Prayer Of Rebuke And Protection
Lord God we come to you in the name of Jesus Christ our Father & Savior, We ask of you to anoint us with the blood of Jesus that was shed when he died on the cross for all of our sins.
I know that we all fall far from perfect & are not worthy of your glory & we are very thankful that you are truly a loving & forgiving God.
We are asking for you to watch over us as we go into battle against any & all unclean spirits, Guard us & protect us from the evil things that we can, & cannot see that try to harm us,
Guide us & lead us while we help those who are in need of our assistance, We ask that you allow us to see, hear, feel & capture the things that are needed in order for us to determine what level of spirits that dwell inside the home & on the property so that we can help these families who contact us.
We ask that you use us to help every family & individual that call upon us & seek our assistance, asking us to help them being that we are a willing vessel.
Show us what you would have us do, put us where you would have us be, have those you would have us help contact us.
Give us the courage & the strength to be strong & to help each family member & individual that you put us in contact with.
Help us give them peace from the spirits that torment their life's. Protect the families that we help & shield us all with the Blood of Jesus to give us safety & keep us all out of harms way.
Allow us not to be deceived but to recognize the deceiver, allow us to discern the good from the evil as we guide every good spirit to the direction they need to go in order to reside in your kingdom for eternity.
Give us the knowledge, the wisdom, the power & the protection through the Blood of Jesus to fight off the Demons & any other evil spirits that try to bind & hinder the work that is needed done & that are dwelling in the life's & in the homes of the families.
We ask that you send these evil, demonic, unclean spirits back to the pits of hell from whence they came, as we now openly rebuke them in the name & through the Blood of Jesus Christ our Father & Savior.
We ask that you place your hands upon the life's of us & these families & keep us in your light.
We ask all these things & give you all the glory & praise. "In Jesus name we pray Amen"
Satan" we rebuke you in the name & through the blood of Jesus Christ. We cast you out of our life's! In the name of Jesus we send you back to the pits of Hell from where you came! We bind you & your demons & we put you behind us & under our feet!
We bind any unclean spirits, & bind anything you try to hinder in our life's as we rebuke you & your Demons!
In the name of Jesus we break any curses that you have put on our life's, & we break any generational curses that you have put upon our life's, & upon the life's of our families & loved one's.
In the name of Jesus you can not hinder us, you can not harm us, you can not touch us, & you can not have us.
Again Satan & all your demons, we rebuke you in the name & through the blood of Jesus Christ who shed his blood & died for our sins on the cross so we would have a choice that we might live. You are bound in the name of Jesus.
For it is in God's name that we pray in the name of Jesus.
"Amen"
Friday 31 October 2014
Wednesday 29 October 2014
Life My Dear Children Is Not Only Difficult, It's Unfair.
We usually can do very little to change our lot. We can only change our reaction to our lot.
We cannot change our past, for example. I don't care how brilliant we are, our past stands in concrete. We cannot erase it.
But we can learn today to see our past from God's perspective, and use the disadvantages of yesterday in our life today and forever.
You and I constantly bump up against people submerged in self-pity. They are hopelessly lost in the swamp of life. And all they can tell you is how wrong this was, or how unfair she was, or how someone's promise was broken, or how that man walked away and left "me and the kids," or that guy broke up a partnership and "took me to the cleaners," and on and on and on.
But Solomon says, Ecclesiastes (3:22), in effect, "I suggest to you that there's nothing better than that you look for an advantage and then dwell on it. Make that your life's message. Who knows what impact it will have?" One of the beautiful things about the right attitude is that, with it, every day has sunshine. You don't have to have cloudless days for there to be sunshine days.
There is a plan that we explore which we will not understand, but it is best. Though each segment of it may not seem fair or pleasant, it works together for good. Our perspective is dreadfully limited. We see only a pinpoint of time, but God's view is panoramic. God's big-picture, cosmic plan is at work now, and He doesn't feel the need (nor is He obligated) to explain it to us. If He tried, our answer would be like the confused teenager listening to his calculus teacher, "What?" You wouldn't get it, nor would I. Just remember, the Father knows what is best for His children. Rest in that realization.
