, it’s ours for eternity. We can take solace in that fact.

I have a brother in the Lord who, just a few years ago, was in an accident that put an end to his career. That which he had previously held as important began to disappear. He began to see life differently; materialism was no longer his goal. He is now in his early forties, and he has a new focus on life. Jesus Christ has become the most important part of his life and he’ll tell you his future looks brighter now than ever before. Some people fall apart when illness or injury besets them. Others, like this young brother in Christ, simply change their focus. In the process of the loss of his wealth he became the wise man Jesus tells us about. “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.” Matthew 7:24-27.

None of us know when, or if, we will be burdened with a debilitating accident or disease. But we should know who will be there for us when we begin a journey down one of those paths. Some people tell us that Jesus is simply a crutch. Wow, as a disabled follower of Jesus Christ what more could I want than Jesus as a crutch? Now, for all who see those of us who follow Jesus the Christ in a derogatory light – as needing a crutch to get by – allow me to be your teacher for a moment. Another word for crutch is support. What is the purpose for someone needing support? To bear, to hold up, to sustain. Who would be better equipped to sustain us than the Creator of the universe? Even for those who hate Him and wish to be rid of Him once and for all, they too are being sustained (held up) by Jesus Christ (who, while we're on the subject, is God Almighty) every single day. Acknowledge it as truth or not, Jesus is also your support – your sustainer - your crutch if you will. Who in their right mind would refuse Jesus’ love because they simply see Him as a crutch? What a crutch.

Knowing Jesus as Savior, Lord, friend, brother, God Almighty brings a peace which cannot be surpassed. No matter what befalls us, with Jesus living in us we can endure anything. I can’t speak for the rest of you but, I just had to tell everybody, what Jesus did for me!

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

CALLED BY HIS NAME

2011-09-15T21:34:00.000-07:00

Called By His Name

9/15/2011

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14. The meaning behind the Hebrew word “shem”, which translates into our English word “name” used in the above verse, references a people who are established in a definite and conspicuous position. Who are those people who are established in the vicarious conspicuous position of being called by His name? Well, certainly the Jewish people, but God speaks to another group here as well.

What hinders God from doing what He’d prefer to do is sin. Whose sin? He’s certainly not speaking of the enemies of God nor is He referring to a bunch of non-believing government bureaucrats steeped in their own personal sins as they steal from their constituency. No, those who His attention is focused on in the verse above, and who He desires to help if they would only humble themselves, pray, seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways, already belong to Him. It’s a shock to realize who God is speaking to. “My people who are called by my name”, the wicked people are both Jews and Gentiles. God speaks to both camps. His chosen people are the Jews, yet His Church is also in view here. Wow – a real eye opener, but sadly true. Don’t write and tell me that that verse is an Old Testament verse directed only at the Jewish people of that day. If you honestly believe the above verse doesn’t address Christians then you’ll need to scrap the Bible in its entirety. There is no doubt that God is speaking to His children, born again believers in Christ, as well as His chosen people, the Jews.

If my people, and that’s a big “if”, will do what we should have been doing all along, which is walking with the Lord daily, then God will act upon what we ask of Him. While His people remain outside of His fellowship in their self imposed exile He will remain silent, the healing process will be put on hold until His people come back and embrace that loving fellowship He offers. Does that mean we’re not saved? Absolutely not. Many of God’s children are not walking with Him, they are out of fellowship. Keep in mind that God is calling His people which includes the born again to repentance. “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God…” John 1:12a. God has given us (the born again) the power to become sons of God. Once a son of God, always a son of God, but being out of fellowship with our Savoir and Lord brings only misery and heartache.

Is there any possibility that God will heal America, a land where the majority of its populous prides themselves on being Christian? Certainly God is fully able to heal our land and bring about the greatness that America once enjoyed, but will He? A nation where the vast majority of citizens claim to be Christian should not be in such trouble, especially as we see is the case today stretching from sea to shining sea. Where are all the prayer warriors?

Talk is cheap; I’ve stated it many times in past commentaries. Just because someone stakes a claim to being a Christian doesn’t really mean they are. There is a growing segment of Americans who are repulsed by those of us who claim to be “born again” and some of these folks actually profess to be Christians themselves. In the third chapter of the book of John, Jesus told Nicodemus that the only way to see the Kingdom of Heaven is to be born again. It’s fairly obvious that if a person is repulsed at the thought of being born again, that would be a real deterrent to ever seeing the Kingdom of Heaven.

Surely if the populous of the US were actually followers of Jesus Christ we could be fairly certain they’d be praying for God to heal their land and forgive their sins. This land, as far as I can see, is not being healed. Therefore either those who are called by His name are not turning from their wicked ways or the nation is made up of mostly in name only Christians. Today as never before in our history, America is in desperate need of healing, and the lost of this nation are going to be no help to the born again in asking God for His intervention. And if the born again don’t ask, well…

Prayer is extremely important in God’s economy. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” James 5:16b. “Much of our prayer is not effective simply because it is not fervent. It is offered with a lukewarm attitude that virtually asks God to care about something that we care little about. Effective prayer must be fervent, not because we must emotionally persuade a reluctant God, but because we must gain God’s heart by being passionate for the things He is fervent for.” – David Guzik

A fervent prayer initiated by whom? A “righteous man”. His fervent prayer will avail much, and the humble prayers presented to God by those who are called by His name will result in the fulfillment of a spoken promise by the One who calls us by His name. That same promise will not come to fruition if those who are called by His name remain steadfast in their wicked ways and silent when it comes to sending up petitions to the Creator of the universe.

That verse of 2 Chronicles is presented in commentary after commentary, and has been for some time now. Many letters that come to me have that prayer inserted at the bottom, people are attempting to spread that verse around as a prayer for all to read and repeat. Always, as it is used in commentaries, it’s seen as a call to arms so to speak, but so far it doesn’t seem to have many adherents. How can I say that? Is there anyone out there that actually believes that God has healed, or is in the process of healing, our land? On the contrary, America is in dire straits. Only by calling on the One true God by those who place their faith and trust in Him, and Him alone for salvation, can the many plagues permeating this land be eradicated.

God has called all of His Children to prayer. Not just those who are actually active in prayer, but those who neglect prayer as well. In God’s directive of 2 Chronicles I don’t see where God is allowing for the possibility that if some will turn from their evil ways – pray – seek His face – then He’ll act. No! All of His people, all who are called by His name must turn from their evil ways and do as He has commanded.

Are the faithful asleep? There seems to be a vast majority of those who’ve placed their faith and trust in Jesus Christ who haven’t a clue as to what’s coming next. Those who are in tune with God and His word know that there will be some bad times (persecutions – tribulations – trials) which the Church will be forced to endure while we await the Rapture. What those times will consist of no one knows for sure. But we will be hated more and more for Christ’s sake and we can all see that those days are somewhat upon us now. Petitioning God’s help is our only hope and will be, in the near future, our only recourse as we see avenue after avenue beginning to close to those who follow the true Creator of the universe, Jesus the Christ.

A year ago I wrote a commentary titled “Time Has Come – Let’s Pray” which garnered a positive reaction from folks all over the world. I was thrilled with such a response and I was fairly confident we would begin to see a difference very soon. My brethren were convicted and they told me so. They were going to begin to diligently pray and seek God’s face and turn from their wicked ways. Surely there would be a full on trek back into fellowship with the One and only God of all creation. Did it happen? Did those who are called by His name begin their journey back to that place where they could continue in an awesome relationship with their Savior and Lord? I hope so. But I honestly believe that many professing Christians are so tied to this world, and the idea of instant gratification, that when they see no instant benefit in prayer they cease their communication with God. Then they do the unspeakable, they do an about face and instead of continually calling on God, they call on the governments of the world to attempt to clean up the mess we’ve gotten ourselves into on this planet, all the while continuing in their wicked ways.

Today it seems that instead of being concerned with the things of God, more and more believers in Christ are fully absorbed by the conditions of our times. Instead of relying on God and being in the center of His will, many have caved and bowed to the government and now are fully reliant on that very ungodly entity as their provider of basic needs. His people called by His name, in their quest for their perceived fair share, have neglected the One who loves them and freely gives with no strings attached. How do born again believers in Christ humble themselves before their God? By repenting of their evil ways and then turning away from sin.

The end is very near now and the healing of this land may be, for all intents and purposes, a moot point, but turning from our wicked ways, that’s something that should be paramount on our minds. From here on out nothing of this world should be attracting us. Think about it, what is the attraction of this planet now? Surely we’re repulsed by the cold heartedness permeating our society today. Do the lies coming out of our Federal Government seem attractive? Not hardly. Money? Love? Possessions? Nothing can compare to Heaven and that’s what we need to set as the priority of our thinking these days. The words “this world is not my home” needs to be believed now more than ever. This world is not our home; it is a place where we currently sojourn but only temporarily. If this world is so vastly important to you then I have some very disturbing and disappointing news, it will soon be completely destroyed by fire. “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” 2 Peter 3:10. This biblical scenario is not too far off in mankind’s future.

The children of God have a new home being prepared for them which will never be destroyed, never be attacked, entropy will never enter therein. If you don’t want to leave earth with all its beauty then you must not believe your Heavenly home can transcend the earthly. Are we looking forward to Heaven, or are we simply giving lip service to something we perceive as only fantasy? If you are not looking forward to Heaven you will be of no earthly good to the Kingdom of God while here on earth. Only those who have disentangled themselves from the worldly know for certain that their future Heavenly home awaits them, new and perfect in its place.

If His people will turn from their evil ways and pray He will hear from Heaven, all of their prayers. But we must pray, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.” John 16:23-24. What an awesome promise given to us by the one who died for us. Neglecting to call on the Lord in prayer simply ties His hands. He wants us involved in the fellowship. It isn’t to be one sided. Let Him hear from you, that’s what He tells us in 2 Chronicles 7:14. He needs to hear from His people. When those prayers are sent up to God in earnest, then will He hear and act. This nation of ours might just remain intact while His Church remains prayerful and in fellowship with their God.

When all is said and done, this moment of time that we occupy is nothing more than a vapor. Trusting God is our only hope in a world which has a majority of folks who have no use for God whatsoever. God, in His directive of 2 Chronicles, is only asking those who are called by His name – His children – to pray. If you’re still not sure, allow me make it perfectly clear just who His Children are. We are those who Jesus refers to as being able to see the Kingdom of Heaven. Yes we’re sinners, yes we stumble from time to time, and yes we sometimes become adversely entangled in the evils of this world. That’s why the 2 Chronicles directive is as important to God as it should be to each of us. Read it again, ““If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14.” Now place it prominently in your memory banks – never to be forgotten – quote it often – then act upon it.

As born again believers in Christ, called by His name, we can see Heaven, our future home, and we know we will be there one day. It’s as though we see the future as we forget the past. Can you see it? No? Then you know what you must do.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

EMBEDDED ( Satanic ) WORDS

2011-09-08T18:46:00.001-07:00

Embedded (Satanic) Words

9/8/2011

“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” Psalm 19:14. Embedded in our English vocabulary is a word so opposed to God that its origin must be satanic. As followers of Jesus Christ our words are extremely important, especially to our God. The words which we emphasize in our daily conversation place a lot of responsibility on us as to just what we believe about our Creator. God always wants our speech to be edifying to others, and always, we should be using our words in a way that would glorify our perfect and awesome God. Through conversations with others we can tell just who it is they worship. As we listen to the vocabulary words of various individuals it doesn’t take long to come to the conclusion that they aren’t, nor do they have any intention of, worshipping the Most High God – Creator of Heaven and Earth.

Our words speak volumes about who we are and just who it is that resides within our hearts. There are only two apparent entities that are to be placed in the category of those receiving worship. God is the only One who deserves our worship, but since Satan has been attempting to usurp God’s authority for eons he too is placed in the category of likely recipients of worship. There is a huge difference in words that are acceptable to God and the words Satan will accept. Our words reflect in which camp we place our worship. Jesus tells us “He that is not with me is against me…” Matthew 12:30a. Since this is how God sees each individual on planet earth, whose side we’re on is easily discerned by our very words.

There are many words in our English language that have, over time, become the norm in every day speech. Some of these words are so rooted in our lives and those around us that it becomes almost impossible to refrain from using them. Many words have no place in the vocabulary of a born again believer in Christ. But there is one word in particular that is set apart from the rest and is pure satanic in its origin and nature. Since writing my first commentary on this subject some months ago I’ve tried to avoid this word in my everyday conversations and have been apologetic any time it has slipped out unintentionally. What word am I talking about? “Luck”. Luck is the word that is so entrenched in our English language that even if you begin today consciously attempting to circumvent this word you’ll find it very difficult, if not impossible, to avoid.

There are, of course, many words put to use in our English language every single day, even slang words, which don’t glorify God, but that doesn’t mean they are satanic words with an evil and sick agenda. So what can the enemy’s agenda be by introducing this seemingly innocent word “luck” into our daily existence? Let’s first take a look at the various applications where the word “luck” is used every day. Then we will take a similar look into how often we offend our Father in Heaven by employing this word every day.

Before we venture any further into the realm of luck, there is one scripture verse that seems quite appropriate at this juncture. “And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.” Acts 12:23. You say that’s a pretty harsh response on God’s part just because Herod gave not glory to God. Well here’s another little tidbit of information gleaned from the scriptures for the skeptic who sees no problem in attributing anything to luck instead of to God’s grace and for His glory. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” Galatians 6:7. The word “luck” has no place in God’s economy of words.

Are you ready? Here we go then. “Wow, how lucky can you get?” “That was sheer luck.” “You sure got lucky that time.” “How much luck can a person have?” “I pulled that one off by luck and happenstance.” “He’s so lucky.” “Why do they have all the luck?” Okay, you get the point, and I’m sure you all have a vast array of similar slogans you too could add to this short list, which proves my point. What we are doing as a race of created beings by using this word (luck) as a way of referring to what should be considered blessings from God, is we are attributing all the glory for those blessings we’ve received, or others have received from God, unto Satan, God’s adversary. We should be very careful about what we sow, for that is what we shall reap. Taking the glory from God and giving it to Satan won’t bode well with the One who should be receiving all the glory.

Satan introduced this word into our vernacular for one purpose, and that was to draw all attribution for blessings away from God. Why? So he could, with the help of God’s created beings, elevate himself to the state of godhood. Satan has always aspired to steal God’s glory. God, our Creator and Savior, is the giver of all good gifts, yet we give the glory to Satan by repeating any one of the above “luck” phrases. Each time something good comes our way and Satan is given the glory, God is mocked. It really gives you something to think about doesn’t it?

You may consider my condemnation of the word “luck” as harsh; moreover some of you might think Ron is over the top. But when you get right down to understanding the extent in which that word is used today you will soon see that God is not being praised or glorified whenever we substitute the word “luck” for blessings from God. Go ahead, answer me how can God be pleased with His children when they constantly refer to His blessing as nothing more than dumb luck? Who’s the real dummy spoke of here?

Satan’s agenda is to remove God from the minds of all humanity. He goes about his satanic agenda in ways we would hardly think evil. How can a little four letter word like “luck” be considered a part of an evil agenda by the one adversary who hates God more than we humans can even comprehend? Here’s the rub, it is not so much the word spoken but in what reference it is spoken and by whom. When born again believers in Christ refer to the wonderful things happening in their life as luck it’s the same as poking their finger in the eye of their Heavenly Father.

What would happen to that word if we all refused to use it or repeat it as part of our vocabulary? It would disappear. Sure, Satan would soon replace it with another just as offensive word to God, but it would be a red flag to any believer in Christ who knew the significance of words that attempt to replace God by placing His glory on someone else or even something else.

Can we, should we simply ignore words in our vocabulary which seem innocuous? What if, after reviewing certain words we find them to be an offense to God? What then? I have determined to stop using the word “luck” in my every day speech. Actually I’ve been attempting to discard it from my list of usable vocabulary words for some time now. At a point not too distant in my past, my vocabulary was riddled with profanity; words which I literally gave no thought to as to how my Creator would consider my speech. Yes, it was during my past life, before I died to self and became a son of God. My language was not at all edifying nor did my words glorify God in any way. But now that I’ve been washed in the blood of Christ I count the cost of all words in my vocabulary. Personally, it means a lot to me to do everything in my limited power to refrain from grieving the Holy Spirit. I believe the word “luck” is a huge attack on the sovereignty of God, and perpetuated by God’s number one adversary.

When those of us who know fully who we are (children of God) use words that blatantly remove God’s sovereignty and hand that sovereignty over to His enemy, we should be more than merely ashamed, we should be in tears. The problem, as I see it, is that most people who use that word “luck” (and I’ve never met anyone who doesn’t) have no clue as to the real meaning. Therefore they see it only as an expression of pleasure at seeing themselves or someone else receive something they didn’t deserve. “How lucky can you get” diminishes the God given blessing they just received while stealing God’s glory and giving it to Satan.

What is the derivation of the word “luck”? Honestly, placing it into a search engine will bring up a few million different ideas, but here’s the one that actually best fits the bill. Luck is derived from the name of God’s enemy – Lucifer . If we understand the idea behind the use of this word we can see who initiated the first use of it. Then we can attribute it to its rightful originator. Lastly we can discontinue using it as a means to rob God while glorifying Satan.

Look at it this way. When that word is used as a congratulatory sentiment referring to someone’s good fortune it conjures up all sorts of possibilities as to who is responsible for the fortunate set of circumstances that has just occurred. Leprechaun’s, tooth fairies, you name it, but seldom does God come to mind as the Benefactor who is actually responsible.

We as a society are becoming more and more desensitized; we are continually saying yes we approve of what was at one time forbidden or objectionable. Nowadays, especially here in America, the norm is to attribute a huge majority of God’s blessings to the “luck” of the draw. Actually every time we allow this abomination to occur God becomes less important in our daily lives and Lucifer (Satan) is elevated closer to his desired state of godhood. The nonchalant attitude these days toward our use of this extremely satanic word is so pervasive that it’s a wonder God ever receives any of the glory do Him. “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God,” Romans 1:21. Be very careful, my brethren, about giving God’s intended Glory to another.

“Let your speech be alway with grace…Colossians 4:6. Words can give glory to God and they can take away His glory. Let’s be sure to glorify God in all things. Why give any glory to the one who only wants to see us destroyed? Think about it.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

WHERE HAVE ALL THE DEMONS GONE

2011-09-05T10:05:00.001-07:00

Where Have all the Demons Gone

9/1/2011

“A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not: but knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth.” Proverbs 14:6. Most people today simply shrug off any idea that demons might actually be a real phenomenon. The desensitizing of the populous has been very successful, in fact the very thought of demons and fallen angels conjures up, in the minds of average folks, nothing more than ghouls and goblins making ready to do their thing at Halloween. The fact is demons, and their leader Satan, do exist and are very active in the world today. Only the foolish say “There is no such a thing as demons.”

The kind of thinking that dominates many of our western cultures today is that there is no such thing as a devil, therefore demons and the whole idea of fallen angels is ridiculous. This is of course exactly where Satan wants our thinking to remain. He has been working in the media for many years trying to change his image from the malevolent supernatural enemy of God and man to one of a cartoon character that no one need fear. He’s seen as a strange character with a red skintight suit, horns, a long pointed tail, and his weapon of choice is a pitch fork. Laughable yes, especially when you consider what the Bible says about his appearance. “And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.” 2 Corinthians 11:14.

