God: 'I've got this'

God took Abraham and walked him around the land He later would give him and his seed forever. Abraham just took God at His Word in spite of any details.

“By faith Abraham sojourned in the land of promise,” says Jordan. “By the way, that’s what that land ought to be called. The land over there in Palestine is not the Holy Land. Ezekiel says it will be holy one day but it will be holy because God is going to dwell in it and sanctify it and He’s going to put His presence in it.

“Abraham sojourned in the land and they lived in tents and tabernacles. He was by faith saying, ‘This is MY country! This is MY land! God gave me this!’

“God said, ‘Don’t worry about the details. Forget all the details. Just trust me. Go out there and enjoy it!’

“Hebrews 11:10 says, ‘For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.’

"He says, ‘I’m not going to be satisfied until I get the city God’s going to build. I’m not going to build me a city. I’m going to let God build it! He said He would. I’m going to trust Him.’

“Abraham took God at His Word in spite of a lack of explanation and any real accounting of how it was going to be accomplished. He just trusted God.

*****

“Verse 11 says, ‘Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.’

“She conceived seed by a fellow who, by all natural rights, shouldn't have been able to have been the father of anybody. Sarah and Abraham just took God as His word despite the natural laws of life that would have seemed to have limited them.

“Look at Genesis 17:15 and notice how this thing worked out in history. Abraham fell on his face and said, ‘Uh, yeah, get real, Lord! Ha, ha! You pullin’ my leg or not? Ha!’

“Abraham obeyed but he didn’t obey fully. But Hebrews looks back and says, ‘You know the issue isn’t your performance; the issue’s your faith.’

*****

“Verse 12 is a great verse: 'Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.'

“Now that’s what God did. The stars of the heaven and the grains of sand--those are figures of speech to describe the innumerable seed of Abraham.

“I don’t know if you ever thought of what it must have been like for Abraham. I love that in verse 11 where it says Sara received strength.

“I know the other versions and commentators try to make that not be Sara’s faith but Abraham’s faith, but I’ll tell you what, there’s an old saying out in the world: ‘It takes two to tango.’ And if Abraham had come home and said, ‘God said we’re going to have a child,’ he couldn’t have a child without his wife.

“She had to be a willing participant in that which seemed to go against all of nature, and all of her understanding, but there came a place where Sara was willing by faith to do what God said and God supernaturally gave to that couple the physical capacity to bear the seed and that’s wonderful and it came by faith.

“And even though they started out doubters and not fully doing what they ought to do, it wasn’t what they were doing that was the issue anyway.

"It was always going to be what God did that was the issue and they took God at His Word in spite of not having everything written down ahead and all the details figured out. And in spite of what their natural inclinations would have told them, in spite of all that, they just took God at His Word.

“You know how Israel’s going to get through that tribulation? Just that way. You know how they’re going to ‘lay aside every weight and the sin that doth so easily beset us and run with patience the race set before them, looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of their faith’?

"It’s going be the motivation of faith resting in the provisions God has made for them and in Christ, and in the promise that’s He’s given them about what He’s going to do for them and with them.”

(new article tomorrow)

Trust opens unimagined possibilities

“Who can cheer the heart like Jesus, By His presence all divine?,” asks Thoro Harris (regarded as one of the most prolific African-American hymn writers of the early 20th century) in his classic from 1931, All That Thrills my Soul. Harris proclaims, “He is more than life to me. And the fairest of ten thousand, In my blessed Lord I see . . .  On His strength divine relying, He is all in all to me.”  

Making Jesus everything, trusting in Him for our all, was a constant theme in Harris’ hundreds of Christian songs. In Hide Thou Me, He writes, “O what a Friend is Jesus sure anchor for my soul, So tender, true and gracious, I'm safe in His control.”

In another classic from 1914, More Abundantly, the refrain goes, “All from Him receiving,
Yield to Him your all; Jesus will accept you When to Him you flee; He will grant His blessing more abundantly.”

*****

The word “trust,” and variations of it, appears in the King James Bible 191 times. A favorite famous quote of mine that I used to keep framed atop my office desk at work read, “Love can be understood only ‘from the inside,’ as a language can be understood only by someone who speaks it, as a world can be understood only by someone who lives in it.”

The author of the quote, renowned American educator and philosopher and author of 40-plus books, Robert C. Solomon, had many thoughts about the nature of trust and how he believed “many people are blind to it.”

Solomon observes, in a quick compilation of quotes from him, “Trust is not bound up with knowledge so much as it is with freedom, the openness to the unknown . . . Trust opens up new and unimagined possibilities . . . True, trust necessarily carries with it uncertainties, but we must force ourselves to think about these uncertainties as possibilities and opportunities, not as liabilities. . . Trust is a skill learned over time so that, like a well-trained athlete, one makes the right moves, usually without much reflection.”