There are consequences we experience that we could not anticipate, but they are necessary. I don't know where you find yourself today, but I would be willing to wager that most of you reading this are going through something that is unfair. Chances are good that you simply don't deserve what's happening. The consequences may have started to get to you. You didn't anticipate any of this. You didn't think it would come to this, but it has. Trust me here. What has happened is a necessary part of your spiritual growth. Yes, necessary. I've finally begun to accept that reality after all these years of my life.
Life is not only difficult, it's unfair. The silence of God's voice will make you wonder if He is even there.
And the absence of God's presence will make you wonder if He even cares. He is there. And He does care.
And the absence of God's presence will make you wonder if He even cares. He is there. And He does care.
Sage Counsel
This is a good time to consider the sage counsel.
How do we settle the truth when two people of equal piety and devotion have different opinions? Does the Holy Spirit tell one person the Rapture is pre-tribulation, and another that it is post-tribulation? The very fact that spiritually minded interpreters come to different conclusions about these matters distresses many people's minds. They have presumed that if a man is yielded to the Holy Spirit, his interpretations must be correct.
But certain things must be kept in mind. First, the Holy Spirit gives nobody infallible interpretations. Second, piety is a help to interpretation, but it is not a substitute for knowledge or study or intelligence.
Third, all of us are still in the human body and subject to its limitations and frailties we make mistakes of interpretation in Scripture as well as errors in judgment in the affairs of life.
It is the present temptation of at least American evangelicalism to substitute a class of devout Bible teachers for the Catholic Pope. To such people the meaning of Scripture is that which their favorite Bible teacher teaches. But the Protestant principle must always be this: The truest interpretations are those with the best justification.
I could just as easily have used an illustration regarding a physician's diagnosis or a therapist's counsel. The issue is identical. If I could change a term and put it in the language of a famous historical document: all men are created fallible. Yes, all. If you remember that, you'll have fewer surprises and disappointments, greater wisdom, and a whole lot better perspective in life. Rather than slumping into cynicism because your hero showed feet of clay, you'll maintain a healthy and intelligent objectivity. You'll be able to show respect without worshiping him or her. And when you really need to know the truth, you'll turn to the Scriptures with firsthand confidence.
If you're looking for infallibility, look no further than God's Word.
This is a good time to consider the sage counsel.
How do we settle the truth when two people of equal piety and devotion have different opinions? Does the Holy Spirit tell one person the Rapture is pre-tribulation, and another that it is post-tribulation? The very fact that spiritually minded interpreters come to different conclusions about these matters distresses many people's minds. They have presumed that if a man is yielded to the Holy Spirit, his interpretations must be correct.
But certain things must be kept in mind. First, the Holy Spirit gives nobody infallible interpretations. Second, piety is a help to interpretation, but it is not a substitute for knowledge or study or intelligence.
Third, all of us are still in the human body and subject to its limitations and frailties we make mistakes of interpretation in Scripture as well as errors in judgment in the affairs of life.
It is the present temptation of at least American evangelicalism to substitute a class of devout Bible teachers for the Catholic Pope. To such people the meaning of Scripture is that which their favorite Bible teacher teaches. But the Protestant principle must always be this: The truest interpretations are those with the best justification.
I could just as easily have used an illustration regarding a physician's diagnosis or a therapist's counsel. The issue is identical. If I could change a term and put it in the language of a famous historical document: all men are created fallible. Yes, all. If you remember that, you'll have fewer surprises and disappointments, greater wisdom, and a whole lot better perspective in life. Rather than slumping into cynicism because your hero showed feet of clay, you'll maintain a healthy and intelligent objectivity. You'll be able to show respect without worshiping him or her. And when you really need to know the truth, you'll turn to the Scriptures with firsthand confidence.
If you're looking for infallibility, look no further than God's Word.
Thursday 16 October 2014
Immortal Soul
Revelation (20:10)
And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
This verse seems to describe the Lake of Fire as a place where God torments people forever. This raises a few questions: 1) If the Beast and False Prophet are mortal men, why are they still alive after the Millennium when Satan is cast into the Lake of Fire?
2) If they are mortals, how can they "be tormented day and night forever and ever" in an inferno that would soon consume them? 3) What kind of God would devise such a "cruel and unusual" punishment?