A process of disinformation is at hand dismissing any idea that demons are real and thus relegating them to nothing more than myth and fairytales. Even many Christians these days have fallen for the same desensitizing efforts of the enemy and simply dismiss the fact that demons are present with us today; they too will do anything to disassociate themselves from any notion that demons are real. Demons, fallen angels, and the master of them all (Satan) are only present in books and if they were ever roaming the earth it was during some long past bygone era. Sure, demons may have been present during the time Jesus Christ walked the hills of Judea and the country of the Gadarenes, but after all, we know the Bible tells us that Jesus ushered them all into a herd of swine. All demons?

Demons are disembodied spirits. In other words, they had bodies at one time but are now bodiless, thus what do you suppose is their most sought after and treasured possessions? You guessed it, living bodies. The bodies that they prefer are those where they find no obstructions, bodies that voice no objections to these entities moving right into their new habitat. It’s not difficult to attract demons; people do it all the time. The difficult part is ousting them once they’ve taken up residence in a human body. “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” Hebrews 13:2. Just as Paul the Apostle mentions, some folks have entertained angels unawares, so too have many folks entertained demons and gone a step further, they’ve invited demons to dwell within their own bodies, most of the time unawares.

Demons are present everywhere and poised to pounce like a lion hidden and waiting on its prey. Give them the opportunity and they will take advantage of the situation while fully exploiting the human being as they take control of that person’s self-will. God’s word is specific about what not to do in regards to attracting demons. God’s prohibitions are for the good of all humanity. He doesn’t want anyone to attract and invite demons to embed themselves in a human body, mind, and heart. They are spirit and all they need is a portal in which to enter and set up residence in a human’s body. Portals are easy to open, but they must be opened by a human being. The demon, or demons, can’t just come in, they must first be invited, whether intentionally or unintentionally, the invitation must be given. These bottom dwellers are not really very picky but they are tenacious, they will wait, and wait until a human invites them into their new habitat. There are many opportunities for a human to open a portal and allow a demon to enter.

Side note:

Now, before I go any further let me explain that those of us who are born again believers in Christ cannot be indwelt by a demon or demons. We are already indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God and He doesn’t share space with malevolent misfits. But, and here’s the rub, Christians can allow a demon to erect a stronghold over their lives whenever they get into something they shouldn’t and that something becomes an addiction. Very tough to break away from addictions.

So how do folks go about inviting the enemy to come in and take up residence within their bodies? I hesitate to even pursue this any further as there may be some reading this commentary who will actually try it just to see if it works. Let me first put this warning in place: Believer or non-believer, don’t attempt any of the following exercises since in either case the result will be horrendous, and in many cases irreversible. Remember. if you’re not an in Christ, born again believer you can be demon possessed. It doesn’t matter who you are, demons want and need embodiment and anybody will do.

Opening a portal or entry point for a demon isn’t difficult, but it does take placing one’s self in a posture that is contrary to God. An obvious way to invite a demon in is the use of drugs and alcohol, which leave a person vulnerable to a supernatural, malevolent invasion. Another door opener is meditation coupled with speaking a word over and over (a mantra) which ultimately opens the portal to the supernatural world and allows the demons unabated entry.

Many people these days are attracted to meditation and yoga exercises which are purposely designed for attracting spirit guides (demons). When folks adhere to a practice of meditation, along with the process of clearing a person’s mind, that’s all the invitation a demon needs to enter. The process is quick and simple, and soon a demon will be attracted to that person as they recognize their opportunity has come to grasp hold and never let go of their new residence. Playing with a Ouija board is another way to open a portal for the demons, the ominous children’s game dungeons and dragon is another, a pursuit of mysticism, getting involved in witchcraft, these are all ways to open portals and invite spirit guides (demons) into your life.

Some people get involved in what’s known as “necromancy”. Necromancy is defined as the conjuring of the spirits of the dead. Why would anyone want to do such a thing? Most of the time, the purpose is for very selfish reasons. They believe that summoning the dead to this present time and dimension can magically reveal the future or that they (the dead) can influence the course of events. The Bible refers to necromancy as “divination, sorcery and spiritism” and all are practices that are forbidden by God. The word of God is quite specific concerning the prohibition of necromancy; God refers to it as an abomination. It is something that the Lord speaks very strongly against and it is to be avoided as much as any evil.

The idea that dead people’s spirits can be contacted for information is false. Those who attempt such contact inevitably contact demonic spirits, not the spirits of dead loved ones. Those who die go immediately to heaven or hell – heaven if they believed in Jesus as Savior, and Hell if they did not. “…neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times.” Leviticus 19:26b. Also “There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD:” Deuteronomy 18:10-12. Of course there are many prohibitions given to us from our Creator which people will ultimately ignore, but the practice of necromancy is far beyond dangerous, it’s a set course that results in demonic possession which in many cases is irreversible.

Necromancy is always going to involve demons. Anyone who practices it opens themselves up to a massive demonic attack. Satan and his demons seek to destroy human beings; their intention is not to communicate to humans truth or wisdom, but pure lies. We are told to “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” 1 Peter 5:8.

There is no contact between the dead and the living. The Lord’s own account of the rich man and Lazarus tells how communication and/or travel back and forth between the living and the dead is not possible. Part of the conversation between Abraham and the rich man gives the answer to the idea of contacting the dead. “between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.” Luke 16:26. Therefore, if those who have died can’t pass from the torment side of Hades to Abraham’s bosom or vice versa, they certainly aren’t able to come back to where the living reside.

On the other hand contact with the supernatural, malevolent spirit world is quite possible, but God says don’t even attempt to do so. Our sole/soul contact in the here and now and any other dimension is God Almighty, no conversation with any other entity is to be pursued. There’s a very good reason God gave us His word containing His many precepts which contain, among many exaltations, prohibitions – which are always meant for the good of mankind. Many have turned a deaf ear to any warnings concerning contact with the spirit world or to the fact that this world is replete with demons.

There seems to be a very intense draw to the unknown and humans have an innate desire to pursue after that which should be left alone. Therefore, no matter how much we might attempt to warn some folks concerning these malevolent spirit guides, our warnings seem only to provide the catalyst which acts to reinforce their resolve in their pursuit to initiate some form of communication between them and demons.

Still, many others today simply refuse to believe in the fact that supernatural beings exist whether benevolent or malevolent, but the worst part is the spirits that accept contact from humans are quite hostile to humans. When these hostile beings (demons) take control of people their departure is never a foregone conclusion. As I’ve already stated, demons are quite tenacious and when they acquire a new home they aren’t going to be inclined to vacate the premises without quite the prolonged battle. Many human lives have been destroyed by demons not willing to turn control back over to the rightful owner.

Believing in demons and fallen angels is not difficult for the informed Bible student, but for those who are without any spiritual discernment, demons and the fallen angels – the spirit dimension – becomes not only hard to grasp, but in some cases an impossibility. Most folks today, rather than acknowledging the truth about demons, simply ignore the facts while attempting to live in a demon infested world. Ignoring the fact that demons exist won’t make them go away. The problem with this kind of thinking is that the demons will have them whether they believe in them or not. They don’t need for humans to believe in them, only the openness of mind to allow them to have access.

Satan doesn’t want you to believe he exists. On the contrary, he functions quite well in the arena of unbelief. When he’s resisted he’s useless, powerless, and he must flee from those who resist him “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7b. He already owns those who reject Christ, and he’s doing everything in his power to disrupt the lives of those who no longer belong to him. When Christians refuse to believe in Satan and his minions of evil they’ve fallen for his lies. Sooner or later they too will find that the reality is demons are very prevalent and quite busy in these last days. No, these aren’t just costumed pranksters wearing masks; they are pure evil amassed to destroy humanity. They are relentless as they understand all too well their days are numbered. You don’t believe demons, fallen angels, and the Devil exist? Trick or Treat ?

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

WELL KEPT SECRET

2011-08-25T20:46:00.000-07:00

Well Kept Secret

8/25/2011

“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3. According to the Barna Research Online a whopping 85% of the American population claim to be Christian, but out of that grand total only a group of 35 to 42 percent actually claim to be born again. Barna’s study gave way to some very interesting boasts. When the first group was asked why they were staking claim to being Christian the answers were: 1) Because I live in a Christian nation. 2) Because my family is Christian. 3) Because I go to church at least twice a year. But even more interesting was the last figure that the Barna research group posted, that only about 8% of American adults believe that salvation comes by faith in Christ alone, and without any human works. Wow! Throw the Bible out, no one’s reading it anyway.

There are massive, very dark clouds hovering over the landscape of many Christian Churches these days. We should all be painfully aware of the move in many “Christian Organizations” to modify the Bible so it will better fit into their own worldview. It’s amazingly sad today as we watch so many “Christians” ignore or eliminate the Chief Cornerstone, the Originator of their faith, while embracing other religions in an attempt to unify all religious people groups. By eliminating Jesus and His claim of exclusivity (John 14:6), the promoters of universalism are paving the “way” for all religions of earth to reinforce their own claims that the god they worship is precisely the same God we all worship, thus magnifying the erroneous concept that all religions lead to Heaven.

The Barna Research Group, in their attempt to come up with somewhat of a complete figure as to how many people might actually be born again believers in Christ, concluded that as of 2006 about 25 million Americans fell into this category. The population of the United States has, in recent years, surpassed the 300 million mark. I’m not sure what that does to Barna’s 85% Christian population figure, but it seems to me there are a lot of closet Christians in the US. When we read figures such as 85% of all Americans are claiming to be Christians shouldn’t we be seeing a much different America than what we currently have? I don’t know about the rest of you but as I imagine this huge majority of Americans praying 2 Chronicles 7:14 I see God moving His protective hand over American, healing this land once again as America glorifies God as her sovereign Lord. Excuse me, I seem to have traveled to Neverland for an instant.

Satan’s deception and depravity know no bounds, he’s even convinced a huge segment of Americans that they are Christians, yet when questioned about their faith just a small minority profess that they are born again. The larger portion of those interviewed haven’t a clue as to what it means to truly be a Christian. Thus the reason for the massive amount of depravity which is currently sweeping our nation should be of no surprise to the truly faithful.

People believe that simply by admitting they are Christian there will be some automatic reward set up for them to reap. As true Christians know that just isn’t the case. If indeed these folks are actually Christians then their true identity has been a “well kept secret.” The vast majority of these professing Christians treat Christianity as though it were a plague. There seems to be a huge dark locked box somewhere perfectly camouflaged containing the beliefs of these professing Christians which they only bring out and expose to light at Christmas or Easter. How quaint, it’s just their little secret.

Sadly, this attitude of secrecy is far more pervasive even in the born again community than most fully grasp. How many of us who stake claim to Christ keep Him to ourselves only to trot Him out on Sunday mornings during church services? That born again designation is a well kept secret among many of the brethren when it comes to co-workers, some family members, and even many of our friends. I remember a letter I received a couple of years back about a woman who had recently become a Christian only to be told by her “best friend” that she had been a Christian for 30 years. Just another well kept secret.

Here’s the rub, when we take on the name of Christ we become His worldwide ambassadors. I personally can’t conceive of anything that would be more insulting to the King of kings (Jesus the Christ) than for His ambassadors to keep Him hidden, as though they were ashamed of Him. “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels.” Luke 9:26. I know what you’re thinking; those I’m talking about aren’t even born again so they haven’t really taken on the name of Christ. True, the majority of those mentioned in the survey above aren’t really born again, but what about the other 8% who indeed stated that they are born again? Are we openly professing our faith in Christ, or are we being discrete so as not to offend anyone? Do we have the boldness of Paul or is our Christianity a well kept secret?

Our youngest daughter has placed Christian symbols all over the back of her truck, and anyone who pulls up behind her at a stop light will know immediately she’s a follower of Jesus Christ. She doesn’t keep her faith in Christ a secret, she never has. Our daughter sees following Jesus Christ as a natural lifestyle. While today proclaiming Jesus as Lord is looked upon as a mental imbalance, our daughter sees being born again as the only way to live. We were condemned by family and friends because we kept her out of public school and instead of sending her into the lion’s den we determined that God would be more pleased if we homeschooled her. We turned off our TV when she was 10 years old. Now that she’s 21 she has a faith embedded Christian worldview that other parents only dream about as they watch their children fall into one depravity after another.

Sometimes our Christian lives get so entangled with the world that we begin to lose our perspective on the future. Those of us who take the word of God literally and seriously know that Jesus is due to make an appearance to the faithful very soon. The Bible is so jam packed with prophecy (advance history lessons for the faithful) that there is no possible way apart from shear ignorance to dismiss God’s history lessons as merely colorful exaggerations. Those who have no use for the prophetic nature of the word of God have no real concept of who God is.

When we become forcefully pressured by the world to get all we can while we can, materialistically speaking, that pursuit can overwhelm us to the point that Jesus becomes no more than just a hindrance. When Jesus Christ becomes a mere hindrance to His follower’s, secrecy inevitably ensues and it’s time to place our God in the closet. What’s the old adage? Out of sight out of mind? When Jesus is out of your mind, you too are out of your mind.

I know people who wear Jesus on their cuff when they are around other Christians. That’s when they talk the talk and walk the walk. But when they are confronted by the lost people of the world, their faith in Christ becomes one of the best kept secrets of all time. Are they ashamed, or scared, or are they simply able to turn their Christianity on and off like a water spigot? Jesus said “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” John 14:15. How can any born again believer in Christ claim to love Jesus yet ignore Him as made evident by their lifestyle. Since the Holy Spirit has been sealed within all born again believers in Christ, denying Christ will become an impossibility. Our Christianity should never be kept secret from anyone, especially the lost folks of this world.

Keeping Jesus secret is akin to denying Him. Our Creator God has a very specific remedy for anyone who accepts Him as Lord, then denies Him before men. “But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 10:33. Denying Christ is to grieve the Holy Spirit. “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Ephesians 4:30. Power is given to every Holy Spirit sealed person alive, the power to admit before the evil of this world that Jesus Christ is Lord. Denying Christ is a simple test as to whether or not a person is actually Holy Spirit sealed.

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man… Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.” Hebrews 2:9, 17-18.When a man, woman, or child for that matter, becomes born again they are no longer their own. They have been bought and paid for with blood, the blood of the Messiah. Since this be the case, should we not also be just as open and positive as we possibly can with all peoples, knowing full well the sacrifice that was made on our behalf?

As we live and walk the Christian walk there is a sacrifice that needs to be considered daily. “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” Matthew 16:24-25. How many born again believers in Christ are prepared to deny themselves for Christ? Now give this a thought, how many “Christians” that belong to that 85% figure above would be willing to deny themselves for Jesus’ sake? The current and future real number of believers in the United States of America is known only to God. And that exact number will be Raptured very soon. Then those who claimed to be Christians but hadn’t a clue as to what that designation actually means, will stare at the huge void which was just created in front of them. Then they will shake their heads in unbelief of what has just transpired, ultimately they may realize they really never had a clue.

Approximately 25 million people will disappear in the twinkling of an eye from the American scene. What a void that will create. All those still alive who placed their lives in Jesus’ hands, and His alone for salvation, will disappear one day soon. Not just from America but from every corner of the globe. All those who claim the name of Christ without the rebirth from above will soon realize their claim was in vain as their only claim to fame will be pain. Be careful about keeping secrets, especially when it comes to your faith in Christ.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

SUFFERING WITH CHRIST

2011-08-04T11:29:00.001-07:00

Suffering with Christ

8/04/2011

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God… The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.” Romans 8:14, 16 & 17. The Greek word for suffer is sympaschō and it means to suffer or feel pain together, to suffer evils (troubles, persecutions) in the like manner with another. In this case Paul’s telling us as children of God that we are joint-heirs with Christ if so be we suffer with Him. What kind of suffering? Tribulations, persecutions, distresses, and many will suffer through illnesses, some quite severe.

To suffer with Christ is not very appealing to many Christians today. The world has grabbed hold of many who call themselves Christian which means that any idea of suffering with Christ is rejected as nonsensical. Paul’s words above fall on deaf ears for a huge number of professing Christians. What greater privilege than to suffer with our coming King.

The phrase “if so be” which Paul inserts before the word “suffer” above is self explanatory. He’s giving sort of a “what if” scenario. If indeed we suffer with Christ, then we are heirs with Christ. Not all Christians will suffer with Christ; some professing Christians will only admit to being Christian while in the company of other Christians. They have no intention of letting their secret out in a secular dominated public arena. As Paul points out, our inheritance is dependent on our suffering with Christ. So, those Christians who cloak their Christianity will avoid the persecutions associated with knowing and acknowledging Christ as Lord. Therefore they will not partake of the inheritance freely given “if so be” we suffer with Christ.

Paul knew about suffering; he went through a lot by the time he wrote this letter to his Christian brethren in Rome. “To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 1:7. Beloved of God is another way of addressing Christians. The Roman Christians Paul is addressing knew of his many trials and they were fully aware of his sufferings for Christ. He’s trying to explain to them that they too will suffer persecutions if they continue walking with Christ.

“Are they ministers of Christ? …I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;” 2 Corinthians 11:23-26. It’s obvious Paul suffered much in his walk with the Lord. I wonder, in today’s world of modern conveniences and hi-tech living, how many of us who profess to follow Jesus Christ can actually say we suffer with Him.

“if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together”. Romans 8:17b. That statement should make the followers of Jesus Christ sit up and take notice. The Apostle Paul considered Suffering with Christ a privilege. And lest ye forget let me reiterate, your inheritance is dependent on your suffering with Christ.

There are all kinds of suffering, and as Christians we may pass through a period of some suffering and consider it not much more than simply an annoyance. Then again, God may want us to remain in the midst of suffering until He determines an end to it; sometimes that end will result in His taking us home. Again, why? God has His reasons for our sufferings and one of them is pointed out above by Paul. We, as born again believers in Christ, are justified. That means we’ve been given a free gift from God which is that of eternal life through Jesus Christ His Son. That part of salvation is complete. Another way to put it is, “it’s a done deal.” But there’s more, much more. There are rewards that will be handed out by Jesus Christ at the Bema Seat Judgment. This isn’t a judgment like a punishment but a judgment based on our attitude toward the Kingdom of God while here on earth. Some Christians will receive rewards, others won’t. It all depends on what we do here on earth after our justification as we are led by the Holy Spirit of God.

Rewards are given to those whose works were Holy Spirit inspired; their works will endure the flame of perseverance. Those who did things for others as a show of their own piety will see their works burned up like wood, hay, and stubble. “Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” 1 Corinthians 3:13-15.

So, what do we have to look forward to then? I’ll tell you, once justified we can look forward to everlasting life with Christ as our King forever. But there’s something else we look forward to which is apart from that most treasured gift. Just as Paul went about setting up churches and admonishing believers, he did so even though the suffering was intense. He looked forward to the rewards Jesus would hand out after he finished the race. These rewards given out to the faithful are those things to which we should aspire. Did you know that simply longing for Christ’s appearing garners an award?