Regarding the trust one can place in God’s Word, Jordan emphasizes, “When you come to a book that you can trust, instead of it disappointing you when you doubt it, you realize the problem was you, not it. You discover that as you keep studying it, you begin to trust it more and more. When you hear me talk about trusting the King James Bible, that’s not because I had some tradition to do that. That comes from almost 50 years of just reading it every day, studying it for what it is and letting it commend itself to me. I tell people all the time, ‘You should believe the bible you’re reading. You should let it tell you about itself.’ ”

II Samuel 22 says, [29] For thou art my lamp, O LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness.
[30] For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall.
[31] As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him.[32] For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God?
[33] God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect.
[34] He maketh my feet like hinds' feet: and setteth me upon my high places.
[35] He teacheth my hands to war; so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.
[36] Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy gentleness hath made me great.
[37] Thou hast enlarged my steps under me; so that my feet did not slip.”

(new article tomorrow)

Contentment comes from Christ being enough

“To engender confidence in Him and a healthy distrust of yourself is God’s ultimate reason for every experience He allows into your life,” says Jordan.

“Any growth that ever takes place costs something and what it costs is called suffering; the very fact of the existence of suffering is a part of the necessity for growing. The God of all comfort comforts us in our suffering so that we’ll learn the only person who will never let us down is Him.

“The whole issue behind it all is that you learn to trust Him because, when you learn that He’s all you’ve really got, then He’s all you can really trust. And when He’s all you’ve really got to trust, you’ll find out He’s all you really need. And when you realize He’s all you really need, you’ll learn a healthy distrust of yourself: ‘It’s not I but Christ.’

“It’s in the excellency of the power of God’s Word that works in you and teaches you the truth of it. Otherwise, you don’t know what the purpose of it is!

“Paul writes in II Timothy 3:15, ‘And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.’

“The salvation there is not salvation from hell because Timothy’s already saved. It’s salvation from the deception and the difficulties you read about in the first 14 verses of the chapter.

"Where do you find salvation from the perilous times? Where do you find salvation from the persecution and in the afflictions? You find it in God’s Word. That’s what deliverance from those things is.

*****

“One of the more valuable emotions is the emotion of contentment and, surprisingly, it’s one that is learned. It’s that emotional stability that comes from that ‘renewed mind’ depending on Christ as enough. It comes from depending on Him as your life. It’s that deep inner peace, that sense of the supernatural sufficiency of who you are in Christ.

“It’s that stability to live in ALL of life with that understanding of my dependence on Him being enough, being the treasure, being ‘for to me to live is Christ,’ and knowing that to die is just to bring that into ultimate reality.

*****

Paul writes in Philippians 4, [10] But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity.
[11] Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
[12] I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.
[13] I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
[14] Notwithstanding ye have well done, that ye did communicate with my affliction.

“The Philippians developed personal compassion; they put the needs of others above the wants of themselves,” explains Jordan. “They developed a generous spirit, because when you begin to release the very thing that consumes you—money, in this case; when you let it go you develop the ability to give.

“It destroys the compulsion to get because it’s the opposite of it. That happens when you do what verses 17-18 of Philippians 4 are talking about—you develop an eternal perspective: [17] Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account. [18] But I have all, and abound: I am full, having received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, wellpleasing to God.

“You come to the place where you realize your spiritual and financial decisions are literally joined at the hip. And that EVERY decision you make about things, relationships and money and emotions—all of those decisions are really spiritual decisions that have an eternal impact and they can bring honor and praise to God or can destroy your testimony.

“You see, our treasure—the thing we invest our talents, time and money to—reveals and directs our heart. You remember what Jesus said: ‘Where a man’s treasure is there will his heart be also.’ Now, that’s a principle anywhere in the Bible.

“I learned a secret about that years ago, if there was an area in my life that I noticed needed attention. Maybe it was a neglected area. I learned that if I would take that area of my life and just begin to focus some of my time and my treasure toward it, whatever it is, you know what, your heart will follow. Because your treasure directs your heart. It’s that powerful a thing!

“We unconsciously tell God what standard of living we’re willing to live at, what standard of relationships we’re willing to have, what standard of emotional life we’re willing to put up with. And then we impose that on this verse 19: [19] But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Q: Is that woman really a man?!

If you’re the Adversary, knowing God's made a promise of a coming Redeemer, the aim is to try and stop Him.

“If you know the way He’s going to come is through ‘the seed of a woman,’ then who would you attack?" asks Jordan. "The ‘sons of God’ (angels who aligned themselves with Satan) sought to rebel and destroy what God was doing by going after the ‘daughters of men,’ making them their wives, and their offspring were super-intellect giants; superheroes.

*****
Androgyne is a term "used to refer to the fused woman and man in a single body," informs a blog site defining symbolism.  