Before we answer these questions, we must briefly consider whether man has an immortal soul. Our understanding of the Scriptures compels us to maintain that he does not for several reasons:
Job recognized that man has a spirit, Job (32:8), which Paul shows in, I Corinthians (2:1) endows humanity with intellect. This spirit in man comes from God, Zechariah (12:1) and returns to Him when we die, Ecclesiastes (12:7); Acts (7:59). It records our experiences, character, and personality, which God stores until the resurrection of the dead. However, the Bible never describes this spirit as immortal or eternal; in fact, I Corinthians (2:6-16) explains that man needs yet another Spirit, God's, to be complete and discern godly things.
The Bible flatly asserts that all people die: "It is appointed for men to die once" Hebrews (9:27). Ezekiel says clearly that souls die: "The soul who sins shall die", Ezekiel (18:4, 20); Romans (6:23). Jesus warns in Matthew (10:28) that God can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.
In death, life and consciousness are gone. "The dead know nothing," says Solomon in Ecclesiastes (9:5), and he later adds, "There is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going". In Psalm (146:4), the psalmist writes about a man's death, "His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; in that very day his plans perish", Genesis (3:19).
Scripture also confutes the idea that people go to heaven or hell after death. Peter says to the crowd on the day of Pentecost, "Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. For David did not ascend into the heavens", Acts (2:29, 34). Our Savior confirms this in John (3:13): "No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven." The biblical usage of Sheol and Hades simply means "the grave."
Men cannot have immortality unless God gives it to them. Paul writes, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord", Romans (6:23). In I Corinthians (15:53) he tells the saints, "This corruptible must put on in-corruption, and this mortal must put on immortality." At the first resurrection God will give "eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality", Romans (2:7). If we already had immortality, why should we put it on or seek it?
Only God has immortality. He is, Paul writes to Timothy, "the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality" (I Timothy 6:15-16). John says of the Word, "In Him was life", John (1:4), meaning as Creator of all things, He had life inherent. Jesus affirms this in John (14:6), "I am the way, the truth, and the life." Men must go through Him to receive eternal life.
With such overwhelming proof, the doctrine of the immortality of the soul proves false. Man is not immortal, nor does he possess any "spark of God" unless God has given it to him through the Holy Spirit, Romans (8:11). A Christian's hope of life after death rests in the resurrection of the dead, I Corinthians (15:12-23). Conversely, the wicked only await eternal death as recompense for their evil lives, not eternal life in torment.
To understand Revelation (20:10) correctly, we must put it into its proper chronological context. Once we know when it occurs, much of the confusion about this verse clears up.
Though only twelve verses separate Revelation (19:20) from (20:10), one thousand years pass between their respective events. The Beast and the False Prophet are cast into the Lake of Fire when Christ returns, Revelation (19:11-21). Soon thereafter, an angel imprisons Satan in the bottomless pit for the thousand years of the Millennium (Revelation 20:1-3). When the thousand years pass, Satan is released, and he gathers Gog and Magog to fight against the saints. After God defeats this futile attempt, He casts Satan, a spirit being, into the Lake of Fire to be tormented forever and ever'.
Obviously, the flames of the Lake of Fire totally consume mortal men like the Beast and False Prophet. In no way could they survive a thousand years of burning! The laws of nature simply will not allow it.
The translators of the King James and New King James versions render the final clause of the first sentence as "where the beast and the false prophet are." The present-tense verb "are" is not in the Greek; it is an understood verb. In English grammar, such silent verbs take the same tense as the verb in the main clause of the sentence. The translators ignored this rule, however. The primary verb of the sentence, "was cast" (an aorist verb usually translated as simple past tense), demands that the silent verb should be "were cast" (past tense) to agree with the plural subject, "the beast and the false prophet."
Deceived by the false doctrine of the immortal soul, the translators had to deny nature and break the rules to make this verse fit their understanding! On the other hand, we can confidently assert that our teaching agrees with Scripture, nature, and grammar!
Revelation (20:10)
And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
This verse seems to describe the Lake of Fire as a place where God torments people forever. This raises a few questions: 1) If the Beast and False Prophet are mortal men, why are they still alive after the Millennium when Satan is cast into the Lake of Fire?