Many of you write and ask how I’m doing in regards to my health, your concern is much appreciated. I wrote a commentary a while back entitled “Patience and God’s Miracles” in which I hastily stated that my health was greatly improved because of the infusions I’d been receiving. Well, I should have heeded my wife’s advice and held off on that commentary a while longer, at least until I was sure that my exaltation was not premature. Consequently, I must now explain to everyone that the relief I was feeling from this horrible disease after the initial three infusions only lasted about seven days, and they’ve been quite expensive. Actually they haven’t been much help.

I began to wonder why, with the fervent prayers of many of my brethren going up to God from every corner of this planet and those of my family here at home, was I continuing with this disease that had so effectively embedded itself in the bloodstream of my body? I began to do some research of my own. I wanted to give a clear and concise answer to anyone who might enquire of me as to why God allows the suffering of His saints. Of course God gave me the answer I was seeking.

“My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” James 1:2-4. Sometimes we just need a little reassurance from God of the fact that He knows what He’s doing and we who are suffering numerous trials should count it all joy. Patience is one of the goals of our trials, but there’s more, much more.

“Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” James 1:12. The Greek word hypomenō is the equivalent of our English word “endure”, but the Greek word is more precise in its meaning, which is “to remain” - i.e. abide, not recede or flee, to preserve: under misfortunes and trials to hold fast to one's faith in Christ, to bear up bravely and calmly: all ill treatments. We’re to count all suffering, trials, temptations, and persecutions joy, joy knowing we are suffering with Christ.

“Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:8. Stephanos is one of two Greek words which means crown, but it’s not a king’s crown which would be diadem in the Greek. Stephanos actually means: a prize such as a victor’s crown. It refers to the eternal blessedness which will be given as a prize to the genuine servants of God and Christ. It's a crown of righteousness, and a crown of glory. Do you love His appearing? This crown is an earned crown and it has nothing to do with our justification (salvation). It’s a reward that will be given to all who love and desire Christ’s appearing. Worldly Christians love the world hence they aren’t looking for Christ to appear any time soon. So their answer to my question would be no.

There are many such rewards which will be handed out at the Bema Seat Judgment of Christ. But alas there will be many Christians who receive no such rewards, thus there will be much disappointment for those who cling to the idea of “Well I’m saved and that’s all that matters to me”. Paul describes his life as running a race and to win the race so as to receive the prize. There is more to this Christian walk than just fire insurance, much more.

Trials for the born again Christian can be many. Perhaps they are not exactly like Paul’s but to each one of us they can be distracting, even overwhelming. While passing through these trials it’s important that we not lose sight of our first love, Jesus Christ. Debilitating, formative hurtles can bring us to a point that we may even despair of life itself. Paul despaired of life. “For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life:” 2 Corinthians 1:8. Then Paul goes on to ensure the Corinthian Church that they have no need to despair. “But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us;” 2 Corinthians 1:9-10.

God has given us the power to turn away from sin and from the grip associated with temptation, trials, and tribulations (which are persecutions). Personally, I now count all my trials (illness) as joy. All born again believers in Christ should realize that the suffering which we endure is suffering with Christ. By suffering with Christ, God’s word assures us that we will be “joint-heirs with Christ.”

“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13. God will never let us be tested more than what is common to man. This means God has given us the strength to endure all trials, even the infirmities that the enemy has been able to inflict upon many of us.

In my personal situation concerning the vast amount of trials that have come upon me of late, my faith has not only endured but has been greatly strengthened, and my walk with the Lord is now on a more stable foundation than ever before. God has drawn me closer to Him and our relationship is now much more intimate. That’s why I now count all the suffering I’ve gone through with this disease (Myasthenia Gravis) pure joy.

Most important is how we weather these storms. Do we sit and fret? Do we worry and ponder? Do we complain and lose hope? Do we blame God for our suffering? Or do we overcome in the face of all adversity? “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.” Revelation 3:5. I have determined for myself to be an overcomer, to stay in the race and to finish in first place. As Paul so aptly put it “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:” 2 Timothy 4:7. I encourage all of you do the same.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and always God breathed

JUDGMENT - GOD'S STYLE

2011-07-28T16:36:00.000-07:00

Judgment – God’s Style

7/28/2011

“Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.” Romans 1:20-23. These days there seems to be a barrage of questions concerning when will God judge America. We can find a plethora of commentaries focused on this same question. Little do most of these questioners realize it but God sent His judgment upon this nation many decades ago, which began our spiraling downward freefall into the abyss of no return.

Not just America, but many other nations as well have been judged by God and found wanting. Billy Graham quipped many years ago “If God doesn’t judge America He’ll have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.” If you’re waiting for an atomic bomb blast aimed at destroying America in one fell swoop you’ll probably need to wait until America completely turns its back on Israel; God’s word says that every nation will turn against Israel in the last days. Now I’m not saying an atomic war won’t break out; as a matter of fact I’m certain it will happen one day with a few hundred or even thousand atomic bombs hitting the amber waves of grain. But the current judgment that God placed on America and all other nations of the world which have turned their collective backs on Him has not come in the form of an atomic bomb. When it’s all said and done many may wish it had.

What national movement is taking America by storm? And for that matter, what international movement is doing likewise? If you haven’t already guessed it’s the condoning and the almost overwhelming promotion of the abomination known as homosexuality. Not very many Christians realize that this once hidden “in the closet” filth which is now permeating our world is God’s judgment on all societies that have rejected Him. How do I know? The Bible tells me so. Keep reading.

Most Societies are now moving in the direction of “God gave them over to.” I’ll explain that statement shortly. But why has God done this? People know He exists, yet they refuse to acknowledge Him as God and do not give Him the glory He deserves as our Creator. Our God is a jealous God; we may cringe at the fact, even dislike the idea, that our God has the propensity of being jealous. But the fact remains He won’t share or give up His Godhead to anyone or anything.

The first chapter of Paul’s letter to the Romans is directed at the pagan world. Paul gives an extensive explanation on just how foolish these people are. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Romans 1:18-20. According to God’s Word He holds everyone accountable to know He exists and to seek Him. He does this through the obviousness of His creation. But these pagans Paul addresses here ignore the truth and worship idols made of things which were created instead of the One who is the Creator of all things. Therefore God gives them something special, something only these folks would cling to and bask in. Unbeknownst to them God’s judgment is on them and society as a whole because society has gone over to the enemy’s camp. God gives such societies over to be filled with lust as they too condone such behavior.

“Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:” Romans 1:24. The Greek word for the phrase “gave them up” is paradidōmi and it actually means: to give them up to evil desires. Who gave them up? God. Why? Because they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man. They should know God exits through His Creation, yet they ignore the fact that God has revealed Himself, even His eternal Godhead, so they have no excuse for their refusal to glorify Him as God. In the above verse, the Greek word for “uncleanness” is akatharsia and it means: to give them up to impurity, lustful living. The Greek word for lust is epithymia which means to: desire, crave, long for. God has given these pagans up to a lifestyle they can’t resist, and they think this lifestyle is one they’ve chosen for themselves. The phrase “dishonour their own bodies between themselves” has the Greek word atimazō embedded in it which means: to treat with contempt, whether in word, deed or thought. “Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” Romans 1:25. So the societies which refuse to honor God as Creator and Lord are, as they turn their backs on Him and worship the created thing, being judged - including America.

Just in case you’re wondering what the dictionary uses as an explanation for the word pagan here it is “an offensive term that deliberately insults somebody who does not acknowledge the God of the Bible, Torah, or Koran”. Actually no one should recognize the god of the Koran. At any rate, the word pagan fits those who reject God, and offensive as it might sound God’s judgment is much worse. “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;” Romans 1:26-28. Here we see it again – God giving these foolish pagan people up, this time to a reprobate mind. In the Greek the word reprobate is adokimos and it refers to something that should be cast away as unfit as in something we would reject or throw out. God is in control here and He will not put up with whole societies turning their backs on Him.

Have you ever wondered why homosexuality has flourished in America and has become the norm in what was once thought of as a mostly Christian society? Today, even many professing Christians see no harm in homosexuality nor do they regard homosexuality as a sin. “More than 100 ordained Christian ministers have signed the proclamation, including leaders from Lutheran, Episcopalian, United Church of Christ, United Methodist, and Presbyterian churches which states homosexuality is not a sin.” Source: Onenewsnow.com. These pastors, as well as most of their congregations, don’t just look the other way but actually condone this abominable lifestyle. There are many professing Christians that see this sinful lifestyle as nothing more than two people of the same sex loving each other. I wonder just how many people actually understand how homosexuals, when it comes to the act of sexual intercourse, actually go about it. Not to be too graphic here, but it would probably make most people especially Christians sick if they actually understood what was involved when these depraved minds speak of loving or making love with one another, and if it doesn’t – shame on them.

Please don’t misunderstand God’s motives as He judges whole societies by giving them over to a reprobate mind. God loves everyone equally. He is no respecter of men. We were all born with the sin nature in us, it’s hereditary. We are all sons of Adam thus we all inherit the sin gene. Therefore the propensity for all humans to become homosexual is no different as far as sinning goes as stealing, lying, murder, adultery, and so on. It’s all sin and we usually embrace one or more of them until we become a “son of God.” Only then are we given the ability to say no to sin, because sin no longer reigns in our lives. But until we became born again we were all slaves to sin. Those who reject God cannot resist sin; they have no way to fight a battle against sin, and as a matter of fact they don’t even recognize their actions as sin.

The judgment on societies is different than the individual committing a sin. There are many born again Christians who live in countries where homosexuality has already been greatly manifested. So Christians are seeing the results of God’s judgment first hand. God’s judgment on America and the other nations that have turned against Him will become even more steeped in this abomination. This judgment will wax worse and worse as time goes by, especially as the opposition to the whole homosexual agenda wanes. “More than 50 percent of the current American voting public now have no problem with this spreading phenomenon, homosexuality.” Source: The Barna Research Group

We already see it openly in our military and the president of the United States has now made it known that he will no longer allow the Attorney General of the United States to fight for the Constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act. There are now six states which have passed laws that allow homosexuals to get married and many more are working on the legislation to do the same. And now we see California, the leader in the promotion of homosexuality, passing laws that demand that homosexuality and its history be taught in schools, and setting up homosexuals as role models for impressionable children. I wonder if the lesson God gave us concerning Sodom and Gomorrah is going to be a part of that history taught in public schools. Openly homosexual judges are now running our court systems and homosexuality is permeating our land. Need I go on?

“Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.” Romans 1:29-32. God gave them (these God rejecting pagan people) over to all the above mentioned adjectives because He will not be ignored nor will He be humiliated by foolish people who want to replace Him with some inanimate object as the focus of their worship. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is our Creator God. It’s a slap in His face to believe in anything contrary to that truth. Therefore since so many Americans enjoy slapping the face of God, God has been forced to act by judging America.

Read those words again from Romans chapter 1 verses 29 thru 32 and then think about all the evil in the news of late. “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.” 2 Timothy 3:1. The Greek word for perilous is chalepos which actually means: hard to bear, troublesome, dangerous, (harsh, fierce, savage). Savage? Are we not living in savage times? Mothers killing their children, fathers killing their families, mass murders occurring all over this country and around the world – sounds pretty savage to me.

As we are all aware, the teaching of the fact that we have a Creator God who we are all accountable to has in recent years become a forbidden subject in our government run, completely secular public school system. We know God is not pleased with the American people’s decision to eliminate Him from their consciences. Therefore we are paying a heavy price for this disobedience in the form of rampant homosexuality. Don’t look for it to end any time soon. As long as we stay the path we’ve chosen the judgment will continue and it will increase in its intensity – like birth pangs on a pregnant woman. If you are a Christian reading this commentary all I can say is beware of more evil coming. You might want to learn to pray the following prayer “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14. God is not speaking to the pagans but to His people. His children need to turn from our wicked ways, repent, to become doers of His word and put away the apathy and ignorance that has infiltrated His Church.

So, the next time someone asks you if or when you think God will judge America you can tell them America has been under judgment since we took the Bible out of our public schools and replaced it with the most horrible of lies - evolution. This extremely pervasive lie is completely satanic from its inception. Yet the vast majority of humanity, including many professing Christians, accepts it as truth over God’s word.

For many years now, worldwide, we’ve been killing the unborn babies in the womb at the rate of approximately 50 million per year, how then can God not judge the nations who’ve committed such atrocities and turned their backs on Him and His blessings? All children are a blessing from God. How can He just simply ignore this attitude of hate towards Him? Judgment has come to those nations who’ve found it necessary to embrace evil and eschew good, with America being a major promoter of evil around the world.

God’s judgment has come in the form of giving the foolish people who hate Him over to their own lusts. They don’t see it of course, but God’s judgment has befallen America as well as every other nation on earth who all dance to the same tune – they are without a doubt followers of Satan.

God help us,

Ron Graham

DECEPTION AT THE END

2011-07-21T18:02:00.000-07:00

Deception at the End

7/21/2011

“And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.” Revelation 20:7-8. The number of those who will be deceived at the end of the 1,000 year reign of Christ will be as numerous as the sand of the sea. Wow! These people have lived with Christ and seen Him in His glorified body. They know Him, yet they still follow Satan and rebel against Him. How does Satan do it?

The believers who live through the Tribulation will be mortal. They will live and repopulate the earth during the Millennial Kingdom. Without the devastation of sin taking its toll, we can imagine the population increase during the Millennium will be enormous, almost incomprehensible. All those who are born during the millennium will enjoy the benefits and blessings of Christ's reign on the earth, but they will still be born with a sin nature, and they will still have to freely repent and believe the Gospel, personally choosing Christ as Savior and Lord.

Jesus Christ will take His rightful place on His Throne as the world’s monarch, only His monarchy will be perfect, unlike those of earth’s past. He will insure a perfect form of justice, while not tolerating the sin so prevalent in today's society “I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee…I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron… Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.” Psalm 2:7-12. When Jesus comes back to set up His Kingdom on earth He will not come as a suffering servant this time around, but as a conquering King. In military terms, He won’t put up with any dissention in the ranks.

We can only imagine such a time of “heaven on earth.". With God on His earthly throne is there any doubt that the earth will be filled with all the provisions people will need such as food and water? Everything folks need to live a comfortable life will be abundant. No one will lack anything. We, His saints, will rule and reign with Him in various capacities. One of our duties will certainly be to instruct those born during the millennium about Jesus Christ and teach them what He did for His creation. The people born during the millennium will not need to have faith that Jesus Christ exists as His existence will be obvious. He will be here so all eyes can see Him, but they will need to believe in His death, burial, and resurrection, just as we do now. As the Old Testament saints were looking forward in faith to His coming, we (the Church) look back on the cross and believe; faith is the binding tie. The tribulation saints will also look to the cross, as will those who are born during the millennium reign of Christ. They must become born again to be saved and to be able to enter Heaven. Even during Christ’s 1,000 year reign He will still be the way, the truth, and the life, and no man will be able to come to the Father but by the Son.

Apparently, since so many will be deceived by the father of all lies (Satan) towards the end of the millennium, we are given a clue here that unbelief isn’t reliant upon Satan’s lies since He will be bound in the bottomless pit for most of that duration. Life will be good during the millennial reign of Christ on earth. We will live under His perfect justice without sin, and even though the curse which is currently over all of God’s creation will have been lifted, the sin nature inherent in all humans will be a determining factor in the mass rebellion against our Lord as the end of the millennium approaches its climax.

Let’s take a trip back in time and try to see a parallel between the Garden of Eden and the end of the Millennium. We read in the book of Genesis that apparently God enjoyed walking in the Garden of Eden in the cool of the day. Adam, being immortal before his huge stumble that brought about the fall of mankind, saw God; they spoke, apparently, face to face. If God were to show Himself to any of us right now, we being mortal would most certainly die. Adam did not need faith to believe God existed. Nor will the people born during the millennium need faith to believe that God exists since He will be present and they will be able to see Him as He exists today in His glorified body. Still Adam rebelled against God. Why? His wife, Eve, was beguiled by the serpent in the Garden. Adam blew it by even allowing his wife to speak to this being, let alone be beguiled by him.

“Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.” Ezekiel 28:14-15. Lucifer was at one time the anointed cherub that covers, in other words he was God’s number one angel. His name means “light bearer”. He was an angel of light, the most beautiful of all angels. He probably beguiled Eve with his beauty. Yes, in Genesis he’s referred to as the serpent, but that word in the Hebrew is “nachash”, meaning the shinning one. That word can also be translated as diviner, someone who practices divination. He first shows up as a serpent, but this serpent could have been a very beautiful and beguiling being. Certainly Lucifer still had the ability to present himself as something that would not frighten Eve but convince her of his sincere desire to help her. This being (the serpent) had the uncanny ability to place doubt in Eve’s mind; after the doubt was established he went on with the lie, both of which he’s promoted over and over again for the past 6,000 years.

Lucifer asked Eve a question which instilled that first bit of doubt in her “And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Genesis 3:1b. After he heard Eve’s response he blatantly lied to her while tempting her at the same time. “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4-5. As I mentioned, this has been Satan’s modus operandi since the beginning. He’s good at it, and during the millennial reign of Christ, Satan will have a thousand years to perfect his craft to the nth degree.

Have you ever known a liar? I mean a real liar, one who is so convincing they could sell refrigerators to Eskimos? You know the kind of person I’m talking about, they are incredibly persuasive, they have a huge abundance of charisma, and many of them these days take up residency in Washington DC. But no matter how well a human works at perfecting their ability to lie and deceive others they can never best their father, the god of all lies. How will Satan convince those living during and at the end of the millennium to reject Jesus Christ and follow him? The same way he’s done it with multitudes of earth’s inhabitants of the past. First create doubt, and then put forth the lie. Many people would rather believe a lie than the truth. Many of the folks living in those still fleshly bodies will be just as susceptible to the doubt and lie as Eve was, even more so when we consider she was immortal and where she was living at the time.

In the beginning Adam and Eve were created immortal. When God proclaimed everything He had just finished making was very good – it was perfect in His thinking, no flaws, therefore we can conclude Adam and Eve were immortal. Yet they freely gave up their immortality for the taste of what they thought would be a better life, so will multitudes at the end of the millennium. They, being unbelievers, will want to taste the lie which will be promoted by the father of all lies, Satan himself. But it will be much worse for them than it was for Adam and Eve. Don’t misunderstand, there will still be those who come to Christ during the millennium, but the vast majority, just as it is today, will reject the Messiah and they will go down in flames. “And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.” Revelation 20:9. They will have had more time than any other people of earth to discover who their King is and believe, but alas, many will make no such discovery as they will perish in unbelief.

Why is it easier or more fun to believe a lie? I imagine it’s like believing in evolution and the big bang theory. Throughout all the years these two impossible theories have been postulated there has never been a shred of proof to substantiate either theory. Yet, people believe them. Why? I suppose it’s like that old adage “Don’t confuse me with facts.” “In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth.” Genesis 1:1. Yet this Bible verse is totally rejected by the majority of earth dwellers. Why? The lie has become the truth and the truth dismissed as merely fable or myth. The theory of evolution, as well as the big bang theory both are quite satanic in their totality. Even many professing Christians believe this lie. So, how will Satan deceive the vast majority of none believers at the end of the millennium? Isn’t it obvious?