"As a symbol, the androgyne is for me both romantic and otherworldly," reports the blogger. "Romantic because this half-woman/half man is symbolic of twin souls who parted and reunited. We fall in love and instinctively seek out that one perfect mate to be with for life. And otherworldly because our search for that mate is really an echo of a bigger, cosmic goal of uniting with the universe, God, the Tao, or whatever you call that great something from whence we came and to which we will return someday.

"The idea of oneness, completeness, the unity of the physical and spiritual, of totally opposite worlds, is the main message of androgyny as an alchemical symbol."

*****

There’s a supernatural angelic invasion to attempt to corrupt the human race. Jude 6 says, [6] And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.

[7] Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.
[8] Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.

“Did you ever wonder where all the mythology (Greek, Roman, Phoenician, Norse, etc.) about 'superman' (gods with a little 'g') came from? You ever wonder where the ideas for all these big strong guys came from? Somebody wasn’t just sitting around with a hallucination in their head on their bed.

*****

Matthew 24:37-39 warns, [37] But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

[38] 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,
[39] And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

“That means that the things taking place in the days of Noah are going to be like the things taking place in the days before Christ comes back,” explains Jordan. “Well, some of things taking place in the days of Noah are kind of weird, having to do with angels that sinned.

“So II Peter says, ‘Hey guys, the angels that sinned back there, you see them out here doing it now . . . God didn’t spare them then and He isn’t going to spare them over there.’ "

Doesn't take brain surgeon to get 'Unity!'

Listening to radio talk show host Dennis Prager this morning driving from work, he argued Joe Biden was the biggest phony for saying stuff over the weekend such as, “I believe Democrats want to unify this nation. That’s what the party’s always been about. That’s what it’s always been about. Unity.”

That singular word "unity," stolen from the Apostle Paul, is one of the primary calling card dog-whistle chants of the One World Antichrist forces on the right and left. Russian occultist Madame Helena Blavatsky, co-founder of the Theosophical Society (1875) and considered the Grand Dame of Luciferianism, pushed the word at every turn.

When Mike Pence visited Las Vegas just after the mass shooting there, he spoke repeatedly about "unity" at the “Unity Prayer Walk.” After the violent Antifa incident in Charlottesville, Va., music stars such as Justin Timberlake, Pharrell Williams and Dave Matthews performed at the “Charlottesville Unity Concert.”

All the time anymore the word “unity,” common in New Age propaganda, comes up. Trump prayed for unity when he visited Las Vegas.

"When you open your heart to patriotism, there's no room for prejudice," Trump is quoted as saying on BrainyQuotes website. "The Bible tells us, 'How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity.' "

*****

“The Unity of religions” is listed as one of the three original aims of the Theosophical Society. The first is “Universal Brotherhood” and last is “The investigation of the mysteries of the universe behind the laws of science.”

The website “Theosophy Forward” explains, “As Theosophists, to implement this ‘heaven’ in this century, we need to put aside historical and organizational differences, and recognize our unity. Otherwise, we could get caught in the trap of one organization struggling for power over the others.

“This unity is not only in the inherent metaphysics of nature, but also in the We can best work together by recognizing the divine unity in all humans, and the achievement of brothers and sisters of other Dharma who have helped humanity.

“For this idea of fraternity to directly impact the world, as The Great Master’s Letter affirms, we must set an example, not only of unity, but also of altruism to the enlightened minds of every race, creed, and nation.

“In Five Messages to American Theosophists, H.P.B. exhorts us, ‘Union is our strength; and for every private difference must be sunk in United Work for our great cause.’ She also says, ‘Feel yourselves a vehicle of the whole humanity, and make it as part of yourselves and act accordingly.’ Recognizing ourselves to be one Great Vehicle, we can do no better than to follow her sublime advice.”

*****

As the Apostle Paul says in Ephesians 4:13, "Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ."

Preacher Richard Jordan explains, “Jesus Christ becomes the ‘first born from the dead’ so He might be the head of the Body, having preeminence not just in the earth, but in the heavenly places. So God’s got this one great plan to glorify Himself in two realms—the heaven and the earth.

“When God says He’s going to gather them together in one, everything’s going to think like the head thinks. You know how you ‘get together’? You all speak the same thing, think the same thing. The Body of Christ is the great example. As Paul says, 'Many members, yet but one body.' We have all this diversity, but we work together as one body.

“God’s purpose is to take His creation and turn it into a living manifestation of how He thinks, how He operates, how He responds, and He’s going to put it all under the headship of the Lord Jesus Christ. Of course, the Lord’s going to be the brains of the outfit because He’s the head.

“He’ll be located in Planet Earth as the command center, but all through the universe, for Him to think it will be for you to do it. For Him to will it will be for you to accomplish it. And He’ll have this whole universe gathered together as one functioning unit.