2) If they are mortals, how can they "be tormented day and night forever and ever" in an inferno that would soon consume them? 3) What kind of God would devise such a "cruel and unusual" punishment?
Before we answer these questions, we must briefly consider whether man has an immortal soul. Our understanding of the Scriptures compels us to maintain that he does not for several reasons:
Job recognized that man has a spirit, Job (32:8), which Paul shows in, I Corinthians (2:1) endows humanity with intellect. This spirit in man comes from God, Zechariah (12:1) and returns to Him when we die, Ecclesiastes (12:7); Acts (7:59). It records our experiences, character, and personality, which God stores until the resurrection of the dead. However, the Bible never describes this spirit as immortal or eternal; in fact, I Corinthians (2:6-16) explains that man needs yet another Spirit, God's, to be complete and discern godly things.
The Bible flatly asserts that all people die: "It is appointed for men to die once" Hebrews (9:27). Ezekiel says clearly that souls die: "The soul who sins shall die", Ezekiel (18:4, 20); Romans (6:23). Jesus warns in Matthew (10:28) that God can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.
In death, life and consciousness are gone. "The dead know nothing," says Solomon in Ecclesiastes (9:5), and he later adds, "There is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going". In Psalm (146:4), the psalmist writes about a man's death, "His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; in that very day his plans perish", Genesis (3:19).
Scripture also confutes the idea that people go to heaven or hell after death. Peter says to the crowd on the day of Pentecost, "Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. For David did not ascend into the heavens", Acts (2:29, 34). Our Savior confirms this in John (3:13): "No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven." The biblical usage of Sheol and Hades simply means "the grave."
Men cannot have immortality unless God gives it to them. Paul writes, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord", Romans (6:23). In I Corinthians (15:53) he tells the saints, "This corruptible must put on in-corruption, and this mortal must put on immortality." At the first resurrection God will give "eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality", Romans (2:7). If we already had immortality, why should we put it on or seek it?
Only God has immortality. He is, Paul writes to Timothy, "the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality" (I Timothy 6:15-16). John says of the Word, "In Him was life", John (1:4), meaning as Creator of all things, He had life inherent. Jesus affirms this in John (14:6), "I am the way, the truth, and the life." Men must go through Him to receive eternal life.
With such overwhelming proof, the doctrine of the immortality of the soul proves false. Man is not immortal, nor does he possess any "spark of God" unless God has given it to him through the Holy Spirit, Romans (8:11). A Christian's hope of life after death rests in the resurrection of the dead, I Corinthians (15:12-23). Conversely, the wicked only await eternal death as recompense for their evil lives, not eternal life in torment.
To understand Revelation (20:10) correctly, we must put it into its proper chronological context. Once we know when it occurs, much of the confusion about this verse clears up.
Though only twelve verses separate Revelation (19:20) from (20:10), one thousand years pass between their respective events. The Beast and the False Prophet are cast into the Lake of Fire when Christ returns, Revelation (19:11-21). Soon thereafter, an angel imprisons Satan in the bottomless pit for the thousand years of the Millennium (Revelation 20:1-3). When the thousand years pass, Satan is released, and he gathers Gog and Magog to fight against the saints. After God defeats this futile attempt, He casts Satan, a spirit being, into the Lake of Fire to be tormented forever and ever'.
Obviously, the flames of the Lake of Fire totally consume mortal men like the Beast and False Prophet. In no way could they survive a thousand years of burning! The laws of nature simply will not allow it.
The translators of the King James and New King James versions render the final clause of the first sentence as "where the beast and the false prophet are." The present-tense verb "are" is not in the Greek; it is an understood verb. In English grammar, such silent verbs take the same tense as the verb in the main clause of the sentence. The translators ignored this rule, however. The primary verb of the sentence, "was cast" (an aorist verb usually translated as simple past tense), demands that the silent verb should be "were cast" (past tense) to agree with the plural subject, "the beast and the false prophet."
Deceived by the false doctrine of the immortal soul, the translators had to deny nature and break the rules to make this verse fit their understanding! On the other hand, we can confidently assert that our teaching agrees with Scripture, nature, and grammar!