Satan and his cronies will stop at nothing to try to defeat God. Impossible I know, but Satan has such a hatred for humanity that he can’t see the impossibility in his actions. That’s a lot of hate. And the longer we live on this planet the more his hate grows. Evolution, the big bang, and the creation of other gods are all part of Satan’s plan to convince man that there is either no God at all, or that there are many gods and many ways to Heaven. Either way, with these lies, he’s become the winner of many souls. These souls will occupy the same eternity as Satan (Hell). Satan has always opposed God, and God has done more to save His Creation than a billion Satan’s could even think to do. Yet Satan is still followed by the vast majority of earth’s populace. Most of God’s creation, even though God died to save them and keep them out of that horrible place (Hell), will continue in their rejection of His free gift of salvation. That free gift was not free for God as He had to give His only begotten Son, Jesus the Christ, to die for His creation. And die He did but thankfully He has risen and is alive today. We serve a living, loving God who would do anything to see us come to Him instead of to His adversary, Satan.

Jesus Christ will still be rejected by multitudes living during the millennium just as He is today. This is a hard pill to swallow for anyone who lives every day for Jesus Christ. Still the Bible is true and we can believe every word. Many will follow their father the devil right into Hell and probably without a second thought.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

ALL THE PEOPLES OF THE EARTH

2011-07-14T09:33:00.001-07:00

All the Peoples of the Earth

7/14/2011

The following verse has been the lead off verse in many of my past commentaries and yet it seems I’m continually forced to explain it or defend it – here we go again. “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6. What could Jesus Christ, the Creator of the universe, have possibly meant by proclaiming such a statement so completely exclusive as to thoroughly eliminate any other way of obtaining eternal life? Do you suppose He was only referring to those people who’ve heard the Gospel and made their choice to either believe in Him or reject Him? Surely He couldn’t have been considering the 1.5 billion adherents to the religion of Islam, right? And what about those people who live in the deepest regions of earth’s most obscure locations? How do they fare in regards to that verse above? Would it be fair of God to punish those who’ve never heard the Gospel or who’ve been taught another way to paradise?

“Well God is a fair God; surely He wouldn’t send someone to Hell for an eternity just because they weren’t given the opportunity to hear the Gospel message, or they were taught completely contrary to what the Gospel of Christ teaches.” Let’s get something straight right now before we venture any further into this seemingly controversial subject. “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:” Matthew 25:41. God created Hell for Satan and His angels, not for man. When people end up in Hell it’s by their choice, not God’s. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9. Never has it been God’s choice to send people to Hell, nor will it ever be. It is always each individual’s choice. That’s what love is; God loves us so much He gave us a way to avoid Hell but He won’t interfere with our choice if we decide to choose Hell over an eternity spent with Him.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16. This is the theme of Paul’s entire letter to the Roman Christians. Paul gladly proclaimed it as God’s panacea for mankind’s spiritual need. Paul indentified the Gospel of Christ as the “infinite resources of God” applied toward the goal of salvation in the life of everyone who believes regardless of racial background. And there is only one stipulation to obtaining God’s infinite resources and that is all people on earth no matter who they are or where they are must, individually, believe in the Gospel of Christ. “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved…” 1 Corinthians 15: 1-2a.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Romans 1:18. Humans have a very difficult time grasping in their finite minds the meaning behind the “Wrath of God”. God’s wrath is not based on His emotions or anger, which is a human trait. Humans are motivated by selfish personal reasons and wrath in human terms would fall into a category of a need to punish or get back at someone – such as a need for revenge. But God is not motivated by human emotions. He is completely righteous in His character, and the fairness which is derived out of the minds of men is insufficient as far as God is concerned. What we believe is fair is subjective. Everyone has different motivating factors when it comes to their concept of what fairness is. Man’s subjective ideas of what fairness represents isn’t a quality that God considers when it comes to judging whether or not a person is born again. Fairness can’t save anyone. Just because you don’t think God is being fair won’t change His character. He’ll still do things His way. His way is just and perfect. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9.

So what do we do about all those people who don’t have Bibles and can’t read even if they had a Bible? What about the Muslims who are not taught about Jesus as Savior and Lord? Many people on this earth are taught that evolution is true and there is no God and that human beings evolved from pond scum. This lie has been taught in public schools as truth for decades; many of these folks may never hear the truth of the Gospel. What is God to do with these folks? To be fair in men’s minds He would need to place these people under some other type of judgment that would uniquely pertain to them and their circumstances. Unlike the rest of those who’ve heard the Gospel yet still reject the truth, those who’ve accepted evolution and the lie that there is no God should get a more fair shake from our Creator, right? Wrong!

What about those who’ve been taught some other religion, something which is completely contrary to the Bible and God’s provision for salvation? Will they go to Hell because they’ve been taught erroneously yet believe that lie? Yes. Every individual on the face of this planet is held accountable to God to seek the truth “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.” Romans 1:19a. Some want to believe that this verse is referring to God manifesting Himself into the conscience of every man, but that’s not what this verse is saying. Verse 19 refers to the fact of His revelation and the next verse, verse 20 will explain the process by which that revelation takes place.

“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:” Romans 1:20. Paul wrote this verse as a condemnation to all those who reject God. “Clearly seen” means just that, clearly seen. And “understood by the things that are made” means that what God has made is not only clearly seen but understandable by observing the things which He alone has made. People of earth can’t say they didn’t know God nor can they say they’ve never had a chance to know God since God has made even the invisible things of Himself known to man through His creation, “even His eternal power and Godhead; so they are without excuse.”(v20b) God never said He inserted who He is into the brain (conscience) of every human; He said He showed it to them through His creation. They either accept that revelation or they reject it. Their choice.

Paul simply explains that we are all held accountable by God to know He exists, and that knowledge of His existence is evident by the fact that we can observe His creation every day. But, and this is imperative that everyone fully understand, the knowledge that God exists will not save anyone, including the people in darkest Africa who have never heard the Gospel message. Paul never refers to salvation in verse 20, only that they who reject God are without excuse. “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Romans 10:17.

Anybody who has a question about how the people in darkest Africa, or Muslims for that matter, are to hear the Gospel Jesus has the answer “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” Matthew 28:18-20. How many of you reading this commentary have stepped up to the plate so to speak and preached the Gospel to others? How many of you have ventured out of your comfort zone to make sure everyone you know has heard the Gospel message? Where is your heart? Is there a burden on your heart for the lost and perishing? Charles Spurgeon says “If you don’t have a burden for the lost you may be lost yourself.” If there is one person on the face of this earth who hasn’t heard the Gospel message, who does that put at fault? Who did Jesus give this commandment to? Was it not given to all those who claimed to be His disciples? Perhaps you’re one of those who believe that, that commandment was meant for only a select few and not Christ’s Church in its entirety.

Again, speaking of the fairness of God, our God is a just God and what you and I might consider fair may not even be a part of God’s attributes. Humanity’s idea of fairness is always going to be based on skewed emotions. For a moment, let’s give fairness some real hard human thought. In our human estimation of fairness, just how fair was it that God had to endure watching His only begotten Son being scourged – tortured like a criminal almost to the point of death, while being mocked, scorned, and even spit upon? How fair was it that God had to stand idly by watching as His Son endured the most extreme humiliation? How fair was it that after God created man that His creation would rebel against Him and need reconciliation so we wouldn’t all end up in Hell? Finally, was it fair that God would be subjected to watching while His only begotten Son was nailed to a cross, naked to the world, and finally die while hanging there still being verbally abused? We serve an awesome and just God; human ideals and human concepts of fairness have nothing to do with Who we serve and how He dispenses His justice.

“And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” Matthew 26:39. Jesus paid the full price for our sins, He didn’t deserve what He went through, but we humans do deserve punishment – we deserve God’s wrath. Every last human being on the face of this planet is guilty – born guilty – awaiting to face God’s judgment. Because God did not allow the cup to pass from His only begotten Son we know that there is no other way for a person to obtain salvation and eternal life than through believing in Christ and His death, burial, and resurrection.

In verse 16 of Romans chapter 1 where Paul speaks of salvation, he also mentions what we are being saved from. It’s the wrath of God. Those of us who are born again have dodged that bullet by placing our faith, trust, and hope in God’s only begotten Son and what He accomplished on that cross. The Gospel message is imperative for coming to that conclusion and making a decision for Christ. No Gospel message taught in darkest Africa? No salvation is possible.

“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3. The Creator of the universe tells us that we must be born again to see Heaven. According to Jesus this can only occur when we believe that He died for the sin of the world, that He was buried, and that He’s alive today because the grave couldn’t hold Him. The resurrection of our Lord and Savior is true, and documented by His disciples who saw the empty tomb and who watched as He entered the room where they were all hiding. Then some 500 others bore witness to the fact that He is alive and that He had been resurrected. The Gospel message is essential to the salvation of mankind and Christianity is built on this Gospel and no other. Just believing that there is a God through His special revelation (creation) won’t get you into Heaven. God is adamant in His word that salvation comes through no one or nothing else. “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:12. That name is Jesus the Christ. The Messiah of Israel – mashiyach nagiyd, Messiah the King – the anointed of God. There is no other NAME under heaven given among men, whereby we MUST be saved.

My wife mentioned something the other day I thought was quite profound. She said “People play cards and board games and they, for the most part, play by the rules set down by the designer of that game. But when it comes to God’s rules (our Creator) people always want to make changes that better fit their lives and emotions – their concept of fairness”. Amen! This is exactly what we observe in the erroneous explanations of how the people of the deepest jungles and recesses on planet earth will be accepted by the Father in lieu of salvation through His only begotten Son. When people feel the need to placate the masses through politically correct means concerning some 1.5 billion people who worship the god of Islam the same logic is used.

Here’s a newsflash for all those who like to think the Muslims are not part of the equation when it comes to following Jesus Christ and Him alone for salvation. They are all condemned to Hell. They play by a totally different set of rules than Christians who worship the only true and living God and designer of the game, and they have already lost.

Unless someone tells the Muslims the truth – the Gospel message – and they repent and place their faith, trust, and hope in Jesus Christ and Him alone for salvation they will remain on the broad way that leads only to destruction, as will the natives of deepest darkest Africa. “…for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:” Matthew 7:13. How many is many? We aren’t told but in contrast in the next verse Jesus mentions that few will enter in through the strait way and narrow gate. Both words representing many and few in the Greek are used denoting numbers. We can only guess at what number the Creator of the universe was trying to convey, but I suggest He’s quite serious about the fact that many will perish and few will be given everlasting life.

Many of us are guilty of redesigning God into an image that falls more in line with our humanistic thinking. But what we should be doing with our self-made God is comparing him to the reality of the God of the Bible. Then we should make the appropriate alterations to our thinking which will put us in tune with our Creator and His truth and remove any foolish inclinations.

The fact that salvation comes through Jesus Christ alone is true and biblical and that truth can’t be skewed even a little for those who wish to distance themselves from the fact that perhaps they’ve never really committed to following Jesus’ commandment concerning preaching the Gospel to the world. Nowhere in the Bible are we told that there will be some who will be exempt from the necessity of hearing the Gospel and believing, nowhere. This concept is, in its entirety, a man made doctrine built on man’s emotions and ideals. God has never changed His mind about salvation. The Old Testament believers were looking to and believing in faith that their coming Messiah would be their salvation. Today we look back at the cross, at where our Messiah was hung and where He died. Then we look to His resurrection as our hope for eternal life. Without the Messiah, Jesus the Christ, without believing in His death, burial, and resurrection our hope is in vain. “And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. …And if Christ be not raised… ye are yet in your sins.” 1 Corinthians 15:14, 17.

“…No man cometh unto the Father but by me.” John 14:6b. Let me just add, period.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

DO YOU TRUST HIM

2011-07-09T18:04:00.000-07:00

Do You Trust Him

7/7/2011

“…The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour…” 2 Samuel 22:2b-3a. David knew his God and he trusted God. God knew David; He knew David trusted Him in all things. How about you? Do you trust God and does God know you trust Him? Everyday God finds a new way to ask us “Do you trust Me?”

Trusting in God means we’ve laid aside our feeble attempts at trying to run our own lives and have now turned all aspects of our lives over to Him. His abilities are far greater than we can imagine. God is fully capable of directing our paths but we, holding onto various portions of our own lives, might never realize the opportunities that God’s directions would provide simply because we are lacking sufficient trust in Him. With God it’s all or nothing. We fully trust God or we don’t. God knows if your trust is deficient, He knows you better than you know yourself.

Everyone remembers the story of how David faced down the giant Goliath, but there is a part of that story that many never pick up on. First, before we get into that very interesting yet little known fact, let’s get a little bit of background into this amazing feat of courage displayed by this youngster, David. “David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine…” 1 Samuel 17:37. Was David’s remarks based on his own courage or did he fully trust in the One and only living God? It was David’s trust in God which gave him the courage to face this giant.

Now let’s discover the depth of David’s trust in God. “And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.” 1 Samuel 17:40. Did David, even though fully trusting God to deliver him out of the hand of this Philistine, actually think he would need five stones to defeat Goliath? David slew the giant but used only one stone. So why did David, trusting fully in his God, need four extra stones? Not part of this story is that little tidbit of fact I mentioned earlier. Goliath had four brothers (1 Chronicles 20:4-8.) David was ready for them all. Was David depending on his own courage, his own abilities? Not in any way. David completely and totally trusted in God that day? David trusted God to not only deliver him out of the hand of Goliath but also if need be out of the hands of Goliath’s four brothers, hence the four extra stones. David knew God, he had a personal relationship with God, and David was victorious only because he trusted in His God to be there at that battle with him.

We all go through battles; sometimes it seems they’re a daily occurrence. When we are fighting against supernatural foes we must always trust in our God to defeat those foes. No matter how much we’d like to fight our own battles, mere humans are no match for malevolent supernatural beings. After all, we can’t even see them, but God can and does. When we trust God to fight those battles for us, His and our enemy’s stand no chance. If our trust in God is lacking, our ability to stand the test of those battles will also be lacking.

This life we’ve been given is as fleeting as a vapor of smoke, but as short as it can be there is a reason we were created and it isn’t to procure a wealth of treasures here on earth before we die. We’ve been given life so we and our Creator God can build a super relationship together, but we must place our trust and faith in Him for that relationship to fully develop. Trust is the basis for the relationship, and God knows this truth better than we do. Not one day will pass in our life that God will neglect to ask us the question “Do you trust Me?”

In the human mind it just isn’t natural to place our full trust in someone we can’t even see. But the born again believer knows that this trust is built on faith, and is essential to our faith. As our faith in our Creator God grows so does our trust in Him. That’s what God wants from us. He’s asking each of us who have placed our faith, trust, and hope for our salvation in His only begotten Son and Him alone, “Now, do you really trust me?” You and I must decide for ourselves if we truly trust God. If we are inclined to place our trust in our own abilities, in our own strengths, in picking ourselves up by own bootstraps, God knows those inclinations. But He wants us to trust in Him and His abilities and He’s showing us all the time how we can fully trust Him. We must see God’s works in our lives as His works not our own.

There is a lot more to trusting God as we live out our lives here on earth than we can even imagine. God is our Creator and as such He wants recognition for that aspect. “In the beginning God created the Heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1. If you don’t believe God is the Creator of all things in this universe then it’s apparent that you do not trust Him because you don’t believe His word. Think about it. Is there any part of God’s word that you dismiss as myth or fable or even legend? God’s Word is truth, but if we can’t get our minds around His word as fully true then we’ll never fully trust Him to tell us the truth.

We trust God that there will always be air to breath, or do we? First we must have faith that God will always supply our needs, and air, water, and food are all essential to those needs. Take one of those three elements away from us and we die. Does God supply our needs or do we supply our own needs. Do we believe air, water, and our food supply are just magically tossed before us? Do we trust in ourselves to supply food for our families, or is our trust in God as our needs are met every single day? Is it merely our self-effort that gives us our hope that tomorrow there will be food on the table, water to drink, air to breathe?

My family and I lived ten years on the coast of Oregon and many times we would take a trip to the south coast town of Brookings to shop at our favorite department store. On every trip we crossed a bridge, the “Thomas Creek Bridge” which is promoted as the tallest bridge in Oregon. The bridge was built at a height of 345 feet, and it spans a vast ravine. Each time we crossed that bridge my thoughts went to the engineer who designed and built it. Each time I had to place my life and that of my family in the hands of someone I didn’t know, someone who might have been drunk or on drugs when he designed that bridge. Who was this guy? I know he’s an engineer but I also know he’s just a man – a fallible man and with problems of his own which could have affected his judgments and his math. So, do those who cross that bridge everyday or once a week trust man that it will remain in place, or should those folks be trusting God that that bridge is safe? You see how God works? Every day He finds a new way to ask the question “Do you trust Me?” I can add to that question these words, “Or do you trust man?” Do you trust the Creator or the creation, the Potter or the clay, who do you trust?

Every aspect of our lives has God fully involved. Those who don’t acknowledge God or believe He even exists aren’t going to admit they trust Him. But whether they trust Him or not, He’s fully involved in supplying their needs just as He does with those who love Him and trust Him. No one on planet earth can survive without God. Those who are perishing wouldn’t agree with me as they, for the most part, believe we evolved from pond scum therefore there is no God and we are all responsible for our own existence. In their minds, everything we see, everything we can touch, smell, and enjoy with all our senses came from nothing. It all just happened one day billions of years ago. There’s an old song I used to listen to when I was younger but I never really paid attention to the words. These words were a part of that song “Nothing from nothing leaves nothing” those words mean so much more to me now than they ever did when I was a young man. Trusting in God means we don’t believe every theory man throws at us. Man will always attempt to usurp the authority and omnipotence of God. But God, everyday finds a new way to ask the same question “Do you trust Me?”

When you give of yourself or your resources God is involved. He asks you to trust Him and He will return your efforts or your resources to you many times over. How can He do that? He’s God. An old pastor I used to listen to on the radio once said “You can’t out give God” no matter what God places on your heart to do for others when you follow through with God’s will it means you trust Him. God will bless your faithfulness. Don’t think so? Try Him. “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” Malachi 3:10. What’s God saying? You got it. “Do you trust Me?” In other words, if you trust God enough to bless others with a portion of what He’s blessed you with He promises to pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. Being a good steward with God’s property simply means you trust God.

“Do you trust Me?” These are God’s words spoken to believers in Christ. But God is asking a similar question of all those who reject Him, “Won’t you trust Me?” He’s not giving up on even one soul. When God gains their trust He gains another child. When we say “Yes Lord, I trust You” we admit we are a child of God. We must trust God that His Word is true and that He did enter His creation and become a man, the man Jesus the Christ. That He did die on a cross to save His creation. Only a perfect God could have accomplished this for His rebellious creation, and all He asks of each rebellious child is “Do you trust Me?”

“I trust You, God” is easy to say, but do you really trust Him? To trust in God fully we must turn our lives over to Him, completely. That means whether or not we are financially secure, whether we are in good health or not, whether we are being persecuted and mistreated for our faith. In all things we must trust God. We might, as Christians, be living in a very comfortable environment where we’ve become very content in our surroundings and nothing seems to be able to penetrate our perfect peace. Nevertheless He still asks “Do you trust Me?” Why? Because tomorrow a tornado or flood might wipe away everything we hold dear.