 “Have you ever heard Jesus say, ‘If you’re not for me you’re against me?’ If you’re not with me you’re against me. What does that mean? If I’m with somebody, I’m in agreement with them. I’m thinking like they’re thinking. I’m with you; I’ve got you. That’s the way that word is used."

(new article tomorrow promise)

Fellowheirs, of the same body

I John is a book written by one of the 12 apostles to the nation Israel. John says in the first verse that "our hands have handled the word of life."

"John’s saying, 'We were there, we saw the Lord Jesus Christ, we had Him in our hands, the life was manifested to us that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ,' " explains Jordan.

“John is going to tell Israel how to get back into fellowship with God through this new covenant He’s going to make. He writes to the self-righteous nation Israel, who thought they could do it on their own, and tells them to admit they’re not able; that they’re the adulterous wife and need to come back to their husband.

“Look at how he says it in verse 5: 'This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.'

"How much darkness is in God? So if you’re walking in darkness, are you in God? He continues, ‘If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
 [7] But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

“So if you’re in the light, the blood of Christ cleanses you. That’s good news. If you’re in darkness, you’re out.

“Verse 8 says, [8] If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

“Jesus said, ‘I didn’t come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners. If you say you have no sin, Israel, you’re nuts! You deceive yourselves.'

"The idea is, ‘If we say we’ve got no sin, we’re in trouble. If we say we have sin, the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us.’

“The rest of the chapter reads, [9] If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
[10] If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

“Very clearly, when you read that, it's is a plea to the nation Israel to confess what they are and who they are and return to their first love on the basis of the new covenant.

*****

“I John 1:9 is used in religion to tell you if you ‘keep confessing your sins and keep short accounts with God . . .' That verse has nothing to do with that! That’s a salvation verse for the nation Israel!

“One day Israel's going to do it. Go back to Hosea 2 and He says, ‘I married you, you departed and I divorced you, but I’m going to remarry you and I’m going to restore you and I’m never going to let you go again.’

“You ever hear the song Beulah Land? The word ‘Beulah’ in Isaiah is a name for the land of Israel. The name Beulah means ‘married.’ God’s going to take the nation Israel and marry them to the land of Palestine, the land of Israel, and never allow them to depart (that’s what divorce is) again. They’re going to be stuck in that land and they’ll never be separated again.

“God’s going to do that for Israel and that’s the 'fellowship of prophecy.' Problem with that is you’re not in that! You’re on the outside looking in.

“Paul writes in Ephesians 3:9, [9] And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:

“We have a different fellowship. We don’t have the 'fellowship of prophecy,' where He gave them the Law covenant and they failed, or He gave them the new covenant. He didn’t make the new covenant with us, folks; He made it with Israel!

“Look in Hebrews 8 where He says, ‘Again, I made it with the house of Israel,’ and He says it’s a ‘better covenant,’ because it’s going to WORK. Because it isn’t dependent on their working; it will be dependent on what HE does.

*****

"It’s the Crosswork that gives God the capacity to bring everybody back into fellowship with Him. Verse 16 says, [16] And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

“We’re ‘fellowheirs.’ We’re of the same body. We’re part of the program now. Why? Because of the dispensation of the grace of God ‘given to me to give to you,’ Paul explains.

“I Corinthians 1:9 says, [9] God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

“God has chosen to do something He didn’t prophesy, He didn’t promise, He didn’t covenant with anybody to do. He’s chosen to take us Gentiles into His fellowship with His Son, and THROUGH His Son with Him. Christ is the heir of all things and we are ‘fellowheirs’ of God through Christ.

“The 'fellowship of the mystery' is what God’s forming as He forms the Church the Body of Christ. His death becomes our death and we’re crucified with Him. That’s more than just, ‘He died for my sins.’ That’s more than just, ‘He paid for my sin.’ That means I’m now dead to that sin for He paid for it. He that is dead is free from sin. I can sing that song Glorious Freedom.

*****

“The passage in Hebrews 8 reads, [10] For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
[11] And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

  

“Jehovah’s going to take Israel back and restore the fellowship between Him and Israel based upon a new covenant that’s made in the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

“That’s what the Book of I John’s about! I John starts out, [1] That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
[2] (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)
[3] That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

“Now, you notice this epistle was written by John? We read that verse in Galatians 2:9, 'And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.’

“They agreed Paul would go to the heathen and they would go to who? The circumcision. So if John had agreed to go to the circumcision, who do you think he’s writing to?

“You need to think about that because that will help you understand what’s going on in I John. That will help you resist some religionist who comes along and uses I John to tell you that if you don’t live by the commandments (this guy wants you to live by in his particular denominational system), you’re not ‘born of God.’ "

(new article tomorrow) 

Real deal in true fellowship

The only time in the Four Gospels we’re told Jesus Christ rejoiced is in Luke 10:21: [21] In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.