Sunday 12 October 2014
Save Us!
Habakkuk (1:2-4)
How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, "Violence!" But you do not save? Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.
The anguish in his voice is palpable. "God, I've been crying out to You day and night, and still violence, perversity, and all these terrible things are happening in the land. How long will this evil last? How much longer must we endure this constant wickedness, this corruption? When are you going to act, God?" We have probably prayed similar prayers ourselves: "We need You, God. How long, O Lord?"
Ezekiel was a slightly later contemporary of Habakkuk. In Ezekiel (9:1-6) is a prophecy, a vision, that he saw while a captive in Babylon. The vision describes what God was doing in Judah and answers, at least in part, Habakkuk's question: "Why have You not judged all this evil, God?" His reply in Ezekiel 9 is, "I am going through the land, through My chosen people, and I am marking each one who sighs and cries over what is happening. I am searching out and seeing who is righteous, who has character, and whom I must destroy."
It is good that we mourn over all the corruption, wickedness, and abominations that are happening in this land. It tells God something about our heart and our character. He is seeking out those who are concerned, distressed, and repulsed by what is occurring around them, and He is setting them apart for deliverance. All the while, we must endure it, but it is a necessary wait, because it takes time for God to evaluate our character, to see what we will do over the long haul. As Jesus advises in Luke (21:19), "In your patience possess your souls."
So we must ask ourselves, "How do we react to what is happening in our nation?" How do we react to sex and violence on television, movies, and magazines, in books, on billboards, and in just about all advertising and entertainment? How do we react to terrorism, to drug use, to abortion, to oppression? How do we react to our court system, which allows so much injustice to stand? How do we react to racial inequalities? Have we become numb and hardened to all of these things, or do we still sigh and cry over the depths of this nation's depravity?
Habakkuk is certainly concerned, and so he asks God for answers, crying out, "Save us!" God replies in Habakkuk (1:5-11), and His reply is very interesting.
Habakkuk (1:2-4)
How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, "Violence!" But you do not save? Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.
The anguish in his voice is palpable. "God, I've been crying out to You day and night, and still violence, perversity, and all these terrible things are happening in the land. How long will this evil last? How much longer must we endure this constant wickedness, this corruption? When are you going to act, God?" We have probably prayed similar prayers ourselves: "We need You, God. How long, O Lord?"
Ezekiel was a slightly later contemporary of Habakkuk. In Ezekiel (9:1-6) is a prophecy, a vision, that he saw while a captive in Babylon. The vision describes what God was doing in Judah and answers, at least in part, Habakkuk's question: "Why have You not judged all this evil, God?" His reply in Ezekiel 9 is, "I am going through the land, through My chosen people, and I am marking each one who sighs and cries over what is happening. I am searching out and seeing who is righteous, who has character, and whom I must destroy."
It is good that we mourn over all the corruption, wickedness, and abominations that are happening in this land. It tells God something about our heart and our character. He is seeking out those who are concerned, distressed, and repulsed by what is occurring around them, and He is setting them apart for deliverance. All the while, we must endure it, but it is a necessary wait, because it takes time for God to evaluate our character, to see what we will do over the long haul. As Jesus advises in Luke (21:19), "In your patience possess your souls."
So we must ask ourselves, "How do we react to what is happening in our nation?" How do we react to sex and violence on television, movies, and magazines, in books, on billboards, and in just about all advertising and entertainment? How do we react to terrorism, to drug use, to abortion, to oppression? How do we react to our court system, which allows so much injustice to stand? How do we react to racial inequalities? Have we become numb and hardened to all of these things, or do we still sigh and cry over the depths of this nation's depravity?
Habakkuk is certainly concerned, and so he asks God for answers, crying out, "Save us!" God replies in Habakkuk (1:5-11), and His reply is very interesting.
Friday 10 October 2014
The Lion
That a lion denotes the good of celestial love and the derivative truth, in its power, and also that in the opposite sense it denotes the evil of the love of self in its power, is evident from passages in the Word where a lion is mentioned. That it denotes the good of celestial love is evident in John.