So the question I’ve posed throughout this commentary is God’s question to each of you and it really takes some thought. Don’t say “Yes God I trust You” if you still hold to some form of unbelief or you hold onto certain aspects of your life that God really wouldn’t want any part of (sin). We can only answer that question truthfully if we study it and allow it permeate our souls. Do I trust You, God? I hope the answer is yes, but remember God knows the truth no matter how you answer that question.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

twotug@embarqmail.com

THE MYSTERY OF SPIRIT SOUL AND BODY

2011-07-08T10:42:00.000-07:00

The mystery of spirit, soul and body

I would like to talk about a fascinating subject that not only ties in with our everyday living but also very much relates to the Rapture, Tribulation and Millennium. Just like this subject by nature has a progression to it the article will also take on a systematic order.I believe you will enjoy and relate to this writing.

I would like to start with the practical interpretation and go into the prophetic implication towards the end of the article. If we don't understand the progression of what I am saying we will only have a surface understanding of the prophetic implication of some pivotal end-time prophecy verses involved in the number 3.

I like writing articles to edify Believers in Christ but also to invite people that don't know Jesus Christ into their hearts.

This present article was a search-quest for what I did not know. This has got to be one of the most amazing subjects I have ever had the privilege of writing yet it was the most difficult. I have found that we serve a good God. When God sees us searching He starts to reveal His riches in His grace.

The sum of one plus two equals three. As Believes in Jesus Christ we probably will go through 1 and 2 by experience to get to 3. We are Saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ (Eph. 2: 8-9). If a Christian dies early he or she may not go through this process.

One (sovereign), two (division) and three ( complete). The mystery of any problems we struggle with is found in our make up (1) Spirit (2) Soul (3) Body. The Apostle Paul says we are comprised of 3 parts (1 Thes. 5:23).

Number 3 is so important. From a Biblical point of view 3 denotes divine perfection.

(1) Spirit, (2) Soul and (3) Body. We have to ask ourselves how the Tabernacle was built. This is paramount for us to understand this because we are comprised of three parts.

When we walk through life we are so conditioned to say (1) Body (2) Soul and (3) Spirit but this is not what the Bible teaches. And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ.1 Thes. 5:23.

Notice the order (1) Spirit, (2) Soul (3) Body. There was a reason why the Apostle Paul started with spirit and ended with body. This is how the Tabernacle was constructed. In 1 Cor. 3: 16 the Bible says we are the temple of the Holy Spirit.

When anybody really looks at the construction of the Tabernacle God wanted to dwell not only among His people but in His people. The Ark of the Covenant was constructed first and that went in the Holy of Holies to be covered by the Mercy Seat. The Ark represents Jesus Christ (Yeshua). Everything else was built around the Ark.

This is because Jesus Christ changes a person from the inside out. The Bible says in Numbers chapter 2 that the Tabernacle was to be placed in the center of the Twelve Tribes. Everything in the Tabernacle points to Jesus Christ but even more specific our salvation past, present and future are all in Him.The Tabernacle gives us a picture of this.

The outer court represents our spirit and our Salvation in the past tense ( Romans 10: 9-10). The inner court represents our soul and our Salvation in the present tense ( Philippians 2:12). That would be our sanctification through our salvation in the past tense. The Holy of Holies represents our body or our salvation in the future tense. When we get to heaven our body, soul and spirit will be one in Him. Everything that was constructed in the Tabernacle were all symbols of the salvation to come through Jesus Christ.

In Exodus 25:2 relative to the outer court of the Tabernacle God encourages the people to give with their hearts. This involves the spirit of man. The Brazen Altar symbolizes the Cross of Jesus Christ and the Lavor symbolizes the Resurrection.

When we got Saved we accepted Jesus Christ into our hearts ( Spirit) because He died on the Cross ( Brazen Altar) and rose from the dead ( Lavor). Do we see why the Apostle Paul could not say (1) Body (2) Soul (3) Spirit in 1 Thes. 5:23.

When we accepted Jesus Christ into our hearts we did not do that with our body.We did that with our spirit. The spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. Romans 8:16.

For the most part the world tries to find God with their soul and body but it can not be done. This was made of bronze and this speaks of judgment. Our sins had to be judged ( bronze). In Lev. 6:13 the Bible tells us the fire was never to go out. This spoke of Jesus Christ dying on the Cross once and for all to take care of the sin problem.

When the people went into the outer court they were very aware that blood had to be shed for the forgiveness of sins. This is exactly what Jesus did for us. He shed His blood for our sins. Heb. 9:22.

The inner court of the Tabernacle which involves our soul or the present tense of our salvation is spoken of in Philippians 2:12-13.This really gives us an incredible picture of our experiential walk with Christ. There is a soulish battle that we have to go through in life and the table of showbread speaks of our experience with Christ on a daily basis.

The Lamp Stand speaks of the body of Christ. We as part of His body are the light of the world. Luke 11:33. There was beaten gold in the inner court which represents our experiences in life. Only the priests could go into the inner court but according to the New Testament in 1 Peter 2:5, Rev. 1:6 we are priests so we are allowed to eat of the Bread of Life ( table of showbread). We read the Scriptures and feed on the Person of Jesus Christ. He is our daily Manna.

Since the veil of the Temple was torn in two we can now come into the presence of God. We obviously need that presence to go through our soulish struggles in life.

After the inner court came the Holy of Holies which is represented of our body or the future tense of our salvation. If the rapture happens as soon as we think it might then we will be airlifted ( raptured) into heaven ( Holy of Holies ).

The High Priest went into the Holy of Holies once a year on the Day of Atonement. Heb. 9:7. This involves the physical presence of God. We will have our resurrected bodies in His eternal presence. The Ark of the Covenant was placed in the Holy of Holies. Jesus Christ is our Ark. In Exodus 30 the incense was in the inner court and in Hebrews chapter 9 the incense was probably moved from the inner court to the Holy of Holies because our communion is now very close to God because of what Jesus Christ did for us at the Cross. We will be in the very physical presence of God with our new resurrected bodies after the rapture of the Church ( Holy of Holies).

Do you remember when the Apostle Paul got saved? He was really excited and started a church in Damascus but you never heard of those Believers again. Paul probably started that Church in the flesh and they just dwindled off. Paul had to be moved to complete need by Jesus Christ Himself. Perhaps when Paul had a thorn in his flesh he was at the number 2 level. This denotes division and it is being highlighted in his life. This was his soulish struggle.

Suffering is gift from God that nobody wants.Paul was knee deep in pain but his response was submission to God.

In Matthew 18:20 it says " For where TWO ( emphasis mine) or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them." The number 2 is the number of division ( soulish struggle) but it can also be a dual meaning of two Believers coming together.

What is the basic theme of prayer meetings? The World is tough ( division) so let's gather together in prayer as Believers ( uniting). Christians go home but they are still going through the soulish struggle. Life is not nice. What is God doing? He is working through Christians in His power.

All of the characters in the Bible went through soulish struggles. Due to time I will just briefly mention 2 interesting people that made the Hall of Faith in Hebrews chapter 11. Sarah and Samson.

Sarah spent most of her life in isolation and rejection yet she must have allowed God to strengthen her more toward the end of her life because she is in Hebrews chapter 11 (The Hall of Faith). Samson was a trouble maker among other things yet in those last 20 years of his life when he was blinded and held captive he must have let God strengthen him. He is in Hebrews chapter 11 ( The Hall of Faith).

The Holy Spirit is inside of us making us stronger through the grace of Jesus Christ. God wants to take Believers in Him to the third level of experiential completeness in Him. Like I said we are already positionally complete in Christ. Col. 2: 10. He understands that the world is really tough but "The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him." Nahum 1:7.

If God sees something lodged inside of us that is not good then we will probably learn the hard way. If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior you will probably still go thorough a soulish struggle in life but never get the victory.This is only found through Jesus Christ.

You may not want to be in the script but you have already been scripted in ( past tense) before the foundation of the world because you were born. You have a choice. Since we are so close to the rapture I am praying that many people receive Jesus Christ into their hearts.

Let me just say nobody will ever know some of the really bad soulish struggles that some people did and/are enduring. It will be revealed on the other side. The Apostle Paul spoke of it in Romans chapter 6,7 and 8.

John the Baptist probably said it best in John 3:30. He said " He must increase, but I must decrease." Unless we understand the increase/decrease principle we will never allow God to take us to the third level. When God takes us from the second to third level it is a little mysterious. We will never totally be able to figure it out because a work of God is a mystery. It surpasses all understanding. I know this because that is what the Bible says in Philippians 4:7. By the way I'm not saying a Believer can't go back to the soulish level of their problems. Just because God progresses His children in His experiential power does not mean he or she won't go through another perhaps more intense trial. They probably will.

We are glad that we are just about to be raptured into the loving arms of Jesus Christ in Heaven? It is possible that God can take us so far into the spirit that we might actually forget what our soulish problem even was? In Hebrews 2:9 the Bible is saying Jesus was made for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor. In verse 10 it says our salvation is made PERFECT ( emphasis mine) through sufferings. This perfection is level 3.

This person that I am talking about is already a Christian but God is working on him. I just want to note that the Apostle Paul was circumstantially bound in prison at the end of his life but he was free on the inside through Jesus Christ (Yeshua). God brought the Apostle Paul to the third complete level and I think that it is very interesting that this is when he started writing letters to the Churches. He did not have the full wisdom of God to do this earlier in his ministry.

In Philippians 1:6 it says that God will continue to do a good work in our life until the day of Jesus Christ. I want you to see how different the first level is in comparison to the third level. On the first level (it's more about me;I have a responsibility before God to get saved -- to get right before God ) the third level ( it's all about Jesus Christ). God progresses us to a type of the Holy of Holies.

There is a fork in the road between level 2 and level 3. When we trust God we are meditating on Him.When we worry we are giving the devil meditation. The devil is not capable of granting us anything because he can not even tell the truth.

God has to test our faith. Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me...Psalm 138:7.We went through many deep soulish trials and struggles and now we are trusting God that He will give us the strength to face the giants.

When I researched this it made me think about my problems. God of course keeps working on us because He sees the whole picture.

There are so many neat examples I could give you regarding this 1,2,3 principle. (1) Father (2) Son, (3) Holy Spirit. (1) Omniscience (2) Omnipresence (3) Omnipotence. (1) Eternity Past (2) Eternity Present (3) Eternity Future.

When the word Shepherd was ascribed to Jesus Christ, depending upon where He was in eternal history it progressed (1) The Good Shepherd ( John 10:14), (2) The Great Shepherd ( Heb. 13:20), (3) The Chief Shepherd ( 1 Peter 4:5). This title actually progresses from death to resurrection to His glory.

Our Lord's being is perfect and so is His office. (1) Prophet (2) Priest (3) King (Deut. 17: 18). From the back drop of Christianity a person (1) Becomes regenerated ( accepts Jesus Christ into their heart) (2) Attempts to grow in the Lord through problems and trials (soulish struggle) (3) The person hopefully becomes mature after the soulish struggle and starts to focus upon the Person of Jesus Christ to unite rather than divide in the Spirit of God.

This is where we meet God in a deep way so a person at this point has his priorities right and can now focus on Jesus Christ and put His principles into action. There is (1) Faith (2) Hope (3) Love. From the back drop of faith (1) I think I can. (2) I know I can. (3) It is already done. Maturity is a process of completion that God must accomplish in our lives as His children.

I would like to give you just one more example. (1) Primary interpretation. (2) Practical application and (3) Prophetic implication. God is not stopping at the primary and practical. He is going into the prophetic. Jesus is coming very soon.

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord, Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (10) for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Romans 10:9-10.

Time is truly running out. Today is the day of salvation because there might not be a tomorrow. Nobody is going to want to miss the rapture because the world will get really bad. Jesus Christ is the only answer! Receive Him into your heart and live for Him. Watch for His return and be ready at any moment. Glory to God Jesus Christ is coming very soon!
Bob D.

DO YOU KNOW HIM

2011-06-30T18:06:00.001-07:00

Do You Know Him

6/30/2011

“Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” Matthew 7:13-14. According to God’s own words the vast majority of human beings will never come into a saving relationship with His Son. Statistically speaking (meaning a person or persons being treated as a piece of data or information) multitudes of humans will take the wrong road which will lead them to an eternity void of God (Hell). In comparison, a much smaller number of folks will chose the way (Jesus Christ) that will lead them into eternal glory (Heaven). The only question in this life you need to be overly concerned with is which statistic will you choose to become?

Perhaps you’re reading this commentary because someone loves you enough to want you to see the truth. They’ve sent it to you but you are highly skeptical of God and the Bible. Please, do yourself a favor; take a moment to humor your friend, me, and God. Just sit back, relax, and let God guide your mind and heart for the next few moments, you won’t be sorry.

The Bible is the Word of God. Yes, it was written by men but it was authored by God Himself and no one else. The Bible is thousands of years old; no other book has endured the test of time as God’s word has. It was written by some forty men over a period of approximately 1,500 years. And by men who, for the most part, didn’t even know each other. Yet, when we study it we find it to contain one integrated design from cover to cover. There are 66 books all together that make up the Old and New Testaments. Each of these books has its importance. As we read and study our Bibles we learn that it is actually just one complete book.

How do we know that the Bible is God’s word? Why should we believe it? God authenticated His Word so man, after reading it, would have no doubt as to whom the author is. He did this by giving us history lessons in advance. The Bible is jam-packed with prophecy, which is simply God telling us what will happen next in the history of mankind. Many of those prophetic scriptures have already come to pass. Thus God’s authentication process is working fine.

In the Old Testament we’re given more than 300 prophecies concerning the coming Messiah. Who is this Messiah? Jesus Christ is the Messiah. Jesus fulfilled those Old Testament prophecies to the letter. Just in case you’re interested, the mathematical possibility of one man fulfilling even eight of those prophecies is astronomical; basically impossible. Only God Himself could have accomplished such a feat. Yet the Bible is still ridiculed and disparaged as being nothing more than myth, fairy tales, and legends by those who have no use for God or His Word. Most people who fall into the category of unbelievers only know what they’ve been told about the Bible by others who are also unbelievers. In the case of a non-believer teaching what the Bible has to say to other non-believers, naturally all that will be produced is more non-believers.

If you truly want to know and understand the Bible you must first become spiritually in tune with its Author, you must be born again, this will be explained a little further on in this commentary. But I will tell you right now that listening to other non-believers who only parrot what they’ve heard from like-minded non-believers will do you no good whatsoever. You must at least hear both sides of any story. That’s the only way to find the truth for yourself. Only then can you make an informed decision about which eternal statistic you’ll become.

Speaking of eternal destiny, most people will put more emphasis on which new refrigerator to purchase than where they will spend eternity. Man has been placed on this planet to do something; we have a purpose, but most folks have no concept of just what that something is. We have a Creator God and our God wants, more than anything else, to have a relationship with His creation (that’s us). Together with our Creator God we cultivate an everlasting relationship. But we must first believe in Him, who He is, why He did what He did for His creation.

“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:” Romans 1:20. The word of God tells us that if we don’t believe in God there is no excuse for our unbelief. God has clearly revealed Himself in His creation. All we need to do is to look around and God’s power can be easily seen.

God is real, He is our Creator, and He is also our Savior. “But I’ve always heard you Christians say that Jesus Christ is your Savior.” That’s correct. “But, you said God is your Savior.” Jesus Christ is God Almighty. Here, let’s let God’s word explain who Jesus is “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” John 1:1-3. Now, before we go any further let me explain something you might not know. The Old Testament was originally written in the Hebrew language and the New Testament was originally written in the Greek. The Bible was not translated into English until some four hundred years ago, just FYI. Now let’s continue.

The Apostle John was one of Jesus’ original disciples and he wrote this book. He knew Jesus, he ate with Him, they walked the shores of Galilee and climbed the hills of Judea together. John was an eye witness to Jesus as He performed all the miracles recorded in the Bible. In John’s record of the events of Jesus’ earthly ministry he refers to Jesus Christ as the “Logos” in the Greek. The English translation of the word “Logos” is “Word”. Jesus Christ is the Word. If we skip on down to verse 14 in this chapter we read the following: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us…” John 1:14a. What John is saying here is that God entered His creation and became a man, the man Jesus Christ. Jesus has two distinct natures, He is fully God and He is fully man. Jesus Christ is our Creator God, and He is also our Savior, and that’s the truth found on the pages of our Bibles.

Your question right about now might be “Why do I, or anyone for that matter, need a savior?” You see, we humans blew it back some years ago in a place called the Garden of Eden. God created Adam and from Adam He made Eve. God had this great place all designed for their lives to be filled with happiness. But they weren’t happy with God’s explanation of how things were to go, through the prodding of an evil fallen angel (Satan) they rebelled against God which began a steady spiral down to what we now see as a very depraved society. In all this depravity humans have become more and more rebellious through the years. God calls this rebellion “sin.” Sin and God cannot co-exist so God had to do something to save His Creation from total damnation (Hell).

God offers you and all of mankind the same free gift. There is nothing you can do to earn it, nor can you purchase it. It’s free for the asking, but you must ask for it to receive it. “So, what is it?” I could tell you but again let’s let God do the explaining. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. God is telling you in perfect English that if you desire to escape that place called Hell (perish), you must believe in His Son, Jesus who is the Messiah (the Christ). You must believe that Jesus Christ died while He hung on a cross some 2,000 years ago, and that He did this to take the sin of the world upon Himself; He was buried, and rose from the grave three days later. He’s alive today. He’s waiting for you to ask Him into your life. But you must ask. God is love, He loves you but He won’t force you to accept His free gift but He plainly explains the alternative to that gift throughout His Word.

“…if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.” John 8:24. You are a sinner and you must acknowledge that fact before anything else. God is telling you here that the penalty for unbelief is death; you will die in your sins. In other words, unbelief results in eternal punishment instead of eternal glory. Like I said, God will not force you to love Him. He loves you so much that He died for you and allows you to choose loving Him over an eternity in Hell.

Only our living God could have stepped into the picture to save His creation from everlasting damnation. Nothing less than the death of God Himself would suffice to accomplish this reconciliation between God and man. God loves you and does not wish for you to choose the alternative to His free gift. “I’m still not clear on this free gift thing.” Let me explain, Jesus Christ is the free gift from God. Jesus willingly died in your stead, He took your place on that cross, He took the punishment that was rightfully due you onto Himself. The free gift from God is His only begotten Son. God gave His Son to cover the payment necessary to take away the sin of the word. All you have to do is accept His free gift, Jesus Christ, into your heart and you will live forever.

You see, right now as a non-believer you are dead. You are dead in your sins. You are basically awaiting the second death when you will pass from this life into the next. But as a born again believer in Christ you only die once. That one death is death to sin. Once you say yes to Jesus Christ your sins are forgiven never to be remembered again, and you become born again, born from above, from God. God creates in you, not just a clean heart, but a brand new heart, you become a new creation in Christ, and something you will be very happy to learn is that your sins will never be thrown in your face by God. As a forgiven sinner you will be seen by God as He sees His Son Jesus, perfect.

God even goes a step further as He places in you His Holy Spirit who will dwell within you until you are taken off this planet and enter into your new home in Heaven. God seals His Holy Spirit in you and that seal can never be broken, not even by you. Remember earlier I said you had to be in tune with God to understand His word? Here’s that explanation of how you can be in tune with God. When you have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you, you are then spiritually in tune with the Author of the Bible and He will give you your heart’s desire. If that desire is to understand His Word (the Bible) He will provide you with that understanding.