Jordan reasons, “It’s fascinating what He rejoiced in. There’s the ‘wise and prudent’ in Israel, but then there are some people who are like ‘babes,’ who have just simple faith; ‘childlike faith,’ as Matthew calls it.

“Christ says, ‘Be a part of that group of people who rejoice in the real deal. You’ve got a real reason to rejoice, not just in the things you’re able to accomplish, but in the fact that you’re really a part of something.’

“I John 1:3-4 says, [3] That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
[4] And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.

“The purpose of the Book of I John is that the people it's written to would have fellowship with the ‘little flock.’ Literally, the ‘we’ and the ‘us’ in the passage is the 12 Apostles.

“They’re the ones who declared and did the things in verses 1 and 2: [1] That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
[2] (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)

*****

“The word fellowship means partnership. Fellows in a ship. It’s when the same thing happens to everybody. You know what happened on the Titanic? It sank. You know where that left everybody? In the water. They all got wet. Now, some of them survived, but a whole bunch of them didn’t and the point I’m making is they were all in the same boat.

“Fellowship means a 'bunch of fellows in the same ship.' It means we share in a common lot together; a partnership. Communion is another word. Literally, to be in fellowship with God is to share things with God that belong to Him. If you don’t share God’s life, you know what’s going to happen to you? You don’t have life anymore.

“That business in Christian circles about being ‘in fellowship, out of fellowship, back in fellowship and then back out of fellowship,’ is a misnomer that, I was going to start to say snuck into the Christian life, but it didn’t sneak in; it just walked in with jack boots; a big noisy entrance!

“What it has to do with is an absolute complete misunderstanding of what ‘fellowship’ is in I John. It’s all this incorrect business about keeping a ‘short-accounts system,’ where you confess your sins to keep your fellowship with God going.

“Anybody who tells you, ‘You don’t have to worry about breaking your relationship, but just confess to keep it open,’ is somebody who never read the Book of I John!

"If you’re going to quote I John 1:9, don’t forget to quote I John 2:12, will you, because He says in that verse, ‘Little children, your sins are forgiven.’ There’s a verse written to Believers. I John 1:9 is not written to Believers; it’s written to identify who Believers are.

“What was it that John the Baptist called them to do? It was the ‘baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.’ They went to John confessing their sins—did exactly what Leviticus 26 and other passages said they were to do—in order to be restored back out of the corrupt, apostate religious system they had been taken by.

*****

“The great definition of 'eternal life' is in I John 1:3, but that’s also what He’s talking about with having a fellowship that is with the Father and with the Son; it has to do with possession of that life. John 17:3 says, [3] And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

“When He says in the next verse, [4] I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do,’ what work is that that He’s finished?

“It’s two more chapters before He hangs on the Cross and says, ‘It’s finished,’ so it can’t be that work; the work of redemption. It’s something else that He had to do. Do you ever wonder why Jesus ministered on the earth for 3 1/2 years? What was He doing?

“How did He know at the end of 3 1/2 years that it was time to quit and go to Calvary and die; that the hour had come for that to be accomplished? He was doing something during His earthly ministry, and He says the night before He dies, ‘I’ve finished it; the work that you gave me to do, I’ve finished.’

“What’s Christ talking about here in the passage? John 17: 6: [6] I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.

“He says in verse 8, [8] For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.

“You know what He’s talking about? He’s talking about the training, the work, the giving of the message to the apostles, and through them to the ‘little flock.’ That work is completed. Now, He’s completed His work as the son of David and now He, as the son of Abraham, can go to Calvary.

“In all of that you come to verse 12: [12] While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.

“That’s one verse that will help you to understand who the Lord’s talking about; He’s talking about the apostles because one of them was lost. He’s talking about the ‘little flock’ in Israel.

“Verse 13-17: [13] And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
[14] I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
[15] I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
[16] They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
[17] Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

“Now, that’s the issue there. When He says, ‘I’m writing these things that your joy might be full,’ this is what He’s talking about: ‘So you might be a part of those the Father has given me; you might be part of the true fellowship with the Father and me.’ ”

*****

“God forms that ‘little flock’ through the ministry of those apostles and in the ages to come the 144,000 will be the catalyst comparable to the 12 back in the Book of Acts. The issue is coming to the place where you have fellowship with the Father and with His Son; that you’re a part of the real genuine fellowship in Israel: ‘And these things we write.’

“That expression ‘that your joy may be full’ is very important because it really identifies the purpose of the book and the group of people Christ’s talking to. In Luke 10 is a fascinating passage where the Lord sends out His disciples and they come back to Him.

“Specifically, Luke 10:16-20 says, [16] He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.
[17] And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
[18] And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.
[19] Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
[20] Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.