Behold the lion that is of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, hath conquered to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof (Rev. 5:5); here the Lord is called a lion from the omnipotence belonging to His Divine love and the Divine truth thence derived. In other passages in the Word, Jehovah or the Lord is compared to a lion, as in Hosea. They shall go after Jehovah; He shall roar like a lion; for Be shall roar, and the sons shall come with honor from the sea (Hosea 11:10). Isaiah. Thus said Jehovah unto me, Like as when the lion roareth, and the young lion over his prey, if a fulness of shepherds come running upon him, he is not dismayed at their voice, and is not afflicted by their tumult; so shall Jehovah Zebaoth come down to fight upon Mount Zion and upon the hill thereof (Isa. 31:4); here the omnipotence of Divine good is compared to a lion, and the omnipotence of the Divine truth thence derived is compared to a young lion, for it is said that Jehovah Zebaoth shall come down to fight upon Mount Zion and upon the hill thereof; for Mount Zion signifies the good of Divine love, and the hill thereof, the Divine truth thence derived (AC 795, 796, 1430, 4210). For the same reason the four animals in Ezekiel and in John, by which are meant cherubs, had the faces of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle. In Ezekiel. The likeness of the faces of the four animals: the face of a man and the face of a lion on the right side had they four; and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; and they four had the face of an eagle (Ezek. 1:10; 10:14). John. Before the throne were four animals full of eyes before and behind. And the first animal was like a lion, and the second animal like a calf the third animal had a face as a man, the fourth animal was like a flying eagle (Rev. 4:6, 7). That these animals were cherubs is said in Ezekiel 10, and is also plain from the description of them in John, namely, that they had eyes before and behind; for by cherubs are signified the Lord's foresight and providence (AC 308): that they had the face of a lion was from the omnipotence of Divine truth from Divine good, which is of providence. It was similar with the cherubs about the new temple, in (Ezekiel 41:19). That the celestial, who are in power from good and the derivative truth, which are from the Lord, are meant by lions, is evident in David. There is no want to them that fear Jehovah. The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger; but they that seek Jehovah shall not want any good (Ps. 34:9, 10). Psalms. The lions roar after their prey, and to seek their food from God. The sun ariseth, they are gathered together, and lay them down in their habitations (Ps. 104:21, 22). Yet for all its seeming autonomy, the lion is ultimately dependent on God ( Job 38:39-40 ; Psalm 104:21 ), answerable to him ( Job 4:10 ), and subdued in the millennial age ( Isa 11:6-7 ). And in the prophecy of Balaam. At that time it shall be said to Jacob and Israel, What hath God wrought! Behold the people shall rise up as an old lion, and as a young lion shall he lift himself up; he shall not rest until he eat the prey (Num. 13:23, 24). Numbers. When Balaam saw Israel dwelling according to their tribes, he said, He boweth down, he coucheth as a lion, and as an old lion, who shall rouse him up? (Num. 24:2, 9). It is the celestial that is here described, because it was the celestial order that the tribes represented by their encampment which Balaam saw in spirit when he saw Israel dwelling according to their tribes (AC 6335). This order is from the Divine good through the Divine truth from the Lord, and in this order is all power, here denoted by the lion which boweth down and coucheth. Micah. The remains of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep; who if he go down, treadeth down and scattereth, and there is none rescuing. Let thy hand be exalted over thine enemies, and let all thy foes be cut off (Micah 5:8, 9); where the lion and young lion denote celestial good and celestial truth, which are the remains of Jacob. The meaning is similar in (Isaiah 21:8; Jer. 25:38; Ezek. 32:2; Zech. 11:3). The like was represented by the lions at the ivory throne of Solomon, two at the sides of the throne, and twelve upon the six steps (1 Kings 10:18-20); also by the lions upon the borders of the ten bases of brass (1 Kings 7:29, 36). That in the opposite sense a lion signifies the evil of the love of self in its power, is plain from the following passages:-- No lion shall be there, and no ravenous beast shall go up thereon, It shall not be found there; but they shall go free; thus the redeemed of Jehovah shall return and shall come to Zion with singing (Isa. 35:9, 10). Jeremiah. Why is Israel become a prey? The young lions