All this is given to you by God the moment you first believe and are born again. You will have joy unspeakable, peace unmatchable, and a love unattainable from any other source. God becomes your Father, you become His child. Nothing can separate you from the love of God, nothing. “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love.” Romans 8:38. The Apostle Paul tells us that once we are born of God (born again) nothing can separate us from Him. On the other hand God loves everyone equally, believer and non-believer. The difference is in the separation part. Non-believers, even though loved by God, will be separated from Him when they die. Even if you don’t believe in God you still reap the blessings from God. You are sustained by the God you don’t believe in. But that will all end at the death of the unbeliever as God will not be in Hell with them. Your punishment for rejecting Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord is eternal separation, eternal damnation.

“…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” Acts 16:31. All through the New Testament we’re told to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved. But what does it mean to believe? It means we place our faith, our trust, and our hope in Jesus Christ and Him alone for salvation. There is no other way we can ever get to the Father than to believe in the Son. “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6. All other religions are false and can offer you nothing when it comes to everlasting life. God is the God of the Holy Bible, of Judaism and Christianity and no other religion. All other so called gods (small g) are made up out of the minds of evil men and women who follow after their father, Satan, who God tells us is the father of all lies. And he’s promoted a mass of lies since.

Follow Jesus Christ, put your faith in Him and believe. Our human lifespan is short but eternity is forever. Dying is the closure on God’s free gift. After you’re dead and taken from this world you have no more chances to change your mind. It’s done; you’ve made your decision while you lived. Once in Hell there will be no pardons, no reprieves, no commuting of sentence.

If, on the other hand, you’ve made the right choice then Heaven awaits you and you won’t want to ever leave. Which of the two statistics have you chosen to become? Where are you opting to spend your eternity?

My prayer is that you’ve chosen wisely, and now you know Jesus and He knows you.

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

96 County Road 5480 Salem, MO 65560

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

ALL BAD CHURCH DOCTRINE IS INTENTIONAL

2011-06-23T22:09:00.001-07:00

All Bad Church Doctrine is Intentional

6/23/2011

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:” 2 Timothy 3:16. All scripture is profitable for doctrine because it’s all God breathed. We are to use the scriptures as a reproof against bad doctrine, then we correct those who are promoting such doctrine, and we continue to use those same scriptures as instructions in righteousness. How can we ever expect to be considered righteous before our perfect God when we allow bad doctrine to sway our Christian Church?

Do we get bad doctrine from the Bible? Is God inclined to provide us with erroneous doctrines to confuse us? Doctrine, simply put, means that which is taught, it’s the act of teaching – it’s instruction. Jesus taught us His doctrines “And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” Matthew 7:28-29.

The only people who should be teaching in our Churches are those who have studied God’s word and who stand firm on the truth of His word. These folks would be under the authority of God Himself. But this just isn’t the case these days is it? Bad doctrine is abundant in our Christian Churches. All bad doctrine comes from the father of all lies, Satan, and of course it’s intentional.

Many of my brethren have written me complaining about their Church doctrine. So much so that I’ve begun to wonder just how many truly Christ centered, Bible believing Churches remain. For the reason stated above, many of these folks have told me they refuse to attend church services and have begun to hold services in their homes with family members and friends. What they no longer receive at their local Christian Church is afforded them in abundance at home – which is God’s truth from His inerrant Word.

Like I said, bad doctrine is intentional; it has been Satan’s plan since the inception of the Church to disrupt the flow of true information and subtly subvert that truth with his lies. Many pastors today have no clue they are propagating erroneous church doctrine. According to many of my readers their pastors don’t seem to have an inkling of what is correct and what is not, or they just don’t care. They’ve tried to confront the pastor but in most cases he, or worse yet she, simply states “I was taught by my professors in seminary, and they hold PhD’s in theology, what do you hold?”

We are all held accountable by God to know His word. If we are taught by someone who is off base concerning God’s word we too will promote the same fallacies when we begin to teach others. All Satan had to do was to get those professors to see things his way and voila the bad doctrine began. We’ve certainly been privy to a lot of bad doctrine over the past few years. With the invention of TV we’ve seen men and women manipulating the masses for nothing more than personal gain. The internet has become another foraging ground for those who, solely for personal gain, have devised ways to achieve their goals and it’s all done using bad doctrine.

“Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Matthew 15:7-9. The doctrines of men have become common place in our Christian Churches; can Jesus be happy about such behavior? You decide. But while you are making up your mind remember how many times in the scriptures we are told to “…be ye not deceived”. “That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;” Ephesians 4:14.

Why is it so easy to preach from the pulpit today and garner a huge following all the while teaching bad doctrine? Those of you who don’t know the answer to that question may well be part of the problem. “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;” 1 Timothy 4:1. Basically, giving heed means to regard as truth. These folks believe Satan and his minions of evil over God and His Word. Why? Because they are biblically illiterate and it seems they prefer their illiteracy over truth.

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” 2 Timothy 4:3-4. Because of the many letters I receive these days from folks complaining about their pastor and others in their church leadership’s hierarchy who are leading their congregations down a very destructive path, I’d say we are well on our way to fulfilling the above prophecy.

I’m not able to attend every church service around this country so the letters from my brethren must suffice. But here’s a little tidbit some of you living here in the US might not be aware of. I’m not only inundated by letters from American Christians who are very concerned about their churches, but many letters come from my brethren in various countries around the world who have virtually the same complaint. Here’s a sampling of the complaints. “Why does my pastor teach from Rick Warren’s A Purpose Driven Life”? “Why is Rob Bell’s Velvet Elvis, or any of his books for that matter being taught to our congregation as the gospel?” And one of my favorites is “Why are we beginning to revert back to accepting and placing in our Christian Church many of the traditions of the Roman Catholic Church, doesn’t being a Protestant mean we stand completely apart from the RCC in all doctrine”?

I’ve had people write and tell me that their pastor reads the book “The Shack” from the pulpit and they want to know if this is doctrinal. Or why do pastors pass out books to their congregations entitled “Heaven is Real” not as a book of fiction but as a book that is actually supposed to represent Heaven to us?

A pastor must be able to discern the truth, and as he teaches and preaches from God’s inerrant Word it will be revealed to the congregation that God is the author of the pastor’s message. Because many pastors are not spiritually discerning, bad doctrine thrives. “Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,” Colossians 2:18. God’s word is our doctrine. When men veer off the path that God has laid down for all humanity, it is intentional. Satan doesn’t want the Bible preached in our Christian Churches, nor does he want Christians reading the Bible. So, he has devised a way to replace the word of God with books that entice us away from the truth. It’s quite apparent by the biblical illiteracy permeating our Christian Churches that Satan has been very successful in his attempt to replace the Bible with other works. Not knowing sound doctrine themselves, many pastors have fallen for Satan’s enticements. Then they proceed to advance the doctrines of devils instead of the doctrines of the one and only true and living God. All this bad doctrine has been devised by the enemy of God to throw the Church for a loop. Intentional? You better believe it.

The last thing Satan wants the Church to do is to physically open their Bibles and become habitual at reading and studying God’s word. If Christ’s Church were actually literate, biblically that is, there would be many more Christians questioning bad doctrine as it enters their churches. Bad doctrine would be stopped at the front door, or in the case of a pastor who spouts bad doctrine, shown the front door. And that question from the pastor mentioned earlier “Do you have a PhD in Theology? No? Then where do you get off questioning me?” would have no effect on biblically literate Christian congregations.

Nowadays many people assume that if your name isn’t followed by alphabet soup you can’t be knowledgeable enough concerning the word of God to question those who have a PhD after their names. The question we must ask ourselves when it comes to studying and understanding God’s word is how many of Christ’s disciples had PhD’s after their names while they walked and talked and lived with Jesus for those three years? At the end they were given the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit guided them; some of them wrote down their experiences with Jesus and as they wrote they recorded Jesus’ own words. But all of them preached the truth of the Gospel and all but one were horribly martyred for their faith.

This may come as a shocker to many of you but I have no PhD after my name. I have no collage credits to boast of. I’ve never attended seminary or any Christian college, or secular college for that matter. I made it through high school only by the skin of my teeth and the help of a brother-in-law who wanted to see me graduate. But I’m convinced my teaching is in line with God’s precepts. Why am I so convinced? Only God Himself could be the force behind the commentaries I write. I couldn’t write a word without Him.

I’ve studied my Bible; I don’t mean I’ve just read it through a few times or something like that, but I’ve studied night and day for years. Yes, I studied the teachings of men who had been in the teaching ministry for many decades. My mentor was Chuck Missler of Koinonia House. I spent years studying his teaching materials. For years my eyes would pour over the many teaching materials Dr. Missler supplies. But ultimately the Bible became my greatest source for truth. Everything we read or study apart from the Bible – every Bible teacher’s lessons, all Christian authors and their books need to be filtered through God’s Word.

I went out into the wilderness – I moved my family to rural Missouri from the beautiful Oregon coast. Needless to say they were not very happy with my decision. But in my mind I knew I had to divest myself of all entanglements of this deceptive world to grow closer to God. I spoke to Jesus my Savior and Lord here in the wilderness and finally I came to the realization that my life was no longer my own. I had determined to relinquish all control over to Him. When I made His will mine and His direction my path, He took control. When this occurred God saw that my need to know Him was greater than any other need I had in my life, and through my determination and diligence to grow closer to God by studying His Word, He taught me sound doctrine -- His doctrine, not the doctrines of men.

God will do the same thing for you as He did for me when you completely turn your life over to Him. Hold nothing back that you feel you need to keep control of and you will be greatly surprised by God’s participation in your study times. God will give you spiritual discernment; yes you with or without a PhD after your name.

“But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 2:14-16. Isn’t it interesting how Paul speaks about the natural man? The word of God is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to the born again believers in Christ who have the mind of Christ, His word is spiritually discernable. He does the instructing, the teaching, and it’s His doctrine, not man’s, by which we are taught.

Let no man deceive you into believing that you, a normal human being, are unable to comprehend the word of God, thus you need a man or women with a doctorate in theology to teach you. That they alone have the answers concerning the correct interpretation of God’s word. Those who allege such an exalted position are not led by the Holy Spirit to make such a claim. God will give anyone who asks for wisdom and knowledge concerning His word exactly what their heart desires. If it is your desire to no longer be a follower of all the satanic chicanery in the Christian Churches today, then ask God to teach you His doctrine. Study your Bible. Be a Berean “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” Acts 17:11. Seek the truth for yourself daily to see if what you are being taught lines up with the Word of God.

All Bad Church Doctrine is Intentional, with Satan in the midst. The Word of God is our only true stability in a very unstable world. Study it with all due diligence and Satan must flee.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

twotug@embarqmail.com

GOT OIL

2011-06-16T21:53:00.000-07:00

Got Oil

6/16/211

“Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.” Habakkuk 2:4. The just – those who’ve become justified in God’s eye’s – will live by their faith. Old Testament or New, the just lived and do live by their faith. The Old Testament believers looked forward to and believed in the coming of their Messiah, the New Testament saints look back to the cross and the death, burial, and resurrection of their God and Savior, our Messiah, our coming King, Jesus the Christ, and believe. Three categories of believers are in view here, and they are all saved by faith through the grace of God, yet there remains a distinct difference as we view the salvation imparted to the Old Testament saints, the salvation of the New Testament Church age saints, and New Testament tribulation saints who will be saved while occupying the most horrible period of time known to mankind. Let me explain.

“Two Distinct Events” – a commentary I wrote – was posted to the internet about three weeks ago. Afterwards I was bombarded with letters from readers who requested further explanations, especially concerning the role of the Holy Spirit during the 70th week of Daniel. I was accused of all sorts of errors concerning the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. A few even accused me of becoming a convert to another faith. Though I thought I had explained the role of the Holy Spirit in the last seven years leading up to Christ’s return, as I looked back on that commentary I realized it needed a more thorough explanation.

The Holy Spirit will certainly play a very significant role during the last seven year period of time on earth prior to Jesus setting up His millennial Kingdom, and this period of time is spoken of as Daniels 70th week. During that space of time the Holy Spirit will be hard at work pointing people to Jesus Christ for salvation. That has always been His job. He never points to Himself, always to Jesus. But the Church age, having passed at this point, was a very distinct period in God’s economy. The Church, the body of Christ, consisted of individuals who were all indwelt with the Holy Spirit. “…in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.” Ephesians 1:13b-14.

Fact: The Holy Spirit is sealed inside of every born again believer in Christ today. Once the Church has been Raptured, this gift will be gone. Anyone who comes to believe in Christ for salvation after the Rapture will not be sealed with the Holy Spirit, but will be responsible for keeping themselves saved. The Holy Spirit will still be working, but not indwelling.

In the Old Testament the believers were led by the Holy Spirit to believe, to have faith in the coming of the Messiah, but were not indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The tribulation saints will be similarly led. But they, as the Old Testament believers, will not be sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. They must be prepared to endure all sorts of battles, and one such battle will be the waiting as it will seem as though their Master’s return is far off. Hence the parable of the ten virgins and the bridegroom of Matthew 25.

Matthew 24 ends with Jesus’ parable of the wise servant vs. the foolish servant. The wise servant diligently waited for His master’s return “But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Matthew 24:13. Matthew 25 is simply a continuation of that same thought. These onetime Christ rejecters must now endure through that horrible period to be saved. Many will be martyred for their faith, which will be the same as enduring to the end.

“Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.” Matthew 25:1. Here begins Jesus’ parable of the ten virgins and this one is going to shock many of my readers. Jesus begins this parable by referring to the traditions of a Jewish wedding; his audience must be Jewish since they would be the only ones to recognize the significance of these ten virgins (bridesmaids) and especially their lamps.

“There were three stages to a Jewish wedding in that day. The first was engagement - a formal agreement made by the fathers. The second was betrothal - the ceremony where mutual promises are made. The third was marriage - approximately one year later when the bridegroom came at an unexpected time for his bride.

In this parable, the first two stages have already taken place. Now the wedding party (the ten virgins) await the coming of the bridegroom for his bride.

Why does Jesus describe ten virgins? Talmudic authorities affirm that there were usually ten lamps in a bridal procession” – David Guzik

“And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.” Matthew 25:2-4. Here Jesus explains the foolishness of the virgins who had no oil in their lamp. We find that five of the virgins awaiting the bridegroom had their lamps trimmed sufficiently with oil; the other five took no oil for their lamps as they waited for the bridegroom. Oil is seen here as an idiom referring to the Holy Spirit. Almost from the beginning of this parable we can see something horrible is about to occur.

“While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.” Matthew 25:5. In other words, the wise as well as the foolish virgins were equally complacent and as they waited on the bridegroom they each fell asleep. The wise could legitimately slumber as they were secure in what they possessed (their lamps were full of oil). The foolish virgins slumbered unaware of the peril they faced (possessing lamps with no oil).

“And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.” Matthew 25:6-9. The five foolish virgins, hearing the bridegroom was on His way, scrambled to get prepared. The bridegroom is Jesus Christ, and the five wise virgins are those who’ve became saved during the last seven year period leading up to Christ’s return. The five foolish virgins were never saved.

Those who remain after the rapture of the Church and become born again will face very strong opposition to their faith, but they will need to endure to the end to be saved. They must keep the word of God, keep His precepts, keep the faith, and keep the Holy Spirit close. “And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.” Matthew 25:10-12. When Jesus returns, some of those who think they are saved will be surprised at His response just as the foolish virgins were surprised at the response from the bridegroom. Jesus, being the bridegroom, says that He knew them not, which means He never knew them. They were never a part of His family of born again believers. They had all the signs of being saved except the main ingredient. They had no oil in their lamps. The Holy Spirit was not present in their lives. They had neglected the Holy Spirit’s message and lived without faith in the coming King.

“Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.” Matthew 25:13. Obviously Jesus is speaking about His Second Advent as He’s addressing the folks that are living during those last seven years. Everyone who places their faith and trust in Jesus Christ during the 70th week of Daniel will need to keep themselves ready – they all need to be as the 5 wise virgins who keep their oil (the Holy Spirit). In other words they are saved by faith just as the Church is today, but they must keep that faith – and not turn away because of the horrible events that are about to unfold before them. The five foolish virgins never had the faith as the five wise virgins and that’s why they wanted some of their oil. They neglected the oil (the Holy Spirit) to trim their lamps. They very foolishly allowed the tribulations of that time to suck any faith they might have had right out of them, hence the bridegroom never new them.

“For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.” Matthew 25:14-18. This parable is somewhat similar to our Lord’s parable of the ten virgins in that there were two groups of people, the wise and the foolish. In this case He’s addressing servants belonging to the Master (Jesus is the Master). The wise servants – well what can we say? They kept the faith, they endured till the end, and they never lost their hold on the Holy Spirit.

After Jesus rewards the wise servants He turns His attention to the foolish servant who had a real heart problem. There will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth by the foolish servant - the third servant demonstrated that he was not a true servant of his master (he was not saved). Is it not fitting then that he (and those who show the same heart) is cast forever out of the master’s presence into outer darkness?

The next part of chapter 25 gives us a great view of our Lords heart. “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.” Matthew 25:34-36. Jesus tells them that the true believer is not at all self-centered, but others centered. The righteous were doing what they did for those mentioned by the King out of love. Their helpfulness came naturally as children of the King, and as they saw a person’s needs they reacted in a Godly way, and for no other reason than love.

“Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:” Matthew 25:41. Then there are the self-centered, the ungodly, who wouldn’t lift a finger to help someone in need. They are the unrighteous and Jesus lets them know in no uncertain terms that by not helping those in need they turned their backs on Him. “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:” Matthew 25:46. Jesus clearly points out that Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels. Men only go to Hell because they have willingly cast their lot with the devil and his angels.

Through all we’ve learned here, there is one thing we must keep in mind. Jesus is still addressing the folks of the last seven year period – what many refer to as the tribulation week. As Jesus finishes the last of His parables of this chapter He concludes with two distinct categories of people. He arranges them in groups, His sheep on the right and those who rejected Him (the goats) on His left. The sheep were those who endured until the end; as they were keeping the faith they also helped others no matter what hardship it caused them. The goats were those who had no love for their fellow man, they lived completely contrary to what Jesus taught and expected from His followers; they did not endure until the end. The sheep inherited the Kingdom and the goats were cast into Hell.

I know there are seemingly numerous parallels to that which can be seen in the Church population of today, and it’s a fact that many even in the Church are not really saved (have no oil). But even though there are similarities to the Church age in these parables, the fact is we who are truly born again cannot lose what’s sealed within us, and therein we see the difference.

One last comment. I hope I’ve made it plain that Jesus is addressing those who are occupying that last seven year period of time. He has returned at this point to set everything right, and to set up His millennial Kingdom on earth. And guess who returns with Him? You guessed it, His Church. We are at His side. “To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.” 1 Thessalonians 3:13. Therefore Jesus the Christ, Creator of the universe can’t be addressing His Church in either this chapter or in the previous one.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

TIME- A PERSISTENT ILLUSION

2011-06-09T18:12:00.000-07:00

Time – A Persistent Illusion

6/9/2011

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” Ecclesiastes 3:1. There is a time for everything under Heaven and God established those times. Time is so elusive that no human being will ever completely figure it out, that realm belongs to God. Time just keeps going, but sometimes we run out of time. Our lives are engulfed and ordered by time. Time is all around us, it moves past us yet we can’t see it, it even seems to speed up and slow down.