“In other words, they are a part of His program to dislodge the Adversary from his plan of conquest over God’s kingdom and authority and from Satan’s policy of evil to place himself in God’s position. They’re a part of that restoration and reclamation program to take away from the usurper that which he has and they’re invested with this authority.

“At this point, the kingdom of God has come in the person of Jesus Christ and His Spirit working through them and that’s why there’s this tremendous conflict between the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light at that time. They have that power and they’re rejoicing in all that.

*****

“When Jesus says in John 15:11, ‘These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full,’ that’s a comment He’s making to the 12 Apostles.

"There are only 11 of them at the time (Judas has exited already), but this is in the Upper Room the night before He dies and He’s there with that inner group of people, the ‘little flock’ at its core, emphasizing, ‘I’m telling you these things so that your joy might be full.’

“He continues to talk to them in John 16:23-24: [23] And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.
[24] Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

“Come to John 17 in the Lord’s prayer. Again, the Lord’s Prayer is not the 'Our Father' prayer of Matthew 6. It’s not the 'Disciples Prayer.' It’s the prayer that the Lord Jesus Christ prays the night before He dies as recorded in John 16. Here’s the REAL Lord’s Prayer.

“John 17:13 says, [13] And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.’ When He says ‘now come I to thee,’ that’s Christ coming to the Father. The ‘they’ there is going to be the 12 Apostles, in particular, and who they minister to, in general. Go back to verse 1: [1] These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:

“Seven times in this passage Christ identifies some people the Father has given to Him. We looked at Isaiah 8 where Isaiah prophetically quotes the Messiah as saying, ‘[18] Behold, I and the children whom the LORD hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion.’

*****

“You can go back into the Old Testament and see this issue about the true fellowship with the Father and with the Son, how it was established, how it was corrupted and how it’s going to be restored. As you do that, you need to get these things kind of rolling around in your mind.

“That expression of Isaiah’s about ‘the children whom the Lord hath given me’; in John 13 He says to the apostles there, ‘Little children,’ identifying them. They’re the children, in the sense that they’re the leaders of this ‘little flock.’ The verse says, ‘Fear not little flock it’s your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.’

“As John 17:3 says, [3] And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

“That’s what Christ says in I John 1.  Our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son. They share something in common with the Father and with the Son; they share an identity together, they share LIFE together."

(new article tomorrow)

Virtuous woman mother of wisdom

The first verse of Proverbs 31 ("The words of king Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother taught him") identifies the Book of Proverbs as a book of prophecy.

“Proverbs is not just a book of wisdom; it’s a book about some prophetic things Lemuel’s mother taught him," explains Jordan. “It’s talking about wisdom that, in the prophetic program, Israel is going to need to function in the Tribulation Period to distinguish between the vain religious system of Baal worship the Antichrist propagates and the true wisdom of God.

“In Proverbs, there are two women. There’s the virtuous woman, but there’s also the vile woman and she’s a picture of that vain religious system Revelation calls ‘MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.’

“The other one is that ‘virgin daughter’ of the nation Israel, as Isaiah calls her. There’s going to be that true remnant of God and Proverbs is written prophetically for them as a book to give them discernment—ability to discern between the true and the false--there’s a seduction program in the satanic attack against Israel and it’s to try and draw them away into error.

*****

“There’s nobody in the Bible named Lemuel, but a lot of times names are titles. There’s nobody named Caesar, for example; it’s a title. We call the president the president and the mayor the mayor. The name Lemuel means ‘devoted to God.’ Here’s the king who’s devoted to God and that obviously could be Solomon.

“Proverbs 30 and 31 are two chapters stuck on the end of the Book that are really weird, and I’m saying that reverently. People who teach Proverbs often do it without understanding anything about right division and they say, ‘For some strange reason God stuck this stuff at the end and here’s what a godly king and a virtuous woman look like.’

“The answer is He did it because the king and His bride, Christ and Israel, are going to function together and that’s who’s functioning here.

“He uses the issue of the virtuous woman to teach those things. Proverbs 31:10 says, [10] Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.

“This is not designed to present a dilemma; it’s a challenge, a declaration: ‘Let me tell you how you find her because her price is far above rubies.’ The idea is if you have a precious stone, the longer you have it, its value goes up.

“The value of a virtuous woman is the longer she lives the more her value increases. The word ‘virtue’ means ‘moral excellence.’ It’s the outward display of wisdom.

“When you try to define a word, the best way to look for a definition is to find a verse in the Bible that defines it for you, because then you know how the Bible uses the word. Sometimes a dictionary gives you six different definitions of a word and you’re not sure which one it ought to be.

“I used to be puzzled about (God’s) idea of virtue because of this really odd verse in Luke 8: [46] And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.

“What flowed out of Him? Power to heal that woman, so virtue has to do with the strength that is produced by moral excellence. It’s not just that she’s correct, but it’s that there’s a strength; there’s an internal character of strength produced by the truth of God’s Word.