rear against him, they utter their voice, they reduce his land to a waste (Jer. 2:14, 15). The lion cometh up from his bramble, and the destroyer of the nations hath journeyed, he went forth from his place to reduce the land into a waste (Jer. 4:7). They have not known the way of Jehovah, the judgment of their God. Wherefore a lion out of the forest hath smitten them, and a wolf of the plains will lay them waste (Jer. 5:4, 6). Nahum. Where is the habitation of the lions, and the pasture of the young lions; where the lion stalked, the old lion, the lion's whelp, and none made afraid? The lion seizeth enough for his whelps, and strangled for his old lionesses, and filleth his caves with prey, and his habitations with ravin. Behold I am against thee, saith Jehovah Zebaoth, and I will burn her chariot in the smoke, and the sword shall devour thy young lions; and I will cut off thy prey from the earth (Nahum 2:11-13); speaking of Nineveh. In the above passages a lion denotes the power possessed by the evil of the love of self when it destroys and lays waste; and so in (Jer. 12:8; 49:19; 50:17, 44; 51:38; Ezek. 19:2-11; 33:2; Joel 1:6; Zeph. 3:3; Ps. 57:5; 58:6; 91:13; Rev. 13:2). God is described with a number of leonine features. He is strong ( Isa 38:13 ), fearless in protecting his own ( Isa 31:4 ), stealthy in coming upon his prey ( Jer 49:19 ; Hosea 13:7 ), frightening ( Hosea 11:10 ; Amos 3:8 ), and destructive ( Jer 25:38 ; Lam 3:10 ; Hosea 5:14 ; 13:8 ). In am 3:8 "The Lion" even appears as a title for God. |
Friday 3 October 2014
The Prodigal Son
He wasted his substance' Luke (15:13)
The Prodigal Son made two mistakes:
1) he rejected his father's authority. The first step that gets you into trouble is the one that takes you away from God. Like the Prodigal Son, you leave home saying, 'Give me.' And if you're fortunate enough to survive your own best thinking, you come back home saying, 'Forgive me.' God loves you. Everything you need, He has already provided!
2) he left his father's house. The devil will do whatever it takes to get you out from under God's influence and protection. He'll put a restless spirit in you so that nothing makes you happy. Two areas he will work the hardest to generate discontent in are:
A) your marriage. That's why you constantly need to work on it. The reason there are weeds in your garden instead of roses is because you don't spend enough time working there. Your marriage isn't just a covenant before God, it's a shelter for your passions and dysfunctions. Furthermore, that 'other person', who looks so attractive to you, has baggage, too. And when they move in, they'll bring it with them!
B) your church. Who feeds you spiritually? Who monitors your growth in God? Would you let your children stay home from school because they don't like the teacher or don't want to learn? Come on, be sensible! God says His Word is like 'a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces', Jeremiah (23:29). When the hammer of God's Word falls in church next Sunday morning-you need to be under it. You should say, 'I was glad when they said unto me, "Let us go into the house of the Lord', Psalms (122:1).
He wasted his substance' Luke (15:13)
The Prodigal Son made two mistakes:
1) he rejected his father's authority. The first step that gets you into trouble is the one that takes you away from God. Like the Prodigal Son, you leave home saying, 'Give me.' And if you're fortunate enough to survive your own best thinking, you come back home saying, 'Forgive me.' God loves you. Everything you need, He has already provided!
2) he left his father's house. The devil will do whatever it takes to get you out from under God's influence and protection. He'll put a restless spirit in you so that nothing makes you happy. Two areas he will work the hardest to generate discontent in are:
A) your marriage. That's why you constantly need to work on it. The reason there are weeds in your garden instead of roses is because you don't spend enough time working there. Your marriage isn't just a covenant before God, it's a shelter for your passions and dysfunctions. Furthermore, that 'other person', who looks so attractive to you, has baggage, too. And when they move in, they'll bring it with them!
B) your church. Who feeds you spiritually? Who monitors your growth in God? Would you let your children stay home from school because they don't like the teacher or don't want to learn? Come on, be sensible! God says His Word is like 'a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces', Jeremiah (23:29). When the hammer of God's Word falls in church next Sunday morning-you need to be under it. You should say, 'I was glad when they said unto me, "Let us go into the house of the Lord', Psalms (122:1).
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