“A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;” Ecclesiastes 3:2. Scientists have been working diligently to zero in on just how the idea of time works in relation to the rest of the universe. So many theories have been postulated that nowadays the libraries and book stores are replete with ideas promoting their various scenarios all involving time and its basis for existence. Yet only One individual truly understands the nature of time perfectly – after all, He’s the One who created time.

“God made time so everything didn’t happen all at once.” I read that quote recently and it amused me, but it also moved me to give time a little more serious thought. As we read and study our Bibles we come to the conclusion that the restraints we feel and live by because of time seem to have no effect on God. He is the beginning and He is the end. God has placed a time frame in place for every season to occur as He has determined. With His knowledge of time God is involved in every detail of each of earth’s occupants. “A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;” Ecclesiastes 3:3-4. All aspects of time which have been seen by human kind throughout history God sees simultaneously. “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.” Psalm 90:2. Time is God’s creation and He determines the boundaries and sets times duration.

In the book of Revelation Jesus tells us “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending” Revelation 1:8a. Of course God is from the beginning and He will be here at the very end. It’s His creation; He’s in charge of every detail including every nanosecond of time. “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:” Isaiah 46:10. Every moment of time is established for God’s good pleasure. As His children, we take comfort in knowing we are doing His will according to His time frame, His good pleasure.

John tells us that “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” John 1:1-3. Then Paul tells us in Colossians that “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” Colossians 1:16-17. Jesus Christ is the Creator of all time and we live within His constraints.

Humans can record what has happened in the past and those records can be passed on to all posterity. If we study the past we can learn a lot from those recordings. We can actually travel back in time by way of reading history books. Some of those travels can be very exciting, filled with intrigue, love stories, and many wonderful adventures which give us endless hours of entertainment. Entertainment that will keep us glued to our seats until we finish reading. All this and more can be found in God’s word. All we need is the time to read.

“A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;… A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.” Ecclesiastes 3:5, 6, & 8. The Bible is set in increments of time blocks. That’s how God set it up to be understood. We read it and find that God has given mankind their complete history in advance. We call that prophecy; God sets the time for every occasion all for His glory.

Even to achieve as simple a task as seeing what lies just a moment ahead during our daily routine is impossible for mankind. We can plan for tomorrow - make plans for a career change, a summer vacation, a trip to the doctor, or even our own funeral - but we really don’t know if tomorrow will be a part of our future. So the only prudent plan we can make out of all I mentioned is the one that involves our own funeral. Baring the Rapture, that plan is the only plan that will, with certainty, come to fruition at a point in time, according to God’s plan for our future.

God can see our future and He knows what our plans consist of. But His plan for our future may not be what we’ve planned at all. Tomorrows come and go almost without notice, especially in these rushing to and fro filled days. Since each day has us looking forward to a tomorrow, it becomes obvious that tomorrow is only a function of time designed to entice us to look forward. Tomorrow, then, becomes merely a persistent illusion. It’s akin to seeking after a mirage - it just isn’t there, but today is.

There’s only so much time in the life of every human being. Time, even though brought into existence by our Creator God, can be a real enemy to humankind, specifically to those folks who continually stand opposed to their Creator. Since tomorrow is such a consistently stubborn illusion, decisions and the follow through of those decisions must be accomplished in the present. For those of you who weren’t paying attention, that’s today. As Christians, we are bound by a command from our Savior God to work today. “Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.” Matthew 9:37-38. The Lord saw the multitudes and He knew there was a huge harvest. Today that harvest is even greater. Jesus sends you as a laborer into the field of harvest. Are you willing, or are you content to allow others to do all the labor? Ask yourself, when the time comes and we find ourselves standing before Christ to give an account of our lives, what will your response be as you face the Creator of the universe? Sorry God, I just ran out of time.

Many folks have no desire whatsoever to know God or to even believe He exists, unbeknownst to them, time becomes a most horrible enemy. When I was just a youngster I had a teacher who became so irritated with the students who were obvious time watchers, that he attached a sign to the bottom of the clock in his room which stated “Time will pass, will you?” God says “Time will pass, will my child bear fruit for my Kingdom?” Sadly, most Christians today won’t have anything to do with bearing fruit. They are so self-absorbed in the world they love they have no time for following God’s will.

Time is a most fleeting phenomenon, especially when speaking to a person whose eyes are blinded by the god of this world; time instead of being a luxury or something we take for granted becomes a hindrance. Time is a dangerous foe as a person remains in unbelief. Sooner or later time will take its toll on lost individuals as they continue in their stance against God. Why? Because those who remain in this condition risk the very predictable result of hardening their hearts even more against their Creator God. Their father the devil gains a far greater foothold over their lives as they remain in rebellion to God. These folks will finally realize how important the dimension of time was, but it will be too late. As believers in Christ we need to be very diligent in our witnessing attempts. Time is running out.

Side Note:

Here’s a thought provoker; this is my own concept, and it’s only conjecture meant just for fun. Since we know that God created time it would be safe for us to say that God is not restrained by any portion of His creation, including time. Since God dwells in another dimension called Heaven we may assume there is no time passing in that dimension. So here’s my conjecture. God Raptured Enoch when he was 365 years old. When the Church is Raptured we will enter Heaven at the exact instant that Enoch stepped through that same portal into the Heavenly realm. Question, how can we get to Heaven at a different point in time than Enoch if there is no time in Heaven? Purely conjecture on my part, but give it some thought and the possibilities are endless.

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven… …A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;” Ecclesiastes 3:1, 7. Bottom line, there’s a time to sew and a time to speak; the time to keep silence has passed. None of us know how many tomorrows we have left. All we know for sure is what we have today. As born again believers in Christ we may not have any more tomorrows, as we should all be aware that the Rapture is imminent, which makes the urgency of speaking to our lost family members, friends, and even those strangers that cross our path about the saving grace of Jesus Christ paramount . Yesterday, today was tomorrow. Tomorrow, today will be yesterday. But today, today is today. So in all actuality today is all we’ve got. What will you do with your today?

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

2011-06-02T16:43:00.001-07:00

Christian Scoffers Abound

6/2/2011

“Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant…” 2 Peter 3:3-5a. For the last 2,000 years Christians have been anxiously awaiting their Lord and Savior’s return. Why? Because of Jesus’ own words in John chapter 14. “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” John 14:1-3. Then again, for that same period of time there have been those who challenge the rest of us with these words “Where is the promise of his coming?” 2 Peter 3:4a. Of course, we who truly trust God know that He will return.

Before Jesus returns to earth He has a prior commitment to accomplish. He must first remove His saints from amongst the earth dwellers. There’s nothing tricky about it, He’ll simply say “Come up here” and we who love Him and who’ve put our faith, trust, and hope in Him, and Him alone for salvation, will all instantaneously go missing. God the Father will say to His Son, “Go get ‘em Son”. At which point Jesus will remove His Church and then approximately seven years later He’ll return again and take His rightful place on David’s throne. “And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:” Luke 1:31-32. From that vantage point Jesus, our Messiah, will rule and reign as King of kings and Lord of lords, along with His saints, for 1,000 years.

In John’s Gospel chapter 14 in verses 2 & 3 Jesus isn’t just trying to get His followers to appreciate Him for what He can do for them with some pie in the sky heavenly enticements (mansions). He’s being extremely forthright telling us just what awaits those who follow Him. As His followers, these words should give us great comfort. When the Creator of the universe tells His followers, “I will come again” we should be more secure with that statement than we are with the fact that we have air to breathe.

Jesus is coming back in the flesh to set up His monarchy on earth. Many Christians perceive themselves to be too intellectual to believe such a thing as Jesus re-appearing in the flesh; most have been taught by their pastors or seminary professors that Bible prophecy is irrelevant, or that prophecy is all in the past, it’s all been fulfilled, there’s nothing else to come. They may be folks who are in love with their worldly pleasures and have no longing for His appearing. Remember the world loves those who belong to her. Don’t allow yourself to be deceived, Jesus will return, and in the flesh. He was flesh and bone when He appeared to His disciples and He will return in the same glorified body He left earth in. “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.” Luke 24:39.

Scoffers are plagued with unbelief. Peter says scoffers will come in the last days, to which I must add “And how”. Any mention of the Rapture in one of my commentaries and the flood gate of letters opens for all who feel the need belittle me and point out my blindness concerning my interpretation of God’s Word. As Jesus tarries the scoffers seem to be further emboldened all the while neglecting to recognize He’s running the show, not us.

Christians who’ve studied eschatology should not be surprised at those who scoff at every prophetic scripture in God’s word. They hold to their own erroneous interpretation of God’s Word and defend their misguided ideas with all tenacity. They come at us from all walks of life. Peter said it would be so. What surprises this Christian is the fact that many of these scoffers, while claiming a relationship with Jesus Christ, criticize His Word. That fact is astounding.

In his first epistle the Apostle John tells us “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.” 1 John 2:19. John doesn’t mince his words. They called themselves Christians, yet they were not.

“…The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.” Matthew 13:24b-30. The tares are professing Christians yet are not of us. They infiltrate the Church and spread untruths but are perceived to be quite knowledgeable. Many listen to them. They are the enemy’s property, thus they scoff at the truth as they disseminate their lies to the biblically illiterate Church.

Many people simply want to reject God so they can go about their lives without the need to be accountable to Him. They would prefer to wallow in their sinful lifestyles with impunity; they don’t realize that the consequence of sin is death. It is ludicrous for a professing Christian to deny the truth of God’s Word and then ignore the fact that that denial has consequences. Jesus said He would return, why is that so difficult to believe? Could it be that many would rather live on this earth with its manmade rules and laws than to be governed by a perfect awesome King? I pray that is not the case, but I’m concerned that it is.

Many denominations believe that Jesus is currently ruling over His Kingdom in our hearts. To these folks it’s extremely farfetched to believe God will snatch His saints from the face of this earth at some point in the future. The 1,000 year reign of Christ on earth is an anathema to many professing Christians. These folks are also scoffers. “…for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” 2 Peter 3:4b. In other words, they may believe in creation but believing in Jesus’ promise that He will return becomes much more obscure. Peter goes on to enlighten us with a much deeper look into their motives. “For this they willingly are ignorant…,” 2 Peter 3:5a. Willingly ignorant means deliberate. They deliberately refuse the truth, and they knowingly mouth opposition to the prophetic scriptures. The question is how can professing Christians deny God’s truth and say they love Jesus? Why profess to be a follower of Jesus Christ in one breath and call Him a liar with the next?

For years the erroneous teachings of scriptures by deceived individuals has wreaked havoc on a large portion of blind and disobedient Christians. Denying the truth that Jesus will return one day soon is calling Him a liar. A question remains, by denying prophecy are they not poking a finger in God’s eye? If a person doesn’t believe in the Rapture, that unbelief won’t diminish their salvation. Still, to refer to God’s word as nothing more than something that occurred in the past or relegating His word to simply allegorical can’t possibly be very endearing to Him.

“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17. Denying any portion of God’s prophetic Word is akin to ignorance, which in the Greek is “agnoeō” and it means to err or sin through mistake, to be wrong. Denial of God’s inerrant word, for a follower of Jesus Christ is worse than unbelief, it is willful disobedience. Whether Christians know it or not denial of any portion of God’s word as truth in any form connects them to a corrupt and unbelieving world. As Christians, we are set apart from the world. Christians must stand together against any and all opposition to God’s truth. Picking and choosing what we want to believe is sin.

I find it interesting that four times in his letters Paul instructs Christians to not be ignorant (without knowledge):

Don’t be ignorant about God’s plan for Israel (Romans 11:25).

Don’t be ignorant about spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:1).

Don’t be ignorant about suffering and trials in the Christian life (2 Corinthians 1:8).

Don’t be ignorant about the rapture and the second coming of Jesus (1 Thessalonians 4:13).

Yet, these are areas where ignorance is still common in the Christian church. Paul instructs the Church to learn the scriptures and to obtain the knowledge God would have them to possess.

Another of Paul’s admonishments is to comfort one another with the words he wrote to the Thessalonians. “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words .” 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. Why would Paul give this admonition to comfort one another with these words if there is nothing comforting about them? Teaching the Rapture of Christ’s Church is clearly comforting and encouraging, otherwise there would be no reference to this event whatsoever.

The last days and the end times are spoken of constantly by prophecy teachers, yet in many Christian churches there is no comfort being offered as to the truth of the prophetic scriptures. Every prophetic scripture that has been fulfilled so far has come about exactly as God’s Word proclaimed they would. Why dismiss the remaining few prophetic scriptures as allegorical or as having been fulfilled back in 70AD? There are plenty of scripture verses that have yet to come to pass and we who study those scriptures have a clear vision as to what to expect in these last days. Comforting words are needed in our Churches today to fend off the horrible things we see occurring today. The literal truth of Scripture needs to be taught thereby heading off the lies of scoffers.

Bible prophecy is the key to understanding God’s word and for drawing closer to Him. The Bible has been laid open for our understanding, now more than ever before in the history of the scriptures. Diligent study is essential to discerning those scriptures and grasping what God clearly expects His Church to comprehend. Those who neglect diligent Bible study are missing out on a great relationship with their Savior God. Believing in Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection is just the beginning, now it’s time to build on a most desired relationship with the Creator of the universe. When we talk about walking with Jesus and growing closer to Him it’s through His Word and much prayer that that relationship builds, and as it builds He begins to take complete control of our lives.

The scoffers will still come, that’s just a fact. We will never convince everyone that God’s Word is true and inerrant; even many professing Christians stand apart from that truth. It all comes down to who you allow to teach you about God and His Word. In many cases men teach the Bible as they themselves have been taught without variance; which means that if they were taught by someone who taught erroneously those same errors are then passed down to the next generation of students and so on until the errors run rampant. Studying your Bible for yourself and praying for God to enlighten you to the truth of His Word will garner a huge harvest of truth and you can take comfort in knowing God gave you the discernment to understand Him.

Opinions? Yes, we all have them. Truth? Now that’s different, we must rely on and stay in God’s word and believe all of His truth. When we discover for ourselves that all of God’s word is inerrant and prophecy matters greatly in the Christians life, our life on earth becomes even more exciting as we await the final outcome.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

TWO DISTINCT EVENTS

2011-05-26T16:09:00.000-07:00

Two Distinct Events

Matthew chapters 24 and 25 have nothing whatsoever to do with the Rapture of the Church. Have I got your attention? Good. Now let’s proceed.

Jesus’ Second Advent and the Rapture of the Church are two completely different events. Believe it or not, many Christians lump them together. It’s important to understand the difference between the two so as not to be confused.

“But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” Daniel 12:4. Daniel is told to seal the book until the end. What book? Knowledge will be increased, knowledge of what? God’s Word. We can go back in time and study many of the great expositors of God’s Word, men respected throughout the ages, and as we do we can find that in some instances they’ve erred in their interpretations. Why? Because the knowledge they needed to fully grasp God’s word was sealed up until the last days. Now, God is unsealing the book for those who will diligently seek His truth. Hold on to your seats, you might find this commentary to be a bumpy ride.

The Rapture will occur just prior to the 70th week (seven year period) prophesied by Daniel. At the end of those seven years Jesus Christ, with all His Raptured saints, will return to put an end to the war of Armageddon. Placing the Rapture of the Church in the same time frame as the Second Coming of Jesus Christ is erroneous biblical teaching.

The Rapture was a mystery until Paul began to explain it in his letters. “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye,” I Corinthians 15:51-52a. Paul’s teachings make it clear what will transpire at the Rapture of Christ’s Church. What we don’t know is when that awesome event will occur. But we have a great clue given to us by Paul in the book of Romans “For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.” Romans 11:25. The mystery Paul alludes to in this instance is the mystery of the Church. Fullness refers to an amount of something, in this case it’s a God ordained specific number of born again believers in Christ that must be accomplished before the Church disappears. When that number is reached the Church will, in the twinkling of an eye, be removed from planet earth. There is nothing other than that specific number standing in the way of Christ removing His Church. Something to keep in mind is it could happen with the very next person you witness to.

Much of the confusion regarding the Rapture vs. the Lords Second Advent is centered in Matthew chapter 24 with the following verse “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” Matthew 24:36. Jesus, speaking to His disciples, lays out how things will occur during the seven years prior to His return. Verse 36 has nothing to do with the Rapture of the Church, but everything to do with Christ’s Second Advent when He returns with His saints.

In perfect view in chapter 24 of Matthew is the nation of Israel. This is the time when God concentrates His attention exclusively on His chosen people. The Church is not mentioned even once in this chapter. Jesus is speaking to the Jews of His day about the Jews of the last days remaining on earth just prior to His Second Advent (This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.” Matthew 24:34). The Church is still a mystery at this point in Jesus’ chronology of the last seven year period; why then speak of the Rapture of His Church to His disciples, if the mystery of His Church was still hidden?

Now let’s stop here and back up to the third verse in Matthew chapter 24. “And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” Matthew 24:3. Four of Jesus’ closest disciples (see Mark 13) came to Him with three enquiries. First they wanted to know when these things would take place. What things? “…and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Matthew 24:1b-2. The buildings of the Temple would be completely destroyed and all the stones of those structures thrown down. This occurred in 70AD when Titus, the Roman general, took siege of Jerusalem and killed every Jew that remained.

The second and third questions posed by these four disciples are “and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and the end of the world?” Jesus goes into great detail as we read the rest of this chapter to answer their questions. We’ll touch on a few of those verses as I attempt to explain the circumstances surrounding them.

I’m going to veer off subject just a bit here as we read verse 13, notice that Jesus makes a very interesting, and what some might see as contradictive, statement. “But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Matthew 24:13. Wait just a minute. As much as I’ve studied the Bible I can’t find anywhere in scripture where Jesus tells us, concerning His free gift of salvation, that we must endure (persevere) to the end to be saved. No, all that is necessary for salvation to be imparted to us is to believe. We place our faith, our trust, and our hope in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord and Him alone as the propitiation for our sins. Can you see that something is amiss here? Jesus can’t be referring to His Church saying we must endure to be saved. Justification (salvation) is instantaneous when we first believe, there’s no enduring ‘til the end attached to our justification. “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life” John 3:36. These are Jesus’ own words; why would He purposely contradict Himself by saying we had to endure ‘til the end to be saved? Answer – He wouldn’t. So, there must be another explanation.

As I’ve mentioned, Jesus is addressing His disciples, and was teaching them the chronology of events that would occur during the last seven year period culminating in the battle of Armageddon. These events would precipitate His Second Advent. He speaks about things the Church can certainly see approaching as we occupy these last days.

Back in Matthew 16, where Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees and Sadducees, He explains to them that they should have been able to read the signs of His first coming “He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning, It will be foul weather today: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” Matthew 16:2-3. We are born again believers in Christ; certainly we can discern the signs of the times. Today birth pangs are increasing and they indicate that we are very close to the end. But we are not in the prophesied 70th week of Daniel yet, which will produce the many signs Jesus speaks about.

Matthew chapter 24 must be read in context. It is talking about Israel, not the Church. It is Israel that will endure those final seven years prophesied by Daniel. This includes, of course, the Great Tribulation of the last 3½ years of that period in which God pours out His wrath on a Christ rejecting world. Christ rejecters, not Christ accepters.