*****

“Isaiah 33:6 says, [6] And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure.

“God has this treasure chest and the way you get into it is the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. It tells you what’s in the treasure chest and it’s the key that unlocks it and allows you to begin to get out of it the treasure that’s in it.

“The wisdom and knowledge that’s in that treasure chest is going to be stability of the times and strength of salvation.

“You look at the world we live in today—is there much stability? Why, just look at the politics and how goofy everything is. Look at the economy. Everything’s turned on its head. Look at the social structure, all the stuff going on with transgender bathrooms, and you say, ‘Doesn’t anybody have any common sense?!’

“That verse tells you why. There’s no wisdom and knowledge; there’s no fear of God that lets you go into the treasure chest and bring out some understanding that would give stability to the culture you live in.

“If you want to see a nation go away, how a nation’s destroyed and what it looks like when it falls apart, look at the nation Israel. They were God’s nation, and when God sent them into captivity, destroyed their national government and sent them among the nations, He described what was happening to them and why. Isaiah 33:6 is one of the passages that tells you how to avoid the destruction.

“Isaiah 5 says there are five social events that tell you the nation’s crumbled. Verse 20 says, [20] Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

“When you can’t distinguish between light and darkness, good and evil, bitter and sweet, it’s over! It’s not going to be over; it IS over!

“What happened to Israel? Well, the fear of the Lord, honoring what God said above what man said, wasn’t there and so the treasures that trusting in God’s Word would have brought to them weren’t in their culture.

*****

“The virtuous woman is the one who understands how to have the stability and the deliverance. Where did her virtue come from? Proverbs 31:26 says, [26] She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.

“Where did she get the wisdom from? Verse 30: [30] Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised.

“You see that? She understood how to fear God. She understood how to put what God said above anything else.

“The fear of God is an interesting thing. We usually think about it as running from God, but that’s a fool’s errand. How good did Adam and Eve do with that? You can run from God but you can’t get away from Him. Jonah fled from the presence of God, but how did that work for him? David said, ‘If I make my bed in hell, thou art there. No matter where you go, He’s there!’

“The fear of God is the ability to be afraid of running from God to sin in order to alleviate your problems rather than allow God’s word to alleviate them for you. That’s why in Ephesians 5, Paul says we’re to ‘submit ourselves one to another in the fear of God.’

“That’s why Paul says in Philippians 2 to you and me that we’re to obey God’s word ‘with fear and trembling.’ That is, ‘I understand that’s truth and I FEAR the results of not obeying it, because to not obey it is sin and I fear the consequences of sin and what God says they are, and I fear forsaking him, running to sin to solve my anxieties and my difficulties.’

“Proverbs 8:13, I think, is a great definition of the fear of the Lord. The verse says, ‘The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.’

“Please watch that. Notice the first thing he says he hates is pride and arrogance. That’s long before the evil way. Before the action is the attitude. Every action, every overt thing you do, out of the heart are the issues of life. Jesus said in Matthew 15 that ‘from within come the things that defile a man.’

“Proverbs 4:23 says, [23] Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. That’s saying, ‘Here’s how the inner thinking is to be designed,’ and proverbs is a book about wisdom.

“As Proverbs 1 explains, [3] To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;
[4] To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.
[5] A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

“That’s talking about counsel to handle the details of life in a way that accomplishes God’s purpose. Verse 7 says, [7] The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning; it’s the foundation stage. It’s not the summum bonum--the end--but it’s where wisdom BEGINS. It’s where real understanding and knowledge begins.

“Listen, if you want to know what’s going on in life, it starts with understanding what God says and saying, ‘That’s what is more important than what anyone else does.’ That’s what Proverbs is for; it’s purpose is to give wisdom and instruction and understanding so you can attain to wisdom."

(new article tomorrow)

Totally submerged in Him

Matthew reports, “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.”

Jordan explains, “That word ‘scribe’ there means a guy who writes things. The scribes wrote down the Scripture, copying it out, but Jesus doesn’t teach like the scribes. He teaches with authority.

*****

“In Galatians 1, the Apostle Paul, when describing his gospel and how his message is unique and distinct from those who were there before him, gives, as it were, a certificate of apostleship.

“He writes in Galatians 1:11-12, ‘But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.

[12] For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.’

“He’s going to document and give proof validating that statement. If you go down through the rest of chapter 1, and then through chapter 2, there are at least 14 specific points Paul makes that demonstrate the distinctiveness of his ministry.

“He writes in Galatians 1: [20] Now the things which I write unto you, behold, before God, I lie not.

*****

“Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:11 that God ‘gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.’ The prophets referred to are the New Testament prophets.

“Paul was a prophet but he was also an apostle. He never wrote anything as a prophet; he wrote as an apostle. Paul warns in I Corinthians 14:37, ‘If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.’

“One of the jobs of a prophet all through Scripture is to say, ‘Thus sayeth the Lord.’ He spoke for God. One of the jobs of the prophets in those churches Paul established was to say, ‘This is God’s Word.’

“In II Thessalonians 2:2 there were some people counterfeiting epistles, writing them and saying they were from Paul when they weren’t. But, you see, the local church there had an office, a prophet, a God-empowered person with a supernatural ability as a gift of that church to say, ‘This is Scripture,’ and to speak for God.”

*****

"Four times in Paul’s writings he uses the expression, ‘This is a faithful saying.’

“The idea is, ‘This is something you can count on.' A lot of things in the world you can’t count on. You know what a 'saying' is.

We have a lot of sayings that aren’t real faithful, but a ‘faithful saying’ is one you can depend on.

“You know, we say, ‘Birds of a feather flock together,’ and that’s saying there are people out there who are kind of the same, but then you see two people who are absolute opposites get together and you say, ‘Opposites attract.’

“Well, which is it? There’s one that fits one situation and another that fits a different situation and we do those kind of things.

“A faithful saying is one that God guarantees to be true every single time. There are four times Paul refers to it in four different relationships. The first one is about the gospel. I Timothy 1:15 says, [15] This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

“The second one is about godliness. I Timothy 4:8-9 says, [8] For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.

[9] This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation.

“The next one is in II Timothy 2 and it has to do with the enduring of suffering. The passage says, [11] It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him:

[12] If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:
[13] If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

“The last one is in Titus 3:8: [8] This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.

“You’ll notice all of these sayings are in personal epistles to Timothy and Titus. They are written to men involved in the work of the ministry of the Body of Christ. When you look at these four sayings you’re really looking at the whole gamut of what the Christian life is really all about.

*****

“Three words, ‘in Christ Jesus,’ and variations such as ‘in Christ,’ or ‘in Him,’ are phrases used by Paul more than 130 times in his 13 epistles. It is the dominant thinking of Paul because in his mind, being ‘in Christ Jesus’ is the essence of what Christianity is all about; it’s the essence of the grace of God and who we are.

“Christ is our life, our mind, our goal, our strength; He’s the sum total, the excellency of all that we have. ‘In Christ’—you’ve got to get the idea—is to be IN something. The idea is to be IN the sphere of something.

“I like to say we’re encapsulated. You see, if you were in a circle, that would be different. When you’re in a capsule, you’re surrounded with protection and then if a brick fell, what would happen? It would bounce off! You’re completely surrounded. That’s what it means to be ‘in Christ.’

*****

“Paul says in Colossians 3:3, ‘For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.’

“I used to struggle with this verse, wondering, ‘What does it mean?!’ Then it dawned on me it means exactly what it says. What a thought!

"If I’m standing in a circle, I’m not hid and you can see me. It’s just on one plane. But if I’m in a capsule and ‘hid with Christ,’ I’m totally submerged inside of God with Christ!

"You know what that is? That’s security! That means I’m safe and secure inside of Him from any harm; any foes on the outside. And I’m completely supplied by everything that’s in the capsule.”

*****

“God has chosen us IN HIM and we are made alive IN HIM,” writes Bible commentary author Cora Harris MacIlravy. “We are new creatures IN HIM and are to walk IN HIM as we received Him, rooted and builded up IN HIM and established in our faith.

“We become the righteousness of God IN HIM, we are established IN HIM, and can do all things IN HIM that strengtheneth us. God always lead us in triumph IN HIM, making us a sweet savor of Christ unto God. IN HIM we have all spiritual blessings in heavenly places; as we abide IN HIM, we are made complete IN Him who is the Head of all principalities and powers. And we are made more than conquerors THROUGH HIM that loved us.

“It is as we realize upon the vital union which God has put between Christ, who is the ‘chiefest of ten thousand,’ and us, who are members of His body, that this mighty Conqueror enables us to set up banners (floating over, His own peculiar banner, bearing His name, ‘Love’) through the power of His work upon Calvary. Thus is He glorified.”

*****

“Learning what God’s doing is not an issue of just learning a bunch of doctrine,” explains Jordan. “Somebody told me the other day, ‘Well, were in this predicament and we’re just glad to have the doctrine work.’ Now that’s true, but it’s not just the doctrine working.

“In the Scripture it’s really 'the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe,’ and when that happens, you know what’s really working in you? Christ is working in you. So when you talk about, ‘Well, it’s the doctrine working,’ remember it’s really the life of Jesus Christ working.

“There’s that personal intimate understanding, and when you come to Ephesians you’ve come to the place where God says, ‘Come in and let me have access with you; let me bring you into access to understand.’ What’s going on here is the Triune God.”