Jesus speaks about the Gospel being preached in “all the world”. We see that this phenomenon occurs in the book of Revelation “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” Revelation 14:6-7. At this point in earth’s history the Church has been missing from planet earth for quite some time.

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place” Matthew 24:15. Jesus then speaks of the abomination of desolation which can only occur after the Temple is rebuilt, which won’t occur before the Church is Raptured. Those who are in Judaea must flee into the mountains, clearly a reference to Jews. Jesus tells them to pray that their flight be not on the Sabbath day, again a clear reference to Jews because they observe the Sabbath, which was specifically established for them.

“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.” Matthew 24:21-22. These two verses clearly point to a huge amount of destruction coming on the world. If God doesn’t put an end to it when He does, no flesh would be saved. By the way, the “elect” are those individuals who’ve become born again during the Great Tribulation.

In verses 25 and 26 Jesus begins to reiterate His warning about all the false Christ’s that will show up claiming they are the Christ. He tells them to look for Him as one who comes like lightning from the east and His light will shine all the way to the west. Then Jesus continues His chronology of events describing just how things will unfold for those who remain alive during the Great Tribulation.

“And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” Matthew 24:30. Everyone remaining alive on earth will see Jesus coming, that’s not the Rapture of His Church, since we’re told the Church will meet Him in the air, Jesus doesn’t set foot on earth again until He returns with His saints. The Rapture event will take place in what the scientists confirm is the smallest measurement of time known to mankind. No one left on earth will observe its occurrence. All they will know is a lot of folks have gone missing.

The survivors of the last seven year period just prior to Jesus’ return must discern the signs indicated by Jesus in Matthew 24. They should be fully aware of the Pharisees and Sadducees lack of discerning abilities and not follow in their footsteps. Jesus gets His point across this time as He uses the parable of the fig tree. “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.” Matthew 24:32-33. At this point in Jesus’ chronology tour, it’s just about time for His Second Advent when He returns to earth to take over as her perfect King.

“Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” Matthew 24:34-36. After all we’ve just discovered how can these three verses refer to the Church? They don’t. The generation Jesus is referring to is the last generation of Jews on planet earth. Heaven and earth passing away and His words not passing away means that everything Jesus teaches in this chronology will come to pass without fail.

Now here’s the part that so many misunderstand about the Rapture of the Church. Jesus tells the four disciples, who began all this with those three little questions, that of the time of His Second Advent no man, no angel (and in Mark chapter 13 not even the Son) knows the day and the hour of His return to earth. There are a few other scriptures that sound similar to this verse in Matthew 24 (no one knows the day or the hour). But they are all addressing the Jews who will occupy earth’s last seven year period.

“But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” Matthew 24:37-39. These verses can be confusing if you’re still determined to place the Church in Jesus’ chronology tour. It will be a very devastating period, how can there be anyone who hasn’t noticed the carnage and catastrophic occurrences of God’s wrath? Who would be involved in pursuing any form of pleasure at a time like that? What has happened is Jesus has returned to the beginning part of the 70th week of Daniel to explain that not many will notice anything different going on. The Church is, in the twinkling of an eye, missing. This means millions, possibly even billions, of earth’s inhabitants have disappeared and yet those remaining simply return to business as usual. The word that must be inserted here is delusional. “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie” 2 Thessalonians 2:11.

“Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.” Matthew 24:40-41. These two verses point to the end and Jesus is using an analogy here that everyone should be familiar with. Not everyone will remain on earth when Jesus returns to set up His millennial Kingdom. Those who became saved and lived through this period of God’s wrath will go into His 1,000 year reign; those who remained alive and in their rebellion to Christ during that horrible period of time will be separated into outer darkness. These two verses have nothing to do with the Rapture of the Church.

In the next few verses Jesus takes us into the realm of the possibility of losing one’s salvation. Again, the Church cannot be seen here. We now see that there will be faithful servants and unfaithful servants during these last few years. Jesus continues, “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.” Matthew 24:45-47. Some servants will faithfully occupy until He returns. But then there are the other servants who become unfaithful.

“ But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint [him] his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 24:48-51. Putting the finishing touches on this chronology, Jesus inserts a most perfect explanation of what happens to those who grow tired of waiting for His appearing and begin to revert to all sorts of evil.

It’s important to understand the quandary these folks who become born again remain in. They must keep themselves saved. In other words, they will not be indwelt with the Holy Spirit of promise as the saints are today. Today the Church is kept saved by God; this is a promise from God to His Church. But to the tribulation saints He makes no such promise. It will be quite possible to fall away and become unsaved during earth’s last seven year period.

Jews and Gentiles alike will be left on planet earth after the Rapture of Christ’s church. Many people will become believers and many will be martyred for their faith. A better solution is to place your faith in Christ today before He removes His Church from among the Christ rejecters. Today the Church is still here and until the Rapture occurs we must continue with Christ’s great commission and spread the good news to as many as possible, letting them know the lateness of the hour.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

CALL NO MAN YOUR FATHER

2011-05-15T16:59:00.000-07:00

Call No Man Your Father

5/12/2011

“And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.” Matthew 23:9. In response to a portion of one of my past commentaries, an individual stated that he spoke, in German, with the “Holy Father” and was told that my commentary was in error. So I asked this man if he was referring to the Creator of the universe or to a mere man who had been elevated by other mere men to the position of god on earth. I received no response.

Jesus’ words in the above verse are clear; we aren’t to refer to any man as Father as we have only one Father which is in Heaven. Imagine referring to a “man” as Holy Father; besides being against the word of God, it just doesn’t sit well. What are the implications of any man desiring to be so revered on earth? “And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased…” Matthew 23:12a. Abased means to be humbled. If you continue reading Matthew 23 you’ll discover one of many heptadic (sevenfold) structures in the scriptures. The seven woes outlined by Jesus are a condemnation of the Pharisees and scribes of His day. Seven times Jesus refers to these men as hypocrites. Then He drives the final nail into their coffin with these words “Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?” Matthew 23:33. Although Jesus’ words were pointed at the Pharisees of His day, they also paint a perfect picture of the popery of the Roman Catholic Church as we can plainly see their hypocrisy displayed throughout its bloody awful history.

Jesus is very specific about all who wish to be first. “And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.” Mark 9:35.

There is a religion where the leadership is elevated to such an exalted position that these men actually believe they are Christ on earth. They refer to themselves as “Vicarius Christi” which is Latin for Vicar of Christ. “The Latin equivalent of the Greek word “anti” is “vicarious” from which comes Vicar. So those who refer to themselves as Vicar of Christ are actually calling themselves anti-Christ, or another Christ.” “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.” Matthew 24:4-5.

The question is, who would follow such men? Why would anyone want to replace our Lord Jesus the Christ the Creator of the universe with a mere human? The answer can be found in the above verse “Take heed that no man deceive you”. The deception has been with us since the Apostles wrote their epistles. In the fourth century AD Constantine became the first pope. From that time on the popery began their reign of terror by deceiving and murdering the masses. When the word of God is not taken seriously the deception is easily manifested.

A short history lesson:

During the 14th century AD a devout Christian man stood up against the evil of the anti-Christ system. John Wycliffe was one of the first to translate the scriptures from Latin into the language of the common folk. Wycliffe was hounded by the Catholic Church because of his stance against it. Wycliffe said “The authority of the scriptures was greater than the authority of any man.” And that “We ought to believe in the authority of no man unless he say the word of God, that if any man in earth, either angel of heaven teacheth us contrary of holy Writ we should flee from him as from the foul fiend of hell, and hold us steadfastly to the truth and freedom of the holy Gospel of Jesus Christ.” The Catholic Church hated Wycliffe so much that 44 years after his death they had his remains exhumed, his bones smashed, and then burned. The council of Constance then condemned Wycliffe and had him anathematized.

Down through the ages the popes have condemned any and all who would stand against them and their doctrines. Jan Huss was another that was condemned by the council of Constance at the same time as Wycliffe. Huss was burned at the stake in 1415 for his opposition to papal infallibility and because he stood on the authority and infallibility of the Bible. When the Roman Catholic Church caught Huss’ followers, they burned them at the stake. A century later, inspired in part by the sermons of Huss, Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the Church door in Wittenberg, Germany.

Jan Huss, Jerome of Prague, and many others believed the Bible and placed its authority over the Roman Catholic popery, thus the popery condemned them all and burned them all at the stake. These were true Christians being burned at the stake; true believers in Christ who knew the truth about the popery, that all the popes were and are anti-Christ. Following this religion and believing in their doctrines will get you to only one location upon your death, and it isn’t Heaven.

Martin Luther made the following statements “The Pope, possessed by demons, defends his tyranny with the canon ‘Si papa’. This canon states clearly: if the Pope should lead the whole world into the control of hell, he is nevertheless not to be contradicted. It’s a terrible thing that on account of the authority of this man, we must lose our souls which Christ redeemed with His precious blood.” Luther also declared “I believe the Pope is the masked and incarnate devil because he is the anti-Christ.” All the reformers from Wycliffe to Spurgeon believed the pope to be anti-Christ. Charles Spurgeon wrote “It is the duty of every Christian to pray against Antichrist, and as to what Antichrist is, no sane man ought to raise a question. If it be not the popery in the Church of Rome, there is nothing in the world that can be called by that name.”

William Tyndale was another who was terribly persecuted by the Roman Catholics. They hated Tyndale because he was determined to translate the New Testament scriptures from Greek into English. Rome’s position on this subject was as follows: Simple and uneducated men were not to touch the Bible or venture to preach its doctrines. After completing his translations of the Bible, Tyndale was put to death by the clergy of the Roman Catholic Church (basically that means the pope). One of Tyndale’s statements that so infuriated the Roman Catholic Church and which put the final nail in his coffin was “I defy the pope and all his laws if God spare my life here these many years I will causeth the boy that driveth the plow to know more of the scriptures than thou dost.” He was speaking to a Roman Catholic priest in his own home. Of course, I would be remiss without saying that the Roman Catholic Church did take pity on William Tyndale as they first strangled him before burning him at the stake

But murdering William Tyndale was not enough for this most ungodly religion of anti-Christ. They also burned all the Tyndale Bibles they could get their hands on, as well burning at the stake all those who were in possession of a Tyndale Bible. The Roman Catholic Church is as bloody as any tyrannical ruler in earth’s history.

Looking back through the whole ungodly history of the Roman Catholic Church it’s not hard to discover that they have always stood contrary to the truth of the scriptures. The popes have always claimed to be Jesus Christ on earth. Anyone who knows their Bible and believes it to be the inerrant Word of God must be appalled at the Catholic popes and their horribly blasphemous statements.

From the inception of the Roman Catholic Church, the popes have declared themselves to be equal with God. They took to themselves the title of Holy Father with full authority over the Church. Pope Innocent III, who fathered the inquisition, said “The Pope holdeth place on earth not simply of a man, but of the true God” Pope Nicholas said of himself “I am in all, and above all, so that God Himself, and I, the vicar of God, hath both one consistory and I am able to do almost all that God can do. I then, being above all seen by this reason, to be above all Gods.” Pope Nicholas also claimed that the popes themselves had the power to change the Gospel itself saying “Wherefore, no marvel if it be in my power to dispense with all things, yea, with the precepts of Christ.”

The Lateran Council, while addressing Pope Julius II, said to him “Take care that we lose not that salvation, that life and breath which thou has given us for thou are shepherd, thou art physician, thou art governor, thou art husbandman, thou finally art another God on earth.” Pope Pious X declared “The Pope is not simply the representative of Jesus Christ; on the contrary he is Jesus Christ Himself, under the veil of the flesh. Does the Pope speak? It is Jesus Christ who is speaking. Hence when anyone speaks of the Pope, it is not necessary to examine but to obey.” Pope Pious IX blasphemously declared “I alone am the successor of the apostles. The voice of Jesus Christ, I am the way, the truth, and the life…” Pope Boniface VIII said “We declare, say, define and pronounce that it is absolutely necessary for the salvation of every human creature to be subject to the Roman Pontiff.” Pope Clement VI said “No man outside obedience to the Pope of Rome can ultimately be saved. All who have raised themselves against the faith of the Roman Church and died in final impenitence have been damned and gone down to Hell.” Pope John XXIII said “Into this fold of Jesus Christ no man may enter unless he be led by the Sovereign Pontiff and only if they be united to him can men be saved…”

In 1984 Pope John Paul II was quoted as saying “Don’t go to God for forgiveness of sins: come to me.” Catherine of Siena, one of the patron saints of Italy, said “Even if the Pope were Satan incarnate, we ought not to raise up our heads against him, but calmly lie down to rest in his bosom. He who rebels against our Father is condemned to death, for that which we do to him, we do to Christ. We honor Christ if we honor the Pope.”

There is no doubt in my mind that the Roman Catholic Church is pure evil in origin; they remain so even in today’s enlightened society. Why do I say this? Even though our current society is supposed to be enlightened there are few that know and understand the word of God. Therefore many remain susceptible to the deceptions of Rome while ignoring Jesus’ admonition to beware of such deceptions.

This commentary is just the tip of the iceberg when compared to the volumes of heresies which would describe even more of how horrible the Roman Catholic Church has been to the true Christians over the last 1,700 years. Suffice it to say, Jesus told us about this evil that would appear on the scene claiming to be Him, but since they wouldn’t listen to Him why would they listen to me? The Apostle John wrote about the anti-Christ’s that would come and who were already among them. “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.” 1 John 2:18-19.

Charles Spurgeon wrote “For truth’s sake, our Protestantism must protest perpetually…No peace with Rome…” Yet what we currently see taking place is many evangelicals running back to the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church. This is a hard thing to witness, as we who are true believers in Christ know how obscene the Roman Catholic Church actually remains.

The way to enter Heaven is not by elevating ourselves to a position of prominence resulting in men bowing to us with much pomp and circumstance, but to humble ourselves as little children. “…Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3. Sometimes it takes a lot of humbling to become as a little child in the eyes of God. For some of us it may take a lifetime to understand how to become “as little children”.

The Catholic popery work to elevate themselves to positions of exaltedness above the laity thus they are in for a huge surprise. First of all it’s obvious these popes have no fear of God. Secondly, they can’t be believers in Christ as all indications are that they disparage God’s Word. Instead of cherishing the Word of God as true believers do and adhering to God’s precepts as the truth they simply ignore God as they make themselves out to be god on earth.

Study your Bible. Don’t be one of those who have been, or are about to be, deceived in these end times. Call no man your Father on earth as God is our Father. All in all pray for all those deceived individuals, but by all means stay far clear of the Roman Catholic Church.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

twotug@embarqmail.com

96 County Road 5480 Salem, MO 65560

My past commentaries are archived at the following link

http://www.raptureready.com/featured/graham/graham.html

Source: Decretals of Gregory IX, Book 1, Chapter 3

EVERY THING FALLS APART

2011-05-05T19:32:00.000-07:00

Everything Falls Apart

5/5/2011

The “everything falls apart” title above must be apparent, not only to me, but to many of you also. Recently we have all read about some well-known Christian brethren who have gone on to glory. Others are almost completely debilitated; one awesome Christian writer has just recently suffered a massive heart attack and is now recovering. There’s just no good way to describe what’s going on in this fallen world, except to say “Everything Falls Apart.”

Many of you have been very concerned about my health recently and have written to me expressing that concern with promises of prayers for me and for my family. I am a firm believer in God’s power to heal as well as His commitment to His children to answer all prayers. Prayers are our petitions to God and of course He hears all our petitions, we should never put ourselves in a position of denying that fact. A trip to my doctor last week confirmed my suspicion that my disease is getting worse. My facial muscles are beginning to droop quite noticeably, and keeping my eyes open is now getting very difficult. My strength has all but left my body and I’m exhausted as soon as I get to my feet. The disease I have is neuro-muscular; my auto-immune system is failing. In other words my body is killing itself. The worst part of this is my throat closes off to the point that I can only swallow liquids. This has caused a weight loss of almost 60 lbs since the first of the year and I’m continuing this trend at the rate of approximately 5 lbs per week.

Then there’s the prostate cancer which invaded my body about two years ago now. It had to be radically addressed because it is of the very aggressive type. Some of you might cringe at what my doctor had to do to keep the cancer cells from multiplying. It’s called medical castration and it works exactly the way you might imagine. I’m a firm believer and living proof that the truth of the matter is the curse is in full force in this universe as we can plainly see that “Everything Falls Apart.”

Scientists call this falling apart entropy. It seems the second law of thermodynamics is alive and well as everything goes from order to disorder. Nothing is excluded from the effects of entropy, nothing. The whole universe is affected and Paul tells us that “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” Romans 8:22.

Paul then goes on to explain our hope and how the Holy Spirit helps us even in our infirmities as we pray because many times we don’t even know what to pray for.

“For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:24-28. So in all circumstances pray, because that’s where God dwells.

“Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;” Ephesians 5:20. The worst thing we can do is to blame God for entropy (the falling apart of everything) we must endure. After all, it was the first couple, our pre-flood parents who rebelled against God which caused a curse on the entire universe. God gave Adam the world yet he was unable to comprehend just exactly what God had given him. After Adam and Eve’s rebellion we can assume they understood their new situation quite well. Sorrowful doesn’t begin to describe what they must have felt as he and Eve got the boot from their most prestigious home in Eden’s perfect Garden.

When we begin to feel what many would consider extreme effects of entropy we usually seek help, help from God first, and then we might turn to a specialist in the field of our particular aliment. And encouragement during these times is as important as any medical treatment. In my case many of you have become, through encouragement and prayers, very close friends. Encouragement is a life line especially when our individual world begins to grow dimmer. Surely many of my brethren are in the same physical condition as I am, maybe not with the same diagnosis of illness, but perhaps with just as many physical limitations.

“For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? ” Romans 8:29-31. These words were recently a portion of a very encouraging letter which a reader sent to me. They were exactly what this follower of Jesus Christ needed to hear.

I’ve had plenty of occasions lately, as my wife can attest to, when I have been so exhausted that to continue the commentaries seemed impossible. Somehow God gives me the strength to get the next commentary done. The idea of sitting around and doing nothing just doesn’t fit in God’s plan for our life. God expects His children to keep going; always being assured of the fact that He will continue with us. Remember, we are told to hold fast to the faith, and to occupy ‘til He comes.

Everyone’s faith will be tested at some point in their walk with Christ; and I’m no different. My faith has surely been tested over the last couple of years. Yet James tells us “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” James 1:12. My illness has caused me, many times, to wonder how I can possibly be of any further use to God. Yet He never fails to show me just how useful I can be. When I question God on the commentary’s usefulness, invariably folks respond in huge numbers telling me just how much they needed to hear what I’ve just written. Isn’t God great? He never lets us down, and He never will, and that’s a fact.

Everything falls apart, that’s for sure and for certain. But when our bodies begin to deteriorate to a point that we feel useless it’s then that God can genuinely use us for His glory. When our strength is so depleted that we can hardly walk across the room, then there’s no doubt that it’s God’s strength that sustains us. When all seems useless, when the world seems to be closing in on us from every side, then it’s God’s words that bring us comfort and the strength to continue.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed

twotug@embarqmail.com

96 County Road 5480 Salem, MO 65560

My past commentaries are archived at the following link

http://www.raptureready.com/featured/graham/graham.html